DAN 6:1 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=minor/spelling Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

6:1 Note: KJB: Dān.5.31

6:1 OSHB note: Marks an anomalous form.

6:1 OSHB note: We have abandoned or added a ketib/qere relative to BHS. In doing this we agree with L against BHS.

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 It pleased Darius to appoint over the kingdom 120 satraps, who would be throughout the whole kingdom.

UST King Darius decided to divide his kingdom into 120 provinces. He appointed a governor to rule each province.

BSB Now it pleased Darius to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom,

OEB No OEB DAN book available

WEBBE It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom one hundred and twenty local governors, who should be throughout the whole kingdom;

WMBB (Same as above)

MSG Daniel in the Lions’ Den (1-3) Darius reorganized his kingdom. He appointed one hundred twenty governors to administer all the parts of his realm. Over them were three vice-regents, one of whom was Daniel. The governors reported to the vice-regents, who made sure that everything was in order for the king. But Daniel, brimming with spirit and intelligence, so completely outclassed the other vice-regents and governors that the king decided to put him in charge of the whole kingdom.

NET It seemed like a good idea to Darius to appoint over the kingdom 120 satraps who would be in charge of the entire kingdom.

LSV It has been good before Darius, and he has established over the kingdom satraps—one hundred and twenty—that they may be throughout the whole kingdom,

FBV Darius decided it would be good to place the kingdom under the control of one hundred and twenty provincial governors.

T4T King Darius decided to divide his kingdom into 120 provinces. He appointed a governor to rule each province.

LEB _⌊It pleased Darius_⌋,[fn] and he set up one hundred and twenty satraps over the kingdom, that they were _⌊throughout the whole kingdom_⌋,[fn]

6:1 Literally “It was pleasant before Darius”

6:1 Literally “in all the kingdom”

BBE Darius was pleased to put over the kingdom a hundred and twenty captains, who were to be all through the kingdom;

Moff It pleased Darius to set a hundred and twenty satraps over the kingdom, who were to manage the whole of the kingdom,

JPS (6-2) It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps, who should be throughout the whole kingdom;

ASV It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps, who should be throughout the whole kingdom;

DRA It seemed good to Darius, and he appointed over the kingdom a hundred and twenty governors to be over his whole kingdom.

YLT It hath been good before Darius, and he hath established over the kingdom satraps — a hundred and twenty — that they may be throughout the whole kingdom,

Drby It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps, who should be in all the kingdom;

RV It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty satraps, which should be throughout the whole kingdom;

SLT It pleased before Darius and he set up over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps, whom to be over all the kingdom;

Wbstr It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty princes, who should be over the whole kingdom;

KJB-1769 It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom;

KJB-1611 ¶ It pleased Darius to set ouer the kingdome an hundred and twenty Princes, which should be ouer the whole kingdome.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation)

Bshps It pleased Darius to set ouer his kingdome a hundred and twentie gouernours, which should be ouer the whole kingdome.
(It pleased Darius to set over his kingdom a hundred and twenty governors, which should be over the whole kingdom.)

Gnva It pleased Darius to set ouer the kingdome an hundreth and twentie gouernours, which should be ouer the whole kingdome,
(It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundredth and twenty governors, which should be over the whole kingdom, )

Cvdl It pleased Darius to set ouer his kigdome an C and xx.lordes, which shulde be in all his kingdome aboute.
(It pleased Darius to set over his kigdome an C and 20lordes, which should be in all his kingdom about.)

Wycl It pleside Darius, and he ordeynede sixe score duykis ouer the rewme, that thei schulden be in al his rewme.
(It pleased Darius, and he ordained six score dukes over the realm, that they should be in all his realm.)

Luth Und Darius aus Medien nahm das Reich ein, da er zweiundsechzig Jahre alt war.
(And Darius out_of Medien took the kingdom in, there he twoundsechzig years old was.)

ClVg Placuit Dario, et constituit super regnum satrapas centum viginti ut essent in toto regno suo.
(Placuit Dario, and established over kingdom satrapas hundred twenty as they_would_be in/into/on throughout kingdom his_own. )

SOTN SIL Open Translation Notes:

Section 6:1–28: God delivered Daniel from the lions’ den

The new Persian king, Darius the Mede, chose Daniel to be one of the three officials who administered the kingdom. Daniel did his work so well that the other officials became jealous of him. One day they asked the king to pass a law that forbade praying to anyone but him for a period of thirty days. The king signed the law. Daniel, however, refused to obey it and continued to pray to the one true God, the God of Israel. When the king heard that Daniel had disobeyed the law, he ordered his soldiers to throw Daniel into the pit where he kept hungry lions. But God protected Daniel. The lions did not hurt him. When the king saw this, he punished Daniel’s enemies and honored Daniel and the God of Israel.

