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Daniel and his friends in Babylon

Daniel 1:1–21

Fact-checked · Version 1 · Revised · How this page was madedrafting: Merged by an editor from two drafts, each written independently from a verified research ledger (docs/trials/daniel-in-babylon); every fact-bearing item cites the ledger claims it relies onreview: The research ledger was checked independently before writing, and the two drafts were compared in a blind editorial review whose fixes are applied here; fact-check of the merged text pending

Daniel refuses royal food; the chapter credits God with favour and learning. The siege date and castration raise separate questions.11 sources11 sources1. Daniel 1:8–162. Daniel 1:23. Daniel 1:94. Daniel 1:175. (1975)6. (1975)7. Josephus8. Millard 19779. Daniel 1:3–410. Daniel 1:711. Daniel 1:18

At Babylon's court, Daniel and his friends are trained and given new names, but Daniel refuses the king's food and wine as defiling, though the chapter never explains why. After ten days on vegetables and water, the four look healthier and enter royal service. The chapter credits God with Jehoiakim's defeat, Daniel's favour and the youths' learning. Its siege date can be made to fit other dates only on certain assumptions, with no record from the time confirming it in the sources checked; the chapter does not say the youths were castrated.

The chapter credits God with Jehoiakim's defeat, Daniel's favour and the youths' learning, but does not explain why the food would defile Daniel. Its siege date can be made to fit other dates only on certain assumptions, and no record from the time confirms it in the sources checked. The chapter does not say the youths were castrated.

At a glance

The story in one breath

  1. Daniel 1:1–2 Nebuchadnezzar besieges Jerusalem in Jehoiakim's third year.
  2. Daniel 1:8–14 Daniel decides not to defile himself with the royal food and wine. · Turning point
  3. Daniel 1:17–20 God gives all four learning and wisdom; Daniel also receives insight into visions and dreams.

Daniel 1:8 Daniel 1:17

  • Jewish. Ibn Ezra connected the wine to libations poured to their gods; Malbim held that Daniel suspected the food and wine of being idolatrous sacrifices and libation wine.
  • Protestant. Calvin denied that the food was unclean in itself: Daniel resisted court luxury and reminded himself he was an exile.

What history can tell us

What the text narrates

Claims about the text

Claims others made

Theological claims

Hard questions

One common misunderstanding: It names no cause.

Who, where, when
Who
DanielNebuchadnezzarJehoiakimShadrachMeshachCyrusAshpenaz
Where
BabylonJerusalemShinar
When set
Nebuchadnezzar besieges Jerusalem in Jehoiakim's third year at the start of the story; the chapter ends by mentioning Cyrus's first year.
When written
Driver dated the book to 168–165 BC; Keil and Pusey argued that Daniel wrote it during the exile. Gigot reported Catholic support for this traditional view in 1908, so his account is not a current survey.8 sources8 sources12. Daniel 1:113. Daniel 1:2114. Daniel 10:115. Jerome16. Rashi17. Driver 190018. Gigot 190819. Millard 1977
Reading time
3 min · 510 BSB words in the main passage
How to read this page
Text what the text saysTradition later interpretationEvidence what has been foundScholarship inference; scholars differ1 numbered source

Read with these questions

As you read, distinguish the reasons the narrator gives from reasons you supply for the food refusal.1

Read the passage

Text
Daniel 1:1–21

1:1In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2And the Lord delivered into his hand Jehoiakim king of Judah, along with some of the articles from the house of God. He carried these off to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, where he put them in the treasury of his god. 3Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, the chief of his court officials, to bring in some Israelites from the royal family and the nobility— 4young men without blemish, handsome, gifted in all wisdom, knowledgeable, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace—and to teach them the language and literature of the Chaldeans. 5The king assigned them daily provisions of the royal food and wine. They were to be trained for three years, after which they were to enter the king’s service. 6Among these young men were some from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

Continue reading (15 more verses)

1:7The chief official gave them new names: To Daniel he gave the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego. 8But Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself with the king’s food or wine. So he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself. 9Now God had granted Daniel favor and compassion from the chief official, 10but he said to Daniel, “I fear my lord the king, who has assigned your food and drink. For why should he see your faces looking thinner than those of the other young men your age? You would endanger my head before the king!” 11Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, 12“Please test your servants for ten days. Let us be given only vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13Then compare our appearances with those of the young men who are eating the royal food, and deal with your servants according to what you see.” 14So he consented to this and tested them for ten days. 15And at the end of ten days, they looked healthier and better nourished than all the young men who were eating the king’s food. 16So the steward continued to withhold their choice food and the wine they were to drink, and he gave them vegetables instead. 17To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding in every kind of literature and wisdom. And Daniel had insight into all kinds of visions and dreams. 18Now at the end of the time specified by the king, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19And the king spoke with them, and among all the young men he found no one equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they entered the king’s service. 20In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom. 21And Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.

