Arsenius and His Hand

God’s special providence brought Arsenius to Tyre as well. Ignoring the instructions he had received from the accusers who had bribed him, he went there in disguise to see what would happen. Somehow it came about that the servants of Archelaus, the governor of the province, heard some people at an inn say that Arsenius, who was reported to have been murdered, was hiding in the house of one of the citizens. When they heard this, they took note of the people who had said it and passed the information on to their master. He had a careful search made for the man at once, found him, and kept him under guard. Then he sent word to Athanasius that he need not be alarmed, since Arsenius was alive and there in the city. When Arsenius was arrested, he at first denied that he was the man; but Paul, bishop of Tyre, who had known him before, proved who he was. [a]

Divine providence having arranged matters in this way, Athanasius was summoned by the synod shortly afterward. As soon as he appeared, his slanderers produced the hand and pressed their charge. He handled the affair very wisely. He asked those present, and his accusers too, who among them knew Arsenius. Several answered that they knew him. Then he had Arsenius brought in, with his hands covered by his cloak, and asked them again: “Is this the man who has lost a hand?” Everyone was astonished at this unexpected move, except those who knew where the hand had really come from. The rest thought Arsenius really was missing a hand, and expected the accused to make his defense some other way. But Athanasius turned back Arsenius’s cloak on one side and showed one of the man’s hands. Then, while some were supposing that the other hand was missing, he left them in doubt for a little while, and afterward turned back the cloak on the other side and showed the other hand. Then he turned to those present and said: “Arsenius, as you see, turns out to have two hands. Let my accusers show the place where the third was cut off.”