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Dan.2:1. In the second summer of Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom, Nebuchadnezzar saw him sleepy, and his spirit was terrified, and his sleep departed from him. From this we learn that Nebuchadnezzar, having begun to reign, soon and without any delay took up arms against the Jews, in the third year of Joachim’s reign, and ordered Joachim to pay tribute, taking captives, he took them to the Assyrian country. The Prophet Jeremiah also testifies to this time, saying this: the word came to Jeremiah against all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Joachim the son of Joshin, king of Judah: that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon (Jer. 25:1). Therefore, we find here that King Nebuchadnezzar, under Joachim, when the third year of his reign was completed, made a militia against the Jews. The prophet Jeremiah, offering his admonition to the people at the beginning of the fourth year, said that this was the first year for King Nebuchadnezzar. And blessed Daniel said that the first captivity was in the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, now he added: “in the second year, the kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar saw Nebuchadnezzar,” and he added this not without intention, but so that we would know exactly the time. For this reason, the divine Prophets, when mentioning kings, also mean the number of years. So “in the second summer of Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom, Nebuchadnezzar saw a dream, and his spirit was terrified, and his sleep departed from him.” Dan.2:2. And the king spoke to call the charmers and the magicians and the sorcerers and the Chaldeans, so that he could tell the king his dream. For those who understand, God's economy is visible in this: wanting His Prophet to make his dream known to the king, and as a result of this, the king accepted good and saving advice, God frightens the king with sleep, and takes away the remembrance of sleep. But just as the providence of the God of all is obvious, so the madness of the king is also visible to everyone who is pious. For is it not extreme clouding of the mind for others to demand that they remember his dream? However, the Prophet says: Those called “came and stood before the king.” Dan.2:3. And the king said to them: I saw a dream, and my spirit was horrified because I understood the dream. Dan.2:4. And the Chaldeans spoke to the Sirian king, and said: O king, live forever: tell your servant a dream, and we will tell you its tale. Their request was truly in accordance with reason, but the promise was arrogant; because it is not the job of the human mind to interpret divine revelations without assistance from above. The Chaldeans spoke Syrian because they were gathered from different peoples, who, although each had their own language, but in common use they all had the Syrian language, and they wanted to show the fairness of the answer. But even this did not convince the proud king not to demand from people what is above nature. Dan.2:5. The king immediately answered with a Chaldean speech: the word has departed from Me: if you do not tell me the dream, and its legends, you will be destroyed, and your houses will be plundered.” Dan.2:6. If you tell me the dream and its story, you will receive gifts and gifts and much honor from Me: just tell me the dream and its story. This shows not only the insolence and brutality, but also the extreme foolishness of the king. For it is the extreme limit of foolishness to think that from the threat of disasters, or from the promise of blessings, knowledge will come to the Chaldeans. Therefore the Chaldeans answered him: Dan.2:7. Tell the dream to your servant, and we will proclaim its tale. We are aware of our slavery, they say, but we are also aware of our nature; we will be able to interpret the dream, if we recognize it; We cannot tell you about a dream that was revealed to you and then forgotten by you. Nevertheless, this vain one insisted, demanding that he be reminded of the dream. Dan.2:8. And the king answered, it was said, and said: “Truly I know that you are redeeming the time: yet you see how the word has departed from Me.” Dan.2:9. If you don’t tell me a dream, one definition about you, we know that you spoke a false word and corruptly before me, until the time has passed: tell me my dream, and let us know that you tell me its legend. The demand contained in these words is stubborn and insane, but the accusation is very fair: you want to know the dream, says the king, so that, having jointly drawn up some false interpretation, as usual, deceive me, accepting the duration of time as an aid, and waiting for the time of fulfillment. Having heard this, the Chaldeans (they probably had more boldness before the king than others) give a decisive answer and completely refuse to remind him of the dream. Daniel 2:10. There is no man on earth, they said, who can proclaim the word of a king, as if everyone is a great king, and the prince does not question the word of a charmer, a sorcerer and a Chaldean. Daniel 2:11. Because the word, which the king asks him, is difficult, and there is no other way to proclaim it before the king, but rather God, who cannot live with all flesh. It is not something possible, as you think; demand from us what is