Epiphanius of Salamis, On the Life and Death of Prophets

10. Daniel the prophet. This man was from the tribe of Judah, of a prominent family of the royal service; but while still an infant he was brought to Babylon from Judea. He was born in Upper Beth-horon near Jerusalem; and he was a temperate man, so that the Jews thought him to be a eunuch. This man greatly mourned for Jerusalem and disciplined himself with fasting from all desirable food, and he was a man of very lean appearance; but handsome in the grace of God. This man prayed much for Nebuchadnezzar, because he became a wild beast and a brute, that he might not perish. For his foreparts were like an ox, along with his head, and his feet with his hindparts were like a lion. For potentates have these things in their youth, becoming like an ox under the yoke of Beliar on account of their love of pleasure, and in the end becoming beasts, seizing, destroying, striking, and killing. Therefore this holy man knew that he was eating grass like an ox, and it became food of a human nature for him. For this reason also Nebuchadnezzar, after the sending of his scourge, having received a human heart, wept and besought God every day and night, praying forty times to the God Beemon, that is the God of Israel. For a spirit of Satan came upon him and it escaped his notice that he had become a man. His tongue was bound from speaking, and the voice of a beast was given to him; and signaling with his head, he immediately wept, and his eyes became like raw flesh from crying. And many potentates and citizens going out of the city saw him. But Daniel alone did not wish to see him; because all the time of his transformation he was in prayer for him, and he said, "1Again he will become a man and will rule his kingdom"2; and they disbelieved him, as he prayed to the Lord for him that the seven years would become seven months. The mystery of the seven times was fulfilled upon him, because he served as an intercessor for seven years. Therefore, for six years and six months he fell down before the Lord God and confessed his own impiety. And after the forgiveness of his lawlessness, God gave him back his kingdom again. And he neither ate meat nor drank wine, confessing to God, because Daniel had commanded him to propitiate the Lord with pulses or greens or soaked vegetables. For this reason also Nebuchadnezzar called Daniel Belteshazzar, after the name of his only-begotten son; and he wished to appoint him as a joint-heir with his children; but the holy man said: "1Far be it from me to forsake the inheritance of my fathers and to cleave to the inheritance of the uncircumcised"2. And among the kings of the Persians he also performed many wonders, which we have not written in this book; but they are written in the book of Daniel. This prophet gave a sign in the high mountains of Babylon, saying: "1When you see the mountain to the north smoking, the end of Babylon will come; but when you see it burning as if in fire, the end of all the earth will come; but if the mountain to the south should pour forth waters, the people will return to their land; Jerusalem will be built wide and spacious, just as it also came to pass through Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel. But if the mountain flows with blood, there will be a slaughter of Beliar in all the earth, and the Lord will come upon the earth, having become man. There, then, the holy Daniel fell asleep in Babylon in peace and was buried gloriously in the royal cave; and his tomb is known to all in Babylon to this very day.

11. Hosea the prophet, son of Beeri. This man was born in Belemoth of the tribe of Issachar. This man gave a sign that the Lord would come from heaven to the earth; and this is the sign of his coming: when the oak in Shiloh is split by itself into twelve parts and becomes twelve oaks; and so it came to pass. And having prophesied many things concerning the fornication of his people, he died in peace and was buried in his own land.

