Daniel 6:2
in Daniel 6and over them three administrators, including Daniel, to whom these satraps were accountable so that the king would not suffer loss.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and over them three presidents, of whom Daniel was one; that these satraps might give account unto them, and that the king should have no damage.
KJV
And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage.
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This verse in Daniel 6
Commentary
8 notes on this verseNormally, in fact, those entrusted with kingship or any other rule confide least in the people closest to their predecessors; but Daniel enjoyed the same trust from all, receiving equal privileges and being entrusted with the same governance—hence, of course, his becoming one of the …
This site's exposition
an hundred and twenty princes
on Daniel 6:1-3
Darius sets an hundred and twenty princes over the kingdom with three presidents above them, Daniel first among the three, and the bench reads the structure as ordinary imperial administration rather than anything unusual for a conquering power organizing a new territory. Daniel is preferred above the presidents and princes because an excellent spirit was in him, the same phrase the queen used of him to Belshazzar in the previous chapter, and the king's plan to set him over the whole kingdom is what triggers everything that follows. Gill notes Daniel's advanced age at this point, likely past eighty, makes the promotion and the envy it provokes all the more remarkable.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
And so Darius, who was called Ahasuerus, received the kingdom and "appointed one-hundred-twenty satraps and appointed three governors over them, whom Daniel was one of, for the satraps to give account that the king may not be overburdened. And Daniel was over them because a spirit abounded in him, and the king appointed him over his whole kingdom." [Daniel 5:31-6:3] For Darius the Mede, after hearing the things concerning him, both the wisdom which he acquired and his faith and piety from childhood, he appointed him to be first of all his friends and to rule all his kingdom, as Pharaoh did, having granted to Joseph second honor of the throne of his kingdom and assigning all the chiefs of the Egyptians to be obedient to him.
The Reformation1 voice
We must notice, in the context of this history, how Daniel alone was chosen by Darius one of these three superior officers. He was the third in rank under king Belshazzar, although for a moment, yet it might occasion envy under the new king that so great an honor was conferred upon him.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Of these three Daniel was chief, because he was found to go beyond them all in all manner of princely qualifications. He was preferred above the presidents and princes (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
And over these three presidents,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Three presidents - Each having forty of these presidents accountable to him for their administration. Daniel was first - As being established over that part where was the seat of government. He was confirmed in his offices by Darius.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
And over these, three presidents - סרכין sârekı̂yn. This word is found only in the plural. The etymology is uncertain, but its meaning is not doubtful. The word president expresses it with sufficient accuracy, denoting a high officer that presided over others. It is not improbable that these presided over distinct departments, corresponding somewhat to what are now called “secretaries” - as Secretaries of State, of the Treasury, of Foreign Affairs, etc., though this is not particularly specified. Of whom Daniel was first - First in rank. This office he probably held from the rank which he was known to have occupied under the kings of Babylon, and on account of his reputation for ability and integrity. That the princes might give accounts unto them - Be immediately responsible to them; the accounts of their own administration, and of the state of the empire. And the king should have no damage - Either in the loss of revenue, or in any maladministration of the affairs. Compare Ezr 4:13. “They pay not toll, tribute, and custom, and so thou shalt endamage the revenue of the kings.” The king was regarded as the source of all power, and as in fact the supreme proprietor of the realm, and any malfeasance or malversation in office was regarded as an injury to him.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
And Darius the Mede received the kingdom at the age of sixty-two Why does he count his years? To tell you that on the day that Nebuchadnezzar entered the Heichal in the days of Jehoiachin, his adversary, Darius, was born (Seder Olam ch. 28).
