An Angel's Descent

Angelus autem Domini descendit cum Azaria et sociis ejus in fornacem, et excussit flammam ignis de fornace... Oppressa perturbationibus anima, et variis molestiis occupata, cum hominum desperaverit auxilium, et tota ad Dominum fuerit mente conversa, descendit ad eam angelus Domini, scilicet, sermo divinus, et excutit flammae aestuantis ardores: ut nequaquam ignita jacula inimici cordis nostri arcana penetrent, nec illius fornace claudamur. Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentariorum in Daniel, Caput III Source: Migne PL 25.510b-c

And an angel of the Lord came down among Azarias and his companions in the furnace... 1 When the soul is oppressed by troubles and occupied by many worries, when it despairs of the help of men, and with all its mind it turns to the Lord, the angel of the Lord descends, that is, the divine word, and it extinguishes the fire of scorching flames, so that the blazing shaft of the enemy does not penetrate into the secret chambers of our heart, nor are we shut up in his furnace. Saint Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 3 1 Dan 3.49

Accusations And Silence

Mirum forsitan videatur vobis, fratres, cur Dominus apud praesidem Pilatum a principibus sacerdotum accusetur, et taceat, nec nequitiam eorum sua responsione convincat, cum utique ingestam accusationem nonnisi refellere soleat subsecuta defensio. Mirum, inquam, fiat, fratres, quod arguatur Salvator, et taceat; taciturnitas enim interdum pro consensu habetur; videtur namque confirmare, quod objicitur, cum non vult respondere, quod quaeritur. Accusationem ergo suam Dominus tacendo confirmat? Non plane accusationem suam tacendo confirmat, sed despicit non refellendo; bene enim tacet, qui defensione non indiget. Ambiat defendi, qui metuit superari. Festinet loqui, qui timet vinci. Christus autem cum condemnatur, et superat; cum judicatur, et vincit, sicut ait propheta: Ut justificeris in sermonibus tuis, et vincas cum judicaris. Quid ergo opus erat ei loqui ante judicium, cui ipsum judicium erat plena victoria. Vincit enim cum judicatur Christus, quia sic innocens approbatur; unde ait Pilatus: Innocens ego sum a sanguine hujus justi. Melior est igitur causa, quae non defenditur, et probatur; plenior justitia est, quae non verbis astruitur, sed veritate fulcitur. Taceat lingua necesse, ubi ipsa aequitas sibi adest; taceat in bono negotio, quia et malas causas obtinere consuevit. Nolo sic defendi justitiam, sicut solet iniquitas excusari. Quod vincit Christus, non orationis est, sed virtutis; scit enim Salvator, qui est sapientia, quomodo tacendo vinceret, quomodo non respondendo superaret: atque causam suam mavult comprobare quam dicere. Quae enim res illum compelleret ad loquendum, cum silentium satis sufficeret ad vincendum? Sed fortasse metus eum cogeret, ne salutem perderet, nisi quod ipsa erat tota causa victoriae; suam enim salutem perdidit, ut salutem omnium lucraretur; in se vinci maluit, ut victor esset in cunctis. Sed quid de Christo loquar? Susanna mulier apud inimicos suos tacuit, et vicit. Non enim apud Danielem judicem verborum se ratione defendit, non patrocinii sermone tutata est; sed in sancta femina, tacente lingua, pro ea castitas loquebatur. Castitas enim Susannae adfuit in judicio, quae eam defendit et in paradiso; ibi enim pudori ejus consuluit, 143 hic saluti; ibi ne macularetur pudicitia, hic ne innocentia damnaretur. Castitas ergo Susannae et presbyteros, et impudicos convicit in paradiso, et in judicio falsos accusatores obtinuit, bisque victrix reos facit testimonii, quos reos fecerat adulterii. At quem tandem judicem meretur castitas? Danielem puerum juniorem, nec dum pubescentis aetatis. Multum igitur de Deo pudicitia consequitur, cum judicem virginem promeretur; secura enim est de victoria castitas, cui est judicatura virginitas. Pudicitiae autem causam, nisi vir pudicus audire non debuit; talem enim arbitrum meretur castimonia, apud quem non periclitetur verecundia. Cognito igitur Daniel Susannae negotio, cum eam falsis accusationibus vellet plebs imperita damnare, ait idem: Mundus ego sum a sanguine hujus. Quo dicto peccantis populi revocavit errorem. Hac ergo voce circa Susannam Daniel utitur; qua circa Dominum usus est Pilatus; ait enim Pilatus: Mundus ego sum a sanguine hujus justi. Eadem igitur sententia solvitur pudicitia, qua est absoluta justitia. Sed Daniel melius quam Pilatus; ille enim pudicum sanguinem non condemnat, sed liberat; hic autem justum sanguinem et confitetur, et tradit. Quid enim profuit testimonium perhibuisse innocentiae, et velut reum addixisse nequitiae, nisi quod gravius peccatum est, unum eumdemque et pronuntiare justum, et tradere quasi criminosum? Ipse enim iniquitatis suae testis est, qui ore absolvit, et corde condemnat. Laverit licet manus suas Pilatus, tamen sua facta non diluit; et quamvis abstergere se putaverit justi sanguinem de suis membris, eo tamen sanguine mens ejus tenetur infecta. Ipse enim occidit Christum, qui eum tradidit occidendum; judex enim constans et bonus, ne sanguinem innocentis addiceret, nec invidiae cedere debuit, nec timori. Daniel ergo melius quam Pilatus: ille peccantis populi revocavit errorem; hic autem furentis Synagogae sacrilegium confirmavit. Sanctus Maximus Taurinensis, Homilia XLVI , De accusato et judicato Domino apud Pilatum Source: Migne PL 57.331c-334b

