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the sentence. And he was held by perplexity, being able neither to read nor to know the meaning of what was written. But his mother brought Daniel into their midst, the one who had often resolved such perplexities for his father. And he both read and interpreted, and taught the reason for the punishment, saying, that we, paying the penalty for our sins, have become captives of the spear; and these vessels, since they were dedicated by us, God delivered to the one who enslaved us, teaching us that he did not endure those who sacrifice them because he needed them. But as long as we were pious, he accepted these things being offered by us, wishing to care for us; but when we lapsed into impiety, he also cast away the gifts brought by us. But your father, having been instructed in this way, honored them as he saw fit, having removed them far from human use, and dedicated them to what were considered gods. But you, not even considering the honor shown by him, fell into the abyss of arrogance, and luxuriated with the sacred cups. For this reason the Master of these things teaches what the end of arrogance is, not caring for inanimate things, but providing for human beings, and through your punishment setting before many people a model of good order. He said these things, and that night he received the punishment. Consider, therefore, how the Creator of all things 83.769 always provided for all human beings, and not only for those who trace their lineage from Abraham, but for all those from Adam; and through the one nation, he guided all the nations toward the knowledge of God. And not only when it was pious did he offer the teaching through them to all people, but also when it was being punished for its lawlessness. Take for example that Nebuchadnezzar, the arrogant one, the tyrant, the one who set up the golden image, the one who commanded all to worship it, the one who said: "Above the stars I will set my throne, and above the clouds I will ascend, and I will be like the Most High, and I will take the whole world in my hand like a nest, and I will carry it away like abandoned eggs;" the God of all things did not teach him to be temperate through angels, but through those who had been made his captives. For when he saw the three young men, who had not carried out the royal decree, but had scorned that fearful pyre as if it were a plaything, and were walking on those coals as if on roses, and, having been delivered to such a flame, were hymning God, he is astonished at the wonder, and is struck with awe at the author of the wonder, and he commands all to worship their God, and names him most high, and calls him God and king of all. Thus that Assyrian who raged against him, and used those manic words: "For the Lord God will not deliver you from my hand, and where are the gods of the nations?" he taught him his own weakness, and forced him to flee alone, having sent to death those many thousands, in whom he greatly prided himself, in a brief moment of time through one angel. Thus he sent Jonah to the Ninevites as a herald of repentance, and when he was unwilling to do what was commanded, but foolishly attempted to flee, he binds him with the waves, and, as if to some prison, delivers him to the whale. And the irrational creature led the rational one to where he had been commanded to preach. But when the great mystery of the economy was about to be accomplished, and the preaching through the divine incarnation was to be sown throughout the whole world, then finally this nation, which he had chosen from the beginning for the benefit of all the nations, he scattered throughout the whole world, so that all who were held by the polytheistic error might become accustomed to hearing that there is one God, maker of heaven and earth, and that the preaching might thereby become easier for the divine apostles. But perhaps someone might say that not only did the Jews not cooperate with the

