13

for the choir of those foolish ones, and having laid bare their weakness, he said that God is the teacher of the revelation of mysteries; and he added, "in heaven," casting out the gods made and worshipped below. 81.1296 And with the singular name he casts out the multitude of non-existent gods, and by his dwelling in heaven he shows that those who appear below are not gods, but a deception having its origin in the art of men. "This God has made known to king Nebuchadnezzar what must take place in the last days." Having made this preface, he again draws the hearing of the king to good will with a blessing. "For, O king," he says, "live forever." For since he is about to tell the dream, and to bring on the interpretation, and to foretell to him the dissolution of the kingdom, he prefaces: "It is my prayer," he says, "that you live forever; do not, therefore, attribute to me what is revealed by the dream." Then he says: "Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, this is it, O king." Instead of: What you saw at night, these things are it; 29. "Your thoughts upon your bed arose, what must happen after these things." You were reasoning, he says, while lying on your bed, whether you will live forever, or whether by the law of men you will be subject to death; and you desired to learn also the things that have not yet come to pass. And the revealer of mysteries has made known to you what must come to pass. Everywhere he preaches the one God, casting out the error of polytheism; then he also shows the modesty of his own mind. 30. "For to me," he says, "this mystery was revealed not through any wisdom that is in me beyond all the living, but for the sake of making known the interpretation to the king, and that you might know the thoughts of your heart." "For I obtained this revelation," he says, "not because I am wiser than all men, but so that you might learn what you desired to learn; and he used me as a minister of this knowledge, as his own servant." He begins, therefore, the explanation, and first tells the dream itself. 31-33. "You, O king, were watching, and behold, one great image, the image was great, and its appearance, exceedingly brilliant, standing before you, and its sight was terrifying. An image, whose head was of pure gold, its hands, and chest, and its arms of silver, and its belly and thighs of bronze. Its shins of iron, its feet partly of iron, and partly of clay." He signified four materials through the things previously mentioned: gold, silver, bronze, iron; for he did not mention clay by itself, but mixed with iron. And through these things he reveals the greatest and most universal kingdoms, which ruled over most of the inhabited world, succeeding one another. For it is clear that other kingdoms also were established, and are established at the present time; yet it is not possible to see them ruling over all or most, 81.1297 but only of one or two nations. He says, therefore, that the first of all to come into being was the dominion of the Assyrians, which is this of the Babylonians; for these and those are Assyrians; but at one time they held their royal seat in Ninus, which is called Nineveh by the Hebrews, and at another time in Babylon. And that the kingdom of these and those is one, the prophet himself also testifies; for interpreting the dream, he says: "The head of gold is you, O king." And the blessed prophet Jeremiah says: "A golden cup is Babylon in the hand of the Lord, intoxicating all the earth; from her wine the nations have drunk; therefore they were shaken, and suddenly Babylon has fallen, and has been shattered." But if the kingdom of the Assyrians was another besides this one and older than it, what material would one call it? And the most divine Moses also testifies that these things are so; for in the cosmogony, having said concerning Nimrod that he was a giant hunter before the Lord, he added: "And the beginning of his kingdom was Babylon, Orech and Chalane." And the gentile writers also call the Babylonians Assyrians, and even to the present day they name it Assyria.

