HISTORIANS declare that India is divided into three parts; and the 
first is said to end at Ethiopia, and the second at Media, and the third 
completes the country; and the one portion of it ends in the dark, and the 
other in the ocean. To this India, then, the holy Bartholomew the apostle 
of Christ went, and took up his quarters in the temple of Astaruth, and 
lived there as one of the pilgrims and the poor. In this temple, then, 
there was an idol called Astaruth, which was supposed to heal the infirm, 
but rather the more injured all. And the people were in entire ignorance of 
the true God; and from want of knowledge, but rather from the difficulty of 
going to any other, they all fled for refuge to the false god. And he 
brought upon them troubles, infirmities, damage, violence, and much 
affliction; and when any one sacrificed to him, the demon, retiring, 
appeared to give a cure to the person in trouble; and the foolish people, 
seeing this, believed in him. But the demons retired, not because they 
wished to cure men, but that they might the more assail them, and rather 
have them altogether in their power; and thinking that they were cured 
bodily, those that sacrificed to them were the more diseased in soul. 

And it came to pass, that while the holy apostle of Christ, 
Bartholomew, stayed there, Astaruth gave no response, and was not able for 
curing. And when the temple was full of sick persons, who sacrificed to him 
daily, Astaruth could give no response; and sick persons who had come from 
far countries were lying there. When, therefore, in that temple not even 
one of the idols was able to give a response, and was of benefit neither to 
those that sacrificed to them nor to those who were in the agonies of death 
on their account, they were compelled to go to another city, where there 
was a temple of idols, where their great and most eminent god was called 
Becher.(1) And having there sacrificed, they demanded, asking why their god 
Astaruth had not responded to them. And the demon Becher answered and said 
to them: From the day and hour that the true God, who dwelleth in the 
heavens, sent his apostle Bartholomew into the regions here, your god 
Astaruth is held fast by chains of fire, and can no longer either speak or 
breathe. They said to him: And who is this Bartholomew? He answered: He is 
the friend of the Almighty God, and has just come into these parts, that he 
may take away all the worship of the idols in the name of his God. And the 
servants of the Greeks said to him: Tell us what he is like, that we may be 
able to find him. 

And the demon answered and said: He has black hair, a shaggy head, a 
fair skin,(2) large eyes, beautiful nostrils, his ears hidden by the hair 
of his head, with a yellow beard, a few grey hairs, of middle height, and 
neither tall nor stunted, but middling, clothed with a white undercloak 
bordered with purple, and upon his shoulders a very white cloak; and his 
clothes have been worn twenty-six years, but neither are they dirty, nor 
have they waxed old. Seven times(3) a day he bends the knee to the Lord, 
and seven times(3) a night does he pray to God. His voice is like the 
sonnet of a strong trumpet; there go along with him angels of God, who 
allow him neither to be weary, nor to hunger, nor to thirst; his face, and 
his soul, and his heart are always glad and rejoicing; he foresees 
everything, he knows and speaks every tongue of every nation. And behold 
now, as soon as you ask me, and I answer you about him, behold, he knows; 
for the angels of the Lord tell him; and if you wish to seek him, if he is 
willing he will appear to you; but if he shall not be willing, you will not 
be able to find him. I entreat you, therefore, if you shall find him, 
entreat him not to come here, lest his angels do to me as they have done 
to my brother Astaruth. 

And when the demon had said this, he held his peace. And they returned, 
and set to work to look into every face of the pilgrims and poor men, and 
for two days they could find him no where. And it came to pass, that one 
who was a demoniac set to work to cry out: Apostle of the Lord, 
Bartholomew, thy prayers are burning me up. Then said the apostle to him: 
Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And that very hour, the man who had 
suffered from the demon for many years was set free. 

And Polymius, the king of that country, happened to be standing 
opposite the apostle; and he had a daughter a demoniac, that is to say, a 
lunatic. And he heard about the demoniac that had been healed, and sent 
messengers to the apostle, saying: My daughter is grievously torn; I 
implore thee, therefore, as thou hast delivered him(1) who suffered for 
many years, so also to order my daughter to be set free. And the apostle 
rose up, and went with them. And he sees the king's daughter bound with 
chains, for she used to tear in pieces all her limbs; and if any one came 
near her, she used to bite, and no one dared to come near her. The servants 
say to him: And who is it that dares to touch her? The apostle answered 
them: Loose her, and let her go. They say to him again: We have her in our 
power when she is bound with all our force, and dost thou bid us loose 
her? The apostle says to them: Behold, I keep her enemy bound, and are you 
even now afraid of her? Go and loose her; and when she has partaken of 
food, let her rest, and early to-morrow bring her to me. And they went and 
did as the apostle had commanded them; and thereafter the demon was not 
able to come near her. 

Then the king loaded camels with gold and silver, precious stones, 
pearls, and clothing, and sought to see the apostle; and having made many 
efforts, and not found him, he brought everything back to his palace. 

And it happened, when the night had passed, and the following day was 
dawning, the sun having risen, the apostle appeared alone with the king in 
his bed-chamber, and said to him: Why didst thou seek me yesterday the 
whole day with gold and silver, and precious stones, pearls, and raiment? 
For these gifts those persons long for who seek earthly things; but I seek 
nothing earthly, nothing carnal. Wherefore I wish to teach thee that the 
Son of God deigned to be born as a man out of a virgin's womb. He was 
conceived in the womb of the virgin; He took to Himself her who was always 
a virgin, having within herself Him who made the heaven and the earth, the 
sea, and all that therein is. He, born of a virgin, like mankind, took to 
Himself a beginning in time, He who has a beginning neither of times nor 
days; but He Himself made every beginning, and everything created, whether 
in things visible or invisible. And as this virgin did not know man, so 
she, preserving her virginity, vowed a vow(2) to the Lord God. And she was 
the first who did so. For, from the time that man existed from the 
beginning of the world, no woman made a vow of this mode of life; but she, 
as she was the first among women who loved this in her heart, said, I offer 
to Thee, O Lord, my virginity. And, as I have said to thee, none of mankind 
dared to speak this word; but she being called for the salvation of many, 
observed this--that she might remain a virgin through the love of God, 
pure and undefiled. And suddenly, when she was shut up in her chamber, the 
archangel Gabriel appeared, gleaming like the sun; and when she was 
terrified at the sight, the angel said to her, Fear not, Mary; for thou 
hast found favour in the sight of the Lord, and thou shall conceive. And 
she cast off fear, and stood up, and said, How shall this be to me, since I 
know not man? The angel answered her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, 
and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee; wherefore also that 
holy thing which is born of thee shall be called Son of God.(3) Thus, 
therefore, when the angel had departed from her, she escaped the temptation 
of the devil, who deceived the first man when at rest. For, having tasted 
of the tree of disobedience, when the woman said to him, Eat, he ate; and 
thus the first man was cast out of paradise, and banished to this life. 
From him have been horn the whole human race. Then the Son of God having 
been born of the virgin, and having become perfect man, and having been 
baptized, and after His baptism having fasted forty days, the tempter came 
and said to Him: If thou art the Son of God, tell these stones to become 
loaves. And He answered: Not on bread alone shall man live, but by every 
word of God.(4) Thus therefore the devil, who through eating bad conquered 
the first man, was conquered through the fasting of the second man; and as 
he through want of self-restraint had conquered the first man, the son of 
the virgin earth, so we shall conquer through the fasting of the second 
Adam, the Son of the Virgin Mary. 

