As they were, naturally, unable to carry many books with them, the Abbot Eustathius asked his friend Antiochus to compile an abridgment of Holy Scripture for their use, and also a short account of the martyrdom of the forty-four monks of St. Sabbas.
The Abbot Eustathius needed a condensed Bible and a short story about the martyrdom of the forty-four monks of St. Sabbas because they couldn't carry many books with them.