Other possible headings for this section include:

Daniel in the Pit of Lions (GNT)

Daniel and the Lions (NCV)

God protected Daniel from lions

Historical Background: The Persian empire under Cyrus the Great conquered Babylon in 539/538 BC, when Daniel was over seventy years old.Daniel was taken captive and brought to Babylon in approximately 605 B.C. If he was 12 years old when he came, he would have been 78 when this story began. The Persian empire became larger than the Babylonian empire had ever been. It extended west to include both Egypt and Libya. It extended east as far as the Indus River in what is now Pakistan. It was the largest empire in the history of the world up to that time.

Some commentators think that Darius the Mede was another name or title for the Persian King Cyrus or for the governor under him, Gubaru.

Text:

The verse numbers in the NJPS and the NJB are different from the verse numbers in the BSB. For example, 6:1 in the NJPS and the NJB is 5:31 in the BSB. The difference is because the NJPS and NJB follow the numbers in the Hebrew Bible. These Notes follow the verse numbers in the BSB.

Special Problems:

1. Lists: The author liked to include lists. In Daniel 6, he listed the different officials who conspired against Daniel (6:1–2; 7). Some languages may not have so many terms for officials. The Notes will suggest some ways to translate these lists.

2. Repetition: The author liked to repeat words and phrases in order to create suspense and emphasis. The Notes will give some suggestions on how to translate words or phrases that are repeated.

3. Verbs of Speech: The author sometimes used more than one verb of speech to introduce a quotation. In some languages, this may not be natural. The Notes will offer some options on how to translate these verbs.

4. Synonyms: The author liked to use synonyms or near synonyms to refer to the same idea. For example: 6:7–9 (ordinance, law, decree); 6:14 (rescue, delivering); 6:26 (kingdom, dominion); 6:27b (signs, wonders). The Notes will suggest different ways to translate these terms.

Paragraph 6:1–2

This paragraph explains the background to the main narrative. It tells how Darius structured the government of his kingdom.

6:1

Now it pleased Darius to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom,

¶ Darius thought it good to appoint a hundred and twenty governors to rule throughout his kingdom.
¶ Darius decided to choose men to help him govern his empire. He chose 120 officials to be in charge of the provinces.

Now: In the Aramaic text there is no connector at the beginning of this verse but in some languages it may be necessary to supply a connection to the previous chapter as the BSB has done by supplying the word Now. Other ways to connect this portion to the previous chapter are:

After Darius became king …

One day …

it pleased Darius to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom: The new ruler of Babylonia, Darius the Mede, decided to rule his large kingdom through 120 satraps. These men would have authority in each local district or area. Here are some other ways to translate this:

It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom 120 satraps. (NRSV)

Darius decided it would be good to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom. (GW)

Darius decided to appoint a hundred and twenty governors to hold office throughout his empire. (GNT)

it pleased Darius to appoint: The Aramaic word that the BSB translates as pleased means “seemed good to.” In this context, the phrase implies that Darius decided to act in this way, and then he actually did so. For example:

Darius decided it would be good to appoint (GW)

Darius decided…and he appointed (NLT)

Darius: See the Notes at 5:31. You can also translate this name as:

Darius the Mede (NLT)

King Darius

to appoint 120 satraps: The Aramaic verb that the BSB translates as appoint here indicates that Darius chose one hundred and twenty men and gave them the position and authority of rulers called satraps. Here are some other ways to translate this idea:

to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps (RSV)

to choose one hundred twenty governors (NCV)

satraps: See the Notes at 3:2a. A “satrap” was an official who ruled over a region of the Persian empire.Esther 1:1 mentions 127 provinces at the time of Xerxes (485–465 B.C.). From other ancient sources, there appeared to be between 20 to 29 satraps in the Persian empire at the time of Darius I (522–485 B.C.) The author may use the word “satrap” here in the wider sense of a provincial official. The term was used in 3:2 referring to the time of the Babylonian empire. Use a term that is natural in your language for the title of such an official. For example:

governors (GNT)

high officer (NLT)

to rule throughout the kingdom: The Aramaic word that the BSB translates as to rule is a general verb. The Aramaic phrase is more literally “who will be throughout the kingdom.” The satraps would live and rule spread out over the kingdom, each ruling one of the 120 provinces. Here are some other ways to translate this:

stationed throughout the whole kingdom (NRSV)

to hold office throughout his empire (GNT)

who would be in charge of the entire kingdom (NET)

throughout the kingdom: The phrase throughout the kingdom here refers to the entire country that Darius ruled. See how you translated the kingdom in 5:31. For example:

throughout his empire (GNT)

over his whole realm

General Comment on 6:1

This verse implies that the 120 men ruled over 120 different parts of the kingdom. In some languages it may be natural to make this explicit. For example:

Darius the Mede decided to divide the country into 120 provinces, and he appointed a high officer to rule over each province. (NLT)

Darius divided his kingdom into a hundred and twenty states and placed a governor in charge of each one. (CEV)

One day King Darius decided to appoint men to help govern his kingdom. He divided the kingdom into one hundred and twenty provinces and appointed an official to be in charge of each one.

Parallel DAN 6:1

Section 6:1–28: God delivered Daniel from the lions’ den

Paragraph 6:1–2

6:1

General Comment on 6:1

Connecting Statement: