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Demonstration V.—Of Wars.
1. This reflection has befallen me at this time concerning the shaking that is to take place at this time, and the
host that has assembled itself for the sword. The times were
disposed beforehand by God. The times of peace are fulfilled in
the days of the good and just; and the times of many evils are
fulfilled in the days of the evil and transgressors. For it is
thus written:—Good must happen and blessed is he through whom
it shall come to pass; and evil must happen, but woe to him through
whom it shall come to pass.729
| 729 Apocryphal; see Ps.
Clem., Homil. xii. 29. | Good
has come to the people of God, and blessedness awaits that man through
whom the good came. And evil is stirred up as regards the host
that is gathered together by means of the evil and arrogant one who
glories; and woe also is there reserved for him through whom the evil
is stirred up. But do not, my beloved, reproach the evil person
who has inflicted evil upon many; because the times were beforehand
disposed and the time of their accomplishment has arrived.
2. Therefore because it is the time of the Evil One, hear in mystery that which I am writing for thee. For
thus it is written:—Whatsoever is exalted amongst men is
despicable before God.730
And again it
is written:—Everyone who exalteth himself shall be abased, and
everyone who humbleth himself shall be exalted.731
Also Jeremiah said:—Let
not the mighty glory in his might, nor the rich in his
riches.732
And again
the blessed Apostle said:—Whosoever glorieth, let him glory in
the Lord.733
And David
said:—I saw the wicked exalted and lifted up as the cedar of
Lebanon; and when I passed by he was not, and I sought him and found
him not.734
3. For every one that glories shall be
humbled. Cain gloried over Abel his brother and slew him.
And he was cursed and became a fugitive and a vagabond in the
earth. Again the Sodomites gloried over Lot, and there fell upon
them fire from heaven and burned them up and their city was overthrown
upon them. And Esau gloried
over Jacob and persecuted him, and Jacob received the birthright and
blessings of Esau. And the children of Jacob gloried over Joseph,
and (afterwards) fell down and worshipped him in Egypt. And
Pharaoh gloried over Moses and over his people; and Pharaoh and his
host were drowned in the sea. And Dathan and Abiram gloried over
Moses, and they went down alive to Sheol. And Goliath threatened
David, and he fell before him and was crushed. And again Saul
persecuted David, and he fell by the sword of the Philistines.
And Absalom exalted himself against him, and Joab slew him in the
battle. Again Benhadad gloried over Ahab, and he was delivered
into the hand of Israel. And Sennacherib blasphemed against
Hezekiah and his God, and his host became dead carcases when one of the
Watchers went forth and slew in the camp one hundred and eighty-five
thousand at the prayer of Hezekiah and at the prayer of Prophet Isaiah,
most glorious of the Prophets. Ahab exalted himself over Micah,
and he went up and fell in Ramoth Gilead. Jezebel gloried over
Elijah, and the dogs devoured her in the portion of Jezreel.
Haman gloried over Mordecai, and his iniquity turned back upon his own
head. The Babylonians gloried over Daniel and cast him into the
den of lions, and Daniel came up victorious, and they were cast instead
of him into the den. Again the Babylonians gloried and accused
Hananiah and his companions, and they were cast into the furnace of
fire; and they came up victorious and the flame devoured the
accusers.
