Daniel 2:48

Daniel 2:48

Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.

a. ASV: Then the king made Daniel great, and gave him many great gifts, and made him to rule over the whole province of Babylon, and to be chief governor over all the wise men of Babylon.

b. YLT: Then the king hath made Daniel great, and many great gifts he hath given to him, and hath caused him to rule over all the province of Babylon, and chief of the perfects over all the wise men of Babylon.

c. Classic Amplified: Then the king made Daniel great and gave him many great gifts, and he made him to rule over the whole province of Babylon and to be chief governor over all the wise men of Babylon.

d. Septuagint: And the king promoted Daniel, and gave him great and abundant gifts, and set him over the whole province of Babylon, and [made him] chief satrap over all the wise men of Babylon.

e. Stone Edition Torah/Prophets/ Writings: Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts. He empowered him as ruler over the entire land of babylon and chief official over all the sages of Babylonia.

1. “Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts

a. Then [Strong: 116 ʼĕdayin, ed-ah'-yin; (Aramaic) of uncertain derivation; then (of time):—now, that time, then.]

b. [the] king [Strong: 4430 melek, meh'-lek; (Aramaic) corresponding to H4428; a king:—king, royal.]

c. [made] Daniel [Strong: 1841 melek, meh'-lek; (Aramaic) corresponding to H4428; a king:—king, royal.]

d. [a] great [man] [Strong: 7236 rᵉbâh, reb-aw'; (Aramaic) corresponding to H7235:—make a great man, grow.

e. [and] gave [him] [Strong: 3052 rᵉbâh, reb-aw'; (Aramaic) corresponding to H7235:—make a great man, grow.]

f. many [Strong: 7690 saggîyʼ, sag-ghee'; (Aramaic) corresponding to H7689; large (in size, quantity or number, also adverbial):—exceeding, great(-ly); many, much, sore, very.]

g. great [Strong: 7260 rabrab, rab-rab'; (Aramaic) from H7229; huge (in size); domineering (in character):—(very) great (things).]

h. gifts [Strong: 4978 mattᵉnâʼ, mat-ten-aw'; (Aramaic) corresponding to H4979:—gift.]

2. “...and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon…”

a. [and made him] ruler [Strong: 7981 shᵉlêṭ, shel-ate'; (Aramaic) corresponding to H7980:—have the mastery, have power, bear rule, be (make) ruler.]

b. over [Strong: 5922 ʻal, al; (Aramaic) corresponding to H5921:—about, against, concerning, for, (there-) fore, from, in, × more, of, (there-, up-) on, (in-) to, why with.]

c. [the] whole [Strong: 3605 kôl, kole; (Aramaic) corresponding to H3605:—all, any, (forasmuch) as, be-(for this) cause, every, no (manner, -ne), there (where) -fore, though, what (where, who) -soever, (the) whole.]

d. province [Strong: 4083 mᵉdîynâh, med-ee-naw'; (Aramaic) corresponding to H4082:—province.]

e. [of] Babylon [Strong: 895 Babel, baw-bel'; (Aramaic) corresponding to H894:—Babylon.]

3. “…and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.”

a. [and] chief [Strong: 7229 rab rab (Aramaic) corresponding to 7227:--captain, chief, great, lord, master, stout.] [Gesenius: great, great, great (fig of power) captain, chief.]

b. wise [Strong: 2445  chakkiym khak-keem' (Aramaic) from a root corresponding to 2449; wise, i.e. a Magian:--wise.]

1). Daniel was promoted to this position because of his faithfulness in telling Nebuchadnezzar the content of his dream and the interpretation Daniel 2:1-45). On two other occasions Daniel is referred to by this title, once by Nebuchadnezzar and once by the Queen of Babylon. 

a). Daniel 4:9 O Belteshazzar, master of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in thee, and no secret troubleth thee, tell me the visions of my dream that I have seen, and the interpretation thereof.

(1) master [Strong: 7229 rab rab (Aramaic) corresponding to 7227:--captain, chief, great, lord, master, stout.] [Gesenius: great, great, great (fig of power) captain, chief.]

2). Daniel 5:10, 11 Now the queen by reason of the words of the king and his lords came into the banquet house: and the queen spake and said, O king, live for ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed:

5:11 There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king Nebuchadnezzar thy father, the king, I say, thy father, made master of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers;

a). master [Strong: 7229 rab rab (Aramaic) corresponding to 7227:--captain, chief, great, lord, master, stout.] [Gesenius: great, great, great (fig of power) captain, chief.]

3). There is reference to a similar use of words in Jeremiah in telling of Jeremiah’s rescue after the fall of Jerusalem.

a). Jeremiah 39:13  So Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard sent, and Nebushasban, Rabsaris, and Nergalsharezer, Rabmag, and all the king of Babylon's princes;

b). Rabmag [7248 * rabmag] [Gesenius: soothsayer, magician, chief soothsayer

Rab-mag, chief soothsayer, or chief of princes, an official of Babylonia.][Strong: from 'rab' (7227) and a foreign word for a Magian; chief Magian; Rab-Mag, a Bab. official:--Rab-mag.]

4). Daniel’s influence over this group can be seen hundreds of years later at the birth of Christ.

a). Matthew 2:1, 2 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

5). Who were the Magi, Chuck Missler: “The ancient Magi were a hereditary priesthood of the Medes …credited with profound and extraordinary religious knowledge. After some Magi, who had been attached to the Median court, proved to be expert in the interpretation of dreams, Darius the Great established them over the state religion of Persia…It was in this dual capacity, whereby civil and political counsel was invested with religious authority, that the Magi became the supreme priestly caste of the Persian empire and continued to be prominent during the subsequent Seleucid, Parthian, and Sasanian periods. One of the titles given to Daniel was Rab-mag, the Chief of the Magi (Daniel 4:9; 5:11). His unusual career included being a principal administrator in two world empires, the Babylonian and the subsequent Persian Empire. When Darius appointed him, a Jew, over the previously hereditary Median priesthood, the resulting repercussions led to the plots involving the ordeal of the lions den, (Daniel 6). Daniel apparently entrusted a Messianic vision (to be announced in due time by a “star”) to a secret sect of the Magi for its eventual fulfillment. It was at this time (the time of Christ), that the Magi, in their dual priestly and governmental office, composed the upper house of the Council of the Megistanes (from which we get the term “magistrates”), whose duties included the absolute choice and selection of the king of the realm. It was, therefore a group of Persian-Parthian “king-makers” who entered Jerusalem in the latter days of Herod. Herod’s reaction was understandably one of fear when one considers the background of Roman-Parthian rivalry that prevailed during his lifetime…In Jerusalem, the sudden appearance of the Magi, probably traveling in force with all imaginable oriental pomp and accompanied by an adequate cavalry escort to insure their safe penetration of Roman territory, certainly alarmed Herod and the populace of Jerusalem.