DAN 2:44 Parallel Verse View

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Key: khaki:verbs.
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ULT In the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will the kingdom be left to another people. It will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it will stand forever.

UST But while those kings are ruling, God who rules in heaven will establish a kingdom that will never end. No one will ever defeat its king. He will completely destroy all those kingdoms, but his kingdom will remain forever.

OEB No OEB DAN book available

WEBBE “In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, nor will its sovereignty be left to another people; but it will break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it will stand forever.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET In the days of those kings the God of heaven will raise up an everlasting kingdom that will not be destroyed and a kingdom that will not be left to another people. It will break in pieces and bring about the demise of all these kingdoms. But it will stand forever.

LSV And in the days of these kings the God of the heavens raises up a kingdom that is not destroyed for all time, and its kingdom is not left to another people: it beats small and ends all these kingdoms, and it stands for all time.

FBV During the time of these kings[fn] the God of heaven will set up an eternal kingdom that will never be destroyed or taken over by others. It will crush all these kingdoms, bringing them to an end, and it will last forever,

2:44 Referring to the kings of the time of iron and clay.

T4T But while those kings are ruling, God who rules in heaven will establish a kingdom that will never end. No one will ever defeat its king. He will completely destroy all those kingdoms, but his kingdom will remain forever.

LEB And _⌊in the day of those kings_⌋,[fn] the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will _⌊never_⌋[fn] be destroyed, and the kingdom will not be left for another nation,[fn] and it will bring an end to all these kingdoms, but it will stand _⌊forever_⌋.[fn]

2:44 Literally “in their days of those kings”

2:44 Literally “to forever not”

2:44 Or “people”

2:44 Literally “to eternity”

BBE And in the days of those kings, the God of heaven will put up a kingdom which will never come to destruction, and its power will never be given into the hands of another people, and all these kingdoms will be broken and overcome by it, but it will keep its place for ever.

Moff and in the days of these kings the God of heaven shall set up a kingdom never to be swept away, with a sovereignty that shall never pass to others; it shall break all these kingdoms to bits and make an end of them, but it shall stand for ever,

JPS And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed; nor shall the kingdom be left to another people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, but it shall stand for ever.

ASV And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall the sovereignty thereof be left to another people; but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

DRA But in the days of those kingdoms the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, and his kingdom shall not be delivered up to another people, and it shall break in pieces, and shall consume all these kingdoms, and itself shall stand for ever.

YLT 'And in the days of these kings raise up doth the God of the heavens a kingdom that is not destroyed — to the age, and its kingdom to another people is not left: it beateth small and endeth all these kingdoms, and it standeth to the age.

Drby And in the days of these kings shall the [fn]God of the heavens set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the sovereignty thereof shall not be left to another people: it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, but itself shall stand for ever.

2.44 Elohim

RV And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed, nor shall the sovereignty thereof be left to another people; but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
(And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed, nor shall the sovereignty thereof be left to another people; but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. )

SLT And in their days that they are kings, the God of the heavens shall set up a kingdom that shall not be destroyed forever: and its kingdom shall be left to another people; it shall beat small and destroy all these kingdoms, and this shall stand forever.

Wbstr And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

KJB-1769 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.[fn][fn]
(And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. )

2.44 the days: Chaldee, their days

2.44 the kingdom: Chaldee, the kingdom thereof

KJB-1611 [fn][fn]And in the daies of these Kings shall the God of heauen set vp a kingdome, which shall neuer be destroyed: and the Kingdome shall not be left to other people, but it shall breake in pieces, and consume all these kingdomes, and it shall stand for euer.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation and footnotes)

2:44 Cald. their dayes.

2:44 Cald. kingdome thereof.

Bshps And in the dayes of these kinges, shall the God of heauen set vp a kingdome, which shall neuer be destroyed, and this kingdome shall not be geuen ouer to another people: but it shall breake and destroy al these kingdomes, and it shal stand for euer.
(And in the days of these kings, shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed, and this kingdom shall not be given over to another people: but it shall break and destroy all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.)

Gnva And in the dayes of these Kings, shall the God of heauen set vp a kingdome, which shall neuer be destroyed: and this kingdome shall not be giuen to another people, but it shall breake, and destroy al these kingdomes, and it shall stand for euer.
(And in the days of these Kings, shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and this kingdom shall not be given to another people, but it shall break, and destroy all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. )

Cvdl In the dayes off these kynges, shall the God of heauen set vp an euerlastinge kyngdome which shall not perish, and his kyngdome shall not be geuen ouer to another people: Yee the same shall breake and destroye all these kyngdomes, but it shall endure for euer.
(In the days off these kings, shall the God of heaven set up an everlasting kingdom which shall not perish, and his kingdom shall not be given over to another people: Ye/You_all the same shall break and destroy all these kingdoms, but it shall endure forever.)