4. Now Nebuchadnezzar said:—I will
ascend to heaven and exalt my throne above the stars of God and sit in
the lofty mountains that are in the borders of the North.735
Isaiah said concerning
him:—Because thy heart has thus exalted thee, therefore thou
shalt be brought down to Sheol, and all that look upon thee shall be
astonished at thee.736
And Sennacherib also said thus:—I will go up to
the summit of the mountains and to the shoulders of
Lebanon.737
I will
dig and drink water and will dry up with my horses’ hoofs all the
deep rivers. And because he thus exalted himself, Isaiah
again said concerning him:—Why does the axe boast itself
against him that cutteth with it, or the saw exalt itself against him
that saweth with it, or the rod lift itself up against him that
wieldeth it?738
For thou, Sennacherib, art the axe in the hands of Him
that cuts, and thou art the saw in the hands of Him that saws, and the
rod in the hand of Him that wields thee for chastisement, and thou art
the staff for smiting. Thou art sent against the fickle people,
and again thou art ordained against the stubborn people, that thou
mayest carry away the captivity and take the spoil; and thou hast made
them as the mire of the streets for all men and for all the
Gentiles. And when thou hast done all these things, why art thou
exalted against Him Who holds thee, and why dost thou boast against Him
Who saws with thee, and why hast thou reviled the holy city? and hast
said to the children of Jerusalem:—Can your God deliver you
from my hand?739
And thou
hast dared to say:—Who is the Lord that He shall deliver you
from my hands? Because of this, hear the word of the Lord,
saying:—I will crush the Assyrian in My land, and on My
mountains will I tread him down.740
And when he shall have been crushed and trodden down,
the Virgin, the daughter of Zion, will despise him, and the daughter
of Jerusalem will shake her head and say:—Whom hast thou
reviled and blasphemed, and against whom hast thou lifted up thy
voice? Thou hast lifted up thine eyes towards heaven against the
Holy One of Israel, and by the hands of thy messengers thou hast
reviled the Lord. Now see that the hook has been forced into thy
nostrils, and the bridle into thy lips, and thou hast turned back with
thine heart crushed, who camest with thine heart uplifted.741
| 741 2 Kings xix. 21–23, 28; Is. xxxvii.
22–24, 29. | And his slaying was by the hands of
his loved ones; and in the house of his confidence,742
there was he overthrown, and fell before his god. And
truly it was right, my beloved, that his body should thus become a
sacrifice and offering before that god on whom he relied, and in his
temple, as a memorial for his idol.
5. Again the ram was lifted up and exalted, and pushed with its horns towards the west, and towards the north, and
towards the south, and humbled many beasts. And they could not
stand before him, until the he-goat came from the west and smote the
ram and broke his horns and humbled the ram completely. But the
ram was the King of Media and Persia, that is, Darius; and the he-goat
was Alexander, the son of Philip, the Macedonian. For Daniel saw
the ram when he was in the East before the gate of Shushan the
fortress that is in the province of Elam, upon the river Ulai.
And he was pushing towards the West and towards the North and towards
the South. And none of the beasts could stand before
him.743
And the
he-goat of the goats came up from the region of the Greeks, and exalted
himself against the ram. And he smote him and broke both his
horns, the greater and the lesser. And why did he say that he
broke both his horns? Clearly because he humbled both the
kingdoms which he ruled; the lesser, that of the Medes, and the
greater, that of the Persians. But when Alexander the Greek came,
he slew Darius, King of Media and Persia. For thus the angel said
to Daniel, when he was explaining the vision to him:—The ram
that thou sawest was the King of Media and Persia, and the he-goat the
King of the Greeks.744
Now, from
the time that the two horns of the ram were broken, until this time,
there have been six hundred and forty-eight years.745
| 745 This Demonstration was therefore written in the year 648 according to
the “era of the Greeks,”—i.e., reckoning from
b.c. 311–312. This year
accordingly corresponds with the year 336–7 a.d.; and the “ram.” |
6. Therefore, as for the ram, its horns are broken. And though its horns are broken, lo! it exalts and
uplifts itself against the fourth beast, that is strong and mighty
and its teeth of iron and its hoofs of brass, and it shall devour and
grind down, and trample with its feet whatsoever
remaineth.746
O Ram,
whose horns are broken, rest thou from the beast, and provoke it not
lest it devour thee and grind thee to powder. The ram could not
stand before the he-goat; how shall it stand before that terrible
beast, whose mouth speaketh great things,747
and whatsoever it finds it couches over as a lion over his prey? Whoever provokes the lion becomes its
portion; and whoever stirs up that beast, it shall devour him.
And who is there that shall escape out from under the feet of that
beast when it is trampling on him? For the beast shall not be
slain until the Ancient of Days shall sit upon the throne, and the Son
of Man shall come near before Him, and authority shall be given to
Him.748
| 748 Dan. vii. 9, 13, 14, 22" id="iii.ix.iv-p27.1" parsed="|Dan|7|9|0|0;|Dan|7|13|0|0;|Dan|7|14|0|0;|Dan|7|22|0|0" osisRef="Bible:Dan.7.9 Bible:Dan.7.13 Bible:Dan.7.14 Bible:Dan.7.22">Dan. vii. 9, 13, 14, 22. | Then shall that beast be slain
and its carcase shall perish. And the Kingdom of the Son of Man
shall be established, an eternal Kingdom, and His authority from
generation to generation.
