Daniel 1:20

1:20 In every matter of wisdom and 1  insight the king asked them about, he found them to be ten times 2  better than any of the magicians and astrologers that were in his entire empire.

Daniel 2:2

2:2 The king issued an order 3  to summon the magicians, astrologers, sorcerers, and wise men 4  in order to explain his dreams to him. 5  So they came and awaited the king’s instructions. 6 

Daniel 2:27

2:27 Daniel replied to the king, “The mystery that the king is asking about is such that no wise men, astrologers, magicians, or diviners can possibly disclose it to the king.

Daniel 4:9

4:9 saying, “Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, in whom I know there to be a spirit of the holy gods and whom no mystery baffles, consider 7  my dream that I saw and set forth its interpretation!

1 tc The MT lacks the conjunction, reading the first word in the phrase as a construct (“wisdom of insight”). While this reading is not impossible, it seems better to follow Theodotion, the Syriac, the Vulgate, and the Sahidic Coptic, all of which have the conjunction.

2 tn Heb “hands.”

3 tn Heb “said.” So also in v. 12.

4 tn Heb “Chaldeans.” The term Chaldeans (Hebrew כַּשְׂדִּים, kasdim) is used in the book of Daniel both in an ethnic sense and, as here, to refer to a caste of Babylonian wise men and astrologers.

5 tn Heb “to explain to the king his dreams.”

6 tn Heb “stood before the king.”

7 tc The present translation assumes the reading חֲזִי (khazi, “consider”) rather than the MT חֶזְוֵי (khezvey, “visions”). The MT implies that the king required Daniel to disclose both the dream and its interpretation, as in chapter 2. But in the following verses Nebuchadnezzar recounts his dream, while Daniel presents only its interpretation.