DAN 1:10 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) but he queried, “I’m afraid of my master the king, who’s assigned your food and drink—if he saw you guys looking worse than the others of your own age then I’d risk losing my head if the king got angry.”

Key: khaki:verbs.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT The chief of the officials said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned your food and your drink; for why should he see your faces looking worse than the youths who are of your own age? Then you would endanger my head with the king.”

UST but he was worried about what I suggested. He said, “My master, the king, has commanded that you eat the kinds of food and drink that he does. If you eat other things and as a result you become more thin and pale than the other young men who are your age, he will order his soldiers to cut off my head because of what you have done!”

OEB No OEB DAN book available

WEBBE The prince of the eunuchs said to Daniel, “I fear my lord the king, who has appointed your food and your drink. For why should he see your faces worse looking than the youths who are of your own age? Then you would endanger my head with the king.”

WMBB (Same as above)

MSG ^(8-10)But Daniel determined that he would not defile himself by eating the king’s food or drinking his wine, so he asked the head of the palace staff to exempt him from the royal diet. The head of the palace staff, by God’s grace, liked Daniel, but he warned him, “I’m afraid of what my master the king will do. He is the one who assigned this diet and if he sees that you are not as healthy as the rest, he’ll have my head!”

NET But he responded to Daniel, “I fear my master the king. He is the one who has decided your food and drink. What would happen if he saw that you looked malnourished in comparison to the other young men your age? If that happened, you would endanger my life with the king!”

LSV and the chief of the eunuchs says to Daniel, “I am fearing my lord the king, who has appointed your food and your drink, for why does he see your faces sadder than [those of] the boys which [are] of your circle? Then you have made my head indebted to the king,”

FBV But the chief eunuch told Daniel, “I'm afraid of what my lord the king would do to me. He's the one who decided what you should eat and drink. What if he were to see you looking pale and sickly compared to the other young men of your age. Because of you the king would have my head!”

T4T but he was worried about what I suggested. He said, “My master, the king, has commanded that you eat the kinds of food and drink that he does. If you eat other things and as a result you become more thin and pale than the other young men who are your age, he will order his soldiers to cut off my head because of what you have done!”

LEB and the commander of the court officials said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord, the king, who has determined your food and your drink, for _⌊why should_⌋[fn] he see your face having a worse appearance than the young men who _⌊are your age_⌋?[fn] Then you will endanger my head with the king.”

1:10 Literally “to what would”

1:10 Literally “like your age”; “your” is plural

BBE And the captain of the unsexed servants said to Daniel, I am in fear of my lord the king, who has given orders about your food and your drink; what if he sees you looking less happy than the other young men of your generation? then you would have put my head in danger from the king.

Moff So the governor of the eunuchs said to Daniel, “My lord the king has ordered your meat and drink, and I am afraid of his noticing that you are in poorer condition than the youths who are of your own age. You would make me risk my life with the king.”

JPS And the chief of the officers said unto Daniel: 'I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your food and your drink; for why should he see your faces sad in comparison with the youths that are of your own age? so would ye endanger my head with the king.'

ASV And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your food and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse looking than the youths that are of your own age? so would ye endanger my head with the king.

DRA And the prince of the eunuchs said to Daniel: I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed you meat and drink: who if he should see your faces leaner than those of the other youths your equals, you shall endanger my head to the king.

YLT and the chief of the eunuchs saith to Daniel, 'I am fearing my lord the king, who hath appointed your food and your drink, for why doth he see your faces sadder than [those of] the lads which [are] of your circle? then ye have made my head indebted to the king,'

Drby And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king who hath appointed your food and your drink; for why should he see your faces worse liking than the youths who are of your age? and ye would endanger my head with the king.

RV And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Darnel, I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your meat and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse liking than the youths which are of your own age? so should ye endanger my head with the king.
(And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Darnel, I fear my lord the king, who hath/has appointed your meat and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse liking than the youths which are of your own age? so should ye/you_all endanger my head with the king. )

SLT And the chief of the eunuchs will say to Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who allotted your food and your drink: for wherefore shall he see your faces gloomy above the children as of your age? and make my head guilty to the King.

