Bible Gateway passage: Daniel 1 - New International Version (2025)

Daniel’s Training in Babylon

1In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim^(A) king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar^(B) king of Babylon^(C) came to Jerusalem and besieged it.^{(D) 2}And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the articles from the temple of God. These he carried^(E) off to the temple of his god in Babylonia^[a] and put in the treasure house of his god.^(F)

³Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring into the king’s service some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility^(G)— ⁴young men without any physical defect, handsome,^(H) showing aptitude for every kind of learning,^(I) well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the language^(J) and literature of the Babylonians.^{[b] 5}The king assigned them a daily amount of food and wine^(K) from the king’s table.^(L) They were to be trained for three years,^(M) and after that they were to enter the king’s service.^(N)

⁶Among those who were chosen were some from Judah: Daniel,^(O) Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.^{(P) 7}The chief official gave them new names: to Daniel, the name Belteshazzar;^(Q) to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.^(R)

⁸But Daniel resolved not to defile^(S) himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. ⁹Now God had caused the official to show favor^(T) and compassion^(U) to Daniel, ¹⁰but the official told Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned your^[c] food and drink.^(V) Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men your age? The king would then have my head because of you.”

¹¹Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, ¹²“Please test^(W) your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. ¹³Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.”^{(X) 14}So he agreed to this and tested^(Y) them for ten days.

¹⁵At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food.^{(Z) 16}So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.^(AA)

¹⁷To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding^(AB) of all kinds of literature and learning.^(AC) And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds.^(AD)

¹⁸At the end of the time^(AE) set by the king to bring them into his service, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. ¹⁹The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service.^{(AF) 20}In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians^(AG) and enchanters in his whole kingdom.^(AH)

²¹And Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.^(AI)

Footnotes

1. Daniel 1:2 Hebrew Shinar
2. Daniel 1:4 Or Chaldeans
3. Daniel 1:10 The Hebrew for your and you in this verse is plural.

Cross references

1. Daniel 1:1 : S Jer 46:2
2. Daniel 1:1 : S 2Ki 24:1; S Jer 28:14
3. Daniel 1:1 : Jer 50:1
4. Daniel 1:1 : 2Ki 24:1; S 2Ch 36:6; Jer 35:11
5. Daniel 1:2 : S 2Ki 24:13
6. Daniel 1:2 : S 2Ch 36:7; Jer 27:19-20; Zec 5:5-11
7. Daniel 1:3 : S 2Ki 20:18; S 24:15; Isa 39:7
8. Daniel 1:4 : S Ge 39:6
9. Daniel 1:4 : ver 17
10. Daniel 1:4 : S Ezr 4:7
11. Daniel 1:5 : ver 8, 10
12. Daniel 1:5 : S Est 2:9
13. Daniel 1:5 : ver 18
14. Daniel 1:5 : ver 19; S Est 2:5-6
15. Daniel 1:6 : S Eze 14:14
16. Daniel 1:6 : Da 2:17, 25
17. Daniel 1:7 : Da 2:26; 4:8; 5:12; 10:1
18. Daniel 1:7 : S Isa 39:7; Da 2:49; 3:12
19. Daniel 1:8 : S Eze 4:13-14
20. Daniel 1:9 : S Ge 39:21; S Pr 16:7
21. Daniel 1:9 : S 1Ki 8:50
22. Daniel 1:10 : ver 5
23. Daniel 1:12 : Rev 2:10
24. Daniel 1:13 : ver 16
25. Daniel 1:14 : Rev 2:10
26. Daniel 1:15 : Ex 23:25
27. Daniel 1:16 : ver 12-13
28. Daniel 1:17 : S Job 12:13
29. Daniel 1:17 : Da 2:23; Col 1:9; Jas 1:5
30. Daniel 1:17 : Da 2:19, 30; 5:11; 7:1; 8:1
31. Daniel 1:18 : ver 5
32. Daniel 1:19 : S Ge 41:46
33. Daniel 1:20 : S Ge 41:8
34. Daniel 1:20 : S 1Ki 4:30; Est 2:15; S Eze 28:3; Da 2:13, 28; 4:18; 6:3
35. Daniel 1:21 : S 2Ch 36:22; Da 6:28; 10:1