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through these he commanded to enjoy the wine. Then the prophet, pointing out the extremity of impiety, added: 4. "And they praised the gods of gold, and of silver, and of bronze, and of iron, and of wood, and of stone." For the all-defiled one, being hungover and reveling in the divine vessels, became forgetful of the Master of all, and with hymns he honored gods that do not exist, made from inanimate matter, and not even having borrowed their power to act from craftsmanship; but having received only a form deprived of action. But the Ruler of all did not endure, with long-suffering, to allow the people of that time, and those after them, to be corrupted; but immediately he shows his own power. 5. "For in that very hour, he says, the joints of a man's hand came forth, and wrote opposite the lamp, on the plaster of the wall of the king's house, and the king saw the joints of the hand that wrote." For since he praised idols deprived of all action, and despised the God of all things, the Creator of all teaches him the invisible and incorporeal nature of his own divinity. For He shows him only fingers writing, teaching him that he would not have seen even these, if He Himself had not provided the occasion for the need; and his table-companions also received the greatest benefit from this, being taught, on the one hand, God's power in addition to his incorporeal and invisible nature; and on the other hand, the complete inactivity and weakness of the gods praised by them, in addition to their material and inanimate nature. And that this wonder produced great fear in all, the prophet has testified, speaking thus: 6. "Then the king's countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, and the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees struck one against the other." But if the sight of fingers writing so terrified the one 81.1381 who governed the greatest kingdom, that even the harmony of his joints was dissolved by fear, and his limbs endured trembling and shaking, what would the God-hated one not have endured, had he seen fiery whirlwinds or thunderbolts, or angels with a fierce gaze, terrifying him with the strangeness of their forms. For not even the great Daniel was able to bear the sight of these without fear. Truly, "Why is earth and ashes proud?" Being filled, therefore, with so much fear, 7. "He cried aloud to bring in the magicians, the Chaldeans, the soothsayers." For fear produced the cry, and the turmoil of his soul urged him to learn the decision. Then he proposes a reward for the one who reads the writing and provides its interpretation: a royal robe, and a golden necklace, and to have the third rank after the