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from the host and from the 1.201 stars, and trampled them down.” Through these things Daniel is taught beforehand about Antiochus Epiphanes, who was the son of Antiochus the Great, but rather having been strengthened by the kings before him, that is, those from Seleucus, and having gained control of Egypt and other lands, he also campaigned against the Jews and became master of the city of Jerusalem, and indeed of the entire nation, and he plundered the temple and defiled it by sacrificing swine in it, and having established an altar to Zeus, he forced the whole nation to Hellenize, forbidding them to circumcise the males. For his madness against God is hinted at by "it grew great, even to the host of heaven." But "some of the host and some of the stars it cast down to the ground, and trampled upon them" signifies those from the Jewish people who acted impiously because of the necessity brought upon them by him, who fell away from the lawful and divine way of life, yielding to the tyrant and being trampled upon by him. They were called stars because of the purity and brilliance of their piety, or because God promised Abraham to multiply his seed as the stars of heaven. "And it magnified itself, even up to the Prince of the host." For it raged against God himself, the prince of the powers above. "and the sacrifice was thrown into confusion by a fall, and it came to be and it prospered, and sin was set against the sacrifice, and righteousness was cast down to the ground." For having sacrificed forbidden things, he threw the sacrifice into confusion, that is, he confounded it, he defiled it. By "falls" he means the swine, and by "sin against the sacrifice," the transgression concerning it. And by "righteousness was cast down to the ground" is signified the setting aside of the laws and the unjust murders of those who did not 1.202 condescend to act impiously. But even while doing these things and acting so impiously, Antiochus prospered, he says. Upon these things Daniel adds, "And one holy one said to Palmoni, 'For how long shall the vision stand, and the sacrifice that was taken away, and the sin of desolation that was given?' And he said to him, 'Until evening and morning, two thousand three hundred days; and the sanctuary shall be cleansed.'" To the prophet, who was in agony because of what was seen, angels are sent, declaring to him that the difficult things will have an end and teaching the time of their passing. And one asked the other; for Palmoni, translated into Greek, means "a certain one." He asked not as one ignorant, but so that Daniel might learn. But the one who was asked answered, "Two thousand three hundred days until evening and morning; and the sanctuary shall be cleansed." He called, therefore, the beginning of the grievous things "evening," or also their whole time, for sorrowful things are like