DAN 8:2 Parallel Verse View

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

OET (OET-RV) In the vision, I saw that I was at the fortress in Shusan (often called Susa, in Eylam province), beside the Ulai Canal.

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 I saw in the vision, and as I was looking, that I was in Susa, the citadel, which is in the province of Elam. And I saw in the vision that I was beside the Ulai Canal.

UST In that vision I was in Susa, the capital city of Elam Province. I was standing alongside the Ulai Canal.

OEB No OEB DAN book available

WEBBE I saw the vision. Now it was so, that when I saw, I was in the citadel of Susa, which is in the province of Elam. I saw in the vision, and I was by the river Ulai.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET In this vision I saw myself in Susa the citadel, which is located in the province of Elam. In the vision I saw myself at the Ulai Canal.

LSV And I see in a vision, and it comes to pass, in my seeing, and I [am] in Shushan the palace that [is] in Elam the province, and I see in a vision, and I have been by the stream Ulai.

FBV In my vision I looked around and saw I was in the castle at Susa in the province of Elam. In the vision I was beside the River Ulai.

T4T In that vision I was in Susa, the capital city of Elam Province. I was standing alongside the Ulai Canal.

LEB And I saw in the vision, _⌊and when I saw_⌋,[fn] I was in Susa, the citadel that was in the province of Elam. And I saw in the vision, and _⌊I myself_⌋[fn] was at the stream of Ulai.[fn]

8:2 Literally “and it was at my seeing”

8:2 Literally “I, I was”

8:2 Or “Ulai Canal” (NASB); “stream of the Ulai” (NEB)

BBE And I saw in the vision; and when I saw it, I was in the strong town Shushan, which is in the country of Elam; and in the vision I was by the water-door of the Ulai.

Moff What I saw in the vision was this. I was in the citadel of Susa in the province of Elam, and in my vision I saw myself beside the river Ulai.

JPS And I saw in the vision; now it was so, that when I saw, I was in Shushan the castle, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision, and I was by the stream Ulai.

ASV And I saw in the vision; now it was so, that when I saw, I was in Shushan the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision, and I was by the river Ulai.

DRA Saw in my vision when I was in the castle of Susa, which is in the province of Elam: and I saw in the vision that I was over the gate of Ulai.

YLT And I see in a vision, and it cometh to pass, in my seeing, and I [am] in Shushan the palace that [is] in Elam the province, and I see in a vision, and I have been by the stream Ulai.

Drby And I saw in the vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was in the fortress of Shushan, which is in the province of Elam. And I saw in the vision, and I was by the river Ulai.

RV And I saw in the vision; now it was so, that when I saw, I was in Shushan the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision, and I was by the river Ulai.
(And I saw in the vision; now it was so, that when I saw, I was in Susa the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision, and I was by the river Ulai. )

SLT And I shall see in a vision; and it will be in my seeing, and I in Shushan the fortress, in Elam the province; and I shall see in a vision, and I was by the stream of strength.

Wbstr And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river Ulai.

KJB-1769 And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai.
(And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Susa in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai. )

KJB-1611 And I saw in a vision (and it came to passe when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the prouince of Elam) and I saw in a vision, and I was by the riuer of Ulai.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps I saw in a vision (and when I saw it, I was in the palace of Susis, which is in the prouince of Elam) and in the vision me thought I was by the riuer of Ulai.
(I saw in a vision (and when I saw it, I was in the palace of Susis, which is in the province of Elam) and in the vision me thought I was by the river of Ulai.)

Gnva And I saw in a vision, and when I sawe it, I was in the palace of Shushan, which is in the prouince of Elam, and in a vision me thought I was by the riuer of Vlai.
(And I saw in a vision, and when I saw it, I was in the palace of Susa, which is in the province of Elam, and in a vision me thought I was by the river of Vlai. )

Cvdl I sawe in a vision, (and when I sawe it, I was at Susis in the chefe cite, which lyeth in the londe off Elam) and in ye vision, me thought I was by the ryuer off Vlai.
(I saw in a vision, (and when I saw it, I was at Susis in the chief city, which lieth/lies in the land off Elam) and in ye/you_all vision, me thought I was by the river off Vlai.)

Wycl siy in my visioun, whanne Y was in the castel of Susis, which is in the cuntrei of Helam; sotheli Y siy in the visioun that Y was on the yate Vlay.
(saw in my vision, when I was in the castel of Susis, which is in the country of Helam; truly I saw in the vision that I was on the gate Vlay.)

Luth Ich war aber, da ich solch Gesicht sah, zu Schloß Susan im Lande Elam am Wasser Ulai.
(I what/which but, there I such vision/face saw, to/for castle Susan in_the land Elam in/at/on_the water Ulai.)

ClVg vidi in visione mea, cum essem in Susis castro, quod est in Ælam regione: vidi autem in visione esse me super portam Ulai.
(I_saw in/into/on vision my, when/with I_would_be in/into/on Susis the_castle, that it_is in/into/on Ælam region: I_saw however in/into/on vision to_be me over the_gate Ulai. )

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 8:1–27 Daniel had a dream about a ram and a goat

At this point in the narrative, the author of the book of Daniel again began to write in the Hebrew language. He described another vision, this one occurring during the third year of Belshazzar’s reign over Babylon. In this vision Daniel was by the bank of a canal near the city of Susa. He saw a very powerful ram with two horns that charged in all directions. Next he saw a goat with one large horn between its eyes. The goat attacked and defeated the ram and grew very powerful. Its large horn broke and four prominent horns grew in its place. From one of those four horns grew a small horn. That little horn grew as high as the stars, as high as the army of heaven, and as high as the commander of the army. When it was at its highest, it stopped the daily sacrifices and desecrated the temple.

