Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan, Daniel · Chapter 2
CHAP. II.
Ver. 1. ANd in the ſecond year] Of Daniels advancement, chap. 1.19, 20. Or as Joſephus hath it, poſt annum ſecundum Aegyptiacae vaſtitatis, in the ſecond year after that Nebuchadnezzar had ſubdued Egypt, and other Countries, and ſo eſtabliſhed his Monarchy: whereupon likely was begun a new computation of the years of his reign.
Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams] All was but one dream, but of many and weighty matters.Quid ſunt regna omneſ que res & ſpes mortalium ni… ſomnia vigilantium? Plato.
Wherewith his ſpirit was troubled] God can eaſily trouble the troublers of his Iſrael, and make the ringleader of their bondage the Trumpetter of their Trophy, even nomen illud prolixum & terrificum, Nebuchadnezzar.
Ver. 2. Then the King commanded to call the Magicians] Theſe had Cham for their founder, ſaith Pintus: but who can tell that? Daniel haply was forgotten by Nebuchadnezzar, as David had ſometime been by Saul, 1 Sam. 17.55, 56. A ſweet Providence it was that he was not called among the Magicians: God will not have his matched or mingled with wicked ones.
Ver. 3. I have dreamed a dream] His thoughts had been occupied, belike, about the iſſue of his Kingdoms, and thereupon he had a divine viſion. He that is moderately careful about the affairs of his lawful calling, ſhall not be deſtitute of divine direction.
And my ſpirit was troubled] Heb. Troubled it ſelf. Jeſus alſo troubled himſelf, but without ſin, Joh. 11.33. See the Note there.
Ver. 4. Then spake the Chaldaeans to the King in Syriack] i. e. In Chaldee (whence there is here no Chaldee Paraphraſe) or elſe if the Syriack were then a diſtinct tongue from the Chaldee, as now it is, it was, belike, their learned language: as now the Arabick is among the Turkes.
O King live for ever] In this moſt officious ſalutation they flatter him, (ſay ſome) or averre the immortality of the ſoul (as others) or wiſh him a long life, as alſo Daniel doth afterwards.
And we will ſhew the interpretation] Impoſtors are great braggers: but as the Peacock in ſetting up his taile ſheweth his Poſteriors, ſo do theſe get to themſelves ſhame.
Ver. 5. The thing is gone from me] He had dreamt of Monarchies, and now forgotten his dream. He might have hereby learned that Kingdoms are but phantaſmata, ludicra, empty bubbles, pleaſant follies, children and tales of fancy, &c. The faſhion of this world paſſeth away, 1 Cor. 7.31. ſurely every man walketh in a vain ſhadow, Pſal. 39.6.
Ye ſhall be cut in pieces] Practiſers of unjuſt flatteries do oft meet with unjuſt frowns.
Ver. 6. Ye ſhall receive of me gifts and reward] This was that they gaped after (but miſſed of) and therefore out of envy called not Daniel and his companions (as ſome think) leſt they ſhould ſhare with them.
And great honour] Great learning deſerveth great honour. Aeneas Sylvius was wont to ſay that popular men ſhould eſteem it as ſilver, Noblemen as gold, Princes prize it as pearles.
Ver. 7. They anſwered again and ſaid, Let the King, &c.] Thus theſe proud boaſters vaunt of a falſe gift, and become like clouds without rain, as Solomon hath it, Prov. 25.14. See ver. 4.
Ver. 8. I know of certainty] There's no halting afore a cripple: Politicians can ſound the depth of one another, Dan. 11.27.
That ye would gain the time] Chald. buy or redeem it, that is make your advantage of it, to evade the danger. And indeed if theſe ſorcerers could have gained longer time, much might have been done: for either the King might have dyed, or been employed in war, or pacified by the mediation of friends, &c. Time oft cooleth the rage of haſty men, as 1 Sam. 25.33. How Hubere de Burgo Earl of Kent eſcaped the Kings wrath by a little reſpite, ſee Godwins catalogue of Biſh. p. 193.
Ver. 9. There is but one decree for you] But that was a very tyrannical and bloody one. Tis dangerous to affront great men, though in a juſt cauſe, Eccleſ. 10.4.
