Section 158
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ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. 127 other accounts given by the abovementioned Aristion, respect ing our Lord, as also the traditions of the Presbyter John, to which referring those that are desirous of learning them, we shall now subjoin to the extracts from him. already given, a tradition which he sets forth concerning Mark, who wrote the gospel in the following words : " And John_the Presbyter also said this, Mark being the interpeter of Pet^* whatsoever he recorded he \ j. wrote with great accuracy but not however, in the order in I MV'iA which it was spoken or done by our Lord, for he neither heard nor followed our Lord, but as before said, he was in company with Peter, who gave him such instruction as was necessary, but not to give a history of our Lord's discourses : wherefore Mark has not erred in any thing, by writing some things as he has recorded them ; for he was carefully attentive to one thing, not to pass by any thing that he heard, or to state any thing falsely in these ac counts." Such is the account of Papias, respecting Mark. Of Matthew he has stated as follows : " Matthew composed his history in the Hebrew dialect*, and every one translated it as he was able." The same author (Papias) made use of testimonies from the first epistlgjifLJoJin, and likewise from that of Peter. He also gives another history of a woman, who had been accused of many sins before the Lord, which is also contained in the gos pel according to the Hebrews. And this may be noted as a ne cessary addition to what we have before stated. * The author here, doubtless, means the Syro-Chaldaic, which is sometimes in Scripture, and primitive writers, called Hebrew. «-/••