The Choice Young Men
1 In the third year of the reign of (A)Jehoiakim king of Judah, (B)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 The (C)Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the (D)vessels of the house of God; and he brought them to the land of (E)Shinar, to the house of his [a]god, and he brought the vessels into the treasury of his [b](F)god.
3 Then the king [c]ordered Ashpenaz, the chief of his [d]officials, to bring in some of the sons of Israel, including some of the [e]royal (G)family and of the nobles, 4 youths in whom was (H)no defect, who were good-looking, showing (I)intelligence in every branch of wisdom, endowed with understanding and discerning knowledge, and who had ability for [f]serving in the king’s [g]court; and he ordered him to teach them the [h]literature and (J)language of the (K)Chaldeans. 5 The king appointed for them a daily ration from the (L)king’s choice food and from the wine which he drank, and appointed that they should be [i]educated three years, at the end of which they were to [j](M)enter the king’s personal service. 6 Now among them from the sons of Judah were (N)Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. 7 Then the commander of the officials assigned new names to them; and to Daniel he assigned the name (O)Belteshazzar, to Hananiah (P)Shadrach, to Mishael (Q)Meshach and to Azariah (R)Abed-nego.
Daniel’s Resolve
8 But Daniel [k]made up his mind that he would not (S)defile himself with the (T)king’s choice food or with the (U)wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself. 9 Now God granted Daniel [l](V)favor and compassion in the sight of the commander of the officials, 10 and the commander of the officials said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has appointed your food and your drink; for why should he see your faces looking more haggard than the youths who are your own age? Then you would [m]make me forfeit my head to the king.” 11 But Daniel said to the overseer whom the commander of the officials had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, 12 “Please test your servants for ten days, and let us be (W)given some vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then let our appearance be [n]observed in your presence and the appearance of the youths who are eating the king’s choice food; and deal with your servants according to what you see.”
14 So he listened to them in this matter and tested them for ten days. 15 At the end of ten days their appearance seemed (X)better and [o]they were fatter than all the youths who had been eating the king’s choice food. 16 So the overseer continued to [p]withhold their choice food and the wine they were to drink, and kept (Y)giving them vegetables.
17 As for these four youths, (Z)God gave them knowledge and intelligence in every branch of [q]literature and wisdom; Daniel even understood all kinds of (AA)visions and dreams.
18 Then at the end of the days which the king had [r]specified [s]for presenting them, the commander of the officials [t]presented them before Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and out of them all not one was found like (AB)Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they [u](AC)entered the king’s personal service. 20 As for every matter of (AD)wisdom [v]and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them (AE)ten times (AF)better than all the [w](AG)magicians and conjurers who were in all his realm. 21 And Daniel [x]continued until the (AH)first year of Cyrus the king.
Footnotes
- Daniel 1:2 Or gods
- Daniel 1:2 Or gods
- Daniel 1:3 Or said to
- Daniel 1:3 Or eunuchs, and so throughout the ch
- Daniel 1:3 Lit seed of the
- Daniel 1:4 Lit standing
- Daniel 1:4 Lit palace
- Daniel 1:4 Or writing
- Daniel 1:5 Or reared
- Daniel 1:5 Lit stand before the king
- Daniel 1:8 Lit set upon his heart
- Daniel 1:9 Lit lovingkindness
- Daniel 1:10 Lit make my head guilty
- Daniel 1:13 Lit seen
- Daniel 1:15 Lit fat of flesh
- Daniel 1:16 Lit take away
- Daniel 1:17 Or writing
- Daniel 1:18 Lit said
- Daniel 1:18 Lit to bring them in
- Daniel 1:18 Lit brought in
- Daniel 1:19 Lit stood before the king
- Daniel 1:20 Lit of
- Daniel 1:20 Or soothsayer priests
- Daniel 1:21 Lit was until
Cross references
- Daniel 1:1 : 2 Kin 24:1; 2 Chr 36:5, 6
- Daniel 1:1 : Jer 25:1; 52:12, 28-30
- Daniel 1:2 : Is 42:24; Dan 2:37, 38
- Daniel 1:2 : 2 Chr 36:7; Jer 27:19, 20; Dan 5:2
- Daniel 1:2 : Gen 10:10; 11:2; Is 11:11; Zech 5:11
- Daniel 1:2 : Jer 50:2; 51:44
- Daniel 1:3 : 2 Kin 24:15; Is 39:7
- Daniel 1:4 : 2 Sam 14:25
- Daniel 1:4 : Dan 1:17
- Daniel 1:4 : Is 36:11; Jer 5:15; Dan 2:4
- Daniel 1:4 : Dan 2:2, 4, 5, 10; 3:8; 4:7; 5:7, 11, 30; 9:1
- Daniel 1:5 : Dan 1:8
- Daniel 1:5 : 1 Sam 16:22; Dan 1:19
- Daniel 1:6 : Ezek 14:14, 20; 28:3; Matt 24:15
- Daniel 1:7 : Dan 2:26; 4:8; 5:12
- Daniel 1:7 : Dan 2:49; 3:12
- Daniel 1:7 : Dan 2:49; 3:12
- Daniel 1:7 : Dan 2:49; 3:12
- Daniel 1:8 : Lev 11:47; Ezek 4:13, 14; Hos 9:3, 4
- Daniel 1:8 : Ps 141:4; Dan 1:5
- Daniel 1:8 : Deut 32:38; Dan 5:4
- Daniel 1:9 : Gen 39:21; 1 Kin 8:50; Job 5:15, 16; Ps 106:46; Prov 16:7
- Daniel 1:12 : Dan 1:16
- Daniel 1:15 : Ex 23:25; Prov 10:22
- Daniel 1:16 : Dan 1:12
- Daniel 1:17 : 1 Kin 3:12, 28; Job 32:8; Dan 1:20; 2:21, 23; Acts 7:22
- Daniel 1:17 : Dan 2:19; 7:1; 8:1
- Daniel 1:19 : Dan 1:6, 7
- Daniel 1:19 : Gen 41:46; Dan 1:5
- Daniel 1:20 : 1 Kin 4:30, 31; Dan 1:17
- Daniel 1:20 : Gen 31:7; Num 14:22; Neh 4:12; Job 19:3
- Daniel 1:20 : Dan 2:27, 28, 46, 48
- Daniel 1:20 : Is 19:3; Dan 2:2; 4:18; 5:7
- Daniel 1:21 : Dan 6:28; 10:1