Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 3 · Doctrines
4. The places of doctrine.
1. Doct. That the godly hauehave alwaies some enemi… or other to encounter with.
v. 1. Nebuchadnezzer the king made an image of gold, &c. Many are the aduersaries and diuers the assaults and combates, which are opposed to the faithfull: their enemies are cither internall, which is their owne corrupt concupiscence, whereof S. Paul speaketh, Rom. 7. 23. I see an other law in my members rebelling against the law of my minde: or externall, which are enemies spirituall and inuisible, as Sathan with all his temptations: as S. Paul saith, We wrastle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, &c. against spirituall wickednesses, Eph. 6. 12. or enemies visible, which are either Gentiles and idolaters, or heretikes and schismatikes: as the Apostle saith, he was in daunger among the Gentiles, and among false brethren, 2. Cor. 11. 26.
2. Doct. Of the manner of accusation, which the wicked lay in against the seruants of God.
v. 8. That same time came men of the Chaldeans and grieuously accused the Jewes. 1. As the Chaldeans were the first that gaue counsell to the king to make this image, to entrappe the faithfull Iewes; so it is the guise of the enemies of Gods Church to lay stumbling blocks before the seruants of God, and to make lawes to entangle them: as they practised against Daniel, c. 6.
2. They are readie to take any occasion to accuse them, as the Chaldeans here.
3. They omit no time, they vse all speed and opportunitie, to prosecute their wicked enterprise: as the Chaldeans came the same time and houre, and made their complaint.
4. They are flatterers, and make Princes beleeue, that they are very obseruant of their lawes, and pray for their prosperitie: as here they wish the king may liue for euer: whereas they doe onelyonly make a way hereby to worke more mischiefe.
5. They doe set themselues specially against poore strangers, and make them odious by their countrey: as they say, v. 12. There are certaine Iewes.
6. They accuse them of vnthankfulnes, mutinie, and rebellion: as these Chaldees doe here, v. 12. and it is the vsuall accusation against the seruants of God, as though they were contemners of the lawes and decrees of Princes.
3. Doct. That God is one.
v. 12. Neither will they serue thy gods, &c. The Gentiles brought in an infinite number of gods: Hesiode saith, that they worshipped 30. thousand gods: the same also is testified by Eunomius, lib. de falsit. or aculor. Tertullian in Apologet. alledgeth out of Marcus Varro, that they had thirtie gods, called by the name of Iuppiter.
1. But the Scripture euidently testifieth, that God is but one: as, Deut. 6. 4. Heare O Israel, the Lord our God, is the Lord onelyonly. Deut. 32. 39. Behold, heare O Israel, for I, am he, and there is no gods with me. Psal. 86. 10. thou art great, and doest wondrous things, thou art God alone. Isa. 45. 5. I am the Lord, and there is none other, there is no God beside me.
2. yea the Philosophers and wise men among the heathen, though the vulgar sort worshipped a multitude of gods, did hold that there was but one beginning of all things: as Trismegist. 4. dialog. Pymandri saith, Vniuersum mundum verbo non manibus fabricatus est opifex, &c. that one workeman made all the world with his word, not with hands. Orpheus in his verses calleth God, protogon…, the first begotten, that nothing was before him, and, that all things were created by him. Iustinus Martyr alleadgeth out of the verses of Sybil, vnus Deus solus &c. that there is one God alone, vnbegotten, omnipotent, inuisible. Sophocles both a Philosopher and a Poet, doth affirme the one God to be the creator of the world: so Thales, Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Chrysippus, did all affirme, that there was one God, whome they called a diuine Spirit, and as it were the soule of the world. And it is said of Aristotle, that, when he was at the very point of death, he cried out, causa causarum miserere me…, O thou cause of causes hauehave pitie on me. And they were induced thus to thinke by these and such like reasons:
1. Because they saw, that in a Commonwealth the Monarchicall state was the best: in a kingdome one Prince, in an armie one generall, in a shippe one gouernor, in a beehiue one master-bee: so in the world there is one chiefe Ruler and moouer of all things.
2. God is an infinite spirit: but one infinite thing can not stand with an other.
3. God is louelove, vnitie, concord: but where many gods are, there is varietie, not vnitie, discord, not peace.
4. Like as in the bodie, though there be many and diuers parts, there is but one soule, the fountaine of life and motion in the bodie: so is it in the greet world.
4. Doct. We must be resolute in religion.
v. 16. We are not carefull to answer thee in this matter. These three holy men could not be neither by hope of the kings fauour, and of great rewards entised; nor yet by feare of punishment terrified from their profession: Nay they would not so much as admit of any deliberation in so euident a matter: As Cyprian when he was required to take some time to pause, and consider with himselfe, what he would doe, vttered that worthie saying, In re tam certa nulla deliberatio, in a matter so certen there neede no further deliberation: So these here answer, that they tooke no care how to answer the king: according to that saying of our blessed Sauiour, Mark. 13. 11. When they lead you and deliuer you vp, take ye no thought afore, neither premeditate what ye shall say, but whatsoeuer is giuen vntounto you at the same time, that speake, &c.
5. Doct. Of the difference of temporall and eternall promises.
v. 18. But if not, be it knowne vntounto thee, &c. Although God should not deliuer them out of this temporall daunger, yet they would not leaue their profession: for they knew, that God beeing able to deliuer them, yet he might not shew his power at this time for some causes best knowne vntounto himselfe. There is a double kind of deliuerance, one from euerlasting death, which we are absolutely sure of without any condition: there is a deliuerance from temporall daunger, which we are assured ordinarily no otherwise of, then it pleaseth God, and as he seeth it may stand best with his glorie and our good. In such temporall cases, the Apostle teacheth alwaies to presuppose this condition,Iam. 4. 1…. If the Lord will.
6. Doct. Obedience is not to be giuen vntounto Magistrates in all things.
v. 22. The flame slew those men, &c. Because these tormentors and executioners did yeild obedience vntounto the king in a wicked and vniust thing, they are worthily punished: God commandeth obedience vntounto princes, but not against himselfe: so after this manner, the two captaines with their fifties, whome the king sent to take Elias, were destroied with fire from heauen. Our Sauiour saith in the Gospel, that if the blind lead the blinde, they shall both fall into the ditch: both of them, not onelyonly the captaine and ring-leader, but he also that is seduced and misled. Bulling.
7. Doct. Of the certentie of the resurrection.
v. 27. Not an haire of their head was burnt, &c. Tertullian collecteth from hence,lib. de resurr. caruis. that if God by his power preserued euen the garments of these men, and the haire of their heads from the fire; much more able is he to preserue the bodies of his Saints from euerlasting and finall corruption, and to raise them vp at the last day: hence then he concludeth, Dominum potentiorem omni corporum lege, &c. that God is of power and might beyond the law of corruptible bodies. And in that one haire of theirs was not burnt, here is verified that saying of our blessed Sauiour, Matth. 10. 30. All the haires of your head are numbred, &c.
8. Doct. The maintenance of true religion belongeth vntounto the ciuill Magistrate.
v. 29. Therefore I make a decree. Nebuchadnezzer here maketh a seuere law against those, which should blaspheme the true God, whome these three worshipped: whereupon Augustine inferreth well, that it belongeth vntounto the Magistrate to be conseruators and preseruers of true religion, poenam capitalem constituit in eos, qui Deum illorum invenumblasphemarent, &c. he appointeth a capitall punishment against them,11. tractat. in Ioann. which did blaspheme the God of those young men, &c. The Apostle saith, that the Magistrate is the minister of God, to take vengeance on him, that doth euill, Rom. 13. 4. Therefore heretikes and blasphemers, who are euill doers, are to be censured and punished by ciuill lawes, as well as other malefactors.