Daniel 2:5

2:5 The king replied ¹  to the wise men, “My decision is firm. ²  If you do not inform me of both the dream and its interpretation, you will be dismembered ³  and your homes reduced to rubble!

Daniel 2:15

2:15 He inquired of Arioch the king’s deputy, “Why is the decree from the king so urgent?” ⁴  Then Arioch informed Daniel about the matter.

Daniel 2:20

2:20 saying, ⁵ 

“Let the name of God ⁶  be praised ⁷  forever and ever,

for wisdom and power belong to him.

Daniel 2:26-27

2:26 The king then asked Daniel (whose name was also Belteshazzar), “Are you able to make known to me the dream that I saw, as well as its interpretation?” 2:27 Daniel replied to the king, “The mystery that the king is asking about is such that no wise men, astrologers, magicians, or diviners can possibly disclose it to the king.

Daniel 4:30

4:30 The king uttered these words: “Is this not the great Babylon that I have built for a royal residence ⁸  by my own mighty strength ⁹  and for my majestic honor?”

Daniel 5:17

Daniel Interprets the Handwriting on the Wall

5:17 But Daniel replied to the king, “Keep your gifts, and give your rewards to someone else! However, I will read the writing for the king and make known its ¹⁰  interpretation.

Daniel 7:2

7:2 Daniel explained: ¹¹  “I was watching in my vision during the night as ¹²  the four winds of the sky ¹³  were stirring up the great sea. ¹⁴ 

¹ tn Aram “answered and said,” a common idiom to indicate a reply, but redundant in contemporary English.

² tn It seems clear from what follows that Nebuchadnezzar clearly recalls the content of the dream, although obviously he does not know what to make of it. By not divulging the dream itself to the would-be interpreters, he intends to find out whether they are simply leading him on. If they can tell him the dream’s content, which he is able to verify, he then can have confidence in their interpretation, which is what eludes him. The translation “the matter is gone from me” (cf. KJV, ASV), suggesting that the king had simply forgotten the dream, is incorrect. The Aramaic word used here (אַזְדָּא, ’azda’) is probably of Persian origin; it occurs in the OT only here and in v. 8. There are two main possibilities for the meaning of the word: “the matter is promulgated by me” (see KBL 1048 s.v.) and therefore “publicly known” (cf. NRSV; F. Rosenthal, Grammar, 62-63, §189), or “the matter is irrevocable” (cf. NAB, NIV, TEV, CEV, NLT; HALOT 1808 s.v. אזד; cf. also BDB 1079 s.v.). The present translation reflects this latter option. See further E. Vogt, Lexicon linguae aramaicae, 3.

³ tn Aram “made limbs.” Cf. 3:29.

⁴ tn The Aramaic word מְהַחְצְפָה (mÿhakhtsÿfah) may refer to the severity of the king’s decree (i.e., “harsh”; so HALOT 1879 s.v. חצף; BDB 1093 s.v. חֲצַף), although it would seem that in a delicate situation such as this Daniel would avoid this kind of criticism of the king’s actions. The translation above understands the word to refer to the immediacy, not harshness, of the decree. See further, F. Rosenthal, Grammar, 50, §116; E. Vogt, Lexicon linguae aramaicae, 67.

⁷ tn Aram “Daniel answered and said.”

⁸ sn As is often the case in the Bible, here the name represents the person.

⁹ tn Or “blessed.”

¹⁰ tn Aram “house.”

¹¹ tn Aram “by the might of my strength.”

¹³ tn Or “the.”

¹⁶ tn Aram “answered and said.”

¹⁷ tn Aram “and behold.”

¹⁸ tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.

¹⁹ sn The referent of the great sea is unclear. The common view that the expression refers to the Mediterranean Sea is conjectural.