13

γὰρ τὸν τῶν ἀφρόνων ἐκείνων χορὸν, καὶ γυμνώσας αὐτῶν τὴν ἀσθένειαν, τὸν Θεὸν εἶναι ἔφη τῆς τῶν μυστηρίων ἀποκαλύψεως διδά σκαλον· προστέθεικε δὲ, ἐν οὐρανῷ, τοὺς κάτω γινο μένους καὶ προσκυνουμένους ἐκβαλὼν θεούς. 81.1296 Καὶ τῷ μὲν ἑνικῷ ὀνόματι τὸ πλῆθος ἐκβάλλει τῶν οὐκ ὄντων θεῶν, τῇ δὲ ἐν οὐρανῷ διαγωγῇ τοὺς κάτω φαινομένους δείκνυσιν οὐ θεοὺς, ἀλλ' ἀπάτην ἀφορμὴν ἔχουσαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν τέχνην. "Οὗτος ἐγνώ ρισεν ὁ Θεὸς τῷ βασιλεῖ Ναβουχοδονόσορ ἃ δεῖ γενέ σθαι ἐπ' ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν." Οὕτω προοιμια σάμενος, πάλιν ἐπισπᾶται τῇ εὐλογίᾳ εἰς εὔνοιαν τοῦ βασιλέως τὴν ἀκοήν. "Βασιλεῦ, γὰρ, φησὶν, εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας ζῆθι." Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ μέλλει καὶ τὸ ἐνύπνιον λέγειν, καὶ τὴν ἑρμηνείαν ἐπάγειν, καὶ προλέγειν αὐτῷ τὴν τῆς βασιλείας κατάλυσιν, προ οιμιαζόμενος· Εὐχὴ, φησὶν, ἐστὶν ἐμοὶ, ζῇν σε διηνεκῶς· μὴ τοίνυν ἐμοὶ ἐπιγράψῃς τὸ ὑπὸ τοῦ ἐν υπνίου δηλούμενον. Εἶτά φησι· "Τὸ ἐνύπνιόν σου, καὶ αἱ ὁράσεις τῆς κεφαλῆς σου, ἐπὶ τῆς κοίτης σου, τοῦτό ἐστι, βασιλεῦ." Ἀντὶ τοῦ· Ἃ νύκτωρ ἐθεάσω, ταῦτά ἐστιν· κθʹ. "Οἱ διαλογισμοί σου ἐπὶ τῆς κοίτης σου ἀν έβησαν, ἃ δεῖ γενέσθαι μετὰ ταῦτα." Ἐλογίζου, φησὶ, κατακείμενος ἐπὶ τῆς κλίνης, εἴτε εἰς ἀεὶ ζήσῃ, εἴτε τῷ νόμῳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὑπὸ τὸν θάνατον γενήσῃ· ἐπεθύμεις δὲ μαθεῖν καὶ τὰ μήπω γεγε νημένα. Καὶ ὁ ἀποκαλύπτων μυστήρια ἐγνώρισέ σοι ἃ δεῖ γενέσθαι. Πανταχοῦ δὲ τὸν ἕνα κηρύττει Θεὸν, τῆς πολυθεΐας ἐκβαλὼν τὴν πλάνην· εἶτα καὶ τοῦ οἰκείου φρονήματος τὴν μετριότητα δείκνυσιν. λʹ. "Ἐμοὶ γὰρ, φησὶν, οὐκ ἐν σοφίᾳ τῇ οὔσῃ ἐν ἐμοὶ παρὰ πάντας τοὺς ζῶντας, τὸ μυστήριον τοῦτο ἀπεκαλύφθη, ἀλλ' ἕνεκεν τοῦ τὴν σύγκρισιν τῷ βα σιλεῖ γνωρίσαι, καὶ ἵνα γνῷς τοὺς διαλογισμοὺς τῆς καρδίας σου." Ταύτης γὰρ, φησὶ, τῆς ἀποκαλύψεως ἔτυχον, οὐκ ἐπειδὴ πάντων εἰμὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων σο φώτερος, ἀλλ' ἵνα σὺ μάθῃς ἃ μαθεῖν ἐπεθύμησας· ἐμοὶ δὲ διακόνῳ ταύτης ἐχρήσατο τῆς γνώσεως, ὡς οἰκείῳ θεράποντι. Ἄρχεται τοίνυν τῆς ἐξηγήσεως, καὶ λέγει πρῶτον