7. Be quiet, O thou that dost exalt thyself; vaunt not thyself! For if thy wealth has lifted up thy heart, it
is not more abundant than that of Hezekiah, who went in and boasted of
it before the Babylonians, (yet) it was all of it carried away and went
to Babylon. And if thou gloriest in thy children, they shall be
led away from thee to the Beast, as the children of King Hezekiah were
led away, and became eunuchs in the palace of the King of
Babylon.749
And if thou
dost glory in thy wisdom, thou dost not in it excel the Prince of Tyre,
whom Ezekiel reproached, saying unto him:—Art thou wiser than
Daniel, or hast thou seen by thy wisdom the things that are
hid?750
And if thy
mind is puffed up by thy years, that they are many; they are not more
in number than those of the Prince of Tyre who ruled the Kingdom during
the days of twenty-two Kings of the house of Judah, that is, for four
hundred and forty years. And since the years of that King of Tyre were many, all the time he thus said in his heart, I am God and sit
in the seat of God in the heart of the seas.751
But Ezekiel said to him:
Thou art a man and thou art not God. For while the Prince
of Tyre was walking without fault in the midst of the stones of
fire, there was mercy upon him. But when his heart was lifted
up, the cherub who overshadoweth, destroyed him.752
8. Now, what are the stones of fire,
but the children of Zion and the children of Jerusalem? For in
the ancient time, in the days of David and of Solomon his son, Hiram
was a friend to those of the house of Israel. But when they were
carried away captive from their place, he rejoiced over them and
spurned them with his feet, and did not remember the friendship of the
house of David. And as to that which I said that the children of
Judah were called the stones of fire, it was not of my own
thought that I said it, but Jeremiah the Prophet spake concerning them;
for when he was calling forth tears for them in the Lamentations, he
said:—The children of Zion were more excellent than precious
stones.753
And again
he said:—How are the stones of the Sanctuary cast down at the
head of all the streets?754
And again He
said by the Prophet:—The stones were holy that were cast down
in his land.755
And as to
these very stones, the fire was burning in them, as Jeremiah
said:—The word of the Lord became in my heart like burning
fire and it was hot in my bones.756
And again He said to Jeremiah:—Lo! I give My word
in thy mouth as fire, and this people shall be as wood.757
And again He said words shall go
forth as fire, and as iron that cutteth the stone.758
On this account the Prophets,
amongst whom Hiram the Prince of Tyre was walking, were called
stones of fire.
9. And again (God) said to him:—Thou wast with the Cherub who was anointed and
overshadowing.759
For the
king, who was anointed with the holy oil, was called a Cherub.
And he was overshadowing all his people, as Jeremiah said:—The
anointed of the Lord is the breath of our nostrils, he of whom we said
that in his shadow shall we live amongst the Gentiles.760
For they were sitting in the shadow
of the king, while he was standing at their head. And when the
crown of their head fell, they were without shade. And if any one
should say that this word is spoken concerning Christ, let him receive
that which I write for him without disputation, and thus he will be
persuaded that it was said with reference to the king. For
Jeremiah said in behalf of the people:—Woe unto us, for the
crown of our head has fallen!761
But
Christ has not fallen, because He rose again the third day. For
the king fell from the house of Judah, and never again was their
kingdom set up. And as for that He said again:—I will
destroy the overshadowing Cherub.762
For
the Cherub that He will destroy is Nebuchadnezzar, as it is
written:—He performed a work in Tyre, and there was given him
by Tyre no hire for his host, and in return for the work of Tyre there
was given him the land of Egypt.763
And
why was hire not given by Tyre to Nebuchadnezzar? Clearly because
its wealth went away in the sea, so that Nebuchadnezzar did not receive
it. And at that time He destroyed the overshadowing
Cherub, which is Nebuchadnezzar. For there are two Cherubs,
one anointed and overshadowing, and one overshadowing but not
anointed. For He said above:—Thou wast with the Cherub
anointed and overshadowing.764
And lower
down He said:—I will destroy thee the overshadowing
Cherub;765
and did not say “anointed.” For Nebuchadnezzar was not anointed; but
David and Solomon were, and the other kings who arose after them.