Perhaps it seems a wonder to you, brothers, why the Lord at the court of Pilate, when He was accused by the chief priests, was silent, and did not convict their wickedness with His own answer, 1 when an accusation is not customarily allowed unless it is possible that it might be refuted by a subsequent defence. Let there be wonder here, brothers, that the Saviour is accused and is silent, for silence is held to be consent, since it seems to confirm what is asserted when one chooses not to answer what is asked. Did, then, the Lord confirm his own accusation with silence? No, plainly His silence did not confirm His accusation, but he scorned a rebuttal, for he is wisely silent who is in no need of defence. He who is keen to defend himself fears that he shall be overcome. He makes haste to speak who fears to be overthrown. But when Christ is condemned, He overcomes, and when He is convicted He conquers, as the prophet says, 'That you be justified in your words, and triumph when you are judged.' 2 What need, then, was there for Him to speak before judgement, when that judgement was full of victory? For Christ triumphs when he is judged because He is proved innocent, whence Pilate says, 'I am innocent of the blood of this righteous man.' 3 Thus better is that cause which is not defended and is proved. Greater is the righteousness which no words prop up but which the truth supports. It is necessary that the tongue be silent when justice is near, for the tongue is silent in good affairs and accustomed to labour for bad cases. Righteousness is not defended in the way that wickedness is customarily excused. Christ does not conquer with speeches but with virtue. The Saviour, who is wisdom, knows how to conquer by silence and how to overcome without answering, and in this way He prefers to prove His own case than to speak. What is it that would compel one to speak when silence is sufficient to conquer? But perhaps fear compels, lest safety be lost? Yet that was the whole cause of victory, that He should lose his safety so that He might advance the salvation of everyone. He preferred for Himself to be conquered so that He might be a victor for everyone. But why do I speak of Christ? Susanna was silent before her enemies and triumphed. 4 For it was not until Daniel that her cause was defended with words, nor was she protected with speech by lawyers, but in holy womanhood, with a silent tongue, she spoke for her chastity. Susana was chaste in judgement, which she defended in the garden. There she looked to her modesty, here to her salvation. There lest her modesty be defiled, here lest innocence be damned. Therefore the chastity of Susanna convicted the wicked elders in the garden, and in court revealed false accusers, and twice the victorious woman makes them guilty by witness who would have made her guilty of adultery. But what judge should chastity have? Daniel, a youth, who had not yet reached the age of maturity. Therefore modesty receives much from God when it merits a virginal judge. For chastity is certain of victory when it is judged by virginity. But the cause of modesty should not be heard unless before a modest man, for chastity merits such a judge, and it will be endangered without it. Thus Daniel understood Susanna's case, and when the unlearned people wished to condemn her with false accusations, he said, 'I am clean of this blood.' Which saying he exposed the error of a people at fault. With this voice Daniel was of use to Susanna, which then Pilate employed for the Lord, for he said: 'I am clean of the blood of this righteous man.' Thus modesty quashed the same sentence with its perfect justice. But Daniel was better than Pilate, since he did not condemn modest blood, but freed it, while the latter confessed blood to be righteous and then handed it over. What use to have held to the witness of innocence and then to have assented to the guilt of wickedness, unless that the sin is heavier to pronounce one and the same man just and then to hand him over as a criminal? He is a witness of his own wickedness who with his mouth absolves and with his heart condemns. Pilate may wash his hands, but he cannot make his act clean. Though he thinks to scrub the blood of a righteous man from his members, yet his mind is stained with it. For he kills Christ who hands him over to his killers. The good and constant judge, lest he abandon innocent blood, should not be overcome by envy or fear. Therefore Daniel was better than Pilate, for the former exposed the error of a people in fault, and the latter confirmed the sacrilege of the enraged Synagogue. Saint Maximus of Turin, Homily 46, On the Accusation And Judgement of the Lord before Pilate 1 Mt 27.12 2 Ps 50.6 3 Mt 27.24 4 Dan 13

Death And Susanna

Ingemuit Susanna, et ait: Angustiae mihi sunt undique. Undique enim mors; hinc quidem corporea, inde spiritualis. Si hoc, inquit, egero, mors mihi est; si autem non egero, non effugiam manus vestras. Vestras, o Pharisaei, manus nec adultera effugit, nec pudica: vestras accusationes nec sanctus, nec peccator evadit. Dissimulatis peccata vestra, ubi inveneritis aliena: alioquin si quis forte suum non habet, vestrum ei impingitis crimen. Quid tamen Susanna facit, inter mortem et mortem, animae scilicet et corporis, undique angustata? Melius est mihi, inquit, absque opere incidere in manus hominum, quam derelinquere legem Dei mei. Nimirum sciebat ista, quam horrendum sit incidere in manus Dei viventis. Nam homines quidem, cum occiderint corpus, animae non habent ultra quid faciant: ille autem timendus est, qui potestatem habet et corpus et animam mittere in gehennam. Quid familia Joachim tardat? Irruat per posticum, nam in pomerio clamor auditur; clamor autem luporum gravium, et balantis oviculae inter eos. Sed non patitur ab eis innoxiam devorari, qui ab ipsis eorum faucibus tam dignanter eripuit etiam eripi non merentem. Merito proinde cum duceretur ad mortem, erat cor ejus fiduciam habens in Domino, quem usque adeo timuisset, ut timorem omnem postposuisset humanum, et ipsius legem et simul vitae praeposuisset, et famae. Non enim dictus fuerat sermo hujuscemodi aliquando de Susanna. Sed et parentes ejus justi erant, et vir ejus honoratior omnium Judaeorum. Merito igitur a justo Judice justam de injustis obtinuit ultionem, quae tam vehementer justitiam esurivit, ut propter eam contemneret mortem corporis, opprobrium generis, luctum inconsolabilem amicorum. Et nos, fratres, si a Christo audivimus: Nec ego te condemnabo, si peccare jam nolumus contra ipsum, si in Christo volumus pie vivere; necesse est sustineamus persecutionem, ne malum pro malo, aut maledictum pro maledicto reddamus. Alioquin qui patientiam non servaverit, perdet justitiam; hoc est, vitam perdet; hoc est, perdet animam suam. Mihi vindictam, et ego retribuam, dicit Dominus. Ita prorsus est. Ipse retribuet, sed si ei vindictam serves, si non tollas ab eo judicium, si non reddas retribuentibus tibi mala. Faciet judicium, sed injuriam patienti; in aequitate judicabit, sed pro mansuetis terrae. Sanctus Bernardus Clarae Vallensis, Sermones De Sanctis, In Festo Annuntiationis Beatae Mariae Virginis, Sermo III Source: Migne PL 183.395a-396a