Wycl Forsothe in the daies of tho rewmes, God of heuene shal reise a rewme, that schal not be distried with outen ende, and his rewme schal not be youun to another puple; it schal make lesse, and schal waste alle these rewmes, and it schal stonde with outen ende,
(For_certain/Truly in the days of those realms, God of heaven shall raise a realm, that shall not be destroyed without end, and his realm shall not be given to another people; it shall make less, and shall waste all these realms, and it shall stand without end,)

Luth Aber zur Zeit solcher Königreiche wird GOtt vom Himmel ein Königreich aufrichten, das nimmermehr zerstöret wird; und sein Königreich wird auf kein ander Volk kommen. Es wird alle diese Königreiche zermalmen und verstören, aber es wird ewiglich bleiben.
(But to/for time/period such kingdoms becomes God from_the heaven a kingdom erect/straighten, the nevermore destroyed becomes; and be kingdom becomes on/in/to no/not at_the people coming. It becomes all this/these kingdoms crush and disturb, but it becomes forever remain/stay.)

ClVg In diebus autem regnorum illorum suscitabit Deus cæli regnum, quod in æternum non dissipabitur, et regnum ejus alteri populo non tradetur: comminuet autem, et consumet universa regna hæc, et ipsum stabit in æternum.
(In days however kingdomrum of_them will_raise God heavens kingdom, that in/into/on eternal not/no dissipabitur, and kingdom his to_another to_the_people not/no will_be_handed_over: comminuet however, and will_consume universe kingdoms these_things, and him will_stand in/into/on eternal. )

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 2:1–49: Daniel explained the king’s dream

These Notes interpret Daniel 2:1–49 as a complete narrative unit. However, in some languages it may be helpful to divide this chapter into more than one section and to give each section a separate heading. For example:

The BSB has four sections.
1. Nebuchadnezzar’s Troubling Dream (2:1–13)
2. The Dream Revealed to Daniel (2:14–23)
3. Daniel Interprets the Dream (2:24–45)
4. Nebuchadnezzar Promotes Daniel (2:46–49)
The GNT has three sections:

(a) Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (2:1–13)

(b) God shows Daniel what the dream means (2:14–23)

This section tells how Nebuchadnezzar had a disturbing dream. He asked his advisers to tell him what he had dreamed and its meaning. They were unable to do so, and the king threatened them with death. But God revealed the meaning of the dream to Daniel. Daniel then told the king what he had dreamed and what it meant. The king honored Daniel and Daniel’s God.

The climax of this narrative occurs in 2:47. There the king declared that the God whom Daniel worshiped was the greatest of all gods.

Special Translation Problems:

1. Lists: The author of the book of Daniel liked to use lists (2:2, 10). However, the author did not intend for these lists to be complete or exact. The lists usually provide examples of the types of people or things that belong in a certain group or category. The Notes will suggest options on how to translate these lists.

2. Synonyms: The text often uses different terms for similar ideas. For example, there are several verbs that mean “to reveal” or “to make known.” There are three different Aramaic verbs in 2:40 that mean “crush, break to pieces.” In some languages it may be difficult or confusing to use several different words for similar ideas. The Notes will suggest how you might translate these similar words and terms.

3. Poetry: You will need to think carefully about how you will translate the poetic section in this chapter (2:20–23). Authors of Hebrew poetry usually wrote using matching pairs of lines. The relationship between these parallel lines differs. Sometimes the second line repeats the information in the first line using different words. Sometimes the second line contrasts with the first line. Hebrew poetry also has word plays, figurative speech, and alliteration. It may not always be easy to translate these literary features into your language. The Notes will suggest ways of translating the different features of Hebrew poetry. For more information about how to translate Hebrew poetry, see the Bible Translation Handbook of the Psalms. The poetry in 2:20–23 is a song of praise or thanksgiving. If your language has a special poetic form that fits this song, you can use it here.

4. Ambiguity: In the section where Daniel interpreted the last part of the king’s dream, there are a number of ambiguous references. For example, in 2:44a Daniel referred to “those kings” without identifying who those kings were. In 2:44b Daniel spoke of “all these kingdoms.” The ambiguity may be deliberate, since the dream itself is a mystery. It will be important not to over-interpret these passages by assuming a particular historical context. The Notes will suggest several options for how to translate these verses.

