Daniel 2:27 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Daniel answered the king and said, "No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked,

NIV: Daniel replied, "No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about,

NASB: Daniel answered before the king and said, 'As for the secret about which the king has inquired, neither wise men, sorcerers, soothsayer priests, nor diviners are able to declare it to the king.

CSB: Daniel answered the king: "No wise man, medium, magician, or diviner is able to make known to the king the mystery he asked about.

NLT: Daniel replied, 'There are no wise men, enchanters, magicians, or fortune-tellers who can reveal the king’s secret.

KJV: 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;

NKJV: Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, “The secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king.

This phrasing is an interesting and risky choice for Daniel. King Nebuchadnezzar had ordered the slaughter of all his wise men because his court magicians admitted they could not conjure up the king's own dream (Daniel 2:8–12). Daniel is only before the king, now, because he claimed he could provide an answer to Nebuchadnezzar's challenge (Daniel 2:16). And yet, the first thing Daniel says echoes the sorcerers' excuse: that no man could know what the king demanded. This may also have been a subtle way of questioning the king's enraged response when the Babylonian sorcerers failed to meet his challenge.

However, Daniel will continue to make an important point. Referring to the various occultists of the kingdom (Daniel 1:20; 2:2), he suggests that human wisdom or spirituality grounded in false gods is useless. Much as the plagues of Egypt proved that false Egyptian deities were powerless (Exodus 3:19–20; Exodus 7:5; Numbers 33:4), Daniel's ability to uncover the king's dream shows the Babylonian idols were impotent. This power, of course, is credited to God and not to Daniel as a human being (Daniel 2:28).

This scene resembles Pharaoh's meeting with Joseph, many centuries before Daniel (Genesis 41). Like Nebuchadnezzar, the Pharoah was bothered by a dream he did not understand, and which none of his advisors could untangle. Joseph stood before Pharaoh and said, "It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer" (Genesis 41:16), before demonstrating God's power by giving the dream's exact prophetic meaning.

Daniel 2:24–30 records Daniel's initial statement to King Nebuchadnezzar regarding the king's disturbing dream (Daniel 2:1–3). God revealed the truth to Daniel in a vision (Daniel 2:17–19), and Daniel will credit God alone with the knowledge he is about to share. Humbly, Daniel agrees that what the king had demanded was impossible for any person (Daniel 2:10–11), but that nothing can be kept secret from the true God in heaven.

King Nebuchadnezzar tests his magicians, demanding they tell him what he has dreamed, rather than merely inventing an interpretation. When they fail, he prepares to execute the entire department of wise men. Daniel promises he can meet the king's request and is given a special vision from God. The king dreamed of a massive statue shattered into powder by a supernatural rock. Daniel accurately describes this and interprets it as a prophecy about kingdoms which would come after Babylon. The king appoints Daniel and his friends to positions of power and influence over Babylon.

Chapter 1 introduced King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, Daniel—a captive youth from Jerusalem—and three other Jewish boys. After three years of education, the four Hebrew captives outperformed all the other trainees, even surpassing the wise men in Babylon. In chapter 2, Daniel describes and interprets Nebuchadnezzar's disturbing dream, though the court magicians could not. As a result, the king promotes Daniel and his three friends to high positions over the provinces of Babylon. This sets the stage for a severe test of faith in chapter 3.

The book of Daniel contains famous Old Testament stories and prophecies. Daniel was taken from the Israelite people and made an advisor for a conquering empire. He demonstrates faithfulness and wisdom during many years serving in this role. Though Daniel does not deliver a public message, Jesus refers to him as a "prophet" (Matthew 24:15). The first portion of the book mostly describes Daniel's interpretations of dreams and other events. The second portion looks ahead to the end times. Daniel is classified in English Bibles as a "major" prophet, meaning the book is relatively long and the content has broad implications. The book of Revelation echoes and expands on many of the same themes.