DAN 1:5 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) and king assigned a daily portion of food and wine for them from his own table. They would be trained for three years before entering the king’s service.

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 king assigned them a daily portion of the choice food of the king and of the wine that he drank. They were to be trained for three years, and at the end of which they were to stand before the king.

UST The king commanded his servants, “Give them the same kind of food and wine that is given to me. Train them for three years. Then they will become my servants.”

OEB No OEB DAN book available

WEBBE The king appointed for them a daily portion of the king’s delicacies and of the wine which he drank, and that they should be nourished three years, that at its end they should stand before the king.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET So the king assigned them a daily ration from his royal delicacies and from the wine he himself drank. They were to be trained for the next three years. At the end of that time they were to enter the king’s service.

LSV And the king appoints for them a rate, day by day, of the king’s portion of food, and of the wine of his drinking, so as to nourish them three years, that at the end thereof they may stand before the king.

FBV The king also provided them with a daily allowance of the same kind of rich food and wine he was served. At the end of their three years of education they would enter the king's service.[fn]

1:5 “Enter the king's service”: literally, “they would stand before the king.” This is taken to mean entering service (see Deuteronomy 10:8).

T4T The king commanded his servants, “Give them the same kind of food and wine that is given to me. Train them for three years. Then they will become my servants.”

LEB And the king assigned to them _⌊his daily portion_⌋[fn] from the fine food of the king, and from _⌊the wine that he drank_⌋,[fn] and instructed that _⌊they were to be educated for three years_⌋.[fn] And at the end of their training, _⌊they were to be stationed_⌋[fn] _⌊before_⌋[fn] the king.

1:5 Literally “the portion of the day on its day”

1:5 Literally “the wine of his drink”

1:5 Literally “and to be educated them years three”

1:5 Literally “they would stand”

1:5 Literally “to the face of”

BBE And a regular amount of food and wine every day from the king's table was ordered for them by the king; and they were to be cared for for three years so that at the end of that time they might take their places before the king.

Moff The king assigned them a daily share of the delicacies he ate and of the wine he drank. For three years they were to be trained, and at the end of that period they were to attend upon the king.

JPS And the king appointed for them a daily portion of the king's food, and of the wine which he drank, and that they should be nourished three years; that at the end thereof they might stand before the king.

ASV And the king appointed for them a daily portion of the king’s dainties, and of the wine which he drank, and that they should be nourished three years; that at the end thereof they should stand before the king.

DRA And the king appointed them a daily provision, of his own meat, and of the wine of which he drank himself, that being nourished three years, afterwards they might stand before the king.

YLT And the king doth appoint for them a rate, day by day, of the king's portion of food, and of the wine of his drinking, so as to nourish them three years, that at the end thereof they may stand before the king.

Drby And the king appointed unto them a daily provision of the king's delicate food, and of the wine that he drank, to nourish them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king.

RV And the king appointed for them a daily portion of the king’s meat, and of the wine which he drank, and that they should be nourished three years; that at the end thereof they might stand before the king.

SLT And the king will allot to them the word of a day in its day from the king’s dainties and from the wine of his drinking: and to nourish them three years, and from the end of three years they shall stand before the king.

Wbstr And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king's food, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end of them they might stand before the king.

KJB-1769 And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king’s meat, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king.[fn]

1.5 the wine…: Heb. the wine of his drink

KJB-1611 And the King appointed them a daily prouision of the kings meat, and of [fn]the wine which he dranke: so nourishing them three yeeres, that at the ende thereof they might stand before the king.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation and footnotes)

1:5 Hebr. the wine of his drinke.

Bshps Unto these the king appoynted a dayly prouision euery day, of a portion of the kinges meate, and of the wine which he dranke, so to norishe them three yeres, that afterwarde they might stande before the king.
(Unto these the king appointed a daily provision every day, of a portion of the kings meat, and of the wine which he drank, so to nourishe them three years, that afterward they might stand before the king.)

Gnva And the King appointed them prouision euery day of a portion of the Kings meate, and and of the wine, which he dranke, so nourishing them three yeere, that at the ende thereof, they might stande before the King.
(And the King appointed them provision every day of a portion of the Kings meat, and and of the wine, which he drank, so nourishing them three year, that at the end thereof, they might stand before the King. )

Cvdl Vnto these the kinge appoynted a certayne porcion of his owne meate and of the wine, which he drancke himselff, so to norish the thre yeare: that afterwarde they might stonde before the kynge.
(Unto these the king appointed a certain portion of his own meat and of the wine, which he drancke himselff, so to nourish the three year: that afterward they might stand before the king.)

Wycl And the king ordeynede to hem lijflode bi ech dai of hise meetis, and of the wyn wherof he drank; that thei nurschid bi thre yeer, schulden stonde aftirward bifor the siyt of the kyng.
(And the king ordained to hem lifelode by each day of his meats, and of the wine whereof he drank; that they nurtured by three year, should stand afterward before the sight of the king.)

Luth Solchen verschaffte der König, was man ihnen täglich geben sollte von seiner Speise und von dem Wein, den er selbst trank, daß sie, also drei Jahre auferzogen, danach vor dem Könige dienen sollten.
(Suchn verschaffte the/of_the king, what/which man to_them daily give should from his food and from to_him wine, the he himself/itself drank, that they/she/them, also three years raised, after/thereafter/then before/in_front_of to_him king(s) serve/be_of_service should.)

