Daniel 1:21

1:21 Now Daniel lived on until the first ¹  year of Cyrus the king.

Daniel 9:2

9:2 in the first year of his reign ²  I, Daniel, came to understand from the sacred books ³  that, according to the word of the LORD ⁴  disclosed to the prophet Jeremiah, the years for the fulfilling of the desolation of Jerusalem ⁵  were seventy in number.

Daniel 5:31

5:31 (6:1) ⁶  So Darius the Mede took control of the kingdom when he was about sixty-two years old.

Daniel 9:1

Daniel Prays for His People

9:1 In the first year of Darius ⁷  son of Ahasuerus, ⁸  who was of Median descent and who had been ⁹  appointed king over the Babylonian ¹⁰  empire –

Daniel 8:1

Daniel Has a Vision of a Goat and a Ram

8:1 ¹¹ In the third year ¹²  of King Belshazzar’s reign, a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had appeared to me previously. ¹³ 

Daniel 11:1

11:1 And in the first year of Darius the Mede, I ¹⁴  stood to strengthen him and to provide protection for him.)

Daniel 1:1

Daniel Finds Favor in Babylon

1:1 In the third ¹⁵  year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar ¹⁶  of Babylon advanced against Jerusalem ¹⁷  and laid it under siege. ¹⁸ 

Daniel 2:1

Nebuchadnezzar Has a Disturbing Dream

2:1 In the second year of his ¹⁹  reign Nebuchadnezzar had many dreams. ²⁰  His mind ²¹  was disturbed and he suffered from insomnia. ²² 

Daniel 7:1

Daniel has a Vision of Four Animals Coming up from the Sea

7:1 In the first ²³  year of King Belshazzar of Babylon, Daniel had ²⁴  a dream filled with visions ²⁵  while he was lying on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream in summary fashion. ²⁶ 

Daniel 1:5

1:5 So the king assigned them a daily ration ²⁷  from his royal delicacies ²⁸  and from the wine he himself drank. They were to be trained ²⁹  for the next three years. At the end of that time they were to enter the king’s service. ³⁰ 

Daniel 11:8

11:8 He will also take their gods into captivity to Egypt, along with their cast images and prized utensils of silver and gold. Then he will withdraw for some years from ³¹  the king of the north.

Daniel 10:1

An Angel Appears to Daniel

10:1 ³² In the third ³³  year of King Cyrus of Persia a message was revealed to Daniel (who was also called Belteshazzar). This message was true and concerned a great war. ³⁴  He understood the message and gained insight by the vision.

Daniel 11:6

11:6 After some years have passed, they ³⁵  will form an alliance. Then the daughter ³⁶  of the king of the south will come to the king of the north to make an agreement, but she will not retain her power, ³⁷  nor will he continue ³⁸  in his strength. ³⁹  She, together with the one who brought her, her child, ⁴⁰  and her benefactor will all be delivered over at that time. ⁴¹ 

Daniel 4:16

4:16 Let his mind ⁴²  be altered from that of a human being,

and let an animal’s mind be given to him,

and let seven periods of time ⁴³  go by for ⁴⁴  him.

Daniel 9:25

9:25 So know and understand:

From the issuing of the command ⁴⁵  to restore and rebuild

Jerusalem ⁴⁶  until an anointed one, a prince arrives, ⁴⁷ 

there will be a period of seven weeks ⁴⁸  and sixty-two weeks.

It will again be built, ⁴⁹  with plaza and moat,

but in distressful times.

Daniel 11:13

11:13 For the king of the north will again muster an army, one larger than before. At the end of some years he will advance with a huge army and enormous supplies.

Daniel 1:18

1:18 When the time appointed by the king arrived, ⁵⁰  the overseer of the court officials brought them into Nebuchadnezzar’s presence.

Daniel 9:6

9:6 We have not paid attention to your servants the prophets, who spoke by your authority ⁵¹  to our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors, ⁵²  and to all the inhabitants ⁵³  of the land as well.

Daniel 10:4

10:4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month ⁵⁴  I was beside the great river, the Tigris. ⁵⁵ 

Daniel 4:32

4:32 You will be driven from human society, and you will live with the wild animals. You will be fed grass like oxen, and seven periods of time will pass by for you before ⁵⁶  you understand that the Most High is ruler over human kingdoms and gives them to whomever he wishes.”

Daniel 4:34

4:34 But at the end of the appointed time ⁵⁷  I, Nebuchadnezzar, looked up ⁵⁸  toward heaven, and my sanity returned to me.

