Книга пророка Даниила, Глава 2, стих 29. Толкования стиха

VISIONS ARE MANIFESTED TO THE SPIRIT. AUGUSTINE: The one who interprets what another has seen is more a prophet than the one who had seen. . . . Less a prophet is he who . . . sees in spirit only the signs of the things signified, and a greater prophet is he who is granted only an understanding of images. But the greatest prophet is he who is endowed with both gifts, namely, that of seeing in spirit the symbolic likeness of corporeal objects and that of understanding them with the vital power of the mind. Such a one was Daniel. His preeminence was tested and established when he not only told the dream he had had but also explained the meaning of it. For the corporeal images themselves were produced in his spirit, and an understanding of them was revealed in his mind. I am using the word spirit, therefore, in the sense in which Paul uses it, where he distinguishes it from the mind: “I will pray with the spirit, but I will pray with the mind also.” Here he implies that signs of things are formed in the spirit and that an understanding of the signs shines forth in the mind. ON THE LITERAL INTERPRETATION OF GENESIS 12.9.20

DREAMS ARISE FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS. GREGORY THE GREAT: “To you, O king, as you lay in bed came thoughts of what would be hereafter, and he who reveals mysteries made known to you what is to be.” And a little later, “You, O king, saw, and behold, a great image.” . . . Daniel, therefore, in reverently indicating that the dream was to be fulfilled and in telling from what thoughts it arose, shows clearly that dreams often rise from our thoughts and from revelation. Seeing, then, that dreams may arise from such a variety of causes, one ought to be very reluctant to put one’s faith in them, since it is hard to tell from what source they come. . . . If the mind is not on its guard against these, it will be entangled in countless vanities by the master of deceit, who is clever enough to foretell many things that are true in order finally to capture the soul by but one falsehood. This happened recently to one of our people who believed strongly in dreams. In one of them he was promised a long life. After collecting a large sum of money to last him for many years, he died suddenly, leaving all of his wealth behind untouched, without having so much as a single good work to take with him. DIALOGUE 4.50.5-6.

DANIEL RESCUED THE WISE MEN OF BABYLON. CHRYSOSTOM: Let us not then be looking open-mouthed toward others. For it is true, the prayers of the saints have the greatest power, on condition, however, of our repentance and change. Since even Moses, who had rescued his own brother and six hundred thousand men from the wrath that was then coming on them from God, had no power to deliver his sister. . . . And Samuel was not able to save Saul from the wrath from above, yet he oftentimes preserved the Israelites. . . . And Daniel saved the barbarians from slaughter, but he did not deliver the Jews from their captivity. . . . So on the one hand, if we are careless, we shall not be able to obtain salvation, no, not even by the help of others; if, on the other hand, we are watchful, we shall be able to do this by ourselves, and by ourselves rather than by others. Yes, for God is more willing to give his grace to us than to others for us, that we, by our zeal to avoid his wrath, may both enjoy a deep trust in him and become better people. HOMILIES ON THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW 5.7.

THE GLORIFICATION OF GOD. CHRYSOSTOM: For nothing is so advantageous and so likely to pacify the hearers as to say nothing about one’s self of an honorable nature, but on the contrary, to forestall all suspicion of wishing to do so. And, in truth, much more did they the apostles in-crease their glory by despising glory and showing that what had just taken place was not a human act but a divine work; and that it was their part to join with the beholders in admiration rather than to receive it from them. . . . In the same manner also did the ancient fathers, for instance, Daniel, say, “Not because of any wisdom I have more than all the living has this mystery been revealed to me.” . . . And again Joseph, “Do not interpretations belong to God?” HOMILIES ON THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES 30.

Даниил сообщил царю, что сновидение его было как бы ответом на занимавший его перед отходом ко сну вопрос: «Что будет после сего?», то есть после царствования. Далее, относя все откровение силе Божией, Даниил восстанавливает в памяти Навуходоносора его сновидение, содержание которого таково: «Царь видел огромного и страшного видом истукана, у которого голова золотая, руки и грудь серебряные, живот и бедра медные, ноги железные, а ступни частью железные, а частью глиняные. Затем, царь видел, как от горы сам собою оторвался камень, ударился в ноги истукана и разбил их, причем все части истукана: золото, серебро, медь, железо, глина – превратились в прах, который разнесло ветром без остатка; самый же камень превратился в гору и наполнил собой землю (то сновидение четырехсоставного истукана позднее было дополнено подобным по значению видением Даниилу четырех зверей (7 глава).