Daniel 11:21

11:21 “Then there will arise in his place a despicable person ¹  to whom the royal honor has not been rightfully conferred. He will come on the scene in a time of prosperity and will seize the kingdom through deceit.

Daniel 11:9

11:9 Then the king of the north ²  will advance against the empire of the king of the south, but will withdraw to his own land.

Daniel 2:1

Nebuchadnezzar Has a Disturbing Dream

2:1 In the second year of his ³  reign Nebuchadnezzar had many dreams. ⁴  His mind ⁵  was disturbed and he suffered from insomnia. ⁶ 

Daniel 8:22-23

8:22 The horn that was broken ⁷  and in whose place there arose four others stands for four kingdoms that will arise from his nation, though they will not have his strength. 8:23 Toward the end of their rule, when rebellious acts ⁸  are complete, a rash ⁹  and deceitful ¹⁰  king will arise. ¹¹ 

Daniel 9:1

Daniel Prays for His People

9:1 In the first year of Darius ¹²  son of Ahasuerus, ¹³  who was of Median descent and who had been ¹⁴  appointed king over the Babylonian ¹⁵  empire –

Daniel 11:4

11:4 Shortly after his rise to power, ¹⁶  his kingdom will be broken up and distributed toward the four winds of the sky ¹⁷  – but not to his posterity or with the authority he exercised, for his kingdom will be uprooted and distributed to others besides these.

Daniel 1:1

Daniel Finds Favor in Babylon

1:1 In the third ¹⁸  year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar ¹⁹  of Babylon advanced against Jerusalem ²⁰  and laid it under siege. ²¹ 

Daniel 1:20

1:20 In every matter of wisdom and ²²  insight the king asked them about, he found them to be ten times ²³  better than any of the magicians and astrologers that were in his entire empire.

Daniel 8:1

Daniel Has a Vision of a Goat and a Ram

8:1 ²⁴ In the third year ²⁵  of King Belshazzar’s reign, a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had appeared to me previously. ²⁶ 

Daniel 11:20

11:20 There will arise after him ²⁷  one ²⁸  who will send out an exactor ²⁹  of tribute to enhance the splendor of the kingdom, but after a few days he will be destroyed, ³⁰  though not in anger or battle.

Daniel 10:13

10:13 However, the prince of the kingdom of Persia was opposing me for twenty-one days. But ³¹  Michael, one of the leading princes, came to help me, because I was left there ³²  with the kings of Persia.

Daniel 11:2

11:2 Now I will tell you the truth.

The Angel Gives a Message to Daniel

“Three ³³  more kings will arise for Persia. Then a fourth ³⁴  king will be unusually rich, ³⁵  more so than all who preceded him. When he has amassed power through his riches, he will stir up everyone against ³⁶  the kingdom of Greece.

Daniel 11:17

11:17 His intention ³⁷  will be to come with the strength of his entire kingdom, and he will form alliances. ³⁸  He will give the king of the south ³⁹  a daughter ⁴⁰  in marriage in order to destroy the kingdom, but it will not turn out to his advantage.

¹ sn This despicable person to whom the royal honor has not been rightfully conferred is Antiochus IV Epiphanes (ca. 175-164 B.C.).

² tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king of the north) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³ tn Heb “Nebuchadnezzar’s.” The possessive pronoun is substituted in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁴ tn Heb “dreamed dreams.” The plural is used here and in v. 2, but the singular in v. 3. The plural “dreams” has been variously explained. Some interpreters take the plural as denoting an indefinite singular (so GKC 400 §124.o). But it may be that it is describing a stream of related dreams, or a dream state. In the latter case, one might translate: “Nebuchadnezzar was in a trance.” See further, J. A. Montgomery, Daniel (ICC), 142.

⁵ tn Heb “his spirit.”

⁶ tn Heb “his sleep left (?) him.” The use of the verb הָיָה (hayah, “to be”) here is unusual. The context suggests a meaning such as “to be finished” or “gone.” Cf. Dan 8:27. Some scholars emend the verb to read נָדְדָה (nadÿdah, “fled”); cf. Dan 6:19. See further, DCH 2:540 s.v. היה I Ni.3; HALOT 244 s.v. היה nif; BDB 227-28 s.v. הָיָה Niph.2.

⁴ tn Heb “the broken one.” The word “horn” has been supplied in the translation to clarify the referent.

⁵ tc The present translation reads הַפְּשָׁעִים (happÿsha’im, “rebellious acts”) for the MT הַפֹּשְׁעִים (happoshÿ’im, “rebels”). While the MT is understandable (cf. NIV, “when rebels have become completely wicked”), the filling up of transgressions is a familiar OT expression (cf. Gen 15:16) and fits this context well. Cf. the LXX, Theodotion, the Vulgate, and the Syriac.

⁶ tn Heb “strong of face.”