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τὴν ἀπόφασιν. Καὶ ὁ μὲν ἀπορίᾳ κατεί χετο, οὔτε ἀναγινώσκειν οὔτε γινώσκειν δυνάμενος τῶν γεγραμμένων τὴν δύναμιν. Ἡ δὲ μήτηρ τὸν πολ λάκις τῷ πατρὶ τοιαύτας ἀπορίας διαλύσαντα ἦγεν εἰς μέσον τὸν ∆ανιήλ. Ὁ δὲ ἀνεγίνωσκέ τε καὶ ἡρ μήνευε, καὶ τῆς τιμωρίας τὴν αἰτίαν ἐδίδασκε, λέ γων, ὡς Ἡμεῖς δίκας ἁμαρτημάτων τίνοντες δορυά λωτοι γεγενήμεθα· καὶ ταῦτα δὲ τὰ σκεύη, ἅτε δὴ παρ' ἡμῶν ἀνατεθέντα, τῷ ἐξανδραποδίσαντι παρ έδωκεν ὁ Θεὸς, διδάσκων ἡμᾶς, ὡς οὐ δεόμενος τού των θυόντων ἠνείχετο. Ἀλλὰ μέχρι μὲν ηὐσεβοῦ μεν, ἐδέχετο ταῦτα παρ' ἡμῶν προσφερόμενα, θερα πεύειν ἡμᾶς ἐθέλων· ἡνίκα δὲ εἰς ἀσέβειαν ἐξωκεί λαμεν, καὶ τὰ προσενεχθέντα παρ' ἡμῶν ἀπέῤῥιψε δῶρα. Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν οὕτω πως ὁ σὸς πατὴρ παι δευθεὶς, ἐτίμησεν ὡς ἐνόμισεν, ἀνθρωπείας μὲν αὐ τὰ χρείας πόῤῥω πεποιηκὼς, τοῖς δὲ νομιζομένοις ἀναθεὶς θεοῖς. Σὺ δὲ οὐδὲ τὴν ὑπ' ἐκείνου γεγενημέ νην λογισάμενος τιμὴν, εἰς τὸ τῆς ἀλαζονείας ἐξ έπεσας βάραθρον, καὶ τοῖς ἱεροῖς ἐνετρύφας ἐκπώ μασι. Τούτου χάριν ὁ τούτων διδάσκει ∆εσπότης οἷον τῆς ἀλαζονείας τὸ τέλος, οὐ τῶν ἀψύχων κηδόμε νος, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων προμηθούμενος, καὶ διὰ τῆς σῆς τιμωρίας πολλοῖς ἀνθρώποις εὐταξίας ὑπό θεσιν προτιθείς. Ταῦτα ὁ μὲν ἔλεγεν, ὁ δὲ νύκτωρ τὴν τιμωρίαν ἐδέχετο. Ἄθρει τοιγαροῦν, ὅπως ἁπάντων ἀνθρώπων 83.769 ἀεὶ προὐνόησε τῶν ὅλων ὁ Ποιητὴς, καὶ οὐ μόνον τῶν ἐξ Ἀβραὰμ καταγόντων τὸ γένος, ἀλλὰ πάντων τῶν ἐξ Ἀδάμ· καὶ διὰ τοῦ ἑνὸς ἔθνους, ἅπαντα ἐποδήγει πρὸς θεογνωσίαν τὰ ἔθνη. Καὶ οὐ μόνον ἡνίκα ηὐσέβει, τὴν διὰ τούτων διδασκαλίαν πᾶ σιν ἀνθρώποις προσέφερε, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὅτε τῆς παρα νομίας εἰσεπράττετο δίκας. Ἀμέλει τὸν Ναβουχοδονό σορ ἐκεῖνον, τὸν ἀλαζόνα, τὸν τύραννον, τὸν τὴν εἰ κόνα τὴν χρυσῆν ἀνορθώσαντα, τὸν προσκυνῆ σαι ταύτην πάντας κελεύσαντα, τὸν εἰπόντα· «Ἐπ άνω τῶν ἄστρων θήσω τὸν θρόνον μου, καὶ ἐπάνω τῶν νεφελῶν ἀναβήσομαι, καὶ ἔσομαι ὅμοιος τῷ Ὑψίστῳ, καὶ καταλήψομαι τῇ χειρὶ τὴν οἰκουμέ νην ὅλην ὡς νεοσσιὰν, καὶ ὡς καταλελειμμένα ὠὰ ἀρῶ·» οὐ δι' ἀγγέλων ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς ἐπαί δευσε σωφρονεῖν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τῶν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ δορυ αλώτων γεγενημένων. Ὡς γὰρ εἶδεν ἐκεῖνος τὰ τρία μειράκια, τὴν μὲν βασιλικὴν νομοθεσίαν μὴ τελέ σαντα, τῆς δὲ φοβερᾶς ἐκείνης πυρᾶς ὡς ἀθυρμά των καταφρονήσαντα, καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἀνθράκων ἐκεί νων ὡς ἐπὶ ῥόδων βαδίζοντα, καὶ τοὺς τοιαύτῃ φλογὶ παραδεδομένους τὸν Θεὸν ἀνυμνοῦντας, ἐκπλήττε ται μὲν τὸ θαῦμα, καταπλήττεται δὲ τὸν τοῦ θαύματος ποιητὴν, κελεύει δὲ πᾶσι τὸν τούτων Θεὸν προσκυνεῖν, καὶ ὕψιστον αὐτὸν ὀνομάζει, καὶ τῶν ἁπάντων Θεὸν καὶ βασιλέα καλεῖ. Οὕτω τὸν Ἀσσύριον ἐκεῖνον κατ' αὐτοῦ λυττήσαντα, καὶ τοῖς μανικοῖς ἐκείνοις χρησάμενον ῥήμασιν· «Ὅτι οὐ μὴ ῥύσηται ὑμᾶς Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς ἐκ χειρός μου, καὶ ποῦ εἰσὶν οἱ θεοὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν;» τὴν οἰκείαν ἀσθένειαν ἐξεπαίδευσε, καὶ μόνον φυγεῖν κατηνάγκα σε, τὰς πολλὰς ἐκείνας χιλιάδας, ἐφ' αἷς ἐφρόνει μεγάλα, ἐν βραχείᾳ καιροῦ ῥοπῇ δι' ἑνὸς ἀγγέλου παραπέμψας θανάτῳ. Οὕτω τὸν Ἰωνᾶν Νινευΐταις μετανοίας ἀπέστειλε κήρυκα, καὶ τὸ κελευσθὲν ποιεῖν οὐ βουλόμενον, ἀλλὰ φυγεῖν ἀνοήτως ἐπιχει ρήσαντα, δεσμεῖ μὲν τοῖς κύμασι, καθάπερ δέ τινι δεσμωτηρίῳ, παραδίδωσι τῷ κήτει. Τὸ δὲ ἄλογον ἀπήγαγε τὸν λογικὸν, ἔνθα κηρύττειν ἐτάχθη. Ἐπει δὴ δὲ ἔμελλε τὸ μέγα τῆς οἰκονομίας ἐπιτε λεῖσθαι μυστήριον, καὶ τὸ διὰ τῆς θείας ἐναν θρωπήσεως εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην κατασπείρε σθαι κήρυγμα, τηνικαῦτα λοιπὸν τοῦτο τὸ ἔθνος, ὃ ἐπ' εὐεργεσίᾳ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἁπάντων ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐξελέ ξατο, εἰς πᾶσαν κατέσπειρε τὴν οἰκουμένην, ἵν' ἐθίσωσιν ἅπαντες ἀκούειν οἱ τῇ πολυθέῳ κατεχό μενοι πλάνῃ, ὡς εἷς ἐστι Θεὸς, οὐρανοῦ καὶ γῆς ποιητὴς, καὶ ῥᾷον τὸ κήρυγμα ἐντεῦθεν τοῖς θείοις ἀποστόλοις γένηται. Ἀλλ' ἴσως ἄν τις εἴποι, ὡς οὐ μόνον οὐ συνήργησαν Ἰουδαῖοι τῇ