Chapter 114

¹ All you, then, who reverently draw near to God, recognize Him who long ago was shown to the people by Moses, and was made manifest upon the mountain, and was foreproclaimed by the prophets, and was seen by the blessed Daniel as a man—concerning whom he says: “I beheld in a vision of the night, and lo, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he reached the Ancient of Days and was brought before Him. And to Him was given the dominion and the honor and the kingdom, and all the peoples, tribes, and tongues shall serve Him; His authority is an everlasting authority, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom shall not be destroyed.”

² By “Ancient of Days,” then, he means none other than the Lord and God and Master of all, the Father of Christ Himself, who makes the days old, while He Himself is not made old by times or days—concerning whom it was said above: “Thrones were set, and the Ancient of Days was seated, and His garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head was as pure wool; His throne was a flame of fire, its wheels a burning fire; a river of fire was drawn out before Him; thousand thousands ministered to Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood beside Him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.”

³ To this One the Son of man was brought, borne by a cloud and presented by archangels, that He might receive from Him all dominion and authority and power and kingdom, so that all peoples, tribes, and tongues should serve Him.

⁴ And lest anyone suppose that the kingdom given to Him by the Father is temporary or earthly, the prophet says: “His authority is an everlasting authority, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom shall not be destroyed.”

⁵ Having therefore subjected to His own Son all things in the heavens and on the earth and under the earth, the Father showed Him through all things to be the firstborn in all: firstborn from God, that He might be proved to be the Son of God, second after the Father; firstborn before the angels, that He might be shown to be Lord of angels also; firstborn from a virgin, that He might be shown re-forming in Himself the first-formed Adam; firstborn also from the dead, that He Himself might become the firstfruits of our resurrection.