night and darkness, but "morning" the peaceful state after the calamities. This, then, is what he signifies through what he says, that from the beginning of the evils until their end, so much time will pass. But the days, counted as years, make up six months and an equal number of years according to the Hebrew calculation; for for so long the calamity brought upon the Jews under Antiochus prevailed. These things were imparted by the archangel Gabriel to the prophet who was seeking understanding. Then, because of the captivity of his countrymen, again in the time of Darius the ruler of the Medes, who was also 1.203 named Cyaxares and Ahasuerus, being the son of Astyages, as the prophet was mourning and praying to God, a certain man whose name was Gabriel touched him. And he touched him about the hour of the evening sacrifice, either at the time of the worship in the evening, or for as long an hour as the evening worship was performed. And he said to Daniel, "I have now come out to give you understanding and to announce to you that you are a man of desires. And consider the word and understand the vision," that is, pay close attention to the things being said, which are enigmatic and require greater diligence. For sometimes divine things are revealed through enigmas, so that they may not become clear to all and for this reason be easily despised. And Daniel was called a man of desires either as one who acts manfully against carnal desires and nobly resists them, or as one desiring to learn the things that would happen to the people and his fellow countrymen, or because he was desirable and lovely because of what he pursued

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ἀπὸ τῆς δυνάμεως καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν 1.201 ἀστέρων, καὶ συνεπάτησεν αὐτούς." τὰ περὶ τοῦ ̓Επιφανοῦς ̓Αντιόχου διὰ τούτων ὁ ∆ανιὴλ προδιδάσκεται, ος ̓Αντιόχου μὲν τοῦ μεγάλου υἱὸς ην, μᾶλλον δὲ τῶν πρὸ αὐτοῦ κρατυνθεὶς βασιλέων, τῶν ἀπὸ Σελεύκου δηλαδή, καὶ τῆς Αἰγύπτου κρατήσας καὶ ἑτέρων χωρῶν καὶ ἐπὶ ̓Ιουδαίους ἐστράτευσε καὶ τῆς τῶν ̔Ιεροσολύμων ἐκυρίευσε πόλεως, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ εθνους παντός, καὶ τόν τε ναὸν ἐσύλησε καὶ ἐμίανε σύας ἐν αὐτῷ θύσας, καὶ τῷ ∆ιὶ βωμὸν ἱδρυσάμενος τὸ εθνος ολον ἑλληνίζειν ἠνάγκαζε, κωλύων αὐτοὺς περιτέμνειν τὰ αρρενα. τὴν γὰρ κατὰ θεοῦ μανίαν αὐτοῦ τό "ἐμεγαλύνθη εως τῆς δυνάμεως τοῦ οὐρανοῦ" ὑπαινίττεται. τὸ δέ "επεσον ἀπὸ τῆς δυνάμεως καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀστέρων ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ συνεπάτησεν αὐτούς" τοὺς ἐκ τοῦ ̓Ιουδαϊκοῦ λαοῦ ἀσεβήσαντας διὰ τὴν ἐξ ἐκείνου ἐπαγομένην αὐτοῖς ἀνάγκην δηλοῖ, οι τῆς νομίμου καὶ θείας διαγωγῆς ἐκπεπτώκασι, τῷ τυράννῳ ὑπείξαντες καὶ ὑπ' ἐκείνου συμπατηθέντες. ἀστέρες δ' ἐκλήθησαν διὰ τὸ τῆς εὐσεβείας καθαρὸν καὶ ὑπέρλαμπρον, η οτι τῷ ̓Αβραὰμ ὁ θεὸς ἐπηγγείλατο πληθῦναι τὸ σπέρμα αὐτοῦ ὡς τὰ αστρα