I extolled the Most High,

and I praised and glorified the one who lives forever.

For his authority is an everlasting authority,

and his kingdom extends from one generation to the next.

Daniel 9:24

9:24 “Seventy weeks ⁵⁹  have been determined

concerning your people and your holy city

to put an end to ⁶⁰  rebellion,

to bring sin ⁶¹  to completion, ⁶² 

to atone for iniquity,

to bring in perpetual ⁶³  righteousness,

to seal up ⁶⁴  the prophetic vision, ⁶⁵ 

and to anoint a most holy place. ⁶⁶ 

Daniel 9:27

9:27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one week. ⁶⁷ 

But in the middle of that week

he will bring sacrifices and offerings to a halt.

On the wing ⁶⁸  of abominations will come ⁶⁹  one who destroys,

until the decreed end is poured out on the one who destroys.”

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’ –

Daniel 4:25

4:25 You will be driven ⁷⁰  from human society, ⁷¹  and you will live ⁷²  with the wild animals. You will be fed ⁷³  grass like oxen, ⁷⁴  and you will become damp with the dew of the sky. Seven periods of time will pass by for you, before ⁷⁵  you understand that the Most High is ruler over human kingdoms and gives them to whomever he wishes.

Daniel 7:25

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

He will harass ⁷⁶  the holy ones of the Most High continually.

His intention ⁷⁷  will be to change times established by law. ⁷⁸ 

They will be delivered into his hand

For a time, times, ⁷⁹  and half a time.

Daniel 12:7

12:7 Then I heard the man clothed in linen who was over the waters of the river as he raised both his right and left hands to the sky ⁸⁰  and made an oath by the one who lives forever: “It is for a time, times, and half a time. Then, when the power of the one who shatters ⁸¹  the holy people has been exhausted, all these things will be finished.”

Daniel 9:26

9:26 Now after the sixty-two weeks,

an anointed one will be cut off and have nothing. ⁸² 

As for the city and the sanctuary,

the people of the coming prince will destroy ⁸³  them.

But his end will come speedily ⁸⁴  like a flood. ⁸⁵ 

Until the end of the war that has been decreed

there will be destruction.

Daniel 12:13

12:13 But you should go your way ⁸⁶  until the end. ⁸⁷  You will rest and then at the end of the days you will arise to receive ⁸⁸  what you have been allotted.” ⁸⁹ 

[1:21]  ¹ sn The Persian king Cyrus’ first year in control of Babylon was 539 B.C. Daniel actually lived beyond the first year of Cyrus, as is clear from 10:1. The purpose of the statement in 1:21 is merely to say that Daniel’s life spanned the entire period of the neo-Babylonian empire. His life span also included the early years of the Persian control of Babylon. However, by that time his age was quite advanced; he probably died sometime in the 530’s B.C.

[9:2]  ² tc This phrase, repeated from v. 1, is absent in Theodotion.

[9:2]  ³ tn The Hebrew text has “books”; the word “sacred” has been added in the translation to clarify that it is Scriptures that are referred to.

[9:2]  ⁴ sn The tetragrammaton (the four Hebrew letters which constitute the divine Name, YHWH) appears eight times in this chapter, and nowhere else in the book of Daniel.

[9:2]  ⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[5:31]  ⁶ sn Beginning with 5:31, the verse numbers through 6:28 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Aramaic text (BHS), with 5:31 ET = 6:1 AT, 6:1 ET = 6:2 AT, 6:2 ET = 6:3 AT, 6:3 ET = 6:4 AT, etc., through 6:28 ET = 6:29 AT. Beginning with 7:1 the verse numbers in the English Bible and the Aramaic text are again the same.

[9:1]  ⁷ sn The identity of this Darius is a major problem in correlating the biblical material with the extra-biblical records of this period. Most modern scholars treat the reference as a mistaken allusion to Darius Hystaspes (ca. 522-486 B.C.). Others have maintained instead that this name is a reference to the Persian governor Gubaru. Still others understand the reference to be to the Persian king Cyrus (cf. 6:28, where the vav (ו) may be understood as vav explicativum, meaning “even”). Under either of these latter two interpretations, the first year of Darius would have been ca. 538 B.C. Daniel would have been approximately eighty-two years old at this time.

[9:1]  ⁸ tc The LXX reads “Xerxes.” This is the reading used by some English versions (e.g., NIV, NCV, TEV, CEV). Most other English versions retain the Hebrew name “Ahasuerus.”

[9:1]  ⁹ tc The present translation follows the MT in reading a Hophal (i.e., passive). Theodotion, the Syriac, and the Vulgate all presuppose the Hiphil (i.e., active). Even though this is the only occurrence of the Hophal of this verb in the Bible, there is no need to emend the vocalization to the Hiphil.

[9:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “was made king over the kingdom of the Chaldeans.”

[8:1]  ¹¹ sn Dan 8:1 marks the switch from Aramaic (= 2:4b-7:28) back to Hebrew as the language in which the book is written in its present form. The remainder of the book from this point on (8:1-12:13) is in Hebrew. The bilingual nature of the book has been variously explained, but it most likely has to do with the book’s transmission history.

[8:1]  ¹² sn The third year of King Belshazzar’s reign would have been ca. 551 B.C. Daniel would have been approximately 69 years old at the time of this vision.

[8:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “in the beginning.” This refers to the vision described in chapter seven.

[11:1]  ¹⁴ sn The antecedent of the pronoun “I” is the angel, not Daniel. The traditional chapter division at this point, and the presence of a chronological note in the verse similar to ones used elsewhere in the book to position Daniel’s activities in relation to imperial affairs, sometimes lead to confusion on this matter.

[1:1]  ¹⁵ sn The third year of the reign of Jehoiakim would be ca. 605 B.C. At this time Daniel would have been a teenager. The reference to Jehoiakim’s third year poses a serious crux interpretum, since elsewhere these events are linked to his fourth year (Jer 25:1; cf. 2 Kgs 24:1; 2 Chr 36:5-8). Apparently Daniel is following an accession year chronology, whereby the first partial year of a king’s reign was reckoned as the accession year rather than as the first year of his reign. Jeremiah, on the other hand, is following a nonaccession year chronology, whereby the accession year is reckoned as the first year of the king’s reign. In that case, the conflict is only superficial. Most modern scholars, however, have concluded that Daniel is historically inaccurate here.

[1:1]  ¹⁶ sn King Nebuchadnezzar ruled Babylon from ca. 605-562 B.C.

[1:1]  ¹⁷ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:1]  ¹⁸ sn This attack culminated in the first of three major deportations of Jews to Babylon. The second one occurred in 597 B.C. and included among many other Jewish captives the prophet Ezekiel. The third deportation occurred in 586 B.C., at which time the temple and the city of Jerusalem were thoroughly destroyed.

[2:1]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Nebuchadnezzar’s.” The possessive pronoun is substituted in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[2:1]  ²⁰ tn Heb “dreamed dreams.” The plural is used here and in v. 2, but the singular in v. 3. The plural “dreams” has been variously explained. Some interpreters take the plural as denoting an indefinite singular (so GKC 400 §124.o). But it may be that it is describing a stream of related dreams, or a dream state. In the latter case, one might translate: “Nebuchadnezzar was in a trance.” See further, J. A. Montgomery, Daniel (ICC), 142.

[2:1]  ²¹ tn Heb “his spirit.”

[2:1]  ²² tn Heb “his sleep left (?) him.” The use of the verb הָיָה (hayah, “to be”) here is unusual. The context suggests a meaning such as “to be finished” or “gone.” Cf. Dan 8:27. Some scholars emend the verb to read נָדְדָה (nadÿdah, “fled”); cf. Dan 6:19. See further, DCH 2:540 s.v. היה I Ni.3; HALOT 244 s.v. היה nif; BDB 227-28 s.v. הָיָה Niph.2.

[7:1]  ²³ sn The first year of Belshazzar’s reign would have been ca. 553 B.C. Daniel would have been approximately 67 years old at the time of this vision.

[7:1]  ²⁴ tn Aram “saw.”

[7:1]  ²⁵ tn Aram “and visions of his head.” The Aramaic is difficult here. Some scholars add a verb thought to be missing (e.g., “the visions of his head [were alarming him]”), but there is no external evidence to support such a decision and the awkwardness of the text at this point may be original.

[7:1]  ²⁶ tn Aram “head of words.” The phrase is absent in Theodotion. Cf. NIV “the substance of his dream.”

[1:5]  ²⁷ tn Heb “a thing of a day in its day.”

[1:5]  ²⁸ tn Heb “from the delicacies of the king.”

[1:5]  ²⁹ tn Or “educated.” See HALOT 179 s.v. I גדל.

[1:5]  ³⁰ tn Heb “stand before the king.”

