Date: 2026-08-15T00:00:00+00:00
Keywords: Commentary

Commentary on Daniel

Saint Hippolytus of Rome

Translated for the Phronema corpus from the Greek (Bonwetsch/Richard GCS, via the Patristic Text Archive).: Phronema

Royal Archives

2026

Copyright

The modern English translation and the cover design are © 2026 Royal Archives. All rights reserved.

The underlying source text is in the public domain.

Published by Royal Archives

First published 2026

Translated by Royal Archives

Translated by Phronema

Source: Hippolyt. Kommentar zu Daniel (ed. Bonwetsch/Richard, GCS N.F. 7)

Cover: Storm in the Mountains by Frederic Edwin Church (American, 1826–1900), Cleveland Museum of Art, which is in the public domain.

Edition identifier: urn:royalarchives:commentary_on_daniel:en:1

Book One. Concerning Susanna and Daniel

Chapter 1

1 Wishing to set forth the precise reckoning of the times of the captivity that befell the sons of Israel, together with the prophecies of the visions of the blessed Daniel and his upbringing in Babylon from childhood, I too come forward to bear testimony to a holy and righteous man who became a prophet and a martyr of Christ; for he not only revealed to the people of that time the visions of King Nebuchadnezzar, but, having also trained up children like himself, brought forward faithful martyrs into the world.

2 Now this man lived in the times of the prophecy of the blessed Jeremiah, in the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, who […] taken captive along with the rest, was led away with them into Babylon.

3 He, while still a young boy, convicted aged elders who had become lusters after evil desire, thereby prefiguring the heavenly Judge, who as a young man of twelve years would one day, in the temple, convict elders who had become transgressors of the law.

4 This history, then, as we have read it, took place long ago in Babylon under lawless elders acting as judges, who, having forgotten the law of God and being enslaved to fleshly lust, became plotters against a chaste woman, attempting unjustly to do away with righteous blood.

5 It was necessary, therefore, that these things should be fulfilled in this way upon them, so that both the chosen race of the righteous might be made manifest to all, and the chastity of the blessed Susanna might be openly displayed, and the righteous and holy prophet Daniel might be shown forth to the people as a young prophet.

Chapter 2

1 We must, therefore, in setting out the demonstration of these matters, take up what lies before us with precision, so as to carry conviction with our hearers; and let us not pass over which captivities, and of what kind, befell the people, and under which kings.

2 For these were the five sons of the blessed Josiah: Jehoahaz; Eliakim, who is also Jehoiakim; Johanan; Zedekiah, who is also Jeconiah; and Shallum.

3 And Jehoahaz, after the death of his father, was anointed king by the people, being twenty-three years old.

4 Against him Pharaoh Necho came up in the third month of his reign, and seizing him, led him away in bonds into Egypt; he imposed upon the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and ten talents of gold, and set up in his place his brother Eliakim as king over the land, whom he also renamed Jehoiakim. This man reigned eleven years.

5 Against him Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and seizing him, led him away in bonds into Babylon, together with a portion of the vessels of the house of the Lord that were in Jerusalem.

6 This man, kept in confinement as a friend of Pharaoh and set up as king by him, was brought out in the thirtieth year by Evilmerodach king of Babylon. And he shaved his head, and he became his counselor and ate at his table until the day he died.

Chapter 3

1 When this man, then, had been removed, his son Jehoiakim reigned three years.

2 And against him Nebuchadnezzar came up and deported both him and ten thousand men of the people into Babylon, and set up in his place Jeconiah, his father’s brother, whom he also renamed Zedekiah; and having made oaths and a covenant with him, he departed to Babylon.

3 This man, having reigned eleven years, revolted from him and gave himself over to Pharaoh king of Egypt.

4 And in the twelfth year Nebuchadnezzar came against him with all the host of the Chaldeans, and they threw up a palisade around the city, encamped against it on every side, and pressed it in from all directions; whence the greater part of them perished by famine, others were destroyed by the sword, and some of them were taken captive. And the city was set ablaze with fire, and the temple and the wall were torn down.

5 And the host of the Chaldeans took all the treasures found in the house of the Lord, and all the vessels, both the golden and the silver; and Nebuzaradan the chief steward cut up all the bronze and carried them off to Babylon. Zedekiah himself, who is also Jeconiah, as he fled by night with seven hundred men, the forces of the Chaldeans pursued, and overtook him at Jericho, and brought him to the king of Babylon at Riblah.

6 And the king entered into judgment with him in wrath, because he had transgressed the oath of the Lord and the covenant which he had made with him.

7 And taking his sons, he slaughtered them before him, and he put out the eyes of Zedekiah, who is also Jeconiah, and bound him in iron fetters, and they led him to Babylon. And he was grinding at the mill until the day he died;

8 and when he died, they took his body and cast it behind the wall of Nineveh.

9 In him is fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah the prophet, who says: As I live, says the Lord, even if Jeconiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, should become a signet upon my right hand, from there I will tear you off and hand you over into the hands of those who seek your life, those before whose face you stand in dread, into the hands of the Chaldeans. And I will cast you and your mother who bore you out into a land where you were not born, and there you shall die. But to the land for which they yearn in their souls, they shall not return. Jeconiah is dishonored like a useless vessel for which there is no need, because he has been cast out and thrown into a land which he did not know. O land, land, hear the word of the Lord. Write this man down as a man proclaimed outcast, for none of his seed shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David and ruling any longer in Judah.

Chapter 4

1 When, therefore, the whole people had been deported and the city laid waste, and the sanctuary torn down, that the word of the Lord might be fulfilled which he spoke through the mouth of Jeremiah the prophet, that the sanctuary should be desolate for seventy years, we find the blessed Daniel prophesying in Babylon and becoming the vindicator of Susanna.

Chapter 5

1 For the Scripture says: And there was a man dwelling in Babylon, and his name was Joakim; and he took a wife whose name was Susanna, the daughter of Hilkiah, exceedingly beautiful and fearing the Lord. And her parents were righteous, and they taught their daughter according to the law of Moses.

2 Now this history happened later, but it was written first in the book; for it was the custom of the scribes to set down many things out of their chronological order in the Scriptures.

3 For we find also among the prophets certain visions that occurred first and were fulfilled at the last, and again others spoken of as belonging to the last things yet occurring first.

4 And this came about by the dispensation of the Spirit, so that the devil might not understand the things spoken by the prophets in parables and, ensnaring man a second time, again put him to death.

Chapter 6

1 Now the beginning of the book is this: In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. And the Lord gave into his hand Jehoiakim king of Judah, and a portion of the vessels of the house of God; and he carried them off into the land of Shinar, to the house of his god.

2 These things, then, the Scripture thus recounts, in order to signify the captivity that befell the people, when Jehoiakim the son of Eliakim (who is also Jehoiakim) was deported, together with the three youths who were with him, taken captive along with Daniel.

3 And thus Jehoiakim becomes the husband of Susanna.

Chapter 7

1 And the Scripture says: And the king said to Ashpenaz the chief eunuch to bring in some of the sons of the captivity of Israel, and of the royal seed, and of the Parthommin, young men in whom there was no blemish, fair in appearance and understanding in all wisdom, possessing knowledge and capable of discernment, and in whom there was the strength to stand in the king’s house, and to teach them the letters and the tongue of the Chaldeans. And the king assigned them a daily portion, day by day, from the king’s table and from the wine of his drink, and to nourish them for three years; and after this they were to stand before the king. And among them, from the sons of Judah, were Daniel and Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.

2 Now those who love learning ought not to read these things in passing, but to fix their mind upon what lies before them. For the divine Scriptures proclaim nothing to us in vain, but for our own admonition, for the blessedness of these prophets, and as a demonstration of all that has been spoken by them.

3 For when Hezekiah, king of Judah, was sick unto death, then Isaiah the prophet came to him and said to him: Set in order your affairs concerning your sons and your daughters and the house of your father; for you shall die and shall not live.

4 Grieved at this word, Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, saying: Lord, remember me, how I have walked before you in truth and in faith and with a full heart, and have done what is pleasing in your sight. And Hezekiah wept with great weeping.

5 When this had happened, Isaiah was sent to him a second time and said to him: Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears. Behold, I am adding fifteen years of life to your days, and I will deliver you from the hand of the king of the Assyrians. And this shall be the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will perform this word which he has spoken. Behold, I turn back the shadow of the steps of your father’s house, the ten steps down which the sun has gone, by which the shadow has descended, so that that day becomes thirty-two hours long.

6 For when the sun had run its course and reached the tenth hour, and the shadow had come down upon the ten steps of the house of the temple, the sun returned again the ten steps backward, according to the word of the Lord, and there were twenty hours; and again, circling its own course in its proper order, the sun went on toward the west; thus there came to be thirty-two hours.

Chapter 8

1 But perhaps someone will say, This is impossible to happen. O man, what is impossible for God? Did he not himself from the beginning fashion the whole creation out of things that were not, and set the elements in it to give light for the day and the night—he whom all things obey and serve in subjection, and trembling hearken to his voice? Therefore the things that are impossible among men are possible with God.

2 And we have yet another testimony to this, readily to be accepted.

3 For when Joshua the son of Nun was warring against the Amorites, while the sun was already declining toward the west and the battle was pressing hard all at once, the blessed Joshua, fearing lest, when night came on, the foreigners might escape, cried out, saying: Let the sun stand still over Gibeon, and the moon over the valleys of Aijalon, until I have made an end of warring against this people. And the sun and the moon stood still in their station; the sun did not go forward toward the west until the end of one whole day, so that that day became twenty-four hours long. And on account of this the Scripture bore witness, saying: There was never such a day, that God should so hearken to a man.

4 He, then, who from the beginning set the bounds of the elements in heaven and ordained for them their ever-moving courses according to his own authority—how shall he not be able to transfer them and turn them and alter them whenever he wills?

5 For in the case of Joshua the sun stood still over Gibeon and the moon over the valleys of Aijalon for one day; but in the case of Hezekiah the moon turned back together with the sun, so that there might be no collision of the two elements borne disorderly against each other. But in the case of the Lord, when he suffered, not only the elements, but the very day itself and the whole world were shaken.

Chapter 9

1 For indeed at that time, under Hezekiah, Merodach the Chaldean, the king of Babylonia, being likewise astonished at what had happened—because he practiced the art of astrology and accurately measured the course of these heavenly bodies—when he had learned the cause, sent letters and gifts to Hezekiah.

2 In the same way also acted the magi who came from the east; for when the Lord was born in Bethlehem and the star appeared in heaven according to the prophecy, the magi, marveling at the sign that had occurred, came to Jerusalem, saying: Where is the king of the Jews that has been born? For we have seen his star in the east and have come to worship him.

3 In like manner, then, the Chaldeans also at that time, not finding the customary course of the sun, honored Hezekiah with gifts and letters as a God-fearing and righteous man, marveling at the sign that had been given to him by God.

4 At this Hezekiah rejoiced and showed them all the treasures that were in the house of the Lord; then all his wealth and his glory.

5 Then, when the prophet Isaiah said: Who are these men, and whence have they come to you? Hezekiah answered: They have come to me from a land far off, from the land of Babylon.

6 Isaiah said to him: What did they see in your house? And Hezekiah said: They saw all that is in my house, and there is nothing that I did not show them—indeed even the things in my treasuries.

7 And Isaiah said to Hezekiah: Hear the word of the Lord Almighty of Hosts. Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when all that is in your house, and whatever your fathers have stored up until this day, shall be taken away and shall come to Babylon, and they shall leave nothing behind, says the Lord. And of your children who shall come forth from you, whom you have begotten, they shall take, and they shall be eunuchs in the house of the king.

Chapter 10

1 Therefore, that what was spoken by the Lord might be fulfilled and the prophet shown to be truthful, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came and took all the treasures that were found in the house of the Lord and led the people into captivity; and he took for himself as servants the sons of the king and the nobler of the Parthommin, among whom were chosen also Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah—whose lineage the Scripture passed over in silence, but it recounted their piety and faithfulness and the deed that took place there.

2 For they, having possessed the fear of God from childhood, were unwilling to partake of the king’s table or to drink of the wine of his drink, lest they should defile their own pure mouth.

3 O blessed youths, who kept the covenant of the fathers and did not transgress the law given through Moses, but feared the God proclaimed through it!

4 These, being captives in a foreign land, were not deceived by varied delicacies, nor enslaved by the wine of pleasure, nor enticed by royal glory; though seized and carried off, they kept their own mouth chaste and pure, so that a pure word, proceeding from a pure mouth, might through it hymn the heavenly Father, as it is written: If you bring forth what is precious from what is worthless, you shall be as my mouth.

5 Do you understand, then, O man, what has been said? A fatherly mouth brought forth a precious Word from itself, so that a second time again the Word might be shown to be begotten by holy ones—always begetting the holy ones, and himself again begotten by holy ones.

Chapter 11

1 The Scripture says, then: And Daniel laid it upon his heart that he would not be defiled by the king’s table or by the wine of his drink, and he asked the chief eunuch to give them some of the seeds, that he might show that man shall not live by bread alone.

2 And God gave Daniel into mercy and compassion before the chief eunuch. But the chief eunuch said to him: I fear my lord the king, who has appointed your food and your drink, lest he should see your faces gloomier than those of the young men of your own age, and you bring my head into condemnation before the king.

3 Now what was said by Melzar held to its own reasoning; for, not knowing the dispensation being worked out through them, he was afraid lest their looks should appear gloomier than those of the young men who ate at the king’s table, and that in this way he himself, found to be the cause, might be handed over to death.

4 But they, wishing to show him that it was not earthly foods that furnished men with beauty and strength, but the grace of God bestowed through the Word, said to him: Test now your servants for ten days, and let them give us some of the seeds, and we will eat and will drink water; and let our looks be examined, and the looks of the young men who eat at the king’s table, and as you see, so deal with us.

5 Do you see the inviolable faith of the youths and their unalterable fear of God? They asked for an interval of ten days’ time, that in it they might show that men cannot otherwise obtain grace from God except by believing in the Word proclaimed through Jesus.

Chapter 12

1 The Scripture says, then: And the chief eunuch hearkened to them and tested them for ten days; and after the end of the ten days their looks appeared good, and they were stronger in flesh than the young men who ate at the king’s table.

2 These, then, being nourished with bread and water only, but adorned with heavenly wisdom, obtained grace beyond all the young men of their own age.

3 For God gave them understanding and discernment in all learning and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in every vision and in dreams. And after the end of the days the chief eunuch brought them in before the king, and the king spoke with them; and among them all none were found like Daniel and Hananiah and Mishael and Azariah.

4 These, then, the Word brought forward in all wisdom, shown to be faithful martyrs in Babylon, so that through them the objects of Babylonian worship might be put to shame, and Nebuchadnezzar be vanquished by three youths, and through their faith the fire in the furnace be put to flight, and the blessed Susanna be delivered from death, and the vain lust of the lawless elders be exposed.

5 These victories were won in the city of Babylon by these four youths who were a care to God and who held the fear of God in their heart. Come, then, blessed Daniel, draw near, having become the avenger of the blessed Susanna, that you may show us also the things that are to come.

Chapter 13

1 For the Scripture says: “And there was a man dwelling in Babylon, and his name was Jehoiakim; and he took a wife whose name was Susanna, the daughter of Hilkiah, exceedingly beautiful and fearing the Lord.” Of him we spoke earlier—the man who, having become a sojourner in Babylon, took Susanna for his wife.

2 And she was the daughter of Hilkiah the priest, the one who found the book of the law in the house of the Lord, at the time when Josiah the king commanded him to cleanse the holy of holies.

3 Her brother was Jeremiah the prophet, who together with the rest, after the captivity of the people that had taken place in Babylon, was carried off into Egypt and sojourned in Tahpanhes; and there, while prophesying, he was stoned by them and put to death.

4 These, then, being of the priestly stock, of the tribe of Levi, were intermingled with the tribe of Judah, so that through the two righteous tribes coming together into one the righteous seed of Christ according to the flesh might be displayed, and that the one born of them in Bethlehem might be shown forth as king and priest of God.

5 For indeed Matthew, wishing to trace down the lineage of Christ according to the flesh as pure and spotless as far as Joseph, when he came to Josiah passed over his five sons and named Jeconiah, the one born in Babylon of Susanna, shifting from righteous seed to righteous seed. For he says: “Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the deportation to Babylon.”

6 How, then, shall this be demonstrated? For Josiah, having reigned in the land of Judah thirty-one years, died there. How then, having died there, could he beget Jeconiah in Babylon?

7 From this one must understand that Matthew traced the genealogy of this man, born of Jehoiakim and of Susanna, as being the son of Eliakim, who is also Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah. For Matthew could not have been giving the genealogy of that Jeconiah who had been declared accursed by the Holy Spirit, as certain ones in their error suppose; for that man, led maimed into Babylon and there shut up as a prisoner in a mill, died childless. So it is not idly that the Scripture teaches us, saying: “And there was a man dwelling in Babylon, and his name was Jehoiakim; and he took a wife whose name was Susanna, the daughter of Hilkiah, exceedingly beautiful and fearing the Lord.”

8 So from her is born Jeconiah, and Jeconiah begets Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begets Zerubbabel. He, together with Ezra the scribe and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, goes up to Jerusalem by the command of Cyrus the Persian; and thus the lineage of the fathers remained pure until the birth of Jesus Christ.

Chapter 14

1 “Now her parents,” it says, “were righteous, and they taught their daughter according to the law of Moses.”

2 For from the fruit that is put forth from them the tree too is easily known. For men who had become reverent and zealous for the law brought into the world children worthy of God: the one having become a prophet and martyr of Christ, the other a woman chaste and faithful, found in Babylon, whose dignity and chastity the blessed prophet Daniel made manifest.

3 “Now Jehoiakim,” it says, “was exceedingly rich, and he had a garden adjoining his house; and the Jews used to gather to him, because he was more honored than all the rest. And two elders from the people were appointed judges in that year, concerning whom the Master spoke, that ‘lawlessness came forth from Babylon, from elders who were judges, who seemed to govern the people.’ These frequented the house of Jehoiakim, and all who had cases to be judged came in to them.”

4 One must therefore inquire into the cause. For how were these men, being captives and having become subject as slaves to the Babylonians, able to come together into one place as though they were their own masters?

5 In this one must understand that Nebuchadnezzar, having resettled them, treated them kindly and permitted them, gathering together in one place, to carry out everything according to the law,

6 and they, having received this authority, appointed two rulers of the people, who seemed to govern the people. These frequented the house of Jehoiakim because he was more honored and more wealthy than all, inasmuch indeed as he was of royal stock.

Chapter 15

1 “He had a garden adjoining his house. And it came to pass, when the people departed at midday, that Susanna would go in and walk about in her husband’s garden; and the two elders used to watch her day by day, and they conceived a desire for her.”

2 Now these things the rulers of the Jews wish nowadays to cut out of the book, asserting that they did not take place in Babylon, being ashamed of what was done by the elders at that time, and being ignorant of the dispensation of the Spirit.

3 How impartially and with what boldness the divine Scriptures display all things—not only the righteous deeds of men, by which in doing them they were justified, but also the dreadful things done by certain people, deeds in which these men […] becoming entangled, meet their end—so that those who have the fear of God may imitate the righteous, walking thus in righteousness, while those who do the contrary may have before their eyes the judgment that is to come upon them from God.

4 For the things that were done there by the elders against Susanna, these same things now likewise are carried out by the rulers in the present Babylon.

5 For Susanna was prefigured as a type of the Church, and Jehoiakim her husband as a type of Christ. And the garden was the calling of the saints, like fruit-bearing trees planted in the Church. And Babylon is the world.

6 And the two elders are shown as a type of the two peoples who plot against the Church—the one from the circumcision and the one from the Gentiles. For the saying that they were appointed rulers and judges of the people signifies that in this present age they wield power and rule, judging the righteous unjustly.

Chapter 16

1 But the fact that they watched her eagerly, walking day by day in the garden after Susanna—this signifies that even until now both those of the Gentiles and the Jews of the circumcision watch and pry into the things done in the Church, wishing to bring false testimonies against us, as the Apostle says: “but on account of the false brethren brought in secretly, who slipped in to spy out our freedom which we have in Christ Jesus.”

2 So in this way those men too watched eagerly, it says, to see her day by day, and they perverted their own mind and turned aside their eyes, so as not to look toward heaven nor to remember righteous judgments.

3 For those who have become plotters against and corrupters of the Church—how can they judge righteously or look up to heaven with a pure heart, enslaved as they are to the ruler of this age?

4 “And both of them were pierced with desire for her, and they did not declare to one another their anguish, because they were ashamed to declare their desire, that they wished to lie with her.” And indeed it is truly possible to grasp what is said: that always the two peoples, pierced by the Satan who works in them, plot to stir up persecutions and afflictions against the Church, striving eagerly to destroy it, though they do not themselves agree with one another.

5 “And one said to the other: Let us go indeed to the house, for it is the hour of the midday meal. And going out they parted from one another. And turning back they came to the same place.” Now their parting from one another at the hour of the meal and turning back to the same place signifies this: that in earthly foods the Jews do not agree with the Gentiles, but in the public spectacles and in every worldly affair they join with them and have fellowship.

6 The Scripture therefore says: “And questioning one another about the cause, they confessed their desire”—thereby prophesying against themselves that they were destined to be examined by angels and to give account to God for every sin they had committed, as Solomon says: “Examination will destroy the ungodly.” For these men are caught by the examination of their wickedness.

Chapter 17

1 “And it came to pass, while they were watching for a suitable day, that she went in once, as on the day before and the day before that, with only two maidservants, and she desired to bathe in the garden, for it was hot.”

2 “It came to pass, then, while they were watching for a suitable day.” And what suitable day does the Scripture mean, except that of the Pascha, on which the bath is prepared in the garden for those who are burning with heat, and the Church, like Susanna washed clean, presents herself to God as a pure bride?

3 Now the Scripture’s saying that she went in “as on the day before and the day before that, with only two maidservants, and desired to bathe in the garden” makes this clear: that whenever the Church desires to receive the customary spiritual bath, of necessity two maidens must accompany her. For it is through faith in Christ and through love toward God that the Church receives the bath as she makes her confession […]

4 […] and the two maidens, as the ones accompanying her—faith and love—prepare the oil and the unguents for those who bathe.

5 And what were the unguents, except the commandments of the Word? And what the oil, except the power of the Holy Spirit, with which, after the bath, those who believe are anointed as with ointment?

6 These things were prefigured of old through the blessed Susanna for our sake, so that we who now believe in God might not regard the things now done in the Church as strange, but might believe that these things were prefigured of old through the patriarchs, just as the Apostle also says: “Now these things happened to them as types, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.”

Chapter 18

1 That the garden planted by God in Eden came to be as a type and image of the Church, it is most clearly possible for those who love learning to recognize.

2 For from the earthly things one must mirror the heavenly, and from the typical recognize the spiritual, and from the temporal look forward to the eternal—as God also enjoined Moses to make the tabernacle “according to the type that had been shown to him on the mountain.”

3 And what were the things he had seen, if not images of heavenly glories and forms, in imitation of which he fashioned, after the manner of the flesh, a tabernacle of incorruptible wood, so that to those who are minded for the flesh the earthly things might be made manifest, but to the spiritual the heavenly things that are to come?

4 Eden, then, is said to mean a place of delight, that is, paradise; it was planted toward the east, adorned with beautiful trees and fruits of every kind, so that it is possible to understand that the assembly of the righteous is a holy place, in which the Church was planted.

5 For neither can a bare place be called a Church, nor a house built of stone and clay; nor can a man by himself be called a Church; for a house is demolished and a man dies.

6 What, then, is the Church? An assembly of saints living their life in truth.

7 The concord, therefore, and the common way of the saints toward one another—this becomes the Church, a spiritual house of God built upon Christ as though planted in the east, in which trees of various kinds and flourishing appear to those who enter: the generation of the fathers set apart from the beginning, and the works of the prophets, which were fulfilled after the law, the choir of the apostles who became wise through the Word, all the martyrs saved through the blood of Christ, the calling of virgins sanctified through water, the choir of teachers and the order of bishops, of priests and of Levites.

8 And adorned with all manner of variety, all these flourish in the Church, unable to be corrupted; and partaking of their fruits we rejoice, eating the spiritual and heavenly food that comes forth from them.

9 For the blessed patriarchs themselves ministered to us the oracles of God, like flourishing trees planted in paradise and ever bearing their fruit with them, so that we might know, even until now, the sweet Christ put forth from them, given to us as the fruit of life.

10 In this Eden a river of ever-flowing waters streams forth, and four rivers issuing from it water all the land of men, as is also shown in the Church; for Christ, being a river, through the fourfold saving Gospel guards all things and is present to all. And he irrigates and waters all who believe in him, as the prophet says: “Rivers shall flow from his belly.”

11 So in paradise a tree of knowledge and a tree of life were shown, just as now in the Church the law and the Word are shown as two trees planted. For through the law comes the knowledge of sin, but through the Word are given life and the forgiveness of trespasses.

12 For then too Adam, having disobeyed God and tasted of the tree of knowledge, was cast out of paradise, having been taken from the earth and dissolved again into the earth.

13 Likewise again, the one who has believed and has not kept the commandments is stripped of the Holy Spirit, becoming cast out of the Church, no longer receiving, but having become earth, must return to his old self.

