VII. Whence the Heresies Sprang, and Who Was the Ringleader of Their Impiety.

Now the original of the new heresies began thus: the devil entered into one Simon, of a village called Gitthae, a Samaritan, by profession a magician, and made him the minister of his wicked design.¹ For when Philip our fellow-apostle,² by the gift of the Lord and the energy of His Spirit, performed the miracles of healing in Samaria, insomuch that the Samaritans were affected, and embraced the faith of the God of the universe, and of the Lord Jesus, and were baptized into His name; nay, and that Simon himself, when he saw the signs and wonders which were done without any magic ceremonies, fell into admiration, and believed, and was baptized, and continued in fasting and prayer,--we heard of the grace of God which was among the Samaritans by Philip, and came down³ to them; and enlarging much upon the word of doctrine, we laid our hands upon all that were baptized, and we conferred upon them the participation of the Spirit. But when Simon saw that the Spirit was given to believers by the imposition of our hands, he took money, and offered it to us, saying, "Give me also the power, that on whomsoever I also shall lay my hand, he may receive the Holy Ghost;"⁴ being desirous that as the devil⁵ deprived Adam by his tasting of the tree of that immortality which was promised him, so also that Simon might entice us by the receiving of money, and might thereby cut us off from the gift of God,⁶ that so by exchange we might sell to him for money the inestimable gift of the Spirit. But as we were all troubled at this offer, I Peter, with a fixed attention on that malicious serpent which was in him, said to Simon: "Let thy money go with thee to perdition, because thou hast thought to purchase the gift of God with money. Thou hast no part in this matter, nor lot in this faith; for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray to the Lord, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. For I perceive thou art in the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity."⁷ But then Simon was terrified, and said: "I entreat you, pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of those things which ye have spoken come upon me."⁸