A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

ARNOBIUS.

while yet a catechumen, his celebrated work against
the Pagans, in seven books (Libri septem adversus
Gentes), which we still possess. The time when
he wrote it, is not quite certain: some assign its
composition to the years A. D. 297 and 298, but it
is more probable that it was written in or shortly
after the year A. D. 303, since it contains some
allusions (as iv. 36) to the persecution of the Christians by Diocletian, which commenced in that year.
The work is a vindication of Christianity, and the
author first refutes the charges of the Pagans
against the Christian religion, especially the one
which was then frequently brought against it, that
the sufferings and calamities of the times were only
the fruits of Christianity. He then proceeds to
prove, with great learning, acuteness, and eloquence,
that polytheism is irreconcilable with good sense
and reason, and tends to demoralize mankind. In
the sixth book he describes the superiority of the
Christian religion; and the last contains a justification of the Christian views respecting sacrifices,
and a comparison of the Christian notions of the
Deity and divine things with those of the Pagans.
In writing this work, Arnobius was evidently
animated by a genuine zeal to establish the truth
of Christianity, but was free from the eccentricity
and enthusiasm of Tertullian. His style is plain
and lucid; though animated and sometimes rhetorical, it is yet not free from harsh and barbarous expressions: he treats of his subject with calmness
and dignity, and is on the whole a pleasing writer,
and superior to his contemporaries. As regards his
knowledge of Christianity, it is difficult to form a
decided opinion, for it was either his intention to
set forth only the main doctrines of Christianity
against the pagan mythology, or he possessed but
a limited knowledge of the Christian religion. The
latter is indeed the more probable, since he wrote
his work when yet a catechumen. What he says
in his second book aboat the nature and immortality of the soul, is not in accordance with Christian
views, but with those of the Gnostics, and at a later
time would have been regarded as heretical. The
Old Testament seems to have been altogether unknown to him, and he shows no acquaintance with
the New, except so far as the history of Christ is
concerned. In regard to heathen antiquity, on the
other hand, its religion and modes of worship, the
work exhibits most extensive and minute learning,'
and is one of our best sources of information respecting the religions of antiquity. It is for this
reason that Vossius calls him the Varro of the
early Christian writers. The arrangement of his
thoughts is philosophical, though not always sufficiently strict. Arnobius is a writer worthy to be
studied not only by theologians, but also by philologers. He is not known to have written anything
besides his book against the Gentiles; there are,
however, some works which have sometimes been
ascribed to him, though they manifestly belong to
a later writer or writers of the same name. (See
the following article.)
The first edition of Arnobius appeared at Rome
in 1542 or 1543, fol., and in it the Octavius of
Minutius Felix is printed as the eighth book. The
next was edited by S. Gelenius, Basel, 1546, 8vo.
The most important among the subsequent editions
are those of Antwerp (1582, 8vo., with Canter's
notes), of F. Ursinus (Rome, 1583, 4to., reprinted
with notes by Stewechius, Antwerp, 1604, 8vo.),
D. Heraldus (Paris, 1605, 8vo.), G. Ehnenhorst

ARRHIBAEUS. 349
(Hamburg, 1610, fol.), the Variorum edition (Leyden, 1651, 4to.), and that of Prior (Paris, 1666,
fol.). It is also contained in the Bibliotheca Patrum, vol. iii. p. 430, &c., ed. Lugdun. and in Gallandi's edition, vol. iv. p. 133, &c. The best edition of Arnobius, which contains the best notes of
all the earlier commentators, is that of J. C. Orelli,
Leipzig, 1816, 2 vols. 8vo., to which an appendix
was published in 1817, 8vo. (Compare Baronius,
ad Ann. 302; Du Pin, Nouv. Bibl. des A uteurs
Eccles. i. p. 203, &c. ed. 2, Paris, 1690; Cave,
Hist. Lit. i. p. 112, ed. Lond.; Bihr. Die Christl.
Rom. T/heol. p. 65, &c.) [L. S.]
ARNO'BIUS,-the Younger, is usually placed
about A. D. 460, and is believed to have been a
bishop or presbyter in Gaul. He is known to us
only as the author of one or two works of very
little importance, which have sometimes been attributed to Arnobius the elder. We possess under
his name an allegorical commentary on the Psalms,
which is inscribed to Leontius, bishop of Arles,
and Rusticus, bishop of Narbonne. This commentary, though the notes are very brief, contains sufficient evidence that the author was a Semipelagian.
It was first printed at Basel (1522, 4to.) together
with Erasmus's commentary on Psalm ii., and was
reprinted at Cologne, 1532, 8vo. A much better
edition than either of these is that by L. de la
Barre, Paris, 1639, 8vo., which also contains some
notes by the same Arnobius on several passages of
the Gospels, which had been published separately
before by G. Cognant, Basel, 1543, 8vo. The
commentary of Arnobius is also contained in the
Bibl. Patr. (Lugdun. vol. viii.), where is also assigned to him a work entitled "Altercatio cumi
Serapione Aegyptio;" but the principles of the
Arnobius who speaks in this Altercatio are strictly
those of St. Augustin, and it cannot be the work
of a Semipelagian. Sirmond has endeavoured to
shew, that our Arnobius the Younger is the author
of the work which bears the title Praedestinatus, and
which has come down to us as the production of an
anonymous writer; but his arguments are not
satisfactory. (Du Pin, Nouv. Bibl. des A ut. Eccles.
iii. 2, p. 219; Cave, Hist. Lit. i. p. 360, ed. Lond.;
Bihr, Die Christl. Rum. Theol. p. 378.) [L.S.]
C. ARPINEIUS, a Roman knight, a friend of
Q. Titurius, sent to have a conference with Ambiorix, B. c. 54. (Caes. B. G. v. 27, &c.)
ARPOXAIS ('ApTrda'ls), the son of Targitaus,
was the ancestor, according to the Scythians, of
the Scythian people, called Auchatae. (Herod. iv.
5, 6.)
ARRA'CHION ('A1aXiwnv), of Phigalea in
Arcadia, a celebrated Pancratiast, conquered in the
Olympic games in the 52nd, 53rd and 54th Olympiads. In the last Olympiad he was unfairly
killed by his antagonist, and was therefore crowned
and proclaimed as conqueror, although dead. (Paus.
viii. 40. ~ 2.) Philostratus (Imag. ii. 6) calls him
Arrichion, and Africanus (ap. Euseb. Chron. p. 50)
Arichion.
ARRHIBAEUS ('ApiCtaos), king or chieftain
of the Macedonians of Lyncus, is mentioned by
Thucydides, in the eighth and ninth years of the
Peloponnesian war, as in revolt against his sovereign, king Perdiccas. (Thuc. ii. 99.) It was to
reduce him that Perdiccas sent for Brasidas (B. C.
424), and against him took place the unsuccessful
joint expedition, in which Perdiccas deserted Brasidas, and Brasidas effected his bold and skilful