Chapter 19

1 For when the Scripture says that Susanna went in and walked about in the garden of her husband, it signifies that all kings and those who hold high rank plant gardens for their own delight in cities and in the countryside, just as Jehoiakim too did in Babylon.

2 For there was a garden adjoining his house, into which Susanna would go and walk, persevering in prayer and singing hymns and songs to God; and she sent out the two maidservants to bring what had been ordered, so that she might bathe.

3 And they shut the doors of the garden but went out by the side ways, foretelling thereby what was to come: that whoever wishes to partake of the water in the garden must renounce the wide doors and enter through the narrow and afflicted one.

4 And they did not see the elders, because they were hidden. For just as then in the garden the devil was hidden in the serpent, so now too, hidden in the elders, he conceived his own desire, that once again, a second time, he might corrupt Eve.

Chapter 20

1 And it came to pass, when the girls had gone out, that the two elders rose up and ran to her and said: Behold, the doors of the garden are shut and no one sees us, and we are in desire for you; therefore consent to us and be with us. But if not, we will testify against you that there was a young man with you, and that this is why you sent the girls away from you.

2 O lawless rulers and leaders, filled full of diabolical activity!

3 Is this what Moses handed down to you? Is it thus that, while reading the Law, you teach others? You who say one must not commit adultery, do you yourself commit adultery? You who proclaim one must not kill, do you yourself kill? You who say one must not covet, do you yourself wish to ruin your neighbor’s wife?

4 Tell me thus, you rulers of Israel: does God, who made all things, not see these things? Do the day and the sun not see your deed? And shall the earth, defiled by you, not cry out?

5 Why do you, lawless men, try to seduce a chaste and innocent soul with false words, that you may establish your own desire?

6 These things happened to Naboth the Israelite, who did not consent to give Ahab his vineyard, that it might become a garden of vegetables; and for this the righteous man, testified against, was unjustly put to death.

7 These are your dread deeds of daring from the beginning, because of the deceiver who from the beginning has lurked within you.

8 For there was indeed a young man with her—from the heavens—not consorting with her, but drawing near to her.

Chapter 21

1 Therefore, when the blessed Susanna heard these words, she was pierced to the heart and barred her body, as one unwilling to be defiled by the lawless elders.

2 It is possible also to grasp truly what befell Susanna. For you may find this now being fulfilled in the Church as well.

3 For whenever the two peoples agree together to corrupt the souls of the saints, they watch for a convenient day, and entering into the house of God while all are praying there and hymning God, they lay hold of and drag off and seize certain ones, saying: Come, consent to us and worship our gods. But if not, we will testify against you. And when these are unwilling, they bring them before the vicars and accuse them of acting contrary to the decree of Caesar, and they are condemned to death.

Chapter 22

1 Then Susanna groaned and said: I am hemmed in on every side; for if I do this now, it is death to me, and if I do not do it, I shall not escape your hands. But it is better for me, having not done it, to fall into your hands than to sin before the Lord.

2 See the words of a chaste woman who is devoted to God: I am hemmed in, she says, on every side. For the Church is afflicted and straitened not only by the Jews, but also by the nations and by those falsely called Christians, who, ever eyeing her chastity and steadfastness, strive to corrupt her.

3 If therefore, she says, I do this, it is death to me. For to disobey God and to obey men works death and eternal punishment.

4 But if I do not do it, I shall not escape your hands. And this too she said truly. For those who are brought to trial for the name of Christ, if they do what is commanded by men, they have died to God but live to the world; and if they do not do it, they do not escape the hands of the judges, but, condemned by those very men, they die.

5 For it is better for us, not having done it, to fall into their hands than to sin before the Lord. For it is more excellent to die unjustly at the hands of men, that we may live with God, than, having consented to them and been released by them, to fall into the hands of God.

6 For this reason indeed our Lord Jesus Christ lived and died and rose again, that he might be Lord of the living and the dead.

Chapter 23

1 These things the blessed Susanna taught us long ago, prefiguring in herself in every respect the mysteries of the Church, whose faithfulness and reverence and chastity concerning the body is proclaimed in all the earth until now.

2 I exhort you therefore, all who read this Scripture, women and virgins, small and great: keeping the judgment of God before your eyes, take her as an example and imitate her; and like Susanna you will be able to be vindicated by God and to be delivered from the second death by the Word who lived his life in Daniel.

3 For let the men seek the dignity of Joseph, and the women the purity and faithfulness of Susanna; do not give occasion of blasphemy against yourselves, lest you confirm as true the things spoken by the elders.

4 For many false speakers and deceivers of the mind have crept in, deceiving the innocent souls of the saints—some corrupting the women with persuasive words and dragging them to their own desires, others overturning the men with heretical sayings, that they may accomplish their own will.

5 For this reason the apostle, foreseeing what was to come, said: I fear lest, as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts should be corrupted from the knowledge that is in Christ.

6 Come to your senses, all you saints, I exhort you; love the truth and recognize the purity of Susanna, who was not enslaved to the flesh, to the desire of pleasure, nor carried off by the persons of the elders, but feared God with her whole heart, choosing the temporary death that she might escape the second death of fire.

Chapter 24

1 Now while these things were happening, the Scripture says: And Susanna cried out with a loud voice, and the two elders also cried out against her.

2 To whom, then, did Susanna cry out, but to God, as Isaiah also says: Then you shall cry out, and God will hearken to you; while you are still speaking he will say, Behold, I am here.

3 And the two elders also cried out against her. For the lawless do not cease crying out against us and saying: Away with such a one from the earth; for it is not fitting that they should live.

4 And one of them ran and opened the doors of the garden, pointing out the broad and spacious way, through which those who obey them perish.

5 For the girls revealed to us the narrow and side door, through which they themselves also went out.

Chapter 25

1 “And the servants, hearing the cry of Susanna, rushed in.” But these men did the opposite: they opened the side doors, contriving some occasion of death against her.

2 And when the elders spoke their words, the servants were utterly ashamed, because never had any wicked report been made concerning Susanna.

3 See how living temperately from childhood, beloved, wins a person praise even unto death. For the like befell Susanna, who, having diligently studied the law of Moses from infancy and lived reverently and chastely, made incredible the charge spoken against her by the elders.

4 So too every believer, man or woman: if he keeps the faith he received, fearing God, he will not sin.

5 But if one is called a believer yet does the works of an unbeliever, such a person will receive from God a double judgment, even if for now in this world he seems to escape notice.

Chapter 26

1 “And it came to pass on the next day, when the people gathered to her husband Jehoiakim, that the two elders also came, full of their lawless design against Susanna, to put her to death, and they said before the people: Send now for Susanna the daughter of Helkias, who is the wife of Jehoiakim. So they sent, and she came, and her parents and her children and all her kindred.”

2 This is seen even now; for whenever one of the saints is seized and led to a tribunal, all run together there to see what the outcome for him will be.

3 Now Susanna was delicate in form and very beautiful to behold. For beauty clothed her—not a beauty about the body that is harlot-like, in the manner that it clothed Jezebel, nor a countenance puffed up with varied paints, but she had the beauty of faith and chastity and holiness.

4 But the lawless men ordered that she be unveiled, for she was veiled, so that they might glut themselves on her beauty. Let us consider, beloved, whose this wicked working is. For when the apostle said, “A woman ought to have a covering on her head because of the angels,” these men did the opposite: they ordered her to be unveiled before the people, and that without shame.

5 And standing up in the midst of the people, they laid their hands on her head, so that even in touching her they might bring to its full measure the satiety of their own lust.

6 But she, weeping, looked up to heaven, for her heart trusted in the Lord. For through her tears she drew down the Word from the heavens, the One who was to raise the dead Lazarus through tears.

Chapter 27

1 And the elders said: “As we were walking in the garden alone, this woman came in with two maidservants, and shut the doors of the garden, and dismissed the maidservants; and a young man came to her who had been hidden, and lay down with her. Now we, being in a corner of the garden and seeing the lawlessness, ran upon them; and seeing them in the act together, we were not able to take hold of him, because he was stronger than we, and he opened the doors and leaped out; but laying hold of her, we asked who the young man was, and she would not tell us. This we testify.” And they believed them as elders of the people and judges, and condemned her to death.

2 We must therefore in every matter become steadfast, neither giving heed to false words nor, being easily carried away by the persons of rulers, yielding to them, knowing that we have an account to render to God; but rather, attaining the truth and seeking out the exactness of the faith, we must be well-pleasing to God.

3 For the sons of Israel of old, being easily persuaded by their rulers and not examining the truth, became guilty of murder, having unjustly condemned Susanna.

4 But she, calling upon the Avenger from heaven, cried out, saying: “O eternal God, who knows the hidden things, who knows all things before their coming to be, you know that they have testified falsely against me; and behold, I am dying, though I have done none of the things these men have wickedly devised against me.” And God heard her voice.

5 For as many as call upon him from a pure heart, them God hears; but as many as call in guile and hypocrisy, from these he turns away his face.

Chapter 28

1 “And as she was being led away,” it says, “to die, God stirred up the Holy Spirit in a young lad, whose name was Daniel, and he cried out with a loud voice: I am clean from the blood of this woman.”

2 What then is it that has happened, beloved? Let us attend: for what reason did this visitation from the Lord not come about before she was condemned, but rather when she was being led off to perish? It was so that the majesty and the power of God might be displayed.

3 How so? When he wills to deliver one of his servants, he is able to deliver him and save him, whenever he wills and however he wills. But when he wills to take one to himself, he permits him to perish, so that, having endured the torments like a noble athlete, he may crown and glorify him.

4 For when Susanna had prayed and been heard, an angel of the Lord was sent forth as her avenger and became her helper, that he might destroy those who plotted against her.

5 Beholding his onset, the blessed Daniel—being a prophet and possessed of the Spirit of God—cried out, saying, “I am clean from the blood of this woman,” so that he too might not become guilty of murder, in the manner that Pilate also did in the case of Christ, who washed his hands with water, saying: “I am clean from the blood of this man.”

Chapter 29

1 But perhaps someone will say that this is stated without scriptural warrant and cannot be known—whether Daniel cried out, “I am clean from the blood of this woman,” because he saw the angel.

2 If you wait a little, O man, Daniel himself will teach you fully.

3 For when the people heard the cry and marveled, he answered them: “Are you so foolish, you sons of Israel? Without examining, nor learning the plain truth, have you condemned a daughter of Israel? Now then, return to the place of judgment; for these men have testified falsely against her.” And the people returned in haste. But the lawless men, mocking Daniel and despising him as a mere young lad, not perceiving the power of the Word in him, said: “Come, sit in our midst and declare to us, since God has given you the eldership.”

4 But he said: “Separate them far from one another, and I will examine them.” And when they had been separated, one from the other, he summoned the one and said to him: “O you who have grown old in evil days, now have your sins come home, which you committed of old, giving unjust judgments and condemning the innocent while acquitting the guilty, though the Lord says, ‘You shall not slay the innocent and the righteous.’ Now then, if indeed you saw this woman, tell me: under what tree did you see them keeping company with each other?” And he said: “Under a mastic tree.” And Daniel said: “Rightly have you lied against your own head; for already the angel of God has gone forth, having received the word from God, to split you in two.”

5 So Daniel dismissed the one under examination. For the saying, “Already the angel of God has gone forth, having received the word from God to split you in two,” makes clear that at the very moment when Susanna prayed to God and was heard, then was the angel sent forth to help her.

6 In the same manner it came to pass also with Tobias and Sarah. For when they had prayed, at that very hour and on that very day the petition of them both was heard, and the angel Raphael was sent to heal the two of them.

7 Thus then the Scripture foretold through the prophet Amos to the house of Israel, saying: “Will the Lord God do a thing unless he first reveal it to his servants the prophets?” A vision came to Daniel, and the Holy Spirit was stirred up in him, so that, the examination being conducted by him, the angel might dispatch these men as evil false witnesses.

Chapter 30

1 But since earlier, in the prologue, we have already explained that the two elders are referred to as a type of the two peoples—that from the circumcision and that from the nations—who are also forever plotters against the Church, let us look at the very words of Daniel and learn that in nothing does the Scripture deceive us.

2 For in saying to the first, “O you who have grown old in evil days, now have your sins come home, which you committed of old, giving unjust judgments and condemning the innocent while acquitting the guilty, since the Lord says, ‘You shall not slay the innocent and the righteous,’” he spoke to him as to one learned in the law and as to one who loved the law.

3 But to the other he did not speak so; rather he said to him, “O seed of Canaan and not of Judah.” Calling him a Canaanite, he showed him to be, as it were, a Gentile, speaking to him as to one uncircumcised: “So lust deceived you, and beauty perverted your heart? So you did to the daughters of Israel, and they, being afraid, kept company with you; but a daughter of Judah did not endure your indecency. Now then, if indeed you saw this woman, tell me: under what tree did you see them keeping company with each other?” And he said: “Under a holm oak.” And Daniel said: “Rightly have you too lied against your own head; for the angel of God is about to saw you in two, that he may utterly destroy you.”

Chapter 31

1 Therefore, so that in all things the dignity of the holy Scriptures may be preserved and the pure mouth of the blessed prophets may be shown to be pure, let us compare word with word and set phrase beside phrase.

2 For when the elders at that time wished to gratify their own lust through wicked words and said shamelessly, “We saw them lying together,” the blessed Daniel set in order what had been spoken by these men so foully and so wickedly, asking them, “Under what tree did you see them keeping company with each other?” For the notion of “keeping company” is one thing, and that of intercourse another.

Chapter 32

1 Now when this had taken place, “the whole assembly,” it says, “cried out with a loud voice and gave praise to God, because Daniel had convicted them out of their own mouth of bearing false witness.”

2 What then shall we say? In the one saying “a mastic tree” and the other “an evergreen oak,” in this the proof came about.

3 For what did they mean to say? “In our wish to lay hold of the young man, we did not observe with certainty what kind of tree it was.”

4 But since in all things the divine Scripture makes us wise, guiding us toward the truth, in this we must understand that they were compelled by the Spirit to name such trees as were not planted in the garden, so that out of their own mouth they might accuse themselves. For if they had named one of the trees planted there, perhaps by this word they would have prevailed upon the people. But as it is, it was not so; rather, they declared things that did not exist.

5 For when Daniel had refuted the thoughts of their heart through their words and had exposed that fearful desire which they still held in their eyes, and had made manifest their hidden faults from the beginning, which they were committing against the daughters of Israel, they themselves, being convicted by the Holy Spirit and darkened in mind, named strange trees, so that through the word they might be tripped up by their own selves.

Chapter 33

1 Whereupon, when all the people heard it, and all her kindred, they cried out, saying, “They have lied; for neither a mastic tree nor an evergreen oak is planted in the garden.”

2 After this, the whole assembly arose and gave praise to God, who saves those who hope in him. And they rose up against the two elders and did to them in the very manner in which they had wickedly plotted to do to their neighbor, and they put them to death, because Daniel had convicted them out of their own mouth of bearing false witness—so that what was spoken might be fulfilled: “He who digs a pit for his neighbor will himself fall into it,” and innocent blood was saved on that day.

3 And Hilkiah and his wife praised God for their daughter, together with Joakim her husband and all their kindred, because no shameful thing was found in her. And from that day onward Daniel became great in the sight of the people.

Chapter 34

1 We ought, then, beloved, to take heed in all things, fearing lest anyone, being mastered by some transgression, become through his own self guilty against his own soul—knowing that God is the avenger concerning all things, being himself wholly an eye, and nothing of what is done in the world escapes him. Therefore, ever watchful in heart and living soberly, imitate Susanna, and delight in the garden, and enjoy the ever-flowing water, and wipe away every defilement, and be sanctified with the heavenly oil, that you may present a pure body to God, and kindle your lamps, and await the Bridegroom, so that when he knocks you may receive him, and may sing the praise of God through Christ—to whom be the glory unto the ages. Amen.

Book Two. Concerning the image which King Nebuchadnezzar set up

Chapter 35

1 “In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed a dream, and his spirit was troubled, and his sleep departed from him. And the king commanded to call the enchanters and the magicians and the sorcerers and the Chaldeans, to declare to the king his dreams; and they came and stood before the king. And the king said to them, ‘I have dreamed, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream.’ And the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic: ‘O king, live forever; tell the dream to your servants, and we will declare the interpretation.’ The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, ‘The word has departed from me; if therefore you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall be destroyed, and your houses shall be plundered; but if you make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive gifts and presents and great honor from me. Only declare to me the dream and its interpretation.’”

Chapter 36

1 Now the dream seen by the king was not earthly, that it might be interpreted by the wise men of the world, but it was heavenly, to be fulfilled in its own appointed times according to the counsel and providence of God.

2 And for this reason it was hidden from those men who think on earthly things, so that to those who seek the heavenly things the heavenly mysteries might be revealed.

3 For indeed, in Egypt under Pharaoh it happened in like manner.

4 For he, having seen the dreams, related them to all the interpreters of Egypt, and there was none to declare them to Pharaoh; but when the blessed Joseph was present, the things not understood by others were opportunely made plain. And for this reason the king, marveling, answered his servants, saying, “Can we possibly find such a man, in whom is the Spirit of God?” By this the Scripture signifies that no one will be able to expound the heavenly mysteries unless he be an interpreter as one who partakes of the Holy Spirit.

5 So then in Babylon also the vision was hidden from the king, so that Daniel, chosen by God, might be shown to be a prophet. For whatever things are hidden from some, but revealed by another, of necessity prove the one who speaks them to be a prophet.

Chapter 37

1 In order, then, that the Chaldeans might not by some contrivance deceive the king with words of error, Nebuchadnezzar, stung to the heart, said to them: “In truth I know that you are buying time, since you see that the matter has departed from me. If, then, you do not declare the dream to me, I know that you have agreed to speak a false and perverse word before me, until the time should pass.” The Chaldeans answered the king, saying: “There is no man on earth who will be able to make known the king’s matter, since no great king or ruler asks such a thing of an enchanter, magician, sorcerer, or Chaldean; for the word the king asks is hard, and there is no other who will declare it before the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with any flesh.”

2 When these things had been said, the king in anger commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be put to death. And the decree went forth, and the wise men were being slain.

Chapter 38

1 Since, then, they had said that this thing sought by the king was impossible to be told by a man, God showed them that the things impossible with men were possible with God.

2 For when Arioch the chief cook was about to destroy both Daniel and his three friends—for he had gone out to slay the wise men of Babylon (Scripture calls the captain of the sword “chief cook”; for just as the cook slays all the animals and cooks them, in the same way the rulers of this world also slay men, cooking them like irrational animals)—Daniel came forward and said: “Concerning what has this shameless decree gone forth from the king’s presence?” For he sought to learn from him the cause, for what reason the Babylonians were being slain.

3 And Arioch made the matter known to Daniel. And he, having heard, asked him to give him time, that he might make known the interpretation to the king.

Chapter 39

1 Then Daniel went into his house and made the matter known to Hananiah and Mishael and Azariah. And they sought mercies from the God of heaven, that they too might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then to Daniel in a vision of the night the mystery was revealed. And Daniel blessed the God of heaven, saying: “May the name of the Lord be blessed from age to age, for wisdom and understanding and might are his; and he changes seasons and times, sets up kings and removes them, giving wisdom to the wise and understanding to those who know understanding; he reveals deep and hidden things, knowing the things in the darkness, and the light is with him. To you, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, for you have given me wisdom and power, and have made known to me what we asked of you, and have made known to me the king’s matter.”

2 We ought, then, to understand the tender-heartedness of God, how to those who are worthy and who fear him he quickly reveals and makes manifest, fulfilling their prayers and their requests, as the prophet says: “Who is wise, and will understand these things? and a man of understanding, and will know them?”

Chapter 40

1 When this had happened, Daniel arose and came to Arioch and said to him: “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon, but bring me in before the king, and I will declare to the king the dream and its interpretation.”

2 And he, having heard these things, brought Daniel in with haste and said: “I have found a man from the sons of the captivity of Judea, who will declare the interpretation to the king.”

3 And he, astonished, said to Daniel: “Are you able to declare to me the dream which I saw and its interpretation?” And Daniel said: “The mystery which the king asks—it is not for magicians, enchanters, or soothsayers to declare it to the king; but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to king Nebuchadnezzar what must come to pass in the last days.”

4 See how through these words he removes the Chaldeans from the danger of being slain, and teaches the king not to seek heavenly mysteries from earthly men—mysteries which were to be accomplished in their own times by God.

5 And for this reason, directing the king’s mind up to God, he said: “There is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, from whom man must receive by asking in mercies and prayers.”

6 Accordingly he too, being humble-minded and making himself small and not boasting, though found wiser than all the Babylonians, said: “To me also this mystery was revealed, not by any wisdom that is in me beyond all who dwell upon the earth, but for the sake of making the interpretation known to the king, that you might know the thoughts of your heart.”

7 For when the king had taken possession of Egypt, and had captured the land of Judea and removed the people, he was reasoning, as he lay upon his bed, what then would come to pass after these things.

8 But he who knows the hidden things of all and searches out the thoughts of hearts revealed to him through the image the things that would be, yet hid from him the vision, so that the counsels of God might not be able to be interpreted by the wise men of Babylon, but rather that the things hidden from all might be made manifest by the blessed Daniel, as a prophet of God.

Chapter 41

1 He says, then: “You, O king, were watching, and behold, one image. That image was great, and its appearance terrible: an image whose head was of fine gold, its hands and breast and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. You were watching until a stone was cut out without hands and struck the image upon its feet of iron and clay and broke them utterly to pieces. Then at once were broken to pieces the clay, the iron, the bronze, the silver, the gold, and they became like dust from a summer threshing-floor; and the strength of the wind carried them off, and no place was found for them. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled all the earth. This is the dream, and we will tell its interpretation before the king. You, O king, are a king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given a strong and mighty and honored kingdom in every place where the sons of men dwell; the beasts of the field and the birds of heaven he has given into your hand and has set you lord over all: you are the head of gold. And after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to you; and a third kingdom, which is the bronze, which shall rule over all the earth; and a fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: in the manner that iron breaks in pieces and subdues all things, so shall it break in pieces and subdue all. And whereas you saw the feet and the toes partly of iron and partly of clay, the kingdom shall be divided, and there shall be in it of the root of iron, in the manner you saw the iron mixed with the clay. And the toes of the feet partly of iron and partly of clay—part of the kingdom shall be strong and part of it broken. Whereas you saw the iron mixed with the clay, they shall be mingled in the seed of men, but shall not cleave one to another, just as iron does not mingle with clay. And in the days of those kings the God of heaven shall raise up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed unto the ages, and its kingdom shall not be left to another people; it shall break in pieces and winnow all the kingdoms, and it shall itself arise unto the ages, in the manner you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain without hands and broke in pieces the clay, the iron, the bronze, the silver, the gold. The great God has made known to the king what must come to pass after these things; and the dream is true, and its interpretation faithful.”

Chapter 42

1 Having heard these things, Nebuchadnezzar, reminded of the dream, recognized that the things spoken by Daniel would indeed be true, and falling upon his face he did obeisance to Daniel, and commanded that a meal offering and fragrant incense be poured out to him

2 How great is the power of the grace of God, beloved, that the one who a little before was about to be slain with the rest of the wise men of Babylon—him the king, falling down, should worship no longer as a man but as a god! And he commanded that a meal offering and fragrant incense be poured out to him.

3 For of old the Lord promised the like to Moses also, saying: “Behold, I have made you a god to Pharaoh,” so that through the signs done by him in Egypt Moses might no longer be reckoned a man, but be worshipped as a god by the Egyptians.

Chapter 43

1 Nebuchadnezzar, then, astonished at the things said by Daniel, declared: “In truth your God is himself God of gods and Lord of those who rule, and the revealer of mysteries, since you were able to reveal this mystery.” And the king magnified Daniel, and gave him many great gifts, and set him over all the province of Babylon, as ruler of the satraps, over all the wise men of Babylon.

2 For since he had made himself small and had declared himself to be the least of all men, the king for that reason exalted him and set him as ruler of all the province of Babylon.

3 This was the same way that Pharaoh too acted toward Joseph, when he set him as ruler over all the land of Egypt.

4 For in all Egypt no man was found able to report the visions to Pharaoh, except Joseph alone; and in Babylon none of the wise men was able to declare the vision to the king, except Daniel alone.

5 For generation after generation God brings holy men to himself, since he must be glorified in all the world.

Chapter 44

1 And Daniel made a request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the works of the province of Babylon.

2 And this too, which was done by Daniel, is worthy of faith and praise. For since they had joined Daniel in prayer to God, that the vision might be revealed to him, Daniel himself, having received rank and honor from the king, remembered them, and set before the king the work that had been done by them, so that they too might be deemed worthy of some honor, as fellow initiates and God-fearing men.

3 For having asked for the heavenly things from the Lord, they obtained the earthly things as well from the king.

Chapter 45

1 Since, then, the blessed Daniel recounted the vision to the king and did not keep silent about its interpretation, he left the inquiry to those who possess an upright mind, so that again the things said by Daniel might be expounded by others.

2 It is necessary for lovers of truth to investigate carefully, and not, merely reading in passing, to suppose that the things spoken by the prophets were uttered to no clear purpose.

