Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Daniel 2:27
Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise [men], the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, show unto the king;
27. in the presence of ] before (R.V.), as Dan 2:9.
demanded ] simply asked, which is all that ‘demand’ formerly expressed. ‘Like Fr. demander, to ask, simply; not as now in the stronger sense of “to ask with authority, or as a right,” ’ (W. A. Wright, Bible Word-book, s.v.). So Exo 5:14; 2Sa 11:7; Job 38:3. ‘Demand’ in the modern sense would suit these passages; but the Hebrew word used is the one that ordinarily means ‘ask.’
can neither wise men, enchanters ( Dan 2:2), magicians, nor determiners (of fates) declare unto the king ] The terms are all indefinite in the original. ‘Determiners’ (also Dan 4:4, Dan 5:7; Dan 5:11), viz. of future destinies, whether by observation of the heavens (Isa 47:13), or by other means. The Babylonians were famed for their astrology, and in classical times the idea of astrologer was that which was almost entirely associated with the term ‘Chaldaean’ (cf. above, p. 13). The verb (strictly, to cut), in the general sense of decide, decree, occurs in the Targums and in Syriac, and once also in the Aramaizing idiom of Job (Job 22:28); cf. the cognate subst., Dan 4:14; Dan 4:21. In this particular application, however, it is at present known only in the Biblical Aramaic.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded, cannot the wise men … show unto the king – Daniel regarded it as a settled and indisputable point that the solution could not be hoped for from the Chaldean sages. The highest talent which the realm could furnish had been applied to, and had failed. It was clear, therefore, that there was no hope that the difficulty would be removed by human skill. Besides this, Daniel would seem also to intimate that the thing, from the necessity of the case, was beyond the compass of the human powers. Alike in reference to the question whether a forgotten dream could be recalled, and to the actual signification of a dream so remarkable as this, the whole matter was beyond the ability of man.
The wise men, the astrologers … – On these words, see the notes at Dan 1:20. All these words occur in that verse, except gazeryn – rendered soothsayers. This is derived from gezar – to cut, to cut off; and then to decide, to determine; and it is thus applied to those who decide or determine the fates or destiny of men; that is, those who by casting nativities from the place of the stars at ones birth, and by various arts of computing and divining, foretold the fortunes and destinies of individuals. See Gesenius, Com. z. Isa. 2:349-356, Section 4, Von den Chaldern und deren Astrologie. On p. 555, he has given a figure, showing how the heavens were cut up, or divided, by astrologers in the practice of their art. Compare the phrase numeri Babylonii, in Hor. Carm. I. xi. 2. The Greek is gazarenon – the Chaldee word in Greek letters. This is one of the words – not very few in number – which the authors of the Greek version did not attempt to translate. Such words, however, are not useless, as they serve to throw light on the question how the Hebrew and Chaldee were pronounced before the vowel points were affixed to those languages.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 27. Cannot the wise men] Cannot your own able men, aided by your gods, tell you the secret? This question was necessary in order that the king might see the foolishness of depending on the one, or worshipping the other.
The soothsayers] One of our old words: “The tellers of truth:” but gazerin is the name of another class of those curious artists, unless we suppose it to mean the same as the CHALDEANS, Da 2:2. They are supposed to be persons who divined by numbers, amulets, &c. There are many conjectures about them, which, whatever learning they show, cast little light upon this place.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
He reckons up here all sorts of divination, to show that divine things, and the secrets of God, cannot be comprehended by man without special revelation; and that those who presume to do it arrogate too much to themselves, and that it is too tyrannical to require it of any, and that upon pain of death; for, saith Daniel, they cannot do it.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
27. cannotDaniel, beinglearned in all the lore of the Chaldeans (Da1:4), could authoritatively declare the impossibility ofmere man solving the king’s difficulty.