Read it in the chapter reader →Compare translations and the original words →

The story, step by step

Text

A faithful retelling, step by step. Nothing added, nothing smoothed over.

  1. Daniel 1:1–2

    Nebuchadnezzar besieges Jerusalem in Jehoiakim's third year. The narrator says the Lord hands Jehoiakim and some temple vessels over to him. The vessels are taken to his god's treasury in Shinar.

    Read it in context

    1:1In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2And the Lord delivered into his hand Jehoiakim king of Judah, along with some of the articles from the house of God. He carried these off to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, where he put them in the treasury of his god.

  2. Daniel 1:3–7

    The king tells Ashpenaz, chief of his sārîsîm, to bring young Israelites from royal and noble families who have no blemish. They are to study Chaldean literature and language for three years, with royal food and wine. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah are among them; the chief official gives them the names Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.

    Read it in context

    1:3Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, the chief of his court officials, to bring in some Israelites from the royal family and the nobility— 4young men without blemish, handsome, gifted in all wisdom, knowledgeable, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace—and to teach them the language and literature of the Chaldeans. 5The king assigned them daily provisions of the royal food and wine. They were to be trained for three years, after which they were to enter the king’s service. 6Among these young men were some from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. 7The chief official gave them new names: To Daniel he gave the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.

  3. Daniel 1:8–14

    Daniel decides not to defile himself with the royal food and wine. God gives him favour with the chief official, who still fears for his life. Daniel asks the steward to compare the four with the other youths after ten days of vegetables and water, and the steward agrees.

    Read it in context

    1:8But Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself with the king’s food or wine. So he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself. 9Now God had granted Daniel favor and compassion from the chief official, 10but he said to Daniel, “I fear my lord the king, who has assigned your food and drink. For why should he see your faces looking thinner than those of the other young men your age? You would endanger my head before the king!” 11Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, 12“Please test your servants for ten days. Let us be given only vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13Then compare our appearances with those of the young men who are eating the royal food, and deal with your servants according to what you see.” 14So he consented to this and tested them for ten days.

  4. Daniel 1:15–16

    After ten days, the four look healthier and better fed than the youths eating royal food. The steward keeps giving them vegetables instead of the royal food and wine.

    Read it in context

    1:15And at the end of ten days, they looked healthier and better nourished than all the young men who were eating the king’s food. 16So the steward continued to withhold their choice food and the wine they were to drink, and he gave them vegetables instead.

Continue the retelling (2 more paragraphs)

  1. Daniel 1:17–20

    God gives all four learning and wisdom; Daniel also receives insight into visions and dreams. When their training ends, Nebuchadnezzar finds no one equal to them and brings them into his service. He judges them ten times better than his magicians and enchanters.

    Read it in context

    1:17To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding in every kind of literature and wisdom. And Daniel had insight into all kinds of visions and dreams. 18Now at the end of the time specified by the king, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19And the king spoke with them, and among all the young men he found no one equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they entered the king’s service. 20In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom.

  2. Daniel 1:21

    Daniel remains until King Cyrus's first year, according to Daniel 1:21.

    Read it in context

    21And Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.