3 For he beholds a great image, and confesses that its head is of fine gold; then he relates that its shoulders and chest are silver; next its belly and thighs bronze; then its legs iron; and likewise the toes of its feet clay and iron mingled together; then a stone cut from a mountain without hands, striking the image and crushing it small; and the stone itself became a great mountain and filled all the earth.

4 Having said these things about the image, he afterward divides it according to its form, and transferring it part by part into kingdoms, member by member he expounds it: he says that the gold is the king Nebuchadnezzar himself, explaining that this is the golden head of the image.

5 Then he names a second kingdom, hinting at it obscurely, saying that the silver is inferior to this one.

6 Then a third, which is the bronze.

7 Then a fourth, a strong one, which is the iron.

8 Then clay and iron mingled together are shown as the extremities of the feet of the image.

9 For he began from the head, to point out the gold; then the chest and the arms, and he names silver; then the belly and thighs, and he signifies the bronze; then he recounts the legs, and points to iron; then the feet and ten toes, and he proclaims clay and iron; after these things nothing remains to be seen but a stone cut from a mountain and striking the image, becoming at the last a great mountain and filling all the earth.

Chapter 46

1 How then can we fail to understand the things prophesied long ago in Babylon by Daniel and even now being fulfilled in the world?

2 For the image shown at that time to Nebuchadnezzar contained the figure of the kingdom of the whole world.

3 In which times the Babylonians then reigned, being the golden head of the image.

4 Then after them the Persians held power for two hundred and forty-five years, so that they are shown to be the silver.

5 After these the Greeks held power, beginning from Alexander the Macedonian, for three hundred years, so that these are the bronze.

6 After these the Romans, being the iron legs of the image, strong as the iron.

7 Then the toes of the feet, that there might be shown the democracies in their several places that are to come, divided into the ten toes of the image, in which the iron will be mingled with the clay.

Chapter 47

1 After these things, what does Daniel say? A stone was cut without hands, and it struck the image.

2 Since, then, the iron has been mingled with the clay and has passed to the tips of the toes, and men have become discordant with one another, what remains to be awaited but Christ coming from the heavens, as a stone cut from a mountain, that he may remove the kingdoms of this world and raise up the heavenly kingdom of the saints, which shall not be destroyed forever—himself becoming the mountain and the city of the saints, filling all the earth?

3 And for this reason the blessed Daniel said: “And after the end of those days the God of heaven will raise up a kingdom which shall not be destroyed forever, and his kingdom shall not be left to another people.”

4 So that no one might disbelieve the things spoken, whether indeed these things will truly be or not, the prophet set his seal upon them, saying: “And the dream is true, and its interpretation is sure.”

Chapter 48

1 In the eighteenth year Nebuchadnezzar the king made a golden image, its height sixty cubits, its breadth six cubits, and he set it up in the plain of Deira in the province of Babylon. And he sent to gather the consuls, the generals and governors, the leaders and rulers and those in authority, and all the magistrates of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. And they all gathered and came, and stood before the image. And the herald cried aloud: “To you it is commanded, O peoples, tribes, and tongues: at whatever hour you hear the sound of the trumpet, pipe and lyre, sambuca and psaltery, and every kind of music, fall down and worship the golden image; and whoever does not fall down and worship, in that same hour he shall be cast into the burning fiery furnace.”

Chapter 49

1 Now when a considerable time had passed and the eighteenth year had come, the king, recalling his dream, made a golden image whose height was sixty cubits and its breadth six cubits.

2 For since the blessed Daniel, in interpreting the dream for him, had answered the king saying, “You are the head of the image, the golden one,” the king Nebuchadnezzar, puffed up by this saying and lifted up in heart, made an image corresponding to it, so that he might be worshiped by all as a god.

3 So having constructed it on a great scale, he set it up on the plain of Deira in the country of Babylon.

4 And he sent and summoned the consuls and the generals and the local governors and all those in positions of authority to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

5 Then, when all the people had assembled together and the instruments sounded together all at once, peoples, tribes, and tongues fell down and worshiped the image—some of them out of fear of the king, but the whole company becoming idolaters—obeying the command that had been ordered by the king.

Chapter 50

1 Then certain of the Chaldeans came forward and accused the Jews to the king: “You, O king, have set forth a decree that every man who hears the sound of the trumpet, the pipe and the lyre, the sambuke and the psaltery and the symphony and every kind of music, and does not fall down and worship the golden image, shall be cast into the burning fiery furnace. Now there are certain men, Jews, whom you appointed over the works of the country of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego—who have not obeyed your decree, O king; they do not serve your gods, and they do not worship the golden image which you set up.” Then the king, hearing this, in fury and wrath ordered them to be brought, and answering he said, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods and do not worship the golden image which I set up? Now then, if you are ready, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, the pipe and the lyre, the sambuke and the psaltery and every kind of music, fall down and worship the golden image; but if not, in that very hour you shall be cast into the burning fiery furnace—and who is the god that shall deliver you out of my hands?”

Chapter 51

1 You have seen the threat of a man, a tyrannizing king, who had not known him who said: “Do not fear those men who are able to kill the body but in the same act are unable to kill the inner self; rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.”

2 Not cowering at these words, the young men answered, saying: “We have no need to answer you concerning this matter. For there is a God whom we serve, able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace; and out of your hands, O king, he will rescue us. But even if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, and the golden image which you set up we do not worship.”

Chapter 52

1 See: three young men became an example to all believing people—men who neither feared the throng of satraps, nor lost heart when they heard the king’s words, nor cowered though they knew the fire of the furnace was burning, but despised all men and the whole world, having before their eyes only the fear of God.

2 Daniel, standing at a distance and keeping silent, was teaching them to take courage, smiling toward them and himself rejoicing at their testimony, beholding three young men about to be crowned in victory over the devil—men not deceived by the art of music, nor enslaved by the pleasure of instruments, nor led astray by the error of the Babylonians, nor subjected to the king’s decree, nor bowing their knees to a beaten golden image.

3 These three faithful martyrs were found in Babylon, so that through them God might be glorified, and Nebuchadnezzar put to shame, and the idols of the Babylonians shown to be nothing.

Chapter 53

1 I will dare to say something, and I will run no risk in saying it: these men, having read the saying spoken by the prophet, knew that it had been written concerning them. For how did the saying speak to Babylon, “I will make mention of Rahab and of Babylon to those who know me,” unless he was foreseeing in the Spirit the mystery that was being dispensed there?

2 For these men, when they then saw all men worshiping the image and obeying the king’s command, set their minds to it, saying: “Not idly has this been written, brothers; perhaps it is now to be fulfilled in us.”

3 “For behold, it has come upon us: our whole race has been taken captive and has become enslaved to the Babylonians; Nebuchadnezzar tyrannizes over us like a great devil, and having made a golden image he compels us to commit idolatry.”

4 “Let us remain faithful unto death; let us not put to shame our teacher Moses, nor let our race be made a laughingstock; let the three of us conquer the whole power of the Babylonians. God will deliver us out of the hand of the king, as he delivered our fathers out of the hand of Pharaoh.”

5 “Let us remember the things done of old in the land of Egypt: how the sea, struck by the rod, was afraid, and the Jordan, beholding the ark, turned back; how Rahab the harlot, found faithful in the city of Jericho, was saved from the slaughter of the sword.”

6 “And now God is able easily to quench the fire of the furnace.”

7 “If he threatens death by the sword, let us endure it; if it is to be thrown to wild beasts, let us not cower before the beasts; let not the throng of the Babylonians conquer our faith.”

8 Exhorting one another like living athletes, they were led forward by the Spirit into the arena—three young men, contending against tens of thousands of unbelieving men.

Chapter 54

1 But someone will say: “These are plausible conjectures you are making.”

2 Be instructed, O man, in the things that came to pass under Antiochus.

3 When the seven brothers, arrested together with their mother, were being beaten with whips and scourges, one of them answered and said: “Why do you delay to question and to learn? For we are ready to die rather than to transgress the laws of our fathers.”

4 Enraged at this, the king ordered pans and cauldrons to be heated red-hot at once, and he ordered the one who had become their spokesman to have his tongue cut out, and that, after scalping him, they should mutilate him while the rest of the brothers looked on. And as the steam of the pan spread abroad in abundance, they encouraged one another in their fathers’ tongue, saying: “The Lord God watches over us, and in truth is moved to compassion upon us, just as Moses long ago made plain through the song spoken face to face, saying: ‘And he will be moved to compassion upon his servants.’”

Chapter 55

1 Do you see how the Spirit of the Father teaches the martyrs to practice their resolve, urging them on and encouraging them to despise this present death and to hasten toward the better life?

2 For if anyone is without the Holy Spirit, he is faint-hearted in his anguish; in fear he hides himself, he is wary of the death that lasts but a moment, he cowers before the sword, he cannot endure punishment; he keeps this world before his eyes, he is anxious about the affairs of life, he prefers his wife and loves his own children and seeks after a wealth of possessions. Such a man, possessing no heavenly power, is easily destroyed.

3 Every person, therefore, who comes to the Word must listen to what the heavenly King and Master commands: “Whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.”

Chapter 56

1 So then in that day too the three young men in Babylon, being disciples of the faith, answered the king, saying: “We have no need to answer you concerning this matter.”

2 And Daniel, hearing these words, gave his praise.

3 And they again said: “There is a God whom we serve, able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace; and out of your hands, O king, he will rescue us.”

4 And the blessed Daniel, being a prophet and foreseeing what was to come, nodded his assent that what had been spoken by them would truly come to pass; and the young men, that they might show the king the surpassing greatness of their faith, added, saying: “But even if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, and we do not worship the golden image which you have set up.”

5 And the blessed Daniel, hearing this third utterance of theirs once more, marveled at them and crowned them as noble athletes in the faith.

Chapter 57

1 See the steadfastness of words spoken through a single mouth, that they might not stumble in any saying.

2 For when the king threatened and said, “Why do you not serve my gods and worship the golden image which I have set up?” they answered, “We have no need to answer you concerning this matter,” not even regarding him as worthy of a defense on such a point.

3 Then, when the king said, “You shall be cast into the burning fiery furnace; and who is the god who will be able to rescue you out of my hands?” they countered the word spoken by the king and said: “There is a God whom we serve, able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace; and out of your hands, O king, he will rescue us.”

4 And when the king said again, “Now therefore, if you are ready, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, pipe and lyre, sackbut and harp and every kind of music, fall down and worship the golden image,” they said to him: “Let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, and we do not worship the golden image which you have set up.”

Chapter 58

1 For the king set before them three demands in a single speech, as though to men contending for three prizes, so that, ensnaring them by even one saying, he might trip them up.

2 But they answered nobly to all three, unwilling to be defeated in any.

3 For first they set the king’s word at nothing, showing that the idol worshiped by him was not worthy even of a word.

4 And in the second place they taught the king whom one must fear and worship, saying: “There is a God whom we serve, able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace.”

5 Then, in the third place, wishing to display their own faith, they declared: “But even if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, and we do not worship the golden image which you have set up.”

6 For this is what they secured by their declaration: lest, once they had been cast into the furnace and burned up, the Chaldeans should boast and deceive the king, saying, “Do not grieve, O king; you have conquered and won the prize against them; for they cried out as they burned in the fire and said: We beg you, lord king, we will do what is commanded by you, we will worship the image.”

7 Therefore, that even after death they might be called faithful martyrs, they secured themselves in every way, unwilling to give the devil any occasion for a foothold.

8 For they referred all authority and glory to God, believing that he is able to deliver us; “but if he is not willing, we would rather die gladly than do what is commanded by you.”

Chapter 59

1 Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury, and the appearance of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and he said: “Heat the furnace sevenfold, until it is utterly burned.” And he commanded strong men in strength to bind them and cast them into the burning fiery furnace. Then those men were bound, together with their garments and their trousers […], and they were cast into the burning fiery furnace according to the king’s word.

2 Now they were the stronger, if one must speak the truth—the young men […]. For as much as the word of the young men prevailed, so much was the king enraged; and he said, “Heat the furnace sevenfold,” altogether as one already defeated by them.

3 For in earthly things the king prevailed, but in faith toward God the three young men prevailed. —

4 But someone will say: Could not Daniel, being a friend of the king, have interceded on their behalf and asked for the three young men? He could have; but in order that the great works of God might be displayed and that the Babylonians might learn to fear God, for this reason he kept silent, so that both the faith of these men might be shown and God might be glorified in them.

5 For if this had happened, the Babylonians would have been likely to say: “If Daniel had not interceded with the king on their behalf, these men would have perished today in the fire”—and it would have been thought to be a human favor rather than the power of God.

Chapter 60

1 But why at all, since the king knew that Daniel was a Jew, was he not pricked to ask him, “Why do you not worship the image?” Surely he would have said to the king: “Because I do not revere works made by hands, but the living God who made heaven and earth and has lordship over all flesh,” just as he answered Cyrus in the matter of Bel. Carried away, the king said to him […]

2 […] Bel, except according to the counsel of the satraps: that for thirty days, if anyone should make a petition to any god or man other than to the king, he should be cast into the den of the lions.

3 But since in the furnace the three young men alone were to be glorified, and in the matter of Bel, while Cyrus was reigning, Daniel alone was to be cast into the den of the lions, each one of them was reserved by his own ordering and at his own appointed time, so that both Nebuchadnezzar the king of the Babylonians, seeing the three young men in no way destroyed by the fire, might glorify God, and Cyrus the Persian, seeing Daniel not devoured by the lions, might be taught that the God of heaven is the only God.

4 In this way, then, God, ordering affairs in their seasons through his servants the prophets, persuades all people to come to the knowledge of himself.

Chapter 61

1 So then the young men, bound together with their garments and their trousers, were cast into the burning fiery furnace, according to the king’s command.

2 Tell me, Nebuchadnezzar, on what reasoning do you order these men to be thrown bound into the fire? Is it so that they may not flee? Or so that, if loosed, they may stamp out the fire with their feet? But it is not you who do these things; rather it is another working them in you.

3 And for this reason the Scripture says: “Then the form of the king was changed”; for he was one man and became another. For the king had at the first been a man who feared God; then, exalted against Him, he was changed, imitating the works of the devil.

4 And for this reason the Scripture rightly proclaimed beforehand, saying: “I am God, and I have not changed,” so that it might be shown that God is unchangeable and unalterable. The form of the king was changed, so that he might readily be understood to be a man, and the deceiver working in him might easily be recognized—he who is forever imitating the works of God and seeking by various means to deceive man.

5 “For in the eighteenth year,” it says, “Nebuchadnezzar the king made a golden image, its height sixty cubits and its breadth six cubits, and he set it up in the plain of Deira in the country of Babylon.”

6 Now by the eighteen years he imitated Jesus the Son of God, who, being present in the world, raised His own image, man, from the dead, and displayed it to His disciples pure and spotless as gold.

7 And by the height of sixty cubits he signified the sixty patriarchs, through whom according to the flesh the image of God, the Word, was formed and fashioned and exalted above all the patriarchs.

8 And by the breadth of six cubits he indicated the six days; for on the sixth day man, fashioned from the dust, came into being.

9 So then Nebuchadnezzar, having molded gold and made a counterfeit image, set it up in the plain of Deira in the country of Babylon, signifying that the plain is the world, and Babylon the great city.

10 And at that time Nebuchadnezzar made a single image, but now the deceiver has devised many in the world, so that through the many spectacles he might lead all men astray, one being carried off here and another there—some worshiping the golden, others the silver, others the bronze, some the one composed of ivory, and many revering the earthenware and the stone. And all of them, forsaking the heavenly God, were subjected to empty and lifeless and worthless idols, unwilling to look up on high nor to consider the beauty of heaven, lest, recognizing its God, they should be able to be saved.

11 These are the contrivances of the devil. Not only did he work them long ago in Babylon, but even now he does the like, and ventures to dare worse against the servants of God, preparing for himself a furnace of fire, so that by it he might terrify man—not knowing the eternal punishment by fire prepared for him by God.

Chapter 62

1 Now when these things had come to pass, the Scripture says: “And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell bound into the midst of the furnace, and they walked about in the midst of the flame, praising God and blessing the Lord.”

2 So then the bonds which the king had put on them the fire at once consumed, but it did not touch their garments and their trousers, so that in this too the magnificent work of God might be shown.

3 For since the garments were wrapped about the bodies of the young men, these also were sanctified together with them and were not destroyed by the fire, but were honored together with them through their testimony.—

4 Let the heresiarchs who deny their own resurrection tell me how they say there is no resurrection of the flesh, when corruptible garments and sandals made from dead animals were not destroyed by the fire because they were wrapped about a holy body. How shall not flesh too, though corruptible, wrapped about a holy soul, itself also be sanctified together with it and be transformed into incorruption?

5 For if things that are by nature corruptible did not receive corruption, how shall that which did not become corruptible by nature, but was put to death through disobedience, not rise again when it is made alive once more by the power of God?

6 So that in every way the Scripture persuades us to believe in God with the whole heart, in the very manner in which those men too, having believed, were saved whole out of the furnace of fire together with their clothing and trousers.

7 For if the fire did not then overpower those men, how can the eternal fire have mastery over the saints who likewise believe in God?

Chapter 63

1 At that time, then, Azarias, standing forth together with the rest, made confession to God through hymn and prayer in the midst of the furnace.

2 And first they recounted their own sins and those of their fathers, giving glory to God that they were suffering these things worthily and justly as captives in a foreign land, handed over to a king lawless and most wicked beyond all the earth, because their fathers had not kept the law of the Lord their God.

3 Then, summoning the whole creation as with one mouth, they hymned and glorified and blessed God, saying: “Blessed are You, O Lord, the God of our fathers, and to be praised and exalted above all forever.”

4 So then, beginning from the holy and glorious and magnificent Name, they came to the very works of the Lord, first naming the heavenly things, and glorified Him saying: “Bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord; sing and exalt Him above all forever.”

5 Then in order all of them, summoning the seven heavens and the authorities and powers within them, and the water above the heaven, they came to the firmament and, naming the luminaries within it—sun and moon and stars—they said: “Bless the Lord, all you elements that move in the heaven; sing and exalt Him above all forever.”

6 Then they passed on to the changes of the air and the spirits which exist in the midst of the creation—winds, rains and snows, cold and heat, light and darkness, days and nights, and the things like them. Then they came to the foundation of the earth.

7 They began first from the very glory of God and glorified Him; then the things above the heaven, those called supramundane; then they named the firmament with the luminaries; then the things in the midst of the firmament;

8 then, turning to the earth, saying: “Let the earth bless the Lord; let it sing and exalt Him above all forever”; then mountains and hills; then all the things that grow in the earth.

9 Then they passed on to the waters—rivers and springs and seas; then the things that move in the waters, sea-monsters and fish; then the birds of heaven, cattle and wild beasts.

10 Then they passed on to the sons of men, offering up the hymn in order.

11 Then they named the things beneath the earth, the spirits of the angels who keep Tartarus and the souls of the righteous, so that these too together with them might hymn God.

12 And after completing all things, they named themselves last as least and lowly, saying: “Bless the Lord, O Hananiah, Azariah, Mishael; sing and exalt Him above all forever; for He has delivered us out of Hades and saved us from the hand of death, and rescued us out of the midst of the burning flame, and out of the midst of the fire He rescued us. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever.”

Chapter 64

1 Tell me, you three young men—remember me, I beg, that I too together with you may obtain the same lot, that of testimony—who was the fourth with you, who walked in the midst of the furnace and as with one mouth hymned God with you? Describe to us his form and beauty, so that we too, seeing him made flesh, may recognize him.

2 Who was it who so orderly recounted all creation through your mouth, so that you left out nothing of the things that are and that have come to be?

3 Spending a single hour in the furnace, you were being taught the fashioning of the creation; for the Word was with you and speaking through you, He who also knows the fashioning of the creation.

4 For wonderful, beloved, are the things uttered through hymns by the three young men in the furnace: how they left out none of the created things, lest any be reckoned as something free or self-governing, but, having included and named all things together—the heavenly and the earthly and those beneath the earth—they showed all to be servants of God, who created all things through the Word, so that no one might boast that any of the creatures is unbegotten or without beginning.

5 Let them cease, therefore, the dogmatists of the heresiarchs, who, naming powers and aeons and emanations, devise empty monstrous tales, so that through strange words they may easily deceive men and destroy them, and compel them to worship the things that are not as though they were—fashioning yet other images in the hearts of men, just as Nebuchadnezzar did.

6 For the Scripture, having included all things together—whether principalities or authorities or powers or thrones or dominions or every name that is named—subjected them all and made them servants to God, that as Lord and Master they should hymn and bless and glorify the One who made them.

7 And for this reason Hananiah, Azariah, and Mishael, after declaring all the things that are, added, saying: “Bless Him, all you who revere the Lord, the God of gods; sing and give thanks, for His mercy endures forever.”

Chapter 65

1 Now the Babylonians, seeing the three young men hymning in the furnace, did not cease burning naphtha and pitch, tow and brushwood, and the flame poured out above the furnace forty-nine cubits, themselves too by their power fighting against God;

2 “and the fire spread,” it says, “and burned up those of the Chaldeans whom it found about the furnace.”

3 Do you see how the fire itself is intelligent, recognizing and punishing the guilty? For it did not touch the servants of God, but consumed in flame the unbelieving and godless among the Chaldeans; and those who were inside in the furnace were bedewed by the angel, while those who seemed to stand outside the furnace untroubled were themselves destroyed by the fire.

4 And as the Scripture says: “And the angel of God came down together with those around Azarias into the furnace, and shook off the flame of the fire of the furnace, and made the midst of the furnace as a whistling breath of dew, and the fire did not touch them at all, nor pain them, nor trouble them.”

Chapter 66

1 It is necessary, then, to inquire: who was this angel who appeared in the furnace and, as his own children, kept the young men under his arms, and for those within turned the fire into the dew of water, but to those outside assigned his own judgment, as it is written, “With what measure you measure it shall be measured back to you”?

2 He was no other—do not be deceived—but this very one who also judged the Egyptians in the water. For in return for their casting the male infants of the Hebrews into the river at that time, in the same manner those men too perished in the sea, justly drowned in the water, so that an equal recompense might be rendered to those who do evil.

3 This was he who received the authority of judgment from the Father; who also rained fire and brimstone upon Sodom and destroyed those men for their lawlessness and wicked impiety.

4 Him also Ezekiel confesses to have taken the fire in his hand and to hold it, awaiting the voice of the Father, when He shall command him to cast it upon the world.

5 Seeing him, the fire in the furnace shrank back, and seeing his exceedingly radiant light it trembled.

6 Concerning him Isaiah says: “And his name is called the Angel of great counsel.”

7 Him the Scripture confessed to be also the Angel of God; for he it was who announced to us the mysteries of the Father.

8 This one came down together with those around Azarias into the furnace.

9 Seeing this angel, the fire recognized its own Master and, taking fright, fled outside the furnace; and for this reason it rose to forty-nine cubits. For, driven from within, it gushed outward, and the midst of the furnace became a fine whistling dew, having within it no smell of fire at all.

10 For the angel, standing in the furnace, was driving the flame from within outward. And this, being driven, poured out in a circle of the furnace to forty-nine cubits.

Chapter 67

1 Then Nebuchadnezzar, seeing what had happened, was amazed and rose up in haste, and heard them singing hymns, and said to his nobles: “Did we not throw three men, bound, into the midst of the fire?” And they said: “Truly, O king.” But he answered and said: “Behold, I see four men, loosed and walking in the midst of the fire, and there is no destruction in them, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of God.”

2 Tell me, Nebuchadnezzar, when then did you see the Son of God, that you should confess this one to be the Son of God? And who was it that pierced your heart, that you should utter such a word? With what kind of eyes were you able to behold his light as in a mirror?

3 And why was he shown to you alone and to none of the other satraps, except because it was written, “The heart of a king is in the hand of God”?

4 This hand of God, which was the Word, pierced his heart, so that, recognizing him, he might glorify him in the furnace.

5 And what we have understood here is not idle either. For since the sons of Israel were going to see the Son of God in the world and not believe, the Scripture showed beforehand that the nations would come to recognize him in the flesh, the very one whom Nebuchadnezzar, seeing him of old without flesh in the furnace, recognized and confessed to be the Son of God.

Chapter 68

1 Then Nebuchadnezzar came to the door of the burning furnace and said: “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, you servants of the Most High God, come out and draw near.”

2 For since he himself could not enter into the furnace, he called those men to come out.

3 And he called the names of the three, but of the fourth he could not find words to speak; for Jesus had not yet been born of the Virgin.

4 And the satraps and the generals and the local rulers and the king’s mighty men gathered together and observed the men, that the fire had no power over their bodies, and not a hair of their head was singed, and their trousers were not altered, and there was no smell of fire on them.

Chapter 69

1 But perhaps someone will say: Why then did God deliver the martyrs of old, but those of the present time not so?

2 For we find that the blessed Daniel was twice cast into the lions’ den and was not destroyed by the beasts, and the three young men in the furnace, who were not harmed by the fire.

3 Take note, O man, that even then God delivered those whom he willed should still live, so that the great work of God might be displayed and proclaimed in all the world until now.

