From the Prologue of Ochrid
All four were from the royal tribe of Judah. When Nebuchadnezzar (or Nebuchadrezzar) destroyed and plundered Jerusalem, then Daniel also, as a boy, was taken into captivity together with the king of Judea, Jehoiakim, and a multitude of other Israelites. A description of his life, sufferings and prophecies can be found exhaustively in his book. All devoted to God, Saint Daniel from early youth received from God the gift of great clairvoyance. His fame among the Jews in Babylon began when he exposed two lustful and unjust elders, judges of Judea, and saved the chaste Susanna from unjust death. And his fame among the Babylonians began from that day when he guessed and interpreted the dream of Emperor Nebuchadnezzar. For this the emperor made him a prince at his court. When the emperor made a golden idol in the plain of Dura, the three youths would not bow down to the idol, for which they were cast into the fiery furnace. But God's angel appeared in the furnace and cooled the fire, so that the youths walked about in the furnace, unharmed by the fire, and sang: Blessed art Thou, O Lord God of our fathers. And the emperor saw that miracle and was horrified. And the emperor led the youths out of the furnace and showered them with great honors. In the time of Emperor Belshazzar, when the emperor once at a feast was eating and drinking with his guests from consecrated vessels taken from the temple of Jerusalem, an invisible hand wrote on the wall three words: mene, tekel, peres. These words no one could interpret except Daniel. That night Emperor Belshazzar was killed. Twice Daniel was cast into the lions' den because of his faith in the one Living God. And both times the Lord saved him and he remained alive. Daniel saw God on His throne with the angelic powers, saw angels, penetrated into the future of individual men, of kingdoms and of the entire human race, foretold the time of the Savior's coming to earth. According to Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Daniel and the three youths lived to deep old age in Babylon and were beheaded with a sword because of the true Faith. When Ananias was beheaded, Azarias spread out his garment and caught his head; then Misael caught Azarias's head, and Daniel Misael's. God's angel transferred their bodies to Judea to Mount Gebal and laid them under a stone. According to tradition, these four God-pleasers arose at the time of the death of the Lord Christ and appeared to many, then fell asleep again. Daniel is counted among the four great prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel). He lived and prophesied half a thousand years before Christ.