Saevum praeluſtri fulmen ab arce venit.Ovid. Procul à culmine… & procul à fulmine.
Till the time be changed] The Latine hath it, till there be another ſtate of things: See on ver. 8.
Tell me the dream, and I ſhall know that ye can ſhow me the interpretation thereof] If you cannot tell it, ſurely you cannot interpret it: ſith they are both of a divine inſtinct, and nothing is hid from God.
Ver. 10. There is not a man upon earth] Yes, there is: But this is the guiſe of worldly wiſdom, fingit ſe ſcire omnia, excuſat ac ocoulit ſuam ignorantiam, it would ſeem to know all things, and to be ignorant of nothing that is within the periphery of humane poſſibility.
Ver. 11. And it is a rare thing] Exceeding mans wit.
Except the gods, whoſe dwelling is not with fleſh] They cohabit not with men, that we might converſe and confer with them. Here theſe wiſards 1. Superſtitiouſly affirm a multitude of gods, which the wiſer heathens denyed, Thales, Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Chryſippus, &c. 2. They deny Gods Providence, as did alſo the Epicures, who held that the gods did nothing out of themſelves. The Peripatetikes alſo held, that they had nothing to do with things below the Moon: yea the Platoniſts and Stoikes placed the gods in heaven only, and other ſpirits good and bad in the aire, which converſed with men, and were as meſſengers betwixt them and the gods. Thus theſe famous Philoſophers became altogether vain in their imaginations, and their fooliſh heart was darkened, Rom. 1.21. 3. They ſeem to affirm that man can know nothing of God, unleſs he cohabited in the fleſh with him. But we have the mind of Chriſt, 1 Cor. 2.16. and the ſecret of the Lord is with them that fear him, Pſal. 25.14. this is a Paradox to the natural man, 1 Cor. 2.14. Laſtly they deny the incarnation of Chriſt, that great myſterie of godlineſs, God manifeſted in the fleſh, 1 Tim. 3.16. Joh. 1.14.
Ver. 12. For this cauſe the King was angry and very furious] A cutting anſwer may mar a good cauſe, Prov. 15.1. See on ver. 9.
And commanded to deſtroy all the wiſe men of Babylon] So raſh is rage: it is no better then a ſhort madneſs.Cicero. Sed de vita hominis nulla poteſt eſſe ſatis diuturna cunctatio, ſaith the Orator: In caſe of life and death, nothing ſhould be determined, without mature deliberation: for like as Saturn, the higheſt of the planets, hath the ſloweſt motion of them all:Willet. So, ſaith one, ſhould Princes, which ſit in their high thrones of Majeſty, be moſt conſiderate in their actions.
Ver. 13. And the decree went forth that the wiſe men ſhould be ſlain] And the wiſe men were ſlain, ſaith the Vulgar Latine: ſome of them, likely, were cut off. The end of worldly wiſdom is certain deſtruction.
And they ſought Daniel and his fellows to be ſlain] Wicked decrees are wreſted to the butchery of the Saints: as was that of the ſix Articles here in Henry the eighths dayes.
Tremel.Ver. 14. Then Daniel anſwered with counſel] Retulit conſilium & cauſam, he conferred with Arioch the chief ſlaughterman; giving him good reaſons wherefore to defer further execution. This good turn he did for the Magicians and Aſtrologers, who were his utter enemies.
Ver. 15. Why is the decree ſo haſty from the King] Daniel, though now in danger of his life, forgetteth not his old freedom of ſpeech: and God ſo wrought, that the King, who was ſtiffe to the Magicians, was tractable to Daniel, ver. 16.
Ver. 16. Then Daniel — deſired the King to give him time] Not to ſtudy, or deliberate, but to pray with fervency and perſeverance, which is the beſt help to find out ſecrets, Jer. 33.3.
And that he would ſhew the King the interpretation] Beatus ait Plato, qui etiam in ſenectute veritatem conſequitur, he is happy who findeth out the truth, though it be long firſt, ſaith Plato.
Ver. 17. Then Daniel went to his houſe] A houſe then he had (though he had loſt houſe and home for God) and thither he repaireth, as to his Oratory, well perfumed with prayers.
And made the thing known to Ananiah, &c.] That they alſo might pray, ſetting ſides and ſhoulders to the work, as country men do to the wheel, when the cart is ſtalled.