ιʹ. ∆ανιὴλ ὁ προφήτης. Οὗτος μὲν ἦν ἐκ φυλῆς Ἰούδα γένους τῶν ἐξόχων τῆς βασιλικῆς ὑπηρεσίας· ἀλλ' ἔτι νήπιος ὢν ἤχθη εἰς Βαβυλῶνα ἐκ τῆς Ἰουδαίας. Ἐγεννήθη δὲ ἐν Βεθεβορῷ τῇ ἀνωτέρᾳ πλησίον Ἱερουσαλήμ· καὶ ἦν ἀνὴρ σώφρων, ὥστε δοκεῖν τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις εἶναι αὐτὸν σπάδοντα. Πολλὰ ἐπένθησεν οὗτος τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἐν νηστείαις ἤσκησεν ἀπὸ πάσης τροφῆς ἐπιθυμητῆς καὶ ἦν ἀνὴρ ξη- ρότατος τῇ εἰδέᾳ· ἀλλ' ὡραῖος ἐν χάριτι θεοῦ. Πολλὰ δὲ ηὔξατο οὗτος περὶ τοῦ Ναβουχοδονόσορ, ὅτι ἐγένετο θηρίον καὶ κτῆνος, ἵνα μὴ ἀπώληται. Ἦν γὰρ τὰ ἐμπρόσθια αὐτοῦ ὡς βοῦς σὺν τῇ κεφαλῇ καὶ οἱ πόδες αὐτοῦ σὺν τοῖς ὀπισ- θίοις ὡς λέων. Ταῦτα γὰρ ἔχουσιν οἱ δυνάσται ἐν τῇ νεότητι αὐτῶν, τὸ ὡς βοῦς ὑπὸ ζυγὸν γινόμενοι τοῦ Βελίαρ διὰ τὰς φιληδονίας, ἐπὶ τέλει θῆρες γενόμενοι ἁρπάζοντες, ὀλοθρεύοντες, πατάσσοντες καὶ ἀναιροῦντες. Ἔγνω οὖν ὁ 15 ἅγιος οὗτος, ὅτι ὡς βοῦς ἤσθιεν χόρτον καὶ ἐγίνετο αὐτῷ ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως τροφή. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Ναβουχοδο- νόσορ μετὰ τὴν πέμψιν τῆς μάστιγος αὐτοῦ ἐν καρδίᾳ ἀνθρωπίνῃ γενόμενος ἔκλαιε καὶ ἠξίου τὸν θεὸν πᾶσαν ἡμέραν καὶ νύκτα τεσσαρακοντάκις δεόμενος τοῦ θεοῦ Βεημών, ὅ ἐστι τοῦ θεοῦ Ἰσραήλ. Ἐπεγίνετο γὰρ αὐτῷ πνεῦμα Σατὰν καὶ ἐλάνθανεν αὐτόν, ὅτι γέγονεν ἄνθρωπος. Ἡ γλῶσσα αὐτοῦ ἐδεσμεύετο λαλεῖν, καὶ φωνὴ θηρίου ἐδίδετο αὐτῷ· καὶ διανεύων εὐθέως ἐδάκρυε, καὶ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ αὐτοῦ ἐγίνοντο ὡς κρέας ἀπὸ τοῦ κλαίειν. Καὶ πολλοὶ δυνάσται καὶ πολίται ἐξιόντες ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ἐθεώρουν αὐτόν. ∆ανιὴλ δὲ μόνος οὐκ ἠθέλησεν ἰδεῖν αὐτόν· ὅτι πάντα τὸν χρόνον τῆς ἀλλοιώσεως αὐτοῦ ἐν ταῖς προσευχαῖς ἦν περὶ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔλεγεν, ὅτι "1πάλιν ἄνθρωπος γενήσεται καὶ κρατήσει τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ"2· καὶ ἠπίστουν αὐτῷ, τὰ ἑπτὰ ἔτη γενέσθαι ἑπτὰ μῆνας δεόμενος περὶ αὐτοῦ πρὸς κύριον. Τὸ μυστήριον τῶν ἑπτὰ καιρῶν ἐτελέσθη