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I will read the writing to the king, and I will make its interpretation known to you, O king. Why does he refuse? So that you may learn that he does not speak for those things. 56.224 For that he did not say these things simply out of anger, he says, 'But I will read the writing, and I will announce its interpretation to the king.' Do you see him superior to money? above honor? in need of none of the royal things? Thus must those who speak the things of God be. So that he might not think that by this he attracted him, or that anything of what was said is human. What then does he say? Leaving aside the writing, he extends counsel, reminding him from the very beginning of the things that had happened to his father. The most high God gave the kingdom, and the greatness, and the honor, and the glory to Nebuchadnezzar your father. And from the greatness which he gave him, all the peoples, tribes, and tongues were trembling, and fearing before him. Those whom he wished, he killed, and those whom he wished, he struck, and those whom he wished, he humbled. And when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was hardened to act proudly, he was brought down from the throne of his kingdom, and his honor was taken from him, and he was driven out from among men, and his heart was given over with the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses, and they fed him grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the most high God rules the kingdom of men, and to whomever he wishes he will give it. For if that one, he says, is inexcusable, you who were not brought to your senses after such an example, of what are you worthy, tell me? For you cannot even take refuge in ignorance. Did you not know all these things? Whom do you prefer to whom? Those who do not hear, nor see? And you his son, Belshazzar, did not humble your heart before God. Did you not know all these things? And you were exalted against the Lord the God of heaven, and you brought the vessels of his house before you; and you, and your great men, and your companions, and your concubines drank wine in them; and the gods of gold, and of silver, and of bronze, and of iron, and of wood, and of stone, which do not see, and do not hear, and do not know, you praised, and the God, in whose hand is your breath, and all your ways, you did not glorify him. Therefore from his presence was sent a part of a hand, and it inscribed this writing. And this is the writing that was inscribed: Mene, Tekel, Peres; and this is the interpretation of the vision. Mene: God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it. Tekel: it was weighed in the balance, and was found wanting. Peres: your kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. For this reason, he says, God has numbered your kingdom, and it was divided. And this as a punishment, that it be divided, and not remain 56.225 whole. Which therefore also happened in the case of Solomon. Not only that the son did not receive it, but also that it was divided. See God making his defense to him; see him being the cause: Whose breath, he says, is in his hand. For was he not able to destroy you immediately? But he was longsuffering. Whom would the punishment not have frightened, and this being near? Did you see the power on both sides? from where are you worthy, tell me, of pardon? and you his son, I cannot say, his descendant, did you not know all these things? Just as the sentence is written in a court of law, so he interprets the things said. From where did it occur to him to honor Daniel? As it seems to me, so as not to be condemned by those present, expecting perhaps to find a solution through these things.

CHAPTER VI.

And the king appointed him over his whole kingdom. And the

administrators and the satraps sought to find an occasion against Daniel from the kingdom. And they found no occasion or fault against him, because he was faithful; that is

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δὲ τὴν γραφὴν ἀναγνώσομαι τῷ βασιλεῖ, καὶ τὴν σύγκρισιν αὐτῆς γνωρίσω σοι, βασιλεῦ. Τίνος ἕνεκεν παραιτεῖται; Ἵνα μάθῃς, ὅτι οὐ δι' ἐκεῖνα λέ 56.224 γει. Ὅτι γὰρ οὐκ ὀργιζόμενος ἁπλῶς ταῦτα εἶπεν, Ἐγὼ δὲ, φησὶ, τὴν γραφὴν ἀναγνώσομαι, καὶ τὴν σύγκρισιν αὐτῆς ἀναγγελῶ τῷ βασιλεῖ. Ὁρᾷς αὐτὸν χρημάτων κρείττω; τιμῆς ἀνώτερον; οὐδενὸς δεόμενον τῶν βασιλικῶν; Οὕτω δεῖ τοὺς τὰ Θεοῦ λέ γοντας εἶναι. Ἵνα μὴ νομίσῃ ὅτι ταύτῃ αὐτὸν ἐπ εσπάσατο, ἢ ἀνθρώπινόν τι τῶν λεγομένων ἐστί. Τί οὖν φησι; Ἀφεὶς εἰπεῖν τὴν γραφὴν, συμβουλὴν ἀπο τείνει, ἐξ αὐτῶν τῶν προοιμίων αὐτὸν ἀναμιμνήσκων τῶν τῷ πατρὶ συμβεβηκότων. Ὁ Θεὸς ὁ ὕψιστος τὴν βασιλείαν, καὶ τὴν μεγαλωσύνην, καὶ τὴν τιμὴν, καὶ τὴν δόξαν ἔδωκε Ναβουχοδονόσορ τῷ πατρί σου. Καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς μεγαλωσύνης, ἧς ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ, πάντες οἱ λαοὶ, φυλαὶ, γλῶσσαι ἦσαν τρέμοντες, καὶ φοβούμενοι ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ. Οὓς ἐβού λετο αὐτὸς ἀνῄρει, καὶ οὓς ἐβούλετο αὐτὸς ἔτυ πτεν, καὶ οὓς ἐβούλετο αὐτὸς ἐταπείνου. Καὶ ὅτε ὑψώθη ἡ καρδία αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα αὐτοῦ ἐκραταιώθη τοῦ ὑπερηφανεύσασθαι, κατηνέχθη ἀπὸ τοῦ θρόνου τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἡ τιμὴ αὐτοῦ ἀφῃρέθη ἀπ' αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐξεδιώχθη, καὶ ἡ καρδία αὐτοῦ μετὰ τῶν θηρίων ἐδόθη, καὶ μετὰ ὄνων ἀγρίων ἡ κατοικία αὐτοῦ, καὶ χόρτον ὡς βοῦν ἐψώμιζον αὐτὸν, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δρόσου τοῦ οὐρανοῦ τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ ἐβάφη, ἕως οὗ ἔγνω ὅτι κυριεύει ὁ Θεὸς ὁ ὕψιστος τῆς βασιλείας τῶν ἀνθρώπων, καὶ ᾧ ἐὰν δόξῃ δώσει αὐτήν. Εἰ γὰρ ἐκεῖνος, φησὶ, ἀσύγγνωστος, σὺ ὁ μετὰ παράδειγμα τοιοῦτον μὴ σωφρονισθεὶς, τίνος ἄξιος, εἰπέ μοι; Οὐδὲ γὰρ εἰς ἄγνοιαν ἔχεις καταφυγεῖν. Οὐδὲ πάντα ταῦτα ᾔδεις; Τίνα τίνος προτιμᾷς; τοὺς οὐκ ἀκούοντας, οὐδὲ βλέποντας; Καὶ σὺ ὁ υἱὸς αὐτοῦ, Βαλτάσαρ, οὐκ ἐταπείνωσας τὴν καρδίαν σου κατ' ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ. Οὐ πάντα ταῦτα ἔγνως; Καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν Κύριον τὸν Θεὸν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ὑψώθης, καὶ τὰ σκεύη τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ ἤνεγκας ἐνώπιόν σου· καὶ σὺ, καὶ οἱ μεγιστᾶνές σου, καὶ οἱ παράκοιτοί σου, καὶ αἱ παλλακαί σου ἐπίνετε οἶνον ἐν αὐτοῖς· καὶ τοὺς θεοὺς τοὺς χρυ σοῦς, καὶ ἀργυροῦς, καὶ χαλκοῦς, καὶ σιδηροῦς, καὶ ξυλίνους, καὶ λιθίνους, οἳ οὐ βλέπουσι, καὶ οὐκ ἀκούουσι, καὶ οὐ γινώσκουσιν, ᾔνεσας, καὶ τὸν Θεὸν, οὗ ἡ πνοή σου ἐν χειρὶ αὐτοῦ, καὶ πᾶσαι αἱ ὁδοί σου, αὐτὸν οὐκ ἐδόξασας. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἐκ προσώπου αὐτοῦ ἀπεστάλη ἀστράγαλος χειρὸς, καὶ τὴν γραφὴν ταύτην ἐνέταξε. Καὶ αὕτη ἡ γραφὴ ἡ ἐντεταγμένη· Μανὴ, Θεκὲλ, Φαρές· καὶ τοῦτο τὸ σύγκριμα τοῦ ὁράματος. Μανή· ἐμέτρη σεν ὁ Θεὸς τὴν βασιλείαν σου, καὶ ἐπλήρωσεν αὐτήν. Θεκέλ· ἐστάθη ἐν ζυγῷ, καὶ εὑρέθη ὑστε ροῦσα. Φαρές· διῃρέθη ἡ βασιλεία σου, καὶ ἐδόθη Μήδοις καὶ Πέρσαις. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο, φησὶ, ἐμέτρησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὴν βασιλείαν σου, καὶ διῃρέθη. Καὶ τοῦτο εἰς τιμωρίαν, τὸ διαιρεθῆναι, καὶ μὴ μένειν αὐτὴν 56.225 ὁλόκληρον. Ὅπερ οὖν καὶ ἐπὶ Σολομῶντος γέγονεν. Οὐ μόνον τὸ μὴ λαβεῖν τὸν υἱὸν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ διαιρε θῆναι. Ὅρα ἀπολογούμενον αὐτῷ τὸν Θεόν· ὅρα αὐτὸν αἴτιον ὄντα· Οὖ ἡ πνοή σου, φησὶ, ἐν χειρὶ αὐτοῦ. Μὴ γὰρ οὐκ ἠδύνατο εὐθέως σε ἀνελεῖν; Ἀλλ' ἐμακροθύμησεν. Τίνα οὐκ ἂν ἐφόβησεν ἡ τιμωρία, καὶ ταῦτα ἐγγὺς οὖσα; Εἶδες τὴν ἐφ' ἑκάτερα δύναμιν; πόθεν ἄξιος εἶ, εἰπέ μοι, συγγνώμης; καὶ σὺ ὁ υἱὸς αὐτοῦ, οὐκ ἔχω εἰπεῖν, ὁ ἔκγονος, οὐ πάντα ταῦτα ἔγνως; Καθάπερ ἐπὶ δικαστηρίου ἡ ἀπόφασις γράφεται, οὗ τος ἑρμηνεύει τὰ λεγόμενα. Πόθεν ἐπῆλθεν αὐτῷ τιμῆσαι τὸν ∆ανιήλ; Ὡς ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ, ὥστε μὴ κατα γνωσθῆναι παρὰ τῶν παρόντων, προσδοκῶν ἴσως εὑ ρεῖν λύσιν διὰ ταῦτα.

ΚΕΦΑL. ΣΤʹ.

Καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς κατέστησεν αὐτὸν ἐφ' ὅλης τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ. Καὶ οἱ

τακτικοὶ καὶ οἱ σα τράπαι ἐζήτουν πρόφασιν εὑρεῖν κατὰ ∆ανιὴλ ἐκ τῆς βασιλείας. Καὶ πᾶσαν πρόφασιν καὶ παρά πτωμα οὐχ εὗρον κατ' αὐτοῦ, ὅτι πιστὸς ἦν· τουτέστι