ClVg Et constituit eis rex annonam per singulos dies de cibis suis, et de vino unde bibebat ipse, ut enutriti tribus annis, postea starent in conspectu regis.
(And established to_them king in_the_yearnam through each_one days from/about foods to_his_own, and from/about wine from_where/who bibebat exactly_that/himself, as enutriti tribe of_the_years, afterwards to_standnt in/into/on in_sight king. )

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 1:3–5

King Nebuchadnezzar decided to train some of the Israelite captives to serve him in his royal court.

1:5a

The king assigned them daily provisions of the royal food and wine.

The king also commanded his servants to give the young men each day the same kind of special food and wine that he himself ate and drank.
The king also arranged for the young men to receive good food and wine from the royal table/kitchens every day.
Every day give^(sing) them the same food and wine that I receive.

The king assigned them daily provisions of the royal food and wine: King Nebuchadnezzar arranged for the young men to receive the same food and drink as he and his court received. The palace servants prepared food and drink for the use of the king’s family and courtiers. The king ordered them to give this same food and drink to the Hebrew captives. Other ways to translate this include:

The king assigned them a daily ration of food and wine from his own kitchens (NLT)

The king also gave orders that every day they were to be given the same food and wine as the members of the royal court (GNT)

The king: This refers to King Nebuchadnezzar.

assigned: The Hebrew verb that the BSB translates as assigned indicates that the king ordered his servants to give the food to the Hebrew youths. See the General Comment on 1:4–5 for a suggestion as to how to translate this order using direct speech.

them: The pronoun them refers to the young men that Ashpenaz had chosen in 1:3–4.

daily provisions: The young men were to receive royal food and wine each day. The Hebrew text does not emphasize the amount or quantity. It was not necessarily rationed or limited. Here is another way to translate this:

every day (GNT)

the royal food and wine: This refers to food and wine of the same type that the king ate and drank. It does not refer to food that the king left on his plate for them. Other ways to translate this include:

they were to be given the same food and wine as the members of the royal court (GNT)

from his royal delicacies and from the wine that he himself drank (NET)

This food and wine was probably more expensive and delicious than the food that other people ate. Try to use an expression that refers to such food. For example:

special food and wine from the royal table/kitchens

food: The word that the BSB translates as food is an unusual Persian loan-word that here refers to high-quality food such as wealthy people might eat. Another way to translate this is:

delicacies (NET)

wine: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as wine refers to an alcoholic drink that people make from a fruit called “grapes.” People usually drank wine on special occasions, especially when there was a celebration or feast.

In some areas, there is no wine that is made from grapes. In that case, there are several options for translation:

Use a general term for “fermented drink.” To distinguish wine from beer, “fermented (fruit) juice” is a possibility.

Avoid a word that would contradict the qualities of real wine. For example, do not use a word referring to a drink made from a different fruit or a drink made from grain.

Use a word for imported bottled wine. If there is no local word for this, you may use the word from the national or trade language.
Use a descriptive phrase, for example: “drink/juice made from the fruit called grapes.”

Use the option that is most appropriate for your language in this context.

1:5b

They were to be trained for three years,

The king told Ashpenaz to train the young men for three years.
The young men were to continue their training for three years.
Educate/Train^(sing) them in this way for three years,

They were to be trained for three years: The king wanted the young men from Judea to receive teaching for three years. He ordered Ashpenaz to arrange for this education.

They were to be trained is a passive verb. It may be more natural in your language to use an active verb and supply the subject. The subject might be Ashpenaz himself or, more likely, teachers he chose. Ashpenaz or these other teachers were to educate the young men for a period of three years. The goal was that after three years the young men would be competent enough to become the king’s officials and serve him in his court. There are at least two ways to translate this:

Using a passive verb. For example:
They were to be educated for three years. (ESV)
Using an active verb. For example:
They were to receive an education lasting for three years. (NJB)
Teachers were to teach them for three years.

1:5c

after which they were to enter the king’s service.

At the end of that time, they would be ready to serve the king.
After that, they would be ready to serve the king as his special advisors.
and then they can begin to serve me in my court.”

after which: The Hebrew expression that the BSB translates as after which here refers to the completion of the three years of training. Other ways to translate this include:

and then (CEV)

At the end of that time (NET)

they were to enter the king’s service: This is literally “they were to stand before the king,” as in the RSV. This is an idiom. See the note on “serve in the king’s palace” in 1:4c. The idiom has at least two possible meanings in this context:

It means “they were to become court officials.” These men would advise the king when he had important decisions to make. Here is another way to translate this:
advisors in the royal court (NLT) (BSB, NASB, GW, REB, NCV, NJB, NJPS, NIV, CEV, NLT, NET, NRSV)
It means “they were to present themselves to the king,” that is, to be tested. For example:
to appear before the king (GNT) (GNT)

The ESV, RSV, and KJV translate the idiom literally. It is recommended that you follow option (1), as do most English versions.

General Comment on 1:5b–c

In some languages it may be natural to combine 1:5b–c into one clause with one main verb. For example:

After three years of this training they were to enter the king’s service.

General Comment on 1:4–5

In some languages it may be natural to translate the king’s commands as a direct quotation. For example:

^4aThe king said, “They must be healthy, handsome, ^4bsmart, wise, educated, ^4cand fit to serve in the royal palace. ^4dTeach them how to speak and write our language, ^5aand give them the same food and wine that I am served. ^5bTrain them for three years, ^5cand then they can become court officials.” (CEV)

Parallel DAN 1:5