Susanna groaned and said, 'There is anguish for me on all sides...' 1 For death is on all sides, here of the body, there of the spirit. 'If I shall do this it is death for me,' she says, 'but if I do not, I shall not escape your hands.' Your hands, O Pharisees, that do not turn away from an adulteress, 2 nor a modest woman. Neither a holy woman, nor a sinful one escaped your accusations. You disregard your sins where you come on those of another. Perhaps only if someone did not have yours, would you impute your crime to them. But what does Susanna do between death and death, the death of the body and the death of the soul, with anguish on all sides? 'Better it is for me,' she says, 'to fall into the hands of men, than to abandon the law of my God.' Certainly she knew that it is a terrible thing to fall into hands of the living God. For when men kill the body, beyond what they do, they do not take hold of the soul, but He is fearful who has the power to send both the body and the soul to hell. 3 Why did the family of Joachim delay? They slipped in through a side door. In the orchard a cry was heard, a cry of great wolves and the bleating of a little sheep among them. But it was not permitted they she who was harmless be devoured by them, she who was worthy to be seized from their throats did not deserve to be seized by them. With merit, then, when she was lead to death her heart had confidence in the Lord, who even then she feared, so that she set Him above every human fear, and at the same time set His law above her life and honour. For though not a word was said anywhere about this regarding Susanna, yet it was said that her parents were righteous, and her husband was a man who was most honoured among the Jews. With merit therefore, vengeance was obtained from the righteous judge against unjust men, since she so vehemently hungered for justice, and because of that cared not for this body of death, 5 and the opprobrium of the people, and the inconsolable grief of friends. And so it is with us, brothers, if we have been heard by Christ. I shall not condemn you if you have no wish to sin against Him, if you wish to live piously in Christ. It is necessary that we should endure persecution and not return evil for evil, nor a curse for a curse. 4 For he who does not cleave to patience ruins righteousness, and he ruins his life, that is, he ruins his soul. 'Vengeance is mine and I shall repay,' says the Lord. 6 So it will be. He shall repay if you guard His vengeance, if you do not take judgement away from Him, if you do not return evil to those who have given it to you. He shall give judgement, but for the one who endures wrongdoing. He shall judge fairly, but for the meek of the earth. 7 Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons On The Saints, On The Feast Of The Annunciation, from Sermon 3 1 Dan 13.22 2 Jn 8.3-11 3 Heb 10.31, Mt 10.28 4 Mt 5.6, Rom 7.24 5 1 Pet 3.9 6 Rom 12.19 7 Isaiah 11.4

Help And Teaching

Διὰ τί ἔφης, μετὰ τῶν τριῶν ὁσίων παίδων τὴν πυρκαῖὰν οὐ κατεδικάσθη ὁ μέγας Δανιὴλ παρὰ τοῦ Βαβυλωνίου, σύμφρων αὐτοῖς τυγχάνων καὶ συμφυλέτης, καὶ ὁμοδίαιτος, καὶ μᾶλλον τῆς εὐσεβείας διδάσκαλος; Ἐπειδὴ, φημὶ, κατὰ θείαν τοῦτο ᾠκονομήθη προμήθειαν, ἵνα μὴ τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ Βαβυλωνίου Θεοῦ, τὴν κατάκαυσιν τῆς φλοψὸς οἱ ἀσεβεῖς ἐπιγράφωσι· Βαλτάσαρ γὰρ αὐτὸν, εἰς τιμὴν τῆς τῶν ἀποῥῥητων σαφηνείας, ὠνόμαζον. Καὶ δόγμα τοιοῦτο παρ' ἐκείνοις κρατεῖ, ὠς καὶ μόνον ὀνομαζόμενον, θαυματουργεῖν τὸν Θεὸν αὐτῶν. Ἵνα ταύτην τοίνυν καταργησῃ τὴν δόξαν, ἐν τῇ κρίσει ταύτῃ τὸν Δανιὴλ ἐχώρισε, καὶ εὑρέθη γυμνὴ καθ' ἑαυτὴν ἡ τῶν νέων εγκράτεια, καὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡ βοήθεια, τὴν βροντῶσαν μαράνασα κάμινον. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΙΘ´ Ἡρακλειδῃ Ἐπισκοπῳ Source: Migne PG 78.193c-d

Concerning your enquiry about why the great Daniel was not condemned to the flames by the king of Babylon along with the three pious youths, the same sentence being given to all three who shared the same way of life, 1 it was that he might be a teacher of piety. And this, I say, was a matter of Divine providence, lest impious men should attribute the suppression of the flames to the name of a Babylonian God, the one who they called Baltazarus, and they proclaim it a mystery in his honour, and so with this teaching prevailing among them, in name only, their god be the wonder worker. Whence to suppress and abolish this opinion, Daniel was separated from the judgement of the others, and it was found that the roaring furnace was suppressed by the continence of the youths and the help of God. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 19, To The Bishop Heracleides 1 Dan 3

Foolish Feasting

Baltassar rex fecit grande convivium optimatibus suis mille: et unusquisque secundum suam bibebat ætatem. Præcepit ergo jam temulentus ut afferrentur vasa aurea et argentea, quæ asportaverat Nabuchodonosor pater ejus de templo, quod fuit in Ierusalem, ut biberent in eis rex, et optimates ejus, uxoresque ejus, et concubinæ. Bibebant vinum, et laudabant deos suos aureos, et argenteos, et aereos, ferreos, ligneosque et lapideos. Quanta stultitia! in aureis vasis bibentes, deos ligneos laudabant et lapideos. Quamdiu vasa fuerunt in idolio Babylonis, non est iratus Dominus: videbantur enim rem Dei secundum pravam quidem opinionem, tamen divino cultui consecrasse: postquam autem humanis usibus divina contaminant, statim poena sequitur post sacrilegium. Laudant autem deos suos, insultantes Deo Judaeorum; quod illis victoriam tribuentibus, bibebant in vasis ejus. Juxta tropologiam, hoc dicendum est: quod omnes haeretici, et doctrina contraria veritati, quae assumit verba prophetarum; et testimoniis divinae Scripturae abutitur ad sensum suum; et dat bibere his quos decipit, et cum quibus fornicata est: tollat vasa templi Dei, et inebrietur in eis: et non Deum cujus vasa sunt, sed deos laudet aureos et argenteos, et aeneos, et ferreos, ligneosque et lapideos. Aurei mihi videntur hi qui saeculari ratione compositi sunt. Argentei, qui habent eloquii venustatem, et rhetorica arte constructi sunt. Qui autem inferunt fabulas poetarum, et vetustis utuntur traditionibus, habentes inter se multam vel elegantiae vel stultitiae differentiam, isti vocantur aenei et ferrei. Qui autem penitus inepta proponunt, lignei appellantur et lapidei. Quos omnes in duas partes Deuteronomium dividit, scribens: Maledictus qui facit sculptile, et conflatile, opus manuum artificis, et ponit illud in abscondito. Abscondunt enim omnes haeretici, et operiunt mendaciorum suorum dogmata, ut sagittent in obscuro rectos corde. Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentariorum in Daniel, Caput V Source: Migne PL 25.519b-d