5. Repetition: Daniel interpreted the meaning of the first three kingdoms in a very brief way. He used many more words to describe the fourth kingdom (2:36–45). In this section he also repeated much of what was described before. In this way, Daniel emphasized the fourth kingdom as the most important. Some of the repetition in this section emphasizes specific ideas. Sometimes the repetition has another function. You will need to evaluate if this kind of repetition is natural in your language. If not, you will need to find another way to emphasize these ideas.

Paragraph 2:44–2:45

This paragraph introduces the new topic of a fifth kingdom. This kingdom will be different from all the other kingdoms. God himself will establish it, and it will last forever.

2:44a–b

the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed: Daniel said that God will establish a kingdom that no other kingdom will ever conquer. In some languages it may be natural to translate this as two sentences or two independent clauses. For example:

the God of heaven will set up another kingdom. This kingdom will never be destroyed.

2:44a

In the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom

¶ “During the time when those kings rule, the true God who rules from heaven will establish a new kingdom.
¶ “In the time of the rulers of the fourth kingdom, God, who rules from heaven, will raise up another kingdom.

In the days of those kings: The Aramaic word that the BSB translates literally as days does not refer to 24-hour days here, but to a general period of time. Another way to translate this is:

During the time when those kings ruled

The author did not say how long a period this was. It is best not to be specific.

those kings: Daniel did not say who these kings were. In this chapter he has only mentioned Nebuchadnezzar, who was the king of the first kingdom. Scholars disagree as to who these kings were. Some think that it refers to the kings who ruled during the last kingdom, the kingdom represented by the feet and toes. While this may be true, it is recommended that you translate this in a general way, without saying to which kings Daniel was referring. Here is another way to translate this:

those rulers (GNT)

the God of heaven will set up a kingdom: God will cause another kingdom to rise or become powerful. Use the expression that is natural in your language. For example:

the God of heaven will establish a kingdom

the God of heaven: See the Notes at 2:18a for the phrase God of heaven. Here is another way to translate this:

the God who rules from heaven (CEV)

2:44b

that will never be destroyed,

No one will ever be able to destroy that kingdom,
No one will ever conquer this kingdom.

that will never be destroyed: This is a passive clause. It indicates that no other king or kingdom will be able to destroy the kingdom that God has established. There are at least two ways to translate this clause:

Using a passive verb. For example:
that will not be destroyed (NET)
Using an active verb. For example:
that no army/king will ever conquer

2:44c

nor will it be left to another people.

and no other group of people will ever rule over it.
God will not allow another nation to rule over it.

nor will it be left to another people: This also is a passive clause. It indicates that no other people will be able to take over and rule that kingdom. God will not allow any other people to conquer it. There are at least two ways to translate this clause:

Using a passive verb. For example:
or given to another group of people (NCV)
a kingdom that will not be transferred to another people (NJPS)
Using an active verb. For example:
No other people will ever rule over it (NLT)
It will not pass into the hands/power of another people.

people: It is good to translate this word in a general way, referring to a group of people such as another country or nation.

2:44d

It will shatter all these kingdoms and bring them to an end,

This kingdom will crush all those other kingdoms. It will completely destroy them.
The new kingdom will smash every other kingdom. It will cause them all to end/collapse,

It will shatter all these kingdoms and bring them to an end: The new kingdom that God will establish will destroy all human kingdoms. Try to use expressions that can apply both to a rock crushing things and to an empire destroying other countries. Other ways to translate this include:

It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end (ESV)

It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end (NIV)

In some languages it may be natural to combine the two ideas of “shattering” and “bringing to an end” the other kingdoms. For example:

but will completely destroy all those empires (GNT)

it will crush all these kingdoms into nothingness (NLT)

It: This pronoun refers to the new kingdom that God will establish.

all these kingdoms: Daniel does not specifically say which kingdoms. It probably refers in a general way to all human kingdoms, including the four kingdoms represented by the four metals, and all other kingdoms in existence. In some languages it may be natural to say:

all the other kingdoms (NCV)

2:44e

but will itself stand forever.

but this/God’s kingdom will last forever.
but will itself never come to an end.

but will itself stand forever: The Aramaic verb that the BSB translates as stand means “rise.” Here it is used figuratively and indicates that the new kingdom will last forever. Other translation models include:

but it will itself endure forever. (NIV)

and then last forever (GNT)

But it will itself never come to an end.

General Comment on 2:44

In some languages it may be natural to translate 2:44a–d using several shorter sentences. For example:

^44aAt the time of those kings, the God of heaven will establish a kingdom that will never be destroyed. ^44bNo other people will be permitted to rule it. ^44cIt will smash all the other kingdoms and put an end to them. ^44dBut it will be established forever. (GW)

Parallel DAN 2:44