Ver. 18. That they would deſire mercies of the God of heaven] All Gods children can pray, Cant. 5.8. Thoſe daughters of Jeruſalem, though not ſo fully acquainted with Chriſt, yet are requeſted to pray for the Church. But theſe three were men of ſingular abilities, no doubt: and were themſelves deeply concerned.
Concerning this ſecret] In caſe of ſecrets and intricacies or riddles of Providence, prayer is moſt ſeaſonable; as being Tephillah (the uſual Hebrew word for prayer) a repair to the Lord for enquiry, or for his ſentence, Gen. 25.22, 23.
Ver. 19. Then was the ſecret revealed] Oh the power of joynt prayer! It ſeldom or never miſcarrieth, Act. 4. while the Apoſtles were praying together, the houſe where they prayed ſhook: to ſhew that heaven it ſelf was ſhaken, and God overcome by ſuch batteries.
Alb. Mag.In a night viſion] Vigilia noctis, as he watched in the night: for he watched as well as prayed, Eph. 6.18.
Then Daniel bleſſed the God of heaven] Who had not turned away his prayer nor his mercy from him. Pſal. 66. ult. They that pray heartily, ſhall never want matter of praiſe: and ſuch ſhall be ever driving an holy trade betwixt heaven and earth, till they ceaſe to pray; but praiſe God throughout all eternity.
Ver. 20. Daniel anſwered and ſaid, Bleſſed be the name of God] They who are ſlight in praying, are uſually as ſlight in praiſing, Job 35.13. with ver. 10, 11, 12. But Daniel was ſerious and zealous in both.
For wiſdom and might are his] Theſe and all other excellencies are in God originally, eminently, tranſcendently. Daniel found it in this ſecret thus revealed to him: how much more may we in the myſtery of the Goſpel now made manifeſt, Rom. 16.26.
Ver. 21. He changeth the times and the ſeaſons, &c.] And ſo ſheweth, that ſtrength is his: ſuch as is irreſiſtible.
He removeth Kings, &c.] As by the Kings dream, Daniel was well advertiſed.
He giveth wiſdom unto the wiſe] And ſo ſheweth that wiſdom is his: ſith all the wiſdom found in the creature is but a ſpark of his flame, a drop of his Ocean.
Ver. 22. He revealeth the deep and ſecret things] Daniel hath never done; but is unceſſant and unſatisfiable in praiſing God. And although there was haſte of anſwering the Kings expectation, yet he ſhall ſtay, till God have his due.
He knoweth what is in the dark] See Pſal. 139.12.
Ver. 23. I thank thee and praiſe thee] A gracious man is a grateful man: there is the ſame word in Greek for grace and gratitude. See on ver. 22.foreign. A thankful man will enumerate Gods mercies, and redouble his praiſes.
O thou God of my Fathers] The very beſt inheritance that we can leave our children, is the true God.
Who haſt given me wiſdom and might] Wiſdom to dive into deep matters: and might to manage it.
Ver. 24. Destroy not the wiſe men of Babylon] Who yet wiſhed Daniel deſtroyed. This was a noble kind of revenge; to overcome evil with good.
Ver. 25. I have found a man] Auliei aliorum ſibi uſurpant inventa.
Of the captives of Judah] His worth deſerved better reſpect.
Ver. 26. The King anſwered and ſaid to Daniel, Daniel ſe Danielem nominat.whoſe name was Beltiſhazzar] So the King and Courtiers had called him: but he took no felicity in that idolatrous appellation, which ſignified a treaſurer to Bel, or Baal.
Art thou able] Interrogatio Regis admiratoria.
Ver. 27. The ſecret which the King hath demanded cannot the wiſe-men—ſhew unto thee] And therefore thou haſt done amiſs, firſt in ſeeking to them, next in ſlaying them; though God hath an holy hand in it for their juſt puniſhment.
Ver. 28. But there is a God in heaven] The Saints are ever tender of Gods glory, Ezra 8.22. Let thoſe that are endued with ſingular gifts beware of ſelf-admiration, apt to ſteale upon them.
Ver. 29. Thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed] Kingdoms have their cares: crowns are ſtuft with thrones. Theſe thoughts in the text were preparatory to the enſuing dream. Eccleſ. 5.2. the chief Efficient or Author whereof was God.
