2:21 He changes times and seasons,
deposing some kings
and establishing others. 1
He gives wisdom to the wise;
he imparts knowledge to those with understanding; 2
11:36 “Then the king 6 will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every deity and he will utter presumptuous things against the God of gods. He will succeed until the time of 7 wrath is completed, for what has been decreed must occur. 8 11:37 He will not respect 9 the gods of his fathers – not even the god loved by women. 10 He will not respect any god; he will elevate himself above them all. 11:38 What he will honor is a god of fortresses – a god his fathers did not acknowledge he will honor with gold, silver, valuable stones, and treasured commodities.
12:2 Many of those who sleep
in the dusty ground will awake –
some to everlasting life,
and others to shame and everlasting abhorrence. 12
2:1 In the second year of his 15 reign Nebuchadnezzar had many dreams. 16 His mind 17 was disturbed and he suffered from insomnia. 18
4:1 (3:31) 19 “King Nebuchadnezzar, to all peoples, nations, and language groups that live in all the land: Peace and prosperity! 20 4:2 I am delighted to tell you about the signs and wonders that the most high God has done for me.
4:3 “How great are his signs!
How mighty are his wonders!
His kingdom will last forever, 21
and his authority continues from one generation to the next.”
1 tn Aram “kings.”
2 tn Aram “the knowers of understanding.”
3 tn Heb “arms.”
4 tn Heb “the sanctuary, the fortress.”
5 tn Heb “will give.”
6 sn The identity of this king is problematic. If vv. 36-45 continue the description of Antiochus Epiphanes, the account must be viewed as erroneous, since the details do not match what is known of Antiochus’ latter days. Most modern scholars take this view, concluding that this section was written just shortly before the death of Antiochus and that the writer erred on several key points as he tried to predict what would follow the events of his own day. Conservative scholars, however, usually understand the reference to shift at this point to an eschatological figure, viz., the Antichrist. The chronological gap that this would presuppose to be in the narrative is not necessarily a problem, since by all accounts there are many chronological gaps throughout the chapter, as the historical figures intended by such expressions as “king of the north” and “king of the south” repeatedly shift.
7 tn The words “the time of” are added in the translation for clarification.
8 tn Heb “has been done.” The Hebrew verb used here is the perfect of certitude, emphasizing the certainty of fulfillment.
9 tn Heb “consider.”
10 tn Heb “[the one] desired by women.” The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11 tn Heb “to give.”
12 sn This verse is the only undisputed reference to a literal resurrection found in the Hebrew Bible.
13 sn Contrary to common belief, the point here is not that the wise men (Chaldeans) replied to the king in the Aramaic language, or that this language was uniquely the language of the Chaldeans. It was this view that led in the past to Aramaic being referred to as “Chaldee.” Aramaic was used as a lingua franca during this period; its origins and usage were not restricted to the Babylonians. Rather, this phrase is better understood as an editorial note (cf. NAB) marking the fact that from 2:4b through 7:28 the language of the book shifts from Hebrew to Aramaic. In 8:1, and for the remainder of the book, the language returns to Hebrew. Various views have been advanced to account for this change of language, most of which are unconvincing. Most likely the change in language is a reflection of stages in the transmission history of the book of Daniel.
14 tn Or “the.”
15 tn Heb “Nebuchadnezzar’s.” The possessive pronoun is substituted in the translation for stylistic reasons.
16 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.
17 tn Heb “his spirit.”
18 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.
19 sn Beginning with 4:1, the verse numbers through 4:37 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Aramaic text (BHS), with 4:1 ET = 3:31 AT, 4:2 ET = 3:32 AT, 4:3 ET = 3:33 AT, 4:4 ET = 4:1 AT, etc., through 4:37 ET = 4:34 AT. Thus Dan 3:31-33 of the Aramaic text appears as Dan 4:1-3 in the English Bible, and the corresponding verses of ch. 4 differ accordingly. In spite of the division of the Aramaic text, a good case can be made that 3:31-33 AT (= 4:1-3 ET) is actually the introduction to ch. 4.
20 tn Aram “May your peace increase!”
21 tn Aram “his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.”
22 tn Grk “it”; the referent (the second beast) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
23 tn Grk “it was given [permitted] to it [the second beast].”
24 tn Grk “breath,” but in context the point is that the image of the first beast is made to come to life and speak.
25 tn Grk “of the beast”; the word “first” has been supplied to specify the referent.
26 tn Or “forced”; Grk “makes” (ποιεῖ, poiei).
27 tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.
28 tn Grk “and that no one be able to buy or sell.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation. Although the ἵνα (Jina) is left untranslated, the English conjunction “thus” is used to indicate that this is a result clause.
29 tn The word “things” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context. In the context of buying and selling, food could be primarily in view, but the more general “things” was used in the translation because the context is not specific.
30 tn Grk “except the one who had.”
31 tn Grk “his name or the number of his name.”