αὐτὸ τὸ ἐνύπνιον. λαʹ-λγʹ. "Σὺ, βασιλεῦ, ἐθεώρεις, καὶ ἰδοὺ εἰκὼν μία, πολλὴ, ἡ εἰκὼν μεγάλη, καὶ ἡ ὄψις αὐτῆς, ὑπερφερὴς ἑστῶσα πρὸ προσώπου σου, καὶ ἡ ὅρασις αὐτῆς φοβερά. Εἰκὼν, ἧς ἡ κεφαλὴ χρυσίου καθαροῦ, αἱ χεῖρες, καὶ τὸ στῆθος, καὶ οἱ βραχίονες αὐτῆς ἀργυροῖ, καὶ κοιλία καὶ οἱ μηροὶ χαλκοῖ. Αἱ κνῆμαι σιδηραῖ, οἱ πόδες μέρος μέν τι σιδήρου, καὶ μέρος δέ τι ὀστράκινον." Τέτταρας μὲν ὕλας διὰ τῶν προ ειρημένων ἐσήμανε, τὸν χρυσὸν, τὸν ἄργυρον, τὸν χαλκὸν, τὸν σίδηρον· ὄστρακον γὰρ οὐ κατ' αὐτὸ εἶπεν, ἀλλὰ τῷ σιδήρῳ συμμεμιγμένον. ∆ηλοῖ δὲ διὰ τούτων τὰς μεγίστας τε καὶ καθολικωτάτας βασι λείας, αἳ τοῦ πλείστου τῆς οἰκουμένης ἐκράτησαν ἀλλήλας διαδεξάμεναι. Ὅτι μὲν γὰρ καὶ ἄλλαι βασι λεῖαι συνέστησαν, καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος δὲ συνεστᾶσι, δῆλόν ἐστι· οὐ μὴν τῶν πάντων ἢ τῶν πλειόνων 81.1297 ἔστιν αὐτὰς κρατούσας ἰδεῖν, ἀλλ' ἢ ἑνὸς, ἢ δύο μόνον ἐθνῶν. Λέγει τοίνυν πρώτην ἁπάντων γεγενῆ σθαι τὴν τῶν Ἀσσυρίων ἡγεμονίαν, ἥτις αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ τῶν Βαβυλωνίων· Ἀσσύριοι γὰρ οὗτοι κἀκεῖνοι· ἀλλὰ ποτὲ μὲν ἐν τῇ Νίνῳ, τῇ παρ' Ἑβραίοις Νινευῆ καλουμένῃ, τὰ βασίλεια ἐσχήκασι, ποτὲ δὲ ἐν Βαβυλῶνι. Ὅτι δὲ μία ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τούτων κἀκείνων, καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ προφήτης μαρτυρεῖ· ἑρμηνεύων γὰρ τὸ ἐνύπνιον, φησίν· "Ἡ κεφαλὴ ἡ χρυσῆ σὺ εἶ, βασιλεῦ." Καὶ ὁ μακάριος δὲ Ἱερεμίας ὁ προφήτης φησί· "Ποτήριον χρυσοῦν Βαβυλὼν ἐν χειρὶ Κυρίου, μεθύσκον πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν· ἀπὸ οἴνου αὐτῆς ἐπίοσαν ἔθνη· διὰ τοῦτο ἐσαλεύθησαν, καὶ ἄφνω ἔπεσε Βαβυλὼν, καὶ συνετρίβη." Εἰ δὲ ἑτέρα ἦν παρὰ ταύτην ἡ τῶν Ἀσσυρίων βασιλεία ταύτης πρεσβυτέρα, ποίαν ἄν τις ὕλην αὐτὴν καλέσειεν; Μαρτυρεῖ δὲ καὶ ὁ θειότατος Μωσῆς ταῦθ' οὕτως ἔχειν· ἐν γὰρ τῇ κοσμογενείᾳ περὶ τοῦ Νεβρώδους εἰρηκὼς, ὅτι γίγας κυνηγὸς ἔναντι Κυρίου, ἐπ ήγαγε· "Καὶ ἐγένετο ἡ ἀρχὴ τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ Βαβυλὼν, Ὀρὲχ καὶ Χαλάνη." Καὶ οἱ ἔξω δὲ συγγραφεῖς τοὺς Βαβυλωνίους Ἀσσυρίους προσαγορεύου σι, καὶ μέχρι δὲ τοῦ παρόντος Ἀσσυρίαν αὐτὴν ὀνομάζουσι