Daniel 2:46
“The King Honors Daniel and God”Daniel 2:46–49
Bible text: King James Version (1769 Blayney text) · Public domain
Bible text: King James Version with Strong's numbers · Public domain
Bible text: Berean Standard Bible · Public domain
Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain
Bible text: World English Bible, Messianic edition · Public domain
Bible text: Geneva Bible (1599) · Public domain
Bible text: Young's Literal Translation · Public domain
- בֵּאדַיִןBe·da·yin[in] thenH116Prep-b ¦ AdvAdverbבֵּ[in]אדַיִןthen
- מַלְכָּאmal·Ka'king theH4430N-cs ¦ ArtNoun Singular common gender Definiteמַלְכָּkingאthe
- נְבוּכַדְנֶצַּרne·vu·khad·ne·TzarNebuchadnezzarH5020N-proper-mNoun Proper Masculine
- נְפַלne·Falhe fellH5308V-Peal-Perf-3msVerb Peal Perfect 3rd Singular Masculine
- עַל'alonH5922PrepPreposition
- אַנְפּוֹהִי'an·Po·hihis faceH600N-cdc ¦ 3msNoun Dual common gender Construct with suffixאַנְפּוֹfaceהִיhis
- וּלְדָנִיֵּאלu·le·da·ni·Yeland to DanielH1841Conj-w ¦ Prep-l ¦ N-proper-mNoun Proper MasculineוּandלְtoדָנִיֵּאלDaniel
- סְגִדse·Gidhe paid homageH5457V-Peal-Perf-3msVerb Peal Perfect 3rd Singular Masculine
- וּמִנְחָהu·min·Chahand offeringH4504Conj-w ¦ N-fsNoun Singular Feminine Absoluteוּandמִנְחָהoffering
- וְנִיחֹחִיןve·Ni·cho·Chinand soothing offeringsH5208Conj-w ¦ N-mpNoun Plural Masculine Absoluteוְandנִיחֹחִיןsoothing offerings
- אֲמַר'a·Marhe saidH560V-Peal-Perf-3msVerb Peal Perfect 3rd Singular Masculine
- לְנַסָּכָהle·na·Sa·khahto offer in sacrificeH5260Prep-l ¦ V-Piel-InfVerb Piel Infinitive Constructלְtoנַסָּכָהoffer in sacrifice
- לֵהּLehto himPrep-l ¦ 3msSuffix Personal 3rd Singular Masculineלֵtoהּhim
English is a literal word-by-word gloss of the Hebrew, not the KJV's wording. Why?
This is the original text the KJV's translators worked from — each Hebrew word with its own literal English meaning in this verse, prepared by scholars at Tyndale House, Cambridge. The KJV translates whole sentences, not word by word, so its wording differs: one Hebrew word can become several English words, and the KJV may choose “the LORD” where the gloss reads “Yahweh”. Both are faithful — they answer different questions. For the KJV's own rendering, switch to the KJV text.
Words in [ ] are added by the English.
Details
See on the biblical-era map
Study this verse
Public-domain commentary
Matthew Henry
From his Commentary on the Whole Bible. Henry wrote on whole passages, and this entry covers Daniel 2:46–49.
One might have expected that when Nebuchadnezzar was contriving to make his own kingdom everlasting he would be enraged at Daniel, who foretold the fall of it and that another kingdom of another nature should be the everlasting kingdom; but, instead of resenting it as an affront, he received it as an oracle, and here we are told what the expressions were of the impressions it made upon him. 1. He was ready to look upon Daniel as a little god. Though he saw him to be a man, yet from this wonderful discovery which he had made both of his secret thoughts, in telling him the dream, and of things to come, in telling him the interpretation of it, he concluded that he had certainly a divinity lodged in him, worthy his adoration; and therefore he fell upon his face and worshipped Daniel, Daniel 2:46. It was the custom of the country by prostration to give honour to kings, because they have something of a divine power in them (I have said, You are gods); and therefore this king, who had often received such veneration from others, now paid the like to Daniel, whom he supposed to have in him a divine knowledge, which he was so struck with an admiration of that he could not contain himself, but forgot both that Daniel was a man and that himself was a king. Thus did God magnify divine revelation and make it honourable, extorting from a proud potentate such a veneration but for one glimpse of it. He worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation to him, and burn incense. Herein he cannot be justified, but may in some measure be excused, when Cornelius was thus ready to worship Peter, and John the angel, who both knew better. But, though it is not here mentioned, yet we have reason to think that Daniel refused these honours that he paid him, and said, as Peter to Cornelius, Stand up, I myself also am a man, or, as the angel to St. John, See thou do it not; for it is not said that the oblation was offered unto him, though the king commanded it, or rather said it, for so the word is. He said, in his haste, Let an oblation be offered to him. And that Daniel did say something to him which turned his eyes and thoughts another way is intimated in what follows (Daniel 2:47), The king answered Daniel. Note, It is possible for those to express a great honour for the ministers of God's word who yet have no true love for the word. Herod feared John, and heard him gladly, and yet went on in his sins, Mark 6:20. 2. He readily acknowledged the God of Daniel to be the great God, the true God, the only living and true God. If Daniel will not suffer himself to be worshipped, he will (as Daniel, it is likely, directed him) worship God, by confessing (Daniel 2:47), Of a truth your God is a God of gods, such a God as there is no other, above all gods in dignity, over all gods in dominion. He is a Lord of kings, from whom they derive their power and to whom they are accountable; and he is both a discoverer and a revealer of secrets; what is most secret he sees and can reveal, and what he has revealed is what was secret and which none but himself could reveal, 1 Corinthians 2:10. 3. He preferred Daniel, made him a great man, Daniel 2:48. God made him a great man indeed when he took him into communion with himself, a greater man than Nebuchadnezzar could make him; but, because God had magnified him, therefore the king magnified him. Does wealth make men great? The king gave him many great gifts; and he had no reason to refuse them, when they all put him into so much the greater capacity of doing good to his brethren in captivity. These gifts were grateful returns for the good services he had done, and not aimed at, nor bargained for, by him, as the rewards of divination were by Balaam. Does power make a man great? He made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, which no doubt had great influence upon the other provinces; he made him likewise chancellor of the university, chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon, to instruct those whom he had thus outdone; and, since they could not do what the king would have them do, they shall be obliged to do what Daniel would have them do. Thus it is fit that the fool should be servant to the wise in heart. Seeing Daniel could reveal this secret (Daniel 2:47), the king thus advanced him. Note, It is the wisdom of princes to advance and employ those who receive divine revelation, and are much conversant with it, who, as Daniel here, show themselves to be well acquainted with the kingdom of heaven. Joseph, like Daniel here, was advanced in the court of the king of Egypt for his interpreting his dreams; and he called him Zaphnath-paaneah - a revealer of secrets, as the king of Babylon here calls Daniel; so that the preambles to their patents of honour are the same - for, and in consideration of, their good services done to the crown in revealing secrets. 4. He preferred his companions for his sake, and upon his special instance and request, Daniel 2:49. Daniel himself sat in the gate of the king, as president of the council, chief-justice, or prime-minister of state, or perhaps chamberlain of the household; but he used his interest for his friends as became a good man, and procured places in the government for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Those that helped him with their prayers shall share with him in his honours, such a grateful sense had he even of that service. The preferring of them would be a great stay and help to Daniel in his place and business. And these pious Jews, being thus preferred in Babylon, had great opportunity of serving their brethren in captivity, and of doing them many good offices, which no doubt they were ready to do. Thus, sometimes, before God brings his people into trouble, he prepares it, that it may be easy to them.
Historical interpretation
Two Centuries of Reception
3 surviving comments on this verse. Each one is dated, so this reads as a timeline rather than a list.
Select a marker to jump to its quote. Markers stagger vertically where authors wrote within a few decades of each other.
"Then king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face." Nebuchadnezzar hearing these things, and being put in remembrance of his vision, knew that what was spoken by Daniel was true. How great is the power of the grace of God, beloved, that one who a little before was doomed to death with the other wise men of Babylon, should now be worshipped by the king, not as man, but as God! "He commanded that they should offer manaa" (i.e., in Chaldee, "oblation") "and sweet odours unto him." Of old, too, the Lord made a similar announcement to Moses, saying, "See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh; " in order that, on account of the signs wrought by him in the land of Egypt, Moses might no longer be reckoned a man, but be worshipped as a god by the Egyptians.
