This response made the king so furious and angry
The phrase highlights the intense emotional reaction of King Nebuchadnezzar. In the historical context of ancient Near Eastern monarchies, kings were often seen as absolute rulers whose emotions could dictate the fate of their subjects. The Hebrew words used here convey a deep-seated rage, indicating that the king's authority was challenged. This reflects the absolute power and often volatile nature of ancient kings, who were not accustomed to being denied or questioned.

that he gave orders
This phrase underscores the king's authority and the immediacy of his command. In the ancient world, a king's word was law, and his orders were executed without question. The Hebrew root for "orders" suggests a decree that is binding and irrevocable, emphasizing the seriousness of the situation. It also reflects the king's impulsive nature, acting out of anger rather than reason.

to destroy
The word "destroy" here is significant, as it implies a complete and utter annihilation. The Hebrew root can mean to kill or to bring to ruin, indicating the severity of the king's decree. This reflects the harsh realities of life in ancient Babylon, where the whims of a ruler could lead to life or death consequences. It also sets the stage for the dramatic intervention of God through Daniel, highlighting the theme of divine sovereignty over human affairs.

all the wise men of Babylon
This phrase identifies the target of the king's wrath. The "wise men" were a class of advisors, including magicians, enchanters, and astrologers, who were expected to provide counsel and interpret dreams. Historically, Babylon was renowned for its scholarly and mystical traditions, and these wise men were integral to the king's court. The threat to their lives underscores the crisis and the failure of human wisdom in the face of divine mysteries. It also foreshadows the elevation of Daniel, a man of God, over the wisdom of the world, reinforcing the biblical theme of God's wisdom surpassing human understanding.

(12) This order to massacre the wise men extended apparently only to those who were resident in the city of Babylon, where they had a fixed habitation. Though Daniel had been already trained in their schools, he had not as yet been appointed "a wise man." However, being a student, his death was implied in the general order, which, as appears from Daniel 2:13, had already begun to be executed.

Verse 12. - For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. The Septuagint rendering differs little in sense from the above, but in words it does considerably, "Then the king, becoming gloomy and very grieved, commanded that they lead out all the wise men of Babylonia." The main thing to be observed is the softening of the meaning in the hands of the Septuagint translator. This is so great as to suggest that he read לָהוזָלה instead of לְהובָדָה. The aphel of אזל is not used in Chaldee, but is used in Syriac. Theodotion's rendering is, "Then the king in anger and wrath commanded to destroy all the wise meal of Babylon." The Syriac has a shade of difference, "Then was the king vehemently enraged, and in great fury commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon." It is evident that Theodotion read בְנַס (benas), "was angry," as if it were the preposition ב and the Syriac noun נַס (has), "anger." He also must have inserted the preposition before קְצַפ (qetzaph), "wrath;" in this he is followed by the Peshitta. The Septuagint is freer in its rendering in this verse, and one cannot argue anything from it. The probability seems to be that נַס; (nas) is used as a noun, and that the Targamic verb was formed from the mistake of a scribe dropping the preposition before קְצַפ (qetzaph). If we are correct in this, we have an additional evidence that the original languagge of Daniel was not Chaldee, but Syriac, or, at all events, Eastern Aramaic. As a grammatical note, we direct attention to the form לְהובָדָה, where the א of the root has totally disappeared before the ה of the haphel, the equivalent in Biblical Aramaic of the Chaldee and Syriac aphel with its preformative א . Professor Bevan says that this distinction is only a matter of orthography. Are we to deduce that Professor Bevan has a cockney disregard for hs? The writer now drops reference to special classes of wise men, and names them generally hakeemin. The king is unconvinced of the truth of these wise men (hakeemin), or rather he is convinced that they are traitors and deceivers. They are either concealing from him the knowledge they have, and are, therefore, traitors to him; or the gods have withdrawn from them, and therefore they must have been untrue to the gods. On both these grounds Nebuchadnezzar thinks them worthy of death. He at once issues the decree that all the wise men in the city of Babylon should be slain. If the LXX. reading of Daniel 2:2 be correct, he had only summoned the Chaldean wise men. If all the wise men of Babylon were ordered to be slain, the punishment is extended beyond the offence. Possibly he argued, "If even my fellow-countrymen, the Chaldeans, are traitors, much more will the Babylonians be so." So far as words go, it is doubtful whether this decree applies to the province of Babylonia, as the Septuagint translator thinks, or merely to those in the city. But cruel and furious as was the young conqueror, he was scarcely likely to order the wholesale massacre of those who, in Sippara and Borsippa, had neither refused to do what he wished, nor by implication called him an unreasonable tyrant, as had the wise men in Babylon.

Parallel Commentaries ...


This [response] made
קֳבֵ֣ל (qo·ḇêl)
Preposition
Strong's 6903: In front of, before, because of, because that

the king
מַלְכָּ֕א (mal·kā)
Noun - masculine singular determinate
Strong's 4430: A king

so
שַׂגִּ֑יא (śag·gî)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 7690: Great, much

angry
בְּנַ֖ס (bə·nas)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1149: To be enraged

and furious
וּקְצַ֣ף (ū·qə·ṣap̄)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 7108: To become enraged

that he gave orders
וַאֲמַר֙ (wa·’ă·mar)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 560: To say, tell, command

to destroy
לְה֣וֹבָדָ֔ה (lə·hō·w·ḇā·ḏāh)
Preposition-l | Verb - Hifil - Infinitive construct
Strong's 7: To wander away, lose oneself, to perish

all
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3606: The whole, all, any, every

the wise men
חַכִּימֵ֥י (ḥak·kî·mê)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 2445: Wise, a Magian

of Babylon.
בָבֶֽל׃ (ḇā·ḇel)
Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 895: Babylon -- an eastern Mediterranean empire and its capital city


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OT Prophets: Daniel 2:12 For this cause the king was angry (Dan. Da Dn)