Daniel 2:4
New International Version
Then the astrologers answered the king, “May the king live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it.”

New Living Translation
Then the astrologers answered the king in Aramaic, “Long live the king! Tell us the dream, and we will tell you what it means.”

English Standard Version
Then the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.”

Berean Standard Bible
Then the astrologers answered the king in Aramaic, “O king, may you live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.”

King James Bible
Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation.

New King James Version
Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.”

New American Standard Bible
Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic: “O king, live forever! Tell the dream to your servants, and we will declare the interpretation.”

NASB 1995
Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic: “O king, live forever! Tell the dream to your servants, and we will declare the interpretation.”

NASB 1977
Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic: “O king, live forever! Tell the dream to your servants, and we will declare the interpretation.”

Legacy Standard Bible
Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic: “O king, live forever! Say the dream to your servants, and we will declare the interpretation.”

Amplified Bible
Then the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell the dream to your servants, and we will declare the interpretation.”

Christian Standard Bible
The Chaldeans spoke to the king (Aramaic begins here): “May the king live forever. Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
The Chaldeans spoke to the king (Aramaic begins here): “May the king live forever. Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.”

American Standard Version
Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in the Syrian language, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And the Chaldeans spoke before the King in Aramaic, and they were saying: “King, live to eternity! Tell the dream to your Servants, and we shall show its interpretation!”

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the Chaldeans spoke to the king in the Syrian language, saying, O king, live for ever: do thou tell the dream to thy servants, and we will declare the interpretation.

Contemporary English Version
They answered in Aramaic, "Your Majesty, we hope you live forever! We are your servants. Please tell us your dream, and we will explain what it means."

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the Chaldeans answered the king in Syriac: O king, live for ever: tell to thy servants thy dream, and we will declare the interpretation thereof.

English Revised Version
Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in the Syrian language, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The astrologers spoke to the king in Aramaic, "Your Majesty, may you live forever! Tell us the dream, and we'll interpret it for you."

Good News Translation
They answered the king in Aramaic, "May Your Majesty live forever! Tell us your dream, and we will explain it to you."

International Standard Version
The Chaldeans responded to the king in Aramaic: "May the king live forever. Tell the dream to your servants, and we'll reveal its meaning."

JPS Tanakh 1917
Then spoke the Chaldeans to the king in Aramaic: 'O king, live for ever! tell thy servants the dream, and we will declare the interpretation.'

Literal Standard Version
And the Chaldeans speak to the king [in] Aramaic, “O king, live for all ages, tell the dream to your servants, and we show the interpretation.”

Majority Standard Bible
Then the astrologers answered the king in Aramaic, “O king, may you live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.”

New American Bible
The Chaldeans answered the king in Aramaic: “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream and we will give its meaning.”

NET Bible
The wise men replied to the king: [What follows is in Aramaic] "O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will disclose its interpretation."

New Revised Standard Version
The Chaldeans said to the king (in Aramaic), “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will reveal the interpretation.”

New Heart English Bible
Then spoke the Chaldeans to the king in the Aramaic language, "O king, live forever: tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation."

Webster's Bible Translation
Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Syriac, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.

World English Bible
Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in the Syrian language, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.”

Young's Literal Translation
And the Chaldeans speak to the king in Aramaean, 'O king, to the ages live, tell the dream to thy servants, and the interpretation we do shew.'

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Nebuchadnezzar's Dream
3he said to them, “I have had a dream, and my spirit is anxious to understand it.” 4Then the astrologers answered the king in Aramaic, “O king, may you live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.” 5The king replied to the astrologers, “My word is final: If you do not tell me the dream and its interpretation, you will be cut into pieces and your houses will be reduced to rubble.…

Cross References
1 Kings 1:31
Bathsheba bowed facedown in homage to the king and said, "May my lord King David live forever!"

2 Kings 18:26
Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, along with Shebnah and Joah, said to the Rabshakeh, "Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we understand it. Do not speak with us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people on the wall."

Ezra 4:7
And in the days of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his associates wrote a letter to Artaxerxes. It was written in Aramaic and then translated.

Nehemiah 2:3
and replied to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should I not be sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?"

Isaiah 36:11
Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, "Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we understand it. Do not speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people on the wall."

Daniel 1:4
young men without blemish, handsome, gifted in all wisdom, knowledgeable, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king's palace--and to teach them the language and literature of the Chaldeans.

Daniel 2:7
They answered a second time, "Let the king tell the dream to his servants, and we will give the interpretation."


Treasury of Scripture

Then spoke the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.

in.

Genesis 31:47
And Laban called it Jegarsahadutha: but Jacob called it Galeed.

Ezra 4:7
And in the days of Artaxerxes wrote Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their companions, unto Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the writing of the letter was written in the Syrian tongue, and interpreted in the Syrian tongue.

Isaiah 36:11
Then said Eliakim and Shebna and Joah unto Rabshakeh, Speak, I pray thee, unto thy servants in the Syrian language; for we understand it: and speak not to us in the Jews' language, in the ears of the people that are on the wall.

Syriack.

O king.

Daniel 3:9
They spake and said to the king Nebuchadnezzar, O king, live for ever.

Daniel 4:19
Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonied for one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. The king spake, and said, Belteshazzar, let not the dream, or the interpretation thereof, trouble thee. Belteshazzar answered and said, My lord, the dream be to them that hate thee, and the interpretation thereof to thine enemies.

Daniel 5:10
Now the queen, by reason of the words of the king and his lords, came into the banquet house: and the queen spake and said, O king, live for ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed:

tell.

Daniel 4:7
Then came in the magicians, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers: and I told the dream before them; but they did not make known unto me the interpretation thereof.

Daniel 5:8
Then came in all the king's wise men: but they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof.

Genesis 41:8
And it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dream; but there was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.

Jump to Previous
Account Ages Aramaean Aramaic Astrologers Chaldaeans Chaldeans Chalde'ans Clear Declare Dream Forever Interpret Interpretation Language Live Servants Shew Show Speak Syrian
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Account Ages Aramaean Aramaic Astrologers Chaldaeans Chaldeans Chalde'ans Clear Declare Dream Forever Interpret Interpretation Language Live Servants Shew Show Speak Syrian
Daniel 2
1. Nebuchadnezzar, forgetting his dream,
5. requires it of the Chaldeans, by promises and threats.
10. They acknowledging their inability are judged to die.
14. Daniel obtaining some respite finds the dream.
19. He blesses God.
24. He staying the decree is brought to the king.
31. The dream.
36. The interpretation.
46. Daniel's advancement.














(4) In Syriack.--Probably a fresh title, indicating to the copyist that the Chaldee portion of the book begins here. It has been conjectured that this portion of the book (Daniel 2:4-7) is a Chaldee translation of an original Hebrew work, but there is no authority for the conjecture. God is about to reveal facts connected with the Gentile world, and therefore a Gentile language is used as the vehicle of the revelation. (See 1Timothy 2:3-4; Matthew 2:1-2).

Live for ever.--For this common form of salutation, comp. Daniel 3:9; Daniel 5:10, &c. . . .

