Daniel 1:3

1:3 The king commanded ¹  Ashpenaz, ²  who was in charge of his court officials, ³  to choose ⁴  some of the Israelites who were of royal and noble descent ⁵  –

Daniel 2:3

2:3 The king told them, “I have had a dream, ⁶  and I ⁷  am anxious to understand the dream.”

Daniel 8:14

8:14 He said to me, “To 2,300 evenings and mornings; ⁸  then the sanctuary will be put right again.” ⁹ 

Daniel 8:16

8:16 Then I heard a human voice coming from between the banks of the Ulai. It called out, “Gabriel, ¹⁰  enable this person to understand the vision.”

Daniel 8:19

8:19 Then he said, “I am going to inform you about what will happen in the latter time of wrath, for the vision ¹¹  pertains to the appointed time of the end.

Daniel 9:22

9:22 He spoke with me, instructing me as follows: ¹²  “Daniel, I have now come to impart understanding to you.

Daniel 12:6

12:6 One said to the man clothed in linen who was above the waters of the river, “When will the end of these wondrous events occur?”

Daniel 12:9

12:9 He said, “Go, Daniel. For these matters are closed and sealed until the time of the end.

[1:3]  ¹ tn Or “gave orders to.” Heb “said to.”

[1:3]  ² sn It is possible that the word Ashpenaz is not a proper name at all, but a general term for “innkeeper.” See J. J. Collins, Daniel (Hermeneia), 127, n. 9. However, the ancient versions understand the term to be a name, and the present translation (along with most English versions) understands the word in this way.

[1:3]  ³ sn The word court official (Hebrew saris) need not mean “eunuch” in a technical sense (see Gen 37:36, where the term refers to Potiphar, who had a wife), although in the case of the book of Daniel there was in Jewish literature a common tradition to that effect. On the OT usage of this word see HALOT 769-70 s.v. סָרֹיס.

[1:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “bring.”

[1:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “and from the seed of royalty and from the nobles.”

[2:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “I have dreamed a dream” (so KJV, ASV).

[2:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “my spirit.”

[8:14]  ¹¹ sn The language of evenings and mornings is reminiscent of the creation account in Genesis 1. Since “evening and morning” is the equivalent of a day, the reference here would be to 2,300 days. However, some interpreters understand the reference to be to the evening sacrifice and the morning sacrifice, in which case the reference would be to only 1,150 days. Either way, the event that marked the commencement of this period is unclear. The event that marked the conclusion of the period is the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem following the atrocious and sacrilegious acts that Antiochus implemented. This took place on December 25, 165 B.C. The Jewish celebration of Hanukkah each year commemorates this victory.

[8:14]  ¹² tn Heb “will be vindicated” or “will be justified.” This is the only occurrence of this verb in the Niphal in the OT. English versions interpret it as “cleansed” (KJV, ASV), “restored” (NASB, TEV, NLT), or “reconsecrated” (NIV).

[8:16]  ¹⁶ sn The only angels whose names are given in the OT are Gabriel (Dan 8:16; 9:21; cf. Luke 1:19, 26) and Michael (Dan 10:13, 21; 12:1; cf. Jude 9; Rev 12:7). The name Gabriel means in Hebrew “man of God,” and Michael means “who is like God?”

[8:19]  ²¹ tn The Hebrew text does not actually state the referent (the vision Daniel saw in vv. 8-12; cf. also v. 13), which has been specified in the translation for clarity. Some Greek witnesses add “the vision” here.

[9:22]  ²⁶ tn Heb “he instructed and spoke with me.” The expression is a verbal hendiadys.