Daniel 5:14

5:14 I have heard about you, how there is a spirit of the gods in you, and how you have ¹  insight, discernment, and extraordinary wisdom.

Daniel 7:15

An Angel Interprets Daniel’s Vision

7:15 “As for me, Daniel, my spirit was distressed, ²  and the visions of my mind ³  were alarming me.

Daniel 5:20

5:20 And when his mind ⁴  became arrogant ⁵  and his spirit filled with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and his honor was removed from him.

Daniel 7:2

7:2 Daniel explained: ⁶  “I was watching in my vision during the night as ⁷  the four winds of the sky ⁸  were stirring up the great sea. ⁹ 

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 4:18

4:18 “This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, saw. Now you, Belteshazzar, declare its ¹²  interpretation, for none of the wise men in ¹³  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 5:11-12

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 ¹⁴  insight, discernment, and wisdom like that ¹⁵  of the gods. ¹⁶  King Nebuchadnezzar your father appointed him chief of the magicians, astrologers, wise men, and diviners. ¹⁷  5:12 Thus there was found in this man Daniel, whom the king renamed Belteshazzar, an extraordinary spirit, knowledge, and skill to interpret ¹⁸  dreams, solve riddles, and decipher knotty problems. ¹⁹  Now summon ²⁰  Daniel, and he will disclose the interpretation.”

Daniel 6:3

6:3 Now this Daniel was distinguishing himself above the other supervisors and the satraps, for he had an extraordinary spirit. In fact, the king intended to appoint him over the entire kingdom.

Daniel 2:35

2:35 Then the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold were broken in pieces without distinction ²¹  and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors that the wind carries away. Not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the statue became a large mountain that filled the entire earth.

[5:14]  ¹ tn Aram “there has been found in you.”

[7:15]  ² tn The Aramaic text includes the phrase “in its sheath,” apparently viewing the body as a container or receptacle for the spirit somewhat like a sheath or scabbard is for a knife or a sword (cf. NAB “within its sheath of flesh”). For this phrase the LXX and Vulgate have “in these things.”

[7:15]  ³ tn Aram “head.”

[5:20]  ³ tn Aram “heart.”

[5:20]  ⁴ sn The point of describing Nebuchadnezzar as arrogant is that he had usurped divine prerogatives, and because of his immense arrogance God had dealt decisively with him.

[7:2]  ⁴ tn Aram “answered and said.”

[7:2]  ⁵ tn Aram “and behold.”

[7:2]  ⁶ tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.

[7:2]  ⁷ sn The referent of the great sea is unclear. The common view that the expression refers to the Mediterranean Sea is conjectural.

[4:8]  ⁵ sn This explanation of the meaning of the name Belteshazzar may be more of a paronomasia than a strict etymology.

[4:9]  ⁶ 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.

[4:18]  ⁷ 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.

[4:18]  ⁸ tn Aram “of.”

[5:11]  ⁸ tn Aram “[there were] discovered to be in him.”

[5:11]  ⁹ tn Aram “wisdom like the wisdom.” This would be redundant in terms of English style.

[5:11]  ¹⁰ tc Theodotion lacks the phrase “and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods.”

[5:11]  ¹¹ 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.

[5:12]  ⁹ tc The translation reads מִפְשַׁר (mifshar) rather than the MT מְפַשַּׁר (mÿfashar) and later in the verse reads וּמִשְׁרֵא (mishre’) rather than the MT וּמְשָׁרֵא (mÿshare’). The Masoretes have understood these Aramaic forms to be participles, but they are more likely to be vocalized as infinitives. As such, they have an epexegetical function in the syntax of their clause.

[5:12]  ¹⁰ tn Aram “to loose knots.”

[5:12]  ¹¹ tn Aram “let [Daniel] be summoned.”

[2:35]  ¹⁰ tn Aram “as one.” For the meaning “without distinction” see the following: F. Rosenthal, Grammar, 36, §64, and p. 93; E. Vogt, Lexicon linguae aramaicae, 60.