The king says to him: And how is it that thou saidst just now that she 
was the first virgin of whom was born God and man? And the apostle 
answered: I give thanks to the Lord that thou hearest me gladly. The first 
man, then, was called Adam; he was formed out of the earth. And the earth, 
his mother out of which he was, was virgin, because it had neither been 
polluted by the blood of man nor opened for the burial of any one. The 
earth, then, was like the virgin, in order that he who conquered the son of 
the virgin earth might be conquered by the Son of the Virgin Mary. And, 
behold, he did conquer; for his wicked craft, through the eating of the 
tree by which man, being deceived, came forth from paradise, kept paradise 
shut. Thereafter this Son of the virgin conquered all the craft of the 
devil. And his craft was such, that when he saw the Son of the virgin 
fasting forty days, he knew in truth that He was the true God. The true God 
and man, therefore, hath not given Himself out to be known, except to those 
who are pure in heart,(1) and who serve Him by good works. The devil 
himself, therefore, when he saw that after the forty days He was again 
hungry, was deceived into thinking that He was not God, and said to Him, 
Why hast thou been hungry? tell these stones to become loaves, and eat. And 
the Lord answered him, Listen, devil; although thou mayst lord it over man, 
because he has not kept the commandment of God. I have fulfilled the 
righteousness of God in having fasted, and shall destroy thy power, so that 
thou shalt no longer lord it over man. And when he saw himself conquered, 
he again takes Jesus to an exceeding high mountain, and shows Him all the 
kingdoms of the world, and says, All these will I give thee, if thou wilt 
fall down and worship me. The Lord says to him, Get thee behind me, Satan; 
for it is written, Thou shall worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shall 
thou serve. And there was a third temptation for the Lord; for he takes Him 
up to the pinnacle of the temple, and says, If thou art the Son of God, 
cast thyself down. The Lord says to him, Thou shall not tempt the Lord thy 
God. And the devil disappeared. And he indeed that once conquered Adam, the 
son of the virgin earth, was thrice conquered by Christ, the Son of the 
Virgin Mary. 

And when the Lord had conquered the tyrant, He sent His apostles into 
all the world, that He might redeem His people from the deception of the 
devil; and one of these I am, an apostle of Christ. On this account we seek 
not after gold and silver, but rather despise them, because we labour to be 
rich in that place where the kingdom of Him alone endureth(2) for ever, 
where neither trouble, nor grief, nor groaning, nor death, has place; where 
there is eternal blessedness, and ineffable joy, and everlasting 
exultation, and perpetual repose. Wherefore also the demon sitting in your 
temple, who makes responses to you, is kept in chains through the angel of 
the Lord who has sent me. Because if thou shall be baptized, and wishest 
thyself to be enlightened, I will make thee behold Him, and learn from how 
great evils thou hast been redeemed. At the same time hear also by what 
means he injures all those who are lying sick in the temple. The devil 
himself by his own art causes the men to be sick, and again to be healed, 
in order that they may the more believe in the idols, and in order that he 
may have place the more in their souls, in order that they may say to the 
stock and the stone, Thou art our God.(3) But that demon who dwells in the 
idol is held in subjection, conquered by me, and is able to give no 
response to those who sacrifice and pray there. And if thou wishest to 
prove that it is so, I order him to return into the idol, and I will make 
him confess with his own mouth that he is bound, and able to give no 
response. 

The king says to him: To-morrow, at the first hour of the day, the 
priests are ready to sacrifice in the temple, and I shall come there, and 
shall be able to see this wonderful work. 

And it came to pass on the following day, as they were sacrificing, the 
devil began to cry out: Refrain, ye wretched ones, from sacrificing to me, 
lest ye suffer worse for my sake; because I am bound in fiery chains, and 
kept in subjection by an angel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, 
whom the Jews crucified: for, being afraid of him, they condemned him to 
death. And he put to death Death himself, our king, and he bound our prince 
in chains of fire; and on the third day, having conquered death and the 
devil, rose in glory, and gave the sign of the cross to his apostles, and 
sent them out into the four quarters of the world; and one of them is here 
just now, who has bound me, and keeps me in subjection. I implore you, 
therefore, supplicate him on my account, that he may set me free to go into 
other habitations. 