soothsayersfrom aroot, “to cut off”; referring to their cutting theheavens into divisions, and so guessing at men’s destinies from theplace of the stars at one’s birth.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Daniel answered in the presence of the king,…. Boldly, and without fear:
and said, the secret which the king hath demanded: so he calls it, to show that it was something divine, which came from God, and could only be revealed by him, and was not to be found out by any art of man:
cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers show unto the king; this he premises to the revelation of the secret, not only to observe the unreasonableness of the king’s demand upon them, and the injustice of putting men to death for it; but that the discovery of the whole might appear to be truly divine, and God might have all the glory; it being what no class of men whatever could ever have made known unto him. The last word, rendered “soothsayers” u, is not used before; the Septuagint version leaves it untranslated, and calls them Gazarenes; and so Saadiah says, it is the name of a nation or people so called; but Jarchi takes them to be a sort of men that had confederacy with devils: the word signifies such that “cut” into parts, as the soothsayers, who cut up creatures, and looked into their entrails, and by them made their judgment of events; or as the astrologers, who cut and divide the heavens into parts, and by them divide future things; or determine, as Jacchiades says, what shall befall men; for the word is used also in the sense of determining or decreeing; hence, Saadiah says, some interpret it of princes, who by their words determine the affairs of kingdoms: by some it is rendered “fatalists” w, who declare to men what their fate will be; but neither of these could show this secret to the king.
u sectores, Cocceius, Gejerus. w “Fatidici”, Munster, Tigurine version; “qui de homine determinant hoc, vel illo modo ipsi eventurum esse”, Jacchiades.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
First, with respect to these names we need not trouble ourselves much, since even the Jews themselves are compelled to guess at them. They are very bold in their definitions and rash in their affirmations, and jet they cannot clearly distinguish how one kind of wise man differed from the others; hence it is sufficient for us to hold that the discourse now concerns those then esteemed “wise men,” under the various designations of Magi, Soothsayers, and Astrologers. Now, as to Daniel’s answer. He says it was not surprising that the king did not find what he hoped for among the Magi, since God had breathed into him this dream beyond the comprehension of human intellect. I know not whether those interpreters are right who think magical arts here simply condemned; for I rather think a comparison is instituted; between the king’s dream and the substance of the science of the Magi. I always exclude superstitions by which they vitiated true and genuine science. But as far as the principles are concerned, we cannot precisely condemn astronomy and whatever belongs to the consideration of the order of nature. This appears to me the whole intention, — the king’s dream was not subjected to human knowledge, for mortals have no such natural skill as to be able to comprehend the meaning of the dream, and God manifests those secrets which need the peculiar revelation of the Spirit. When Daniel says the Magi, Astrologers, and the rest cannot explain to the king his dream, and are not suitable interpreters of it, the true reason is, because the dream was not natural and had nothing in common with human conjectures, but was the peculiar revelation of the Spirit. As when Paul disputes concerning the Gospel, he collects into order every kind of intelligence among men, because those who are endued with any remarkable acuteness or ability think they can accomplish anything. But the doctrine of the Gospel is a heavenly mystery (1Co 2:4) which cannot be comprehended by the most learned and talented among men. The real sense of Daniel’s words is this, — the Magi, Astrologers, and Soothsayers had no power of expounding the king’s dream, since it was neither natural nor human.
This is clearly evident from the context, because he adds,
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(27) The secret . . .In this and the next verse Daniel justifies the astonishment of the king, and explains to him that what the wise men had stated was perfectly true. The gods whose dwelling was with flesh (see Note on Dan. 2:11) could not reveal the secret, but there was a God in heaven who had made it known. Daniel here teaches us what Scripture lays down elsewhere (Gen. 20:3; Gen. 41:16; Gen. 41:25; Gen. 41:28; Num. 22:35), that all power of prediction is to be excluded from heathen gods, and is possessed by wise men only so far as they acquire it through the God of heaven.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
27-30. The one God of heaven, who has power in Babylonia as well as in Palestine, has chosen to reveal his will to Nebuchadnezzar, and the secret of its meaning, which the wise men were correct in saying could only be discovered miraculously, is now supernaturally made plain to Daniel in order that “the interpretation might be made known to the king” (R.V.), who might thus be led to honor the most high God. (Compare Dan 2:47 and Eze 28:26.)
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘Daniel answered before the king and said, “The secret the king has demanded is one that neither wise men, enchanters, magicians nor soothsayers can show to the king. But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and he has made known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Your dream and the visions of your head are these.” ’
Daniel loses no opportunity to exalt his God. He contrasts what He can do with what the wise men of Babylon can do. With all their boasted arts, and with all the help of their gods, they were unable to reveal to the king what he had dreamed. But the God of heaven can reveal such secrets, for all is known to Him. And not only so, but He does reveal those secrets. He does not hide from man, but reveals his ways to man. And indeed it is He Who has revealed to the king what is to happen at the end of the days. Thus was Nebuchadnezzar made to recognise that the God of heaven was supreme over all so-called gods.