The people who were in Babylon say this: being there, I will remember you. Therefore, let us also, as being in Babylon, [do the same]. For although we are not sitting among warlike foes, yet we are among “enemies.” For some indeed were captives but did not feel their captivity, as Daniel, as the three children; who, even while they were in captivity became in that very country more glorious even than the king who had made them captive.… Do you see how great is virtue? When they were in actual captivity, he waited on them as masters. He therefore was the captive, rather than they.… Do you see that the really splendid things are those that relate to God, whereas human things are a shadow?… Let us fear God, beloved, let us fear [him]: even should we be in captivity, we are more glorious than all people. Let the fear of God be present with us, and nothing will bring us grief, even though they speak of poverty, or of disease, or of captivity, or of slavery or of any other grievous thing. In fact, even these very things will themselves work together for us the other way. These men were captives, and the king worshiped them. Paul was a tent maker, and they sacrificed to him as a god.
Verse 47. "Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and worshipped Daniel, and ordered sacrifices and incense to be offered up to him. Therefore the king spoke and said to Daniel." Porphyry falsely impugns this passage on the ground that a very proud king would never worship a mere captive, as if, forsooth, the Lycaonians had not been willing to offer blood sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas on account of the mighty miracles they had wrought (Acts 14:8-18). And so there is no need to impute to the Scripture the error of the Gentiles who deem everything above themselves to be gods, for the Scripture simply is narrating everything as it actually happened. However we can make this further assertion, that the king himself set forth the reasons for his worship and offering of blood-sacrifices when he said to Daniel:
"Truly thy God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, since thou hast been able to disclose this holy secret." And so it was not so much that he was worshipping Daniel as that he was through Daniel worshipping the God who had revealed the holy secrets . This is the same thing that we read Alexander the Great, King of the Macedonians, did in the high priesthood of Joaida . Or, if this explanation seem unsatisfactory, we shall have to say that Nebuchadnezzar, overwhelmed by the amazing greatness of the miracles, did not realize what he was doing, but coming to know the true God and Lord of kings he both worshipped His servant and offered him incense.
Continue studying Daniel 2:46 across the web’s major study libraries — every link below opens this exact verse, chapter, or book on the destination site.
Read & Compare
BibleGatewayThis verse in more than 200 translations and 70 languages.
Bible.comThe YouVersion reader — hundreds of translations, reading plans, and highlights.
ESV.orgCrossway's official English Standard Version reader.
NET BibleThe NET translation with 60,000+ translators' notes on every rendering decision.
STEP BibleTyndale House's free study tool — original text, vocabulary, and scholarly resources.
BibliaLogos Bible Software's free web reader.
USCCBThe New American Bible (Revised Edition) with the U.S. bishops' study notes.
Commentaries
BibleHub CommentariesDozens of classic commentaries on this verse, gathered on one page.
StudyLightMore than 100 commentary sets — the largest collection on the web.
BibleRefPlain-English commentary on what this verse means, verse by verse.
Enduring WordDavid Guzik's free commentary on this chapter, widely used by Bible teachers.
Bible Study ToolsVerse commentary alongside Greek and Hebrew study aids.
Original Language & Research
- BibleHub InterlinearThe verse word by word — original language, transliteration, and English.
- BibleHub LexiconEvery word's original-language definition and Strong's entry.
Blue Letter BibleDeep-study tools — Strong's numbers, concordance, and word studies.
SefariaThe Hebrew text with Rashi and centuries of Jewish commentary.
Sermons, Hymns & Audio
TrulyRandomVerse is not affiliated with these sites and doesn’t control their content. They’re linked because they’re genuinely useful.
Written with AI assistance. Always check it against Scripture.
This verse
Overwhelmed by what God revealed through Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar falls on his face before him and orders an offering and incense brought to him.
“Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face,”
The “Then” ties his reaction straight to Daniel’s interpretation. The king’s full name and title are given at the very moment he lies on the ground.
“and worshipped Daniel,”
Homage to the man through whom God had spoken. The next verse shows that the king’s praise is for Daniel’s God.
“and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odours unto him.”
An offering and incense, the honours his culture gave to gods and to those favoured by the gods.
