Daniel 2:9

2:9 If you don’t inform me of the dream, there is only one thing that is going to happen to you. ¹  For you have agreed among yourselves to report to me something false and deceitful ²  until such time as things might change. So tell me the dream, and I will have confidence ³  that you can disclose its interpretation.”

Daniel 2:24

2:24 Then Daniel went in to see ⁴  Arioch (whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon). He came ⁵  and said to him, “Don’t destroy the wise men of Babylon! Escort me ⁶  to the king, and I will disclose the interpretation to him!” ⁷ 

Daniel 2:38

2:38 Wherever human beings, ⁸  wild animals, ⁹  and birds of the sky live – he has given them into your power. ¹⁰  He has given you authority over them all. You are the head of gold.

Daniel 4:17

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

this decision is by the pronouncement of the holy ones,

so that ¹¹  those who are alive may understand

that the Most High has authority over human kingdoms, ¹² 

and he bestows them on whomever he wishes.

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

Daniel 8:24

8:24 His power will be great, but it will not be by his strength alone. He will cause terrible destruction. ¹³  He will be successful in what he undertakes. ¹⁴  He will destroy powerful people and the people of the holy ones. ¹⁵ 

Daniel 9:16

9:16 O Lord, according to all your justice, ¹⁶  please turn your raging anger ¹⁷  away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain. For due to our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors, Jerusalem and your people are mocked by all our neighbors.

Daniel 11:2

11:2 Now I will tell you the truth.

The Angel Gives a Message to Daniel

“Three ¹⁸  more kings will arise for Persia. Then a fourth ¹⁹  king will be unusually rich, ²⁰  more so than all who preceded him. When he has amassed power through his riches, he will stir up everyone against ²¹  the kingdom of Greece.

[2:9]  ¹ tn Aram “one is your law,” i.e., only one thing is applicable to you.

[2:9]  ² tn Aram “a lying and corrupt word.”

[2:9]  ³ tn Aram “I will know.”

[2:24]  ⁴ tc The MT has עַל עַל (’al ’al, “he entered upon”). Several medieval Hebrew MSS lack the verb, although this may be due to haplography.

[2:24]  ⁵ tc The LXX and Vulgate, along with one medieval Hebrew MS, lack this verb.

[2:24]  ⁶ tn Aram “cause me to enter.” So also in v. 25.

[2:24]  ⁷ tn Aram “the king.”

[2:38]  ⁸ tn Aram “the sons of man.”

[2:38]  ⁹ tn Aram “the beasts of the field.”

[2:38]  ¹⁰ tn Aram “hand.”

[4:17]  ¹¹ tc The present translation follows an underlying reading of עַל־דִּבְרַת (’al-divrat, “so that”) rather than MT עַד־דִּבְרַת (’ad-divrat, “until”).

[4:17]  ¹² tn Aram “the kingdom of man”; NASB “the realm of mankind”; NCV “every kingdom on earth.”

[8:24]  ¹³ tn Heb “extraordinarily he will destroy.”

[8:24]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “he will succeed and act.”

[8:24]  ¹⁵ tn See the corresponding Aramaic expression in 7:27. If the “holy ones” are angels, then this probably refers to the angels as protectors of God’s people. One could translate, “people belonging to (i.e., protected by) the holy ones.” If the “holy ones” are God’s people, then this is an appositional construction, “the people who are the holy ones.” One could translate simply “holy people.” For examples of a plural appositional genitive after “people,” see 11:15, 32. Because either interpretation is possible, the translation has deliberately preserved the ambiguity of the Hebrew grammar here.

[9:16]  ¹⁶ tn Or “righteousness.”

[9:16]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “your anger and your rage.” The synonyms are joined here to emphasize the degree of God’s anger. This is best expressed in English by making one of the terms adjectival (cf. NLT “your furious anger”; CEV “terribly angry”).

[11:2]  ¹⁸ sn Perhaps these three more kings are Cambyses (ca. 530-522 B.C.), Pseudo-Smerdis (ca. 522 B.C.), and Darius I Hystaspes (ca. 522-486 B.C.).

[11:2]  ¹⁹ sn This fourth king is Xerxes I (ca. 486-465 B.C.). The following reference to one of his chiefs apparently has in view Seleucus Nicator.

[11:2]  ²⁰ tn Heb “rich with great riches.”

[11:2]  ²¹ tn The text is difficult. The Hebrew has here אֶת (’et), the marker of a definite direct object. As it stands, this would suggest the meaning that “he will arouse everyone, that is, the kingdom of Greece.” The context, however, seems to suggest the idea that this Persian king will arouse in hostility against Greece the constituent elements of his own empire. This requires supplying the word “against,” which is not actually present in the Hebrew text.