Then the apostle answered: Confess, unclean demon, who is it that has 
injured all those that are lying here from heavy diseases? The demon 
answered: The devil, our ruler, he who is bound, he sends us against men, 
that, having first injured their bodies, we may thus also make an assault 
upon their souls when they sacrifice to us. For then we have complete 
power over them, when they believe in us and sacrifice to us. And when, on 
account of the mischief done to them, we retire, we appear curing them, and 
are worshipped by them as gods; but in truth we are demons, and the 
servants of him who was crucified, the Son of the virgin, have bound us. 
For from that day on which the Apostle Bartholomew came I am punished, kept 
hound in chains of fire. And for this reason I speak, because he has 
commanded me. At the same time, I dare not utter more when the apostle is 
present, neither I nor our rulers. 

The apostle says to him: Why dost thou not save all that have come to 
thee? The demon says to him: When we injure their bodies, unless we first 
injure their souls, we do not let their bodies go. The apostle says to him: 
And how do you injure their souls? The demon answered him: When they 
believe that we are gods, and sacrifice to us, God withdraws from those who 
sacrifice, and we do not take away the sufferings of their bodies, but 
retire into their souls. 

Then the apostle says to the people: Behold, the god whom you thought 
to cure you, does the more mischief to your souls and bodies. Hear even now 
your Maker who dwells in the heavens, and do not believe in lifeless stones 
and stocks. And if you wish that I should pray for you, and that all these 
may receive health, take down this idol, and break it to pieces; and when 
you have done this, I will sanctify this temple in the name of our Lord 
Jesus Christ; and having baptized all of you who are in it in the baptism 
of the Lord, and sanctified you, I will save all. 

Then the king gave orders, and all the people brought ropes and 
crowbars, and were not at all aide to take down the idol. Then the apostle 
says to them: Unfasten the ropes. And when they had unfastened them, he 
said to the demon dwelling in it: In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
come out of this idol, and go into a desert place, where neither winged 
creature utters a cry, nor voice of man has ever been heard. And 
straightway he arose at the word of the apostle, and lifted it up from its 
foundations; and in that same hour all the idols that were in that place 
were broken to pieces. 

Then all cried out with one voice, saying: He alone is God Almighty 
whom Bartholomew the apostle proclaims. Then the holy Bartholomew, having 
spread forth his hands to heaven, said: God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God 
of Jacob, who for the salvation of men hast sent forth Thine only begotten 
Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, in order that He might redeem by His own blood 
all of us enslaved by sin, and declare us to be Thy sons, that we may know 
Thee, the true God, that Thou existest always to eternity God without end: 
one God, the Father, acknowledged in Son and Holy Spirit; one God, the Son, 
glorified in Father and Holy Spirit; one God, the Holy Spirit, worshipped 
in Father and Son; and acknowledged to be truly one,(1) the Father 
unbegotten, the Son begotten, the Holy Spirit proceeding; and in Thee the 
Father, and in the Holy Spirit, Thine only begotten Son our Lord Jesus 
Christ is, in whose name Thou hast given us power to heal the sick, to 
cure paralytics, to expel demons, and raise the dead: for He said to us, 
Verily I say unto you, that whatever ye shall ask in my name ye shall 
receive.(2) I entreat, then, that in His name all this multitude may be 
saved, that all may know that Thou alone art God in heaven, and in the 
earth, and in the sea, who seekest the salvation of men through that same 
Jesus Christ our Lord, with whom Thou livest and reignest in unity of the 
Holy Spirit for ever and ever. 

And when all responded to the Amen, suddenly there appeared an angel of 
the Lord, shining brighter than the sun, winged, and other four angels 
holding up the four corners of the temple; and with his finger the one 
sealed the temple and the people, and said: Thus saith the Lord who hath 
sent me, As you have all been purified from all your infirmity, so also 
this temple shall be purified from all uncleanness, and from the demons 
dwelling in it, whom the apostle of God has ordered to go into a desert 
place; for so hath God commanded me, that I may manifest Him to you. And 
when ye behold Him, fear nothing; but when I make the sign of the cross, so 
also do ye with your finger seal your faces, and these evil things will 
flee from you. Then he showed them the demon who dwelt in the temple, like 
an Ethiopian, black as soot; his face sharp like a dog's, thin-cheeked, 
with hair down to his feet, eves like fire, sparks coming out of his mouth; 
and out of his nostrils came forth smoke like sulphur, with wings spined 
like a porcupine; and his hands were bound with fiery chains, and he was 
firmly kept in. And the angel of the Lord said to him: As also the apostle 
hath commanded, I let thee go; go where voice of man is not heard, and be 
there until the great day of judgment. And when he let him go, he flew 
away, groaning and weeping, and disappeared. And the angel of the Lord went 
up into heaven in the sight of all. 