King Baltassar made a great feast for a thousand of his best men, and each one drank according to his rank. Then being drunk, he commanded that the vessels of gold and silver which had been taken by his father Nebuchadnezzar from the temple of Jerusalem be brought so that the king might drink from them, and his best men, and his wives and concubines. They drank wine and praised their gods of gold and silver and iron and wood and stone. 1 How great their foolishess, drinking from gold vessels and praising their gods of wood and stone. While the vases were in the idol temple of Babylon, the Lord was not angered, for according to depraved opinion they seemed to be something belonging to God, and still consecrated to the Divine cult, but after they had defiled Divine things with human use, punishment immediately followed sacrilege. Then praising their gods, they insulted the God of the Jews, because with victory given to them, they drank from His vessels. According to the tropological understanding this must be said: that all heretics, and all teaching that opposes truth, which takes up the words of the prophets and twists the Divine testimonies of Scripture to their own sense, and gives this to drink to those whom they deceive, and fornicates with them, this is to take the vessels from the temple of God and use them for drunkeness. And they do not praise God whose vessels they are, but gods of gold and silver and bronze and iron and wood and stone. The golden ones seem to me to be those put together by the reasoning of the world, the silver ones are those who have the charms of eloquence and are fashioned by the art of rhetoric. But they who bring forth the fables of poets and make use of ancient traditions, they have among themselves a great difference, for they do this either skilfully or poorly, and these are called the gods of bronze and iron. But those who propose things utterly ineptly, these are the gods of wood and stone. Whom all Deuteronomy divides into two parts, saying: 'Cursed is he who makes a statue and molten thing, the work of an artisan's hands, and he sets it somewhere in secret.' 2 For all heretics are hidden away, and they veil the teachings of their lies, that they might shoot from concealment at the righteous in heart. 3 Saint Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 5 1 Dan 5.1-4 2 Deut 27.15 3 Ps 10.3

Deferred Martyrdom

Neque enim in tribus pueris minor fuit martyrii dignitas, quia mortem frustrata de camino ignis incolumes exierunt: aut non consummatus Daniel exstitit in suis laudibus, quia qui leonibus missus fuerat ad praedam, protectus a Domino, vixit ad gloriam. In confessoribus Christi dilata martyria non meritum confessionis minuunt, sed magnalia divinae protectionis ostendunt. Repraesentatum videmus in vobis, quod apud regem fortes atque illustres pueri praedicaverunt, ipsos quidem paratos esse ardere flammis, ne diis eius servirent, aut imaginem quam fecerat adorarent; Deum tamen quem colebant, quemque et nos colimus, potentem esse ut eos de camino illis eximeret, et de regis manibus ac de poenis praesentibus liberaret. Quod invenimus in confessionis vestrae fide, et in Domini circa vos protectione nunc gestum; ut cum vos parati fueritis et prompti omne subire supplicium, Dominus tamen vos poenae subtraheret, et Ecclesiae reservaret. Regredientibus vobis breviata non est in episcopo confessionis suae dignitas, sed magis crevit sacerdotalis auctoritas: ut altari Dei assistat antistes, qui ad confessionis arma sumenda et facienda martyria non verbis plebem, sed factis cohortetur; et imminente Antichristo paret ad praelium milites non solo sermonis et vocis incitamento, sed fidei et virtutis exemplo. Sanctus Cyprianus, Epistola LVIII, Ad Luciam Papam Source: Migne PL 3.973a-974a

The value of martyrdom was not the less for the three youths because their deaths were frustrated when they came forth unharmed from the fiery furnace, nor was Daniel unworthy of praise because when he was sent to the lions as prey, he was protected by the Lord and lived on to glory. 1 Among the confessors of Christ, martyrdoms which are deferred do not diminish the merits of confession, but they do show the greatness of Divine protection. We see represented in you what the brave and illustrious youths announced before the king, that they indeed were prepared to burn in the flames, so that they might not serve his gods, nor worship the image he had made, and that the God whom they worshipped, and whom we also worship, was able to free them from the furnace, and to deliver them from the hands of the king, and from imminent sufferings. Which we now find performed in the faith of your confession, and in the Lord's protection over you, so that while you were prepared and ready to suffer every punishment, yet the Lord delivered you and preserved you for the Church. There has been no reduction of the dignity of the confession of a bishop because of your return, but rather the priestly authority has grown, so that such a man who serves at the altar of God and exhorts the people to take up the arms of confession and to submit to martyrdom when the Antichrist is near, prepares the soldiers for battle not only by the exhortation of his words and voice but by the example of his faith and courage. Saint Cyprian of Carthage, from Epistle 58, To Pope Lucius 1 Dan 3-4

The Clouds

Et ecce in nubibus coeli quasi Filius hominis veniebat... Tres sunt nubes: obscuritas in prophetis, profunditas in divinis consiliis, occulata et inaudita fecunditas virginitas. De nube prophetarum scriptum: Tenebrosa aqua in nubibus aeris. De nube consiliorum Dei legitur: Rorate, colei, desuper, et nubes pluant justum. De nube virginitatis et fecunditas absconditae dicit propheta: Super nubem levem et candidam ingredietur Dominus Aegyptum. In istis nubibus veniebat quasi Filius hominis. Bene dicit quasi Filius hominis, quia temporaliter, Filius hominis ab aeterno erat Filius Dei. Nondum erat Filius hominis: sed qui in proximo erat Filius hominis futurus, jam quasi Filius hominis censebatur. Petrus Blenensis, Sermo II, De Adventu Domini Source: Migne PL 207.565b-c

And behold one coming in the clouds of heaven like a son of man... 1 There are three clouds: the obscurity of the prophets, the depths of the Divine counsels, and the hidden and unheard fecundity of virginity. It is written of the cloud of the prophets: 'Dark waters in the clouds of the air.' 2 Of the cloud of the Divine counsels we read: 'Give your dew, heaven, from above, and let the clouds rain justice.' 3 Of the cloud of virginity and the hiddeness of fecundity, the prophet says: 'On a light and shining cloud the Lord shall enter into Egypt.' 4 Well it is said, 'like a son of man' because in time he was the Son of Man but eternally the Son of God. He was not yet the Son of Man, but the coming of the Son of Man was so near, that here He was reckoned as the Son of Man. Peter of Blois, from Sermon 2, On The Advent Of The Lord 1 Dan 7.13 2 Ps 17.12 3 Isaiah 45.8 4 Isaiah 19.1

Three Visions

Aspiciebam in visione noctis: et ecce in nubibus caeli quasi Filius hominis veniebat, et usque ad Antiquum dierum pervenit, et in conspectu ejus obtulerunt eum. Et dedit ei potestatem et honorem et regnum, et potestas ejus postestas aeterna, et regnum ejus quod non corrumpetur. Daniel Dominici adventus inflammatus desiderio, unde et vir desidorium ab angelo vocatus est, effudit in se animiam suam, ut transiret in locum mysterii admirabilis, et videret sacramentum Incarnationis Dominicae absconditum a sanctis, sicut Apostolus dicit. Unde et in visione noctis aspiciebat. Est enim visio noctis, est et visio diei, et visio lucis: visio nocturna ante gratiam, visio diei sub gratia, visio lucis in gloria. Videbant prophetae et patriarchae in visione noctis. Unde legitur: Locutus es in visione sanctis tuis et dixisti: Posui adjutorium, etc. De secunda visione quae in apostolis sub tempore gratiae facta est, dicit Pauls: Speculantes gloriam Domini in eamdem imaginem transformamur a gloria in gloriam tanquam a Domini Spiritu. Nunc spiritualiter videmus quasi per speculum in aenigmate, sed cum venerit visio lucis, fulgebunt justi sicut sol in conspectu Dei, et tunc videbunt lucem in lumine, et purificatis oculis videbunt lucem, quam non posset mortalis oculus sustinere. Petrus Blenensis, Sermo II De Adventu Domini Source: Migne PL 207.564d-565b

I saw in a vision of the night, and behold in the clouds of heaven one coming like the son of man, and even to the ancient of days he came and into his sight they brought him. And he gave to him power and honour and the kingdom, and his power is eternal power, and his kingdom will not be corrupted. 1 Daniel was inflamed with a desire for the advent of the Lord, whence he was called by an angel a man of desire, 2 and his soul poured out within him that he might pass over to the place of this wondrous mystery and that he might see the mystery of the Incarnation of the Lord, which was hidden from those who were holy, as the Apostle says. 3 Whence he saw in a vision of the night. For there is a vision of the night and a vision of the day and a vision of light. A vision of the night is before grace, a vision of the day under grace, a vision of the light in glory. The prophet and patriarchs saw in a vision of the night. Whence we read: 'You spoke in a vision to your holy ones, and you said: I have placed a helper...' 4 Concerning the second vision, which happens among the Apostles in the time under grace, Paul says: 'Looking at the glory of the Lord, into the same image we are being transformed, from glory into glory, by the spirit of the Lord.' 5 Now spiritually we see as in a mirror in darkness, 6 but when comes the vision of light, the righteous will shine like the sun in the sight of the Lord, and then we shall see light in light, and with eyes purified we shall look on the light, which it is not possible for the mortal eye to endure. Peter of Blois, from Sermon 2, On The Advent of The Lord 1 Dan 7.13-14 2 Dan 9.23 3 Ephes 3.4-5 4 Ps 88.20 5 2 Cor 3.18 6 1 Cor 13.12

Babylon And Philosophy

Et tradidit Dominus in manu eius Ioacim regem Iuda. Quodque traditus scribitur Ioacim, monstrat non adversariorum fortitudinis fuisse victoriam, sed Domini voluntatis. Et partem vasorum domus Dei, et asportavit ea in terram Sennaar, in domum Dei sui, et vasa intulit in domum thesauri Dei sui. Terra Sennaar locus est Babylonis in quo fuit campus Dura, et turris quam usque coelum hi qui ab Oriente moverant pedes suos, aedificare conati sunt. Unde et a confusione linguarum locus nomen accepit Babylon, quae in linguam nostram tranfertur confusio. Simul et animadvertendum secundum anagogen, quod rex Babylonis non potuerit universa Dei vasa transferre, et in idolio quod sibi finxerat collocare, sed partem vasorum domus Dei, quae intelligenda sunt dogmata veritatis. Si enim cunctos philosophorum revolvas libros, necesse est ut in eis reperias aliquam partem vasorum Dei. Ut apud Platonem, fabricatorem mundi Deum, ut apud Zenonem Stoicorum principem, inferos et immortales animas, et unum bonum, honestatem; sed quia iungunt mendacium veritati, et naturae bonum multis perdunt malis, ideo partem vasorum domus Dei, et non omnia vasa integra atque perfecta cepisse memorantur. Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentariorum in Daniel, Caput I Source:  Migne PL 25.498d-449a

And the Lord gave Jehoiakim, king of Judah, into his hand. 1 Since it is written that Jehoiakim was given, it shows that victory was not on account of the adversary's strength, but by the will of the Lord. And a part of the vessels of the Lord he brought to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and he placed the vessels in the house of the treasury of his god. 1 The land of Shinar is a place of Babylon in which was plain of Dura and the tower which they tried to build to heaven, those ones who marched from the east. 2 Whence from the confusion of tongues the place received the name of Babylon, which translated into our tongue is 'confusion'. 3 At the same time one must attend to the anagogical meaning, that the king of Babylon was not able to bear off all the vessels of God, and having gathered them fashion them into idols for himself, but only a part of the vessels of the house of God, by which should be understood the teachings of truth. For if you should unroll all the works of the philosophers, it is inevitable that in them you shall find some part of the vessels of God. So in Plato there is a god who is the creator of the world, and in Zeno, the head of the Stoics, there are inferior and immortal souls, and one good, righteousness. But because they join a lie to truth and ruin the good of nature with many evils, therefore they are recorded as having seized only a part of the vessels of the house of God, and not every perfect and clean one. Saint Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 1 1 Dan 1.2 2 Gen 11.1-9 3 Understood presently to be from the native 'Bābilim', meaning 'gate of the god(s)'