⁷ tn Heb “understanding riddles.” Possible meanings include “double-dealing” (BDB 295 s.v. חִידָה; cf. TEV, CEV) and “with a good knowledge of intrigue” (HALOT 309 s.v. חִידָה; cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

⁸ tn Heb “stand” or “stand up.”

⁶ sn The identity of this Darius is a major problem in correlating the biblical material with the extra-biblical records of this period. Most modern scholars treat the reference as a mistaken allusion to Darius Hystaspes (ca. 522-486 B.C.). Others have maintained instead that this name is a reference to the Persian governor Gubaru. Still others understand the reference to be to the Persian king Cyrus (cf. 6:28, where the vav (ו) may be understood as vav explicativum, meaning “even”). Under either of these latter two interpretations, the first year of Darius would have been ca. 538 B.C. Daniel would have been approximately eighty-two years old at this time.

⁷ tc The LXX reads “Xerxes.” This is the reading used by some English versions (e.g., NIV, NCV, TEV, CEV). Most other English versions retain the Hebrew name “Ahasuerus.”

⁸ tc The present translation follows the MT in reading a Hophal (i.e., passive). Theodotion, the Syriac, and the Vulgate all presuppose the Hiphil (i.e., active). Even though this is the only occurrence of the Hophal of this verb in the Bible, there is no need to emend the vocalization to the Hiphil.

⁹ tn Heb “was made king over the kingdom of the Chaldeans.”

⁷ tn Heb “and when he stands.”

⁸ tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.

⁸ sn The third year of the reign of Jehoiakim would be ca. 605 B.C. At this time Daniel would have been a teenager. The reference to Jehoiakim’s third year poses a serious crux interpretum, since elsewhere these events are linked to his fourth year (Jer 25:1; cf. 2 Kgs 24:1; 2 Chr 36:5-8). Apparently Daniel is following an accession year chronology, whereby the first partial year of a king’s reign was reckoned as the accession year rather than as the first year of his reign. Jeremiah, on the other hand, is following a nonaccession year chronology, whereby the accession year is reckoned as the first year of the king’s reign. In that case, the conflict is only superficial. Most modern scholars, however, have concluded that Daniel is historically inaccurate here.

⁹ sn King Nebuchadnezzar ruled Babylon from ca. 605-562 B.C.

¹⁰ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹¹ sn This attack culminated in the first of three major deportations of Jews to Babylon. The second one occurred in 597 B.C. and included among many other Jewish captives the prophet Ezekiel. The third deportation occurred in 586 B.C., at which time the temple and the city of Jerusalem were thoroughly destroyed.

⁹ tc The MT lacks the conjunction, reading the first word in the phrase as a construct (“wisdom of insight”). While this reading is not impossible, it seems better to follow Theodotion, the Syriac, the Vulgate, and the Sahidic Coptic, all of which have the conjunction.

¹⁰ tn Heb “hands.”

¹⁰ sn Dan 8:1 marks the switch from Aramaic (= 2:4b-7:28) back to Hebrew as the language in which the book is written in its present form. The remainder of the book from this point on (8:1-12:13) is in Hebrew. The bilingual nature of the book has been variously explained, but it most likely has to do with the book’s transmission history.

¹¹ sn The third year of King Belshazzar’s reign would have been ca. 551 B.C. Daniel would have been approximately 69 years old at the time of this vision.

¹² tn Heb “in the beginning.” This refers to the vision described in chapter seven.

¹¹ tn Heb “on his place.”

¹² sn The one who will send out an exactor of tribute was Seleucus IV Philopator (ca. 187-176 B.C.).

¹³ sn Perhaps this exactor of tribute was Heliodorus (cf. 2 Maccabees 3).

¹⁴ tn Heb “broken” or “shattered.”

¹² tn Heb “and behold.”

¹³ tc The Greek version of Theodotion reads “I left him [i.e., Michael] there,” and this is followed by a number of English translations (cf. NAB, NRSV, NLT).

¹³ sn Perhaps these three more kings are Cambyses (ca. 530-522 B.C.), Pseudo-Smerdis (ca. 522 B.C.), and Darius I Hystaspes (ca. 522-486 B.C.).

¹⁴ sn This fourth king is Xerxes I (ca. 486-465 B.C.). The following reference to one of his chiefs apparently has in view Seleucus Nicator.

¹⁵ tn Heb “rich with great riches.”

¹⁶ tn The text is difficult. The Hebrew has here אֶת (’et), the marker of a definite direct object. As it stands, this would suggest the meaning that “he will arouse everyone, that is, the kingdom of Greece.” The context, however, seems to suggest the idea that this Persian king will arouse in hostility against Greece the constituent elements of his own empire. This requires supplying the word “against,” which is not actually present in the Hebrew text.

¹⁴ tn Heb “and he will set his face.” Cf. vv. 18, 19.

¹⁵ tc The present translation reads מֵישָׁרִים (mesharim, “alliances”) for the MT וִישָׁרִים (viysharim, “uprightness”).

¹⁶ tn Heb “him”; the referent (the king of the south) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁷ tn Heb “the daughter of the women.”