ἐπ' αὐτόν, ὅτι ἀπε- κατέστησεν ἑπτὰ μεσίτης. Ἓξ οὖν ἔτη καὶ ἓξ μῆνας ὑπέπιπτεν κυρίῳ τῷ θεῷ καὶ ἐξομολογεῖτο τὴν ἀσέβειαν ἑαυτοῦ. Καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἄφεσιν τῆς ἀνομίας αὐτοῦ ἀπέδωκεν αὐτῷ πάλιν ὁ θεὸς τὴν βασιλείαν. Καὶ οὔτε κρέα ἔφαγεν οὔτε 16 οἶνον ἔπιεν ἐξομολογούμενος τῷ θεῷ, ὅτι ∆ανιὴλ αὐτῷ προσέταξεν ἐν ὀσπρέοις ἢ χλοροῖς ἢ βρεκτοῖς ἐξιλεώσασθαι τὸν κύριον. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Ναβουχοδονόσορ ἐκάλεσε τὸν ∆ανιὴλ Βαλτάσαρ κατὰ τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ μονογενοῦς αὐτοῦ υἱοῦ· καὶ ἠθέλησεν αὐτὸν συγκληρονόμον ἀποκαταστῆσαι τῶν τέκνων αὐτοῦ· ἀλλ' ὁ ὅσιος εἶπεν· "1ἵλεώς μοι, ἀφεῖναι κληρονομίαν πατέρων μου καὶ προσκολληθῆναι κληρονομίαν ἀπεριτμήτων"2. Καὶ ἐν τοῖς βασιλεῦσι δὲ Περσῶν πολλὰ ἐποίησε τεράστια, ὅσα οὐκ ἐγράψαμεν ἐν τῇ βίβλῳ ταύτῃ· εἰσὶ δὲ γεγραμ- μένα ἐν τῇ βίβλῳ τοῦ ∆ανιήλ. Οὗτος ὁ προφήτης ἔδωκε τέρας ἐν τοῖς ὑψηλοῖς ὄρεσι Βαβυλῶνος λέγων· ὅτι "1ὅταν ἴδητε καπνιζόμενον τὸ ἐκ βοῤῥᾶ ὄρος, ἥξει τὸ τέλος Βαβυλῶνος· ὅταν δὲ ἴδητε αὐτὸν ὡς ἐν πυρὶ καιόμενον, ἥξει τὸ τέλος πάσης τῆς γῆς· ἐὰν δὲ τὸ ἐν τῷ νότῳ ὄρος νεύσῃ ὕδατα, ἐπιστρέψει ὁ λαὸς ἐν τῇ γῇ αὐτοῦ· οἰκοδομήσεται Ἱερουσαλὴμ πλατεῖα καὶ εὐρύχωρος, ὥσπερ καὶ ἐγένετο διὰ Ἰησοῦ ἀρχιερέως καὶ Ζοροβάβελ τοῦ υἱοῦ Σαλαθιήλ. Ἐὰν δὲ αἷμα ῥεύσῃ τὸ ὄρος, φόνος ἔσται τοῦ Βελίαρ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ, ἥξει δὲ κύριος ἐπὶ γῆς ἐνανθρωπήσας. Ἐκεῖ οὖν 17 ἐκοιμήθη ὁ ὅσιος ∆ανιὴλ ἐν Βαβυλῶνι ἐν εἰρήνῃ καὶ ἐτάφη ἐν τῷ σπηλαίῳ τῷ βασιλικῷ ἐνδόξως· καὶ ἔστιν ὁ τάφος αὐτοῦ ἕως τῆς σήμερον ἡμέρας πᾶσι γνωστὸς ἐν Βαβυλῶνι.

ιαʹ. Ὠσηὲ ὁ προφήτης· υἱὸς Βεηρεί. Οὗτος ἐγεννήθη ἐν Βελομὼθ ἐκ τῆς φυλῆς Ἰσάχαρ. Οὗτος ἔδωκε τέρας ἥ- ξειν τὸν κύριον ἐξ οὐρανοῦ ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν· καὶ τοῦτο τὸ ση- μεῖον τῆς παρουσίας αὐτοῦ· ὅταν ἡ δρῦς ἡ ἐν Σηλὼμ μερισθῇ ἀφ' ἑαυτῆς εἰς δώδεκα μέρη καὶ γένωνται δρῦες δώδεκα· οὕτως καὶ ἐγένετο. Πολλὰ δὲ προφητεύσας περὶ τῆς πορνείας τοῦ λαοῦ αὐτοῦ, ἀπέθανεν ἐν εἰρήνῃ καὶ ἐτάφη ἐν τῇ γῇ αὐτοῦ.