Eusebius of Caesarea, Fragments on Daniel

Fragmenta in Danielem

24.525 βʹ. Of Eusebius of Caesarea on the proposed text, The voice of the Lord dividing the flame of fire.

The flame of fire was indeed divided in Babylon, being divided by the command of God; it received in itself a most pleasant breath and refreshment, as if in some shade of plants in a peaceful state, providing for the youths; for it became, he says, as a wind of whistling dew.

γʹ. Like a Son of man. Of Eusebius of Caesarea. I believe the universal judgment is clearly shown, when all people from the beginning of time will stand before the judgment seat of Christ; and after the resurrection of the dead, and after the judgment upon all, the Son of man seen by Daniel will appear upon clouds, about to receive from the Father authority over all peoples and tribes, and a kingdom ageless and without end; as also our Savior himself teaches concerning himself, saying: But when the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory, and all the nations will be gathered before him, and what follows; Therefore, these things agree with the testimonies at hand from the prophecy of Daniel, according to which it has been said: And behold, with the clouds of heaven one like a Son of man was coming; and, He came to the Ancient of Days; and he was brought before him, and to him was given dominion and honor and the kingdom, and what follows.

δʹ. To him was given dominion. Of Eusebius. The prophet ordains not only the kingdom of the Son of man, but also more, concerning which he says.

εʹ. And they shall receive the kingdom. Of Eusebius of Caesarea. That is, they themselves also reigning with God. And who might these be, if not the heirs of God, and co-heirs with Christ? to whom also has been promised the kingdom of heaven, a kingdom which will be established after the four kingdoms seen by the prophet, concerning which we have just discussed in brief. From here I think the apostle Paul was mov24.528ed to write the following concerning the second coming of Christ: For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a command, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, and what follows. And the same apostle also presents the final coming and destruction of the Antichrist, and upon this the glorious presence of our Savior in accordance with the prophecy, saying: Let no one deceive you in any way; for unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God; do you not remember that while I was still with you I told you these things? and what follows. The wondrous Apostle expounded these many things in his words concerning the end of the age, confirming what was ordained through the prophet Daniel concerning the Antichrist and the glorious kingdom of our Savior.

ςʹ. Anointing shall be destroyed. Of Eusebius. Denouncing their unjudged and lawless act; thus you will say it has also happened in the case of the sacrifice and the libation; it being rightly and according to the law performed before the passion of our Savior because of the power that still then watched over the holy places; but being taken away immediately after his perfect and God-befitting sacrifice, which he himself offered for our sins; he himself being the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world as a sacrifice for all people; according to the new mysteries of the new covenant

Fragmenta in Danielem

24.525 βʹ. Εὐσεβίου Καισαρείας ῥητοῦ προκειμένου, Φωνὴ Κυρίου διακόπτοντος φλόγα πυρός.

∆ιεκόπη μὲν ἐν τῇ Βαβυλῶνι ἡ φλὸξ τοῦ πυρὸς διακοπεῖσα τῷ προστάγματι

τοῦ Θεοῦ· ἐδέξατο ἐν αὐτῇ ἡδίστην ἀναπνοὴν καὶ ἀναψυχὴν, ὥσπερ ἐν σκιᾷ τινι φυτῶν ἐν εἰρηνικῇ καταστάσει παρεχομένη τοῖς παισίν· ἐγένετο γὰρ, φησὶ, ὡσεὶ πνεῦμα δρόσου διασυρίζον.

γʹ. Ὡσεὶ Υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου. Εὐσεβίου Καισαρείας. Σαφῶς ἡγοῦμαι δηλοῦσθαι τὴν καθόλου κρίσιν, ὅτε πάντες οἱ ἐξ αἰῶνος ἄνθρωποι παραστήσονται τῷ βήματι τοῦ Χριστοῦ· μετὰ δὲ τὴν τῶν τετελευτηκότων ἀναβίωσιν, καὶ μετὰ τὴν κατὰ πάντων κρίσιν, ὁ ἑωραμένος τῷ ∆ανιὴλ Υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου ἐπιστήσεται ἐπὶ νεφελῶν, τὴν κατὰ πάντων τῶν λαῶν καὶ φυλῶν ὑπὸ τοῦ Πατρὸς ἐξουσίαν, τὴν καὶ βασιλείαν ἀγήρω καὶ ἀτελεύτητον παραληψόμενος· ὡς καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Σωτὴρ ἡμῶν περὶ ἑαυτοῦ διδάσκει λέγων· Ὅτε δὲ ἔλθῃ ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐν τῇ δόξῃ αὐτοῦ, καὶ πάντες οἱ ἄγγελοι μετ' αὐτοῦ, τότε καθίσει ἐπὶ θρόνου δόξης αὐτοῦ, καὶ συναχθήσεται ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· συνᾴδει γοῦν ταῦτα ταῖς ἐν χερσὶν μαρτυρίαις τῆς τοῦ ∆ανιὴλ προφητείας, καθ' ἣν λέλεκται· Καὶ ἰδοὺ μετὰ τῶν νεφελῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ὡς Υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου ἐρχόμενος ἦν· καὶ, Ἕως τοῦ Παλαιοῦ τῶν ἡμερῶν ἔφθασεν· καὶ προσηνέχθη αὐτῷ, καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ ἡ ἀρχὴ καὶ ἡ τιμὴ καὶ ἡ βασιλεία, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς.