4 But those whom he willed to bear testimony as martyrs he took to himself, crowning them.

5 For he delivered the three young men so that the boasting of Nebuchadnezzar might be shown to be nothing, wishing to demonstrate this: that the things impossible with men are possible with God. For since Nebuchadnezzar said in his arrogance, “And who is the God who will be able to deliver you out of the furnace of fire?”, God showed him that he is able to deliver his own servants whenever he wills.

6 For the same thing happened likewise in the case of Daniel. For when Darius said, “Your God, whom you serve continually, was he able to deliver you from the mouth of the lions?”, Daniel answered and said: “God sent his angel and stopped the mouths of the lions, and they did me no harm.”

7 For the officers and all the satraps contrived an occasion to kill Daniel by handing him over to the beasts; but God, knowing their evil device and the innocence of the blessed Daniel, delivered him from the mouth of the lions—so that whom he wills he delivers, and whom he wills he takes to himself.

8 For we find also the seven martyrs under Antiochus, who endured terrible torments and were taken from the world. What then? Was God not able to strike down King Antiochus and deliver the seven brothers? He was able; but he did not will it, so that this might become a pattern for us.

9 For if he had delivered everyone, who would have borne testimony as a martyr? And if all bore testimony by dying, it would be said by some unbelievers that this happens because God is powerless.

Chapter 70

1 Man, therefore, must not resist the will of God. For whether we live, we live to the Lord; or whether we die, we die to the Lord; whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.

2 He delivered Jonah from the belly of the sea-monster, since he willed it.

3 He delivered Peter also from the hand of Herod, leading him out of the prison, since he willed that this man too should still live; in due time he took him to himself when he had been crucified for the Name, when he himself willed it.

4 He delivered Paul from many dangers, since he willed it; he took him to himself when he had been beheaded after a time, this man too when he willed it.

5 He allowed Stephen to be stoned by the Jews. But when he had endured, he crowned him.

6 How were you going to bear testimony as a martyr today, if those men had not first borne testimony and been counted blessed?

7 You have, then, in the Old Testament many who bore testimony as martyrs and many also who were delivered, so that it might be shown that there is one and the same God, both of old and now, having authority to do with his servants whatever he wills.

8 But let us come also to the King of glory himself and speak concerning the Son of God. Was God not able to deliver his Christ, that he might not be handed over to the Jews? Yes, he was able; but he allowed him to suffer, so that we might live through the death of his cross. And for this reason the Lord, knowing the will of God, said: “Father, not my will, but yours be done.”

Chapter 71

1 And what profits you, O man—to go out of this world in glory as a martyr, or, having been delivered and remaining here, to sin?

2 For we know many who confessed before the tribunal and, through some occasion in accordance with God’s providence, were released, and who then lived on for a considerable time and were found in transgressions.

3 What did their confession of God profit these men? For it would have been better for them if they had gone out of this world pure, having the heavenly crown, than, by remaining, to heap up sins for themselves for which they must render account.

4 Therefore let the one who is brought forward for the Name’s sake pray to go out as a martyr in whatever way it may be. For such a one is no longer even judged, but will judge, having his own portion in the first resurrection.

5 Be steadfast then, O man, never wavering in faith, and when you are called to martyrdom, answer readily, so that your faith may be made manifest. Perhaps God is testing you as he did Abraham, when he asked for Isaac. If, when you have been offered, he wills to deliver you, in this too glorify God.

6 Imitate, you too, the three young men, and consider their faith; for they said to the king: “God is able to deliver us, but if he does not will it, we are in the power of God; we would gladly die rather than do what is commanded by you.”

7 And when Nebuchadnezzar then saw them come out of the furnace pure and unblemished, he was struck with astonishment and marveled; for neither was a hair of them singed, nor were their trousers altered, nor was there even any smell of fire on them.

Chapter 72

1 Thus then Nebuchadnezzar answered and said: “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent his angel and delivered his servants because they trusted in him, and they set aside the king’s word and gave up their bodies, so that they would not serve any god but their own God. And I make a decree: every people, tribe, and tongue that speaks blasphemy against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall come to ruin, and their houses to plunder; for there is no other God who can deliver in this way.” And he advanced Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon, and increased them, and counted them worthy to rule over all the Jews who were in his kingdom. —

2 We must therefore observe, beloved, how great a grace faith toward God provides.

3 For just as they glorified God himself by giving themselves up to death, so in turn they too were glorified not only by God but also by the king, and they taught the foreign and barbarian nations to worship God.

4 And indeed it is possible to grasp that this is happening even now. For whenever one of the saints is called to martyrdom and some great deeds are wrought upon him by God, immediately all who see are amazed, and many, having believed through them, themselves likewise become martyrs of God.

5 In whom we too, having believed, let us present ourselves worthy to God, living soberly in body and soul and spirit, so that we too, receiving the crown of incorruption together with the blessed martyrs, may with them sing the praise of God. For to him is the glory unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Book Three. Concerning Nebuchadnezzar, and concerning Daniel when he was cast to the lions

Chapter 73

1 “Nebuchadnezzar the king, to all the peoples, tribes, and tongues that dwell in all the earth: may peace be multiplied to you. The signs and wonders which God has wrought with me it has pleased me to declare before you, how great and mighty they are: his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is to generation and generation. I, Nebuchadnezzar, was prospering in my house and flourishing. I saw a dream, and it frightened me, and I was troubled upon my bed, and the visions of my head confounded me. And by me a decree was issued to bring in before me all the wise men of Babylon, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream. And there came in the magicians, the soothsayers, the Chaldeans; and I told the dream before them, and they did not make known to me its interpretation, until Daniel came, whose name is Belshazzar according to the name of my god, who has the spirit of the holy God in himself. To him I said: Belshazzar, chief of the enchanters, of whom I know that the spirit of the holy God is in you, and no mystery is beyond your power, hear the dream which I saw, and tell me its interpretation.”

Chapter 74

1 Now Nebuchadnezzar, seeing the marvels that befell at that time in the case of the three young men, and being astounded, set them forth by a decree and publicly proclaimed them to all the peoples, tribes, and tongues that were under him, so that they too, hearing what had happened, might fear God and glorify him—even as he himself said in praise: “His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is to generation and generation.”

2 Then he recounted what befell concerning his second vision, how none of the magicians, soothsayers, or Chaldeans was able to declare the matter to the king, until Daniel was summoned—he who had also interpreted the first vision for him—so that in all things God might glorify his own servants the prophets above the rest of the barbarous and foreign nations, which supposed they could exalt themselves in their own human wisdom, being trained in earthly learning.

3 For the grace and gift that comes from God is from above, from heaven, bestowing its own riches upon the worthy; of which the blessed prophets partook, being ever instructed by the Holy Spirit.

4 Just as the apostle also says, writing to the Corinthians: “And I came to you not in persuasive words of human wisdom, proclaiming to you the mystery of Christ, but in the teachings of the Spirit, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.”

5 So then in Babylon also the earthly wisdom of all the wise men was made foolish, since they were unable to interpret the king’s dream, until Daniel came, who had the spirit of the holy God in himself; and accordingly the king himself, having tested him in many things, bore witness to this, and set it forth publicly in writing, so that Daniel might appear honored not only by the king himself, but also be named by all who were subject to the king as a man of God and a great prophet.

6 Just as the Egyptians too of old, seeing the marvelous works wrought through Moses in the ten plagues, were afraid and named him Mennouthim, which in Egyptian means “man of God”—for mennou means “man,” and thim means “God”—so also Nebuchadnezzar bore witness concerning Daniel, that he has the spirit of the holy God in himself.

Chapter 75

1 When he had then been summoned and was standing before the king, he answered him: “Upon my bed I was looking, and behold, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great. The tree grew and became strong, and its height reached to heaven and its compass to the end of all the earth. Its leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in it was food for all; under it the wild beasts lodged, and in its branches the birds of heaven dwelt, and from it all flesh was fed. I was looking in the vision of the night upon my bed, and behold, a Watcher and a holy one came down from heaven and cried with strength and said: Cut down the tree and pluck off its branches and shake off its leaves and scatter its fruit; let the beasts be shaken from under it and the birds from its branches; yet leave the stock of its roots in the earth, and in a band of bronze and iron, and in the grass outside, and in the dew of heaven let it lie, and let its portion be with the beasts in the grass of the earth. Let his heart be changed from that of men, and let the heart of a beast be given to him, and let seven seasons pass over him. By the decree of a Watcher is the word, and the demand is a holy command, so that the living may know that the Most High is Lord over the kingdom of men, and to whomever he wills he will give it, and he will raise up over it that which men account as nothing. This dream I, Nebuchadnezzar the king, saw; and you, Belshazzar, tell its interpretation; for all the wise men of my kingdom cannot make known to me its interpretation, but you, Daniel, can, because the holy Spirit is in you.”

Chapter 76

1 Now the dream that was seen by Nebuchadnezzar was shown for the rebuke of the king himself; for inasmuch as his heart was exalted and he lifted himself up against God, setting up a golden image and compelling all to be idolaters, it was shown to him through the vision that he too happens to be under the authority of God, even though he seemed at that time to reign over all kings.

2 And that it might be shown that the kingdom had been given to him from God, Daniel said to him: “You, O king, are a king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given a strong and mighty and honored kingdom in every place where the sons of men dwell.”

3 And Nebuchadnezzar himself, marveling at Daniel’s interpreting of the dream, likewise said: “Of a truth your God is himself the God of gods and Lord of lords, since you were able to reveal this mystery.”

4 Since, then, forgetting his former words, he was afterward lifted up in pride, he received this rebuke from God, becoming an example and a pattern to all men, tyrants and kings alike, that they should not be arrogant in thinking thoughts beyond man, nor boast in exalting themselves against God, but that they too, foreseeing their own danger, should fear God, knowing that they also have a Lord in the heavens.

5 For Antiochus too, surnamed Epiphanes, who had become king of Syria, after tormenting the servants of God with manifold tortures and daring the most wicked deeds, afterward also himself met with the punishment worthy of him from God, being smitten with a divine scourge, so that he could not even bear his own stench, but while he was still living worms swarmed up from the eyes of the impious man; on account of which, though he resorted to many supplications and confessions to God, he did not obtain salvation from him.

6 And he, despairing of himself and coming at last to recognition of what belongs to man, when he was about to die spoke thus: “It is right to be subject to God, and for one who is mortal not to think thoughts equal to God’s.”

7 And so all the kings who conducted themselves reverently and in love of God were also honored by God, but all who were lifted up beyond what was fitting by their own pride received back a worthy and just punishment from God.

8 In the same way Sennacherib too, boasting in his own and great power, and reproaching God with false words, was struck by the angel, losing a hundred and eighty-five thousand in a single night; and afterward he too was slain by his own sons in his own land, according to the word of the Lord which he spoke through Isaiah the prophet, so that all men might recognize the heavenly authority.

Chapter 77

1 Likewise, then, it befell Nebuchadnezzar as well. For at the beginning of the eighteenth year he set up the image, as has been said in the book before this one and its measurements have been shown; but when the year was fulfilled, after twelve months the kingdom was taken from him, so that the dream he had seen might be fulfilled, and he who had taken others captive might himself become a fugitive in the mountains, and he who had punished the Hebrews in a foreign land might himself also be fittingly punished in a desolate land;

2 as the Scripture explains, saying: “Then Daniel, whose name is Belshazzar, was struck dumb for about one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. And Belshazzar answered and said: My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you, and its interpretation for your enemies. The tree which you saw, which grew and became strong, whose height reached to heaven and its compass to all the earth, and whose leaves were flourishing and its fruit abundant, and in which there was food for all, under which the wild beasts dwelt and in whose branches the birds of heaven lodged—it is you, O king, for you grew and became strong, and your greatness grew and reached to heaven, and your dominion to the ends of the earth. And whereas the king saw a Watcher and a holy one coming down from heaven and saying: Pluck up the tree and destroy it, yet leave the stock of its roots in the earth, and in a band of bronze and iron, and in the grass outside and in the dew of heaven let it lodge, and its portion be with the wild beasts, until seven seasons are changed over it—this is its interpretation, O king, and it is the decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king: they will drive you out from among men, and your dwelling will be with the wild beasts, and they will feed you grass like an ox, and you will lodge under the dew of heaven, and seven seasons will be changed over you, until you know that the Most High is Lord over the kingdom of men, and he will give it to whomever he wills. And whereas he said: Leave the stock of the roots of the tree, your kingdom shall remain to you, from the time when you know the heavenly authority. Therefore, O king, let my counsel be pleasing to you: redeem your sins by acts of mercy and your iniquities by compassion on the poor; perhaps there will be forbearance toward your transgressions.” All these things came upon Nebuchadnezzar the king. After twelve months, walking in the palace of his kingdom in Babylon, the king answered and said: “Is this not Babylon the great, which I built for a royal house by the might of my strength, for the honor of my glory?” While the word was still in the king’s mouth, a voice came from heaven: “To you it is said, King Nebuchadnezzar: your kingdom has passed away from you, and they will drive you out from among men, and your dwelling will be with the wild beasts, and they will feed you grass like an ox, and seven seasons will be changed over you, until you know that the Most High is Lord over the kingdom of men, and he will give it to whomever he wills.” In that very hour the word was accomplished upon Nebuchadnezzar, and he was driven out from among men and ate grass like an ox, and his body was bathed by the dew of heaven, until his hairs grew long like a lion’s and his nails became like a bird’s. “And after the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High and praised and glorified him who lives forever, for his authority is an everlasting authority and his kingdom is to generation and generation; and all who dwell on the earth are reckoned as nothing, and according to his will he acts in the power of heaven and in the habitation of the earth, and there is none who shall withstand his hand and say to him: What have you done?”

Chapter 78

1 Now the dream seems to be self-interpreting and quite plain to all, just as the Scripture also teaches that these things came to pass thus, and the king himself afterward, making confession, recounted what had befallen him.

2 But indeed the grace of God ungrudgingly instructs man, so that, having our mind in all things unhindered, we may not give heed to the persons of kingly men—for vain is hope in man—nor flatter rulers who are appointed in positions of authority for the sake of a gift, but, cleaving to God alone and doing what is well-pleasing to him, may pass the present life free from danger and easily escape the judgment to come.

3 For what can a king or a ruler benefit a man, when he too, being mortal, is moved under the authority of him who made him?

4 For he can indeed in the present life furnish you many and great gifts, but these also are earthly and prove to be temporary.

5 And many who obtained honor and reward from a king and were set over certain positions of authority, afterward came into danger on their own account, either being found to be conspirators, or, as friends of the king, being put to death by others.

6 What did friendship with the king benefit these men, who neither had their fill of the gifts they received, but moreover lost their own souls besides?

7 Flee, therefore, such persons, O man, lest you ever come into danger on their account. For all flesh is grass, and all the glory of man is as the flower of grass; the grass withered and the flower fell.

8 Hear what was said by the apostle Paul, how he admonishes, writing to Timothy: “Charge the rich of this present age not to be high-minded, nor to set their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but to hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of the faithful.”

Chapter 79

1 For if the glory of those set in high places is like dry leaves, that flourish for a little while and then at once wither away, what did that swollen utterance profit Nebuchadnezzar the king, when he said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I built for a royal house by the might of my strength, for the honor of my glory?”—when, driven into exile, he was eating grass with the beasts in the mountains?

2 Where was that boldness, and all the arrogance of his words, and the great and terrible flame of the furnace, when he could not even master his own soul?

3 And for this reason the blessed Daniel became his counselor, like a good physician wishing to heal his wounds, saying: “Now let my counsel be pleasing to you, O king, and redeem your sins by almsgiving and your iniquities by mercies to the poor; perhaps he will be long-suffering toward your transgressions.”

4 Therefore, in interpreting the king’s dream, he became tearful and was grieved, and for about one hour he was struck dumb, and his thoughts troubled him, since he did not wish to send forth even a sound through his mouth, displaying the affection he had toward the king, so that by this the king too might be pierced to the heart and, doing what was spoken by the prophet, might be able to be saved.

5 So while Daniel stood speechless for one hour and a deep silence had fallen, all saw him troubled by his thoughts and his face altering: now becoming pale through fear of the interpretation—lest the king, hearing the things said about himself, should be angered and order him to be put to death—and now empowered by the Spirit and taking on the face of an angel, his countenance becoming fiery and his eyes shining like a flame of fire, so that by this also the king, astounded, might be afraid.

6 For if the sons of Israel could not look upon the face of the blessed Moses because of the glory of his face, how would the Babylonians then, seeing the face of Daniel altering, not have been afraid? At one moment he appeared as a man, and at another he was shown as an angel of God. And all stood speechless, awaiting the thoughts that came forth from his heart.

7 Then, having been calmed down from his great glory and agitation and having come back into the proper condition of human nature, he answered the king and said: “Let the dream be, O king, for those who hate you, and its interpretation for your enemies.”

8 And thus beginning, he announced to him one by one what was going to befall him, and consoling him with words of comfort he again restored him to good hope concerning what was to come.

9 For he says to him: “And since the king saw a watcher and a holy one coming down from heaven, who said, ‘Cut down the tree and pluck off its leaves and shake off its branches, but leave the stock of the roots of the tree in the earth’—your kingdom will remain to you, O king, until you come to know the heavenly authority, that the Most High rules over the kingdom of men and gives it to whomever he wills.”

Chapter 80

1 Now all these things befell King Nebuchadnezzar after twelve months.

2 For neither did the Scripture lie, nor did Daniel deceive him, but he taught him beforehand these things that were to be accomplished upon him.

3 For the tree that was made great and strong, whose height reached to heaven and whose breadth reached to the end of all the earth—the Scripture indicates that it is the king himself, as Daniel too plainly explained: because the king was exalted and became glorious and ruled over all the earth and gained mastery over the nations afar off.

4 And its branches were the consuls and generals and governors and all those appointed under him, put forth like branches from a tree.

5 And the leaves of the tree show the decrees made through his words, which he sent into all the earth, commanding and ordaining as he wished.

6 And the abundant fruit that the tree had makes plain the great revenue and the tributes brought up to him from each and every nation.

7 And its trunk, fixed firm upon the earth, signifies that this is the kingdom, because it happens to be earthly, as one fixed firm upon the earth.

8 And its abundant fruit and the nourishment of all that was in it are the wages and the honors and the gifts given by the king to all, which were like nourishment given to men from a tree.

9 And the wild beasts dwelling beneath it are signified to be the armies and the forces, which always remained and waited steadfastly upon the king, serving in what was commanded, being like wild beasts ready to wage war and to destroy and to tear men to pieces like beasts.

10 And the birds nesting in its branches are the obedience of all the nations toward him, which, coming from afar and from a distance, were subject to the rulers appointed under him, who were like branches from a tree.

Chapter 81

1 So when the angel came down from heaven and said, “Cut down the tree and shake off its branches, and pluck off its leaves and scatter its fruit; let the beasts be shaken from beneath it and the birds from its branches”—this signifies the plot made against the king by the satraps and the forces under him.

2 And he, driven out by them, fled into the wilderness, and his kingdom was taken from him, along with the authority and the majesty he had before; and he who once boasted and said, “Who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?” afterward, stooped pitiably toward the ground, passed his life in the mountains roaring among the beasts, fearing his own satraps, lest he be killed by them.

3 And for this reason the Scripture says: “In the grass outside and in the dew of heaven he will lie down, and with wild beasts will be his portion in the grass of the earth; his heart will be changed from that of men, and the heart of a beast will be given to him.”

4 For the great king and ruler no longer passed his life as a man dwelling in the palace, but living solitary in desolate places he ate grass and herbage, until his heart was changed and became like that of a beast feeding in the woods and caves, until his hair grew like lions’ and his nails grew large like birds’ and seven seasons were changed upon him. —

5 For God the Most High decreed that these things should so come to pass, as Daniel says: “It is the decree of the Most High that has come upon my lord the king.”

6 And the Word, having heard the counsel of the Father, came down from the heavens and announced the will of the Father to the angels, as the Scripture says: “A holy one came down from the heavens.”

7 And the angels questioned the Word: “What has the Master commanded us to do?” For the questioning belongs to holy ones.

8 And the Word said to them: “Thus says God the Most High: Cut down the tree and pluck off its branches and shake off its leaves.”

9 And they, having heard, troubled the forces of the king, so that they might take away his kingdom.

10 For all the nations have been handed over to angels, as John says in the Apocalypse: “And I heard one saying, ‘Loose the four angels who are seated at the great river Euphrates’”—who were of the Persians, Medes, Assyrians, and Babylonians.

Chapter 82

1 Then it says: “And in the grass outside and in the dew of heaven he will lodge, and seven seasons will be changed upon him, until he knows that God the Most High rules over the kingdom of men.”

2 Now some reckon the seven seasons to be seven years; but others, seven seasons changing by the quarter-year—for the year has four seasons: winter, spring, summer, and autumn—so that seven seasons were then changed upon the king.

3 And his saying, “Leave the stock of the roots of the tree in the earth,” makes plain that he was again, according to the will of God, to be restored to his own rule.

4 For this came about for the king’s instruction, so that, no longer being haughty, he might thereafter be able to say: “And all those who walk in pride he is able to humble.”

Chapter 83

1 We find, then, in the records that Nebuchadnezzar reigned twenty-five years:

2 for he reigned the first eighteen years, when, lifted up, he set up the image. Then after twelve months this befell him, and he was driven out from among men and the kingdom was taken from him.

3 And when he was humbled and besought the Lord and made confession and entreated God the Most High, he was sought out by his nobles and, returning again, reigned for seven years.

4 As he himself also relates, saying: “And at the end of the days, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High and praised and glorified the One who lives forever, because his authority is an everlasting authority and his kingdom endures from generation to generation, and all the inhabitants of the earth are reckoned as nothing; and according to his will he acts among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and there is no one who can resist his hand and say to him, ‘What have you done?’—At that very time my reason returned to me, and I came back to the honor of my kingdom; and my form returned to me, and my princes and my nobles sought me out, and I was strengthened in my kingdom, and surpassing majesty was added to me. Now therefore I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because all his works are true and his ways are judgments, and all those who walk in pride he is able to humble.” —

5 When he had laid aside the great pride he had possessed, and, suffering in the mountains, made confession to God, having come to know the heavenly authority, he was restored again to the rule of his kingdom, the nobles and rulers and all who were under him having sought him out, who also clothed him with greater honor and glory, so that what was spoken in the vision might be fulfilled: “But leave the stock of the roots of the tree in the earth, until he knows that the Most High rules over the kingdom of men and gives it to whomever it seems good to him.”

Chapter 84

1 Now the things that befell King Nebuchadnezzar in those times were such as were recorded for the admonition and reminder of all men, as Daniel too related these things as having truly come to pass in the forms and visions, concerning which, if we advance to the proper place, comparing the two together we will show them to be alike and true.

2 For Nebuchadnezzar saw two dreams, that of the many-colored image, and then that concerning the tree, which Daniel interpreted, and which will be fulfilled in due time.

3 Likewise the things that Daniel also beholds—four beasts coming up from the sea, of which some have already come to pass, but some will yet come to pass—so that we may show the prophecy of Daniel to be alike and equal to the rest, differing in nothing, as a proof of the things that have already happened and that are and that will again come to be.

4 For if we believe in the things that have already happened, since he speaks truly, how shall not also all the things that are coming be true, which the blessed prophets foretold would come to be? And according to the will of God, advancing in their own appointed times, they will all be fulfilled.

Chapter 85

1 Let us see, then, what the Scripture says: “King Belshazzar made a great feast for his thousand nobles, and over against them was the wine; and as he drank, Belshazzar gave orders, in the tasting of the wine, to bring in the vessels of gold and silver which his father Nebuchadnezzar had carried off from the temple in Jerusalem, that the king and his nobles and his concubines and his consorts might drink from them. So the vessels of gold and silver were brought, which his father Nebuchadnezzar had carried off from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles and his concubines and his consorts drank from them. They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver and bronze and iron and wood and stone. In that very hour there came forth fingers of a man’s hand and wrote, over against the lamp, upon the plaster of the wall of the king’s house; and the king watched the knuckles of the hand that wrote. Then the king’s countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, and the joints of his loins were loosened, and his knees knocked together. And the king cried out mightily to bring in the magicians, the Chaldeans, the soothsayers; and he said to the wise men of Babylon: Whoever shall read this writing and make known to me its interpretation shall be clothed in purple, and the golden chain shall be upon his neck, and he shall rule as third in my kingdom. And all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the writing nor make known its interpretation to the king. And Belshazzar was troubled, and his countenance was changed, and his nobles were thrown into confusion.”

Chapter 86

1 Now after the death of Nebuchadnezzar his son Evilad Marodach succeeded to his kingdom, of whom the Scripture makes no mention—whether because he had lived a pious life, or because nothing portentous occurred in his reign.

2 He reigned twelve years, and after him his brother Belshazzar, concerning whom the Scripture now makes its narrative.

3 In the fourth year of his reign this man made a great feast for his thousand nobles.

4 And while they were at their drinking, the king, puffed up with pride, commanded that the vessels of gold and silver which his father Nebuchadnezzar had carried off from the temple in Jerusalem be brought forth, and that his nobles and his concubines should drink from them; and the very things that had been dedicated by other kings to the glory and honor of God—these, taking them in their defiled hands, they used for libations, and they praised the lifeless and motionless idols.

5 When this, then, had taken place, there came forth fingers of a man’s hand and wrote, over against the lamp, upon the plaster of the wall of the king’s house.

