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 1:18

1:18 When the time appointed by the king arrived, ⁶  the overseer of the court officials brought them into Nebuchadnezzar’s presence.

Daniel 2:3-4

2:3 The king told them, “I have had a dream, ⁷  and I ⁸  am anxious to understand the dream.” 2:4 The wise men replied to the king: [What follows is in Aramaic ⁹ ] “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will disclose its ¹⁰  interpretation.”

Daniel 8:23

8:23 Toward the end of their rule, when rebellious acts ¹¹  are complete, a rash ¹²  and deceitful ¹³  king will arise. ¹⁴ 

Daniel 9:8

9:8 O LORD, we have been humiliated ¹⁵  – our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors – because we have sinned against you.

Daniel 11:5

11:5 “Then the king of the south ¹⁶  and one of his subordinates ¹⁷  will grow strong. His subordinate ¹⁸  will resist ¹⁹  him and will rule a kingdom greater than his. ²⁰ 

[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.”

[1:18]  ⁶ tn Heb “at the end of the days which the king said to bring them.”

[2:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “I have dreamed a dream” (so KJV, ASV).

[2:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “my spirit.”

[2:4]  ⁹ sn Contrary to common belief, the point here is not that the wise men (Chaldeans) replied to the king in the Aramaic language, or that this language was uniquely the language of the Chaldeans. It was this view that led in the past to Aramaic being referred to as “Chaldee.” Aramaic was used as a lingua franca during this period; its origins and usage were not restricted to the Babylonians. Rather, this phrase is better understood as an editorial note (cf. NAB) marking the fact that from 2:4b through 7:28 the language of the book shifts from Hebrew to Aramaic. In 8:1, and for the remainder of the book, the language returns to Hebrew. Various views have been advanced to account for this change of language, most of which are unconvincing. Most likely the change in language is a reflection of stages in the transmission history of the book of Daniel.

[2:4]  ¹⁰ tn Or “the.”

[8:23]  ¹¹ tc The present translation reads הַפְּשָׁעִים (happÿsha’im, “rebellious acts”) for the MT הַפֹּשְׁעִים (happoshÿ’im, “rebels”). While the MT is understandable (cf. NIV, “when rebels have become completely wicked”), the filling up of transgressions is a familiar OT expression (cf. Gen 15:16) and fits this context well. Cf. the LXX, Theodotion, the Vulgate, and the Syriac.

[8:23]  ¹² tn Heb “strong of face.”

[8:23]  ¹³ tn Heb “understanding riddles.” Possible meanings include “double-dealing” (BDB 295 s.v. חִידָה; cf. TEV, CEV) and “with a good knowledge of intrigue” (HALOT 309 s.v. חִידָה; cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[8:23]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “stand” or “stand up.”

[9:8]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “to us (belongs) shame of face.”

[11:5]  ¹⁶ sn The king of the south is Ptolemy I Soter (ca. 323-285 B.C.). The following reference to one of his subordinates apparently has in view Seleucus I Nicator (ca. 311-280 B.C.). Throughout the remainder of chap. 11 the expressions “king of the south” and “king of the north” repeatedly occur. It is clear, however, that these terms are being used generically to describe the Ptolemaic king (i.e., “of the south”) or the Seleucid king (i.e., “of the north”) who happens to be in power at any particular time. The specific identity of these kings can be established more or less successfully by a comparison of this chapter with the available extra-biblical records that discuss the history of the intertestamental period. In the following notes the generally accepted identifications are briefly mentioned.

[11:5]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “princes.”

[11:5]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the subordinate prince mentioned in the previous clause) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[11:5]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “be strong against.”

[11:5]  ²⁰ tn Heb “greater than his kingdom.”