Passage studyDaniel 2:46–49
The King Honors Daniel and God
Summary
Daniel has just told Nebuchadnezzar both his dream and its meaning, a thing all the wise men of Babylon had failed to do. The most powerful king on earth falls on his face before a young captive from Judah and orders offerings brought to him. Then he turns to Daniel and confesses that “your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets.” He makes Daniel a great man, gives him many great gifts, and sets him over the whole province of Babylon and over all its wise men. At Daniel’s request he also sets Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego over the affairs of the province, while Daniel himself sits in the gate of the king. In four verses the God of heaven humbles a proud king, honours the servant who gave him the glory, and places his people at the heart of a pagan empire.
The king falls on his face before Daniel
These verses close the long story of the king’s dream. Nebuchadnezzar demanded that his wise men tell him the dream as well as its meaning, and they failed him (Daniel 2:10–11). In his fury he decreed that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed (Daniel 2:12). Daniel and his three companions asked the God of heaven for mercy (Daniel 2:17–18), and God revealed the secret to Daniel in a night vision (Daniel 2:19). When Daniel stood before the king, he gave all the credit to “a God in heaven that revealeth secrets” (Daniel 2:27–30). He told the king of a great image whose parts stood for kingdoms that would rise one after another, and of a stone cut out without hands that would break them all, because the God of heaven would set up a kingdom that would stand for ever (Daniel 2:44–45).
“Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face” is the king’s first answer to all of this. The verb nᵉphal means to fall or to prostrate oneself, and falling on the face was a gesture of the deepest respect, submission or worship, made before gods or before very powerful rulers. Here the most powerful ruler of his age makes it to a foreign captive. A short while earlier the same king had ordered the death of every wise man in Babylon, and now he lies on the ground before one of them. Daniel’s God has brought the proudest man in the world low, and this is only the beginning of what God will do with him. The humbling goes much further in Daniel 4, where Nebuchadnezzar is brought down and then restored.
Did Nebuchadnezzar worship Daniel as a god?
The king was honouring the God whose power and wisdom he had just seen at work through Daniel, and the very next verse shows it, for he turns to Daniel and praises “your God”. The verb behind “worshipped”, çᵉgid, means to bow down, to prostrate oneself in homage or to pay reverence. It can describe the worship of God, and it also describes deep respect shown to a superior, whether human or divine. Nebuchadnezzar gave his honour the highest form he knew, and he gave it to the man through whom God had spoken. Daniel had already told him where the wisdom came from, and the confession of verse 47 shows that the king had heard him.
What were the oblation and sweet odours?
The king “commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odours unto him.” An oblation, minchâh, is an offering, often an offering of grain or meal. Sweet odours, nîychôwach, means something pleasing, a sweet savour, and here it most likely meant incense. Among the nations of that day both were part of religious ceremonies, offered to gods or to people thought to carry the favour of the gods. By ordering them for Daniel the king gave him the highest honour his world knew. It was the response of a man who still thought as a pagan, trying to answer the true God who had just made himself known to him.
The king confesses Daniel’s God
“The king answered unto Daniel, and said.” His answer is a reply to the whole revelation he has just heard, and he begins it with “Of a truth it is”, an emphatic way of saying that what follows is certain. Then he gives Daniel’s God three titles.
The first is “a God of gods”. ʼĕlâhh is the Aramaic word for god or God, matching the Hebrew Eloah. Set beside its own plural, it makes a superlative that names Daniel’s God as highest over every god that people worship, the many gods of Babylon among them.
The second is “a Lord of kings”. Mârêʼ means a master, sovereign or owner, one who rules what is his, and it comes from a root meaning to domineer. Spoken by the king of Babylon himself, the phrase means that every ruler on earth, however great, answers to Daniel’s God.
The third is “a revealer of secrets”. Gᵉlâh means to uncover, and it can also mean to send into exile. God uncovers what is hidden, above all his own plans and what is still to come. The word for secret, râz, comes back at the end of the verse: “seeing thou couldest reveal this secret.” The king’s whole confession rests on what he had just witnessed. A dream that he alone had seen had been told to him by a captive from Judah, and his astrologers and magicians with all their arts had failed where Daniel’s God succeeded.
What do “God of gods” and “Lord of kings” mean?
These are the highest titles the king could give, and they place Daniel’s God above every power people worship and every ruler on earth. They honour the LORD in the language of a man who believed in many gods, and they grant the gods of Babylon no real standing beside him. If there were other gods, Daniel’s God would be their sovereign. A psalm says it plainly: “For thou, LORD, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods” (Psalm 97:9).
“Lord of kings” echoes what Daniel himself had said when God answered his prayer, blessing the God who gives wisdom, for “he removeth kings, and setteth up kings” (Daniel 2:20–22). Later in this book the king is told that the most High rules over the kingdoms of men (Daniel 4:17), and Proverbs says, “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD” (Proverbs 21:1).
How far did the king’s faith go?
Nebuchadnezzar’s words are true, and they come from real conviction in a man who still lived among the many gods of Babylon. His confession here is an early step, and later he praises the God whose dominion is everlasting (Daniel 4:34–35). God made himself known to this king by what he did, just as Paul says that God’s eternal power is clearly seen in the things he has made (Romans 1:19–20).
He is one of several rulers outside Israel who acknowledged the God of Israel after a mighty work or a word from God. Pharaoh acknowledged the LORD during the plagues (Exodus 9:27), the queen of Sheba praised Solomon’s God (1 Kings 10:9), and Cyrus decreed that the temple be rebuilt (Ezra 1:2–4). In each case God showed that his rule reaches every nation and that he can work through those who do not yet worship him.
The king makes Daniel a great man
“Then the king made Daniel a great man.” The melek, the king, uses his absolute authority to raise Daniel at once. The verb rᵉbâh means to increase or to make great, and Daniel’s standing, honour and power all grew together. The “many great gifts” were tokens of high honour and of the king’s personal trust, as such presents were in the royal courts of that day.
The king gave Daniel two offices. He made him “ruler over the whole province of Babylon”, the region of the capital city and its surrounding territory, which made him its chief administrator. He also made him “chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.” The wise men, chakkîym, were the professional class of royal advisers, the astrologers, magicians and Chaldeans who interpreted omens and the heavens for the king. Their arts had failed, and they had stood under sentence of death. Now a servant of the God of heaven presided over them, and the wisdom God gives was set publicly above all the wisdom of Babylon.
The man raised so high was a captive, taken from Judah when Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem and brought up in the king’s court (Daniel 1:1–6). God had done something like this before, when Pharaoh set Joseph over all the land of Egypt (Genesis 41:39–44). Behind the king’s gratitude stands the God who says, “them that honour me I will honour” (1 Samuel 2:30). Hannah sang that the LORD brings low and lifts up (1 Samuel 2:7), and Proverbs says that humility and the fear of the LORD bring riches, honour and life (Proverbs 22:4). Daniel gave God the glory before the king, and God gave Daniel honour in the king’s sight.
Did Daniel compromise his faith by serving in Babylon?
Daniel served the king of Babylon and stayed wholly devoted to the God of Israel, and the rest of the book bears this out. From the beginning he held to his commitment to God in the king’s court (Daniel 1), and years later he kept praying to his God when a royal decree forbade it, at the risk of his life (Daniel 6). His office gave him a place to bear witness to God’s power and truth before the most powerful ruler of his time and the kings who came after him. God can use his servants in an idolatrous empire while they keep every conviction they hold.
Daniel remembers his friends
“Then Daniel requested of the king.” The verb bᵉʻâʼ means to seek, to ask or to make a petition, and from a man now in high favour such a request carried weight. Daniel’s first use of his new influence was to ask for others. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had shared the danger of the king’s decree and had prayed with him for the secret, and now the king “set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon.”
The word for province, mᵉdîynâh, means an administrative district, properly a jurisdiction. “Affairs”, ʻăbîydâh, means work, labour or business, so the three friends took on the daily running of the province. Daniel’s request shows his loyalty to the companions who had stood with him, his generosity in sharing what God had given him, and his wisdom in placing more of God’s people where they could serve and support one another. Their faithfulness would soon be tested in that very place. Scripture tells of others God raised in the courts of foreign kings, such as Mordecai, who was next to King Ahasuerus and sought the good of his people (Esther 10:3), and Proverbs says that a man diligent in his business shall stand before kings (Proverbs 22:29).
What does it mean that Daniel sat in the gate of the king?
It means that Daniel held high office at the royal court, close to the king, with authority to judge and to govern. The word for gate, tᵉraʻ, means a door or gate, and by implication a palace. In Israel and in Babylon the gate of a city or palace was where cases were judged, business was done and public announcements were made. Boaz settled his right to redeem Ruth before the elders at the city gate (Ruth 4:1–11). To sit in the gate of the king was to hold a place of trust with constant access to the king and a share in his highest decisions, something like a chief minister or senior royal adviser. The verse ends on a contrast: the three friends ran the affairs of the province, but Daniel stayed at the centre of power, at the king’s side.
Christ, the stone and the King of kings
The stone of the king’s dream, cut out without hands, is the kingdom of Christ, whose kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36) and yet will fill all things. Nebuchadnezzar’s bow before Daniel is a small picture of the homage the whole world will pay to the Son, for God has given him a name above every name, “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:7–11). The same passage tells how he “made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men” before he was exalted, and Daniel’s rise from captive to ruler follows that pattern on a small scale. The second psalm calls the kings of the earth to be wise and to serve the LORD with fear (Psalm 2:10–11), and here one of them begins to do so.
Daniel revealed one secret by God’s gift. Christ is himself the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24), the one “in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3), and the Son who has declared the Father to us (John 1:18). The king called Daniel’s God “a Lord of kings”, and Christ bears the name King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16). All power in heaven and in earth is given to him (Matthew 28:18), and he is before all things, and by him all things hold together (Colossians 1:17).
The last verse of the passage gives a picture of this too. Daniel sat in the gate of the king, close to the throne, and Christ is seated at the right hand of the Majesty on high (Hebrews 1:3), where he intercedes for his people (Romans 8:34). Daniel asked for places for his friends, and Christ sends his disciples out as his witnesses (Acts 1:8), gives gifts to his church for its work (Ephesians 4:11–12), and promises that those who endure will reign with him (2 Timothy 2:12, Revelation 5:10).
The God who lifts up the lowly
This scene shows a God who rules the kings of the earth and can bring the proudest of them to his knees. He knows what is hidden from every human mind, and he reveals it to his servants when he chooses. He honours those who honour him, and he gives them places where his name is spoken before the powerful. A captive from a conquered people became the one through whom the king of Babylon confessed the God of heaven.
Daniel’s part in it was to pray with his friends, to give God the glory before the king, and then to share the favour he received. The same God holds every ruler and every nation in our own day, and his kingdom is the one that stands for ever. That is good ground for praying for those in authority and for serving faithfully wherever he has placed us.
Daniel 2:46 This verse
“Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face,”
The “Then” ties his reaction straight to Daniel’s interpretation. The king’s full name and title are given at the very moment he lies on the ground.
“and worshipped Daniel,”
Homage to the man through whom God had spoken. The next verse shows that the king’s praise is for Daniel’s God.
“and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odours unto him.”
An offering and incense, the honours his culture gave to gods and to those favoured by the gods.
Daniel 2:47
“The king answered unto Daniel, and said,”
A spontaneous reply to what God had revealed.
“Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods,”
He speaks of “your God”, the God of the captive before him, and names him highest over every god.
“and a Lord of kings,”
A remarkable admission from an absolute monarch, who places himself among the kings that this God rules.
“and a revealer of secrets,”
The very title Daniel had used of God before the king.
“seeing thou couldest reveal this secret.”
The evidence for all three titles: Daniel, by God’s gift, had told the dream and its meaning.
Daniel 2:48
“Then the king made Daniel a great man,”
A sudden reversal for a captive exile who had faced death under the king’s decree.
“and gave him many great gifts,”
Tokens of the king’s gratitude, favour and trust.
“and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon,”
Authority over the region of the capital itself.
“and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.”
Daniel now presides over the advisers whose lives were spared when God revealed the secret.
Daniel 2:49
“Then Daniel requested of the king,”
His first act in his new position is a request for others.
“and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon:”
The king readily grants it, and the three friends take on the daily work of governing the province.
“but Daniel sat in the gate of the king.”
Daniel’s own place is at the royal court, at the centre of the king’s government.
Last revised