The world of the story

Later testimony about captives Evidence

Berossus, a Babylonian priest-historian writing about three centuries later and known only through JosephusJosephusA Jewish historian (37–after 100 CE), according to Steve Mason and the Jewish Encyclopedia. Mason explains that his Antiquities, completed in 93/94 CE, retells Judean history from creation to the eve of the war against Rome.From: Mason; Mason; Gottheil; Mason; MasonAll terms →'s quotation, says Nebuchadnezzar, hurrying home at his father's death, left captives from the Jews and others to be brought to Babylonia. He names no siege of Jerusalem.7 27

The competing year numbers Text

Daniel places the siege in Jehoiakim's third year; Jeremiah equates Jehoiakim's fourth year with Nebuchadnezzar's first and places Carchemish in that fourth year. 2 Kings 24:1 says Jehoiakim served Nebuchadnezzar three years and then rebelled; 2 Chronicles 36:6–7 reports his fettering and the removal of temple vessels. Neither gives a regnal year.5 sources5 sources12. Daniel 1:128. Jeremiah 25:129. Jeremiah 46:230. 2 Kings 24:131. 2 Chronicles 36:6–7

Show 4 more background topics (The new names; Refusal without an explanation; Why interpreters ask about eunuchs…)

The new names Scholarship

RashiRashiA French commentator on the Bible and Talmud (1040–1105), also named Rabbi Solomon ben Isaac, who was born and died at Troyes, according to the Jewish Encyclopedia.From: JacobsAll terms → says Belteshazzar was named after Bel, Babylon's god. Montgomery took Shadrach and Abednego as deliberate distortions of names containing Marduk and Nebo; BDB glosses Abednego "servant of (God) Nebo". Millard, reporting the Assyriologist Berger, explains the names from Babylonian naming practice without assuming alteration and prefers Belet-sar-usur, "Lady, protect the king", for Belteshazzar.8 sources8 sources10. Daniel 1:732. Rashi33. Montgomery 192734. Montgomery 192735. this site's data36. Driver 190037. Ezra38. Millard 1977

Refusal without an explanation Text

The chapter calls the royal food and wine defiling for Daniel but names no law, idols, blood or unclean animals. Wine is not forbidden in the TorahTorahHebrew for “instruction, teaching”; Christophe Nihan and Julia Rhyder describe it as the main ancient Israelite name for the Genesis–Deuteronomy collection.From: Nihan; JacobsAll terms →, which is one reason interpreters reach for libations or idolatry.1

Court tales under foreign rule Scholarship

In academic (critical) scholarship, Collins (2003), summarising Seow, describes Daniel 2–6 as court tales modelling situations the faithful may meet under foreign rule, with Joseph and Esther as models. He distinguishes them from the apocalyptic genre of chapters 7–12.42

Where it fits

Where else Scripture speaks of it

Text
  • Jeremiah 25:1 Jeremiah 25:1 equates Jehoiakim's fourth year with Nebuchadnezzar's first, which is why a siege in Jehoiakim's third year (Daniel 1:1) looks too early.

    1This is the word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.

    Read in context →

  • Isaiah 39:7 Jewish and Christian interpreters connect this verse with Daniel and his friends as members of the royal line.

    7And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood, will be taken away to be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”

    Read in context →

  • Daniel 2:1 The dream is dated to Nebuchadnezzar's second year, apparently within the three-year training. JeromeJeromeA Latin Church Father associated with the Vulgate, born in the fourth century and deceased in 420. Birth dates differ: Louis Saltet gives about 340–342, while Dionisio Candido gives 347.From: Saltet; CandidoAll terms → reported a Jewish answer, counting from his rule over all nations; Keil took "king" in chapter 1 as proleptic; Montgomery lists it as a difficulty.

    1In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams that troubled his spirit, and sleep escaped him.

    Read in context →

Show 1 more passages
  • Daniel 10:1 Daniel 10:1 dates a revelation to Cyrus's third year. Jerome noticed the tension with 1:21, and Montgomery counts the book's regnal dates among its difficulties; Ibn EzraIbn EzraA Spanish Jewish scholar (born 1092–1093, died 1167), according to the Jewish Encyclopedia. Steven McKenzie names him among twelfth-century readers who suspected that several documents lay behind the Bible’s first books.From: Gottheil; Gottheil; McKenzieAll terms → read 1:21 as "he was in Babylon until", Rashi as "in greatness".

    1In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia, a message was revealed to Daniel, who was called Belteshazzar. The message was true, and it concerned a great conflict. And the understanding of the message was given to him in a vision.

    Read in context →

How the traditions read it

Tradition

How different traditions have read the story, in their own terms.