human, and not what is above nature. For those who reign, it is most fitting to rule the kingdom fairly and demand what is possible from their subjects; what you demand now, you demand unfairly; because such knowledge is not characteristic of people surrounded by flesh, but of disembodied nature, which knows everything exactly. This was said by the Chaldeans, but this was foreshadowed, which was later proclaimed by Daniel. Because the Chaldeans said that it is not common for people, but for gods to know this: then the godly Daniel reminds the king of a dream, very accurately and clearly interprets it, and teaches the king that such knowledge does not belong to people who creep on the earth, and not to non-existent gods, but to God who created everything. But each of these sayings will have a decent interpretation in its place. Daniel 2:12. Then the king, says the Prophet, in rage and in anger, spoke many times to destroy all the wisdom of Babylon. Daniel 2:13. And the commandment went forth, and the wisdom was killed: and he sought Daniel and his friends, and killed them. The tormentor, and not the king, is characterized by this stubbornness; it is clearly illegal and alien to any justice; arrogance and arrogance, having arrogated power to themselves, are plotting the destruction of those who are subject to the Jews. But the divine Daniel, seeing this unjust beating, asks Apioxa, who was entrusted with carrying out such a brutal murder: Daniel 2:15. Prince of Tsars, why did that cold saying come from the face of the Tsar? Daniel probably did not know, and was not called into the assembly of the wise of Babylon; because three years had not yet passed, during which the king of Babylon ordered to feed them with royal food, so that, after the expiration of the appointed period, he would bring them to the king. And if the Prophet told before this that they entered and, turning out to be better, were preferred to others: then let no one be surprised at this; for, intending to finish that story, he clearly showed everything that happened then; then he moves on to another story about what happened in the meantime. And that Daniel was not yet among those who had boldness before the king, when the king gathered the wise men of Babylon, this is evidenced by his ignorance of the unjust beating; because I asked Apioxa about it, not knowing the reason. And when he found out, he dared to speak to the king and ask the king to give him a little time to reveal the dream and find an interpretation. Then the Prophet reveals to us the method of this research, not seeking his own glory in this, but calling us to similar thoroughness. Daniel 2:17. And down, it is said, Daniel went to his house, and proclaimed the word to Hananiah, Azariah, and Mishael, his friend. Daniel 2:18. And I ask the heavenly God for generosity about this mystery, so that Daniel and his friends and the other wise Babylonians will not perish. There is truly a great distance between truth and lies. The workers of lies are deprived of God's help, and driven only by human thoughts alien to piety, they speak and do everything to deceive people; the disciples of the truth do not dare to say or do anything without help from above: leaving the fulfillment of their requests to the supervising Providence over everything, they remain motionless and unshakable, and are not carried away here and there, but are free from the storm of human thoughts. And to this is the witness of the godly wise Daniel, who, without asking for a short time to open the dream, did not spend it in reflection, but in petition and prayer, and did not rely on himself alone, but invited his peers to the promise in prayer. And he was not deceived in his hope. Daniel 2:19. Then, it is said, the secret was revealed to Daniel in a dream at night: and Daniel bless the God of heaven. Daniel 2:20. And he said: Blessed be the name of the Lord God from everlasting to everlasting: for His wisdom and meaning are. Daniel 2:21. And He changes times and years, appoints kings, and reposes, giving wisdom to the wise, and understanding to those who lead understanding. Daniel 2:22. He is revealed by the deep, and the hidden, the knowledgeable, existing in darkness, and there is light with Him. The prophet shows his gratitude in everything, and not only composes a song, but makes the content of it the discovery of a dream, and says: it is appropriate to constantly sing songs of praise to the ever-present and eternal God, this source of wisdom and understanding - God, who rules everything with justice and goodness, by changing circumstances exposes the fragility of human prosperity, and clearly shows His power to everyone. For, having installed kings, he again without difficulty deposes them, and having given power, he takes it away when he wants. He is the giver of both wisdom and reason, giving this not just to everyone, but to those who want to know Him; as soon as he desires, he reveals something that has never appeared before, but as if hidden in some depth, because it has not yet come into being; and, like the mental Light, living in the unapproachable light, precisely knows everything that exists in the darkness. Daniel 2:23. Therefore, God of my fathers, I confess and praise you, because you have given wisdom and strength to me: and now you have declared to me what I asked you, as you have told