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having become accustomed to it, harmed her not at all, but himself he harmed with the ultimate harm. And for this reason God both threatens and often inflicts punishments, not as avenging Himself, but drawing us to Himself. For a physician too is not pained nor stung by the insults of the delirious, but nevertheless does and arranges everything to make them cease from such unseemly behavior, not looking to his own interests, but to their benefit; and if they show some small measure of moderation and sobriety, he rejoices and is glad and applies the medicines much more vigorously, not punishing them for their former actions, but wishing to increase this benefit, and to bring them back to pure health; so also God, when we fall into the utmost madness, not punishing for former things, but wishing to free us from the disease, both says and does all things; and it is possible to perceive this even from right reasonings.

5 But if anyone should dispute with us on account of these things, we will confirm these things also from the divine oracles. For who, tell me, has become more abominable than the king of the Babylonians, who, having had such experience of the power of God as to worship His prophet and to command that a meal-offering and incense be offered to him, was again carried away into his former arrogance, and cast into the furnace bound those who did not honor him above God. But nevertheless, He calls to repentance one so cruel and impious and more a beast than a man, and gives him other opportunities to change: first, the miracle that happened in the furnace, and after that, the vision which the king saw, but Daniel interpreted, sufficient to bend even a soul of stone; and in addition to these, after the exhortation from the events themselves, the prophet himself also advised, saying, "Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you; redeem your sins by alms, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; perhaps there will be longsuffering for your trespasses." What do you say, O wise and blessed one? Is there a return again after so great a fall? Is there health again after so great a sickness? Is there hope of sound-mindedness again after so great a madness? The king had deprived himself of all excuse beforehand, first by being ignorant of Him who made him and brought him to that honor, although he had many proofs of His power and providence to relate, both concerning himself and concerning his ancestors; and after this, having again received clear signs of His wisdom and foreknowledge, and having seen magic and astronomy and all the stage-craft of diabolical trickery overturned, he displayed things worse than the former. For what the wise Gazarene magi were not able to make clear, but confessed to be greater than human thought, these things He caused a captive boy to interpret for him, and so brought him over by that miracle, that he not only believed himself, but also became a clear herald and teacher of this doctrine to the whole world; so that if even before receiving such a sign he was inexcusable for not knowing God, much more so after that wonder and his confession and the teaching which had been given to others. For he would not have shown so much honor to His servant, nor enacted such laws for others, unless he had rightly believed that God alone is true. But nevertheless, after such a confession he fell back into idolatry, and he who had fallen on his face and worshipped the servant of God, was driven to such a pitch of madness as to cast into a furnace the servants of God who did not worship him. What then? Did He punish the apostate as He ought to have punished him? Rather, He gave him greater proofs of His own power, after such desperation drawing him back again to his former state. And what is more wonderful: for in order that what was happening might not be disbelieved because of the excessiveness of the miracles, He did not perform the sign in anything else, but

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ἐθισθείς, ἐκείνην μὲν οὐδέν, ἑαυτὸν δὲ τὴν ἐσχάτην ἔβλαψεν βλάβην. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ὁ θεὸς τὰς τιμωρίας καὶ ἀπειλεῖ καὶ ἐπάγει πολλάκις, οὐχ ὡς ἑαυτὸν ἐκδικῶν, ἀλλ' ἡμᾶς ἕλκων πρὸς ἑαυτόν. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἰατρὸς ἐπὶ ταῖς τῶν παραπαιόντων ὕβρεσιν οὐκ ἀλγεῖ μὲν οὐδὲ δάκνεται, ὅμως δὲ πάντα πράττει καὶ πραγματεύεται ὑπὲρ τοῦ παῦσαι τοιαῦτα ἀσχημονοῦντας ἐκείνους, οὐ τὰ ἑαυτοῦ σκοπῶν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἐκείνων ὠφέλειαν· κἂν ἐπιδείξωνται μικρόν τι σωφροσύνης τε καὶ νήψεως χαίρει τε καὶ εὐφραίνεται καὶ πολλῷ σφοδρότερον τὰ φάρμακα ἐπιτίθησιν οὐχ ὑπὲρ τῶν προτέρων αὐτοὺς ἀμυνόμενος, ἀλλὰ τὴν ὠφέλειαν ταύτην αὐξῆσαι θέλων, καὶ πρὸς τὴν καθαρὰν ὑγίειαν ἐπαναγαγεῖν· οὕτω καὶ ὁ θεός, ὅταν εἰς τὴν ἐσχάτην μανίαν ἐκπέσωμεν, οὐκ ἀμυνόμενος ὑπὲρ τῶν προτέρων, ἀλλ' ἀπαλλάξαι τῆς νόσου βουλόμενος, ἅπαντα καὶ λέγει καὶ ποιεῖ· καὶ τοῦτο ἱκανὸν μὲν καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ὀρθῶν λογισμῶν συνιδεῖν.