king. But the godlessness of the magicians and Chaldeans was exposed; for they were not able to discover the reading of the divine letters, and this, with so great a reward being offered and strongly urging them. 9. "But King Belshazzar was troubled, and his countenance was changed upon him, and his lords were troubled with him." From this it is clear that the Master, providing for the benefit of others, did not immediately take away the king's life; but first he showed the fingers of the one writing. And having struck him with this and instilled fear, he arranged for the wise men of the Chaldeans to be called, and exposed their falsehood and weakness, and established the need for the wisdom of Daniel, so that through his tongue, he might both convict this man and benefit the others, and when these things had thus happened, then he might bring punishment upon the impious king. Therefore, while both the king and his guests were troubled, 10. "The queen, on account of the words of the king and his lords, entered the banqueting house." That is, while they were deliberating what was to be done, and some were suggesting one thing and others another, as fear compelled them, the queen entered. And it seems to me that she was his mother; for the wives along with the concubines were partaking of the feast; for he and his lords were drinking from the golden and silver vessels

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διὰ τούτων ἀπολαύειν τοῦ οἴνου προσέταξεν. Ἔπειτα τῆς ἀσε βείας τὸ ἔσχατον ὑποδεικνὺς ὁ προφήτης ἐπήγαγε· δʹ. "Καὶ ᾔνεσαν τοὺς θεοὺς τοὺς χρυσοῦς, καὶ ἀρ γυροῦς, καὶ χαλκοῦς, καὶ σιδηροῦς, καὶ ξυλίνους, καὶ λιθίνους." Κραιπαλῶν γὰρ ὁ παμμίαρος, καὶ τοῖς θείοις σκεύεσιν ἐντρυφῶν, λήθην μὲν ἔσχε τοῦ τῶν ἁπάντων ∆εσπότου, ὕμνοις δὲ τοὺς οὐκ ὄντας ἐγέραιρε θεοὺς, ἐξ ὕλης ἀψύχου πεποιημένους, καὶ οὐδὲ ἀπὸ τῆς τέχνης τὸ ἐνεργεῖν ἠρανισμένους· μό νην δὲ μορφὴν δεξαμένους ἐνεργείας ἐστερημένην. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἠνέσχετο τῶν ὅλων ὁ Πρύτανις, τῇ μακρο θυμίᾳ, καὶ τοὺς τηνικάδε ἀνθρώπους, καὶ τοὺς μετ' ἐκείνους λυμήνασθαι· παραυτίκα δὲ τὴν οἰκείαν δείκνυσιν δύναμιν. εʹ. "Ἐν αὐτῇ γὰρ, φησὶ, τῇ ὥρᾳ ἐξῆλθον ἀστρά γαλοι χειρὸς ἀνθρώπου, καὶ ἔγραφον κατέναντι τῆς λαμπάδος, ἐπὶ τὸ κονίαμα τοῦ τοίχου τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ βασιλέως, καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐθεώρει τοὺς ἀστραγάλους τῆς χειρὸς τῆς γραφούσης." Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ τὰ ἐνερ γείας ἁπάσης ἐστερημένα ὕμνησεν εἴδωλα, καὶ τοῦ τῶν ἁπάντων Θεοῦ κατεφρόνησε, διδάσκει αὐτὸν ὁ τῶν ὅλων ∆ημιουργὸς τῆς θείας αὑτοῦ φύσεως τὸ ἀόρατον καὶ ἀσώματον. Μόνους γὰρ αὐτῷ δακτύλους ὑποδείκνυσι γράφοντας, παιδεύων αὐτὸν, ὡς οὐδ' ἂν τούτους ἐθεάσατο, εἰ μὴ παρέσχεν αὐτὸς τῆς χρείας τὴν ἀφορμήν· μεγίστην δὲ καὶ οἱ σύσσιτοι ἐντεῦθεν ὠφέλειαν ἐλάμβανον, διδασκόμενοι τοῦ μὲν Θεοῦ πρὸς τῷ ἀσωμάτῳ καὶ ἀοράτῳ, τὸ δυνατόν· τῶν δὲ ὑπ' αὐτῶν ὑμνηθέντων θεῶν, πρὸς τῷ ὑλικῷ καὶ ἀψύχῳ, τὸ παντελῶς ἀδρανές τε καὶ ἀσθενές. Ὅτι δὲ πολὺ δέος ἅπασιν ἐνειργάσατο τοῦτο τὸ θαῦμα, ὁ προφήτης μεμαρτύρηκεν, οὕτως εἰπών· ʹ. "Τότε τοῦ βασιλέως ἡ μορφὴ ἠλλοιώθη, καὶ οἱ διαλογισμοὶ αὐτοῦ συνετάραξαν αὐτὸν, καὶ οἱ σύν δεσμοι τῆς ὀσφύος αὐτοῦ διελύοντο, καὶ τὰ γόνατα αὐτοῦ τοῦτο τούτῳ συνεκρούοντο." Εἰ δὲ δακτύ λων γραφόντων θεωρία οὕτως ἐξεδειμάτωσε τὸν 81.1381 τὴν μεγίστην διέποντα βασιλείαν, ὡς καὶ τῶν ἄρ θρων τὰς ἁρμονίας ὑπὸ τοῦ δέους διαλυθῆναι, τρόμον τε καὶ κλόνον ὑπομεῖναι τὰ μέλη, τί οὐκ ἂν ὑπ έμενεν ὁ θεομισὴς, πρηστῆρας ἢ κεραυνοὺς θεασά μενος, ἢ ἀγγέλους βλοσυρὸν βλέποντας, καὶ τῷ καινοπρεπεῖ τῶν σχημάτων δεδιττομένους. Τούτων γὰρ τὴν θέαν οὐδὲ ὁ μέγας ∆ανιὴλ ἀδεῶς ἐνεγκεῖν ἠδυνήθη. Ἀληθῶς, "Τί ὑπερηφανεύεται γῆ καὶ σποδός;" Τοσούτου τοίνυν δέους ἀναπλησθεὶς, ζʹ. "Ἐφώνησεν ἐν ἰσχύϊ τοῦ εἰσαγαγεῖν μάγους, Χαλδαίους, Γαζαρηνούς." Ὁ γὰρ φόβος εἰργάζετο τὴν βοὴν, καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς ὁ θόρυβος μαθεῖν κατήπειγε τὴν ἀπόφασιν. Εἶτα προτίθησιν ἆθλον τῷ τὴν γρα φὴν ἀναγινώσκοντι καὶ τὴν ἑρμηνείαν ἐπάγοντι, ἐσθῆτα βασιλικὴν, καὶ χρυσοῦν περιδέῤῥαιον, καὶ τὸ τὴν τρίτην τάξιν ἔχειν μετὰ τὸν βασιλέα. Ἀλλὰ τῶν μὲν μάγων καὶ Χαλδαίων τὸ ἄθεον ἐξηλέγχετο· εὑρεῖν γὰρ οὐκ ἴσχυον τὴν τῶν θείων γραμμάτων ἀνάγνωσιν, καὶ ταῦτα ἄθλου τοσούτου προκειμένου, καὶ λίαν αὐτοὺς προτρέποντος. θʹ. "Ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς Βαλτάσαρ ἐταράχθη, καὶ ἡ μορφὴ αὐτοῦ ἠλλοιώθη ἐπ' αὐτῷ, καὶ οἱ μεγιστᾶνες αὐτοῦ συνεταράττοντο." Ἐντεῦθεν δῆλον, ὅτι τῆς τῶν ἄλλων ὠφελείας προμηθούμενος ὁ ∆εσπότης, οὐκ εὐθὺς τοῦ βασιλέως ἀφείλετο τὴν ζωήν· ἀλλὰ πρῶτον μὲν ὑπέδειξε τοῦ γράφοντος τοὺς δακτύλους. Τούτῳ δὲ καταπλήξας καὶ δέος ἐντεθεικὼς, παρ εσκεύασε μὲν κληθῆναι τοὺς σοφοὺς τῶν Χαλδαίων, ἐξήλεγξε δὲ αὐτῶν τὸ ψευδές τε καὶ ἀσθενὲς, ἐν χρείᾳ δὲ τῆς τοῦ ∆ανιὴλ σοφίας κατέστησεν, ἵνα διὰ τῆς τούτου γλώττης, καὶ τοῦτον ἐλέγξῃ, καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους εὐεργετήσῃ, καὶ τούτων οὕτω γενομέ νων, τηνικαῦτα τὴν τιμωρίαν ἐπαγάγῃ τῷ δυσσεβεῖ βασιλεῖ. Ταραττομένων τοίνυν καὶ τοῦ βασιλέως, καὶ τῶν δαιτυμόνων, ιʹ. "Ἡ βασίλισσα κατέναντι τῶν λόγων τοῦ βασιλέως, καὶ τῶν μεγιστάνων αὐτοῦ, εἰς τὸν οἶκον τοῦ πότου εἰσῆλθε." Τουτέστι, βουλευομένων αὐ τῶν τί πρακτέον, καὶ ἄλλων ἄλλα εἰσηγουμένων, ἃ τὸ δέος ἠνάγκαζεν, ἡ βασίλισσα εἰσελήλυθε. ∆οκεῖ δέ μοι αὐτὴ μήτηρ αὐτοῦ εἶναι· αἱ γὰρ παρά κοιτοι σὺν ταῖς παλλακίσι τοῦ δείπνου μετεῖχον· ἔπινον γὰρ ἐν τοῖς σκεύεσι τοῖς χρυσοῖς καὶ ἀργυ ροῖς, αὐτὸς καὶ οἱ μεγιστᾶνες