And how was Nebuchadnezzar called overshadowing? Clearly
on account of the vision of the tree, when he saw a tree in the midst of the earth,
beneath which dwelt all the beasts of the wilderness and on its
branches dwelt all the birds of heaven, and from it all flesh was
fed. When Daniel interpreted his dream to him, Daniel said to
him:—Thou art the tree, that tree which thou sawest in the
midst of the earth and beneath thee dwell all the nations.766
On this account he was the
overshadowing Cherub; who destroyed the Prince of Tyre, because he
rejoiced over the children of Israel, for that they were carried away
captive from their land, and because his heart was exalted. This
Tyre also lay waste seventy years like Jerusalem which sat in
desolation seventy years. For Isaiah said concerning
it:—Tyre shall wander seventy years, as the days of one king,
and shall commit fornication with all the kingdoms that are upon the
face of the earth.767
10. O thou that art exalted and lifted up, let not the vaunting of thine heart mislead thee, nor say thou, I will
go up against the rich land and against the powerful beast. For
that beast will not be slain by the ram seeing that its horns are
broken. For the he-goat broke the horns of the ram.768
Now the he-goat has become the
mighty beast. For when the children of Japhet held the kingdom,
then they slew Darius, the king of Persia. Now the fourth beast
has swallowed up the third. And this third consists of the
children of Japhet, and the fourth consists of the children of Shem,
for they are the children of Esau. Because, when Daniel saw the
vision of the four beasts, he saw first the children of Ham, the seed
of Nimrod, which the Babylonians are; and secondly, the Persians and
Medes, who are the children of Japhet; and thirdly, the Greeks, the
brethren of the Medes; and fourthly, the children of Shem, which the
children of Esau are. For a confederacy was formed between the
children of Japhet and the children of Shem. Then the government
was taken away from the children of Japhet, the younger, and was given
to Shem, the elder; and to this day it continues, and will continue for
ever. But when the time of the consummation of the dominion of
the children of Shem shall have come, the Ruler, who came forth from
the children of Judah, shall receive the kingdom, when He shall come in
His second Advent.
11. For in the vision of Nebuchadnezzar, when he saw it, which Daniel made known and showed to Nebuchadnezzar,
when he saw the image which stood over against him, the head of the
image was of gold, and its breast and arms of silver, and its belly and
thighs of brass, and its legs and feet of iron and potter’s
clay.769
And Daniel
said to Nebuchadnezzar:—Thou art the head of
gold.770
And why was
he called the head of gold? Was it not because the word of
Jeremiah was fulfilled in him? For Jeremiah
said:—Babylon is a golden cup in the hand of the Lord, that
makes all the earth to drink of its wine.771
And also Babylon was called the
head of all the kingdoms, as it is written:—Babylon was the
head of the of Nimrod.772
12. And he said that the breast and the
arms of the image were of silver. This signified concerning a
kingdom which was inferior to it; namely, Darius the Mede. For
(God) put the kingdom into the balance. For the kingdom of the
house of Nimrod was weighed and was found wanting. And since it
was wanting, Darius received it. Because of this he said that
his kingdom was inferior.773
And because it was inferior, the children of Media did not
rule in all the earth. Now the belly and thighs of the image
were of brass, and he said:—The third kingdom shall rule
in all the earth.774
It is the
kingdom of the children of Javan, who are children of Japhet. For
the children of Javan came in against the kingdom of their
brethren. For Madai and Javan are sons of Japhet.775
But Madai was foolish and incapable
of governing the kingdom,
until Javan, his brother came, who was wise and cunning, to destroy the
kingdom. For Alexander, son of Philip, ruled in all the
earth.
13. And the legs and feet of the image
were of iron. This is the kingdom of the children of Shem,
who are the children of Esau, which is strong as iron. And he
said:—As iron breaks and subdueth everything, so also the
fourth kingdom shall break and bruise everything.776
And he explained with reference to
the feet and toes, that part of them was of iron and part of them of
potter’s clay. For he said:—Thus they shall be
mingled with the seed of man, and they shall not cleave one to another,
as iron cannot be mixed with clay.777
This referred to the fourth
kingdom. Because in the kingdom of the children of Esau778
| 778 This passage
describes the Roman Republic and empire. | there was not a king, the son of a
king, established to govern the kingdom; but when the children of Esau
were gathered together into a powerful city, then they made a
senate. And from thence they used to set up as chief of the city
a wise man to govern the kingdom, lest when the Governor of their
kingdom should weigh them, they might be found wanting, and the kingdom
might be taken away from them as the kingdom of the children of
arrogant Nimrod was taken away and given to the children of foolish
Madai. And this king who was set up, the seed of that former king
was destroying him; and they did not cleave one to another. But
as to the seed of man which is compared with the clay, the meaning is
this; that when the king was chosen for the kingdom, he mingled himself
with the root of the kingdom of iron.