6 In the case of Nebuchadnezzar it was said that “a holy one came down from heaven,” but here it says that “fingers of a hand came forth”—the Scripture signifying that the Word would in the last times be made corporeal and take upon himself the form of a man, so that he should no longer be seen as through an appearance, but, becoming man in the flesh and consorting with men, should accomplish the will of the Father;

7 So then, in the writing of the script upon the wall, the Scripture signified that he who here writes is the very one who on the mountain inscribed the law of God upon the tablets. As the Scripture says: “And the tablets were written by the finger of God, and the writing was the writing of God engraved upon the tablets.”

8 So then here also it was to the king alone that the fingers of the hand were shown, flashing over against the lamp, in order that the things written there might be reckoned to be the writing of God.

9 For the light of the hand, shining back against the light of the lamp, dimmed the lamp’s light, so that the fingers writing upon the wall might be seen.

Chapter 87

1 And the king, seeing them and becoming afraid and gripped by great trembling, cried out mightily to bring in the magicians, the Chaldeans, the soothsayers—not understanding that it was not permitted to these to read the letters of God, but to those who from childhood had practiced the law of God and had come to know the divine letters from their fathers.

2 So when all had been summoned, the king said to them: Whoever shall read this writing and make known to me its interpretation shall be clothed in purple, and the golden chain shall be upon his neck, and he shall rule as third in my kingdom. And all the king’s wise men came forward, but they could not read the writing, nor make known its interpretation to the king.

3 For how many of the Babylonians then, contriving by many devices, wished to fashion some strange utterance to please the king, and to be clothed in purple, and to be glorified upon the third throne? But the matter was hidden from them. For their eyes were dimmed and the thoughts of their heart were maimed; for the Lord knows the reasonings of the wise, that they are vain.

4 So when all of them begged off, the king’s heart was troubled and his countenance was changed, and his nobles were thrown into confusion.

5 Then indeed the queen, hearing what had happened, entered the banquet hall and said to the king: Let not your thoughts trouble you, and let not your countenance be changed. There is a man in your kingdom in whom is the Spirit of God, and in the days of your father wakefulness and understanding were found in him; and King Nebuchadnezzar your father appointed him ruler of the enchanters, magicians, Chaldeans, soothsayers—because an extraordinary Spirit of God was in him, and prudence and understanding, interpreting dreams and declaring hidden things and loosing knots—namely Daniel, to whom the king gave the name Belshazzar. Now therefore let him be summoned, and he will declare to you the interpretation.

Chapter 88

1 What, then, is the reason that the queen came in and made mention of Daniel? For did not all the nobles and the friends of the king know him? Or did they not know what had happened in the case of Nebuchadnezzar—how he alone interpreted the dreams for him, and how the king appointed him ruler over the wise men of Babylon?

2 They themselves indeed knew it, but, being envious of him because he was adorned with heavenly wisdom, they were unwilling to declare anything to the king concerning him, lest, when he came and read the writing, they should afterward be put to shame.

3 Now this happened not only then in the case of Daniel, but it befalls many even to this day.

4 For whenever someone, having become worthy, obtains grace from God and is found wiser than the rest, immediately all, looking askance, hate him, persecute him, insult him, dishonor him, slander him, set him at naught—so that by this they themselves may seem to be something, though they are nothing.

5 For the like befell also the prophets, and the Lord, and the apostles. So too in the case of Daniel let us understand the things that happened in Babylon; for as the Scripture proceeds it will show that these things came about in this way.

Chapter 89

1 Then indeed the king, having heard the things concerning him, commanded that Daniel be brought, and he says to him: Are you Daniel, of the sons of the captivity of Judah, whom my father Nebuchadnezzar brought? I have heard concerning you that you are able to interpret judgments. Now therefore, if you are able to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, you shall be clothed in purple, and the golden chain shall be upon your neck, and you shall rule as third in my kingdom.

2 But the blessed Daniel, neither rejoicing in earthly gifts nor exalted by royal glory, answered: Let your gifts, O king, be for yourself, and give the present of your house to another; but I will read the writing and make known to you its interpretation.

3 And thus beginning, he recounted to the king in order all the things that had befallen his father—at once instructing him in what had happened, and at the same time admonishing him not to boast nor to be proud beyond what is fitting, seeing that he stood within the authority of God.

4 He says, then, to him: The Most High God gave the kingdom and the greatness and the honor and the glory to your father Nebuchadnezzar. And because of the greatness which he gave him, all the peoples, tribes, and tongues were trembling and fearing before his face. Whom he wished he slew, and whom he wished he struck, and whom he wished he exalted, and whom he wished he humbled. And when his heart was exalted and his spirit was strengthened to act proudly, he was brought down from the throne of his kingdom and the honor was taken from him; and he was driven out from among men, and his heart was made like that of the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses; they fed him grass like an ox, and his body was bathed with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the Most High is lord of the kingdom of men, and to whomever it seems good to him he will give it.

5 And having said these things he added what followed—at once rebuking the king and not regarding his person, so that, hearing, he might be afraid and might at once recognize the sin he had committed.

6 He says, then: And you, his son Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart before God, in whose presence you knew all these things; but you have exalted yourself against the Lord, the God of heaven, and have brought the vessels of his house before you, and you and your nobles and your concubines and your consorts drank wine from them; and you praised the gods of gold and silver and bronze and iron and wood and stone, which do not see and do not hear and do not know; but God, in whose hand is your breath and all your ways—him you did not glorify. Therefore from his presence the knuckle of a hand was sent and set down this writing: Mane, Thekel, Phares. This is the interpretation of the matter: Mane—God has measured your kingdom and brought it to an end; Thekel—it has been set in the balance and found wanting; Phares—your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.

Chapter 90

1 For the king, having heard the writing and its interpretation, was grieved at what had been said, but he commanded that Daniel be clothed in purple and that he be third ruler in the kingdom.

2 In that very night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was slain, and Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being sixty-two years old. —

3 And the interpretation having been resolved by Daniel, as the Scripture relates, in that very night both the word was fulfilled and the kingdom of the Babylonians passed to the Medes, even as it had been spoken by Daniel: He sets up kings and removes them, knowing the things in the darkness, and the light is with him.

Chapter 91

1 So when Darius, also called Ahasuerus, had received the kingdom, he appointed a hundred and twenty satraps, and over them three commissioners, of whom Daniel was one, so that the satraps might render account to them, that the king might not be troubled. And Daniel was set above them, because an extraordinary spirit was in him, and the king appointed him over the whole of his kingdom. —

2 For when Darius the Mede had heard the things concerning him—the wisdom he had acquired and his trustworthiness and reverence from childhood—he appointed him to be first among all his friends and to be lord over all his kingdom, just as Pharaoh did, granting to Joseph the second honors of the throne of his kingdom and subjecting all the rulers of Egypt to him as subordinates.

3 Now when this had come about, the commissioners and the satraps, moved by envy, sought to find a pretext against Daniel, so that by seizing some occasion against him and bringing an accusation they might put him to death; that the saying might be fulfilled which we spoke of a little before, namely that whenever someone is reverent and fears God, having grace and wisdom from God, he is hated by the rest of men, because they themselves were not counted worthy of the same grace.

4 So likewise the satraps and the commissioners hated Daniel out of envy, since he was wiser and more trustworthy than all of them.

5 For Scripture testified to this when it said: And they found against him no pretext or fault or transgression, because he was faithful.

6 For he not only kept the commandments of God according to the law, but also administered the king’s affairs with great diligence and exactness, unwilling to defile his own pure conscience by any sordid dealing for the sake of a little gain.

Chapter 92

1 For how many were there then who pretended to be friends to Daniel, while in their heart they bore him malice, and sent gifts by way of other persons and promised to give ample sums of money, wishing to test his integrity, so that having at last obtained a pretext against him they might petition the king on the ground that he was making free with the king’s possessions, and that in this way he might be put to death as a conspirator.

2 Always, then, they sought by every device a charge against him; and not finding one, they afterward took counsel together, saying: We shall not find a pretext against Daniel except in the laws of his God.

3 Then, having formed a single resolve, they came to the king and said: King Darius, live forever! The generals and satraps over your kingdom, the consuls and the governors, have taken counsel to establish a royal ordinance and to enforce a decree, that whoever shall make any petition to any god or man for thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions. Now therefore, O king, establish the decree and publish the writing, so that the law of the Persians and Medes may not be altered.

4 Then Darius, not knowing the malicious purpose that they had devised, commanded the decree to be written and to be published openly. —

5 For afterward, too, Haman, wishing to kill Mordecai and his race, came to King Artaxerxes and gave similar counsel, that by a royal decree on the fourteenth day of the twelfth month all the Jews should be killed on a single day.

Chapter 93

1 Now Daniel, when he learned what had been written and understood the plot that had been formed against him, was not afraid nor did he lose heart, being ready to be given as food to the beasts rather than to submit to the king’s command; and he had as an incentive what had happened in the case of the three young men, namely that, when they refused to worship the king’s image, they were preserved out of the furnace of fire.

2 And indeed, going into his house, he opened the windows in the upper rooms toward Jerusalem, and three times a day he was bending upon his knees and praying and giving thanks before his God, just as he had been doing before.

Chapter 94

1 One must therefore observe the piety of the blessed Daniel, how, even though he seemed to be occupied with the king’s affairs, he nevertheless persevered daily in prayer, rendering the things of Caesar to Caesar and the things of God to God. —

2 But perhaps someone will say: What then? Could he not have prayed to God in his heart by day, and by night, as he wished, have devoted himself to prayer secretly in his house, so as not to be in danger? He could have; but he was not willing.

3 For if he had done this, the commissioners and the satraps could have said: How does he fear God, when he feared the king’s decree and submitted to what was commanded by him? And they would have brought against him some blame and reproach of unbelief; for that would have been a work of hypocrisy, not of fear and faith toward God.

4 And for this reason he gave no occasion for slander to his adversaries; for to whatever one submits, by that he is also enslaved.

Chapter 95

1 For those who believe in God ought neither to dissemble nor to fear those set in authority, unless they do some evil; but if, on account of their faith in God, they are compelled to do something else, they should gladly die rather than do what is commanded by them.

2 For when the Apostle says to be subject to all the higher authorities, he does not say it for this purpose—that, denying our faith and the things ordained by God, we should do whatever men command—but that, fearing the authorities, we should do nothing evil, lest we be punished by them as evildoers.

3 And for this reason he says: He is God’s minister, an avenger upon those who do evil. What? Do you wish not to fear the authority? Do good, and you will have praise from it. But if you do evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword in vain. So in this sense he said to be subject—to one who lives in a holy and reverent manner in the present life, keeping before his eyes the peril of the sword.

4 The Apostles, then, though forbidden by the rulers and scribes to speak the word, did not cease, obeying God rather than men; and for this reason their adversaries, being indignant, put them in public custody. But the angel led them out by night and said: Go, speak the words of this life. —

Chapter 96

1 So in this way Daniel too, though forbidden to pray, did not submit to the king’s decree, lest he set the glory of God beneath the glory of men.

2 For if anyone dies for God’s sake, he ought to rejoice over this, having found eternal life.

3 Those, then, who labor well, living purely and with fear in this world, ought to give no occasion to those who seek an occasion, so that in this very thing they themselves may rather be put to shame; just as the commissioners then sought to find an occasion against Daniel and did not find one, because he was faithful.

4 But if some compel us not to worship God nor to ask anything of him, threatening us with death, it is far more delightful to die than to do what is commanded by them. For who shall separate us from the love of God? Tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or peril, or sword?

5 And for this reason the blessed Daniel, fearing God rather and giving himself up to death, was preserved from the lions by the angel.

6 For if, in fear of the decree, he had kept quiet during the thirty days, his faith toward God would no longer have been pure; for no one is able to serve two masters.

7 For such has the devil’s craft always been: to persecute and afflict and wear down the saints, so that they may not lift up holy hands in prayer to God, since he knows that the prayer of the saints provides peace to the world, but punishment to the evil one.

8 Just as also in the wilderness, whenever Moses lifted up his hands, Israel prevailed, but whenever he let them down, Amalek prevailed.

9 In the same way this happens even now and is fulfilled in our case. For whenever we cease from praying, the adversary prevails against us; but whenever we persevere in prayer, the power and authority of the evil one is brought to nothing.

Chapter 97

1 So in this way he then worked also in the officers and satraps, that through them he might accomplish his own will and cast the blessed Daniel into the den of lions.

2 Having watched him closely and seen him praying three times in the day, they came and said to the king: “King Darius, did you not establish a decree that any person who for thirty days should ask a petition of any god or man rather than of you, O king, would be cast into the den of lions?” And he said: “The word is sure, and the law of the Medes and Persians shall not pass away.”

3 And they said to him: “See, Daniel, one of the sons of the captivity of Judah, has not submitted to your decree, and three times in the day he asks his petitions of his God.” Then the king, when he heard the word, was greatly grieved over him, and he struggled on Daniel’s behalf to deliver him.

4 For having recognized their scheme—that out of enmity toward Daniel, inasmuch as he was wiser and more honored than all of them, they had concocted this plot against him, wishing by trickery to hand him over to the beasts—he disputed with the satraps, whether by interceding for him he might be able to save him from the danger.

5 But so that he might not be rescued by a man, and it be reckoned the favor of a king, but rather that it might appear a work of God accomplished upon him: when it was already evening and the king was conferring with the satraps on his behalf, they spoke and said: “Know, O king, that it is the law for the Medes and Persians that no decree or ordinance which the king may establish ought to be altered”—wishing by this argument to shame the king, on the ground that if the decree ordained by him were not made authoritative and firm, the rest of the things ordained by him would also be reckoned void.

Chapter 98

1 For what reason, then, did the satraps accuse Daniel alone? For surely the three young men too were praying together with him; for if they did not obey the command of Nebuchadnezzar, much more would they not obey the decree of Darius.

2 But the reason is this: since at that time, in the days of Nebuchadnezzar, though Daniel was present, the Chaldeans accused no one else but only the three young men—for the testimony was reserved for them—so now in the times of Darius they accused Daniel alone, for the calling was his.

3 For according to the seasons a man is not lacking to God, that through them he may be glorified; as the prophet says: “He who makes his hosts, calling them one by one by their name.”

Chapter 99

1 Then, accordingly, Darius, being unable to contradict the satraps any further, gave the order that Daniel be brought, and they cast him into the den of lions.

2 And the king answered and said to him: “Your God, whom you serve continually, he himself will deliver you”—urging him to take courage; for he said, in effect: “Since I, for my part, though I willed it, was not able, even though I am king, your God whom you serve will himself deliver you, so that the things impossible with men may be shown to be possible with God.”

3 And they brought a stone and set it upon the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet, so that nothing in Daniel’s case might be altered.

4 And this too was a work of malice; for the satraps, being wary lest the king should secretly order him to be drawn up out of the den, demanded that the stone be sealed.

5 In the same way the rulers of the Pharisees also acted in the case of the Savior, sealing the stone together with the guard.

Chapter 100

1 When this, then, had been done, the king went away to his house and lay down without supper, and they brought him no food, and sleep departed from him.—

2 How great a thing a righteous man who fears God accomplishes, that the king, grieved over him, would not even take nourishment!

3 And the satraps for the whole night made merry, as having won the prize against Daniel, but the king for the whole night lay awake mourning, having unjustly destroyed such a man, and being wary lest on his account he himself too might come into danger.

4 For there did not escape him the things that had befallen Nebuchadnezzar and the things that had happened in the case of Belshazzar—the one having been driven out of his kingdom, the other, on account of the holy vessels, having been slain on that very night.

5 Then, accordingly, he rose early at dawn and came in haste to the den of lions, and crying out with a loud voice he said: “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the mouth of the lions?”

6 From what impulse, then, did the king utter this word, if not that he had heard the things that befell the young men, who, unwilling to submit to the command of the king, were saved out of the furnace of fire? […] the like would happen in his case, in return for which he had feared God but had set at nothing the law of the Medes and Persians.

Chapter 101

1 And Daniel said to the king: “My God sent his angel and stopped up the mouths of the lions, and they did me no harm, because before him uprightness was found in me; and before you too, O king, I have committed no offense.”—

2 How great a thing it is to have confidence toward God rather than toward men! For men despair and hand over to death, but God does not forsake his servants. Therefore the psalmist teaches, saying: “It is good to trust in the Lord rather than to trust in man; it is good to hope in the Lord rather than to hope in rulers.”

3 Then, accordingly, when the angel appeared in the den, the wild beasts were tamed, and the lions, wagging their tails, fawned upon him and rejoiced over him, submitting as to a new Adam; licking Daniel’s holy feet and rolling at the tracks of his feet, themselves longing to be trodden upon by him.

4 For if we believe that, when Paul was condemned to the beasts, the lion that was let loose upon him fell down at his feet and licked him all over, how shall we not also believe the things that happened in Daniel’s case—which Darius himself, having sent it out to all in writing, recounted? And in the books of the Persians and Medes these things are indeed recorded to this day, so that not only the Hebrews, nor only the Babylonians, but also the Medes and Persians and all the nations dwelling under heaven, hearing what had happened, might themselves too fear God.

5 As also then Darius, hearing the voice of Daniel, was astounded and marveled, and ordered the stone to be rolled away, and he saw Daniel sitting in the midst of the lions and stroking their mane with his own hands. And indeed, having called everyone together, he showed them the marvelous spectacle—wild beasts tamed by a man and warmed in his hands.

6 When, accordingly, Daniel had been brought up out of the den, no corruption whatever was found in him, because he had believed in his God.

Chapter 102

1 Then the king spoke, and they brought the men who had accused Daniel, and they themselves and their sons and their wives were cast into the den of lions; and they had not reached the floor of the den before the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones to pieces.

2 Those, then, who trust in a man, a king, and who dig a pit for their neighbor, shall themselves fall into it to their destruction.

3 As also then it came about in the case of the three young men: the fire did not overpower those who were in the furnace, but it consumed the Chaldeans outside as it swept through them.

4 For justly do the eyes of God assign to men a fitting judgment.

5 As it also befell Haman in the meantime, when he wished to destroy Mordecai and his race in a single day: having prepared a gallows of fifty cubits for him, he himself with his whole household was hanged upon it.

6 Now those who accused Daniel and handed him over as food to the beasts were themselves destroyed by the lions.

Chapter 103

1 Then Darius wrote to all the peoples, tribes, and tongues that dwell in all the earth, proclaiming peace to all, and through the decree he then set forth compelling them to worship God, as he says: “From my presence a decree has been issued, that throughout all the dominion of my kingdom men should tremble and fear before the God of Daniel; for he is the living God, who abides forever, and his kingdom shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall last to the end. He helps and delivers and works wonders and signs in heaven and on the earth—he who rescued Daniel from the hand of the lions.”

2 Now look at this yourself: today Babylon is the world; its satraps are the powers; Darius is their king; the pit is Hades; and the lions are the punishing angels.

3 Imitate, then, the blessed Daniel: do not fear the satraps and do not submit to any human decree, so that when you are cast into the lions’ pit you may be guarded by the angel and tame the beasts, and be reverenced by them as a servant of God, and that no corruption may be found in you, but that you may be brought up alive out of the pit, found a partaker of the resurrection, gain mastery over your enemies, and give thanks to the ever-living God.—

4 For to him belong the glory and the might unto the unending ages of ages. Amen.

Book Four. Concerning the visions of the prophet Daniel

Chapter 104

1 In the first year of Belshazzar, king of the Chaldeans, Daniel saw a dream, and there were visions of his head upon his bed, and he wrote the dream down.

2 Now whatever was revealed by the Spirit through visions to the blessed prophet, these things he also recounted ungrudgingly to others, so that he might appear not merely as one prophesying things to come to himself alone, but might also be shown a prophet to others who are willing to search the divine Scriptures with faith.

3 At any rate he says: “I, Daniel, was watching, and behold, the four winds of heaven were striking upon the great sea, and four great beasts were coming up out of the sea, differing from one another. The first was like a lioness, and it had wings like an eagle’s. I watched until its wings were plucked out, and it was lifted up from the earth and set upon human feet, and a human heart was given to it. And behold, a second beast like a bear, and it stood up on one side, and there were three ribs in its mouth between its teeth, and they spoke thus to it: ‘Arise, devour much flesh.’ After this I watched, and behold, another beast like a leopard, and it had four wings of a bird above it, and the beast had four heads, and authority was given to it. After this I watched, and behold, a fourth beast, fearful and astonishing and exceedingly strong; its teeth were of iron and its claws of bronze, devouring and crushing, and it trampled the remainder under its feet. And it differed exceedingly from all the beasts before it, and it had ten horns. I was observing its horns, and behold, another little horn came up among them, and three of the horns that were before it were uprooted from before it; and behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things. I watched until thrones were set, and the Ancient of Days took his seat, and his garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool. His throne was a flame of fire, its wheels a burning fire; a river of fire flowed before him. A thousand thousands ministered to him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood beside him. The court sat, and the books were opened. Then I watched, because of the sound of the great words which that horn was speaking, until the beast was slain and destroyed and its body given over to the burning of fire; and as for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was removed, but a prolonging of life was given to them until a season.”

Chapter 105

1 Since, then, various beasts were shown to the blessed prophet Daniel, and these differing from one another, we must understand that he is not speaking about any actual beasts, but in type and image he sets forth the kingdoms that have risen up in this world, like beasts destroying mankind.

2 For by the great sea he means the whole world, and by the four winds of heaven he signifies the creation that stretches to its four corners.

3 So in saying, “I saw four beasts coming up out of the sea,” he means the kingdoms of this world.

4 “The first was like a lioness, and it had wings like an eagle’s.” By saying “lioness,” then, he names the kingdom of the Babylonians, over which Nebuchadnezzar then ruled.

5 And by saying “it had wings like an eagle’s,” he means that the king was exalted and lifted himself up against God, puffed up in heart because he had become great and glorious.

6 Then he says: “Its wings were plucked out, and it was lifted up from the earth and set upon human feet, and a human heart was given to it.”

7 For this is truly what happened in the case of Nebuchadnezzar, as has been indicated in the book before this one; and he himself testifies that it happened to him in this way, how he was driven out from his kingdom and was stripped of the glory and the majesty which he had formerly possessed.

8 For just as any bird, when its wings have been plucked out, becomes helpless and easily caught, so then too the forces deserted the king—the forces by which he seemed to boast and to be high-minded—those whom he then feared and fled from into the wilderness, lest he be destroyed by them.

9 So the saying, “it was set upon human feet and a human heart was given to it,” shows this: that Nebuchadnezzar, becoming humble-minded and recognizing himself to be a man set under the authority of God, made his petition to the Lord and obtained his compassion, being restored once more to his own kingdom and glory.

10 As he himself testifies, saying: “And at the end of those days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and I praised and glorified the one who lives forever, because his authority is an everlasting authority and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; and all who dwell upon the earth were reckoned as nothing, and they are as nothing.”

Chapter 106

1 When these things had thus come to pass in those times for Nebuchadnezzar, as the blessed Daniel showed us in the vision, and as the king himself confessed it to be so, and when his rule had come to an end under Belshazzar—at the time when he himself was slain during the night because of the deed he had done, as has been indicated in the book before this one, and Darius the Mede, who was sixty-two years old, took over the kingdom—the prophet with good reason describes another beast coming up, which was the bear, so that in it he might display the kingdom of the Persians.

2 “And there were three ribs,” he says, “in its mouth.” By three ribs he means three regions of nations over which this very beast ruled; these were the Medes, the Assyrians, and the Babylonians.

3 “And they spoke thus to it: ‘Arise, devour much flesh.’” For the Persians, rising up in those times, laid the whole land waste and destroyed it, making many of its people subject to themselves as slaves.

4 For just as the beast, the bear, is a filthy and flesh-eating animal, tearing with claws and teeth, so too the kingdom of the Persians came to be, who held power for two hundred and thirty years.—

5 But some of the historians have recorded that they held power for two hundred and forty-five years, up to the reign of Darius, whom Alexander the Macedonian overthrew in the seventh year and transferred the kingdom of the Persians to Greece. As Daniel also says: “After this I watched, and behold, another beast like a leopard, and it had four wings of a bird above it, and the beast had four heads, and authority was given to it.”

6 So by naming a leopard, he signified the kingdom of the Greeks, over which Alexander the Macedonian ruled; and he likened them to a leopard because they were sharp of mind and full of devices in their reasonings and bitter of heart, just as the animal too is dappled in form, yet quick to do harm and to drink human blood.

7 “And four wings of a bird,” he says, “above it, and the beast had four heads.” For after the kingdom of Alexander was exalted and increased and made famous throughout all the world, his kingdom was divided into four governments.

8 For Alexander, as he was dying, divided it among four men, his companions of his own race—Seleucus, Demetrius, Ptolemy, and Philip—and all of these put on diadems, just as Daniel foretells this and as it is recorded in the first book of the Maccabees.