5 Εἰ δέ τις ἡμῖν ἀμφισβητοίη τούτων ἕνεκεν, καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν θείων ταῦτα πιστωσόμεθα λογίων. Τίς γάρ, εἰπέ μοι, τοῦ Βαβυλωνίων βασιλέως γέγονεν μιαρώτερον, ὃς τοσαύτην τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ δυνάμεως πεῖραν λαβών, ὡς τὸν προφήτην προσκυνῆσαι τὸν αὐτοῦ καὶ κελεῦσαι αὐτῷ μαναὰ σπεῖσαι καὶ θυμίαμα, πάλιν εἰς τὸν πρότερον ἐξηνέχθη τῦφον, καὶ τοὺς μὴ προτιμήσαντας αὐτὸν τοῦ θεοῦ δεδεμένους εἰς τὴν κάμινον ἐνέβαλεν. Ἀλλ' ὅμως τὸν οὕτως ὠμὸν καὶ ἀσεβῆ καὶ θηρίον μᾶλλον ἢ ἄνθρωπον εἰς μετάνοιαν προσκαλεῖται καὶ δίδωσιν αὐτῷ καὶ ἑτέρας τοῦ μεταβαλέσθαι ἀφορμάς, πρῶτον μὲν αὐτὸ τὸ ἐν τῇ καμίνῳ θαῦμα γεγονός, μετὰ δὲ ἐκεῖνο τὴν ὄψιν μὲν ἣν εἶδεν ὁ βασιλεύς, ἡρμήνευσεν δὲ ὁ ∆ανιήλ, ἱκανὴν καὶ λιθίνην κάμψαι ψυχήν· καὶ πρὸς τούτοις, μετὰ τὴν ἐκ τῶν πραγμάτων παραίνεσιν, καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ προφήτης συνεβούλευε λέγων· «∆ιὰ τοῦτο, βασιλεῦ, ἡ βουλή μου ἀρεσάτω σοι· τὰς ἁμαρτίας σου ἐν ἐλεημοσύναις λύτρωσαι, καὶ τὰς ἀνομίας σου ἐν οἰκτιρμοῖς πενήτων· ἴσως ἔσται μακροθυμία τοῖς παραπτώμασίν σου.» Τί λέγεις, ὦ σόφε καὶ μακάριε; Ἔστιν μετὰ τὴν τοσαύτην ἀπόπτωσιν πάλιν ἐπάνοδος; ἔστιν μετὰ τὴν τοσαύτην νόσον πάλιν ὑγίεια; ἔστιν μετὰ τὴν τοσαύτην μανίαν πάλιν ἐλπὶς σωφροσύνης; Πάσης ἑαυτὸν προλαβὼν ἀπολογίας ἀπεστέρησεν ὁ βασιλεύς, πρῶτον μὲν ἀγνοήσας τὸν ποιήσαντα αὐτὸν καὶ εἰς τὴν τίμην ἀγαγόντα ἐκείνην, καίτοι τῆς δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ καὶ προνοίας τεκμήρια διηγεῖσθαι ἔχων, καὶ ἐπ' αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν προγόνων αὐτοῦ γεγενημένα πολλά· μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο πάλιν τῆς σοφίας αὐτοῦ καὶ τῆς προγνώσεως ἐναργῆ σημεῖα λαβών, καὶ μαγικὴν καὶ ἀστρονομίαν καὶ πᾶσαν τῆς διαβολικῆς μαγγανείας τὴν σκηνὴν ἀνατραπεῖσαν ἰδών, χαλεπώτερα τῶν προτέρων ἐπεδείξατο. Ἃ γὰρ οἱ σοφοὶ μάγοι Γαζαρηνοὶ διασαφῆσαι οὐκ ἴσχυσαν, ἀλλ' ὡμολόγουν μείζονα ἢ κατὰ ἀνθρωπίνην εἶναι διάνοιαν, ταῦτα παιδίον αἰχμάλωτον ἐπιλύσασθαι ποιήσας αὐτῷ, οὕτως αὐτὸν ἐπηγάγετο ἐκείνῳ τῷ θαύματι, ὡς μὴ μόνον αὐτὸν πιστεῦσαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ πάσῃ τοῦ δόγματος τούτου γενέσθαι κήρυκα καὶ διδάσκαλον σαφῆ· ὥστε εἰ καὶ πρὶν ἢ σημεῖον τοιοῦτον λαβεῖν, ἀσύγγνωστος ἦν ἀγνοῶν τὸν θεόν, πολλῷ μᾶλλον μετ' ἐκεῖνο τὸ τέρας καὶ τὴν ὁμολογίαν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν διδασκαλίαν τὴν εἰς ἑτέρους γεγενημένην. Οὔτε γὰρ ἂν μὴ πιστεύσας καλῶς ὅτι μόνος ἐστὶν ὁ θεὸς ἀληθὴς τοσαύτην εἰς τὸν αὑτοῦ θεράποντα τιμὴν ἐπεδείξατο, καὶ τοιαῦτα τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐνομοθέτησεν. Ἀλλ' ὅμως μετὰ τὴν τοιαύτην ὁμολογίαν εἰς εἰδωλολατρίαν πάλιν ἐξέπεσεν, καὶ ὁ πεσὼν ἐπὶ πρόσωπον καὶ τὸν τοῦ θεοῦ προσκυνήσας δοῦλον, εἰς τοσοῦτον οὗτος ἐξεβακχεύθη μανίας, ὥστε τοὺς τοῦ θεοῦ δούλους μὴ προσκυνοῦντας αὐτὸν εἰς κάμινον ἐμβαλεῖν. Τί οὖν; Μετῆλθεν τὸν ἀποστάτην ὡς μετελθεῖν ἔδει; Μείζονα μὲν οὖν αὐτῷ τεκμήρια τῆς οἰκείας παρέσχεν δυνάμεως, μετὰ τὴν τοσαύτην ἀπόνοιαν ἕλκων ἐπὶ τὰ πρότερον πάλιν αὐτόν. Καὶ τὸ δὴ θαυμαστότερον· ἵνα γὰρ μὴ διαπιστῆται διὰ τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῶν θαυμάτων τὰ γινόμενα, οὐκ ἐν ἄλλῳ τινὶ τὸ σημεῖον ἐποίησεν, ἀλλ'