Jewish · Medieval and modern commentators

Ibn Ezra connected the wine to libations poured to their gods; Malbim held that Daniel suspected the food and wine of being idolatrous sacrifices and libation wine. These explain a motive the narrative leaves unstated.44 45 1

Protestant · Reformed — Calvin and Matthew Henry

CalvinJohn CalvinA Protestant reformer (1509–1564) who settled in Geneva in 1536, with an interval away, according to the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica. Alongside the Institutes of the Christian Religion, he wrote commentaries on Scripture.From: Alexander; Alexander; Alexander; Alexander; AlexanderAll terms → denied that the food was unclean in itself: Daniel resisted court luxury and reminded himself he was an exile. Matthew HenryMatthew HenryAn English nonconformist minister and Bible commentator (1662–1714), according to the Dictionary of National Biography. He began his Exposition of the Old and New Testament in 1704.From: Gordon; GordonAll terms → gave three reasons: the food might be forbidden or offered to an idol, it might breed love of Babylon's pleasures, and feasting was unfitting while Jerusalem suffered.46 47

Early church: Latin · Early church, Latin — Jerome

Jerome praised Daniel for preferring humble fare to royal delicacies, and held that the youths studied Chaldean learning in order to judge and refute it, as Moses learned Egypt's wisdom.48 49

Show 5 more interpretations (Orthodox, Academic (critical), Jewish…)

Orthodox · Orthodox Church in America — liturgical life

The Orthodox Church commemorates the Prophet Daniel on December 17; the Orthodox Church in America's life of Daniel says the youths, holding to their faith, disdained the court's extravagance. It gives no purity-law reason.50 51

Academic (critical) · Critical — Driver

Driver offered possibilities, not reasons the passage gives: the meat might be improperly slaughtered or from forbidden animals, and meat and wine might have been consecrated to Babylonian gods.52 53 1

Jewish · Medieval disagreement about the result

Ibn Ezra reports that Saadia Gaon called the healthier appearance a great miracle, and answers that no miracle was needed, since they could have been eating nourishing rice. The text reports the result without saying whether it was natural or miraculous.54 55

Academic (critical) · Academic (critical) — Collins reporting Seow; Young, Wearne and Caddy

In academic (critical) scholarship, Collins (2003), reporting Seow, dates Daniel to late 164 or early 163 BCE from the mistaken claim about Antiochus Epiphanes' death in Israel (Daniel 11:44–45). Seow regards Daniel 2–6 as pre-Maccabean, suggesting on linguistic grounds that these tales were known by the late fourth or early third century; chapter 1 supplied a Hebrew introduction. Young, Wearne and Caddy (2026), also academic (critical), locate the author's present at the shift from detailed history to apocalyptic symbols in Daniel 11–12.4 sources4 sources56. Daniel 11:44–4557. Collins 200358. Collins 200359. Young 2026

Catholic · Gigot's 1908 report

Gigot's Catholic Encyclopedia article (1908) reported critics' arguments for a Maccabean date, including the Daniel 1:1 dating, and said Catholic scholars generally kept the traditional view, though no Church decision bound them. It does not describe current Catholic scholarship.18

Common misunderstandings

Text

Things people commonly believe the text says, checked against it.

  • A common belief among believers

    Myth The passage explicitly says the royal food and wine were offered to idols.

    Actually It names no cause. Idolatry is an interpretation offered by Ibn Ezra, Malbim and Driver; Calvin offers another.6 sources6 sources1. Daniel 1:8–1644. Ezra45. Wisser)52. Leviticus 11:4–853. Driver 190046. Calvin

  • A common belief among skeptics

    Myth The chronicle's silence proves that the siege never happened.

    Actually The checked chronicle does not record the siege as dated, but its silence is a limited argument, not disproof; nor does that confirm the siege.4 sources4 sources5. (1975)6. (1975)7. Josephus8. Millard 1977

  • A common belief among believers

    Myth The narrator explicitly calls the healthier appearance a miracle.

    Actually The text does not say whether the result was natural or miraculous; Saadia and Ibn Ezra disagreed.55 54

Show 1 more misconceptions

  • A common belief among skeptics

    Myth Daniel 1:1–2 says Jerusalem fell in Jehoiakim's third year.

    Actually It says Nebuchadnezzar came and besieged the city and that the Lord gave Jehoiakim and some vessels into his hand; it does not say the city was captured, as Pusey noted.12 2 60

Words worth a closer look

Text

Where the wording in different Bibles diverges, and why.

