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Daniel Brought to Babylon

In the third year of the reign of (A)Jehoiakim king of Judah, (B)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. And the (C)Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the (D)vessels of the house of God; and he brought them to the land of (E)Shinar, to the house of his [a]god, and he brought the vessels into the treasury of his [b](F)god.

Then the king said for Ashpenaz, the chief of his [c]officials, to bring in some of the sons of Israel, including some of the royal (G)seed and of the nobles, youths in whom was (H)no defect, who were good in appearance, showing (I)insight in every branch of wisdom, being thoroughly [d]knowledgeable and discerning knowledge, and who had ability to stand in the king’s palace; and he said for him to teach them the [e]literature and (J)tongue of the (K)Chaldeans. And the king appointed for them a daily ration from the (L)king’s choice food and from the wine which he drank, and appointed that they should be [f]educated three years, at the end of which they were to (M)stand before the king.

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Footnotes

  1. Daniel 1:2 Or gods
  2. Daniel 1:2 Or gods
  3. Daniel 1:3 Or eunuchs, so in ch
  4. Daniel 1:4 Lit knowing knowledge
  5. Daniel 1:4 Or writing
  6. Daniel 1:5 Or reared

Hostages of the Babylonian Captivity

In the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and laid siege to it. Within a week, the Lord handed King Jehoiakim of Judah over to him, along with valuable objects from the house of God. Nebuchadnezzar[a] brought them to the temple of his god in the land of Shinar[b] and stored them[c] in its treasure house.[d]

Later, the king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief officer,[e] to bring in some Israelis of royal and noble descent. They were to be young men without physical defect, handsome in appearance, skilled in all wisdom, quick to learn, prudent in how they used knowledge, and capable of serving in the king’s palace. They were to learn the literature and language of the Chaldeans.[f]

The king assigned them fine food and choice wine on a daily basis, ordering them to be trained for three years, at the end of which time they would enter the king’s service.[g]

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Footnotes

  1. Daniel 1:2 Lit. He
  2. Daniel 1:2 I.e. Babylon
  3. Daniel 1:2 Lit. the valuable objects
  4. Daniel 1:2 Lit. in the treasure house of his god
  5. Daniel 1:3 Lit. eunuch; i.e. an overseer in the king’s court; and so throughout the chapter
  6. Daniel 1:4 I.e. wise men and royal counselors from Mesopotamia who spoke the Babylonian Akkadian language and Aramaic; or magi-astrologers; and so throughout the book; cf. Jer. 5:15, Matt 2:1
  7. Daniel 1:5 Lit. would stand before the king