Rachel Workman: 8 Then the king answered, “I am certain that you are trying to
gain time, because you realize that this is what I have firmly decided: 9 If
you do not tell me the dream, there is only one penalty for you. You have conspired
to tell me misleading and wicked things, hoping the situation will change. So
then, tell me the dream, and I will know that you can interpret it for me.”
10 The
astrologers answered the king, “There is no one on earth who can do what the
king asks! No king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of
any magician or enchanter or astrologer. 11 What the king asks
is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do
not live among humans.”
12 This
made the king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the
wise men of Babylon. 13 So the decree was issued to put the
wise men to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put
them to death.
14 When
Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard, had gone out to put to death the
wise men of Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with wisdom and tact. 15 He
asked the king’s officer, “Why did the king issue such a harsh decree?” Arioch
then explained the matter to Daniel. 16 At this, Daniel went in
to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him.
Daniel
was given wisdom beyond understanding. If I could choose one thing as a gift
from God it would be wisdom.
____________________________________________________________________________________
John Burnett:
8 Then the king answered, “I am certain that you are trying to gain
time, because you realize that this is what I have firmly decided: 9 If you do not tell me the dream, there is only one
penalty for you. You have conspired to tell me misleading and wicked
things, hoping the situation will change. So then, tell me the dream, and I
will know that you can interpret it for me.”
10 The astrologers answered the king, “There
is no one on earth who can do what the king asks! No king, however great and
mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or
astrologer. 11 What the king asks is too difficult. No one can
reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among
humans.” Nebuchadnezzar had put himself on a pedestal and because he was king
(and he thought he had god-like authority) just his decree meant to him that
they should be able to interpret his dream. What is silly is that if he
really had that kind of authority, shouldn’t he be able to interpret his own
dreams?
12 This made the king so angry and
furious that he ordered the execution of all the wise men of
Babylon. 13 So the decree was issued to put the wise men to
death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put them to
death. Daniel wasn’t there to tell the king that he could interpret the
dream for him but was still issued the death sentence. God gave Daniel
great wisdom in how to handle people and as we will see shortly, the ability to
read dreams as well. God’s sovereignty over all things is interwoven in
this story of Daniel and one of the most wicked men to ever walk the earth,
King Nebuchadnezzar. He truly is the King of kings and LORD of lords.
14 When Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard,
had gone out to put to death the wise men of Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with
wisdom and tact. 15 He asked the king’s officer, “Why did the king
issue such a harsh decree?” Arioch then explained the matter to Daniel. 16 At this, Daniel went in to the king and asked for time, so that he
might interpret the dream for him.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Krista Cook: Then the
king answered, “I am certain that you are trying to gain time, because you
realize that this is what I have firmly decided: 9 If you do
not tell me the dream, there is only one penalty for you. You have conspired to
tell me misleading and wicked things, hoping the situation will change. So
then, tell me the dream, and I will know that you can interpret it for me.”
10 The
astrologers answered the king, “There is no one on earth who can do what the
king asks! No king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of
any magician or enchanter or astrologer. 11 What the king asks
is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do
not live among humans.”
12 This
made the king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the
wise men of Babylon. 13 So the decree was issued to put the
wise men to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put
them to death.
14 When
Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard, had gone out to put to death the wise
men of Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with wisdom and tact.
- this
really stands out among all the other verses. No one saw a way out, but
Daniel CHOSE to speak with wisdom and tact. Isn't that the kind of talk
that will get more accomplished? You can catch more bees with honey!
15 He
asked the king’s officer, “Why did the king issue such a harsh decree?” Arioch
then explained the matter to Daniel. 16 At this, Daniel went in
to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Allen Michaels: 8 Then the king answered, “I am certain that you are trying to gain time,
because you realize that this is what I have firmly decided: 9 If
you do not tell me the dream, there is only one penalty for you. You have
conspired to tell me misleading and wicked things, hoping the situation will
change. So then, tell me the dream, and I will know that you can interpret it
for me.”
10 The astrologers
answered the king, “There is no one on earth who can do what the king asks! No
king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or
enchanter or astrologer. 11 What the king asks is too
difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not
live among humans.” In daily life, we face many
apparently impossible situations that would be hopeless if we had to handle
them with our limited strength. However, we have God who specializes in working
through us to achieve the impossible.
I
happen to work for a jerk who once worked for me. He has become power hungry,
not to mention he has two relatives, 3 childhood friends, and a next door neighbor
also working in our group that he constantly tries to impress. But being it’s
against the law to “whack” him I need to find a lesson in this. When power goes
to a leader’s head, whether at work, at home, or in the church, that leader can
sometimes begin demanding the impossible from subordinates, Sometimes this is
required to motivate his workers to achieve more than what they are doing. At
other times, it’s the ranting’s and ravings of someone deluded with power. Just
as Daniel dealt wisely in the situation, I must ask God to give me wisdom to
know how to deal with an unreasonable boss.
12 This
made the king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the
wise men of Babylon. 13 So the decree was issued to put the
wise men to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put
them to death. Of course, the wise men
did not know what the king had dreamed. The king was asking them to do
something that was impossible. This made the king very angry. So he issued an
order to kill all his wise men, even Daniel and his friends. They did not even
know about the king’s dream. They had been loyal to God and he had made them
important people in the country. Now Nebuchadnezzar intended to kill them.
14 When Arioch, the
commander of the king’s guard, had gone out to put to death the wise men of
Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with wisdom and tact. 15 He asked
the king’s officer, “Why did the king issue such a harsh decree?” Arioch then
explained the matter to Daniel. 16 At this, Daniel went in to
the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him. Although Daniel’s life was in danger, he spoke with
wisdom. God was helping him to do what was right. The king had accused the
other wise men of trying to gain time. But he allowed Daniel time to find out
what the dream meant. The wise men did not know how to find out about the
dream. Daniel believed that God would help him. So, he promised the king that
he would tell him the meaning of the dream.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Tomorrow’s reading for Daniel 2:17-23
17 Then
Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah,
Mishael and Azariah. 18 He urged them to plead for mercy from
the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not
be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 19 During
the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised
the God of heaven 20 and said:
“Praise
be to the name of God for ever and ever;
wisdom and power are his.
21 He changes times and seasons;
he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to the discerning.
22 He reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what lies in darkness,
and light dwells with him.
23 I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors:
You have given me wisdom and power,
you have made known to me what we asked of you,
you have made known to us the dream of the king.”
wisdom and power are his.
21 He changes times and seasons;
he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to the discerning.
22 He reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what lies in darkness,
and light dwells with him.
23 I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors:
You have given me wisdom and power,
you have made known to me what we asked of you,
you have made known to us the dream of the king.”
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