Daniel 1:3 · “eunuch / court official” rab sārîsāyw

KJV, ASV and Douay-Rheims say "master of (his) eunuchs" and Brenton's Greek "chief eunuch"; BSB has "chief of his court officials" and JPS 1917 "chief officer". All render the Hebrew rab sārîsāyw. Sārîs can denote a castrated man or a court official: Genesis 39:1 calls Potiphar, who had a wife, a sārîs. The word occurs in 42 verses; its seven in Daniel 1 all belong to the official's title, never to Daniel or his friends.12 sources12 sources61. Daniel 1:362. this site's data63. Genesis 39:164. Genesis 39:765. Calvin66. this site's data67. Montgomery 192768. Montgomery 192769. this site's data9. Daniel 1:3–410. Daniel 1:711. Daniel 1:18

Compare the versions

KJV¶ And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed, and of the princes;

BSBThen the king ordered Ashpenaz, the chief of his court officials, to bring in some Israelites from the royal family and the nobility—

Show all 5 versions

KJV¶ And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed, and of the princes;

DRCAnd the king spoke to Asphenez the master of the eunuchs, that he should bring in some of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed and of the princes,

LXXEAnd the king told Asphanez his chief eunuch, to bring in some of the captive children of Israel, and of the seed of the kingdom, and of the princes;

BSBThen the king ordered Ashpenaz, the chief of his court officials, to bring in some Israelites from the royal family and the nobility—

JPSAnd the king spoke unto Ashpenaz his chief officer, that he should bring in certain of the children of Israel, and of the seed royal, and of the nobles,

Open in compare →

Daniel 1:12 · Daniel 1:16 · “pulse / vegetables” zērōʿîm / zērəʿōnîm

KJV, JPS and Brenton say "pulse"; BSB says "vegetables". The two Hebrew forms each occur only once, and Brenton's Greek has spermata, "seeds". Driver argued for vegetable food generally, not only beans and peas; Rashi glossed a kind of legume.8 sources8 sources70. Daniel 1:1271. Daniel 1:1672. this site's data73. this site's data74. this site's data75. Driver 190076. Rashi77. Rashi

Compare the versions
Daniel 1:12

BSB“Please test your servants for ten days. Let us be given only vegetables to eat and water to drink.

LXXEProve now thy servants ten days; and let them give us pulse, and let us eat, and let us drink water:

Show all 4 versions of 2 verses
Daniel 1:12

KJVProve thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink.

BSB“Please test your servants for ten days. Let us be given only vegetables to eat and water to drink.

JPS'Try thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink.

LXXEProve now thy servants ten days; and let them give us pulse, and let us eat, and let us drink water:

Daniel 1:16

KJVThus Melzar took away the portion of their meat, and the wine that they should drink; and gave them pulse.

BSBSo the steward continued to withhold their choice food and the wine they were to drink, and he gave them vegetables instead.

JPSSo the steward took away their food, and the wine that they should drink, and gave them pulse.

LXXESo Amelsad took away their supper and the wine of their drink, and gave them pulse.

Open in compare →

History and evidence

Evidence

Each historical claim judged on its own, never a verdict on the whole story.

  • No outside evidence · silence partly expected

    The siege of Jerusalem occurred as dated in Daniel 1:1.

    ABC 5 does not record this siege in the 605–604 campaigns; Berossus, preserved much later through Josephus, mentions Jewish captives but no siege.

    Why this verdict

    What the text narrates

    Confidence: high

    ABC 5 does not record this siege in the 605–604 campaigns; Berossus, preserved much later through Josephus, mentions Jewish captives but no siege. Silence is partly expected from a terse chronicle, though it names Ashkelon and later Judah, and Millard warns that silence is a weak objection. The verdict covers only the sources checked here.10 sources10 sources5. (1975)6. (1975)7. Josephus8. Millard 197778. 2 Kings 24:10–1779. (1975)80. (1975)81. Montgomery 192782. Driver 190083. Josephus

    Contested · Historical readings in the sources checked here, not a surveyed field (as of 2026-11-07)

    What would change this verdict: Contemporary evidence explicitly dating this siege.

  • Against

    Daniel's composition belongs to the period in which its opening story is set.

    Academic (critical) Young, Wearne and Caddy (2026) describe mainstream dating as mid-second-century BCE, with older tales combined with Antiochene visions.

    Why this verdict

    Claims about the text

    Confidence: medium

    Academic (critical) Young, Wearne and Caddy (2026) describe mainstream dating as mid-second-century BCE, with older tales combined with Antiochene visions. Conservative evangelical Millard (2012) reports that almost all commentators date composition to the second century; Gooding (1981) calls the second-century, after-the-event reading of the book "the current majority view", which he rejects; Beckwith (2002) says Maccabean dating is commonly assigned. Evangelical Goldingay (1977) accepts Maccabean composition and the book's canonical place. For an earlier date, evangelical Beckwith argues that Tobit, the Book of WatchersWatchersAngels in ancient Jewish and Christian texts who descended, married human women and fathered giants. McKenna Boling says they almost certainly connect to the “sons of God” in Genesis 6.From: Genesis 6:2; Boling; BolingAll terms → and Ecclesiasticus, which he dates before 167 BC, seem to know Daniel's visions and narratives. This depends on those dates and on whether the parallels show dependence.7 sources7 sources59. Young 202684. Millard 201285. Gooding 198186. Beckwith 200287. Beckwith 200288. Goldingay 197789. Goldingay 1977

    Majority view · Modern Daniel scholarship, as characterised by the cited surveys (as of 2026-11-07) · Minority: Traditional and some evangelical scholars (e.g. Beckwith 2002) date the book earlier, arguing from apparent knowledge of Daniel in works they date before 167 BC.

    What would change this verdict: Evidence fixing composition or establishing the dates and literary dependence claimed for earlier witnesses.

  • Mixed

    Interpreters identify the youths as literal eunuchs.

    Josephus, Rav, the Hebrews reported by Jerome, and Pusey support a literal reading; Jerome, Ibn Ezra and Montgomery question or deny it.

    Why this verdict

    Claims others made

    Confidence: high

    Josephus, Rav, the Hebrews reported by Jerome, and Pusey support a literal reading; Jerome, Ibn Ezra and Montgomery question or deny it. In academic scholarship, Araújo (2023) derives sārîs from Akkadian ša rēši and rejects ambiguity about castration in biblical sārîs. He reports majority support for the castration link especially in Assyrian sources, but reports Brinkman's weaker equivalence in Babylonian. Daniel 1 applies the title to the supervising official, not the youths. This records interpretation, not Daniel's castration.24 sources24 sources90. Josephus91. Josephus39. Isaiah 39:792. Talmud93. Talmud94. Jerome95. Pusey 186496. Ezra97. Montgomery 19279. Daniel 1:3–410. Daniel 1:711. Daniel 1:1863. Genesis 39:164. Genesis 39:765. Calvin66. this site's data67. Montgomery 192768. Montgomery 192769. this site's data61. Daniel 1:398. Araújo 202399. Araújo 2023100. Isaiah 56:3–4101. Araújo 2023

    Contested · The named interpreters' readings, not a survey of religious communities (as of 2026-11-07)

  • Outside what evidence can settle

    God gave Jehoiakim into Nebuchadnezzar's hand, gave Daniel favour and gave the four their learning.

    Outside what evidence can settle

    Why this verdict

    Theological claims

    Confidence: high

    Outside what evidence can settle2 3 4

Hard questions

The strongest case, the strongest responses, then a plain assessment of where the logic holds.

Did Nebuchadnezzar besiege Jerusalem in Jehoiakim's third year?

The siege date has a conditional harmonisation but no contemporary attestation in the sources checked here.

See the argument

The strongest case

The competing year numbers and the chronicle's silence challenge the date. Academic (critical) Collins (2003), reviewing Seow, lists it among the usual objections to Babylonian composition. Evangelical Millard (2012) reports that it is commonly treated as error because Babylonian activity so far south before Carchemish is unlikely, though he contests dismissal. In the classic critical reconstruction, Montgomery (1927) derived the date from Chronicles.21 sources21 sources12. Daniel 1:128. Jeremiah 25:129. Jeremiah 46:2102. Jeremiah 36:9103. Jeremiah 36:2982. Driver 190018. Gigot 190883. Josephus104. Montgomery 192781. Montgomery 1927105. Montgomery 192725. (1975)5. (1975)26. (1975)6. (1975)7. Josephus8. Millard 1977106. Millard 1977107. Millard 201257. Collins 2003108. Millard 2012

  1. P1. Daniel dates the siege to Jehoiakim's third year, while Jeremiah dates Carchemish to his fourth and equates that year with Nebuchadnezzar's first.12 28 29
  2. P2. Driver read Jeremiah 36:9 and 36:29 as implying that a Babylonian invasion of Judah was still future in Jehoiakim's fifth year; Josephus says Nebuchadnezzar took all Syria after Carchemish except Judea.5 sources5 sources102. Jeremiah 36:9103. Jeremiah 36:2982. Driver 190018. Gigot 190883. JosephusNo listed response challenges this premise
  3. P3. No reckoning that removes the one-year gap is independently established. Millard notes there is no certainty how Judah reckoned regnal years, and judged that without an accession-year and autumn New Year count an error in Daniel's figure is probably unavoidable.5 sources5 sources28. Jeremiah 25:129. Jeremiah 46:28. Millard 1977106. Millard 1977109. Wisser)
  4. P4. The checked contemporary chronicle does not record the siege in the 605–604 campaigns.4 sources4 sources5. (1975)6. (1975)7. Josephus8. Millard 1977

→ Conclusion. Daniel 1:1's third-year date is probably an error, which Montgomery traced to combining Chronicles with the "three years" of 2 Kings 24:1.

Strongest responses

Protestant challenges P3

Different ways of counting regnal years. Millard (1977; repeated in 2012) argues that only autumn New Year and accession-year reckoning extend Jehoiakim's third year to October 605 BC, just accommodating Daniel 1:1; otherwise an error is probably unavoidable. He finds Jeremiah 25:1 consistent with this reckoning but concedes difficulty with Jeremiah 46:2. The calendar remains conditional.4 sources4 sources12. Daniel 1:1110. Millard 197728. Jeremiah 25:129. Jeremiah 46:2

Jewish challenges P3

Two reckonings of the same reign. Malbim noted the conflict with Jeremiah 25:1 and proposed that Jehoiakim may have become king in Adar and been credited a year at Nisan, so that different reckonings give different year numbers: a possible harmonisation, not an established accession month.109

Protestant challenges P4

Silence does not settle the event. Millard (1977) calls missing corroboration a weak objection. In 2012 he proposes a Babylonian threat and hostages at Jerusalem in the weeks after Carchemish. He considers activity in Judah before that battle unlikely under Egyptian control. This reconstruction does not independently attest the siege.110 108 111

Jewish challenges P1

Other readings of "the third year". Rashi reads the date as the third year of Jehoiakim's rebellion, by Seder Olam's count his eleventh year. Ibn Ezra rejects that and counts from Jehoiakim's enthronement by Pharaoh: besieged in the third year, taken at the start of the fourth, Nebuchadnezzar's first.112 113

Protestant challenges P1

Setting out, or a siege before Carchemish. Keil argued that bōʾ in 1:1 means "set out", not "arrive": Nebuchadnezzar set out in the third year and took Jerusalem in the fourth, after Carchemish. Pusey placed the first siege in the third year, before Carchemish.114 115 60

Academic (critical) No premise or conclusion challenged

Weighing the harmonisations. Driver judged "set out" for "came" against Hebrew usage, an attack before Carchemish possible but not strategically probable, and one after it, ending in submission, not rejectable outright but scarcely consistent with the historical situation.82

No known response in these sources

  • Catholic: no response researched in these sources
  • Orthodox: no response researched in these sources

Plain assessment

The checked chronicle neither establishes the dated siege nor refutes it by silence. Collins, reporting Seow, lists the date among objections to Babylonian composition. Millard's calendar remains conditional, with Jeremiah 46:2 difficult; his proposed threat and hostages after Carchemish supply a possible reconstruction, not independent attestation.

What would change this assessment: A securely dated siege record, or firm evidence of how Judah counted regnal years.

Assessment uses: The siege of Jerusalem occurred as dated in Daniel 1:1. · Academic (critical) · Different ways of counting regnal years · Weighing the harmonisations · What the Babylonian chronicle records · The competing year numbers · Silence does not settle the event

Was Daniel a eunuch?

The chapter does not establish that Daniel was castrated, and the cited interpretations do not settle it.