‘In the latter days’ or ‘at the end of the days’. He wished immediately to make Nebuchadnezzar realise that what he was talking about was not some near event. What had been revealed to him took him on to the end of time, to the destiny of the world. It was that on which focus must be made, the days when the great purposes of the God of heaven would come to fruition. But we must distinguish this from ‘the time of the end’ which is rather the final end of the latter days.
The New Testament plainly reveals that this ‘end of the days’ was brought in by the days of the Messiah at the first coming of Jesus. The fact that ‘the end times’ began at the resurrection is clearly stated in Scripture. ‘He was revealed at the end of the times for your sake’, says Peter (1Pe 1:20), so that he can then warn his readers ‘ the end of all things is at hand’ (1Pe 4:7). So to Peter the first coming of Christ has begun the end times. John also could declare, ‘Little children, it is the last hour’ and ‘thereby do we know that it is the last hour’ (1Jn 2:18).
Likewise Paul says to his contemporaries ‘for our admonition, on whom the end of the ages has come’ (1Co 10:11. Compare also 1Ti 4:1; 2Ti 3:1). What could be clearer? Thus the first coming of Christ was the end of the ages, not the beginning of a new age. The writer to the Hebrews also tells us ‘He has in these last days spoken to us by His Son’ (Heb 1:1-2), and adds ‘once in the end of the ages has He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself’ (Heb 9:26-28). So all those early writers saw their days as ‘the last days’. The first coming of Christ had issued in the last days which lead up to the end.
‘Your dream and the visions of your head are these.’ That is, his dreams and visions are God’s way of revealing the secrets of the latter days that have been made known to Nebuchadnezzar.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Dan 2:27 Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise [men], the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the king;
Ver. 27. The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men show unto thee.] And therefore thou hast done amiss, first in seeking to them, next in slaying them, though God hath a holy hand in it for their just punishment.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Dan 2:27-28
Dan 2:27 DanielH1841 answeredH6032 in the presence ofH6925 the king,H4430 and said,H560 The secretH7328 whichH1768 the kingH4430 hath demandedH7593 cannotH3202 H3809 the wiseH2445 men, the astrologers,H826 the magicians,H2749 the soothsayers,H1505 shewH2324 unto the king;H4430
Dan 2:28 ButH1297 there isH383 a GodH426 in heavenH8065 that revealethH1541 secrets,H7328 and maketh knownH3046 to the kingH4430 NebuchadnezzarH5020 whatH4101 H1768 shall beH1934 in the latterH320 days.H3118 Thy dream,H2493 and the visionsH2376 of thy headH7217 uponH5922 thy bed,H4903 are these;H1836
Dan 2:27-28
Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the king; But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these;
Daniel took advantage of the opportunity here to set forth God as being far superior to the wise men of Babylon and their false gods. Daniel made sure Nebuchadnezzar knew exactly where this knowledge was coming from and to who should be given the glory and praise for it. We see here that God was making things known directly to Nebuchadnezzar. God was dealing with the king in a direct and personal way. God, in his wisdom and in displaying his providential care of the Israelites in captivity, revealed this information to the king through Daniel in such a way that it would benefit Daniel and all the Israelite captives in Babylon.
While Daniel performed an extraordinary feat in revealing and explaining Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, let’s not overlook the importance of the fact that it was Nebuchadnezzar who God gave the dream to. The Israelites often considered themselves to be much better than the Gentiles because they were God’s chosen people. This does not mean that God left the Gentiles to their own devices and abandoned them to their fate. He certainly did not. God dealt with the Gentile nations and He had expectations of them. God sent Jonah to the Assyrian capitol of Nineveh to preach God’s righteousness to them so we know that the Gentiles had direction from God on matters of righteousness. They, like the Israelites on numerous occasions, chose to reject Him and embrace their own forms of righteousness. God desires no men to be lost anywhere, be they Israelites or Gentiles and this is why he strove with them to try and give them all an opportunity to escape the fate of sinners.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
cannot: Dan 2:2, Dan 2:10, Dan 2:11, Dan 5:7, Dan 5:8, Job 5:12, Job 5:13, Isa 19:3, Isa 44:25, Isa 47:12-14
Reciprocal: Gen 41:8 – but there Exo 7:11 – wise men Deu 29:29 – secret Est 1:13 – the wise Eze 28:3 – no secret Dan 2:19 – was Jam 1:17 – good
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Dan 2:27. In his answer to the king, Daniel confirmed the statements of the Chaldeans related in verses 10 and 11, but which did not explain the inconsistency in the pretensions of the wise men to high abilities regarding mysterious subjects,