Chapter 107

1 So, when the Greeks had held power for three hundred years, the prophet signifies yet another thing to me.

2 For he says thus: “After this I watched, and behold, a fourth beast, fearful and astonishing and exceedingly mighty; and its teeth were of iron and its claws of bronze, devouring and crushing, and it trampled the remainder under its feet. And it differed exceedingly from all the beasts before it, and it had ten horns. I was observing its horns, and behold, another little horn came up among them, and three of the horns that were before it were uprooted from before it; and behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things. I watched until thrones were set, and the Ancient of Days was seated, and his garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was a flame of fire, its wheels a burning fire; a river of fire flowed before him; a thousand thousands ministered to him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood beside him; the court sat, and the books were opened. Then I watched, because of the sound of the great words which that horn was speaking, until the beast was slain and destroyed and its body given over to the burning of fire; and as for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was removed, but a prolonging of life was given to them until a season.”

Chapter 108

1 That, then, after the kingdom of the Greeks no other kingdom has arisen except the one now in power, which still stands firm—this too is plain to all.

2 This kingdom has iron teeth because it subdues and crushes all by its own strength, like iron; and “it trampled the remainder under its feet” because no other kingdom is to be left after this one, but out of this very kingdom ten horns will spring up, and among them one little horn will come up, and it will uproot three of the first.

3 For just as in the case of the leopard the prophet foretold that the beast had four heads, and it came to pass and the kingdom of Alexander was divided into four governments, so now too we must expect, until ten horns will come up out of this very kingdom, when the time of the beast is fulfilled and the little horn, which is the Antichrist, suddenly appears among them, and righteousness is taken away from the earth, and the whole world then comes to its consummation.

4 And so we must neither anticipate the counsel of God, but be patient and pray that we may not fall into such times, nor yet disbelieve, as though these things were not going to happen.

5 For if the first things, which the prophets foretold, did not come to pass, then do not expect these either; but if those came to pass in their own appointed times just as they were foretold, then by all means these too will be accomplished.

6 For the saying of some, “And when will these things be?”, belongs to men who are unbelieving and do not have faith; but to know beforehand the things that are to be and to believe that it will be so belongs to a blessed man, who knows and keeps silent, lest by speaking much he ever put himself in danger.

Chapter 109

1 But that these things are true, and that they have been made manifest to the servants of God, let us demonstrate in yet another way as well.

2 For Scripture in no way lies at all, nor does the Holy Spirit lead astray the servants of God, the prophets, through whom it was pleased to announce the counsel of God to mankind, so that, seeing these things come to pass, we may not be tripped up, nor be troubled as though we beheld them as strange events.

3 For in no other way can the consummation come upon this world, except thus.

4 For just as in the case of Sodom, when their transgressions were filled up, the fire at once came down upon them and they perished, so also it shall be now: when lawlessness has been multiplied in the world, and the present iron beast is divided into the ten horns, and there come about disorders and discords, as different men tear the kingdom apart in different directions, then the end shall come upon them.

Chapter 110

1 Since, then, we have already in another treatise rendered an account concerning these matters—both the coming of the Antichrist and his lineage, and from where and how the deceiver shall be present—and have not passed over his activity in silence, nevertheless even now I shall briefly call it to mind, so that a man, standing firm in all respects and wavering in his mind at nothing, may be able to believe God with his whole heart.

2 For the blessed Daniel says, when interpreting the vision for Nebuchadnezzar—I mean that of the image, whose head he declared to be of gold, then hands and arms and breast of silver, then belly and thighs of bronze, then legs of iron, then feet, in which one part was of iron and one part of clay—that in this he might show forth what he himself has now set out in his own vision by means of the beasts:

3 namely, that the gold is the kingdom of the Babylonians, which was the lioness; the silver, that of the Persians, which was the bear; then the bronze, that of the Greeks, over whom Alexander the Macedonian ruled, that he might signify the leopard.

4 After these things he speaks of legs of iron, that he might signify the beast terrible and astounding, the one having teeth of iron—which is the Romans who now hold power, being strong as iron.

5 Now after the iron legs of the image, what remains except the feet, in which are ten toes, and these mingled of clay and iron—so that by the ten toes the ten horns might be signified, and by the clay and the iron their discord, in that they shall indeed be commingled in the seed of men, yet they shall not cleave together, the one with the other?

6 For just as iron does not mingle with clay, so neither then shall men be able to be of one mind with one another, as different ones are carried in different directions in disorder, and divide the kingdom among themselves nation by nation.

Chapter 111

1 But since the grace of God richly instructs those who have set their hope upon Him and have despised this world, neither shall we pass over this: for what reason did the blessed prophet name all the kingdoms that arose before as beasts, likening them to these, but did not declare of the kingdom now present what manner of beast it might be?

2 I will speak about it more plainly, so that what is said may be the better understood. For having said that the kingdom of the Babylonians was a lioness, and that of the Persians a bear, and that of the Greeks a leopard, why did he not say what the beast of the Romans was, but says only that it was terrible and exceedingly astounding, its teeth of iron and its claws of bronze?

3 Understand, O man, and glorify the Lord.

4 For since the Babylonians were one nation, and they at that time seemed to rule over all, he justly named them a lioness, as a creature of a single kind.

5 Likewise the Persians too are one nation—filthy indeed, yet of one tongue; for this reason he likened them also to a bear.

6 In the same way he called the Greeks a leopard; for they were all Greeks.

7 But now the beast that holds power is not one nation; rather, out of all tongues and out of every race of men it gathers to itself and prepares a force for the array of war, all of them being called Romans, though they are not all from one country.

8 So that the prophet, rightly struck with amazement and foreseeing what was to come, did not name what manner of beast it was, but marveled, saying: “My spirit shuddered within me in my frame, I Daniel, and the visions of my head troubled me. And I drew near to one of those who stood by, and sought from him the exact truth concerning all these things. And he told me the exact truth, and made known to me the interpretation of the words.”

9 Who, then, were those who stood by, except the angels who stand before the presence of the glory of the Lord and prepare for Him their unceasing ministry, ever becoming His attendants for whatever is commanded?

Chapter 112

1 But since a thought has come into my heart, we shall not leave it unexpounded, for it is able to profit the soul.

2 For since in the forty-second year, under Augustus Caesar, the Lord was born, from which time the kingdom of the Romans came to its height—and through the apostles the Lord called all the nations and all the tongues, and made a nation of believing Christians who bear the Lord’s new name in their heart—in the same manner the kingdom that now is imitated it in turn, which holds power by the working of Satan; for it likewise, gathering from all the nations the most valiant, equips them for war, calling them Romans.

3 And for this reason the first census also took place under Augustus, when the Lord was born in Bethlehem, so that the men of this world, enrolled to an earthly king, might be called Romans, while those who believe in the heavenly King might be named Christians, bearing on their forehead the trophy over death.

Chapter 113

1 But that we may not be diverted from what lies before us, and that the things seen by the prophet may be shown to be true, and the things understood and spoken by us, by the grace of the Lord, to be exact, let us see whether the angel who instructs the blessed Daniel bears witness to our words. For he speaks thus: “These four beasts are four kingdoms that shall arise upon the earth, which shall be taken away. And the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and shall possess it unto the ages of ages.”

2 This is necessary, then: for the three beasts having already run their course and passed away, as has been shown above, and the one being still at its height and present, if this too be taken away, then the earthly things cease and the heavenly begin, so that the indissoluble and eternal kingdom of the saints may be shown forth, and the heavenly King be displayed openly to all—no longer seen through an appearance as on Mount Sinai, nor revealed in a pillar of cloud upon the summit of a mountain, but with hosts and armies of angels, God incarnate and man, Son of God and Son of man, coming from the heavens as judge to the world.

3 He it is who shall remove all the kingdoms that are in this world, and shall thresh and winnow and scatter them like dust from a summer threshing-floor, and shall give the kingdom to the saints of the Most High—gathering the wheat into His storehouse, but burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire. He who is now despised by the godless and impious, and blasphemed by the unbelieving, who neither understand the things that are written, nor to whom the authority of judgment has been delivered.

4 For even if He now tarries for a while, not willing to bring judgment upon the world before the time, fulfilling the command of His own Father, yet coming He shall come with His armies, and shall render to each according to his works.

Chapter 114

1 All you, then, who reverently draw near to God, recognize Him who long ago was shown to the people by Moses, and was made manifest upon the mountain, and was foreproclaimed by the prophets, and was seen by the blessed Daniel as a man—concerning whom he says: “I beheld in a vision of the night, and lo, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he reached the Ancient of Days and was brought before Him. And to Him was given the dominion and the honor and the kingdom, and all the peoples, tribes, and tongues shall serve Him; His authority is an everlasting authority, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom shall not be destroyed.”

2 By “Ancient of Days,” then, he means none other than the Lord and God and Master of all, the Father of Christ Himself, who makes the days old, while He Himself is not made old by times or days—concerning whom it was said above: “Thrones were set, and the Ancient of Days was seated, and His garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head was as pure wool; His throne was a flame of fire, its wheels a burning fire; a river of fire was drawn out before Him; thousand thousands ministered to Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood beside Him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.”

3 To this One the Son of man was brought, borne by a cloud and presented by archangels, that He might receive from Him all dominion and authority and power and kingdom, so that all peoples, tribes, and tongues should serve Him.

4 And lest anyone suppose that the kingdom given to Him by the Father is temporary or earthly, the prophet says: “His authority is an everlasting authority, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom shall not be destroyed.”

5 Having therefore subjected to His own Son all things in the heavens and on the earth and under the earth, the Father showed Him through all things to be the firstborn in all: firstborn from God, that He might be proved to be the Son of God, second after the Father; firstborn before the angels, that He might be shown to be Lord of angels also; firstborn from a virgin, that He might be shown re-forming in Himself the first-formed Adam; firstborn also from the dead, that He Himself might become the firstfruits of our resurrection.

Chapter 115

1 Since, then, all the prophets and apostles bear witness to him, while the lawless in their unbelief blaspheme him and despise the things he says, and harass his servants by persecuting them, and do not expect these things to come about—let us, who believe in the word of truth and are guided by that very Word toward eternal life, and are taught by the prophets and enlightened by the Spirit, that being made wise through his grace we may recognize the things proclaimed of old yet coming to pass and to be fulfilled in their seasons—keeping the judgment of God before our eyes, let us guard ourselves from every evil, that we may escape the eternal fire and the punishment that never ceases.

2 For even if these things do not come about now in our own day, because the times are not yet fulfilled, still we ought to pray that we may not be found in such seasons in which these things will come to pass, lest anyone, worn out by the great tribulation that is coming upon the world, should fall away from eternal life.

3 For we must observe closely what the prophet says: “And I sought carefully concerning the fourth beast, that it was different from every beast, exceedingly terrible; its teeth were of iron and its claws of bronze, devouring and crushing fine, and it trampled the remainder with its feet; and concerning its ten horns that were on its head, and the other that came up and shook out three of the former ones, whose eyes and mouth spoke great things, and its appearance became greater than the rest. I watched, and that horn made war with the saints and prevailed against them, until the Ancient of Days came and gave judgment to the saints of the Most High; and the time arrived, and the saints took possession of the kingdom.”

4 Since, then, as we said before, this denotes that fourth kingdom, beside which no other kingdom greater or even like it has been raised up on the earth, out of which ten horns are destined to spring up. For it will be divided into ten diadems, and among them another little horn will come up, which is that of the Antichrist, and he will uproot three of those before him—that is, he will destroy the three kings of Egypt, of the Libyans, and of the Ethiopians—wishing to secure the whole kingdom for himself,

5 who, having gained mastery over the remaining seven horns, then begins, puffed up by the alien and evil spirit within him, to raise war against the saints and to persecute everyone everywhere, wishing to be glorified by all and worshiped as God.

6 As Ezekiel also says concerning him: “Because your heart was lifted up and you said, ‘I am God,’ and again: will you indeed say to those who slay you, ‘I am God’? But you are a man and not God.”

7 And Isaiah likewise: “But you said in your mind, ‘I will ascend into heaven, above the clouds of heaven I will set my throne, I will sit on the holy mountain, I will be like the Most High.’”

Chapter 116

1 Now if anyone wishes to read about him in fuller detail, these matters have been set forth more clearly in another book, so that we need not treat the subject concerning him a second time.

2 But for now, with regard to the matter before us, we will speak about the beast that is presently at hand.

3 For Daniel speaks thus: “And the angel said to me: The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will surpass all the kingdoms, and it will devour all the earth and trample it down and cut it in pieces. And its ten horns are ten kings who will arise, and after them another will arise, who will exceed all those before him in evils, and he will speak words against the Most High and will lead astray the saints of the Most High and will plan to change times and law; and it will be given into his hand until a time and times and half a time. And the court sat, and they will remove his dominion, to abolish and destroy it utterly; and the kingdom and the authority and the greatness of the kings under the whole heaven was given to the saints of the Most High, and his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions will serve and obey him. Thus far is the end of the matter.”

Chapter 117

1 Since, then, the prophet, wishing in every way to persuade us and to reconcile us to the truth of the things seen by him, inquires of one of the angels standing by, so that he himself might be more accurately instructed concerning the fourth beast—for “I sought,” he says, “more carefully concerning it, because it was terrible and astounding”—the angel, therefore, instructing him, or rather through him persuading us also to believe the things rightly seen by him, recounts to him all the things that are to come to pass in the last days: the division of the fourth beast into the ten horns that arise from it, the manifestation of the Antichrist among them, his war against the saints, and the duration for which he is destined to hold power.

2 “For it will be given,” he says, “into his hand until a time and times and half a time”—which signifies three and a half years—and after these things the judgment that is to be; “for thrones,” he says, “were set, and the court sat, and the kingdom was given to the saints of the Most High, but the body of the beast was given over to the burning of fire.”

3 For the time arrived—that is, the whole span of time was fulfilled—and the saints will hold the kingdom, when the Judge of judges and King of kings comes at last from heaven, who will remove all the rule and power of the adversary and will burn up all, punishing the unrighteous with eternal fire, but to his servants—prophets and martyrs and all who fear him—he will give the eternal kingdom.

4 As the prophet says: “Thus far is the end of the matter. I, Daniel—my thoughts greatly troubled me, and my appearance was changed, and I kept the word in my heart.”

Chapter 118

1 Every person, therefore, who reads the divine Scriptures must imitate the prophet Daniel and not be rash and headstrong, seeking the season before its season and desiring to see the unripe figs of the fig tree, but rather hold fast the mystery of God in the heart with fear, lest, ensnared by his own lips through his own doing, he become liable for his own soul.

2 For the time will come when the almond tree will blossom and the caper will swell and the locust will multiply and the fig tree will bud and the fruits of apostasy will advance. Then the door of life will be shut and the pitcher will be shattered at the spring and the wheel will run upon the cistern and the grinding women will cease, because they have grown few; and all will be roused at the voice of the sparrow, and all the daughters of song will be troubled, and the mourners will gather in the marketplace, and a man will depart to his eternal home.

Chapter 119

1 But someone will say: And when will these things be? At what season or time is the deceiver destined to be revealed? And what is the day of the Lord’s appearing?

2 The disciples likewise sought to learn these things from the Lord, but he hid the day from them, so that he might keep them and all others watchful for the things to come, ever taking thought and daily awaiting the heavenly Bridegroom, lest, through the length of days neglecting the things he commanded, while he delays, people should doze off and fall away from the heavenly life.

3 For “Be watchful,” he says, “for you do not know on what day or hour your Lord comes, whether in the evening, or at midnight, or in the morning.”

4 Therefore he says: “Blessed is that servant whom his lord, when he comes, will find watching; truly I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. But if the wicked servant says in his heart, ‘My lord delays in coming,’ and begins to beat the menservants and maidservants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the lord of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in two and will assign his portion with the unbelievers; for there will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth. Therefore I say to you: Be watchful.”

5 These things, then, our Lord himself, teaching the disciples in the Gospel, declared.

6 Likewise also after his resurrection, the disciples came and asked him the same things, saying: “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” But he said to them: “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set within his own authority, but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses both in Jerusalem and in Galilee and in all the region of Samaria and to the end of the earth.”

Chapter 120

1 Since, then, he hid the day from them, but declared it through the signs that come to pass—by which a person will readily recognize it—we ought to perceive the things that happen in their season and, while knowing, to keep silent.

2 And these things must come to pass even if we do not wish it; for the truth never lies.

3 For just as he said concerning the city of Jerusalem: “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has drawn near”—and the things foretold came upon it—so too must we now expect.

4 “For when you see,” he says, “the abomination of desolation standing in a holy place—let the reader understand—then let those in Judea flee to the mountains, and let the one on the housetop not go down to take anything from his house, and let the one in the field not turn back to take his cloak. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing in those days. For there will then be a great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world nor ever shall be. And if those days had not been cut short, no flesh would have been saved.”

5 He has therefore made it plain to us in this, that we may no longer be in doubt about anything.

6 And again he says: “When you see the abomination of desolation standing in a holy place, and when you see the fig tree putting forth its leaves, know that summer is near; so also you, when you see all these things coming to pass, know that it is near, at the doors.”

7 Since, then, the abomination has not yet appeared, but the fourth beast alone is still holding power, how can the appearing of the Lord take place?

8 But someone will say: It is written, “When you see wars and disorders, then know that it is near.” Yes, it is written; “for nation,” he says, “will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be earthquakes in various places and famines and pestilences”—things that have already happened and will happen.

9 “But all these things are the beginning of birth pangs,” he says, “yet the end is not in them.” For first the gospel of the Lord must be proclaimed in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come, when the whole span of time is fulfilled.

Chapter 121

1 For I will relate also the thing that happened not long ago in Syria.

2 For a certain man who presided over the church there, and who did not diligently study the divine Scriptures nor follow the voice of the Lord, was himself led astray and led others astray as well.

3 For when the Lord had said, “Many false christs and false prophets shall arise and shall give signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. At that time, if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘there,’ do not believe it; ‘Behold, he is in the desert,’ do not go out; ‘Behold, he is in the inner chambers,’ do not enter”—that man, having not understood these things, persuaded many of the brethren, with wives and children, to go out into the desert to meet Christ; and they wandered astray in the mountains and on the roads, drifting about aimlessly. So that they were very nearly all arrested as robbers by the governor and put to death, had it not happened that this man’s wife was a believer, and being entreated by her he settled the matter, lest on their account a persecution should fall upon everyone.

4 How great their folly and lack of instruction, that they should journey into the desert seeking Christ, in the same manner as, in the days of Elisha the prophet, the sons of the prophets sought for Elijah in the mountains for three days after he had been taken up.

5 For when the Lord had said, “As the lightning comes forth from the east and shines as far as the west, so shall be the coming of the Son of Man”—signifying by this that he himself would clearly and manifestly come from the heavens with power and the Father’s glory—these men sought him in the mountains and in the desert.

6 For his second coming will not be such as his first one was. For then he appeared only as a lowly man, but now he comes as judge of the whole world. And then indeed he came to save man, but now he comes to punish all sinners and those who have acted impiously against him.

7 Now we say these things for the strengthening of the faithful brethren, that they may not anticipate the counsel of God, each one knowing that on whatever day he departs from this world he has already been judged; for the consummation has overtaken him.

Chapter 122

1 Now there was another man likewise in Pontus, himself also presiding over a church, a reverent man indeed and humble-minded, but who did not attend safely to the Scriptures, trusting rather in the visions which he himself saw.

2 For having hit upon a first, a second, and a third dream, he then began to foretell to the brethren like a prophet: “This I saw, and this is going to happen.”

3 And once, being led astray, he said: “Know, brethren, that after a year the judgment is going to take place.”

4 And those who heard him foretelling, as though the day of the Lord were at hand, with weepings and lamentations begged the Lord night and day, having before their eyes the coming day of judgment.

5 And he brought the brethren into such fear and dread that they abandoned their lands and fields desolate, and the greater part of them sold off their possessions.

6 But he said to them: “If it does not turn out as I have said, then no longer believe even the Scriptures, but let each one of you do what he wishes.”

7 But while they were awaiting the outcome, and when the year was fulfilled and none of the things he had spoken came to pass, he himself was put to shame as having lied, while the Scriptures were shown to be truthful; and the brethren were found offended, so that thereafter their virgins married and the men withdrew to farming; and those who had rashly sold their possessions were afterward found begging.

Chapter 123

1 These things befall ignorant and frivolous people, all those who do not attend carefully to the Scriptures, but are rather pleased to be persuaded by human traditions and by their own errors and by their own dreams and fables and old wives’ tales.

2 For the like befell the sons of Israel too: despising and setting aside the law of God, they subjected themselves in compliance with the traditions of the elders.

3 And now too some dare to do the like, attending to vain visions and to teachings of demons, and often appointing a fast on the Sabbath and on the Lord’s Day, which Christ did not appoint, so that they dishonor the gospel of Christ.

Chapter 124

1 Since, then, the words of the Lord are true, and “every man is a liar,” as it is written, let us see whether the apostle Paul also is in agreement with the words of the Lord.

2 For writing to the Thessalonians and exhorting them always to be watchful and to persevere in prayers, and not yet to expect the day of judgment because the time had not yet been fulfilled, he spoke to them thus: “We beseech you, brethren, concerning the coming of the Lord, that you be not troubled, neither by word nor by letter as though from us, as that the day of the Lord is at hand. Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, the one who opposes and exalts himself above everything that is called God or an object of worship, so that he sits in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. Do you not remember that, while I was still with you, I used to tell you these things? And now you know what restrains him, so that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only there is the one now restraining, until he comes out of the midst. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of his mouth and abolish by the appearing of his coming—he whose coming is according to the working of Satan.”

3 Who, then, is the one who restrains until now, except the fourth beast, upon whose removal and passing out of the midst the deceiver shall come?

4 But surely, being a busybody, you ask how many years remain for the beast, that it may be removed—not perceiving that, in seeking these things, you are seeking danger for yourself and are desiring to see the judgment sooner.

5 “For woe,” he says, “to those who desire the day of the Lord! And this is darkness and not light. As when a man flees from the face of a lion, and a bear meets him, and he leaps into his house and props his hands against the wall, and a serpent bites him. Is not the day of the Lord such—darkness and not light, and gloom having no brightness?”

Chapter 125

1 But why should you busy yourself about the times and search out the day of the Lord, when the Savior has hidden it from us? Tell me, do you know the day of your own departure, that you should meddle about the consummation of the whole world?

2 For if God were not longsuffering toward us because of his surpassing compassion, long ago all things would have been wiped out.

3 Read what is said also by John in the Apocalypse: “And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the name of Jesus underneath the altar, and they cried out to God and said: ‘How long, O Lord our God, do you not judge and avenge our blood upon those who dwell on the earth?’ And white robes were given to them, and it was said to them that they should wait yet a little while, until their fellow servants also should fulfill their testimony, those who were about to be slain as they themselves were.”

4 If, then, the martyrs, who poured out their own blood for Christ, were commanded to be longsuffering, why do you too not show longsuffering, that others also may be saved and the number of the called and the saints may be fulfilled?

Chapter 126

1 But that we may not in this matter either leave the subject before us without demonstration—because man is greedy for knowledge—being compelled, we speak under constraint what it is not permitted to speak.

2 For the times, reckoned from the foundation of the world and from Adam, set plainly before us the things sought.

3 For the first coming of our Lord, the one in the flesh, in which he was born in Bethlehem, took place on the fourth day before the nones of April, on the eighth day before the kalends of January, on a Wednesday, in the forty-second year of the reign of Augustus, and in the five thousand five hundredth year from Adam; and he suffered in his thirty-third year, on the eighth day before the kalends of April, on a Friday, in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, when Rufus and Rubellio were consuls, and Gaius Caesar for the fourth time, and Gaius Cestius Saturninus.

4 It is therefore of necessity that the six thousand years be fulfilled, so that the Sabbath may come, the rest, the holy day, on which God rested from all his works which he had begun to make.

5 The Sabbath is a type and image of the coming kingdom of the saints, when they shall reign together with Christ, when he comes from the heavens, as John also relates in his Apocalypse; for a day of the Lord is as a thousand years.

6 Since, then, in six days God made all things, the six thousand years must be fulfilled; for they have not yet been fulfilled, as John says: “The five have fallen, and the one is”—that is, the sixth—“the other has not yet come”; and by “the other” he means and describes the seventh, in which there will be the rest.

Chapter 127

1 But surely someone will say: How will you prove to me that the Saviour was born in the five thousand five hundredth year?

2 Be readily instructed, O man. For the things done of old in the wilderness by Moses concerning the tabernacle were accomplished as types and images of spiritual mysteries, so that, when the truth came in Christ at the last times, you might be able to understand these things as fulfilled.

3 For he says to him: And you shall make the ark of incorruptible wood, and you shall overlay it with pure gold within and without, and you shall make its length two and a half cubits, and its breadth a cubit and a half, and its height a cubit and a half. This measure, added together, makes five and a half cubits, so that the five thousand five hundred years might be indicated, the time in which the Saviour, coming from the Virgin, brought into the world the ark, his own body, overlaid with pure gold, within by the Word and without by the Holy Spirit, so that the truth was demonstrated and the ark made manifest.

4 From the birth of Christ, therefore, one must reckon the five hundred years that remain for the completion of the six thousand years, and so the end will come.

5 And that the Saviour was present in the world at the fifth and a half time, bearing the incorruptible ark, his own body, John says: Now it was the sixth hour, so as to indicate the half of the day; and a day of the Lord is a thousand years; the half of these, therefore, is five hundred.

