The Pulpit Commentary — Daniel — Section 109

8liarru-rnl1lm, "greo.t king." Thus in this construction. Something might be •aid for nrldroee the teohnicnl title is given him. Moses Btae.rt'e view the.t nNT")-',~ •honld 'fhe Be.bylonicm mono.rchs nssnmed this be translated" wherever," if there were any from their Assyrian pre,leceeeore, a.A e.g. similar constraction to be foand. The ren- AAehurbo.nipo.l (Smith,' lliRtory,' pp. 26, 7:1, dering of the Peshitte. agrees with the senso 1D6). From tho Bnbylonio.ns it we.e pnesed of Moses Stne.rt, "Every place where the on to the Persian monarchs. In Ezck. xxvi. sons of men dwell, the bird of heaven, or 7 the prophet gives Nebnche.clnezzar this the bee.et of the field, he bath given into title. As wo find by the succceding verse, thy he.nd, n,nd co.used thee to rule over all Ille kingdom here is not mere roynlty or of them." The ebe.nge of order is to be kingship, but the specio.l royalty of prnc- noted. The Vulga.te agrees with the Me.s- tico.lly universo.l empire; tho.t is to say, uni- soretic. The word for "dwelling" is an versal so for o.s the knowledge of the times older form )'7N7 ( dareen ), instead of tho went. Our rendering in the Authorized Version foils in acourncy, in not inserting more recent form, which ie that read )'7'"1 the definite article, which is ree.lly implied (dayreen). This copious'insertion of the Nie in the sign of the status emphaticus. Lu thcr e.n Eastern peculiarity. This assertion of makes the so.me misto.ke. Happily the Re- Daniel most seem exaggerated to us, but visers have altered matters, e.nd inserted we must remember the courtly form of ad- "the," e.s does Behrmo.nu. The Greek Ver- dress that was usual in Oriental courts, sion and Peehitte. a.re accurate in this. The e.nd the.t N ebucho.dnezze.r in e.11 likelihood word translated "power," Nit;l".1 (Q,i•'na), is ?laimed this breadth of empire; so Daniel, consonantly present in both dialects of moro m order to make way for the assertion he recent A.rame.ic. had e.lrea.dy made of the king's dependence Ver. 38.-And wheresoaver the ohildren on One higher, gives him everything he of men dwell, the beaets of the :field and cle.ims. The addition of the sea to bis the fowls of the heaven he.th he given into dominion,although in it Theodotion !!Upport.e thine hand, and bath made thee ruler over the LXX., is due to e. mistaken idea of the them all. Thon art this head of gold. The point of Daniel's statements. He adds, Septuagint, if we take along with this verse Thou art this head of gold. This is not the final clanse of the preceding verse, he.a e.e Hitzig asserts, N ebuchad.nezzo.r per: even more of that look of exaggere.tion sonally, but to him as the type of the Baby- whiah we can scarcely fail to be conscious lonian monarch. This was but natural, as of in the Me.ssoretic, "In all the earth in- of the duration of this monarchy his ind~ habited I by men, and wild beasts, and birds pendent reign extended to the half. Before of the heaven, and fish of the sea, he his e.dvent e.s "king's son," the Be.bylonian delivered (all things) into thy ho.nd to rule Empire he.d to endare the e.ssault of Egypt, over e.ll " The addition to the realm of and had to struggle for existence against it. Nebnche.dnezzo.r of the dwelling-place of ~ith his e.dvent began its glory, with his the fish of the sea is readily observed. Theo- d1se.ppeare.nce began e.t once its decadence. dotion has the same addition," In every ple.ce Only under Nebuchadnezzar was Babylon where the sons of men dwell, he gave into really imperie.l. The short reigns of his thy hand bee.sts of the ee.rth, birds of the successors are proofs of e.n insufficient hand e.ir, fishes of the sea, and appointed thee upon the reins. With all the tyra.n.nical lord of all." One cannot but observe not moods to which he was subject, and all the only the presence of " the fishes," but also wild whirlwinds of passion which were the fact that only the lower e.nime.ls are liable to carry him away, Nebuchadnezzar, given into his power. It me.y be the.t here, as presented to us here, we.s a splendid man e.s in the LXX., the object is to render with :-utterl;ir unlik_e Epi_phanes, we may remark slavish exactness the origine.1-unobservant m pe.ssrng, with hl8 low tastes e.nd hi~ of the fact that the construction we.s irre- cringing submission to Rome. His brilli- gule.r. Behrme.nn thinks the author had ance was that of Alcibiades; he had nothing of the dignity implied in the head of gold. before his mind 7t:i~~;i (hashaltak ), "he.a Nebuchadnezzar had secured the love of me.de thee ruler," and then changed the this captive, as we see by the sorrow with which Do.niel communicated to him his 1 "In all the ce.rth inhe.bited." Thie approaching madness. There is thus a. cle.use is rege.rded by the Septuagint tre.ns- reasonableness in making him, in especial, le.tion e.s belonging to ver. 87 (which see). the head of gold. We have united it here to the thirty-eighth Ver. 39.-And after thee shall a.rise another verse, e.s the words are a tre.nsle.tion of the kingdom inferior to thee, and another third opening words of this verse e.coording to kingdom of brass, whioh shall bear rule over the llfossoretio. Omitting this olo.use, it Rll the ee.rth. None of the versions present~ might be rendered, "of (cbrd) men," eto. any difficulties, or gives occasion for e.ny  70 THE BOOK OF DANIEL. [cu. 11. 1-40,