HOMILY VIII.] HOMILIES ON EPHESIANS. 93 Mighty dignity! "Ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither." How are they to come forth, O king? Thou didst cast them into the fire bound ; they have con tinued this long time in the fire. Why, had they been made of adamant, had they been blocks of metal, in singing that entire hymn, must they not have perished ? On this account then they were saved, because they sang praises to God. The fire reverenced their readiness to suffer and afterwards it reverenced thatwonder ful song, and their hymns of praise. By what title dost thou call them ? I said before, Ye servants of the most high God." Yes, to the servants of God, all things are possible ; for if some, who are the servants of men, have, nevertheless, power, and authority, and the dis posal of their concerns, much more have the servants of God. He called them by the name most delightful to them, he knew that by this means he flattered them most: for indeed, if it was in order to continue servants of God, that they entered into the fire, there could be no sound more delightful to them than this. Had he called them kings, had he called them lords of the world, yet would he not so truly have rejoiced them as when he said, " Ye servants of the most high God." And why marvel at this? when, in writing to the mighty city, to her who was mistress of the world, and prided herself upon her high dignities, Paul set down as equivalent in dignity, nay, as far greater, yea incomparably greater than consulship, or kingly name, or than the empire of the world, this title, "Paul, a servant 1 of Jesus Christ." (Ro. i: i.) "Ye servants of the most high God." Yes, he would say, if they show so great zeal as to be bond-servants, doubtless this is the title by which we shall conciliate them. Again, observe also the piety of the Children : they showed no indignation, no anger, no gain saying, but they came forth. Had they regarded it as an act of vengeance that they had been thrown into the furnace, they would have been grieved against the man who had cast them in ; as it is, there is nothing of the kind ; but, as though they were going forth from Heaven itself, so went they forth. And what the Prophet says of the Sun, that " He is as a bridegroom coming forth out of his chamber," (Ps. xix : 5.) one would not go amiss in saying also of them. But though he goes forth thus, yet came they forth there more gloriously than he, for he in deed comes forth to enlighten the world with natural light, they to enlighten the world in a different way, I mean, spiritually. For because of them the king straightway issued a decree, containing these words, " It hath seemed good [The word in theGreek fioOAo? which means a bond-slave, though softened in the Auth. Ver. to " servant" and in the Rev. Ver. to "bond-servant." G. A.] unto me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God hath wrought toward me. How great are His signs I And how mighty are His wonders ! " (Dan. iv : 2,3.) So that they went forth, shedding a yet more glorious radiance, beaming indeed in that region itself, but, what is more than all, capable, by means of the king s writings, of being diffused over the world and thus of dispelling the darkness which every where prevails. " Come forth," said he, " and come hither." He gave no commandment2 to extinguish the flame, but hereby most espe cially honored them, by believing that they were able not only to walk within it, but even to come out of it while it was still burning. But let us look again, if it seem good to you, at the words of the jailor, " Sirs, what must I do to be saved ? " What language sweeter than this ? This makes the very Angels leap for joy. To hear this language, even the Only-begotten Son of God Himself became a servant. This language they who believed at the beginning addressed to Peter. (Acts ii : 37.) "What shall we do?" And what said he in answer ? "Repent and be baptized." To have heard this language from the Jews, gladly would Paul have been cast even in to hell, in his eagerness for their salvation and obedience. But observe, he commits the whole matter to them, he wastes no unnecessary pains. Let us however look at the next point. The king here does not say, What must I do to be saved ? but the teaching is plainer in his case than any language what ever ; for he straightway becomes a preacher, he needs not to be instructed like the jailor. He proclaims God, and makes confession of His power. " Of a truth your God is the God of Gods and the Lord of Kings, because He hath sent His Angel, and hath delivered you." (Dan. ii : 47 ; iii : 28.) And what was the se quel ? Not one single jailor, but numbers are instructed by the king s writings, by the sight of the facts. For that the king would not have told a falsehood is evident enough to every one, because he never would have chosen to bear such testimony to captives, nor to overthrow his own acts ; he never would have chosen to incur the imputation of such utter madness : so that had not the truth been abundantly manifest, he would not have written in such terms, and with so many persons present. Perceive ye how great is the power of bonds? How great the force of those praises that are sung in tribulation ? Their heart failed not, they were not cast down, but were then yet more vigorous, and their courage then yet greater and justly so. While we are considering these things one [Field s text has here erb\/jiTjcre, he did not venture ; but that gives a sense less satisfactory than the text of Savile and the Ox ford translator, xcAev<re, which is well attested. G. A.]