Daniel 2:12

Old Testament Major Prophet ASV (1901)

What does Daniel 2:12 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.
Daniel 2:12 — American Standard Version

Context — Daniel 2

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
12For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“For this cause the king was angry, and very furious, etc.] Not only because they could not tell his dream, and the interpretation of it; but because they represented him as requiring a thing unreasonable and impossible, which had never been done by any potentate but himself, and could never be answered but by the gods: this threw him into an excess of wrath and fury; which in those tyrannical and despotic princes was exceeding great and terrible: and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon; not only those that were now in his presence, but all others; concluding from this instance that they were an useless set of men, yea, deceivers and impostors.”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Daniel and his companions do not seem to have been actually numbered among the Magi or Chaldeans, and so were not summoned before the king. Providence ordered it so that all mere human wisdom should be shown vain before His divine power, through His servant, was put forth. Dan 2:24 shows that the decree for slaying the wise men had not been actually executed when Daniel interposed.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“For this cause the king was angry - Because they failed in explaining the subject which had been referred to them. It is true that his anger was unjust, for their profession did not imply that they would undertake to explain what he demanded, but his wrath was not unnatural. His mind was alarmed, and he was troubled. He believed that what he had seen in his dream foreboded some important events, and, as an arbitrary sovereign, unaccustomed to restrain his anger or to inquire into the exact jusrice of matters which excited Iris indignation, it was not unnatural that he should resolve to wreak his vengeance on all who made any pretensions to the arts of divining. And very furious - Wrought up…”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“2:12 The king was furious because contradicting or refusing the king’s command was an offense punishable by death. The king was supposed to be treated as divine, so they were violating protocol in saying that he was not. The king’s sages were also supposed to have a connection with the divine, but they admitted that they did not. The offense to the king was so severe that he ordered that all the wise men of Babylon be executed. The king’s rage foreshadows 11:11-35.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“Dan 3:13; Job 5:2; Psa 76:10; Pro 16:14, Pro 19:12, Pro 20:2, Pro 27:3, Pro 27:4, Pro 29:22; Mat 2:16; Mat 5:22 Daniel 2:13”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification