Daniel 6:9

6:9 So King Darius issued the written interdict.

Daniel 5:25

5:25 “This is the writing that was inscribed: MENE, MENE, ¹  TEQEL, and PHARSIN. ² 

Daniel 5:24

5:24 Therefore the palm of a hand was sent from him, and this writing was inscribed.

Daniel 6:8

6:8 Now let the king issue a written interdict ³  so that it cannot be altered, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be changed. ⁴ 

Daniel 10:21

10:21 However, I will first tell you what is written in a dependable book. ⁵  (There is no one who strengthens me against these princes, ⁶  except Michael your ⁷  prince.

Daniel 6:10

6:10 When Daniel realized ⁸  that a written decree had been issued, he entered his home, where the windows ⁹  in his upper room opened toward Jerusalem. ¹⁰  Three ¹¹  times daily he was ¹²  kneeling ¹³  and offering prayers and thanks to his God just as he had been accustomed to do previously.

Daniel 5:5

5:5 At that very moment the fingers of a human hand appeared ¹⁴  and wrote on the plaster of the royal palace wall, opposite the lampstand. ¹⁵  The king was watching the back ¹⁶  of the hand that was writing.

Daniel 6:25

6:25 Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and language groups who were living in all the land: “Peace and prosperity! ¹⁷ 

Daniel 5:8

5:8 So all the king’s wise men came in, but they were unable to read the writing or to make known its ¹⁸  interpretation to the king.

Daniel 5:15

5:15 Now the wise men and ¹⁹  astrologers were brought before me to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation. But they were unable to disclose the interpretation of the message.

Daniel 5:17

Daniel Interprets the Handwriting on the Wall

5:17 But Daniel replied to the king, “Keep your gifts, and give your rewards to someone else! However, I will read the writing for the king and make known its ²⁰  interpretation.

Daniel 7:1

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

7:1 In the first ²¹  year of King Belshazzar of Babylon, Daniel had ²²  a dream filled with visions ²³  while he was lying on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream in summary fashion. ²⁴ 

Daniel 7:10

7:10 A river of fire was streaming forth

and proceeding from his presence.

Many thousands were ministering to him;

Many tens of thousands stood ready to serve him. ²⁵ 

The court convened ²⁶ 

and the books were opened.

Daniel 5:16

5:16 However, I have heard ²⁷  that you are able to provide interpretations and to decipher knotty problems. Now if you are able to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, you will wear purple and have a golden collar around your neck and be third ²⁸  ruler in the kingdom.”

Daniel 9:13

9:13 Just as it is written in the law of Moses, so all this calamity has come on us. Still we have not tried to pacify ²⁹  the LORD our God by turning back from our sin and by seeking wisdom ³⁰  from your reliable moral standards. ³¹ 

Daniel 1:4

1:4 young men in whom there was no physical defect and who were handsome, ³²  well versed in all kinds of wisdom, well educated ³³  and having keen insight, ³⁴  and who were capable ³⁵  of entering the king’s royal service ³⁶  – and to teach them the literature and language ³⁷  of the Babylonians. ³⁸ 

Daniel 1:17

1:17 Now as for these four young men, God endowed them with knowledge and skill in all sorts of literature and wisdom – and Daniel had insight into all kinds of visions and dreams.

Daniel 4:1

4:1 (3:31) ³⁹  “King Nebuchadnezzar, to all peoples, nations, and language groups that live in all the land: Peace and prosperity! ⁴⁰ 

Daniel 5:7

5:7 The king called out loudly ⁴¹  to summon ⁴²  the astrologers, wise men, and diviners. The king proclaimed ⁴³  to the wise men of Babylon that anyone who could read this inscription and disclose its interpretation would be clothed in purple ⁴⁴  and have a golden collar ⁴⁵  placed on his neck and be third ruler in the kingdom.

Daniel 12:1

12:1 “At that time Michael,

the great prince who watches over your people, ⁴⁶ 

will arise. ⁴⁷ 

There will be a time of distress

unlike any other from the nation’s beginning ⁴⁸ 

up to that time.

But at that time your own people,

all those whose names are ⁴⁹  found written in the book,

will escape.

Daniel 9:11

9:11 “All Israel has broken ⁵⁰  your law and turned away by not obeying you. ⁵¹  Therefore you have poured out on us the judgment solemnly threatened ⁵²  in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against you. ⁵³ 

Daniel 6:7

6:7 To all the supervisors of the kingdom, the prefects, satraps, counselors, and governors it seemed like a good idea for a royal edict to be issued and an interdict to be enforced. For the next thirty days anyone who prays ⁵⁴  to any god or human other than you, O king, should be thrown into a den of lions.

Daniel 6:12

6:12 So they approached the king and said to him, ⁵⁵  “Did you not issue an edict to the effect that for the next thirty days anyone who prays to any god or human other than to you, O king, would be thrown into a den of lions?” The king replied, “That is correct, ⁵⁶  according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be changed.”

[5:25]  ¹ tc The Greek version of Theodotion lacks the repetition of מְנֵא (mÿne’, cf. NAB).

[5:25]  ² tc The Aramaic word is plural. Theodotion has the singular (cf. NAB “PERES”).

[6:8]  ³ tn Aram “establish a written interdict and inscribe a written decree.”

[6:8]  ⁴ tn Or “removed.”

[10:21]  ⁵ tn Heb “a book of truth.” Several English versions treat this as a title of some sort (cf. NIV, NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT), although the NAB’s rendering “the truthful book” regards “truth” as an attributive adjective, as does the present translation.

[10:21]  ⁶ tn The word “princes” is supplied for clarity.

[10:21]  ⁷ tn The pronoun is plural in Hebrew, suggesting that Michael is the angelic prince of Daniel and his people.

[6:10]  ⁸ tn Aram “knew.”

[6:10]  ⁹ sn In later rabbinic thought this verse was sometimes cited as a proof text for the notion that one should pray only in a house with windows. See b. Berakhot 34b.

[6:10]  ¹⁰ map For the location of Jerusalem see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[6:10]  ¹¹ sn This is apparently the only specific mention in the OT of prayer being regularly offered three times a day. The practice was probably not unique to Daniel, however.

[6:10]  ¹² tc Read with several medieval Hebrew MSS and printed editions הֲוָה (havah) rather than the MT הוּא (hu’).

[6:10]  ¹³ tn Aram “kneeling on his knees” (so NASB).

[6:10]  sn No specific posture for offering prayers is prescribed in the OT. Kneeling, as here, and standing were both practiced.

[5:5]  ¹⁴ tn Aram “came forth.”

[5:5]  ¹⁵ sn The mention of the lampstand in this context is of interest because it suggests that the writing was in clear view.

[5:5]  ¹⁶ tn While Aramaic פַּס (pas) can mean the palm of the hand, here it seems to be the back of the hand that is intended.

[6:25]  ¹⁷ tn Aram “May your peace be increased!”

[5:8]  ¹⁸ tc Read וּפִשְׁרֵהּ (ufishreh) with the Qere rather than וּפִשְׁרָא (ufishra’) of the Kethib.

[5:15]  ¹⁹ tn The Aramaic text does not have “and.” The term “astrologers” is either an appositive for “wise men” (cf. KJV, NKJV, ASV, RSV, NRSV), or the construction is to be understood as asyndetic (so the translation above).

[5:17]  ²⁰ tn Or “the.”

[7:1]  ²¹ 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]  ²² tn Aram “saw.”

[7:1]  ²³ 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]  ²⁴ tn Aram “head of words.” The phrase is absent in Theodotion. Cf. NIV “the substance of his dream.”

[7:10]  ²⁵ tn Aram “were standing before him.”

[7:10]  ²⁶ tn Aram “judgment sat.”

[5:16]  ²⁷ tn The Aramaic text has also the words “about you.”

[5:16]  ²⁸ tn Or perhaps “one of three rulers,” in the sense of becoming part of a triumvir. So also v. 29.

[9:13]  ²⁹ tn Heb “we have not pacified the face of.”

[9:13]  ³⁰ tn Or “by gaining insight.”

[9:13]  ³¹ tn Heb “by your truth.” The Hebrew term does not refer here to abstract truth, however, but to the reliable moral guidance found in the covenant law. See vv 10-11.

[1:4]  ³² tn Heb “good of appearance.”

[1:4]  ³³ tn Heb “knowers of knowledge.”

[1:4]  ³⁴ tn Heb “understanders of knowledge.”

[1:4]  ³⁵ tn Heb “who had strength.”

[1:4]  ³⁶ tn Heb “to stand in the palace of the king.” Cf. vv. 5, 19.

[1:4]  ³⁷ sn The language of the Chaldeans referred to here is Akkadian, an East Semitic cuneiform language.

[1:4]  ³⁸ tn Heb “Chaldeans” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV). This is an ancient name for the Babylonians.

[4:1]  ³⁹ sn Beginning with 4:1, the verse numbers through 4:37 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Aramaic text (BHS), with 4:1 ET = 3:31 AT, 4:2 ET = 3:32 AT, 4:3 ET = 3:33 AT, 4:4 ET = 4:1 AT, etc., through 4:37 ET = 4:34 AT. Thus Dan 3:31-33 of the Aramaic text appears as Dan 4:1-3 in the English Bible, and the corresponding verses of ch. 4 differ accordingly. In spite of the division of the Aramaic text, a good case can be made that 3:31-33 AT (= 4:1-3 ET) is actually the introduction to ch. 4.

[4:1]  ⁴⁰ tn Aram “May your peace increase!”

[5:7]  ⁴¹ tn Aram “in strength.”

[5:7]  ⁴² tn Aram “cause to enter.”

[5:7]  ⁴³ tn Aram “answered and said.”

[5:7]  ⁴⁴ sn Purple was a color associated with royalty in the ancient world.

[5:7]  ⁴⁵ tn The term translated “golden collar” here probably refers to something more substantial than merely a gold chain (cf. NIV, NCV, NRSV, NLT) or necklace (cf. NASB).

[12:1]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “stands over the sons of your people.”

[12:1]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “will stand up.”

[12:1]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “from the beginning of a nation.”

[12:1]  ⁴⁹ tn The words “whose names are” are added in the translation for stylistic reasons and for clarification.

[9:11]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “transgressed.” The Hebrew verb has the primary sense of crossing a boundary, in this case, God’s law.

[9:11]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “by not paying attention to your voice.”

[9:11]  ⁵² tn Heb “the curse and the oath which is written.” The term “curse” refers here to the judgments threatened in the Mosaic law (see Deut 28) for rebellion. The expression “the curse and the oath” is probably a hendiadys (cf. Num 5:21; Neh 10:29) referring to the fact that the covenant with its threatened judgments was ratified by solemn oath and made legally binding upon the covenant community.

[9:11]  ⁵³ tn Heb “him.”

[6:7]  ⁵⁴ tn Aram “prays a prayer.”

[6:12]  ⁵⁵ tc The MT also has “about the edict of the king,” but this phrase is absent in the LXX and the Syriac. The present translation deletes the expression.

[6:12]  tn Aram “before the king.”

[6:12]  ⁵⁶ tn Aram “the word is true.”