τοῦ οὐρανοῦ. "Καὶ εως τοῦ αρχοντος τῆς δυνάμεως ἱδρύθη." καὶ κατ' αὐτοῦ γὰρ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐλύττησε τοῦ αρχοντος τῶν ανω δυνάμεων. "καὶ θυσία ἐταράχθη πτώματι, καὶ ἐγενήθη καὶ εὐωδώθη, καὶ ἐδόθη ἐπὶ τὴν θυσίαν ἁμαρτία, καὶ ἐρρίφη χαμαὶ δικαιοσύνη." ἀπηγορευμένα γὰρ θύσας ἐτάραξε τὴν θυσίαν, ἀντὶ τοῦ συνέχεεν, ἐμίανε. πτώματα δὲ τοὺς σύας λέγει, καὶ ἁμαρτίαν ἐπὶ τὴν θυσίαν τὴν ἐπ' αὐτῇ παρανομίαν. διὰ δὲ τοῦ "ἐρρίφη χαμαὶ δικαιοσύνη" ἡ τῶν νομίμων ἀθέτησις καὶ οἱ αδικοι φόνοι δηλοῦνται τῶν ἀσεβῆσαι 1.202 μὴ καταδεξαμένων. ἀλλὰ καὶ ταῦτα πράττων καὶ ουτως ἀσεβῶν ὁ ̓Αντίοχος εὐωδοῦτο, φησί. ̓Επὶ τούτοις ἐπάγει ὁ ∆ανιήλ "καὶ ειπεν εις αγιος τῷ φελμουνί, εως πότε ἡ ορασις στήσεται καὶ ἡ θυσία ἡ ἀρθεῖσα καὶ ἡ ἁμαρτία τῆς ἐρημώσεως ἡ δοθεῖσα; καὶ ειπεν αὐτῷ, εως ἑσπέρας καὶ πρωὶ ἡμέραι δισχίλιαι καὶ τριακόσιαι, καὶ καθαρισθήσεται τὸ αγιον." ἀγωνιῶντι τῷ προφήτῃ διὰ τὰ ὁρώμενα ἐπιπέμπονται αγγελοι δηλοῦντες αὐτῷ οτι τέλος εξουσι τὰ δυσχερῆ καὶ τὸν καιρὸν διδάσκοντες τῆς αὐτῶν παρελεύσεως. καὶ ἠρώτα ετερος τὸν ετερον· τὸ γὰρ φελμουνὶ ἐξελληνιζόμενον τινὰ σημαίνει. ἠρώτα δὲ οὐχ ὡς ἀγνοῶν, ἀλλ' ινα μάθῃ ὁ ∆ανιήλ. ὁ δ' ἐρωτώμενος ἀπεκρίνατο "ἡμέραι δισχίλιαι καὶ τριακόσιαι εως ἑσπέρας καὶ πρωί, καὶ καθαρισθήσεται τὸ αγιον." ἑσπέραν μὲν ουν ἐκάλεσε τὴν ἀρχὴν τῶν ἀνιαρῶν η καὶ ολον τὸν χρόνον αὐτῶν, νυκτὶ γὰρ καὶ σκότῳ τὰ λυπηρὰ εοικε, πρωὶ δὲ τὴν μετὰ τὰς συμφορὰς εἰρηναίαν κατάστασιν. τοῦτο τοίνυν σημαίνει δι' ων φησιν οτι ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν κακῶν ἀρχῆς μέχρι τέλους αὐτῶν τόσος καιρὸς παρελεύσεται. αἱ δὲ ἡμέραι πρὸς ἐνιαυτοὺς ἀριθμούμεναι εξ ἀποτελοῦσι μῆνας καὶ ἰσαρίθμους ἐνιαυτοὺς κατὰ τὴν τῶν ̔Εβραίων ψῆφον· ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον γὰρ ἡ ἐπ' ̓Αντιόχου τοῖς ̓Ιουδαίοις ἐπενεχθεῖσα συμφορὰ ἐπεκράτησε. ταῦτα παρὰ τοῦ ἀρχαγγέλου Γαβριὴλ τῷ προφήτῃ ζητοῦντι σύνεσιν ἐμυήθη. Ειτα διὰ τὴν τῶν ὁμοφύλων αἰχμαλωσίαν ἐπὶ ∆αρείου πάλιν τοῦ Μήδων αρχοντος, ος καὶ Κυα1.203 ξάρης ὠνόμαστο καὶ ̓Ασούηρος, ̓Αστυάγους ων υἱός, τοῦ προφήτου θρηνοῦντος καὶ τοῦ θεοῦ δεομένου ηψατό τις ἀνὴρ ῳ ονομα Γαβριήλ. ηψατο δὲ αὐτοῦ ὡσεὶ ωραν θυσίας ἑσπερινῆς, η κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τῆς ἐν ἑσπέρᾳ λατρείας, η ἐπὶ τοσαύτην ωραν ἐφ' οσην ἡ ἑσπερινὴ ἐτελεῖτο λατρεία. καὶ ειπε τῷ ∆ανιήλ "νῦν ἐξῆλθον συμβιβάσαι σοι σύνεσιν καὶ ἀναγγεῖλαί σοι οτι ἀνὴρ ἐπιθυμιῶν ει σύ. καὶ ἐννοήθητι ἐν τῷ ῥήματι καὶ σύνες ἐν τῇ ὀπτασίᾳ" ἀντὶ τοῦ, ἀκριβῶς πρόσσχες τοῖς λεγομένοις αἰνιγματώδεσιν ουσι καὶ πλείονος δεομένοις σπουδῆς. ἐνίοτε δὲ καὶ δι' αἰνιγμάτων τὰ θεῖα δηλοῦται, ινα μὴ πᾶσι γίνοιντο δῆλα καὶ διὰ τοῦτο εὐκαταφρόνητα. ἀνὴρ δ' ἐπιθυμιῶν ἐκλήθη ὁ ∆ανιὴλ η ὡς κατὰ τῶν σαρκικῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν ἀνδριζόμενος καὶ γενναίως αὐταῖς ἀνθιστάμενος, η ὡς ἐπιθυμῶν μαθεῖν τὰ τῷ λαῷ καὶ τοῖς αὐτοῦ συμφυλέταις ἐσόμενα, η οτι ἐπιθυμητὸς ην καὶ ἐπέραστος δι' ην μετήρχετο