4:35 All the inhabitants of the earth are regarded as nothing. 5
He does as he wishes with the army of heaven
and with those who inhabit the earth.
No one slaps 6 his hand
and says to him, ‘What have you done?’
5:13 So Daniel was brought in before the king. The king said to Daniel, “Are you that Daniel who is one of the captives of Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah?
7:5 “Then 9 a second beast appeared, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and there were three ribs 10 in its mouth between its teeth. 11 It was told, 12 ‘Get up and devour much flesh!’
“And with 13 the clouds of the sky 14
one like a son of man 15 was approaching.
He went up to the Ancient of Days
and was escorted 16 before him.
8:27 I, Daniel, was exhausted 20 and sick for days. Then I got up and again carried out the king’s business. But I was astonished at the vision, and there was no one to explain it.
11:7 “There will arise in his 21 place one from her family line 22 who will come against their army and will enter the stronghold of the king of the north and will move against them successfully. 23
1 tn Aram “whose dwelling is not with flesh.”
2 tc Theodotion and the Vulgate lack the phrase “and as iron breaks in pieces.”
3 tn The Aramaic text does not have this word, but it has been added in the translation for clarity.
4 tn The words “the others” are supplied from the context.
5 tc The present translation reads כְּלָא (kÿla’), with many medieval Hebrew
6 tn Aram “strikes against.”
7 tn Aram “from the sons of the captivity [of].”
8 tn Aram “prays his prayer.”
9 tn Aram “and behold.”
10 sn The three ribs held securely in the mouth of the bear, perhaps representing Media-Persia, apparently symbolize military conquest, but the exact identity of the “ribs” is not clear. Possibly it is a reference to the Persian conquest of Lydia, Egypt, and Babylonia.
11 tc The LXX lacks the phrase “between its teeth.”
12 tn Aram “and thus they were saying to it.”
13 tc The LXX has ἐπί (epi, “upon”) here (cf. Matt 24:30; 26:64). Theodotion has μετά (meta, “with”) here (cf. Mark 14:62; Rev 1:7).
14 tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
15 sn This text is probably the main OT background for Jesus’ use of the term “son of man.” In both Jewish and Christian circles the reference in the book of Daniel has traditionally been understood to refer to an individual, usually in a messianic sense. Many modern scholars, however, understand the reference to have a corporate identity. In this view, the “son of man” is to be equated with the “holy ones” (vv. 18, 21, 22, 25) or the “people of the holy ones” (v. 27) and understood as a reference to the Jewish people. Others understand Daniel’s reference to be to the angel Michael.
16 tn Aram “they brought him near.”
17 tn Aram “what is certain.”
18 tn Aram “and made known.”
19 tn Aram “matter,” but the matter at hand is of course the vision.
20 tn The Hebrew word here is נִהְיֵיתִי (nihyetiy). Its meaning is not entirely clear. Hebrew הָיָה (hayah) normally has meanings such as “to be” or “become.” Here, however, it describes Daniel’s emotional and physical response to the enigmatic vision that he has seen. It is parallel to the following verb, which refers to illness, and seems to refer to a state of utter exhaustion due to the amazing things that Daniel has just seen. The LXX lacks the word. On the meaning of the word see further, BDB 227-28 s.v. הָיָה Niph.2; DCH 2:540 s.v. היה I Ni.3.
21 sn The reference is to the king of Egypt.
22 tn Heb “the stock of her roots.”
sn The reference to one from her family line is probably to Berenice’s brother, Ptolemy III Euergetes (ca. 246-221
23 tn Heb “will deal with them and prevail.”
24 tn Heb “on his place.”
25 sn The one who will send out an exactor of tribute was Seleucus IV Philopator (ca. 187-176
26 sn Perhaps this exactor of tribute was Heliodorus (cf. 2 Maccabees 3).
27 tn Heb “broken” or “shattered.”
28 tn Heb “heart.” So also in v. 28.
29 tn Heb “speak.”