Daniel 3:17

3:17 If ¹  our God whom we are serving exists, ²  he is able to rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he will rescue us, O king, from your power as well.

Daniel 4:8

4:8 Later Daniel entered (whose name is Belteshazzar after the name of my god, ³  and in whom there is a spirit of the holy gods). I recounted the dream for him as well,

Daniel 5:12-13

5:12 Thus there was found in this man Daniel, whom the king renamed Belteshazzar, an extraordinary spirit, knowledge, and skill to interpret ⁴  dreams, solve riddles, and decipher knotty problems. ⁵  Now summon ⁶  Daniel, and he will disclose the interpretation.”

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?

Daniel 6:16

6:16 So the king gave the order, ⁷  and Daniel was brought and thrown into a den ⁸  of lions. The king consoled ⁹  Daniel by saying, “Your God whom you continually serve will rescue you!”

Daniel 6:20

6:20 As he approached the den, he called out to Daniel in a worried voice, ¹⁰  “Daniel, servant of the living God, was your God whom you continually serve able to rescue you from the lions?”

Daniel 9:21

9:21 yes, while I was still praying, ¹¹  the man Gabriel, whom I had seen previously ¹²  in a vision, was approaching me in my state of extreme weariness, ¹³  around the time of the evening offering.

Daniel 11:21

11:21 “Then there will arise in his place a despicable person ¹⁴  to whom the royal honor has not been rightfully conferred. He will come on the scene in a time of prosperity and will seize the kingdom through deceit.

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¹ tc The ancient versions typically avoid the conditional element of v. 17.

² tn The Aramaic expression used here is very difficult to interpret. The question concerns the meaning and syntax of אִיתַי (’itay, “is” or “exist”). There are several possibilities. (1) Some interpreters take this word closely with the participle later in the verse יָכִל (yakhil, “able”), understanding the two words to form a periphrastic construction (“if our God is…able”; cf. H. Bauer and P. Leander, Grammatik des Biblisch-Aramäischen, 365, §111b). But the separation of the two elements from one another is not an argument in favor of this understanding. (2) Other interpreters take the first part of v. 17 to mean “If it is so, then our God will deliver us” (cf. KJV, ASV, RSV, NASB). However, the normal sense of ’itay is existence; on this point see F. Rosenthal, Grammar, 45, §95. The present translation maintains the sense of existence for the verb (“If our God…exists”), even though the statement is admittedly difficult to understand in this light. The statement may be an implicit reference back to Nebuchadnezzar’s comment in v. 15, which denies the existence of a god capable of delivering from the king’s power.

³ sn This explanation of the meaning of the name Belteshazzar may be more of a paronomasia than a strict etymology.

⁴ tc The translation reads מִפְשַׁר (mifshar) rather than the MT מְפַשַּׁר (mÿfashar) and later in the verse reads וּמִשְׁרֵא (mishre’) rather than the MT וּמְשָׁרֵא (mÿshare’). The Masoretes have understood these Aramaic forms to be participles, but they are more likely to be vocalized as infinitives. As such, they have an epexegetical function in the syntax of their clause.

⁵ tn Aram “to loose knots.”

⁶ tn Aram “let [Daniel] be summoned.”

⁷ tn Aram “said.” So also in vv. 24, 25.

⁸ sn The den was perhaps a pit below ground level which could be safely observed from above.

⁹ tn Aram “answered and said [to Daniel].”

¹⁰ tn Aram “The king answered and said to Daniel.” This phrase has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons; it is redundant in English.

¹¹ tn Heb “speaking in prayer.”

¹² tn Heb “in the beginning.”

¹³ tn The Hebrew expression בִּיעָף מֻעָף (mu’af bi’af) is very difficult. The issue is whether the verb derives from עוּף (’uf, “to fly”) or from יָעַף (ya’af, “to be weary”). Many ancient versions and modern commentators take the first of these possibilities and understand the reference to be to the swift flight of the angel Gabriel in his coming to Daniel. The words more likely refer to the extreme weariness, not of the angel, but of Daniel. Cf. 7:28; 8:27; 10:8-9, 16-17; also NASB.

¹⁴ sn This despicable person to whom the royal honor has not been rightfully conferred is Antiochus IV Epiphanes (ca. 175-164 B.C.).