Verse 4. - Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation. The versions do not imply any important difference Then... the Chaldeans. This does not mean merely that cue class of soothsayers - a class the existence of which is doubtful - nor that the whole baud of soothsayers bore the name "Chaldeans." The name is simply the name of the nation, but is here used of this small portion of it that were soothsayers, in the same way as in John 9:22 "Jews," the name of the nation, is used for the rulers: "For the Jews had agreed already that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue." Hence it is needless to speak of' the Chaldeans being the principal class, and therefore "for the sake of breviloquence" (Moses Stuart) "put for the whole." So also Kliefoth ('Kom.,' p. 79), "Because the Chaldeans were the first class, they alone are named." The Chaldeans were not the inhabitants of Babylonia, but belonged to several cantons south and east of Babylon. Spake. The word yedabberu is usually followed by the verb amar in the infinitive. In Ezekiel 40:4 we have the verb dibber used without arnar, to introduce the thing said. It is not improbable that in this instance Aramith, "in the Syriac tongue," helped to the omission of amar. In the Syriack (Aramith). All scholars know now that there are two leading dialects of the Aramaean or Aramaic - the Eastern or Syriac, and the Western or Chaldee. The terms are very confusing; as Syria was certainly to the west of Chaldea, it seems strange that the usage should ever have sprung up to call the Western variety Chaldee, and the Eastern variety Syriac. The usage having been established, it has a certain convenience to be able to name all the Western, or, as they may be called, Palestinian dialects of Aramaic Chaldee, and all the Eastern varieties Syriac. While the English version uses the term "Syriac," as the portion of Daniel which follows has come down to us, it is not written in Syriac, but in Chaldee. We shall, however, endeavour to show that this is due to changes introduced by transcribers. As to the word Aramith occurring here, there is great force in the view maintained by Lenormant, that it is to be regarded as a note to the reader, indicating that st this point the Hebrew ceases and the Aramaic begins. The reason of the change from one language to another has been already dealt with in considering the question of the structure of Daniel. In the mean time it is sufficient to say that our theory is that the Hebrew in the beginning of Daniel is due to the editor, who collected the scattered fly-leaves. In the first chapter and in the three opening verses of that before us, we have the results of translation and condensation. As the previous sacred books had been written in Hebrew - the prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah, not to speak of other books - it was natural that the editor, especially if he were under the influence of Ezra, would desire to see a book that had so much of holy hope and aspiration about it, in the sacred language of the patriarchs and prophets. There would be probably a considerable mass of irregular material to be gone over before a connected account could be given of the early days of Daniel. These sources would be necessarily in the main Aramaic, and hence the translation and condensation. It was formerly one of the objections urged against Daniel that the author regarded Aramaic as the language spoken in Babylon. By this time the language engraved on the tablets had been discovered not to be any previously known toungue. It is now found that, although the inhabitants of Babylon used the cuneiform for inscriptions, the language of ordinary business and social intercourse was Aramaic. and had been for several centuries. Dr. Hugo Winckler says, in his 'History of Babylonia and Assyria,' p. 179, "Aramaic soon became the language of social intercourse (ungangsprache) in nearly the whole of Mesopotamia, and. expelled the Assyro-Babylonian, which continued only as a literary tongue (schriftsprache)." Bronze weights have been found dating back to the Sargo-nids, with the weight marked on the one side in Aramaic, while on the other the titles of the king are given in Assyrian, When Sennacherib sent Rabshakeh to Jerusalem, Eliakim and Shebna wished the conversation to be carried on in Aramaic, implying that by this time Aramaic had become the ordinary language of diplomacy. The single Aramaic verse in Jeremiah (Jeremiah 10:11) implies that the Jewish captives would be dwelling among a people who ordinarily spoke Aramaic. Some have deduced from the phrase, "then spake," etc., that Aramaic was not the ordinary language of the speakers - a deduction that would be plausible if it had not been that from this point till the end. of the seventh chapter the book is in Aramaic. Jephet-ibn-Ali thinks that Nebuchadnezzar had first addressed the wise men in some other language, and then betook him to Aramaic. O king, live for ever: tell thy servaats the dream, andl we will show the interpretation. The soothsayers address the king in terms of Oriental adulation. Similar phrases are found in despatches to Asshurbanipal. In the Septuagint Version the phrase is accommodated more to the Hellenic usage, and the king is addressed as κύριε βασιλεῦ. Their language implies that they expected to be told the dream, and then, having been told the dream, they would apply the rules of their art to it, and declare to the king the interpretation.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Then the astrologers
הַכַּשְׂדִּ֛ים (hak·kaś·dîm)
Article | Noun - proper - masculine plural
Strong's 3778: Chaldeans -- a region of southern Babylon and its inhab

answered
וַֽיְדַבְּר֧וּ (way·ḏab·bə·rū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 1696: To arrange, to speak, to subdue

the king
לַמֶּ֖לֶךְ (lam·me·leḵ)
Preposition-l, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4428: A king

in Aramaic,
אֲרָמִ֑ית (’ă·rā·mîṯ)
Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 762: The language of Aram (Syria)

“O king,
מַלְכָּא֙ (mal·kā)
Noun - masculine singular determinate
Strong's 4430: A king

may you live
חֱיִ֔י (ḥĕ·yî)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 2418: To live

forever!
לְעָלְמִ֣ין (lə·‘ā·lə·mîn)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 5957: Remote time, the future, past, forever

Tell
אֱמַ֥ר (’ĕ·mar)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 560: To say, tell, command

your servants
לְעַבְדָ֖ךְ (lə·‘aḇ·ḏāḵ)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 5649: Slave, servant

the dream,
חֶלְמָ֛א (ḥel·mā)
Noun - masculine singular determinate
Strong's 2493: A dream

and we will give
נְחַוֵּֽא׃ (nə·ḥaw·wê)
Verb - Piel - Imperfect - first person common plural
Strong's 2324: To show

the interpretation.”
וּפִשְׁרָ֥א (ū·p̄iš·rā)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular determinate
Strong's 6591: An interpretation


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OT Prophets: Daniel 2:4 Then spoke the Chaldeans to the king (Dan. Da Dn)
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