The angel Gabriel came to Daniel and explained the meaning of what he had seen. The ram and the goat represented kings and their kingdoms. The little horn represented a particularly wicked king. That king would even defy God, but in the end that wicked king would be destroyed.

Some versions have two headings within this section. For example:

NET Daniel Has a Vision of a Goat and a Ram (8:1)

An Angel Interprets Daniel’s Vision (8:15)

NRSV Vision of a Ram and a Goat (8:1)

Gabriel Interprets the Vision (8:15)

GNT Daniel’s Vision of a Ram and a Goat

The Angel Gabriel Explains the Vision (8:15)

BFrCL88 Second vision: the Ram and the Goat (8:1)

Interpretation of the second vision (8:15)

GeCL97 A second vision: The battle between the Ram and the Goat (8:1)

The meaning of the vision of the ram and the goat (8:15)

There are a number of similarities between chapter eight and chapter seven. For example, both chapters use symbolic language to describe kingdoms, and both use the symbol of a horn to refer to particular rulers of those kingdoms. In spite of these similarities, it is important to understand that the symbols in the two chapters do not necessarily refer to the same things. For example, while there are similarities between the two little horns, there are also important differences. The Notes will explain some of these differences. The Notes will also suggest ways to translate these symbols.

As noted above, the chapter is divided into two parts, one that describes the vision and one that gives the interpretation of the vision. Both parts lead to a climax. In the first part the horn grew until it became so great that it succeeded in everything it did (8:12). A similar sequence of events occurs in the second part of the vision. Gabriel described the growth of the horn and its climactic success (8:24–26). At the end of the chapter, Gabriel announced that God would destroy the horn (8:25).

The vision includes a number of images that may seem obscure and confusing. It is usually best to translate these images in a literal way. Even Daniel did not understand the full meaning of what he saw.

Paragraph 8:1–2

This paragraph gives the setting of this new vision.

8:2a

And in the vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa, in the province of Elam.

As I was watching/having the vision, I saw that I was in the walled city of Susa, which is in the province of Elam.
In this vision I suddenly found myself in the fortified city of Susa, in Elam province.
In the vision I was within the walls of Susa city in Elam province,

And in the vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa: The Hebrew expression that the BSB translates as in the vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa is more literally “and I saw in the vision and it happened as I was looking I was in Susa the citadel.” This complex introduction to the vision narrative emphasizes its importance. Many English translations simplify this introduction. For example:

In this vision I saw myself in Susa, the citadel (NET)

In the vision I was at the fortress of Susa (NLT)

You should introduce what Daniel saw in his vision in a way that is natural in your language. Try to use a style that indicates the importance of what is to come, the dream narrative.

I saw myself: Daniel indicated that he himself was present in the vision. There are different ways to translate this idea. For example:

I suddenly found myself (GNT)

I was (NLT)

I knew/believed myself to be

in the citadel of Susa: This is more literally “I was in Susa the citadel.” This probably indicates that Susa itself was a citadel, a fortified city.See the footnote in the NET. Here is another way to translate this:

the walled city of Susa (GNT)

Susa: The Hebrew spelling of this word is “Shushan,” as in the KJV. Susa is the Greek form of the name. Either spelling is acceptable. You may wish to spell this the same way as it is spelled in the national language.

in the province of Elam: Susa was the capital of the province called Elam. This was in the southwest part of what is now Iran.See Genesis 10:22, where Elam is listed as one of the sons of Shem. There are different ways to translate this. For example:

in Elam province

in the district of Elam

which is located in the province of Elam (NET)

province: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as province refers to a large unit of government. Other ways to translate it include:

district

area (NCV)

8:2b

I saw in the vision that I was beside the Ulai Canal.

I saw that I was by the Ulai canal.
I was conscious/aware that I was next to the Ulai river.
standing on the bank of the waterway called the Ulai.

In the Hebrew text this verse part begins with the common Hebrew conjunction that is often translated as “and.” In this context it introduces a more exact explanation of where Daniel was.

I saw in the vision that I was beside the Ulai Canal: The Hebrew words that the BSB literally translates as I saw in the vision repeat information from 8:2a. This repetition may not be natural in some languages, and some ancient and modern versions omit it. However it is present in the MT. The repetition emphasizes that Daniel was not physically present by the canal, but only in his dream. Repeat as much information as necessary to make that clear. For example:

and I saw in the vision, and I was at the river Ulai (RSV)

I was standing by the Ulai River (GNT)

I was beside the Ulai Canal: Daniel sensed himself to be by the Ulai Canal. He was not actually there, physically. In his dream he was aware that he was looking at events as though he were there. Here are some other ways to translate this:

I saw myself at the Ulai Canal (NET)

I was standing by the Ulai Canal. (NCV)

the Ulai Canal: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as Canal here refers to an artificial or manmade stream.The NJB has “gate,” but this is based on some ancient translations (LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate) rather than the Hebrew. This canal flowed near the north of the city of Susa. Use the word that is appropriate in your language. The fact that this was an artificial waterway is not in focus, so in some languages it may be most natural to follow the RSV and say:

river (RSV)

Parallel DAN 8:2

Section 8:1–27 Daniel had a dream about a ram and a goat

Paragraph 8:1–2

8:2a

8:2b