me the vision of the king, to tell the king. Such are the souls of the pious; they know that God is the provider of needs; they flock to His refuge; and when benefits are given to them, they cannot consign the remembrance of the gifts to oblivion, but through hymns they repay the benefactor God. What is worthy of note in this divine man is his modest way of thinking about himself. For, while he was praying, he accepted his peers into prayerful fellowship, and composing a song of praise for the gift he had received, he mentioned them again - he did not say: “Thou hast declared unto me,” what I asked of Thee, but: “Thou hast declared unto me what I asked of thee.” With this the Prophet concluded the divine song, and immediately, he says, Daniel 2:24. Daniel came to Arioch, whom the king had commanded to destroy the wise of Babylon, and said to him: Do not destroy the wise of Babylon, but bring me before the king, and I will tell the story of the dream to the king. And this mercy is fitting for the Prophet; for not only did he and his friends want to get rid of the unjust killing, but they also care about the salvation of the Chaldeans, hoping by this miracle to deliver them from wickedness and bring them to the God of all. Daniel 2:25. Arioch, having heard these words, eagerly brought Daniel before the king, and said to him: I have found a man from the sons of the captivity of Judah, whose story he will tell the king. And from this we again clearly see that the king had not yet seen the experiments of Daniel’s virtue. And if he had known Daniel, then Arioch would not have said vaguely: “I have found a man” from the sons of the captivity of Judah, “whose story he will tell the king.” Daniel 2:26. The king, being glad of this, spoke to Daniel, whose name was Belshazzar: Can you tell me the dream that I saw and its legend? It should also be noted that the Prophet does not always call himself Belshazzar, but only when he speaks with the king who gave him this name. Meanwhile, to the question: can a dream and its legend be announced to the king, he answered, saying: Daniel 2:27. The secrets that the king asks, there are wise men, magicians, charmers Gazarins to announce to the king. Daniel 2:28. But there is a God in heaven, reveal secrets. A wonderful start to learning! Having rejected the host of these unreasonable ones, and having discovered their powerlessness, he said that God is the teacher of the revelation of secrets; he added: “in heaven,” thereby sweeping away existing and worshiped gods, and with the name of the singular he will sweep away many non-existent gods, and by the fact that God dwells in heaven, he shows that those visible in the past are not gods, but a deception produced by human art. This is the God “to proclaim to King Nebuchadnezzar, whom it is fitting to be in the last days.” Taking advantage of such a beginning, the ear of the kings is again inclined to favor with a blessing; for he says: O king, live forever. Because he must tell the dream, add an interpretation, and predict to the king the destruction of the kingdom; then, starting his speech, he says: my desire is for you to live forever; Therefore, do not attribute to me what the dream reveals to you. Then he says Your dream and the vision of your head on your bed, this is for the king; that is, this is what you saw at night. Daniel 2:29. Your thoughts have risen up in your bed, as it should be on these. Lying on your couch, says the Prophet, you were pondering whether you would live forever, or, according to the general law for people, you would suffer death; He also wanted to know what had not yet happened, and “Reveal the secrets that should exist.” Everywhere the Prophet preaches one God, rejecting the charm of polytheism: then he shows the modesty of thoughts about himself; for he says: Daniel 2:30. It is not because of the wisdom that exists in me, more than all those living, that this mystery was revealed, but for the sake of this, that I may proclaim the story to the king, so that you may understand the thoughts of your heart. This revelation, says the Prophet, I was granted not because I am wiser than all people, but so that you know what it is desirable for you to know; God used me, as His servant, to be a servant of this knowledge. So he begins the explanation, and first he tells the dream itself. Daniel 2:31. You, O king, have seen: this body is one, it is a great body, and its appearance is high, standing before your face, and its image is terrible. Daniel 2:32. The body, its head is pure from gold, its arm and chest and muscles are silver, its belly and thighs are copper, Daniel 2:33. The shins are iron, but some of them are iron, and some of them are poor. In the above words, the Prophet allowed us to see four substances: gold, silver, copper, iron; He spoke about clay, not as a separate substance, but as mixed with iron; means by these substances the greatest and most universal kingdoms, which one after another possessed most of the universe. For it is clear that there were other kingdoms, as we see even now, but it is not clear that they prevailed over all, or over most of the kingdoms; on the contrary, they possessed one or two nations. So the Prophet says that the first of all dominions belonged to the Assyrians, or, which is the same, to the Babylonians; because both of them are Assyrians, but first they had their capital in Nin - a city the Jews called Nineveh, and then in Babylon. And that the kingdom of both is one and the same, the Prophet himself testifies to this; for, interpreting the dream, he says: “You are the golden head of the king” (Dan. 2:38). And the blessed Prophet Jeremiah says: “The golden cup of Babylon is in the hand of the Lord, giving the whole earth to drink, feeding the nations with its wine, and for this reason it shook.” and “Babylon suddenly fell and was crushed” (Jer. 51, 7.8). And if besides this there was another kingdom of Assyria, its oldest, then what substance would the Prophet call it? But the divine Moses also testifies that this is really so. For in Genesis, having said about Nimrod that he was “a giant fisher before the Lord,” he added: “and the beginning of his kingdom was Babylon, Nut and Chalani” (Gen. 10, 9.10). And the pagan writers call the Babylonians Assyrians; to this day the Persians call this kingdom Assyria. Therefore, the first substance, namely gold, signifies the kingdom of the Assyrians and Babylonians; The Prophet calls him the head, as he was the first. And the second, that is, silver, is the kingdom of the Persians and the Medes, because Cyrus, descended from both of them, on his mother from the Medes, on his father from the Persians, crushed the kingdom of the Assyrians and Babylonians, and transferred royal power to the Persians. The Prophet called it Persians and Muscles to show kinship with two peoples, because the right hand signifies the family of the fathers, and the left – the maternal family, and the mutual connection of the hands is entrusted to the Persians, in which the heart, the secret of thoughts, is contained, and marriage contracts are also made with thoughts. The Prophet called the kingdom of Macedonia copper, which appeared after the Persian kingdom and also took possession of everything. He gave him a belly and stegna, signifying the belly of Alexander’s Monarchy, and the stegna, after his death, the former division of the kingdom. And he called the kingdom of Rome iron, and it successively followed the Macedonian one. The Prophet gave him the shins, as parts of the body, located at the end of the whole body, and capable of carrying the whole body. And he called the feet of the feet iron, and the very legs together iron and meager; and this makes it clear that not another kingdom will come, but the same one will become weaker than itself, and meager instability will be mixed into it. He applies different substances to the kingdoms, signifying the difference not in honor, but in power; because silver is more cohesive than gold, copper is harder than silver, and iron is more dense than copper itself. Therefore, the difference is not in honor, but in strength and strength. It is necessary to examine why the Prophet saw a combination of these substances in the body; for nothing is revealed by God to all without purpose and in vain. Body image is only an appearance, not reality. And this is real life; it has nothing lasting or permanent. That is why blessed Paul cried out: “The image of this world is passing away” (1 Cor. 7:3); and in another place offers advice, saying: “Do not be conformed to this age” (Rom. 12:2). And blessed David, exposing the vanity of human well-being, says: “Besides, every living person is all vanity. For a man walks like this: he treasures treasures, and I don’t know who will gather them” (Psalm 38:6,7). So, since real life also has rapid changes, because everything visible is mortal, and temporary, and fleeting, and the image does not have the power of real things, but only shows the external appearance of kings, princes and subjects, and besides this, the appearance is easily destructible; then the God of all, intending to teach this proud king the vanity of human arrogance, and to teach him that everything human is manifold, very opportunely presents to him in a dream the image of a body, and divides its parts according to substances, thus depicting the frequent succession of kings one after another, and certifying to everyone that He alone has an unceasing, beginningless and endless power, in one word: an eternal kingdom. To this, blessed Daniel, revealing the rest of the dream, adds: Daniel 2:34. You saw that a stone was torn away from the mountain without hands, and struck the body with an iron nose, and the poor, and their truths to the end. Then the iron, stale, copper, silver and gold were shaken off: and it became like dust from the summer threshing floor: and I took a great wind, and the place was not found for it, and the stone struck the body and became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth This is the end of the dream. We must begin our interpretation from below. Therefore, let us ask first: who, called a stone, and being small in the beginning, later turned out to be very great, and covered the universe with himself? Therefore, let us listen to what God Himself says through the mouth of the Prophet Isaiah: “I lay in Zion a stone of great value, a cornerstone, honorable, chosen as its foundation, and everyone who believes in it will not be ashamed” (Is. 28:16). Let us listen to what blessed David foretells and cries: “the stone that was heedlessly built, this will become the cornerstone” (Psalm 117:22). This testimony was presented to the Jews by the Lord Christ Himself in the Holy Gospel, saying: “Are you bearing this? the stone, which was not created in a series of creations, this quickly became the cornerstone. This came from the Lord, and it is marvelous in your eyes” (Matthew 21:42). And blessed Peter in his speech to the Jews, citing the prophecy of the Lord, says: “This is the stone rooted from you who built it, which was the head of the corner” (Acts 4:11). And blessed Paul says: “on the foundation that was once an apostle and a prophet, which is the chief cornerstone of Jesus Christ himself” (Eph. 2, 20); and in another place: “No one can lay a foundation more than the one that lies, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 3.11); and again: “I drink from the spiritual stone, and the stone is Christ” (1 Cor. 10:3). So from the Old and New Testaments we learn that our Lord Jesus Christ is called a stone. For He was “cut off from the mountain without hands,” being born of a Virgin without marital communion. Divine Scripture often calls supernatural birth a cutting of stone. Isaiah, reminding the Jews of the supernatural birth from Abraham, said: “look at the hard stone, from which it was quickly cut” (Is. 51: 1). Therefore, the family of David is a mountain, and Christ, according to humanity, is a stone, cut off not according to the law of nature. He, who in ancient times seemed small, because of the nature in which he was clothed, suddenly turned out to be a very great mountain, filling the whole universe; because “the whole earth is filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the sea is covered with abundant water” (Is. 11:9). He will strike “the body in the nose of the meager and iron,” that is, he will put an end to the last kingdom, make it disappear, be destroyed; because this kingdom will not be followed successively by another kingdom, but the Lord will open his kingdom and make it obvious to everyone. All these kings and the very memory will disappear, like dust rising from the threshing floor and blown by the wind. So the Prophet, having told the king the whole dream, added: Daniel 2:36–37. This is a dream, and its telling is a speech before the king. You are the king, the king of kings. The Prophet did not say this out of flattery, but used the usual name; because under the power of the king were all the rulers of the people, called kings. You, O king, king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given a strong, powerful and honorable kingdom. Daniel 2:38. But every place. It is not by human power, says the Prophet, that you have overcome everyone, but by the power of God, who has the kingdom of heaven, who has given you this power to rule over people living “in every place” and to reign. And you have given the beasts to eat, and the birds of the air, food into your hand, and you have made you ruler over all. He calls barbarians who live like beasts like beasts, and birds - those who are adorned with prudence, above other people, and who soar with their minds. Over all of them, says the Prophet, God has made you king. Therefore, “thou art the golden head,” that is, the kingdom is thine; because the Prophet does not speak about a person, but about the kingdom itself. And after the death of Nebuchadnezzar, Evilmerodach reigned among the Babylonians, and after him Belshazzar. And if the Prophet said about the face of Nebuchadnezzar: “You are the golden head;” then how to understand the words: “After you, another kingdom will arise, smaller than you?” For by this the Prophet does not point to the reign of his sons, but to the kingdom of Persia. Therefore, the “golden head” is not Nebuchadnezzar himself, but the entire kingdom of the Assyrians or Babylonians. Daniel 2:39. And after you there will arise another kingdom smaller than you, kingdom of Persia. The Prophet calls him lesser, not as weaker, but as second. And the third kingdom, which is copper, will overcome all the earth. Means the kingdom of Macedon; Alexander, the son of Philip, conquered the whole earth, conquering all the people in his twelve years of reign. Daniel 2:40. And the fourth kingdom will be as strong as iron: just as iron becomes thinner and softens everything, so will everything become thinner and thinner. The Prophet understands the kingdom of Rome, which was the most powerful, and one might say, overcame all nations, collecting taxes and tributes from everyone. Expressing this, the Prophet used the word: “istonit”, and by the word: “istnit” he meant obedience, piety and legalized civil regulations. Daniel 2:41. And you saw the nose, and the fingers, part of it was some kind of iron, and part of it was some kind of clay, the kingdom will be divided, and from the roots of iron will be in it, just as you saw iron mixed with clay. The prophet called the kingdom different not according to its kind, but according to the quality of its power. А если бы разумел иное по роду, то назвал бы его пятым, как поименовал третье и четвертое. But since he knew that the end of the iron kingdom would be weaker, he very rightly, because of this weakness, used the word: “other.” For above he showed it to be very strong, and such was its beginning. However, the Prophet does not say that his end will be completely weak. It is said: “From the roots there will be iron in it, just as I saw iron mixed with clay.” Daniel 2:42. And the fingers are reaped, some of them are of iron, and some of them are of clay. This does not need our interpretation, because the Prophet himself interprets it and says: A part of a certain kingdom will be strong, and will be crushed by it. Daniel 2:43. For I saw that if iron were mixed with clay, the race of men would be mixed. And this shows that this is not another kingdom except the iron one, but the same one has come into weakening, and one part of it is strong, and part is weakened. However, ties of kinship connect the weak part with the strong one. For this is what the words mean: “there will be confusion among the tribe of men.” There will be some mixing through marriage between both; however, discord will distort the rights of kinship; because there will be no attachment to each other, just as iron does not mix with clay. This is how we understand the interpretation of the God-wise Daniel. But it is necessary to bring to light the opinions of others who interpreted this before us; in this case, the truth will be more clearly visible. So, some of the writers asserted that the fourth kingdom, that is, iron, is Alexander the Great, and the legs and fingers of the feet, made of iron and clay, were after him the reigning Macedonians, Ptolemies, Seleuci, Antiochus, Demetrius, of whom, some weakly, and others very courageously, controlled the power, and through marriages entered into kinship. But they should have known, firstly, that the Prophet called Nebuchadnezzar himself the golden head, that is, the kingdom of Babylon or Assyria, and he was followed by succession by the kingdom of Persia and Media, because Cyrus came from both peoples, and possessing both, after the destruction of the kingdom of Babylon, he reigned over the Persians. The Persian kingdom, that is, the second, was crushed by Alexander the Great, and he, as blessed Daniel said, overcame “the whole earth.” The Prophet named this kingdom the third; it was followed by succession not by another kingdom, but by the Roman one. Therefore, the interpreters first of all had to understand and find out from the number of kingdoms and from the indicated circumstances that the kingdom of Macedonia, that is, copper, is the third, and the kingdom of Rome, that is, iron, is the fourth. If this seemed very unclear to them, then they should have judged the entire prophecy by the end of it. For the Prophet, after pointing to the weak and meager end of the iron kingdom, added: Daniel 2:44. And in the days of those kings, that is, those in which there was a mixture of clay and iron, and who entered into mutual kinship, but did not acquire unanimity from kinship. God of heaven will establish the kingdom in “It will never crumble, and its kingdom will not remain for other people, it will be consumed and scattered, the whole kingdom will become the same forever.” Daniel 2:45. Just as you saw a stone cut off from a mountain without hands, and it turned out clay, iron, copper, silver, gold. This directly shows the end of present affairs and the endlessness of the kingdom of heaven. For when the iron kingdom comes into exhaustion and allows an admixture of clay into itself, then a stone will appear, cut off without “hands”, it will wear away and turn clay, iron, copper, silver and gold completely into nothing, and will give to those worthy of the kingdom a kingdom that is not successive, eternal and endless. For it is said: “it will not crumble forever, and it will not remain among people, it will thin out and all the kingdoms will be destroyed forever.” If anyone argues and does not agree to understand this in this way, then let him indicate something eternal in human affairs, and some human kingdom that will not have an end. For it is meaningless and extremely unreasonable to expect the end of the present age and to assert that any kingdom in this life will be endless. If they also recognize that these words mean the kingdom that God will give to those who are worthy; it follows that the Prophet did not call the Macedonian kingdom iron, because during its dominance real life did not come to an end; On the contrary, the kingdom of Rome, having destroyed the kingdom of Macedon, rules the helm of the universe. If they say that these words signify the first coming of the Lord; then let them prove that Roman rule was crushed soon after the coming of our Savior. But we find something completely opposite: together with the birth of the Savior, it strengthened and did not collapse. For the greatest Christmas was during the reign of Augustus, and he was the second king, and, one might say, made all people his subjects, wrote, according to the Gospel word, “the whole universe” (Luke 2:1), and legalized the payment of tribute. The Roman kingdom, which strengthened under him, still stands today. Therefore, if the first birth of the Lord did not crush Roman rule, then it remains therefore to understand His second coming. For the previously cut-off Stone without hands, having become a great mountain and covering the universe, at His second coming “will strike the body in the nose of the poor,” that is, it will appear at the very end of the iron kingdom, which has already become powerless; and will crush and consign to oblivion all dominion, and will bestow His eternal kingdom on those who are worthy. Having interpreted this thus, Daniel, of necessity, added: The great God is to be proclaimed to the king, as it behooves him to continue to be; and the dream is true, the legend is true. The care of the God of all for all people is worthy of wonder; because he does not leave those who live in wickedness without His Providence for them, but he also honors them with all care for them, just as now he did not leave this bestial and evil barbarian neglected, but first in revelations shows him the fragility of well-being in this life, and the transience of the kingdom itself, and also that in human well-being nothing is permanent, but everything is like flowers or lilies fade or fall off. And this was enough to overthrow his pride, his arrogant arrogance, and convince him to think about himself as a human being, to expect the end of both life and kingdom. Therefore, in this, God first takes care of the king, and then, by forgetting sleep, exposes the falsity of the Magi and Chaldeans, shows the truth of His servants, and through the wisdom of the servants manifests His Divine power, and attracts to worship those who are ignorant to worship Him, who demand worship from everyone, and forces His holy servants to worship. And history shows us this. For it is said: Daniel 2:46. Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and bowed to Daniel, and said, offering gifts and incense to him. Think how much it means that this proud and madman, who considered himself a god (for God speaks to him through the mouth of another Prophet: “You are a man and not God” (Ezek. 28:2)), who subjugated all people to himself, worships a captive Jew, taking the place of a slave, and thinks that through him he is worshiping his God. For for this reason the king commanded “gifts and incense to be poured out to him,” that is, to bring him incense and incense. The story makes it clear that the king ordered this to be done by the priests who were revered by them: because the one who bowed, of course, would have brought the incense himself if it had been customary for him to officiate. Since this was, without a doubt, decent for others; then he himself does not dare to do what did not belong to him, but orders others to do it, to whom it was usual. And in order not to give himself the idea that he is worshiping man in vain, Nebuchadnezzar says to Daniel: Dan.2:47. Truly your God is the one. God of gods, and Lord of kings, reveal secrets, even as you were able to reveal the secret of this. The Ruler of all things rendered him so much benefit both by sleep and by forgetting sleep. First, he recognized his own smallness, and then he experienced the powerlessness of the gods whom he worshiped, and beyond this, he became aware of the power of the Existing God. That is why he cried out: “Truly your God, who is the God of gods and the Lord of kings, reveal the mysteries.” He calls the gods God not in the sense of the Divine Scripture, because the Divine Scripture calls those who have been awarded the priesthood gods. It is said: “Do not speak evil of the gods, and do not speak evil to the ruler of your people” (Ex. 22:28). And he called idols gods, because he still could not fully understand their powerlessness, but he recognized the difference. That is why he calls the God of all and the God of gods and the Lord of kings. Having thus confessed this, Daniel 2:48. Magnify Daniel, and give him many gifts, and set him over the whole country of Babylon, and a prince over the commanders, and over all the wise men of Babylon. And this is characteristic of God’s care. The prince's piety brings very great benefit to his subjects. This is what the Lord did with Joseph; Briefly describing what happened to him and hymning the Providence of God, blessed David says: “He sent a man before them, and Joseph was sold as a slave” (Psalm 104:17). Then, having counted the misfortunes that befell him, mentioning prison and bonds, he added: “The king sent an ambassador, and the prince of the people released him, and let him go. Make him lord of his house, and ruler of all his wealth: punish his princes as he would his own, make his elders wise” (Psalm 104:20-22). This is what the Ruler of all did here. For, having appointed the blessed Daniel as the prince of the governor and wise Babylonians, he presented in him an example of piety and all virtue. However, the Prophet did not agree to use his honor alone, but he accepted those who were accomplices in prayer as accomplices and honor. For it is said: Daniel 2:49. Ask the king, and put Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, and Daniel in charge of the affairs of the country of Babylon in the king’s court.” And this is similar to the teaching of the Apostle. For he says: “Now remain faith, hope, and these three loves: greater than these are loves” (1 Cor. 13:13). And this divine Prophet loved God with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his strength, and with all his strength; Having loved ardently, he sincerely believed, and sincerely believed, he hoped to receive God's help; and having received what he hoped for, he showed love to his neighbor, and made his peers partakers of what he himself received. “And the tree was ordained, for our punishment it was written: that through patience and the consolation of the Scriptures, the hope of the Imams” (Rom. 15:4) about Christ Jesus, with whom be glory to the Father with the Holy Spirit forever and ever! Amen.