The Pulpit Commentary — Daniel — Section 43

CHAPTER L ferences between the Septuagint Version and the text of the Massoretes, which is followed Vere. 1-7.-OccASION OF DANIEL BEING in our Authorized Version, that there is no word representing Te:ign in the Septuagint. lN BABYLON, Came Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon =to Ver. 1.-In the third year of the reign of J'erusalem, ud besieged it. Nebuchad- J'ehoiakim King of J'udah. After the defeat nezzar is one of the greatest names in all e.nd death of Josiah, the people of the land history. Only here in Daniel is Nebuchad- put on the throne Jehoe.haz, or Shallum nezzar spelled in the Hebrew with I! in the (Jer. xxii. 11), one of the sons of their late penultimate syllable. In Jeremiah and monarch (2 Kings xxiii. 30). We eee, by Ezekiel the name is generally transliterated comparing 2 Kings xxiii. 31 with ver. 36, differently and more accurately Nebuchad- that in taking Jehoahaz to be their king rezzar. '£bis more accurately represents they had passed over the law of primogeni- Nabu-kuduTri-utzur of the monuments, but ture. The reason of this would not unlikely alike in Kings and Chronicles the 7 is be that be represented the policy of hie changed into a J. When it passed into father Josiah, which me.y he.ve meant the Greek it became Na/3vxo6ovo,rap, even in preference of a Babylonian to an Egyptian Jeremiah. This is the form it assumed in alliance. Dean Farrar thinks his war- Berosus. Abydenus is more accu!'&te. The like prowess might be the reason of the no.me, which means "Nebo protects the popular preference (Ezek. xix. 3). What- crown," had been borne by a. predecessor, ever we.a the reason of popular preference, who reigned some five centuries earlier. The Pharaoh-Nacho, on his return from his two forms of the name represent two pro- victorious campaign against the Hittites cesses that take place in regard to foreign and the Babylonians, deposed him, and names. Nebuchadrezzar (Jer. xxi. 2) is a. carried him down to Egypt. Necho plnced transliteration of the Babylonian name on the throne in his stee.d, Eliakim, whom Nebu-kudduri-utzuT. Nebuchadnezzar, e.s he named Jehoinkim. The change of name here, is the name modified into elements, is not very significant: in the first case, it ie eo.ch of which is intelligible. Nebu WBS "God raises up;" in the second, the adopted the god Nebo, chad. meant "a vessel," e.nd name, it is "Jehovah rnises up." The as- nezzaT, "one who watches." He succeeded sumption was that he claimed specially to be hie father N e.bopole.ssar, the founder of the raised up by the covenant God of Israel. more recent kingdom of Babylon, in the It might have been expected that he would year B.C. 606. Few hi.torical inscriptions be very zealous for the Lord of hosts, instead of any length have come to hand dating of which we find that "he rlid that which from the reign of either father or son. We tllRI evil in the sight of the Lord, according have the fragments of Berosus, unJ epi- to all tbat his fathers had done." As he is tomes of portions of his works; and further, vresen ted to us in the prophecies of Jere- fragments of Mege.sthenes and AbydenllS .iniah, he appenrs e. cruel, regardless man. preserved chiefly in the Fathers. It N eoho did not mean tho subjection of J eruse.- may be observed that Herodotus does not lem to be merely nominol, so he le.id e. heavy so wuoh as mention Nebuche.drezzar. Nu- tribute on the new-made king. With all his bopolo.ssar asoended the throne of Babylon defects, J ehoiakim seems to hove been faith- iu the yeo.r B.c. 625, so far as can be made ful to Egypt, to whose power he owed his out at present, on the overthrow of the orown. It should be noted, as one of the dit'- Assyrie.ns of Nineveh. Taking occasion ot' VAl>IEL, B  2 THE BOOK 01<' DANIEL. [oa, 1. 1-21.