14. And he showed that in the days of
those kings, who shall arise in the kingdom, the God of heaven will set
up a kingdom which shall not be destroyed and shall not pass away for
ever.779
This is
the Kingdom of King Messiah, which is that which shall cause the fourth
kingdom to pass away. And above he said:—Thou sawest a
stone which was cut out, but not by hands; and it smote the image upon
its feet of iron and potter’s clay and broke them to
pieces.780
Now he did
not say that it smote upon the head of the image, nor on its breast and
arms, nor yet on its belly and thighs, but on its feet; because that,
of the whole image, that stone when it comes will find the feet
alone. And in the next verse he said:—The iron and the
brass and the silver and the gold were broken to pieces
together.781
For after
them, when King Messiah shall reign, then He will humble the fourth
kingdom, and will break the whole image; for by the whole image the
world is meant. Its head is Nebuchadnezzar; its breast and arms
the King of Media and Persia; its belly and thighs the King of the
Greeks; its legs and feet the kingdom of the children of Esau; the
stone, which smote the image and brake it, and with which the whole
earth was filled, is the kingdom of King Messiah, Who will bring to
nought the kingdom of this world, and He will rule for ever and
ever.
15. Again hear concerning the vision of the four beasts which Daniel saw coming up out of the sea and diverse one
from another. This is the appearance of them:—The first
was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. And I saw that
its wings were plucked away, and it stood up like a man upon its feet,
and the heart of a man was given to it.782
And the second beast was like a
bear, and it raised itself up upon one side and there were three
ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And the third beast was
like a leopard, and it had four wings and four heads. And
the fourth beast was exceedingly terrible and strong and powerful,
and it had great teeth. It devoured and brake to pieces, and
whatsoever remained, it stamped with its feet. Now the great
sea that Daniel saw783
is the world: and these four beasts are the four kingdoms signified
above.
16. Now as to the first beast, he said concerning
it, that it was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle.
For the first beast was the kingdom of Babylon, which was like a lion. For thus Jeremiah
wrote saying:—Israel is a wandering sheep. The lions
caused them to wander. First the king of Assyria devoured
him. And this last was stronger than he, Nebuchadnezzar king of
Babylon.784
So
Jeremiah called him a lion. And he said:—He has the
wings of an eagle. For thus it is written that, when
Nebuchadnezzar went out to the wilderness with the beasts, he grew hair
like (the plumage) of an eagle. And he said:—I saw that
its wings were plucked away and it stood upright upon its feet as a
man, and a man’s heart was given to it.785
For first, in the vision of the
image, he was compared to gold which is more precious than anything
which is used in the world. So in the vision of the beasts he is
compared to a lion which excels in its might all the beasts. And
again he was compared to an eagle which surpasses every bird.
Whatsoever was written about him was fulfilled in him. For the
Lord said concerning him:—I have placed a yoke of iron upon
the neck of all the nations, and they shall serve the king of Babylon
seventy years. And also the beasts of the desert and the birds of
heaven have I given to him to serve him.786
For since the king was like the
head of gold, men served him as a king. And when he went out to
the wilderness, the beasts served him as a lion. And when his
hair was like (the plumage) of an eagle, the birds of heaven served him
as an eagle. But when his heart was lifted up, and he knew not
that the power was given to him from heaven, the yoke of iron was
broken from the neck of men, and he went forth with the beasts, and
instead of the heart of a king there was given him the heart of a
lion. And when he was lifted up over the beasts, the heart of a
lion was taken away from him, and there was given him the heart of a
bird. And when wings grew upon him like those of an eagle, he
exalted himself over the birds. And then his wings also were
plucked away and there was given to him a humble heart. And when
he knew that the Most High has authority in the kingdom of man, to give
it to whomsoever He will, then as a man he praised Him.
17. And as for the second beast, he said
concerning him that it was like a bear and raised itself up upon one
side. Because when the kingdom of Media and Persia arose, it
arose in the east. And three ribs were in its mouth.
Because the ram was pushing towards the West and towards the North and
towards the South, towards three winds of heaven. These three
winds it held, and pushed against, like the three ribs that were in the
mouth of the bear; until the he-goat came forth from the west, and
smote the ram and took out the ribs that were in his mouth.
18. And concerning the third beast he said that it
was like a leopard, and it had four birds’ wings on its back and
that beast had four heads. Now this third beast was Alexander the
Macedonian. For he was strong as a leopard. And as for the
four wings and the four heads that the beast had, that was because he
gave the kingdom to his four friends to govern after him, when he had
come and slain Darius and reigned in his stead.
19. And of the fourth beast he said that it was exceedingly terrible and strong and mighty, devouring and crushing
and trampling with its feet anything that remained. It is the
kingdom of the children of Esau.787
| 787 The Romans are
here signified, according to Rabinical doctrine, as descendants of
Esau. |
Because after that Alexander the Macedonian became king, the kingdom of
the Greeks was founded, since Alexander also was one of them, even of
the Greeks. But the vision of the third beast was fulfilled in
him, since the third and the fourth were one. Now Alexander
reigned for twelve years. And the kings of the Greeks arose after
Alexander, being seventeen kings, and their years were two hundred and
sixty-nine years from Seleucus Nicanor to Ptolemy. And the
Cæsars were from Augustus to Philip Cæsar, seventeen
kings. And their years are two hundred and ninety-three years;788
| 788 The “kingdom of the Greeks” is here reckoned from the
“era of the Greeks,” b.c.
311–12, in the reign of Seleucus Nicanor, to the end of the
Ptolemies; b.c. 43,—269 years, as
above. From b.c. 43 to the death of the
Emperor Philip, a.d. 249, makes up
(approximately) the 293 years of the text. Philip was reputed to
have been the first Christian Emperor, (Euseb. H. E., VI. 34;
Jerome, Chronicon). | and eighteen years of
Severus.
20. For Daniel said:—I was
considering the ten horns that were upon the head of the beast.
For the ten horns were ten kings789
who arose at that time until Antiochus. And he said:—A little horn
arose from between those ten and three fell before it.790
For when Antiochus arose in the
kingdom, he humbled three kings, and he exalted himself against the
saints of the Most High and against Jerusalem. And he defiled the
sanctuary.791
And he
caused the sacrifice and the offerings to cease for a week and half a
week, namely, for ten and a-half years. And he brought in
fornicators into the house of the Lord, and he caused the observances
of the Law to cease.792
And he slew
righteous men and gave them to the birds of heaven and to the beasts of
the earth. For in his days was fulfilled the word that David
spoke:793
—O God, the Gentiles have come
into thine inheritance, and have defiled Thy holy temple. They
have made Jerusalem desolate. They have given the dead bodies of
Thy servants as food to the birds of heaven, and the flesh of Thy
righteous ones to the beasts of the earth. They have poured out
their blood like water round about Jerusalem, and there is none to bury
them. For this was accomplished at that time, when the
venerable and aged Eleazar was slain, and the sons of the blessed
Samuna, seven in number,794
and when Judas (Maccabeus) and his brethren were struggling on behalf of their people,
when they were dwelling in hiding-places.795
At that time the horn made war
with the saints,796
and their power prevailed. And the wicked Antiochus spake words against the
Most High, and changed the times and the seasons.797
And he made to cease the covenant
of Abraham, and abolished the Sabbath of rest.798
For he commanded the Jews that
they should not circumcise. Therefore, (the Prophet) said
concerning him;—He shall think to change the times and the
seasons and the laws, and they were given into his hand for a time,
times, and half a time.799
Now the
time and half a time is the week and a half, which is ten years and a
half. Again he said:—The judgment was set and they took
away his authority from him, to injure and destroy him until the end of
the kingdom.800
For the
judgment came upon Antiochus, a judgment from heaven;801
and he became sick with a grievous and evil sickness, and on account of the smell of him as he rotted, no man could
approach him, for worms were crawling and falling from him and eating
his flesh because he oppressed the worm Jacob.802
And his flesh rotted in his
lifetime, because he caused the dead bodies of the sons of Jerusalem to
rot and they were not buried. And he became defiled in his own
eyes, because he had defiled the sanctuary of God. And he prayed
and was not heard,803
| 803 2 Macc. ix. 13, 18, 19, 28. | because he did not hearken to the groanings of the righteous whom he slew. For
he wrote a letter and sent it to the Jews and called them “my
friends,” but God had not mercy on him, but he died in his
torment.
21. He said again:—The saints of
the Most High shall receive the Kingdom.804
What shall we say concerning
this? Have the children of Israel received the Kingdom of the
Most High? God forbid. Or has that people come upon the
clouds of heaven? This has passed away from them. For
Jeremiah said concerning them:—Call them rejected silver, for
the Lord has rejected them.805
Again he
said:—He will not again regard them.806
And Isaiah said concerning
them:—Pass by; pass by; approach not the defiled.807
And concerning the saints of the
Most High (Daniel) said thus:—They shall inherit
the Kingdom for
ever.808
For these
rested a little from the burden of kings and princes,809
namely, from after the death of Antiochus till the sixty-two weeks were fulfilled. And the Son of Man came
to free them and gather them together, but they did not receive
Him. For He came to obtain fruit from them, and they did not give
it to Him. For their vines were of the vine of Sodom and of
the stock of Gomorrha, a vineyard810
in which thorns grew, and which bore wild grapes.811
Their vine was bitter, and their
fruit sour. The thorns could not be softened, nor could the
bitterness change to the nature of wine, nor could the sour fruit
change to a sweet nature.
22. For Isaiah first set men of Judah as judges over them,812
and there was planted amongst them a new and beloved planting. But these are
those judges who shall sit on twelve thrones and judge their twelve
tribes.813
And thus
He said to the judges:814
—Judge
between Me and My vineyard, what further, O ye judges, should I have
done to My vineyard, that I did not do? For lo! I planted it with
vine scions, and they became strange vines. I surrounded
it with a fence of heavenly Watchers and I built its tower,
the holy Temple. And I dug out its winepress, the baptism
of the priests. And I brought down rain upon it, the words of My
Prophets. And I pruned it and trimmed it, from the works of the
Amorites. I looked that it should produce grapes of
righteousness, and it produced wild grapes of iniquity and
sin. I looked for judgment and behold oppression, and for
righteousness and there was a cry. Hear, O ye judges, what I will
do to My vineyard. I will break open its fence, and it shall be
for down-treading. And I will tear down its tower, and it shall
be for pillage. And I will make it to become a desert because it
produced wild grapes. And it shall not be dressed and it shall
not be pruned. And thorns and weeds shall grow up in it.
And I will command the clouds that they send not down rain upon
it. For the heavenly Watchers departed from the fence of the
vineyard; and the mighty tower on which they relied was torn
down. The winepress, the cleansing away of their offences, was
overthrown. When the vine was without blemish, it did not
prove of service. Now that the fire has devoured it and that it
is laid waste, how shall it prove of service? The fire has
devoured its two branches and its inward parts are wasted.815
For its two branches are the two
kingdoms, and its inward part which is laid waste is Jerusalem.
Many servants were sent to them by the Lord of the vineyard.816
And they slew them and did not send
the fruit to the Lord of the vineyard. After the servants the
beloved Son was sent, to receive from them the fruit and to bring it
back to Him that sent Him. And they seized Him and cast Him out
of the vineyard; and they cut spikes from the thorns of the vineyard
and fixed them in His hands. And He was hungry and asked food of
them; and they took and gave Him gall from the fruit of the
vineyard. He was thirsty and asked of them drink; and they gave
Him vinegar and He would not drink it. And they platted a crown
of thorns that had sprung up in the vineyard, and placed it on the head
of the Son of the Lord of the vineyard. For from the time that
the vineyard was made, it displayed these fruits. Therefore its
Lord uprooted it and cast it in the fire; and planted good
fruit-bearing vines in the vineyard, and such as gladden the
husbandman. For Christ is the vineyard, and His Father is the
husbandman; and they who drink of His cup are the vines.
Therefore vineyard was formed instead of vineyard. And
furthermore at His coming He handed over the kingdom to the Romans, as
the children of Esau are called. And these children of Esau will
keep the kingdom for its giver.
23. And the holy People inherited an eternal
Kingdom; the holy people who were chosen instead of the People. For He provoked them to jealousy with a people that was not a
people. And with a foolish people He angered them.817
And He set free the holy
people. For lo! every covenant of God is freed from the burden
of kings and princes.818
For even
if a man has served the heathen, as soon as ever he draws nigh unto the
covenant of God, he is set free. But the Jews are toiling in
bondage amongst the Gentiles. For thus he said about the
Saints;—They shall inherit the Kingdom that is beneath the
heaven.819
But if he
had said it about them (the Jews), why are they toiling in service
amongst the Gentiles? And if they say that it has not taken place
as yet; then (we ask) is the Kingdom that shall be given to the Son of
man, to be heavenly or earthly? And lo! the children of the
Kingdom are sealed, and they have received their emancipation from this
world. For since it exists now, it will not be willing to be
subjected to the power of the King, Who shall come and take to Himself
His Kingdom. But it will guard His pledges with honour, that when
He shall come to bring to nought the Kingdom, he may come upon them not
in anger. For when He, Whose is the Kingdom,820
shall come in His second coming, He will take to Himself whatever He has given. And He Himself will be
King for ever and ever. And His Kingdom shall not pass away,
because it is an eternal Kingdom.
24. For first, He gave the Kingdom to the sons of Jacob, and subdued to them the children of Esau; as Isaac said
to Esau:—Thou shalt serve Jacob thy brother.821
And when again they did not prosper
in the Kingdom, He took it away from the children of Jacob and gave it
to the children of Esau until He should come Whose it
is.822
And they will deliver up the
deposit to its Giver, and will not deal fraudulently with it. And
the Guardian of the Kingdom is subject to Him to Whom all things are
subject. Therefore this Kingdom of the children of Esau shall not
be delivered up into the hand of the hosts that are gathered together,
that desire to go up against it; because the Kingdom is being kept safe
for its Giver, and He Himself will preserve it. And as to this
that I wrote to thee, beloved, that the Kingdom of the children of Esau
is being kept safe for its Giver, doubt not about it, that that Kingdom
will not be conquered. For a mighty champion Whose name is Jesus
shall come with power, and bearing as His armour all the power of the
Kingdom. And search out and see that also by the
poll-tax823
He was enrolled amongst them. And as He was enrolled by the poll-tax amongst
them, He will also succour them. And His standard abounds in that
place, and they are clothed in His armour, and shall not be found
wanting in war. And if thou shouldest say unto
me:—“In the years of the Kings that preceded these, why did
they conquer and subdue the beast?” It was because the
chiefs and kings who stood up at that time in the Kingdom of the
children of Esau did not wish to lead with them to the war the Man who
was enrolled with them in the poll-tax. Therefore the beast was
subdued a little, but was not slain.
25. But concerning these things that I have written for thee, my beloved, namely, concerning that which is written
in Daniel, I have not brought them to an end, but (have stopped) short
of the end. And if any man dispute about them, say thus to him,
that these words are not concluded, because the words of God are
infinite, nor will they be concluded. For the foolish man says,
“Here unto (these) words reach.” And again, it is not
possible to add to them or to diminish from them.824
For the riches of God cannot be
computed or limited. For if thou take away water from the sea,
the deficiency will be imperceptible. And if thou remove sand
from the sea-shore, its measure will not be diminished. And if
thou count the stars of heaven, thou wilt not arrive at the sum of
them. And if thou kindle fire from a burning, it will not a whit be
lessened. And if thou receive of the Spirit of Christ, Christ
will not a whit be diminished. And if Christ dwell in thee, yet
He will not be completed in thee. And if the sun enter the
windows of thy house, yet the sun in its entirety will not come to
thee. And all these things that I have enumerated for thee were
created by the word of God. Therefore know thou, that, as
concerning the word of God no man has reached or will reach its
end. Therefore, have thou no disputation about these things, but
say:—“These things are so. That is
enough.” But hear these things from me, and also enquire
about them of our brethren, children of our faith. But whosoever
shall mock at the words of his brother, even if he say, “mine are
wise,” yet hearken not to his words. And concerning what I
wrote to thee about these forces that are being stirred up to war, it
is not as though anything has been revealed to me that I have made
known these things to thee, but attend to the words at the head of the
letter:—Every one who exalteth himself shall be
humbled. For even if the forces shall go up and conquer, yet
know that it is a chastisement of God; and though they conquer, they
shall be condemned in a righteous judgment. But yet be thou
assured of this, that the beast shall be slain at its (appointed)
time. But do thou, my brother, at this time be earnest in
imploring mercy, that there may be peace upon the people of
God.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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