And he that revealeth ſecrets maketh known to thee] Yea, maketh thee a conduit of divine revelation to the Church.
Ver. 30. But as for me, this ſecret is not revealed to me, &c.] So careful are Gods beſt Saints to give unto him all the glory, which they look upon as Gods wife, in the enjoying whereof he is a jealous God, admitting no corrival in heaven or earth. Thy talent hath gained ten talents, ſaith he in the Goſpel: I have not done it. And, Not I, but the grace of God that's in me, ſaith Paul. The glory of God and the good of his Church, is the chief thing that Saints aime at.
But for their ſakes] i. e. For the poor Jewes ſake, to whoſe prayer thou oweſt this Revelation: toward whom therefore thou ſhouldeſt exerciſe more clemency, and alleviate their miſery.
Ver. 13. Then O King ſaweſt] ſc. By the force of thy fancy. For in ſleep the reaſonable ſoul cometh into the ſhop of Phantaſy, and there doth ſtrange works, which are vented in our dreames.
And behold a great Image] A fit repreſentation (and in a dream eſpecially) of worldly greatneſſe. An image ſaith Theodoret, is but the figure of a thing, and not the thing it ſelf: and this image in the text ſpeciem habet gigantaam, & prorſus Chimaericam, was a kind of Chimaera.
Sleid. de 4. Monarch.Ver. 32. The images head was of fine gold] This is the firſt, and till now, altogether unheard of Prophecy, concerning the four Monarchies of the World: Res planè digna quae memoriae tota commendetur, ſaith One: a Scripture worthy to be well remembred, becauſe it briefly comprehendeth the hiſtory of all Ages to the worlds end.
Theodoric. Urias Anno 1414.His breſt and his arms of ſilver] The elder they are, the baſer: So is Rome Papal, of which one of her ſons, above two hundred years ſince complained, not without good cauſe, that ſhe was become of gold ſilver, of ſilver iron, of iron earth: ſupereſſe ut in ſtercus abiret, and that ſhe would turn, next, into dung.
Ver. 33. Part of clay] The beſt things of of the World ſtand in an earthly foundation,Huet. Iſa. 40.6.
Ver. 34. Which ſmot the image upon his feet, &c.] All the powers of the world are but a knock, ſoon gone, Pſal. 2.9.
Ver. 35. Then was the iron, the clay, the braſſe, &c.] Thoſe four mighty Monarchies had their times and their turns, their ruine as well as their riſe.
And the ſtone that ſmot the image became a great mount:] The Kingdom of Chriſt,Hiſt. lib. 1. little at firſt, increaſeth wonderfully. Nec minor ab exordio, nec major incrementis ulla, ſaid Eutropius concerning Rome, may we better ſay concerning the Church, which ſhall ſtand, when all other powers ſhall quite vaniſh and diſappear for ever; ſeem they for preſent never ſo ſplendid and ſolid. Sic tranſit gloria mundi.
Ver. 36. This is the dream] By this time Nebuchadnezzar began much to admire Daniel: who modeſtly taketh in his Aſſociates (as Paul alſo doth Sylvanus and Timotheus) when he ſaith, And we will tell the interpretation thereof, ſc. foreign, God aſſiſting us.
Ver. 37. Thou, O King, art a King of Kings] And yet the whole Babylonian Empire was but as a cruſt caſt by God, the great houſe-keeper of the World, to his dogs: as Luther ſomewhere ſaith of the Turkiſh.
Ver. 38. Thou art this head of gold] An head the Babylonian Monarchy is called, becauſe it was the firſt of the four: And of gold, becauſe adminiſtred with great wiſdom, fortitude, juſtice and other heroical virtues: becauſe of the glory alſo and greatneſſe of it in all manner of magnificence: See Iſa. 13.19. & 14.11. Jer. 27.6.Lib. 15. Geog. Megaſthenes and Strabo ſay, that Nebuchadnezzar was the mightieſt of all other Kings, and held of the Chaldeans, to have exceeded Hercules in courage.Ex hac Danielis viſione Gentiles fabulam acceperunt de quatuor ſaeculis, aureo, argeneto, &c.
Ver. 39: And after thee ſhall ariſe another Kingdom] Viz. That of the Perſians, fitly ſet forth by ſilver, for their exceeding great wealth mentioned by many Heathen Authors: the two ſilver arms are the Medes and Perſians, meeting both in Cyrus, as the two arms do in the breſt. Cyrus alſo, by his great ſtrength and much bodily labour all his life long, got this other Empire.
Inferiour to thee] ſc. in fame and felicity. Chald. humilius, quia durius & minus tolerabile, ſaith One.
And another Kingdom of braſſe] This is the third Monarchy, which is the Graecian: not the Carthaginian, as Oroſius and out of him Proſper would have it. And it is fitly ſet forth by braſſe, which as it is a mettal ſtrong and hard, ſo noiſeful and loud-ſounding. The belly noteth the beginning and greatneſſe of this Kingdom, ſaith One, under Alexander the Great. The joynts between the belly and thighes note the plucking up of this Kingdom after Alexander's death,Parker. in loc. to be divided into four, whereof the principal were two, the one of the Selencidae, the other of the Lagidae, figured here by the two thighes of braſſe:Hard and heavy to purge and perfect the Church, Park. ib. See chap. 11.4, 5.
Ver. 40. And the fourth Kingdom ſhall be ſtrong as iron] i, e. The Roman kingdom, fitly compared to iron for hardneſſe and hardineſſe. The two legs do note the diviſion of the Kingdom into the Empire of the Eaſt, and the Empire of the Weſt; firſt begun by Anthony and Auguſtus Caeſar, afterwards eſtabliſhed by Conſtantine Anno 330 and again more perfectly by Theodoſius, Anno 395.
And as iron that breaketh all theſe] Of the Roman greatneſſe much is written by many Authors,O bem jam totum victor Romanus habebat. Pet. Arb. how they ſubdued and kept under other potent nations by their Legions quartered amongſt them, and by their Publicans exacting tribute of them.
Ver. 41. And whereas thou ſaweſt the feet and toes part of potters clay, &c.] Theſe feet and toes are the Roman Empire, yet continuing, but weaker then it was before whilſt it conſiſted of legs of iron, being now but of feet and toes. And this Empire is divided as the feet and toes are. One part is the Kingdom of the Pope in the Weſt (He whom we call the Emperour, hath now little or nothing to do with the Empire, which was of Rome:) The other part, is the Turk in the Eaſt, before whom three of the horns of the Empire are rooted out: See chap. 7 8.
Ver. 42. So the Kingdom ſhall be partly ſtrong and partly broken] Or, brittle: This wee ſee daily fulfilled in the tottering Kingdoms both of that of the Turk (which laboureth with nothing more then the weightineſſe of it ſelf, and yet hath been ſoundly battered alate by the Venetians) and the other of the Pope, which declineth alſo apace, and ſhall do every day more and more, according to that old Diſtich,
Roma diu titubans, variis erroribus acta,
Corruet, & Mundi deſinet eſſe caput.
Ver. 43. They ſhall mingle themſelves with the ſeed of men] i. e. Indeavour by interchangeable mariages to reunite the diviſions: but that can as little be, as iron can be mixed with clay; cleave they might for a while together, but not incorporate.
Ver. 44. And in the dayes of theſe Kings] i. e. Of this fourth Mornarchy: for the Roman Emperours were Kings, as Peter alſo calleth them, 1 Epiſt. 2.17. though they to avoid the hatred of the people, refuſed ſo to be ſtiled. The Pope, by a like hypocriſy, calleth himſelf The ſervant of Gods ſervants; but yet ſtamps upon his coyn, That nation and country that will not ſerve thee, ſhall be rooted out.
Shall the God of heaven ſet up a Kingdom] The Kingdom of his Son Chriſt. And here we have in few words, the whole ſumme of the Goſpel, and that truth which is after godlineſſe, Tit. 1.1. for the revealing whereof this whole dream was revealed to the King.
But it ſhall break in pieces] Chriſt ſhall reign, and all his foes be made his foot-ſtool.
