⁴ youths without ^(A)blemish, of good appearance and ^(B)skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king's palace, and to ^(C)teach them the literature and language of the ^(D)Chaldeans.

¹¹ There is a man in your kingdom ^(A)in whom is the spirit of the holy gods.^[a] In the days of your father, ^(B)light and understanding and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods were found in him, and King Nebuchadnezzar, your father—your father the king—^(C)made him chief of the magicians, ^(D)enchanters, Chaldeans, and astrologers,

²² And Moses ^(A)was instructed in ^(B)all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was ^(C)mighty in his words and deeds.

²⁵ Now in all Israel there was no one so much to be praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom. ^(A)From the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.

^10 (A)The Chaldeans answered the king and said, “There is not a man on earth who can meet the king's demand, for no great and powerful king has asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or ^(B)Chaldean.

¹⁷ As for these four youths, ^(A)God gave them learning and ^(B)skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had ^(C)understanding in all visions and dreams. ¹⁸ At the end of ^(D)the time, when the king had commanded that they should be brought in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. ¹⁹ And the king spoke with them, and among all of them none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Therefore ^(E)they stood before the king. ²⁰ And in every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all ^(F)the magicians and ^(G)enchanters that were in all his kingdom.

¹⁹ If anyone injures his neighbor, ^(A)as he has done it shall be done to him, ²⁰ fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; whatever injury he has given a person shall be given to him.

¹⁸ For no one who has a blemish shall draw near, a man ^(A)blind or lame, or one who has a mutilated face ^(B)or a limb too long, ¹⁹ or a man who has an injured foot or an injured hand, ²⁰ or a hunchback or a dwarf or a man with a ^(C)defect in his sight or an itching disease or scabs or ^(D)crushed testicles. ²¹ No man of the offspring of Aaron the priest who has a blemish shall come near to ^(E)offer the Lord's food offerings; since he has a blemish, he shall not come near to offer the bread of his God.