Daniel 3:2
What does Daniel 3:2 mean?
A plain-English look at Daniel 3:2 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Daniel 3:2 means
Following the erection of his golden idol, King Nebuchadnezzar then assembled all the high-ranking officials and administrators from across his vast empire. The purpose of this grand convocation was the dedication ceremony for the image he had created. This gathering of such a diverse and powerful group underscores the significance the king placed on this idol, intending its worship to be a unifying act across all peoples and provinces under his rule. It demonstrated an assertion of his absolute authority over both secular and religious life.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the satraps, the deputies, and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
KJV
King James Version · 1611Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the princes, the governors, and the captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the satraps, the deputies, and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949And Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to get together all the captains, the chiefs, the rulers, the wise men, the keepers of public money, the judges, the overseers, and all the rulers of the divisions of the country, to come to see the unveiling of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had put up.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862and Nebuchadnezzar the king hath sent to gather the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the honourable judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the province, to come to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up.
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752Then Nabuchodonosor, the king, sent to call together the nobles, the magistrates, and the judges, the captains, the rulers, and governors, and all the chief men of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the statue which king Nabuchodonosor had set up.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890And Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the justices, and all the rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
Context
Building on the previous verse, which described the idol's creation, this verse details the king's command for a mass assembly. It highlights the widespread nature of the decree and the importance the king attached to this event. This context is crucial because it shows that the upcoming command to worship would be heard and enforced at the highest levels of Babylonian society, putting immense pressure on any who would dare to dissent.
v.1Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof six cubits: he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon.
v.2This passage
v.3Then the satraps, the deputies, and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, were gathered together unto the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Exodus 32:4
And he received it at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made it a molten calf: and they said, These are thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
- Daniel 6:1
It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps, who should be throughout the whole kingdom;
- Proverbs 29:12
If a ruler hearkeneth to falsehood, All his servants are wicked.
- Daniel 6:6
Then these presidents and satraps assembled together to the king, and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for ever.
- Numbers 25:2
for they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods; and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.
- Revelation 17:2
with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and they that dwell in the earth were made drunken with the wine of her fornication.
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