Changing Judgement

Si praedixit Danihel sententiam Dei quae non potest immutari quomodo hortatur ad eleemosynas et misericordiam pauperum, ut Dei sententia commutetur? Facile solvitur Ezechiae regis exemplo, quem Esaias dixerat esse moriturum et Nenivitarum; adhuc tres dies et Nenive subvertetur; et tamen ad preces Ezechiae et Nenivitarum Dei sententia commutata est, non vanitate judicii, sed eroum conversione. Petrus Archidiaconus  Liber De Diversis Quaestiunculis, Questiones In Danielem  Source: Migne PL 96.1350b

If Daniel foretold the sentence of God, which cannot be changed, 1 how is it that the king is exhorted to be merciful and have pity on the poor, so that the sentence of God be changed? This is easily resolved by the example of King Hezekiah, whom Isaiah said was going to die, 2 and of the Ninevites, that in three days Nineveh would be overthrown, 3 for yet by the prayers of Hezekiah and the Ninevites the sentence of God was changed, and not because of a vain judgement but by their conversion. Peter of Pisa, The Book of Diverse Questions, Questions On Daniel 1 Dan 4.24-27 2 Isaiah 38.1 3 Jonah 3.4

The Astrologers

Porro in Chaldeis γενεθλιαλόγους significari puto quos vulgus mathematicos vocat. Consuetudo autem et sermo communis magos pro maleficis accipit: qui aliter habentur apud gentem suam, eo quod sint philosophi Chaldaeorum, et ad artis hujus scientiam reges quoque et principes ejusdem gentis omnia faciunt. Unde et in nativitate Domini Salvatoris ipsi primum ortum ejus intellexerunt et venientes in sanctam Bethleem, adoraverunt puerum, stella desuper ostendente. Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentaria in Daniel, Caput II Source:  Migne PL 25.498d-449a

However among the Chaldeans 'genethialogoi' I think signifies those whom the many name astrologers. 1 For it is a custom in common speech to refer to magi as magicians, but they are considered differently among their own people, because they are the philosophers of the Chaldeans, and the knowledge of this art even the kings and princes of that people take to entirely. Whence in the nativity of our Lord and Saviour they first understood his coming and came to holy Bethlehem, and adored the child, the star guiding them from above. Saint Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 2 1 Dan 2.2

The Seeing Of Dreams

Quid est quod Nabochodonsor tanti mysterii meruerit cernere somnium? Nunquid credere possumus hominis pessimi hoc meritum obtinuisse? Non merito vidit; sed ut interpretante sancto quod viderat, Deus glorificaretur. Sic nec Pharao videre meruit, sed ut Joseph cunctis esset praepositus. Petrus Archidiaconus  Liber De Diversis Quaestiunculis Source: Migne 96.1348c

Why is it that Nebuchadnezzar merited to see such mysteries in a dream? Can we believe that some merit of this wretched man obtained this? 1 He did not see on account of merit, but that God be glorified by the holy interpretation of what he saw. So neither did Pharoah see by merit, but in order that Joseph might be set above all. 2 Peter of Pisa, The Book of Diverse Questions 1 Dan 2.1- 2 Genes 41.1-43

Dreams And Knowledge

Mihi quoque non in sapientia, quae est in me plusquam in cunctis viventibus, sacramentum hoc revelatum est: sed ut interpretatio regi  manifesta fieret, et cogitationes mentis tuae scires. Putaverat rex notitiam futurorum solertia mentis humanae posse comprehendi; et ideo sapientes Babylonis interfici jusserat. Ergo Daniel eos excusat qui dicere non potuerant, et ipse invidiam fugit, ne quis aestimet, eum quae dicturus est propria dixisse sapientia. Causa autem revelationis propheticae, regis est desiderium, qui voluit ventura cognoscere. Ergo honorat regem, quando propter illius scientiam sibi dicit a Deo mysteria revelata. Et hoc considerandum, quod somnia in quibus aliqua ventura signantur, et quasi per nubilum veritas demonstratur, non pateant conjectoribus et humanae mentis arbitrio, sed Dei solius scientiae. Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentaria in Daniel, Caput II Source:  Migne PL 25.503b-c

It is not by the wisdom in me, that I know more than anyone living, that this mystery has been revealed, but that the understanding of it be made manifest to the king, and you know the thoughts of your mind. 1 The king thought that the knowlege of the future was capable of being grasped by the cleverness of the human mind and therefore he commanded that the wise men of Babylon be killed. 2 But Daniel excused them who were not able to speak of the future, and distanced himself from envy, lest someone judge that what he was going to speak was spoken from his own wisdom. For the cause of the prophetic revelation is the desire of the king, who wishes to know the things that are to come. Therefore Daniel honours the king when he says that is on account of his knowledge that God reveals these mysteries to him. And this also must be considered, that dreams in which things to come are signified, are as truth shown through a cloud, not openly for the interpretation and judgement of men, but only by the knowledge of God. Saint Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 2 1 Dan 2.30 2 Dan 2.10-12

