Mazmur 34:8

34:8 Taste ¹  and see that the Lord is good!

How blessed ²  is the one ³  who takes shelter in him! ⁴ 

Daniel 3:28

3:28 Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, ⁵  “Praised be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent forth his angel ⁶  and has rescued his servants who trusted in him, ignoring ⁷  the edict of the king and giving up their bodies rather than ⁸  serve or pay homage to any god other than their God!

Daniel 6:17

6:17 Then a stone was brought and placed over the opening ⁹  to the den. The king sealed ¹⁰  it with his signet ring and with those ¹¹  of his nobles so that nothing could be changed with regard to Daniel.

[34:8]  ¹ tn This verb is normally used of tasting or savoring food. The metaphor here appears to compare the Lord to a tasty meal.

[34:8]  ² tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see Pss 1:1, 3; 2:12; 41:1; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15).

[34:8]  ³ tn Heb “man.” The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age. To facilitate modern application, we translate the gender and age specific “man” with the more neutral “one.”

[34:8]  ⁴ tn “Taking shelter” in the Lord is an idiom for seeking his protection. Seeking his protection presupposes and even demonstrates the subject’s loyalty to the Lord. In the psalms those who “take shelter” in the Lord are contrasted with the wicked and equated with those who love, fear, and serve the Lord (Pss 2:12; 5:11-12; 31:17-20; 34:21-22).

[3:28]  ⁵ tn Aram “answered and said.”

[3:28]  ⁶ sn The king identifies the “son of the gods” (v. 25) as an angel. Comparable Hebrew expressions are used elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible for the members of God’s angelic assembly (see Gen 6:2, 4; Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7; Pss 29:1; 89:6). An angel later comes to rescue Daniel from the lions (Dan 6:22).

[3:28]  ⁷ tn Aram “they changed” or “violated.”

[3:28]  ⁸ tn Aram “so that they might not.”

[6:17]  ⁹ tn Aram “mouth.”

[6:17]  ¹⁰ sn The purpose of the den being sealed was to prevent unauthorized tampering with the opening of the den. Any disturbance of the seal would immediately alert the officials to improper activity of this sort.

[6:17]  ¹¹ tn Aram “the signet rings.”