[11:8]  ³¹ tn The Hebrew preposition מִן (min) is used here with the verb עָמַד (’amad, “to stand”). It probably has a sense of separation (“stand away from”), although it may also be understood in an adversative sense (“stand against”).

[10:1]  ³² sn This chapter begins the final unit in the book of Daniel, consisting of chapters 10-12. The traditional chapter divisions to some extent obscure the relationship of these chapters.

[10:1]  ³³ tc The LXX has “first.”

[10:1]  sn Cyrus’ third year would have been ca. 536 B.C. Daniel would have been approximately eighty-four years old at this time.

[10:1]  ³⁴ tn The meaning of the Hebrew word צָבָא (tsava’) is uncertain in this context. The word most often refers to an army or warfare. It may also mean “hard service,” and many commentators take that to be the sense here (i.e., “the service was great”). The present translation assumes the reference to be to the spiritual conflicts described, for example, in 10:16–11:1.

[11:6]  ³⁵ sn Here they refers to Ptolemy II Philadelphus (ca. 285-246 B.C.) and Antiochus II Theos (ca. 262-246 B.C.).

[11:6]  ³⁶ sn The daughter refers to Berenice, who was given in marriage to Antiochus II Theos.

[11:6]  ³⁷ tn Heb “the strength of the arm.”

[11:6]  ³⁸ tn Heb “stand.” So also in vv. 7, 8, 11, 13.

[11:6]  ³⁹ tn Heb “and his arm.” Some understand this to refer to the descendants of the king of the north.

[11:6]  ⁴⁰ tc The present translation reads יַלְדָּה (yaldah, “her child”) rather than the MT יֹלְדָהּ (yolÿdah, “the one who begot her”). Cf. Theodotion, the Syriac, and the Vulgate.

[11:6]  ⁴¹ sn Antiochus II eventually divorced Berenice and remarried his former wife Laodice, who then poisoned her husband, had Berenice put to death, and installed her own son, Seleucus II Callinicus (ca. 246-227 B.C.), as the Seleucid king.

[4:16]  ⁴² tn Aram “its heart.” The metaphor of the tree begins to fade here and the reality behind the symbol (the king) begins to emerge.

[4:16]  ⁴³ sn The seven periods of time probably refer to seven years.

[4:16]  ⁴⁴ tn Aram “over” (also in vv. 23, 25, 32).

[9:25]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “decree” (NASB, NIV); or “word” (NAB, NRSV).

[9:25]  ⁴⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[9:25]  ⁴⁷ tn The word “arrives” is added in the translation for clarification.

[9:25]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “sevens” (also later in this line and in v. 26).

[9:25]  sn The accents in the MT indicate disjunction at this point, which would make it difficult, if not impossible, to identify the “anointed one/prince” of this verse as messianic. The reference in v. 26 to the sixty-two weeks as a unit favors the MT accentuation, not the traditional translation. If one follows the MT accentuation, one may translate “From the going forth of the message to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until an anointed one, a prince arrives, there will be a period of seven weeks. During a period of sixty-two weeks it will again be built, with plaza and moat, but in distressful times.” The present translation follows a traditional reading of the passage that deviates from the MT accentuation.

[9:25]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “it will return and be built.” The expression is a verbal hendiadys.

[1:18]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “at the end of the days which the king said to bring them.”

[9:6]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “in your name.” Another option is to translate, “as your representatives.”

[9:6]  ⁵² tn Heb “our fathers” (also in vv. 8, 16). The Hebrew term translated “father” can refer to more distant relationships such as grandfathers or ancestors.

[9:6]  ⁵³ tn Heb “people.”

[10:4]  ⁵⁴ sn The first month would be the month of Nisan, during which Passover was observed.

[10:4]  ⁵⁵ tn The Hebrew text has חִדָּקֶל (hiddaqel). “Tigris” appears here in the LXX, since it is the Greek name for this river. Elsewhere in the OT “the great river” refers to the Euphrates (e.g., Gen 15:18; Josh 1:4), leading some interpreters to think that a mistake is involved in using the expression to refer to the Tigris. But it is doubtful that the expression had such a fixed and limited usage. The Syriac, however, does render the word here by “Euphrates” (Syr. perat) in keeping with biblical usage elsewhere.

[4:32]  ⁵⁶ tn Aram “until.”

[4:34]  ⁵⁷ tn Aram “days.”

[4:34]  ⁵⁸ tn Aram “lifted up my eyes.”

[9:24]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “sevens.” Elsewhere the term is used of a literal week (a period of seven days), cf. Gen 29:27-28; Exod 34:22; Lev 12:5; Num 28:26; Deut 16:9-10; 2 Chr 8:13; Jer 5:24; Dan 10:2-3. Gabriel unfolds the future as if it were a calendar of successive weeks. Most understand the reference here as periods of seventy “sevens” of years, or a total of 490 years.

[9:24]  ⁶⁰ tc Or “to finish.” The present translation reads the Qere (from the root תָּמַם, tamam) with many witnesses. The Kethib has “to seal up” (from the root הָתַם, hatam), a confusion with a reference later in the verse to sealing up the vision.

[9:24]  ⁶¹ tc The present translation reads the Qere (singular), rather than the Kethib (plural).

[9:24]  ⁶² tn The Hebrew phrase לְכַלֵּא (lÿkhalle’) is apparently an alternative (metaplastic) spelling of the root כָּלָה (kalah, “to complete, finish”), rather than a form of כָּלָא (kala’, “to shut up, restrain”), as has sometimes been supposed.

[9:24]  ⁶³ tn Or “everlasting.”

[9:24]  ⁶⁴ sn The act of sealing in the OT is a sign of authentication. Cf. 1 Kgs 21:8; Jer 32:10, 11, 44.

[9:24]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “vision and prophecy.” The expression is a hendiadys.

[9:24]  ⁶⁶ tn Or “the most holy place” (NASB, NLT); or “a most holy one”; or “the most holy one,” though the expression is used of places or objects elsewhere, not people.

[9:27]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “one seven” (also later in this line).

[9:27]  ⁶⁸ tn The referent of the Hebrew word כְּנַף (kÿnaf, “wing”) is unclear here. The LXX and Theodotion have “the temple.” Some English versions (e.g., NAB, NIV) take this to mean “a wing of the temple,” but this is not clear.

[9:27]  ⁶⁹ tn The Hebrew text does not have this verb, but it has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[4:25]  ⁷⁰ tn The Aramaic indefinite active plural is used here like the English passive. So also in v. 28, 29,32.

[4:25]  ⁷¹ tn Aram “from mankind.” So also in v. 32.

[4:25]  ⁷² tn Aram “your dwelling will be.” So also in v. 32.

[4:25]  ⁷³ tn Or perhaps “be made to eat.”

[4:25]  ⁷⁴ sn Nebuchadnezzar’s insanity has features that are associated with the mental disorder known as boanthropy, in which the person so afflicted imagines himself to be an ox or a similar animal and behaves accordingly.

[4:25]  ⁷⁵ tn Aram “until.”

[7:25]  ⁷⁶ 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.”

[7:25]  ⁷⁷ tn Aram “he will think.”

[7:25]  ⁷⁸ tn Aram “times and law.” The present translation is based on the understanding that the expression is a hendiadys.

[7:25]  ⁷⁹ 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.”

[12:7]  ⁸⁰ tn Or “to the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.

[12:7]  ⁸¹ tc The present translation reads יַד־נֹפֵץ (yad-nofets, “hand of one who shatters”) rather than the MT נַפֵּץ־יַד (nappets-yad, “to shatter the hand”).

[9:26]  ⁸² sn The expression have nothing is difficult. Presumably it refers to an absence of support or assistance for the anointed one at the time of his “cutting off.” The KJV rendering “but not for himself,” apparently suggesting a vicarious death, cannot be defended.

[9:26]  ⁸³ tc Some witnesses (e.g., the Syriac) understand a passive verb and the preposition עִם (’im, “with) rather than the noun עַם (’am, “people”), thus reading “the city and the sanctuary will be destroyed with the coming prince.”

[9:26]  ⁸⁴ tn The words “will come speedily” are not in the Hebrew text but have been added in the translation for clarity.

[9:26]  ⁸⁵ sn Flood here is a metaphor for sudden destruction.

[12:13]  ⁸⁶ tn The words “your way” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.

[12:13]  ⁸⁷ tc The LXX lacks “until the end.”

[12:13]  ⁸⁸ tn The word “receive” is added in the translation for clarification.

[12:13]  ⁸⁹ sn The deuterocanonical writings known as the Story of Susanna and Bel and the Dragon appear respectively as chapters 13 and 14 of the book of Daniel in the Greek version of this book. Although these writings are not part of the Hebrew/Aramaic text of Daniel, they were popular among certain early communities who valued traditions about the life of Daniel.