3:8 Now 1 at that time certain 2 Chaldeans came forward and brought malicious accusations against 3 the Jews. 3:9 They said 4 to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! 5 3:10 You have issued an edict, O king, that everyone must bow down and pay homage to the golden statue when they hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, trigon, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music. 3:11 And whoever does not bow down and pay homage must be thrown into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire.
1 tc This expression is absent in Theodotion.
2 tn Aram “men.”
3 tn Aram “ate the pieces of.” This is a rather vivid idiom for slander.
4 tn Aram “answered and said,” a common Aramaic idiom that occurs repeatedly in this chapter.
5 sn O king, live forever! is a comment of typical court courtesy that is not necessarily indicative of the real sentiments of the speaker. Ancient oriental court protocol could sometimes require a certain amount of hypocrisy.