Ver. 45. Foraſmuch as thou ſaweſt that the ſtones was cut out of the mountain] Chriſt is called a ſtone, 1. For ſtrength. 2. For continuance. 3. For refuge. 4. For offence: he is Piorum rupes, reorum ſcopulus, as Val. Max. ſaith of L. Caſſius his tribunal.
Without hands] i. e. Without mans help.Broughton on Daniel.
And that it brake in pieces the iron, the braſſe, the clay, the ſilver and the gold] Broughtons note here is, Witty Daniel telleth firſt how the laſt ſhall be deſtroyed, and not how Nebuchadnezzar's houſe firſt ſhould fall, (ſo chap. 7.11, 12.) where he ſheweth his care to pleaſe the cruel tyrant, and his own readineſſe of wit in the alluſion that is in the Chaldee between chaſpa and caeſpa, clay and ſilver: which they that obſerve not cannot know why Daniel brake the native order of ſpeech for clay, iron, braſſe, ſilver and gold.
Ver. 46. Then the King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face] Out of admiration, and an opinion of ſome divinity in Daniel: See the like, Act, 14 11. & 28.6. So the Salvages of Nova Albion ſtole upon the Engliſh (at their departure thence) a ſacrifice, and ſet it on fire ere we were aware, ſaith Captain Drake, for they ſuppoſed us to be gods indeed.
And worſhipped Daniel] i. e. He was about to do it, but that Daniel utterly and earneſtly refuſed it, directing him to God (the ſole object of divine adoration) as appeareth by the next Verſe. And indeed it had been better for Daniel a thouſand times to have been put to death, then to have ſuffered an oblation and ſweet odours to have been offered unto him. He had ſaid enough before to prevent ſuch a miſchief, ver. 28, 29, 30. See here, how Satan tempteth the Saints by extreams: Daniel who before was deſtined to death, is now deified: and this was the more dangerous temptation of the two. Be not ignorant of his wiles.
Ver. 47. The King anſwered unto Daniel] Who diſſwaded him, with all his might from doing on that ſort, and inculcated that God was the chief Doer.
Of a truth it is that your God is a God of gods] Hoc fuit momentaneum, ſaith Calvin, this was but a flaſh: ſuch as was found in Pharaoh, Saul, and other Temporaries. For if it had been in truth, he would not have ſet up the golden idol, &c. chap. 3. Nevertheleſſe Nebuchadnezzar ſhewed more ingenuity then our ſtiff unperſwadable Refractaries, and eſpecially then the perverſe Jeſuites, of whom it is noted, that they are ſo croſs-grained and quarrelſom that they had rather quaerere then credere, ſtart queſtions then believe truth; and pertinaciouſly diſpute, then reſt in the plaineſt interpretations.
Ver. 48. Then the King made Daniel a great man] This was, ſaith Broughton, about two years afore the Captivity of Jechonias (when the good figs were to be brought to Babylon:) an encouragement for the faithful to go willingly; their own Nobles being ſo advanced in that Court.
And gave him many great gifts] This, Porphyry (that Atheiſt) ſnarleth at: viz▪ that Daniel received theſe rewards and honours. But why might he not, ſith the gifts he could beſtow upon the poor Captives his fellow-brethren? and the honours he could alſo improve to their benefit; himſelf did neither ambitiouſly ſeek them, nor was vainly puffed up by them. A noble pair of like Engliſh ſpirits we have lately had amongſt us, D. Ʋſſier and D. Preſton, Contemporaries and intimate friends to one another. The former, when he was conſecrated Biſhop of Meath in Ireland, D. Bern. in his life.had this Anagram of his name given him, James Meath, I am the ſame. The latter when he might have choſen his own mitre, but denied all preferment that courted his acceptance, had this Anagram made of him, Johannes Preſtonius, En ſtas pius in honore.Mr. Fuller. Church-hiſt. fol. 119.
Ver. 49. Then Daniel requeſted of the King] Acquainting him, likely, that by their prayes alſo, in part, the ſecret had been brought to knowledge, ver. 18, 19.
But Daniel ſat in the gate of the King] As chief Admiſſional (ſo the Civilians call it) without whoſe leave and licenſe none might come into the Kings preſence. Himſelf, mean-while, had an excellent opportunity of treating with the King, upon all occaſions, of ſuch things as concerned the Churches good: and this priviledge no queſtion but he improved to the utmoſt.