Daniel 3:25

3:25 He answered, “But I see four men, untied and walking around in the midst of the fire! No harm has come to them! And the appearance of the fourth is like that of a god!” ¹ 

Daniel 9:23

9:23 At the beginning of your requests a message went out, and I have come to convey it to you, for you are of great value in God’s sight. ²  Therefore consider the message and understand the vision: ³ 

Daniel 10:20

10:20 He said, “Do you know why I have come to you? ⁴  Now I am about to return to engage in battle with the prince of Persia. When I go, the prince of Greece is coming.

Daniel 11:7

11:7 “There will arise in his ⁵  place one from her family line ⁶  who will come against their army and will enter the stronghold of the king of the north and will move against them successfully. ⁷ 

Daniel 11:21

11:21 “Then there will arise in his place a despicable person ⁸  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.

Daniel 11:30

11:30 The ships of Kittim ⁹  will come against him, leaving him disheartened. ¹⁰  He will turn back and direct his indignation against the holy covenant. He will return and honor ¹¹  those who forsake the holy covenant.

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¹ sn The phrase like that of a god is in Aramaic “like that of a son of the gods.” Many patristic writers understood this phrase in a christological sense (i.e., “the Son of God”). But it should be remembered that these are words spoken by a pagan who is seeking to explain things from his own polytheistic frame of reference; for him the phrase “like a son of the gods” is equivalent to “like a divine being.”

² tn Or “a precious treasure”; KJV “greatly beloved”; NASB, NIV “highly esteemed.”

³ tn This sentence is perhaps a compound hendiadys (“give serious consideration to the revelatory vision”).

⁴ sn The question is rhetorical, intended to encourage reflection on Daniel’s part.

⁵ sn The reference is to the king of Egypt.

⁶ 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 B.C.).

⁷ tn Heb “will deal with them and prevail.”

⁸ sn This despicable person to whom the royal honor has not been rightfully conferred is Antiochus IV Epiphanes (ca. 175-164 B.C.).

⁹ sn The name Kittim has various designations in extra-biblical literature. It can refer to a location on the island of Cyprus, or more generally to the island itself, or it can be an inclusive term to refer to parts of the Mediterranean world that lay west of the Middle East (e.g., Rome). For ships of Kittim the Greek OT (LXX) has “Romans,” an interpretation followed by a few English versions (e.g., TEV). A number of times in the Dead Sea Scrolls the word is used in reference to the Romans. Other English versions are more generic: “[ships] of the western coastlands” (NIV, NLT); “from the west” (NCV, CEV).

¹⁰ sn This is apparently a reference to the Roman forces, led by Gaius Popilius Laenas, which confronted Antiochus when he came to Egypt and demanded that he withdraw or face the wrath of Rome. Antiochus wisely withdrew from Egypt, albeit in a state of bitter frustration.

¹¹ tn Heb “show regard for.”