Daniel 7:22

7:22 until the Ancient of Days arrived and judgment was rendered ¹  in favor of the holy ones of the Most High. Then the time came for the holy ones to take possession of the kingdom.

Daniel 7:18

7:18 The holy ones ²  of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will take possession of the kingdom forever and ever.’

Daniel 7:21

7:21 While I was watching, that horn began to wage war against the holy ones and was defeating ³  them,

Daniel 4:13

4:13 While I was watching in my mind’s visions ⁴  on my bed,

a holy sentinel ⁵  came down from heaven.

Daniel 7:25

7:25 He will speak words against the Most High.

He will harass ⁶  the holy ones of the Most High continually.

His intention ⁷  will be to change times established by law. ⁸ 

They will be delivered into his hand

For a time, times, ⁹  and half a time.

Daniel 4:8-9

4:8 Later Daniel entered (whose name is Belteshazzar after the name of my god, ¹⁰  and in whom there is a spirit of the holy gods). I recounted the dream for him as well, 4:9 saying, “Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, in whom I know there to be a spirit of the holy gods and whom no mystery baffles, consider ¹¹  my dream that I saw and set forth its interpretation!

Daniel 4:17-18

4:17 This announcement is by the decree of the sentinels;

this decision is by the pronouncement of the holy ones,

so that ¹²  those who are alive may understand

that the Most High has authority over human kingdoms, ¹³ 

and he bestows them on whomever he wishes.

He establishes over them even the lowliest of human beings.’

4:18 “This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, saw. Now you, Belteshazzar, declare its ¹⁴  interpretation, for none of the wise men in ¹⁵  my kingdom are able to make known to me the interpretation. But you can do so, for a spirit of the holy gods is in you.”

Daniel 5:11

5:11 There is a man in your kingdom who has within him a spirit of the holy gods. In the days of your father, he proved to have ¹⁶  insight, discernment, and wisdom like that ¹⁷  of the gods. ¹⁸  King Nebuchadnezzar your father appointed him chief of the magicians, astrologers, wise men, and diviners. ¹⁹ 

Daniel 7:27

7:27 Then the kingdom, authority,

and greatness of the kingdoms under all of heaven

will be delivered to the people of the holy ones ²⁰  of the Most High.

His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;

all authorities will serve him and obey him.’

Daniel 4:23

4:23 As for the king seeing a holy sentinel coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Chop down the tree and destroy it, but leave its taproot in the ground, with a band of iron and bronze around it, surrounded by the grass of the field. Let it become damp with the dew of the sky, and let it live with the wild animals, until seven periods of time go by for him’ –

¹ 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]).

² sn The expression holy ones is either a reference to angels or to human beings devoted to God.

³ tn Aram “prevailing against” (KJV and ASV both similar); NASB “overpowering them”; TEV “conquered them.”

⁴ tn Aram “the visions of my head.”

⁵ tn Aram “a watcher and a holy one.” The expression is a hendiadys; so also in v. 23. This “watcher” is apparently an angel. The Greek OT (LXX) in fact has ἄγγελος (angelo", “angel”) here. Theodotion simply transliterates the Aramaic word (’ir). The term is sometimes rendered “sentinel” (NAB) or “messenger” (NIV, NLT).

⁵ 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.”

⁶ tn Aram “he will think.”

⁷ tn Aram “times and law.” The present translation is based on the understanding that the expression is a hendiadys.

⁸ 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.”

⁶ sn This explanation of the meaning of the name Belteshazzar may be more of a paronomasia than a strict etymology.

⁷ tc The present translation assumes the reading חֲזִי (khazi, “consider”) rather than the MT חֶזְוֵי (khezvey, “visions”). The MT implies that the king required Daniel to disclose both the dream and its interpretation, as in chapter 2. But in the following verses Nebuchadnezzar recounts his dream, while Daniel presents only its interpretation.

⁸ tc The present translation follows an underlying reading of עַל־דִּבְרַת (’al-divrat, “so that”) rather than MT עַד־דִּבְרַת (’ad-divrat, “until”).

⁹ tn Aram “the kingdom of man”; NASB “the realm of mankind”; NCV “every kingdom on earth.”

⁹ tc The present translation reads פִּשְׁרֵהּ (pishreh, “its interpretation”) with the Qere and many medieval Hebrew MSS; the Kethib is פִּשְׁרָא (pishra’, “the interpretation”); so also v. 16.

¹⁰ tn Aram “of.”

¹⁰ tn Aram “[there were] discovered to be in him.”

¹¹ tn Aram “wisdom like the wisdom.” This would be redundant in terms of English style.

¹² tc Theodotion lacks the phrase “and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods.”

¹³ tc The MT includes a redundant reference to “your father the king” at the end of v. 11. None of the attempts to explain this phrase as original are very convincing. The present translation deletes the phrase, following Theodotion and the Syriac.

¹¹ tn If the “holy ones” are angels, then this probably refers to the angels as protectors of God’s people. If the “holy ones” are God’s people, then this is an appositional construction, “the people who are the holy ones.” See 8:24 for the corresponding Hebrew phrase and the note there.