3:8 Now 2 at that time certain 3 Chaldeans came forward and brought malicious accusations against 4 the Jews.
2:21 He changes times and seasons,
deposing some kings
and establishing others. 6
He gives wisdom to the wise;
he imparts knowledge to those with understanding; 7
7:25 He will speak words against the Most High.
He will harass 9 the holy ones of the Most High continually.
His intention 10 will be to change times established by law. 11
They will be delivered into his hand
For a time, times, 12 and half a time.
1 tc Theodotion and the Syriac lack the words “went in and.”
2 tc This expression is absent in Theodotion.
3 tn Aram “men.”
4 tn Aram “ate the pieces of.” This is a rather vivid idiom for slander.
3 tn Aram “a prolonging of life was granted to them.”
4 tn Aram “kings.”
5 tn Aram “the knowers of understanding.”
5 tc In the LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate the verb is active, understanding “judgment” to be the object rather than the subject of the verb (i.e., “the Ancient of Days rendered judgment”). This presupposes a different vocalization of the verb ( יְהַב [yÿhav] rather than the MT יְהִב [yÿhiv]).
6 tn Aram “wear out” (so KJV, ASV, NRSV); NASB, NLT “wear down.” The word is a hapax legomenon in biblical Aramaic, but in biblical Hebrew it especially refers to wearing out such things as garments. Here it is translated “harass…continually.”
7 tn Aram “he will think.”
8 tn Aram “times and law.” The present translation is based on the understanding that the expression is a hendiadys.
9 sn Although the word times is vocalized in the MT as a plural, it probably should be regarded as a dual. The Masoretes may have been influenced here by the fact that in late Aramaic (and Syriac) the dual forms fall out of use. The meaning would thus be three and a half “times.”