The Pulpit Commentary — Daniel — Section 88

eign and portent. We know how prone men merely e.skoo. tor time, Nebuoh1tdnezzar are to anpplement suoh rules by a native would he.ve granted their request. lie he.d faculty for foreseeing what is likely to st1tked his foith in their 1tliility to unfold he.ppen, and how, further, explanations may 1tny mystery on this one teat, e.nd they be dc\'"ised to save the oredit of these 01mons seemed to him obslinntely to refuso to of interpr<'tation, even when mOl!t hopelessly submit to it. To believe them unable to proved to be false bv events. Archdeacon reveal the truth thnt he wished, would be to Rose appeals to modem spiritualists RB ex- overturn all the fo.brio of his faith in the ample• in point, regarding both the ChRl- religion of his fathers : therefore, with nil dean soothsayera and modern spiritualist& the strength of n stmug m1m, e.nd e.11 tho as equally impostors. We feel inclined to blind faith of a fe.ne.tio, he will not aoknow- regard them aa so fa.r alike in this-that ledge the inability of the soothsnyers to most of bnth clRsses imposed most on them- tell him his dream; it must be obetinncy, eel ves. 'l'he presence of these false prophets he thinks, the.t prevents the soothsoyers is an eYidenoo of the existence of the true telling him, e.nd the.t obstinacy must lmve e. prophets a.t some time, Rt all events; there sinister purpose. There is a clause in the would be no counterfeit ooin were Lhere no Septuagint completing this verse, but it is genuine money, not pe.re.llel with eny clause in the M:aaso- Ver. 8.-The king answered &nd said. I retic text: " Then just as I he.ve ordered, know of oertainty that ye would gain the thus shall it be." This probably is e.n time, beoause ye see the thing is gone from alternative rendering. .A,:da is tnken in me. The vcraion• here do not differ in any whe.t is now regarded as its meaning-'' that easentie.l point. The king now becomes which is fixed," or "decreed," in which certain of the treasonnble purpose of the case this final clause might be rendered, soothsayers. The word ,:•ban means not " Whe.t is fixed from me is e. decree : " and so much "gain" as "purche.se," "be.rt.er." of this the above-mentioned clause is e. To the king the meaning of their obstine.te somewhat free rendering. This interpre- refusal to submit to his requirements is the.t tation of the cle.use confirms our view of the they know that some gree.t e.dvo.nte.ge me.y be situation. gained by the king, or some great disaster Ver. 9.-But if ye will not make known forefended, if be only knows the meaning of unto me the dream, there is but one decree thiB dree.m, e.nd the.t if the Iring does not for you. The words tre.nsle.ted (di hen) "but submit to them 8Il.d yield up hiB decree, and, if" he.ve co.used some difference, most putting his pride under his feet, tell them tre.nslating aa if the first word were not the dream, the time when its revelation me.y present. This is the rendering of the be taken adve.ntage of may be passed. In Septuagint. Theodotion e.nd Jerome render these me.tters everything waa supposed to the first word, which is really the relativo, depend on the thing to be done being done as "therefore," ergo, "then," o~v. The precisely at the right conjunction of the Peshitte. has den, the corresponding Syrie.o planeta. His last utterance seems e.lmost phrase, which has a simillll' sense to that to rise to e.gony, "Because ye see the thing assumed here. The rendering of the next is fixed a.way from me I" We be.ve the cle.use, both in the Septuagint and in the ver- same word (a,:da) translated here, as in the sion of Thcodotion, differs considerably from fifth verse, .. gone." As we ee.w above, its the Me.ssoretie text. The rendering of the real meaning is rather "fixed," "settled," Septuagint is e.s follows: "If ye do not truly "determined." His decree he.d gone oat, tell me the dream, e.nd show me the inter- e.nd he would not-nay, so strongly had he pretation, ye shall die." The version of willed it the.tit we.e e.s if he could not-alter Theodotion is shorter, "If, then, ye will not his decision. It he.s been rege.rded a.s bee.r- tell me the dream." Theodotion thus omits ing on this passage the.t St. Pe.ul (Eph. v. the clause translated, "there is but one 16) uses the so.me word 11,11 the.t by which decree for you;" the only word the.t may the Greek ver,ions tre.nsle.te rban, " redeem- be the remains of it is of6a, ny,•, or simply the ing the time, becawie the de.ye are evil." participle. 'l'he Syrie.c is, "If ye will not The meaning of the apostle is to some declare the dream to me, one is your plan extent in contrast to that here. Believers e.nd your word." The text of the Septua- are, as it were, to purchase the time from gint in this case indicates the.t we have here the evil de.ye. Nebuchadnezzar thought additions from previous verses. The phrase, the nBtrologera were, e.s it were, meaning "e.nd declare to me the interpretation," is Ly their delays to boy the e.uepicions mo- evidently supplied from ver. 5, wheree.s meuL for the kingdom from under his feet. "ye she.II die," literally," ye shall cha.nee to It i,, e. miste.ken idea tbe.t he thought they (fall into) death," has a different origin. merely wished to go.in time. It would seem, This phrase ha.a all the appearance of a from whe.t we ree.d further of his treatment translation. It would seem applicable on of De.uiel' s request for time, tha.t, he.d they the idea. that in the text bofore the Septua- 011, II, 1-40.] THE BOOK 01!' DANIEL. 4()