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 2 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
19 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְעֵ֤לָּא | veela' | and above | H5924 → | |
| מִנְּהוֹן֙ | minehon | more than them | H4481 → | 109 times |
| סָרְכִ֣ין | sarekhin | overseers | H5632 → | 5 times |
| תְּלָתָ֔א | telata' | three | H8532 → | 11 times |
| דִּ֥י | di | whom | H1768 → | 345 times |
| דָנִיֵּ֖אל | daniyel | Daniel | H1841 → | 57 times |
| חַֽד־ | chad- | [was] one | H2298 → | 14 times |
| מִנְּה֑וֹן | minehon | of them | H4481 → | 109 times |
| דִּֽי־ | di- | whom | H1768 → | 345 times |
| לֶהֱוֹ֞ן | lehevon | they will be | H1934 → | 71 times |
| אֲחַשְׁדַּרְפְּנַיָּ֣א | ʾachashdarpenaiya' | satraps the | H324 → | 9 times |
| אִלֵּ֗ין | ʾilein | these | H459 → | 5 times |
| יָהֲבִ֤ין | yahavin | giving | H3052 → | 28 times |
| לְהוֹן֙ | lehon | to <the> them | ||
| טַעְמָ֔א | ta'ma' | report the | H2941 → | |
| וּמַלְכָּ֖א | umalka' | and king the | H4430 → | 180 times |
| לָֽא־ | la'- | not | H3809 → | 82 times |
| לֶהֱוֵ֥א | leheve' | he will be | H1934 → | 71 times |
| נָזִֽק׃ | nazik | suffering injury | H5142 → |
וְעֵ֤לָּאand above
veela'H5924 →
מִנְּהוֹן֙more than them
minehonH4481 →109 times
סָרְכִ֣יןoverseers
sarekhinH5632 →5 times
תְּלָתָ֔אthree
telata'H8532 →11 times
דִּ֥יwhom
diH1768 →345 times
דָנִיֵּ֖אלDaniel
daniyelH1841 →57 times
חַֽד־[was] one
chad-H2298 →14 times
מִנְּה֑וֹןof them
minehonH4481 →109 times
דִּֽי־whom
di-H1768 →345 times
לֶהֱוֹ֞ןthey will be
lehevonH1934 →71 times
אֲחַשְׁדַּרְפְּנַיָּ֣אsatraps the
ʾachashdarpenaiya'H324 →9 times
אִלֵּ֗יןthese
ʾileinH459 →5 times
יָהֲבִ֤יןgiving
yahavinH3052 →28 times
לְהוֹן֙to <the> them
lehon
טַעְמָ֔אreport the
ta'ma'H2941 →
וּמַלְכָּ֖אand king the
umalka'H4430 →180 times
לָֽא־not
la'-H3809 →82 times
לֶהֱוֵ֥אhe will be
leheve'H1934 →71 times
נָזִֽק׃suffering injury
nazikH5142 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Daniel 5:29Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel in purple, placed a gold chain around his neck, and proclaimed him the third highest ruler in the kingdom.
it leads to
- Daniel 5:7
The king called out for the enchanters, astrologers, and diviners to be brought in, and he said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this inscription and tells me its interpretation will be…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Daniel 5:16
But I have heard about you, that you are able to give interpretations and solve difficult problems. Therefore, if you can read this inscription and give me its interpretation, you will be clothed in…
- Daniel 5:7
Through
Esther 7:4For my people and I have been sold out to destruction, death, and annihilation. If we had merely been sold as menservants and maidservants, I would have remained silent, because no such distress would…
it leads to
- Esther 3:9
If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will deposit ten thousand talents of silver into the royal treasury to pay those who carry it out.”
- Deuteronomy 28:68
The LORD will return you to Egypt in ships by a route that I said you should never see again. There you will sell yourselves to your enemies as male and female slaves, but…
- Esther 3:13
And the letters were sent by couriers to each of the royal provinces with the order to destroy, kill, and annihilate all the Jews—young and old, women and children—and to plunder their possessions on…
- Esther 8:11
By these letters the king permitted the Jews in each and every city the right to assemble and defend themselves, to destroy, kill, and annihilate all the forces of any people or province hostile…
- Esther 3:9
Through
Daniel 5:16But I have heard about you, that you are able to give interpretations and solve difficult problems. Therefore, if you can read this inscription and give me its interpretation, you will be clothed in…
it leads to
- Daniel 5:29
Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel in purple, placed a gold chain around his neck, and proclaimed him the third highest ruler in the kingdom.
- Genesis 40:8
“We both had dreams,” they replied, “but there is no one to interpret them.” Then Joseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.”
- Daniel 5:29
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Daniel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Daniel; Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 3.19.1-2; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Theodoret of Cyrus, COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 6:1-2.