| Christian Standard Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1In the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and laid siege to it. | 1During the third year of King Jehoiakim’s reign in Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. |
| 2The Lord handed King Jehoiakim of Judah over to him, along with some of the vessels from the house of God. Nebuchadnezzar carried them to the land of Babylon, to the house of his god, and put the vessels in the treasury of his god. | 2The Lord gave him victory over King Jehoiakim of Judah and permitted him to take some of the sacred objects from the Temple of God. So Nebuchadnezzar took them back to the land of Babylonia and placed them in the treasure-house of his god. |
| 3The king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the Israelites from the royal family and from the nobility-- | 3Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief of staff, to bring to the palace some of the young men of Judah’s royal family and other noble families, who had been brought to Babylon as captives. |
| 4young men without any physical defect, good-looking, suitable for instruction in all wisdom, knowledgeable, perceptive, and capable of serving in the king's palace. He was to teach them the Chaldean language and literature. | 4“Select only strong, healthy, and good-looking young men,” he said. “Make sure they are well versed in every branch of learning, are gifted with knowledge and good judgment, and are suited to serve in the royal palace. Train these young men in the language and literature of Babylon. ” |
| 5The king assigned them daily provisions from the royal food and from the wine that he drank. They were to be trained for three years, and at the end of that time they were to attend the king. | 5The king assigned them a daily ration of food and wine from his own kitchens. They were to be trained for three years, and then they would enter the royal service. |
| 6Among them, from the Judahites, were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. | 6Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were four of the young men chosen, all from the tribe of Judah. |
| 7The chief eunuch gave them names; he gave the name Belteshazzar to Daniel, Shadrach to Hananiah, Meshach to Mishael, and Abednego to Azariah. | 7The chief of staff renamed them with these Babylonian names: Daniel was called Belteshazzar. Hananiah was called Shadrach. Mishael was called Meshach. Azariah was called Abednego. |
| 8Daniel determined that he would not defile himself with the king's food or with the wine he drank. So he asked permission from the chief eunuch not to defile himself. | 8But Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. He asked the chief of staff for permission not to eat these unacceptable foods. |
| 9God had granted Daniel kindness and compassion from the chief eunuch, | 9Now God had given the chief of staff both respect and affection for Daniel. |
| 10yet he said to Daniel, "I fear my lord the king, who assigned your food and drink. What if he sees your faces looking thinner than the other young men your age? You would endanger my life with the king." | 10But he responded, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has ordered that you eat this food and wine. If you become pale and thin compared to the other youths your age, I am afraid the king will have me beheaded.” |
| 11So Daniel said to the guard whom the chief eunuch had assigned to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, | 11Daniel spoke with the attendant who had been appointed by the chief of staff to look after Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. |
| 12"Please test your servants for ten days. Let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink. | 12“Please test us for ten days on a diet of vegetables and water,” Daniel said. |
| 13Then examine our appearance and the appearance of the young men who are eating the king's food, and deal with your servants based on what you see." | 13“At the end of the ten days, see how we look compared to the other young men who are eating the king’s food. Then make your decision in light of what you see.” |
| 14He agreed with them about this and tested them for ten days. | 14The attendant agreed to Daniel’s suggestion and tested them for ten days. |
| 15At the end of ten days they looked better and healthier than all the young men who were eating the king's food. | 15At the end of the ten days, Daniel and his three friends looked healthier and better nourished than the young men who had been eating the food assigned by the king. |
| 16So the guard continued to remove their food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables. | 16So after that, the attendant fed them only vegetables instead of the food and wine provided for the others. |
| 17God gave these four young men knowledge and understanding in every kind of literature and wisdom. Daniel also understood visions and dreams of every kind. | 17God gave these four young men an unusual aptitude for understanding every aspect of literature and wisdom. And God gave Daniel the special ability to interpret the meanings of visions and dreams. |
| 18At the end of the time that the king had said to present them, the chief eunuch presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. | 18When the training period ordered by the king was completed, the chief of staff brought all the young men to King Nebuchadnezzar. |
| 19The king interviewed them, and among all of them, no one was found equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they began to attend the king. | 19The king talked with them, and no one impressed him as much as Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they entered the royal service. |
| 20In every matter of wisdom and understanding that the king consulted them about, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and mediums in his entire kingdom. | 20Whenever the king consulted them in any matter requiring wisdom and balanced judgment, he found them ten times more capable than any of the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom. |
| 21Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus. | 21Daniel remained in the royal service until the first year of the reign of King Cyrus. |
| The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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