Daniel 1
1
Daniel and His Friends in the Court of the King
1It was the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah # 1:1 See 2 Kings 23:36–24:6; 2 Chron. 36:5–8. when Nebuchadnezzar, # 1:1 Nebuchadnezzar means “Nebo will protect the king/crown.” Nebo was the Babylonian god. The name Nebuchadnezzar appears thirty-two times in the first five chapters of Daniel. king of Babylon, marched on Jerusalem and besieged the city. 2My Lord # 1:2 This is the Hebrew word ’adonay and can be translated “my master” or “my lord [Lord].” Daniel uses this word ten times in his prayer of ch. 9. gave Nebuchadnezzar victory over King Jehoiakim and permitted the Babylonian ruler to remove # 1:2 The Hebrew word miqsat doesn’t quite seem to fit in this sentence. It is literally “The Lord gave victory to Nebuchadnezzar . . . to bring to an end [cut off] the holy vessels.” The verb qasah is most used to denote the end of a period of time, to cut off one season for the next one to come. This hints at the cutting off of temple worship, the kingdom of Judah and its kings, and Judah’s rule, as they are taken into captivity. some of the sacred vessels # 1:2 Or “furnishings.” belonging to the temple of the true God. Nebuchadnezzar carried them away to the land of Babylon # 1:2 Or “Shinar.” At the time the book of Daniel was written, this was simply another name for the country of Babylonia and its capital city of Babylon. and placed the sacred vessels into the temple treasury of his own gods.
3Later, the king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief officer, # 1:3 Although the Hebrew uses the word for “eunuch,” the term evolved to mean any trusted official of the king without any reference to the anatomy of the person. It was not Ashpenaz’s physical status in focus but the responsibility the king had given to him for the oversight of his affairs. Daniel and Joseph shared many parallels. Ashpenaz was to Daniel what Potiphar was to Joseph. Daniel could be considered the Bible’s second Joseph. to select a certain number of youths # 1:3 The Hebrew word used here is yeled, which implies that these young men were past adolescence. Many scholars believe Daniel was a young teenager when taken into Babylonian captivity. from royal or noble families of the Israelites 4who would be suitable for service in the king’s palace. They were to be handsome young men without defect, # 1:4 The Hebrew word used here is me‘um. It can mean “without any physical deformity” and/or “without moral defilement.” well-versed in every branch of wisdom. They were to be intelligent, # 1:4 Or “knowers of knowledge.” Some form or another of this Hebrew word is found eighteen times in ch. 2. discerning, # 1:4 Or possibly (as a transitive verb) “causing one to understand,” that is, one who is skilled in instructing and convincing others. and qualified for royal service. # 1:4 Or “having the ability [confidence, self-control] to stand in the king’s palace.” Ashpenaz was instructed to teach them the culture, the literature, and the language # 1:4 That is, the Aramaic language. of the Babylonians.
5The king provided them a daily allowance # 1:5 Or “daily according to its day.” See Luke 11:3. of the best food and wine from the king’s table. For three years they were to receive a thorough education, after which they would enter the king’s service. # 1:5 Or “they would stand before the king.” 6Among these men of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. # 1:6 The meanings of the Hebrew men’s names are: “God is my judge” (Daniel), “Yah has been gracious [to me]” (Hananiah), “Who is like God?” or “His mother asked God for him” (Mishael), and “Yah has helped [me]” (Azariah). The medieval Rabbi Saadya Gaon identifies these four as the descendants of King Hezekiah. 7But the chief official of the palace gave them Babylonian names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar, # 1:7 A possible meaning of Belteshazzar (Assyrian, Belet-sar-usur) is “guard his life.” Hananiah he called Shadrach, # 1:7 A possible meaning of Shadrach (Assyrian, saduraku) is “I am very fearful [of God].” Mishael he called Meshach, # 1:7 Meshach (Assyrian, mesaku) possibly means “I am of little account” or “the shadow of the prince.” and Azariah he called Abednego. # 1:7 A possible meaning of Abednego (Assyrian, Arad-Nabu) is “servant of the shining one” or “servant of Nabu.”
8However, Daniel determined in his heart not to contaminate himself # 1:8 Or “estrange himself.” The verb used here is ga’al, which, in its basic Qal voicing, means “to redeem” or “to avenge.” It is not the word typically used for defilement. However, in its Hithpael form (or tense) here (viz., yitga’al), it does carry the reflexive sense of “defile or contaminate oneself”—so that is an appropriate alternate reading to “estrange oneself.” In this context, it can carry the meaning of being estranged (from the priesthood, see Neh. 13:29). All Babylonian (Assyrian) food was considered ritually unclean (see Ezek. 4:13; Hos. 9:3–4). In a sense, when Daniel rejected the food of Babylon, he was also rejecting the identity of the name given to him in v. 7. Verses 7 and 8 are close parallels. Daniel’s allegiance was not to Babylon but to the King of Glory. with the food and wine from the royal table, so he begged the chief official to exempt him from the royal diet. 9Then God moved on the heart of the chief official to show Daniel favor # 1:9 This is the Hebrew word hesed, which means “unearned love.” and compassion. # 1:9 Or “loyal love and mercy.” Here we see God giving Daniel favor in the eyes of an unbeliever. God can indeed use others to demonstrate his love toward us. 10But he warned Daniel, “My lord the king has ordered your meat and drink, and I fear that he will notice if your face starts looking worse # 1:10 Or “discontented.” than the other men your age. You could put my life in jeopardy with the king.”
11Daniel then appealed to the overseer whom the chief officer put in charge over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Daniel said to him, 12“Test us, your servants, for ten days. Give us only seeds # 1:12 The predominant meaning of the Hebrew word hazzero‘im is “something sown” or “that which is produced by seeds,” possibly “vegetables.” See Ezek. 4:9–13. Daniel ate the food associated with exile. In a metaphoric sense, Daniel ate the “seeds” of the kingdom. to eat and water to drink. 13Then afterward, compare our appearance with those of the young men who eat the king’s food. Then you can decide what to do with us.”
14So the overseer agreed to do what they requested and tested them for ten days. 15And when the ten days were completed, they looked healthier and had even gained weight. The four Hebrew young men were in better physical condition compared to any of the others who had eaten their food from the royal table. 16So the guard replaced their diet of royal food and wine with vegetables and water.
Four Exceptional Young Men
17God imparted insight and skill in every aspect of literature and science # 1:17 The Bible is not negative toward “literature and science.” However, all knowledge and revelation need to come from God, who is the source of insight and truth. All truth is God’s truth. to the four Hebrew men. Daniel also had the unique gift of interpreting every kind of supernatural vision # 1:17 The Hebrew word for “vision” is hazon and is found more than thirty times in the book of Daniel. and dream.
18At the end of the period that the king had assigned for their training, the chief of the palace servants brought them to Nebuchadnezzar’s court. 19The king interviewed them all, and among all the young men, he found none to equal Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So, the king chose them to serve as his advisers. 20And when the king questioned them on any point of wisdom or understanding, # 1:20 Or “the wisdom of understanding.” he found them ten times superior to all the magicians and enchanters # 1:20 This is the Hebrew word ’ashshaph. It can be understood as someone who has a mystical power to deflect from another person any harmful events that may have been revealed to him in a dream. It could also be translated “astrologist” or “conjuror.” in his entire kingdom. 21And Daniel continued there in Babylon as a royal adviser until the time Cyrus became king. # 1:21 Or “until the first year of King Cyrus,” that is, the first year of his reign after conquering Babylon.
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Daniel 1: TPT
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