Susanna's Trial

Ἡ δὲ ἧν κλαίουσα. Διὰ γὰρ τῶν δακρύων ἐφεθκετο τὸν ἀπ' οὐρανῶν Λόγον, τὸν μέλλοντα διὰ δακρύωμ ἐγείρειν τὸν Λάζαρον τεθνηκότα Καὶ ἐπίστευσεν αὐτοῐς ἡ συναγωγή. Δεῖ οὖν ἡμᾶς ἐν παντὶ πραγματι ἐδραίους γενομένους, μὴ τοῖς ψευδέσιν προσέχειν, μηδὲ προσώποις ἀρχόντων εὐκόλως συναρπαζομένους πείθεσθαι, γινώσκοντας, ὅτι λόγον ἔχομεν δοῦναι τῷ θεῷ· ἀλλὰ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ στοιχοῦντες, καὶ τὸ ἀκριβὲς τῆς πίστεως ἐπιζητοῦντες, εὐάρεστοι ἐσόμεθα τῷ θεῷ. Καὶ εἰσήκουσεν ὁ Θεὸς τῆς φωνῆς αὐτῆς. Ὅσοι γὰρ ἐπικαλοῦνται αὐτὸν ἐκ καθαρᾶς καρδίας, τούτων ὁ Θεὸς ὑπακούει· ὅσοι δε ἐν δόλῳ καὶ ὑποκρίσει, ἀποστρέφει τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ ἀπ' αὐτῶν. Πεπαλαιωμένε ἡμερῶν κακῶν. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ φθαταντες ἐν τῷ προοιμίῳ, διηγησάμεθα, ὅτι οἱ δύο πρεσβύτεροι εἰς τύπον ἀναφέρονται τῶν δύο λαῶν, τοῦ τε ἐκ περιτομῆς καὶ τοῦ ἐξ ἐθνῶν, οἵ καὶ ἀεὶ ἐπίβουλοι γίνονται τῆς Ἐκκλησίας· ἵδωμεν τα ῥήματα αὐτοῦ τοῦ Δανιὴλ, καὶ μάθωμεν, ὅτι ἐν μηδενὶ ἡμᾶς διαψεὺδεται ἡ Γραφή. Τῷ γὰρ πρώτῳ πρεσβυτέρῳ διαλεγόμενος, ὡς νομοθέτῃ ἐπιτιμᾷ· τῷ δὲ ἑτέρῳ, ὡς ἑθνικῳ διαλέγεται, σπέρμα Χαναιὰν ἀποκαλῶν· καίτοι ὄντα ἐν περιτομῇ Ἤδη γὰρ ἄγγελος Θεοῦ. Δηλοῖ δὲ, ὅτι ἡνίκα προσηύξατο ἡ Σωσάννα πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ εἰσηκούσθη, τότε ἐξαπεστάλη ὁ ἄγγελος βοηθήσων αὐτῇ, ὄν τρόπον ἐπὶ τοῦ Τωβία καὶ τῆς Σάῥῥας συνέβη. Προσευξαμένων γὰρ αὐτῶν, τῇ αὐτῇ ἡμέρᾳ καὶ αὐτῇ ὠρᾳ εἰσηκούσθη ἡ δέησις ἀμθοτέρων, καὶ ἀπεστάλη ὁ ἀγγελος Ῥαφαὴλ ἰάσασθαι τοὺς δύο. Καὶ ἀνέστησαν ἐπὶ τοὺς δύο πρεσβυτέρους. Ἵνα πληρωθῇ τὸ εἰρημένον· Ὁ ὀρύσσων βόθρον τῷ πλησίον αὐτοῦ, εἰς αὐτὸν ἐμπεσεῖται. Προσέχειν οὖν ὀφείλομεν πᾶσιν, ἀγαπητοὶ, φοβούμενοι μή τις ἔν τινι παραπτώματι κρατηθεὶς, αὐτὸς τῆς αὐτοῦ ψυχῆς ἔνοχος γένηται, γινώσκοντες ὅτι ἔκδικος ὁ Θεὸς περὶ πάντων γίνεται· αὐτὸς ὤν ἐν κόσμῳ πραττομένων οὐδέν. Δι' ὃ ἀεὶ ἐγρήγοροι καρδίας καὶ σωφρόνως βιοῦντες, τὴν Σωσὰνναν μιμησώμεθα. Ἅγιος Ἱππόλυτος Ρώμης, Εἰς Των Σωσανναν Source:  Migne PG 10 696d-697b

And she was weeping. 1 For by her tears she attracted the Word from heaven, who with tears was to raise the dead Lazarus. And the assembly believed them. 2 We must, then, be steadfast in every affair, and give no heed to lies, and be convinced that we should not be carried off by persons in power, knowing that we have to give an account to God; for if we stand with the truth and accurately pursue the faith we shall be well-pleasing to God. And God heard her voice. 3 For Gods hears those who call upon Him from a pure heart. But God turns away His face from those who do stand in deceit and hypocrisy. You that have grown old in evil. 4 Now since at the outset we explained that the two elders are to be understood as a type of the two peoples, that of the circumcision and that of the Gentiles, they who are always opponents of the Church, let us consider the words of Daniel, and let us learn that Scripture deceives us in nothing. For, addressing the first elder, he reproves him as one who is schooled in the Law, but he addresses the other as a Gentile, calling him 'seed of Canaan,' although he was of the circumcision. For now the angel of God. 5 It is clear that when Susannah prayed to God and was heard, then the angel was sent then to help her, just as he came to Tobias and Sara. For when they prayed, the prayer of both was heard in the same day and the same hour, and the angel Raphael was sent to heal both. And they rose up against the two elders. 6 That the saying might be fulfilled: 'He who digs a pit for his neighbour, he shall fall into it.' 7 To all these things, then, we should give heed, beloved, fearing lest anyone be seized in any transgression, being guilty in his soul, knowing that God is the Judge of all things, whom nothing done in the world escapes. Therefore, always watchful in heart and prudent in life, let us imitate Susanna.  Saint Hippolytus of Rome, On Susanna 1 Dan 13.35 2 Dan 13.41 3 Dan 13.44 4 Dan 13.52 5 Daniel 13.55 6 Dan 13.61 7 Prov 26.27

Angels And Announcements

Quid est quod dicit: Et audivi vocem viri inter Ulai, et clamavit, et ait: Gabrihel, fac intelligere istam visionem? quis ille est qui Gabrieli praecepit, ut Danielem faciat intelligere visionem? Judaei Michaelem autumant. Et cur vocatur Gabrihel, ut intelligere faciat, et non alius vocatur angelus? Quia cum visio de praeliis erat, regumque certaminibus, immo regnorum successionibus, dignum erat ut Gabrihel, qui praepositus est praeliis, huic officio manciparetur.   Quare tempore quo erat Dominus nasciturus, ad Zachariam et ad Mariam Gabrihel missus est, et non alius angelus? Quia, ut dictum est, praeliis est praepositus, indicturus bellum daemonibus, et triumphaturus de mundo venit. Petrus Archidiaconus  Liber De Diversis Quaestiunculis  Source:  Migne 96 1356

What is this that is said: And I heard the voice of a man between the Ulai gates And it called out and said, 'Gabriel, give understanding to this vision. 1 Who is it that commands Gabriel that he give understanding to the vision of Daniel? The Jews say it is Michael. And why is Gabriel called, that he give understanding, and not some other angel? Because the vision was about war, and the strife of kingdoms, and the successions of kingdoms, and rightly was it Gabriel, he who is first placed in struggles, who was given this office. Why in the time when the Lord was to be born was Gabriel send to Zachariah and Mary and not some other angel? Because, as said, he is first placed in struggles, and he came to declare the war against devils and the triumph over the world. Peter of Pisa, The Book of Diverse Questions 1 Dan 8.16

A Kingly Mortification

Et abiit rex in domum suam, et dormivit incoenatus... Quanta regis benevolentia, ut cibum nec die nec nocte caperet; somnum oculis non concederet: sed cum perielitante propheta ipse penderet affectu. Si autem rex nesciens Deum, hoc facit pro altero, quem vult de discrimine liberari: quanto magis nos pro peccatis propriis inedia et vigiliis debemus Deum ad clementiam flectere. Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentaria in Daniel, Caput VI Source:  Migne PL 25.526a

And the king went away to his house, and slept without eating... 1 How great was the benevolence of the king, that he did not take food day or night, nor gave sleep to his eyes, but was oppressed while the Prophet was endangered. If even a king ignorant of God did this for another, for one whom he wished to be freed from peril, how much more should we fast for our own sins and take to vigils for God, that He be merciful to us. Saint Jerome, from the Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 6 1 Dan 6.8

Errant Clergy

Qui vero crediti quidem sunt a multis esse presbyteri, serviunt autem suis voluptatibus, et non praeponunt timorem Dei in cordibus suis, sed contumelis agunt reliquos, et principalis concessionis tumore elati sunt, et in absconsis agunt mala, et dicunt. 'Nemo vos videt'  redarguentur a Verbo, qui non secundum gloriam judicat, neque faciem attendit, sed in cor: et audient eas quae sunt a Daniele propheta voces: Semen Chanaan, et non Juda, species seduxit te, et concupiscentia evertit cor tuum; inveterate dierum malorum, nunc advenerunt peccata tua quae faciebas ante, judicans judicia injusta: et innocentes quidem damnabas, dimittebas vero nocentes, dicente Domino: Innocentem et justum non occides. De quibus dixit et Dominus: Si autem dixerit malus servus in corde suo: Tardat dominus meus, et incipiat caedere servos et ancillas, et manducare, et bibere, et inebriari; veniet dominus servi illius in die qua nescit, et hora qua non sperat, et dividet eum, et partem ejus cum infidelibus ponet. Sanctus Irenaeus Lugdunensis, Adversus Haereses, Liber IV, Caput XXVI Source: Migne PG 7.1054b-c

Those, however, who are believed by many to be presbyters, but attend to their own pleasures, and do not place the fear of God highest in their hearts, but conduct themselves with contempt towards others, and are puffed up being raised to the chief place, and do evil in secret, saying, 'No one sees us,' 1 shall be convicted by the Word, who does not judge according to outward glory, nor looks upon the countenance, but into the heart; and they shall hear these words, which are spoken by Daniel the prophet: 'O you seed of Canaan, and not of Judah, beauty has deceived you and lust has perverted your heart.' 2 And: 'You have grown old amid wicked days and now your sins have come before you; for you have judged unjustly and have condemned the innocent, and let the guilty go free, though the Lord says: You shall not slay the innocent and the righteous.' 3 Concerning which the Lord said: 'But if the wicked servant shall say in his heart: My lord delays in His coming, and he begins to beat the servants and handmaids, and to eat and drink and be drunken; the Lord of that servant will come for him on a day he does not know, and in an hour that he is not aware of, and He shall separate him and appoint his portion with the faithless.' 4   Saint Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies, Book 4, Chapter 26 1 Dan 13.20 2 Dan 13.56 3 Dan 13.52-53 4 Mt 24.48

The Golden Statue

Quid per statuam auream intelligendum est, quam fecit Nabochodonosor rex Per regem illum et per statuam intellegimus omnes haereticos, qui fulgore eloquentiae saecularis falsum dogma componunt. Petrus Archidiaconus  Liber De Diversis Quaestiunculis, Questiones In Danielem  Source:  Migne PL 96 1349

What is to be understood by the golden statue that was made by king Nebuchadnezzar? 1 By that king and statue we understand all heretics who amid the blaze of worldly eloquence fashion their false teachings. Peter of Pisa, The Book of Diverse Questions, Questions on Daniel 1 Dan 3.1

Refusing Gifts

Ad quae respondens Daniel ait coram rege: Munera tua sint tibi: et dona domus tuae alteri da... Aemulemur Danielem, Regis dignitatem et munera contemnentem, qui absque pretio proferens veritatem jam illo tempore praeceptum Evangelicum sequebatur: Gratis acceptistis, gratis date. Alioqui, e trisitia nuntiantem, indecens erat libenter dona suscipere. Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentaria in Daniel, Caput V  Source:  Migne PL 25.520 D

Daniel answering said in the presence of the king, 'Let yours gifts be for yourself, and the things of your house give to another...' 1 Let us emulate Daniel who spurned the honour and gifts of the king, who without reward brought forth truth, already in that time following the precept of the Gospel: 'Freely you have received, freely give.' 2 Besides, announcing mournful things, it would have been indecent to receive gifts. Saint Jerome, from the Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 5 1 Dan 5.11 2 Mt 10.8

Earth And Dust

Illud quod ait Danihel,   Et ego Danihel langui et aegrotavi per dies. Hoc est illud quod in Genesi de Abraham legimus, quod postquam Deum audiverit loquentum sibi, terram et cinerem esse se dixerit Petrus Archidiaconus  Liber De Diversis Quaestiunculis, Questiones In Danielem Migne 96 1356

What does it mean that Daniel said, 'And I Daniel, languished and was sick for days? 1 This is what we read about Abraham in Genesis, who after he had heard the Lord speaking to him, named himself earth and dust. 2 Peter of Pisa, The Book of Diverse Questions, Questions On Daniel 1 Dan 8.27 2 Gen 18.27