6 For it was not possible for him to be present sooner; for the weight of the law was still in force; nor again when the sixth was already fulfilled, for then the bath is closed; but at the fifth and a half, so that in the remaining half time the gospel might be proclaimed to all the world, and, the sixth day being fulfilled, he might bring the present life to an end.

7 For since the Persians held the kingdom, reigning two hundred and thirty years, and after them the Greeks, being indeed more glorious, for three hundred years, of necessity the fourth beast, as strong and greater than all that were before it, must reign five hundred years; and when these times are completed and the ten horns are raised up from it at the last, the Antichrist will appear among them, concerning whom we have spoken earlier.

8 When he is making war and persecuting the saints, then must one look for the appearing of the Lord from heaven, so that the King of kings may be openly displayed to all, and the Judge of judges be revealed, coming with boldness and glory.

9 For whatever has already been foreordained by God to come to pass, and has been proclaimed beforehand by the prophets, these things will be fulfilled in this way, each in its own time.

Chapter 128

1 Having then ceased from the subject before him, after teaching us with all exactness the assurance of the things to come, the prophet passed again to the kingdom of the Persians and the Greeks, recounting to us another vision, which came to pass and was fulfilled in its own times, that by this, having established us as faithful, he might be able to present us still more faithful to God with regard to the things that are to come.

2 For he speaks thus: In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king, a vision appeared to me, I, Daniel, after the one that appeared to me at the first. And I was in Susa the palace, which is in the country of Elam, and I was on the Ubal. And I lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, one ram standing on the Ubal, and it had high horns, and the one was higher than the other, and the high one was rising up at the last. And I saw the ram butting toward the sea and the north and the south; and all the beasts will not stand before it, and there was none that could deliver out of its hand; and it did according to its will and was magnified. And I was considering, and behold, a he-goat of the goats came from the southwest over the face of all the earth, and the goat had a horn between its eyes, and it came to the ram that had the horns, which I had seen standing before the Ubal, and it ran at it in the fury of its strength. And I saw it reaching the ram, and it was enraged at it and struck the ram, and broke both its horns, and there was no strength in the ram to stand before it; and it cast it to the ground and trampled it, and there was none that could deliver the ram out of its hand. And the he-goat of the goats was magnified exceedingly, and when it grew strong its great horn was broken, and four horns came up beneath it toward the four winds of heaven. And out of one of them came forth one strong horn, and it was magnified exceedingly toward the south and toward the host; and it was magnified up to the host of heaven; and it fell upon the earth from the host and from the stars, and trampled them. And until the commander-in-chief should rescue the captivity, and through him the sacrifice was disturbed and came to pass and prospered for him, and the holy place shall be made desolate; and sin was given against the sacrifice, and righteousness was cast to the ground, and it acted and prospered. And I heard one holy one speaking, and one holy one said to a certain one—the phelmouni—who was speaking: Until when shall the vision stand, and the sacrifice that is taken away, and the sin of desolation that is given, and the holy place and the host be trampled together? And he said to him: Until evening and morning, one thousand three hundred days, and the holy place shall be restored.

Chapter 129

1 Whatever, then, he recounted in the first vision, these things he again explains anew, a second time, for the edification of those who believe.

2 For the ram butting toward the sea and the north and the south he says is Darius the king of the Persians, who prevailed over all the nations; for all the beasts, he says, will not stand before it.

3 And the he-goat of the goats coming from the southwest he says is Alexander the Macedonian, the king of the Greeks.

4 Now the goat’s coming to the ram, and being enraged at it, and striking it on the face, and breaking it, and casting it to the ground, and trampling it—this signifies that which also came to pass; for Alexander, having joined battle with Darius, prevailed against him and overcame all his power, slaying and trampling down his army.

5 Then, after the he-goat of the goats was exalted, its great horn was broken, and four horns came up beneath it toward the four winds of heaven.

6 For Alexander, having mastered all the land of Persia and subdued them, afterward dies, having divided his kingdom into four principalities, as has been shown above—that is, to Seleucus, Demetrius, Ptolemy, and Philip—out of whom one horn was exalted and magnified up to the host of heaven.

7 And through him, he says, the sacrifice was disturbed, and righteousness was cast to the ground. For there arose Antiochus, surnamed Epiphanes, who was of the line of Alexander, as king; and having become king of Syria and brought all Egypt under himself, he afterward went up against Jerusalem, and entered into the sanctuary and took all the treasures that were in the house of the Lord, and the golden lampstand and the table and the altar, and made a great slaughter in the land, and spoke arrogant words, and forbade sacrifice and offering, and built precincts and shrines for idols throughout the city, and they sacrificed swine and common beasts, so that what was spoken by the prophet might be fulfilled: And through him the sacrifice was disturbed, and righteousness was cast to the ground, and the holy place and the host shall be trampled together, until evening and morning, one thousand three hundred days.

8 For it came to pass at that time that for three and a half years the sanctuary remained desolate, so that a thousand three hundred days were fulfilled, until Judas the Maccabee arose, after the death of Mattathias his father, and withstood him, and cut down the camps of Antiochus, and freed the city, and they recovered the holy things, and renewed them, doing all things according to the law.

Chapter 130

1 And that these things came to pass truly, just as has been said, Daniel himself testifies.

2 For he speaks thus: And it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, saw the vision and sought understanding, that behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man, and I heard the voice of a man between the Ubal, and he called and said: Gabriel, give that man understanding of the vision. And he came and stood close by where I stood, and when he came I was terrified and fell upon my face, and he said to me: Understand, son of man, for the vision is for the time of the end. And as he spoke with me I was terrified and fell upon my face to the ground, and he touched me and set me upon my feet and said: Behold, I make known to you the things that shall be at the last of the wrath; for the vision is for the time of the end. The ram which you saw, having the horns, is the king of the Persians and Medes; and the he-goat of the goats is the king of the Greeks; and the great horn that was between its eyes is the first king. And as for the one that was broken, in whose place four horns stood up, four kings shall arise out of his nation, but not in his strength. And at the last of their kingdom, when their sins are fulfilled, there shall arise a king shameless of face and skilled in riddles, and his strength shall be mighty, yet not by his own strength, and he shall destroy wonderfully and shall prosper and shall act, and he shall destroy the mighty and the holy people, and the yoke of his collar shall prosper. Deceit shall be in his hand, and in his heart he shall be magnified, and by deceit he shall destroy many, and he shall stand for the destruction of many, and he shall crush them like eggs in the hand. And the vision of the evening and the morning that was spoken is true; and you, seal up the vision, for it is for many days. And I, Daniel, fell asleep and was sick, and I rose up and did the king’s business, and I marveled at the vision, and there was none that understood.

Chapter 131

1 Since, then, the angel Gabriel, just as it has been understood by us, recounted these things to the prophet, even as they also came to pass and have all been plainly recorded in the books of the Maccabees, let us see also what he says concerning the weeks.

2 For having thus read the book of Jeremiah the prophet, in which it is written that the sanctuary would be desolate for seventy years, in fasting and supplication, confessing, he entreated that the people might more quickly return from the captivity to the city of Jerusalem.

3 Thus, then, recounting, he says: In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, who reigned over the kingdom of the Chaldeans, I, Daniel, understood in the books the number of the years, as the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolation of Jerusalem, seventy years. And I set my face toward the Lord my God, to seek prayer and supplications in fasting and sackcloth; and I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed and said: O Lord, the great and wonderful God, who keeps your covenant and mercy to those who love you and to those who keep your commandments, we have sinned, we have done wrong, we have transgressed, and we have departed and turned aside from your commandments and from your judgments, and we have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings and our rulers and our fathers and all the people of the land. To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, and to us the shame of face, as at this day, to the man of Judah and to those who dwell in Jerusalem.

Chapter 132

1 These things, then, he recounts, confessing in the person of the people, declaring the sins of the people and of their fathers, who did not listen to his servants the prophets, who were sent to them to speak in the name of the Lord.

2 And as he was setting forth all his supplication in humility and fasting and sackcloth, the angel Gabriel was sent to him, that he might give him understanding concerning the things he was seeking.

3 For Daniel speaks thus: And while I was still speaking and praying and confessing my sins and the sins of my people, and casting down my plea for mercy before the Lord my God concerning the holy mountain—while I was still speaking in prayer, behold, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, came flying, and touched me about the hour of the evening sacrifice, and gave me understanding, and spoke with me and said: Daniel, now I have come forth to instruct you in understanding; at the beginning of your supplication a word went forth, and I have come to declare it to you, for you are a man of desires.

Chapter 133

1 Observe how the prophet likened the swiftness of the angels to a winged bird, on account of the lightness and nimbleness of the angels, who are spirits flying swiftly, obedient to what is commanded, as Solomon says: “Do not curse the king even in your bedchamber, lest a winged bird carry your words to him.”

2 Gabriel the angel, then, speaks to him thus: “From the day you set your face to humble yourself before the face of the Lord your God, your supplication was heard, and I was sent to give you understanding, so that you might not seek the appointed time before its season; for you are a man of desires. For these things you desire to see, which you are about to have ministered to you through me; and in its own time these things shall be fulfilled.”

3 And he went on, saying: “Seventy weeks have been cut short upon your people and upon the holy city, to bring sins to their full end, and to seal up sins, and to wipe away iniquities, and to make atonement for transgressions, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up vision and prophet, and to anoint the Holy of Holies. And you shall know and understand: from the going forth of the words for the answering and the building of Jerusalem until Christ the ruler, seven weeks and sixty-two weeks.”

4 Having named seventy weeks, then, he divided them into two, so that what was spoken by him to the prophet might be the better understood.

5 For he speaks thus: “Until Christ the ruler, seven weeks,” which are forty-nine years; for it is in the twenty-first year that Daniel beholds these things in Babylon.

6 When, then, the forty-nine years are reckoned together with the twenty-first year, the seventy years are fulfilled which the blessed prophet Jeremiah spoke of, namely that for seventy years the sanctuary would be desolate, from the captivity that befell them under Nebuchadnezzar; and after these things the people would return, and sacrifice and offering would be presented, their ruler being Christ.

7 And of what Christ does he speak, but of Jesus the son of Josedek, who returned together with the people at that time, and in the seventieth year, when the sanctuary had been built, offered sacrifice according to the law?

8 For all the kings and the priests were called “christs” (anointed) because they were anointed with the holy oil which Moses prepared of old.

9 These, then, bore the Lord’s name with them, foreshowing the type and prefiguring the image, until the perfect King and Priest from heaven, Christ, came, who alone did the will of the Father, as is written in the books of Kingdoms: “And I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who shall do all things according to my heart.”

Chapter 134

1 In order, then, to show the time when he was to come—which the blessed Daniel desired to see—he says: “And after the seven weeks, another sixty-two weeks,” which comprise a span of four hundred and thirty-four years.

2 For after the people had returned from Babylon under the leadership of Jesus the son of Josedek, and Ezra the scribe, and Zerubbabel the son of Salathiel, who was of the tribe of Judah, four hundred and thirty-four years passed until the coming of Christ, so that the Priest of priests might appear in the world and he who takes away the sins of the world might be openly manifested, as John says concerning him: “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.”

3 And in like manner Gabriel also says, “and to wipe away iniquities and to make atonement for sins.”

4 And who it was that wiped away our iniquities, Paul the apostle teaches you, saying: “He himself is our peace, who made the two one and broke down the dividing wall of the partition, the enmity, in his flesh, abolishing the law of the commandments in its decrees, and wiping away the handwriting of our sins that was against us, which was contrary to us, and he has taken it out of the midst, nailing it to the cross”—that is, to wipe away the iniquities and to make atonement for the iniquities.

5 And who are those whose iniquities are atoned for, if not those who believe in his name and make atonement before his face through good works?

Chapter 135

1 That four hundred and thirty-four years passed from the return of the people from Babylon until the birth of Christ is easy to grasp from what has been set forth.

2 For since the first covenant was given to the sons of Israel after four hundred and thirty-four years, it was necessary that the second likewise be marked off by the same span of time, so that it might be awaited by the people and easily recognized by those who believe.

3 And for this reason Gabriel says, “and to anoint the Holy of Holies.”

4 But none is Holy of Holies except the Son of God alone, who being present and showing himself to be the one anointed by the Father and sent into the world, said to them: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for which cause he anointed me; he has sent me to preach good news to the poor, to heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim release to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”

5 As many, then, as believed in the heavenly Priest were cleansed by that Priest himself, and their sins were wiped away; but as many as disbelieved in him, setting him at nought as a mere man, their sins were sealed up as irremovable.

6 Whence the angel, foreseeing that not all would believe in him, said: “to bring sins to their full end and to seal up sins.”

7 For as many as disbelieved him to the end, their sins were brought to their full end and sealed up, kept for judgment; but as many as were to believe in him and to confess to him as one able to forgive sins, their sins were wiped away.

Chapter 136

1 And for this reason he says: “and to seal up vision and prophet.”

2 For since he himself was present as the fulfillment of law and prophets—for the law and the prophets were until John—it was necessary that the things spoken by them be sealed up, so that at the coming of the Lord all of them, being loosed, might be illumined, and the things sealed up and unable to be known might be easily recognized, and the things bound of old might now be loosed by him.

3 As the Lord himself said to the rulers of the people, who, when they saw him performing mighty works on the day of the sabbath and healing every disease and every infirmity, were indignant; but he said to them: “Hypocrites, each of you looses his ox and his ass from the manger and leads it away to water; but this woman, who is a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan bound for eighteen years, ought she not to be loosed on the day of the sabbath?”

4 As many, then, as Satan had bound and ensnared, these the Lord, when he came, loosed from the bonds of death, binding the strong one who was against us, and setting humanity free; as Isaiah also says: “Then he shall say to those in bonds, Come forth, and to those in darkness, Be illumined.”

5 And that the things spoken of old through law and prophets were all sealed up and remained unknown to men, Isaiah says: “And they shall give the sealed book to a man who knows letters, and they shall say to him, Read this; and he shall say, I cannot read it, for it is sealed.”

6 And necessarily so; for it was needful that the things spoken of old through the prophets be sealed up to the unbelieving Pharisees, who supposed they knew the letters of the law, but be opened to those who believe.

Chapter 137

1 The things, then, sealed up of old are now all opened to the saints through the grace of the Lord; for he himself was the perfect seal and the key from David, who opens and none shuts, and shuts and none opens.

2 As John also says: “And I saw in the right hand of him who sat upon the throne a book written within and without, sealed with seven seals. And I saw an angel proclaiming with a loud voice: Who is worthy to open the book and to loose its seals? And no one in heaven, nor on the earth, nor under the earth was able to open the book or to look upon it. And many wept, because no one was found worthy to open the book or to look upon it. And one of the elders says to me: Do not weep; behold, the Lion that is of the tribe of Judah, the root and the offspring of David, has prevailed to open the book and to loose its seven seals. And I saw in the midst of the throne and in the midst of the elders a Lamb standing as though slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him who sat upon the throne; and when he took the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints, and they sing a new song, saying: Worthy are you to take the book and to open its seals, for you were slain and have purchased us for God by your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us a kingdom and priests for our God, and they shall reign upon the earth.”

3 He took the book, then, and loosed it, so that the things spoken of old concerning him in secret might now be proclaimed with boldness upon the housetops.

4 And for this reason the angel said to Daniel: “Seal up these words, for the vision is for the end of the appointed time”; but to Christ it was not said “Seal up,” but “Loose the things bound of old,” so that through his grace we might recognize the will of the Father and believe in the one whom he sent, Jesus Christ our Lord, for the salvation of mankind.

Chapter 138

1 He says, then: “And it shall be restored, and street and wall shall be built.” And so it actually came to pass; for the people, having returned, built the city and the temple and its wall round about.

2 Then he says: “After the sixty-two weeks the times shall be emptied out, and he shall establish a covenant with many for one week; and in the midst of the week sacrifice and libation shall be taken away, and upon the temple the abomination of desolations.”

3 For when the sixty-two weeks have been fulfilled, and Christ has come, and the gospel has been preached in every place, and the times have been emptied out, one week, the last, shall be left, in which Elijah and Enoch shall be present; and in the midst of it the abomination of desolation shall appear—the Antichrist—announcing desolation to the world; and at his coming the sacrifice and libation shall be taken away which is now offered to God in every place by the nations.

Chapter 139

1 Now that these things have been said in this way, the prophet recounts to us yet another vision; for the blessed Daniel was anxious about nothing else than that, having been accurately taught all that was to come, he might in turn be shown teaching us as well.

2 He says, then: “In the third year of Cyrus king of the Persians a word was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Belshazzar; and the word was true, and great power and understanding were given to him in the vision. In those days I Daniel was mourning three weeks of days; bread of desire I did not eat, and meat and wine did not enter my mouth, and with oil I did not anoint myself until the completion of three weeks of days; on the twenty-fourth day of the first month.”

3 “I humbled myself,” he says, “for twenty-one days, praying to the living God, asking of him the revelation of mysteries.”

4 And indeed, having heard him, the Father sent forth his own Word, indicating what was to come to pass through him; and so it happened beside the great river. For it was fitting that the Child be shown there, where he was also about to forgive sins.

5 “And I lifted up,” he says, “my eyes and saw, and behold, one man clothed in linen.” Now in the first vision he says, “Behold, the angel Gabriel flying”; but here it is not so, but he sees the Lord himself—not yet perfectly man, but appearing in the form of a man—just as he says, “and behold, one man clothed in linen.”

6 For Christ, clothed in the manifold calling of the gifts of grace, displayed a many-colored tunic of mysteries; because the priestly tunic was fashioned of various colors, as a sign of the manifold nations awaiting the coming of Christ, so that we might be enabled to be fashioned with manifold gifts of grace.

Chapter 140

1 “And his loins were girded with gold of Ophaz.” Now “Ophaz” signifies pure gold, when translated from the Hebrew into the Greek.

2 He was therefore girded about his loins with a pure belt; for the Word was about to bear us all about his own body, binding us tight with his own love as with a belt. For his perfect body was himself, and we are his members, united as in a perfect body and borne up by the Word himself.

3 “And his body was like Tharsis.” Now “Tharsis” is interpreted “Ethiopians”; for the prophet was already foretelling how hard he would be to recognize, since the Word, appearing in the world in the flesh, would be hard for many to know.

4 “And his face was like the lightning, and his eyes were as lamps of fire.” For it was fitting that the fiery and judging nature of the Word be signified beforehand, so that upon the ungodly he might justly bring fire and consume them, while to the righteous and to those who have hoped in him he might grant eternal immortality.

5 He added, saying, “And his arms and his feet were like gleaming bronze,” that he might signify the first calling of the fathers and the second, that from the nations, to be alike; for the last things shall be as the first, “for I will set,” he says, “your rulers as at the beginning and your leaders as before.”

6 “And his voice was like the voice of a great multitude.” For all of us today who believe in him utter the words of Christ, speaking as through his mouth the things commanded by him.

Chapter 141

1 “And I Daniel alone saw the vision.” For to the saints and to those who fear him, to them alone does he reveal himself.

2 For if anyone now seems even to have his conduct within the Church, yet does not have the fear of God, the assembly with the saints profits him nothing, since he has not gained within himself the power of the Spirit.

3 For indeed at that time there were many standing with Daniel, but they did not see the vision, for they were not worthy; rather a great trembling fell upon them, and they fled in fear.

4 “And I,” he says, “was left alone, and I fall upon my face to the ground, and behold, as it were a man’s hand touched me.” A man’s hand, he says—not yet a man, but signifying through the hand what was to come of the dispensation.

Chapter 142

1 “And he raised me up upon my knees and said to me: Daniel, man of desires, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upon your place, for now I have been sent to you. And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling, and he said to me: Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day on which you gave your heart to understand and to afflict yourself before God, your words were heard.”

2 See how much the reverence of a righteous man avails, that the things not yet to be made manifest in the world might be revealed to him alone as worthy.

3 And first he was given understanding by the angel Gabriel, then a second time he was made wise by the Lord himself.

4 For he says thus: “And I saw, and behold, as it were the appearance of a son of man touched me.” Now the first time he said “as a man’s hand,” but now he says “as the appearance of a son of man,” so that first he might show him partially, and then a second time his full incarnation.

5 For the Word of God was proclaimed beforehand as a man in the form of a man, a man in the flesh to appear in the world, not yet then being a son of man; but when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, so that, having put on the man from the Virgin, he might be shown to be Son of God and Son of man.

6 “And I opened,” he says, “my mouth and spoke to the one standing before me: Lord, at your vision my inward parts were turned within me, and I had no strength.” For at the coming of the Lord it was fitting that the things above be brought below, so that the things below might be able to come into the things above.

7 “And he proceeded,” he says, “and touched me as the appearance of a man, and strengthened me, and said to me: Fear not, man of desires; peace be to you, be of good courage and be strong.” For whenever all the strength and glory of our life is dissolved, then we are empowered by Christ, who stretches out his hand and raises us up as living from the dead and as from Hades into the resurrection of life.

Chapter 143

1 “And when he had spoken with me, I gained strength and said: Let my Lord speak, for you have strengthened me.”

2 For whenever the Word has made us of good hope toward the things to come, then easily are we able to hear his voice as well.

3 He says, then, to him: “Do you know why I have come to you? And now I will return to fight with the prince of the Persians; but I will declare to you what is written in the writing of truth, and there is no one who holds with me concerning these things except Michael your prince, and him I left there. For from the day on which you set your face to be afflicted before the Lord your God, your supplication was heard, and I was sent to fight with the prince of the Persians; for a counsel had arisen not to send forth the people. So that your request might be fulfilled swiftly, I withstood him and left there Michael your prince.”

4 And who is Michael but the angel given over to the people, as he says to Moses: “I will not go with you on the way, because the people is stiff-necked, but rather my angel shall go with you”?

5 This one withstood Moses at the lodging-place, when he was carrying the uncircumcised child into Egypt; for it was not permissible that Moses, who was becoming the elder and mediator of the law and proclaiming the covenant of the fathers, should bring along an uncircumcised child, lest he be reckoned by the people to be a false prophet and a deceiver.

Chapter 144

1 “And now,” he says, “I will declare truth to you.” Could the truth, then, declare anything else besides the truth? Truth was the one who appeared to Daniel, and he declared truth; he again, appearing as truth in the world, taught truth. O blessed disciples, taught truth by Christ!

2 He says, then, to him: “Behold, three more kings shall arise in Persia, and the fourth shall be rich with great riches beyond all; and when he has prevailed by his riches, he shall rise up against all the kingdoms of the Greeks. And a mighty king shall arise, and shall rule over a great dominion and do according to his will; and as his kingdom arises, it shall be broken and divided toward the four winds of heaven.”

3 Now these things we have already recounted above, when we were making our discourse concerning the four beasts; but since the Scripture now relates all these things again in detail, of necessity we too must make the discourse a second time, lest we leave the Scripture idle and undemonstrated.

4 “Three more kings,” he says, “shall arise in Persia, and the fourth shall be rich with great riches.” It has come to pass. For after Cyrus arose Darius, then Artaxerxes, then Xerxes. These three became kings; the Scripture has been fulfilled.

5 “And the fourth shall be rich with great riches.” Who is this but Darius, who, having reigned and become glorious, grew rich and rose up against all the kingdoms of the Greeks?

6 Against him rose up Alexander the Macedonian, who was the son of Philip, and he overthrew his kingdom; and after he had subjected the Persians, his kingdom was divided toward the four winds of heaven. For Alexander, as he was dying, divided his kingdom into four principalities.

Chapter 145

1 “And another mighty king shall arise, and shall enter into the strongholds of the king of Egypt.”

2 For there arose a certain Antiochus, king of Syria.

3 He became king in the hundred and thirty-seventh year of the reign of the Greeks.

4 And indeed, in those days he joined battle against Ptolemy, king of Egypt, and prevailing over him, he gained the mastery.

5 Returning from Egypt, he went up against Jerusalem in the hundred and forty-third year, and taking all the treasures that were in the house of the Lord, he made his way to Antioch.

6 When these things had so come to pass, after two years’ time the king sent his own tax-collector to the cities of Judaea, to compel the Jews to forsake their ancestral laws and to submit themselves to the king’s decrees and laws.

7 And when he had arrived at the city of Modein, he summoned a certain man by the name of Mattathias, a devout and righteous man, who was of the priestly line; and answering him he said: “Come now, O Mattathias, sacrifice and carry out the king’s command, as all the nations have done; for you are a great ruler and leader in the city, and well established with children, and you shall be a friend of the king.”

8 But he answered and said: “Even if all the nations and every man go after the king to act according to his command, yet I and my house and the house of my father will by no means act according to the king’s command. God forbid that we should depart from the law and covenant of our fathers; we will not listen to the words of the king, to turn aside from our way to the right hand or to the left.”

9 While he was still speaking these words, behold, a certain Jewish man came up before his face and approached to sacrifice upon the altar at Modein; and when Mattathias saw it, he was zealous according to the law, and his inward parts trembled, and he raised up his wrath according to judgment, and rushing upon them he slew the Jewish man and the king’s officer who was compelling them, and he tore down the altar, and cried out in the city, saying: “Whoever stands with the Lord in his holy covenant, let him come out after me.”

10 And they left behind all that was in the city and fled into the mountains, and there was joined to him a band of men mighty in strength, and they became a support to him.

Chapter 146

1 Then indeed the forces dwelling in Syria, hearing what had happened, ran against them and made war upon them on the day of the Sabbath. But they, fearing the law of God and held fast by the commandment of God, neither raised a hand against them nor flung a stone at them, nor blocked up their hiding-places.

2 And those men answered them and said: “Even now come out and carry out the king’s command, and you shall live.” But they said: “We will not come out, nor will we carry out the king’s command; we will die in our innocence. Heaven and earth bear witness against us, that you are destroying us unjustly.”

3 Then they fell upon them with fire and with slaughter and with captivity, and they killed of them as many as a thousand souls.

4 So then there are fulfilled the things spoken to the blessed Daniel: “And he shall enter in with violence, and his heart shall be lifted up against the holy covenant, and he shall wish to do all things according to his heart; and my servants shall be afflicted and shall be brought low by famine and by the sword and by captivity.”

Chapter 147

1 Now Mattathias and his sons heard these things and mourned over their brethren, and said to one another: “If we all do as our brothers did, our enemies will come and quickly remove us from the earth. If therefore war comes upon us on the Sabbath, let us stand and fight for our lives and for our ordinances.”

2 Then indeed they ran down upon them and pursued them from their borders, and they entered into the city and circumcised the children, as many as they found uncircumcised, and they tore down the altars and all the sacred precincts, and the work prospered in their hand.

3 And Daniel says: “And they shall be helped with a little help.”

4 For then Mattathias arose, and Judas the Maccabee arose, and they helped them and rescued them out of the hand of the Greeks, and that which was spoken in the Scripture was fulfilled.

Chapter 148

1 Again he says: “And the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north, to make agreements with him. But the arms of him who brings her shall not stand, and she shall be crushed and shall fall, both she and he who brings her.”

2 And this too came to pass. For a certain Ptolemais, who was then reigning over Egypt, set out together with her two sons, Ptolemy and Philometor, to make agreements with Antiochus, king of Syria. And indeed, when she had come near Scythopolis, she was there put to death; for he who was bringing her betrayed her. Then the two brothers joined battle with one another, and Philometor was slain, but Ptolemy prevailed.

3 So then a clash again arose between Ptolemy and Antiochus; for the Scripture speaks thus: “And the king of the south shall rise up against the king of the north, and a seed shall rise up from her.”

4 And what seed but Ptolemy, who joined battle against Antiochus?

5 Against him Antiochus marched out, and not prevailing over him he became a fugitive and returned again to Antioch, gathering a larger throng.

6 Ptolemy therefore took all his armor and led it into Egypt; and the Scripture is fulfilled, just as Daniel says: “And he shall carry their gods, and their molten images, and all their precious gold, into Egypt.”

Chapter 149

1 After these things Antiochus came out a second time, stirring up war against him, and he defeated Ptolemy.

2 And indeed, when these things had happened, Antiochus rose up again against the sons of Israel and sent out a certain Nicanor with a great force, that he might wage war against the Jews, at the time when Judas, after the death of his father Mattathias, was ruling the people.

3 Nicanor therefore, having come to Jerusalem, was defeated by the Maccabee, and these things were reported to king Antiochus; and when he heard it he sent for all his forces, and gave them provisions for a year, and ordered them to be ready for service.

4 And indeed, falling short in provisions, he resolved to journey into Persia, that he might collect the tributes.

5 Being about to depart, therefore, he summoned a certain one of his own friends by the name of Lysias, and entrusted to him his own son Antiochus, and gave him charge concerning all that he wished, and ordered him to send out a force into Judaea and to wipe out the nation.

6 Lysias therefore set out, together with the boy Antiochus, and marched with a great force to make war upon Jerusalem.

7 And coming, he was defeated by the Maccabee, and these things were reported in Persia to Antiochus: that all the forces sent into Judaea had been cut to pieces, and that Lysias had marched with a force against them and had been overthrown before their face; and that they had grown strong in arms and in every kind of equipment from all the camps which they had cut down, and had fortified Mount Zion and walled it about with high and great walls.

8 And when he heard it, he fell sick from grief, because things had not come to pass as he had wished, nor had the outcome been according to what he intended.

9 And indeed, being about to die, he summoned Philip his own friend, and gave him the diadem, that he might restore it to his boy Antiochus.

10 He, having arrived and entered into Antioch, secured the kingdom for himself; for the greatest part of the forces were with him.

11 These things therefore were reported to Lysias and to the boy Antiochus—for Lysias happened to be encircling Jerusalem with a palisade to besiege it—namely, that Philip was at hand bearing the diadem, and that he had taken control of the city.

12 And when he heard this he was troubled, and said: “Let us give pledges to these men and make peace with them. For the place is strong and presses upon us, as do the affairs of the kingdom.”

13 And giving pledges he departed, and that which was spoken in the Scripture was fulfilled: “And rumors and alarms shall trouble him from the east and from the west.”

Chapter 150

1 When these things had come to pass, the Scripture again says: “And another king shall rise up, and this one shall prevail upon the earth, and the king of the south shall rise up, and indeed he shall take one of his daughters to wife.”

2 For it came about that a certain Alexander arose, the son of Philip; he at that time rose up against Antiochus, and making war upon him he slew him, and gained the mastery of the kingdom;

3 then he sent to Ptolemy, king of Egypt, saying: “Give me your daughter Cleopatra to wife; for behold, I have sat upon the royal throne of my fathers.”

4 And indeed, Ptolemy, taking his daughter, led her to Ptolemais and gave her to Alexander to wife; and the Scripture is fulfilled, as it says: “And he shall take one of his daughters to wife.”

5 And it says: “And he shall corrupt her, and she shall not be for him.” Truly this too has been fulfilled; for when Ptolemy had given him his own daughter, on returning he beheld the kingdom of Alexander to be wondrous and glorious, and becoming covetous of it he spoke deceitfully to Alexander.

6 And the Scripture says: “And at one table both the kings shall speak lies.” For Ptolemy, coveting the kingdom of Alexander, while eating with him at table dealt maliciously, not being of one accord with him. So then the Scripture is fulfilled.

7 And indeed, Ptolemy, having gone into Egypt and levied a large force, came against the country at the time when Alexander had gone into Cilicia; for it happened that the people of Tarsus and of Mallus were then in revolt; and he, wishing to subdue them, came in haste, leaving his own wife Cleopatra there.

8 Ptolemy therefore, advancing into the country, set garrisons throughout the cities; and having gained control of Judaea he came to his own daughter, and sent letters to Demetrius among the islands, saying: “Come out and come here, and I will give you my daughter Cleopatra to wife, for Alexander has sought to kill me.” But these words he fabricated, wishing to bring a reproach upon Alexander.

9 Demetrius therefore came, and Ptolemy received him and gave him his own daughter to wife, her who had been Alexander’s. And that which was spoken is fulfilled: “He shall corrupt her, and she shall not be for him, nor shall she remain with him. For both the kings—their hearts are set on wickedness, and at one table both the kings shall speak lies.”

10 When these things had so come to pass, Alexander, hearing of it, joined battle with Ptolemy, and not prevailing over him he became a fugitive to the king of the Arabs; but he cut off the head of Alexander and sent it to Ptolemy, and that one, receiving it, set upon himself the two diadems, both of Syria and of Egypt; and having put them on, he died on the third day. And that which was spoken in the Scripture is fulfilled: “And they shall not give him the glory of a kingdom.” For this one too died, and did not receive glory from all as king.

Chapter 151

1 Now the prophet, having recounted the things that had already come to pass and were fulfilled in their own times, proclaims to us another mystery, giving an indication of the last times.

2 For he speaks thus: “And another king shall arise, shameless, and he shall be exalted above every god and shall magnify himself and shall speak monstrous things, and he shall prosper until the wrath is accomplished; for it comes to fulfillment. And to every god of his fathers he shall give no heed, nor to the desire of women, and to no god shall he give heed, because he shall magnify himself above all. And he shall glorify the god Maozeim in his place, and a god whom his fathers did not know he shall glorify with gold and silver and precious stone, and he shall multiply glory and shall subject many to them and shall divide the land for gifts. And these shall be saved out of his hand: Edom and Moab and the chief of the sons of Ammon. And he shall stretch out his hand upon the land, and the land of Egypt shall not be a deliverance; and he shall have dominion over the hidden stores of gold and silver and over all the desirable things of Egypt and of the Libyans and the Ethiopians in their strongholds. And he shall pitch his tent, Ephadano, between the seas, on the holy mountain Sabir, and he shall come even to its border.”

Chapter 152

1 This, then, is how the prophet recounts concerning the Antichrist: that he will be shameless and a fosterer of war and a tyrant who dares to exalt himself above every god; who, boasting in his own power and sacking the strongholds of the cities, setting his mind high on gold and silver and precious stone, will speak monstrous words against God, wishing himself alone to be worshiped as God.

2 Concerning him no part of Scripture has been silent, and the prophets foretold him as coming for the destruction of many, and the Lord bore witness to these things, and the apostles taught the same about him, and John in the Apocalypse revealed his name mystically by a number.

3 This one the Lord declared to be the abomination of desolation, and the apostle taught that he would be present as the son of the devil according to the working of Satan.

4 This man, having struck the city of the Tyrians, will lay it desolate, and having made war on the land of Egypt will lay it low, and will raze the whole country of the Libyans, and will destroy the king of the Ethiopians together with his army by the slaughter of the sword.

5 And he, lifted up above all kings and above every god, will build the city of Jerusalem and will raise up the overthrown temple, and will restore to the Jews all the country and its borders, and summoning their people out of the slavery of the nations he will declare himself their king; and the disobedient will worship him as God and will bow the knee to him, supposing him to be the Christ, not understanding what was said by the prophet, namely how he is a deceiver and not true.

6 For Jeremiah says: “Because they did not obey the truth, then he will speak to this people and to Jerusalem a spirit of error.”

7 Therefore the apostle, knowing the deception of the people and the working of Satan that would come to be among them, said: “When they say, ‘Peace and security,’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as the birth-pang upon her who is giving birth, and they shall by no means escape.”

Chapter 153

1 This one will slay the two martyrs and forerunners of Christ who proclaim his glorious coming from the heavens, as he says through the prophet: “And I will grant to my two martyrs, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.”

2 Just as he also said to Daniel: “And he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week, and it shall be that in the midst of the week my sacrifice and libation shall be taken away”—so that the one week may be shown to be divided into two, the two martyrs preaching for three and a half years, and the Antichrist for the remainder of the week making war on the saints and laying waste the whole world, that what was said may be fulfilled: “And they shall give the abomination of desolation a thousand two hundred and ninety days; blessed is he who endures unto Christ and attains to a thousand three hundred and thirty-five days.”

3 For then there shall be great tribulation, such as has not been from the foundation of the world, with men sent here and there throughout every city and country to do away with the faithful, and the Jews rejoicing at their destruction, and the nations gloating, and the unbelievers joining with them, while the saints flee from west to east, and others are pursued from the east to the south, and others hide themselves in the mountains and in the caves, the abomination making war on them everywhere and by sea and by land destroying them by his decree and in every way crushing them out of the world, since they can neither sell anything of their own nor buy from others, unless one carries about the name of the beast on his hand, or bears its mark upon the forehead.

4 For all the faithful then will be driven out from every place and dragged down from their houses and expelled from the cities and hauled through the public squares and punished with every punishment and cast out of the whole world.

Chapter 154

1 We must, then, look closely at the tribulation and misery of the saints that will then be—for we must conceive of what is to come from the things that already happen in part—when such a storm and turmoil comes upon the whole world, and all the faithful everywhere are being done away with and slaughtered throughout every city and country, and the blood of the righteous is being poured out, and living men are being burned, and others thrown to wild beasts, and infants murdered in the streets, and all flung out unburied and devoured by dogs, and virgins and women openly defiled and shamefully mocked, and seizures taking place, and the resting-places of the saints dug up, and relics unearthed and scattered over the plain, and blasphemies being uttered.

2 There will be turmoil in the cities then, as the saints are driven from there; there will be turmoil on the roads and in the deserts, as all wish to hide there; there will be turmoil on the sea, as all try to flee by water; there will be turmoil among the islands, as all are sought out there.

3 And the land then will be barren for the saints, and every city uninhabited, and the sea unsailable, and the whole world a desert, with some perishing from famine, and others fainting away from thirst, and others dying from fear and from the great tribulation.

4 Where then will a man hide himself? To whom will he entrust his own children? Where will he carry off his possessions and keep them safe, when he cannot even save his own life?

5 Then there will be many wailings of infants, laments of fathers and mothers, shrieks of women and virgins, beatings of breast among brothers and kinsfolk.

6 Who will mourn for whom then? Not brother for brother, for he himself awaits death; not mother for daughter, for she too dreads death; not father for son, fearing lest he too be done away with.

Chapter 155

1 Therefore, foreseeing these things, the Lord says: “Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a sabbath”—neither idle as regards righteousness, nor preoccupied with the affairs of this life, as in winter—lest suddenly that day come upon you as a snare.

2 “For if those days had not been shortened,” he says, “no flesh would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.”

3 “But after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars are burning as they fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken; and then they will see the Son of Man coming with power and great glory.”

4 For if the devil received authority for a little while to disturb the earth, as it is written—God gave him authority to test those who dwell upon the earth—how much more will the Son of God, who has received all authority over things heavenly and earthly and under the earth, disturb the whole world and the elements in it, for the vindication of the saints, coming with angelic power and the Father’s glory, when he comes to be glorified among all his saints and to be marveled at among all who call upon him, to repay tribulation to those who afflict us, but to us who are afflicted, rest.

Chapter 156

1 Two abominations, then, Daniel foretold: one of devastation, and one of desolation. What is that of devastation but the one that Antiochus set up there at that time? And what is that of desolation but the universal one, when the Antichrist shall be present?

2 As Daniel says: “And he himself shall stand for the destruction of many, and he shall divide the land for gifts and cast up against it a siege-mound, and the land of Egypt shall not be a deliverance, and these shall be saved out of his hand: Edom and Moab and the chief of the sons of Ammon.”

3 For these are the ones who come together with him because of kinship and who are the first to proclaim him king. Edom are the sons of Esau, who dwell on Mount Seir; and Moab and Ammon are the sons of Lot, who were begotten of his two daughters; as Isaiah also says: “And they shall fly in the ships of foreigners, plundering the sea together, and those from the east and west and those from the north shall give glory, and the sons of Ammon shall be the first to obey.”

Chapter 157

1 This man, proclaimed king by them and glorified by all and become the abomination of desolation for the world, will hold power for one thousand two hundred and ninety days; as Daniel also says: “And they shall set up the abomination of desolation a thousand two hundred and ninety days. Blessed is he who endures and attains to a thousand three hundred and thirty-five days.”

2 For when the abomination is present and making war on the saints, whoever passes beyond his days and draws near to a further forty-five days, when the fiftieth is drawing near, has attained to the kingdom of heaven.

3 For the Antichrist comes within the part of the fiftieth, since he is destined to inherit the kingdom together with Christ.

4 And for this reason Isaiah says: “Let the ungodly one be taken away, that he may not see the glory of the Lord.”

5 And Paul says in his letter to the Thessalonians: “whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearing of his coming”; but the kingdom the saints are destined to inherit together with Christ.

Chapter 158

1 Since, then, these things were to be so, he added, saying: “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall rise, these to eternal life and those to reproach and eternal shame; and those who have understanding shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and from among the many righteous like the stars forever and ever.”

2 Who, then, are those who sleep in the dust of the earth but the bodies of men, which, receiving back their own souls, shall rise—some to a resurrection of life, receiving them pure and translucent and shining like the brightness of the firmament, and others to a resurrection of judgment, receiving them fit for eternal punishment? As Paul also says: “he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire.”

3 For the Lord too in the Gospel has said the like: “Then the righteous shall shine as the sun shines in his glory.”

4 And Isaiah says: “Awake, you who sleep, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall shine upon you.”

5 And the Lord again: “Amen I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God and shall rise—those who have done good things to a resurrection of life, but those who have done evil things to a resurrection of judgment.”

6 “These,” he says, “shall rise to life”—those who have believed in the true life and are inscribed in the book of life; “and these to reproach and eternal shame”—those who side with the Antichrist and are cast with him into eternal punishment.

7 Concerning whom Isaiah prophesies, saying: “As a garment stained with blood will not be clean, so neither shall you be clean, because you laid waste my land and slew my people; you shall not abide for eternal time, evil seed. Prepare your children for slaughter for the sins of your father, that they may not arise and inherit my land.”

Chapter 159

1 When these things had been spoken, Daniel says: “And I looked, and behold, two other men stood, one on this bank of the river and one on that bank of the river. And they spoke to the man clothed in linen who stood above the water of the river, and said to him: ‘How long until the end of the wonderful things of which you have spoken?’ And I heard the man clothed in the linen, who was above the water of the river, and he raised his right hand and his left hand to heaven and swore by him who lives forever, that it would be for a time and times and half a time; when the scattering is accomplished, they shall know all these things.”

2 Who, then, were the two men standing beside the bank of the river but the Law and the Prophets?

3 And who was the one standing above the water but this very one concerning whom they themselves proclaimed of old, who was destined in the last times to be openly attested by the Father at the Jordan and to be shown plainly to the people by John—he who wears the writer’s case about his loins and is clothed in the linen, the many-colored tunic?

4 These inquire of him, knowing that to him was given all rule and authority, in order to learn from him precisely when he is about to bring judgment upon the world and when the things spoken by him shall be fulfilled.

5 And he, wishing to persuade them in every way, raised his right hand and his left hand to heaven and swore by him who lives forever.

6 Who swore, and by whom? The Son by the Father, saying that the Father lives forever: “Truly, for a time and times and half a time; when the scattering is accomplished, they shall know all these things.”

7 Now his stretching out his two hands—by this he displayed the passion;

8 but his saying “for a time and times and half a time” signified the three and a half years of the Antichrist. For by “a time” he means a year, by “times” two years, and by “half a time” half a year; these are the thousand two hundred and ninety days which Daniel foretold.

Chapter 160

1 When, therefore, the passion is accomplished and the scattering takes place, the Antichrist being present in those days, they shall know all these things.

2 Why, then, do you still hesitate, O man, over what has been said, or how do you disbelieve the things spoken by the Lord, when his first coming has already taken place, and he who then stood above the water and was seen by Daniel has now been manifested to the world, and his passion has been signified to all, and the scattering of the people of the Jews by the Romans has taken place?

3 For in his saying “when the scattering is accomplished they shall know all these things”—the Lord being then present among them and not being recognized by them, they were scattered into all the world, cast out from their own country, and warred upon by their enemies they were driven out of the city of Jerusalem, becoming a derision to all the nations—so that the Gospel of the Lord might be preached throughout all the world, and all the time be fulfilled, and the last week be comprehended, and the two forerunners of Christ be sent, and the abomination of desolation appear after them, and the Judge of judges be revealed from heaven, and the resurrection of the saints and of the whole world take place, and the eternal kingdom be given to the worthy, and the unquenchable and unsleeping fire be kindled for the ungodly.

Chapter 161

1 When these things had been so spoken, the prophet, wishing to inquire more precisely what kind of things would be after the resurrection, answered him and said: “Lord, what shall be the last of these things?” And he said: “Come, Daniel, for these words are shut up and sealed until the end of the time, until many are chosen and made white and tried by fire; and the lawless shall act lawlessly, and the discerning shall understand. And you, come and rest; for there are yet days until the fulfillment of the consummation, and you shall rise to your lot at the consummation of the days.”

2 For since a man cannot now recount the things that God has prepared for the saints—for neither has his eye seen, nor has his ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man, things into which even angels long to look—thus he said to him: “These words are shut up until the end of the time, until many are chosen and made white and tried by fire.”

3 And who are those being chosen but those found worthy of the kingdom?

4 And who are those being made white but those who believe in the word of truth, that they may be made white through it, and casting off the filth of their sins may put on the pure and translucent Holy Spirit from heaven, so that, the Bridegroom being present, they may immediately enter in together with him?

5 And who are those being tried by fire but those who pass through fire and water by the spiritual washing of regeneration, and who do the will of God through the firing of many trials and afflictions?

6 “And the lawless shall act lawlessly, and the discerning shall understand”: those who through free will act lawlessly, and through it again some who understand and are well-pleasing.

Chapter 162

1 When the Lord, then, was recounting to the disciples concerning the coming kingdom of the saints, how it would be glorious and wonderful, Judas, astonished at what was said, exclaimed: “And who then shall see these things?” And the Lord said: “These things shall those see who have become worthy.”

2 See now, O man, the things sealed up of old and unable to be known are now proclaimed openly upon the housetops; and the book of life, stretched out, is now plainly spread upon the wood, bearing a title written in Latin and Greek and Hebrew, so that Romans and Greeks and Hebrews alike may be taught—in order that men, awaiting the good things to come, may believe the things inscribed in this book of life and proclaimed in all the world, and learning the evils that are coming, fearing the judgment, may flee the eternal punishment; so that all of us, found worthy of the King, may receive him pure with pure bodies and souls, clothed about the body with bright and fragrant robes, having trimmed our own lamps with translucent oil, that we may not, deceived by the carousing and the drunkenness and the manifold illusion and pleasure of this life, and reckoning the temporal and earthly and corruptible things greater than the everlasting and incorruptible and undefiled good things, doze off and fall away from the everlasting life.

3 And God is able to make us all watchful toward the things to come, to equip us, to have mercy, to save, to guard, to keep us from every trial and affliction, so that, having fled the judgment that is coming through fire, we may attain to meet with joy the appearing of his beloved Child Jesus Christ our Lord, glorifying him; for to him be the glory now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Colophon

Commentary on Daniel
by Saint Hippolytus of Rome
translated by Phronema.

This edition was produced by
Royal Archives.

The cover features
Storm in the Mountains
by Frederic Edwin Church (American, 1826–1900), Cleveland Museum of Art, which is in the public domain.

The text is set in Palatino and Georgia.

The first edition of this ebook was released on
August 16, 2026.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Book One. Concerning Susanna and Daniel

- Chapter 1
- Chapter 2
- Chapter 3
- Chapter 4
- Chapter 5
- Chapter 6
- Chapter 7
- Chapter 8
- Chapter 9
- Chapter 10
- Chapter 11
- Chapter 12
- Chapter 13
- Chapter 14
- Chapter 15
- Chapter 16
- Chapter 17
- Chapter 18
- Chapter 19
- Chapter 20
- Chapter 21
- Chapter 22
- Chapter 23
- Chapter 24
- Chapter 25
- Chapter 26
- Chapter 27
- Chapter 28
- Chapter 29
- Chapter 30
- Chapter 31
- Chapter 32
- Chapter 33
- Chapter 34

Book Two. Concerning the image which King Nebuchadnezzar set up

- Chapter 35
- Chapter 36
- Chapter 37
- Chapter 38
- Chapter 39
- Chapter 40
- Chapter 41
- Chapter 42
- Chapter 43
- Chapter 44
- Chapter 45
- Chapter 46
- Chapter 47
- Chapter 48
- Chapter 49
- Chapter 50
- Chapter 51
- Chapter 52
- Chapter 53
- Chapter 54
- Chapter 55
- Chapter 56
- Chapter 57
- Chapter 58
- Chapter 59
- Chapter 60
- Chapter 61
- Chapter 62
- Chapter 63
- Chapter 64
- Chapter 65
- Chapter 66
- Chapter 67
- Chapter 68
- Chapter 69
- Chapter 70
- Chapter 71
- Chapter 72

Book Three. Concerning Nebuchadnezzar, and concerning Daniel when he was cast to the lions

- Chapter 73
- Chapter 74
- Chapter 75
- Chapter 76
- Chapter 77
- Chapter 78
- Chapter 79
- Chapter 80
- Chapter 81
- Chapter 82
- Chapter 83
- Chapter 84
- Chapter 85
- Chapter 86
- Chapter 87
- Chapter 88
- Chapter 89
- Chapter 90
- Chapter 91
- Chapter 92
- Chapter 93
- Chapter 94
- Chapter 95
- Chapter 96
- Chapter 97
- Chapter 98
- Chapter 99
- Chapter 100
- Chapter 101
- Chapter 102
- Chapter 103

Book Four. Concerning the visions of the prophet Daniel

- Chapter 104
- Chapter 105
- Chapter 106
- Chapter 107
- Chapter 108
- Chapter 109
- Chapter 110
- Chapter 111
- Chapter 112
- Chapter 113
- Chapter 114
- Chapter 115
- Chapter 116
- Chapter 117
- Chapter 118
- Chapter 119
- Chapter 120
- Chapter 121
- Chapter 122
- Chapter 123
- Chapter 124
- Chapter 125
- Chapter 126
- Chapter 127
- Chapter 128
- Chapter 129
- Chapter 130
- Chapter 131
- Chapter 132
- Chapter 133
- Chapter 134
- Chapter 135
- Chapter 136
- Chapter 137
- Chapter 138
- Chapter 139
- Chapter 140
- Chapter 141
- Chapter 142
- Chapter 143
- Chapter 144
- Chapter 145
- Chapter 146
- Chapter 147
- Chapter 148
- Chapter 149
- Chapter 150
- Chapter 151
- Chapter 152
- Chapter 153
- Chapter 154
- Chapter 155
- Chapter 156
- Chapter 157
- Chapter 158
- Chapter 159
- Chapter 160
- Chapter 161
- Chapter 162

Colophon