Then the king, and also the queen, with their two sons, and with all 
his people, and with all the multitude of the city, and every city round 
about, and country, and whatever land his kingdom ruled over, were saved, 
and believed, and were baptized in the name of the Father, and the Son, and 
the Holy Spirit. And the king laid aside his diadem, and followed 
Bartholomew the apostle of Christ. 

And after these things the unbelievers of the Greeks, having come 
together to Astreges(3) the king, who was the eider brother of the king who 
had been baptized, say to him: O king, thy brother Polymius has become 
disciple to a certain magician, who has taken down our temples, and broken 
our gods to pieces. And while they were thus speaking and weeping, behold, 
again there came also some others from the cities round about, both 
priests(4) and people; and they set about weeping and making accusations(1) 
before the king. Then King Astreges in a rage sent a thousand armed men 
along with those priests, in order that, wherever they should find the 
apostle, they might bring him to him bound. And when they bad done so, and 
found him, and brought him, he says to him: Art thou he who has perverted 
my brother from the gods? To whom the apostle answered: I have not 
perverted him, but have converted him to God. The king says to him: Art 
thou he who caused our gods to be broken in pieces? The apostle says to 
him: I gave power to the demons who were in them, and they broke in pieces 
the dumb and senseless idols, that all men might believe in God Almighty, 
who dwelleth in the heavens. The king says to him: As thou hast made my 
brother deny his gods, and believe in thy God, so I also will make you 
reject thy God and believe in my gods. The apostle says to him: If I have 
bound and kept in subjection the god which thy brother worshipped, and at 
my order the idols were broken in pieces, if thou also art able to do the 
same to my God, thou canst persuade me also to sacrifice to thy gods; but 
if thou canst do nothing to my God, I will break all thy gods in pieces; 
but do thou believe in my God. 

And when he had thus spoken, the king was informed that his god 
Baldad(2) and all the other idols had fallen down, and were broken in 
pieces. Then the king rent the purple in which he was clothed, and 
ordered the holy apostle Bartholomew to be beaten with rods; and after 
having been thus scourged, to be beheaded. 

And innumerable multitudes came from all the cities, to the number of 
twelve thousand, who had believed in him along with the king; and they took 
up the remains of the apostle with singing of praise and with all glory, 
and they laid them in the royal tomb, and glorified God. And the king 
Astreges having heard of this, ordered him to be thrown into the sea; and 
his remains were carried into the island of Liparis. 

And it came to pass on the thirtieth day after the apostle was carried 
away, that the king Astreges was overpowered by a demon and miserably 
strangled; and all the priests were strangled by demons, and perished on 
account of their rising against(3) the apostle, and thus died by an evil 
fate. 

And there was great fear and trembling, and all came to the Lord, and 
were baptized by the presbyters who had been ordained by the holy apostle 
Bartholomew. And according to the commandment of the apostle, all the 
clergy of the people made King Polymius bishop; and in the name of our Lord 
Jesus Christ he received the grace of healing, and began to do signs. And 
he remained in the bishopric twenty years; and having prospered in all 
things, and governed the church well, and guided it in right opinions,(4) 
he fell asleep in peace, and went to the Lord: to whom be glory and 
strength for ever and ever. Amen. 

Taken from "The Early Church Fathers and Other Works" originally published 
by Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co. in English in Edinburgh, Scotland, beginning in 
1867. (ANF 8, Roberts and Donaldson).