δʹ. Αὐτῷ ἐδόθη ἡ ἀρχή. Εὐσεβίου. Οὐ μόνον τὴν τοῦ Υἱοῦ ἀνθρώπου βασιλείαν ὁ προφήτης θεσπίζει, ἀλλὰ καὶ πλείονα, περὶ ὧν φησι.

εʹ. Καὶ παραλήψονται τὴν βασιλείαν. Εὐσεβίου Καισαρείας. Συμβασιλεύοντες δηλαδὴ καὶ αὐτοὶ τῷ Θεῷ. Τίνες δ' ἂν εἶεν οὗτοι, ἢ οἱ κληρονόμοι τοῦ Θεοῦ, συγκληρονόμοι δὲ Χριστοῦ; οἷς καὶ ἐπήγγελται, τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, βασιλείαν ἐπιστησομένην τὴν μετὰ τέσσαρας βασιλείας, τὰς τῷ προφήτῃ ἑωραμένας, περὶ ὧν ὡς ἐν βραχέσιν ἀρτίως διειλήφαμεν. Ἐντεῦθεν οἶμαι τὸν ἀπόστολον Παῦλον ὁρμᾶ24.528 σθαι περὶ τῆς δευτέρας ἀφίξεως τοῦ Χριστοῦ γράφοντα τοιάδε· Ὅτι αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος ἐν κελεύσματι, ἐν φωνῇ ἀρχαγγέλου καὶ ἐν σάλπιγγι Θεοῦ καταβήσεται ἀπ' οὐρανοῦ, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Ὁ δ' αὐτὸς ἀπόστολος καὶ τὴν ὑστάτην τοῦ Ἀντιχρίστου ἄφιξιν τὴν καὶ ἀπώλειαν, καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τὴν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἔνδοξον παρουσίαν ἀκολούθως τῇ προφητείᾳ παρίστησι λέγων· Μήτις ὑμᾶς ἐξαπατήσῃ κατὰ μηδένα τρόπον· ὅτι ἐὰν μὴ ἔλθῃ ἡ ἀποστασία πρῶτον, καὶ ἀποκαλυφθῇ ὁ ἄνθρωπος τῆς ἁμαρτίας, ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας, ὁ ἀντικείμενος καὶ ὑπεραιρόμενος ἐπὶ πάντα λεγόμενα Θεὸν ἢ σέβασμα, ὥστε αὐτὸν εἰς τὸν ναὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ καθίσαι, ἀποδεικνύντα ἑαυτὸν ὅτι ἔστι Θεός· οὐ μνημονεύετε ὅτι ἔτι ὢν πρὸς ὑμᾶς ταῦτα ἔλεγον ὑμῖν; καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Τοσαῦτα ὁ θαυμάσιος Ἀπόστολος ἐν τοῖς περὶ συντελείας τοῦ βίου διεξῆλθε λόγοις, τὰ διὰ τοῦ προφήτου ∆ανιὴλ περὶ τοῦ Ἀντιχρίστου, καὶ τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐνδόξου βασιλείας τεθεσπισμένα πιστούμενος.

ςʹ. Ἐξολοθρευθήσεται χρίσμα. Εὐσεβίου. Τὸ ἄκριτον καὶ παράνομον αὐτῶν διαβάλλουσα· οὕτως δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς θυσίας καὶ τῆς σπουδῆς συμβεβηκέναι φήσεις· ὀρθῶς μὲν καὶ κατὰ νόμον πρὸ τοῦ πάθους τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιτελουμένης διὰ τὴν εἰς ἔτι τότε τὰ τῶν ἁγίων τόπων ἐφορῶσαν δύναμιν· περιαιρεθείσης δὲ αὐτίκα μετὰ τὴν αὐτοῦ τέλειαν καὶ θεοπρεπῆ θυσίαν, ἣν προσήνεγκεν αὐτὸς ἑαυτὸν ὑπὲρ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἡμῶν· αὐτός τε ὢν ὁ Ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ ὁ αἴρων τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τοῦ κόσμου εἰς θυσίαν πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις· κατὰ τὰ καινὰ μυστήρια τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης