35

to reveal the grace that breathed in him. "Then the king answered and said: Belteshazzar, let not this dream and its interpretation hasten you." For he saw him troubled, and necessarily he soothes him, desiring to learn what he does not know; therefore he says to him: Do not hurry exceedingly, but at your leisure, having found what is revealed through the dream, make these things clear to me. "Then Belteshazzar answered and said: My lord king, may this dream be for those who hate you, and its interpretation for your enemies." Very wisely and prudently, beginning his preface, he wishes away painful things for him, but nevertheless he signifies the truth. ιζʹ, ιηʹ. "The tree, he says, that grew great and strong, whose height reached to heaven, and its breadth to all the earth. And its leaves were flourishing, and its fruit abundant, and in it was food for all, under it dwelt the wild beasts, and in its branches the birds of heaven lodged, you are it, O king." It is worthy to marvel at the wisdom of Daniel; for he did not simply say, The great tree, but, "That grew great and strong;" that is, You were not great from the beginning, but you became so in part, and you did not get your strength from birth-pangs, but you acquired it little by little. Therefore he adds again: ιθʹ. "For you have grown great, and become strong, and your greatness has grown and reached to heaven, and your dominion to the ends of the earth." And these things he very fittingly and appropriately applied to heaven and earth; for he said the dominion, that is, the authority, had reached 81.1365 to the ends of the earth; but to heaven, no longer the dominion, but the greatness, that is, the imagination of his reasoning. κʹ, καʹ. "And that the king saw, he says, a watcher and a holy one coming down from heaven, and said: Hew down the tree, and destroy it; yet leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and in a band of iron and bronze, and in the grass outside, and it shall be lodged in the dew of heaven, and its portion shall be with wild beasts, until seven times are changed over him. And this is its interpretation, O king." And making the word trustworthy, he necessarily added: "And it is a decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king." From here it is possible to learn accurately the usefulness of the apostolic teaching. "For let every soul," it says, "be subject to the governing authorities." For even the blessed Daniel calls the impious king himself lord, and obeying the law of authority, he uses the proper appellations, and shows the truth of the dream, painful though it is. κβʹ. "For they shall drive you, he says, from men, and your dwelling shall be with wild beasts, and they shall feed you grass like an ox, and your body shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall change over you." Some have said that 'seven times' means seven years, others three and a half. For the divine Scripture does not divide the year into four seasons, but into two most general ones, winter and summer; therefore seven such parts complete three and a half years; So long, he says, you will continue in this calamity: "until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He wishes." For since you dream of being a god, or rather even greater than God, God takes away from you even human reason, and will make you resemble the beasts, so that by experience you may learn what man is, and what God is, and what is human good fortune, and what is the divine kingdom, and that it is impossible to attain this if God is not willing. κγʹ. "And that he said, it says: Leave the stump of the roots of the tree, your kingdom will remain for you, from when you know the heavenly kingdom." For having been deprived of the kingdom, and having endured all those things, you will recognize the giver of the kingdom, then having known you will receive again your former authority; so that both by the taking away, and by the giving back, you may learn accurately who is the governor of all things, who is the one wisely directing and ruling all things. Having thus spoken of the things that will be, an exhortation

35

ἀναφανῆναι τὴν ἐμ πνέουσαν χάριν. "Ἀπεκρίθη τοίνυν ὁ βασιλεὺς, καὶ εἶπε· Βαλτάσαρ, τὸ ἐνύπνιον τοῦτο καὶ ἡ σύγκρι σις αὐτοῦ μὴ κατασπευσάτω σε." Εἶδε γὰρ αὐτὸν θορυβούμενον, καὶ ἀναγκαίως ψυχαγωγεῖ, μαθεῖν ἐφιέμενος ὅπερ ἀγνοεῖ· λέγει τοίνυν αὐτῷ· Μὴ σφό δρα ἐπείγου, ἀλλὰ κατὰ σχολὴν τὰ μηνυόμενα διὰ τοῦ ἐνυπνίου εὑρὼν, ταῦτά μοι δῆλα κατάστησον. "Ἀπεκρίθη τοίνυν ὁ Βαλτάσαρ, καὶ εἶπε· Κύριέ μου βασιλεῦ, τὸ ἐνύπνιον τοῦτο τοῖς μισοῦσί σε, καὶ ἡ σύγκρισις αὐτοῦ τοῖς ἐχθροῖς σου." Σφόδρα σοφῶς καὶ συνετῶς ἀπεύχεται μὲν αὐτῷ λυ πηρὰ τοῦ προοιμίου ἀρξάμενος, σημαίνει δὲ ὅμως τὴν ἀλήθειαν. ιζʹ, ιηʹ. "Τὸ δένδρον, φησὶ, τὸ μεγαλυνθὲν καὶ ἰσχυκὸς, οὗ τὸ ὕψος ἔφθασεν εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν, καὶ τὸ κῦτος αὐτοῦ εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν. Καὶ τὰ φύλλα αὐτοῦ εὐθαλῆ, καὶ ὁ καρπὸς αὐτοῦ πολὺς, καὶ τροφὴ πᾶσιν ἐν αὐτῷ, ὑποκάτω αὐτοῦ κατῴκει τὰ θηρία τὰ ἄγρια, καὶ ἐν τοῖς κλάδοις αὐτοῦ κατεσκήνουν τὰ ὄρνεα τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, σὺ εἶ, βασιλεῦ." Ἄξιον δὲ θαυ μάσαι τοῦ ∆ανιὴλ τὴν σοφίαν· οὐ γὰρ ἁπλῶς εἶπε, Τὸ δένδρον τὸ μέγα, ἀλλὰ, "Τὸ μεγαλυνθὲν καὶ τὸ ἰσχυκός·" τουτέστιν, Οὐκ ἄνωθεν ἦσθα μέγας, ἀλλὰ κατὰ μέρος γεγένησαι, καὶ τὴν ἰσχὺν δὲ οὐκ ἐξ ὠδίνων ἔσχες, ἀλλὰ κατὰ βραχὺ ταύτην προσέλαβες. ∆ιὸ πάλιν ἐπάγει· ιθʹ. "Ὅτι ἐμεγαλύνθης, καὶ ἴσχυσας, καὶ ἡ μεγα λωσύνη σου ἐμεγαλύνθη καὶ ἔφθασεν εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν, καὶ ἡ κυρεία σου εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς." Καὶ ταῦτα δὲ σφόδρα ἁρμοδίως καὶ προσφόρως οὐρανῷ καὶ γῇ προσήρμοσε· τὴν μὲν γὰρ κυρείαν εἶπεν ἐφθακέναι 81.1365 εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς, τουτέστι τὴν ἐξουσίαν· εἰς δὲ τὸν οὐρανὸν οὐκέτι τὴν κυρείαν, ἀλλὰ τὴν μεγα λωσύνην, τουτέστι, τὴν τοῦ λογισμοῦ φαντασίαν. κʹ, καʹ. "Καὶ ὅτι εἶδεν, φησὶν, ὁ βασιλεὺς εἲρ καὶ ἅγιον καταβαίνοντα ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, καὶ εἶπεν· Ἐκτίλατε τὸ δένδρον, καὶ διαφθείρετε αὐτό· πλὴν τὴν φυὴν τῶν ῥιζῶν αὐτοῦ ἐν τῇ γῇ ἐάσατε, καὶ ἐν δεσμῷ σιδηρῷ καὶ χαλκῷ, καὶ ἐν τῇ χλόῃ τῇ ἔξω, καὶ ἐν τῇ δρόσῳ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ αὐλισθήσεται, καὶ μετὰ θηρίων ἀγρίων ἡ μερὶς αὐτοῦ, ἕως οὗ ἑπτὰ καιροὶ ἀλλοιωθῶσιν ἐπ' αὐτόν. Καὶ τοῦτο ἡ σύγκρισις αὐτοῦ, βασιλεῦ." Καὶ ἀξιόπιστον ποιῶν τὸν λόγον, ἀναγκαίως ἐπήγαγε· "Καὶ σύγκριμα Ὑψίστου ἐστὶν, ὃ ἔφθασεν ἐπὶ τὸν κύριόν μου τὸν βασιλέα." Ἐντεῦθεν ἔστιν ἀκριβῶς καταμαθεῖν τῆς ἀποστολι κῆς διδασκαλίας τὸ χρήσιμον. "Πᾶσα γὰρ, φησὶ, ψυχὴ ἐξουσίαις ὑπερεχούσαις ὑποταττέσθω." Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ὁ μακάριος ∆ανιὴλ κύριον αὐτὸν τὸν δυσσεβῆ βασιλέα καλεῖ, καὶ τῷ νόμῳ τῆς ἐξουσίας πειθόμενος, ταῖς πρεπούσαις προσηγορίαις κέχρηται, καὶ λυπη ρὰν οὖσαν τοῦ ἐνυπνίου τὴν ἀλήθειαν ὑποδείκνυσιν. κβʹ. "Ἐκδιώξουσι γάρ σε, φησὶν, ἀπὸ τῶν ἀνθρώ πων, καὶ μετὰ θηρίων ἀγρίων ἔσται ἡ κατοικία σου, καὶ χόρτον ὡς βοῦν ψωμιοῦσί σε, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δρόσου τοῦ οὐρανοῦ τὸ σῶμά σου βαφήσεται, καὶ ἑπτὰ καιροὶ ἀλλαγήσονται ἐπὶ σοί." Ἑπτὰ δὲ καιροὺς οἱ μὲν ἔφασαν ἑπτὰ ἔτη, οἱ δὲ τρία καὶ ἥμισυ. Οὐ γὰρ εἰς τέσσαρας τροπὰς ἡ θεία Γραφὴ τὸν ἐνιαυτὸν διαιρεῖ, ἀλλ' εἰς δύο τὰς γενικωτάτας, χειμῶνα καὶ θέρος· ἑπτὰ οὖν τοιαῦτα τμήματα τρία καὶ ἥμισυ πληροῖ ἔτη· Τοσοῦτον δὲ, φησὶν, ἐν τῇ συμφορᾷ διατελέσεις χρόνον· "ἕως οὗ γνῷς, ὅτι κυριεύει ὁ Ὕψιστος τῆς βασιλείας τῶν ἀνθρώπων, καὶ ᾧ ἐὰν δόξῃ, δώσει αὐτήν." Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ὀνειρο πολεῖς εἶναι θεὸς, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ κρείττων Θεοῦ, ἀφαιρεῖταί σου Θεὸς καὶ τὸν ἀνθρώπινον λογισμὸν, καὶ τοῖς θηρίοις σε ἐοικέναι ποιήσει, ἵνα τῇ πείρᾳ μάθῃς, τί μὲν ἄνθρωπος, τί δὲ Θεὸς, καὶ τί μὲν ἀν θρωπίνη εὐκληρία, τί δὲ θεία βασιλεία, καὶ ὅτι ταύτης τυχεῖν ἀδύνατον μὴ βουλομένου Θεοῦ. κγʹ. "Καὶ ὅτι εἶπε, φησίν· Ἐάσατε τὴν φυὴν τῶν ῥιζῶν τοῦ δένδρου, ἡ βασιλεία σου σοὶ μενεῖ, ἀφ' ἧς ἂν γνῷς τὴν βασιλείαν τὴν οὐράνιον." Ἀπο στερηθεὶς γὰρ τῆς βασιλείας, κἀκεῖνα ὑπομείνας ἅπαντα, ἐπιγνώσῃ τῆς βασιλείας τὸν χορηγὸν, εἶτα γνοὺς ἀπολήψῃ πάλιν τὴν προτέραν ἐξουσίαν· ἵνα καὶ τῇ ἀφαιρέσει, καὶ τῇ ἀποδόσει, μάθῃς ἀκριβῶς, τίς ὁ τῶν ὅλων κυβερνήτης, τίς ὁ σοφῶς ἅπαντα ἰθύνων καὶ πρυτανεύων. Οὕτως εἰρηκὼς τὰ ἐσόμενα, παραίνεσιν