Wbstr And the prince of the eunuchs said to Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your provision and your drink: for why should he see your faces more meager than the children who are of your sort? then will ye make me endanger my head to the king.

KJB-1769 And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your meat and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse liking than the children which are of your sort? then shall ye make me endanger my head to the king.[fn][fn]
(And the prince of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath/has appointed your meat and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse liking than the children which are of your sort? then shall ye/you_all make me endanger my head to the king. )

1.10 worse…: Heb. sadder

1.10 sort: or, term, or, continuance?

KJB-1611 And the Prince of the Eunuches said vnto Daniel, I feare my lord the king, who hath appointed your meat, and your drinke: for why should he see your faces [fn]worse liking then the children which are of your [fn]sort? then shall yee make mee indanger my head to the King.
(And the Prince of the Eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath/has appointed your meat, and your drinke: for why should he see your faces worse liking then the children which are of your sort? then shall ye/you_all make me endanger my head to the King.)

1:10 Hebr. sadder.

1:10 Or, terme, or continuance.

Bshps And the chiefe chamberlayne sayde vnto Daniel, I am afrayde of my lord the king whiche hath appoynted you your meate and your drinke: wherfore should he see your faces worse liking then the springalds of your age, & so ye shal make me indaunger my head vnto the king.
(And the chief chamberlayne said unto Daniel, I am afraid of my lord the king which hath/has appointed you your meat and your drinke: wherefore should he see your faces worse liking then the springalds of your age, and so ye/you_all shall make me endanger my head unto the king.)

Gnva And the chiefe of the Eunuches sayd vnto Daniel, I feare my lord the King, who hath appointed your meate and your drinke: therefore if he see your faces worse liking then the other children, which are of your sort, then shall you make me lose mine head vnto the King.
(And the chief of the Eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the King, who hath/has appointed your meat and your drinke: therefore if he see your faces worse liking then the other children, which are of your sort, then shall you make me lose mine head unto the King. )

Cvdl that he sayde vnto him: I am afrayed off my lorde the kynge, which hath appoynted you youre meate and drynke: lest he spye youre faces to be worse lykynge then the other spryngaldes of youre age, ad so ye shal make me loose my heade vnto ye kynge.
(that he said unto him: I am afraid off my lord the king, which hath/has appointed you your(pl) meat and drink: lest he spye your(pl) faces to be worse looking then the other springaldes of your(pl) age, and so ye/you_all shall make me loose my head unto ye/you_all king.)

Wycl And the prince of onest seruauntis and chast seide to Daniel, Y drede my lord the king, that ordeinede to you mete and drynk; and if he seeth youre faces lennere than othere yonge wexynge men, youre eueneeldis, ye schulen condempne myn heed to the kyng.
(And the prince of onest servants and chast said to Daniel, I dread my lord the king, that ordained to you meet and drynk; and if he seeth/sees your(pl) faces lennere than other young wexing men, your(pl) eueneeldis, ye/you_all should condemn mine heed to the king.)

Luth Derselbe sprach zu ihm: Ich fürchte mich vor meinem Herrn, dem Könige, der euch eure Speise und Trank verschaffet hat; wo er würde sehen, daß eure Angesichte jämmerlicher wären denn der andern Knaben eures Alters, so brächtet ihr mich bei dem Könige um mein Leben.
(Derselbe spoke to/for him: I fear(v) me before/in_front_of my Lord, to_him king(s), the/of_the you your(pl) food and Trank verschaffet has; where he would see, that your(pl) faces miserable/pitifuler would_be because/than the/of_the change boys/lads yours(pl) age(n)s, so would_bringt you(pl)/their/her me at/in to_him king(s) around/by/for my life.)

ClVg Et ait princeps eunuchorum ad Danielem: Timeo ego dominum meum regem, qui constituit vobis cibum et potum: qui si viderit vultus vestros macilentiores præ ceteris adolescentibus coævis vestris, condemnabitis caput meum regi.
(And he_said prince eunuchorum to Danielem: Timeo I master mine the_king, who/which established to_you(pl) food and drink: who/which when/but_if see face yours macilentiores before to_others adolescentibus coævis yours, condemnabitis the_head mine to_rule. )

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 1:1–21: Daniel and his friends began to serve King Nebuchadnezzar

This section forms the introduction to the first division and to the book of Daniel as a whole. It tells how some Hebrew boys came to live in Babylon and serve the Babylonian king.

God allowed the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, to defeat the king of Judah. King Nebuchadnezzar ordered his chief official to choose some boys from Judah and to train them to work in the government of Babylon. Daniel and his three friends were among these boys. They excelled in their studies and the king was pleased with the wise advice they gave.

The phrase “the Lord delivered” (“Adonay gave” in Hebrew) occurs in 1:2, the phrase “God had granted” (“Elohim had given” in Hebrew) occurs in 1:9, and the phrase “God gave” (“Elohim gave” in Hebrew) occurs in 1:17. (1:2a, 1:9, 1:17a). The author used these phrases to emphasize that the Lord is sovereign over the events of history and the lives of his people. God has authority over what happens to Gentile nations and also what happens to his people. This is the theme of this chapter.

Paragraph 1:8–10

Daniel decided not to eat the royal food. He did not want to become ritually impure or unclean.

1:10a

but he said to Daniel, “I fear my lord the king,

But the chief/man said to Daniel, “I am afraid to disobey my master the king.
However, he said to Daniel, “The king is my master. I am afraid that he would punish me.

but: There are two ways to understand the Hebrew conjunction that the BSB translates as but:

It introduces contrast. For example:
however (GNT) (BSB, NIV, NJB, NET, GNT, NLT, CEV, NCV)
In introduces continuation. For example:
and (ESV) (KJV, NASB, RSV, ESV, REB)

The NRSV and GW leave this conjunction untranslated.

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). Although Ashpenaz was sympathetic toward Daniel, he was still afraid of disobeying the king. Other ways to translate this connection include:

Nevertheless…

In spite of this…

Express the contrast in a natural way in your language.

he: Here, the pronoun he refers to Ashpenaz, the chief of the kings court officials mentioned in 1:3 and 1:7. See the note on 1:3a.

I fear my lord the king: These words introduce Ashpenaz’s fear. Ashpenaz’s fear was that the king would kill him if he disobeyed his orders. The situation that Ashpenaz feared never actually happened. Languages have different ways to express fears like this. Use a natural way in your language. It may be necessary to make explicit that Ashpenaz was afraid of the king’s reaction to his request. For example:

I am afraid what my lord the king will do

I am afraid that my lord the king will be angry if I ask that

I am afraid he will kill me (CEV)

See also the General Comment on 1:10, which discusses reordering the verse, as the CEV has done.

my lord the king: Ashpenaz used two titles to refer to the king. In this way, he emphasized the authority that the king had over him. In some languages it may not be natural to use both of these titles here. If that is true in your language, there are at least two possibilities for translation:

Use only the title king. For example:
The king (GNT)
Use a descriptive phrase to translate my lord. For example:
the king, who has authority over me

1:10b

who has assigned your food and drink.

He has decided what you^(plur) should eat and drink
He is the one who determined what food you^(plur) young men are to eat and what you are to drink.

who has assigned your food and drink: Nebuchadnezzar had given orders concerning what Daniel and the other young Jewish men were to eat and drink. The chief official had not made the decision himself.

In some languages it may be more natural to make this clause a complete sentence or an independent clause. For example:

The king has decided what you are to eat and drink (GNT)

the king determined what you should eat and drink (GW)

your food and drink: The expression your food and drink means “the food you should eat and the drink you should drink.”

your: This reference is plural. It refers to Daniel and all the other young men in the group who were chosen to serve the king.

General Comment on 1:10b–c

In some languages it may be natural to reorder this, giving the background information first. For example:

^10b-cMy lord the king has ordered your food and drink, and I am afraid that…

1:10c

For why should he see your faces looking thinner than those of the other young men your age?

If I allow you^(plur) to eat other food, the king will see that you^(plur) are not as healthy as the other young men of your^(plur) age.
What will happen if I do not obey him, and then you^(plur) do not thrive/grow as well as the other youths? If/When the king sees that,

For why should he see your faces looking thinner than those of the other young men your age?: This is a rhetorical question. It functions as a strong statement that it would not be good for the king to see Daniel and his friends looking unhealthy. Ashpenaz was implying that the king’s food was nutritious and good for the young men. If Daniel and his companions did not eat it, they would not thrive. They would not look as healthy as the other young men who were training to become court officials. This would make the king angry.

There are several ways to translate this verse part:

As a rhetorical question. For example:
What is the good/benefit of letting him see you looking worse than the other young men?
For what will happen if he sees you looking less healthy than the other young men?
Translate it as a statement of possibility or a conditional clause:
He may see that you do not look as healthy as the other young men.
If he sees that you look worse than the other young men your age (GW)
If you become pale and thin compared to the other youths your age (NLT)
Translate it as a statement of result. For example:
If you do not eat the king’s food, he will see that you look worse than the other young men.
Translate it as a statement of fear that is connected to 1:10a.
I am afraid that he will see that you look worse than the other young men.See the French Common Language translation 1997.

Express this in a way that is natural in your language. It may be natural to include the implied information as to why it would be bad for the king to see Daniel and his friends in an unhealthy state. It would make the king angry. For example:

If the king sees that you look worse than the other young men, he will become angry.

If you do not eat the king’s food , you will get haggard/unhealthy. The king will see it and will be angry.

looking thinner than those of the other young men your age: This is a comparison. It compares Daniel and his three friends to the other Jewish youths Ashpenaz had chosen. Ashpenaz did not want Nebuchadnezzar to see Daniel and his friends appearing less healthy than the other Jewish youths. Consider how to indicate such a comparison in your language. For example:

less strong and healthy than the other youths

the other young men look healthy but you look unhealthy

not strong like the other young men

In your translation, be careful to avoid suggesting that the other young men looked a little unhealthy and Daniel and his friends more so. The other young men were not going to appear unhealthy at all. Ashpenaz assumed they would become strong and healthy on the king’s diet.

your faces looking thinner: The Hebrew phrase that the BSB translates as your faces looking thinner is more literally “your faces looking gaunt/haggard.” See also Genesis 40:6, where the same word meaning “gaunt/haggard” is used. Other ways to translate this include:

pale and thin (NLT)

looking miserable (REB)

looking weak

your: This pronoun is plural. It refers to Daniel and his three companions. Daniel’s friends had also decided not to eat the king’s special food and wine.

those of the other young men your age: The phrase probably refers to the other captives who were in the same general age group as Daniel. These young men would have eaten the king’s diet and grown strong and healthy. Some translations omit the phrase your age since it is implied in the phrase other young men. For example:

the other young men (GNT)

1:10d

You would endanger my head before the king!”

Then he will command his servants to cut my head off.”
he will be angry about it and have me killed/executed.”

This verse part connects to the previous verse part with a conjunction. Many versions translate it as “then.” The RSV translates as “So.” Here it introduces the result of the king seeing Daniel and his friends looking unhealthy. The BSB does not translate this conjunction explicitly. You should introduce this verse part in a way that is natural in your language.

You would endanger my head before the king!: The Hebrew is more literally “you (plural) would make guilty my head with the king.” This is an idiom that probably refers to execution. Ashpenaz was afraid that the king would blame him for the poor appearance of his servants. He knew that the king might have him put to death for failing to take good care of the young men.

We do not know what method of execution the king would have used. The king might have ordered Ashpenaz’s head cut off, but not necessarily. It is good to translate this in a general way referring to any kind of execution.

Other ways to translate this include:

my head will be in danger with the king (NJB)

you would endanger my life with the king (NET)

he may kill me (GNT)

he will hold me responsible and I will pay with my life because of youLa Bible du Semeur.

General Comment on 1:10

In Hebrew, this verse is a long, complex sentence. The main point is that Ashpenaz was afraid to agree to Daniel’s request. In some languages it may be more natural to separate the information into shorter sentences. It may also be more natural to change the order of some of the information. For example:

^10aBut the man still told him, ^10c“The king has decided what you must eat and drink. ^10bAnd I am afraid ^10ehe will kill me, ^10dif you eat something else and end up looking worse than the other young men.” (CEV)

Parallel DAN 1:10