See the argument

The strongest case

Royal youths are placed under the chief sārîs; Isaiah foretells sārîsîm among Hezekiah's descendants. Josephus says some youths were made eunuchs; Rav and the Hebrews reported by Jerome support a literal reading. Pusey (1864) concludes that the prophecy was fulfilled in Daniel himself.27 sources27 sources116. Daniel 1:3–669. this site's data61. Daniel 1:339. Isaiah 39:740. 2 Kings 20:1841. Isaiah 56:3–590. Josephus91. Josephus92. Talmud93. Talmud94. Jerome95. Pusey 18649. Daniel 1:3–410. Daniel 1:711. Daniel 1:1863. Genesis 39:164. Genesis 39:765. Calvin66. this site's data67. Montgomery 192768. Montgomery 192796. Ezra97. Montgomery 192798. Araújo 202399. Araújo 2023100. Isaiah 56:3–4101. Araújo 2023

  1. P1. The youths come from Israel's royal family and nobility and are placed under the chief of the sārîsîm.116 69 61
  2. P2. Isaiah 39:7 foretells that some of Hezekiah's descendants will be sārîsîm in the palace of Babylon's king.39 40 41No listed response challenges this premise
  3. P3. Josephus says Nebuchadnezzar made some of the youths eunuchs, Rav read Isaiah's sārîsîm literally, and Jerome reports that "the Hebrews" held the four to be eunuchs.6 sources6 sources90. Josephus91. Josephus39. Isaiah 39:792. Talmud93. Talmud94. Jerome
  4. P4. In academic scholarship, Araújo (2023) derives sārîs from Akkadian ša rēši and rejects ambiguity about castration in biblical sārîs, citing barrenness and the threat that Hezekiah's sons would be made sārîsîm.6 sources6 sources61. Daniel 1:398. Araújo 202399. Araújo 202339. Isaiah 39:7100. Isaiah 56:3–4101. Araújo 2023

→ Conclusion. Isaiah's prophecy was fulfilled in Daniel himself, who was made a eunuch (Pusey, 1864).

Strongest responses

Jewish challenges P1, the conclusion

Without blemish, and a word with two senses. Ibn Ezra denied that Daniel was a eunuch: Scripture never says so, the youths are called without blemish and no blemish is worse than castration, and, citing Rabbi Yehoshua, sārîs means both "castrated" and "servant".96

Protestant challenges P1

A training school, not castration. Calvin held that the youths were called eunuchs as members of the king's training school for future officials, were not castrated, and that Josephus was wrong to say they were.65

Academic (critical) challenges P1

The title does not require it. Montgomery held that the Chief Eunuch was the majordomo and that the title does not require concluding the youths were made eunuchs.97

Jewish challenges P3

A figurative reading of Isaiah. In the same Talmudic dispute Rabbi Ḥanina read Isaiah's sārîsîm figuratively, meaning that idolatry was "emasculated", made powerless, in their days.39 92 93

Early church: Latin challenges the conclusion

Reporting a view while doubting it. Jerome, having reported the Hebrews' view, suggested that "without blemish" might count against it.94

Academic (critical) challenges P4, the conclusion

A title and its comparative evidence do not identify Daniel as a eunuch. Araújo (2023) reports majority support for linking ša rēši with castration especially in Assyrian sources, while naming dissenters. He reports that Brinkman accepts the Middle Assyrian equivalence but finds it weaker in Babylonian. His own literal reading of biblical sārîs does not establish Daniel's castration: the title describes the supervisor, and the chapter never reports the youths' castration.10 sources10 sources61. Daniel 1:398. Araújo 202399. Araújo 202339. Isaiah 39:7100. Isaiah 56:3–4101. Araújo 202369. this site's data9. Daniel 1:3–410. Daniel 1:711. Daniel 1:18

No known response in these sources

  • Catholic: no response researched in these sources
  • Orthodox: no response researched in these sources

Plain assessment

The chapter never reports castration; its seven uses of sārîs describe the official. Araújo argues for a literal title, but reports Brinkman's qualification for Babylonian usage. Neither identifies Daniel as a sārîs. Josephus says some youths were made eunuchs, not that the four were. The chapter neither reports castration nor establishes that it never occurred.

What would change this assessment: Direct evidence about whether Daniel was castrated.

Assessment uses: eunuch / court official · Why interpreters ask about eunuchs · Interpreters identify the youths as literal eunuchs. · Without blemish, and a word with two senses · A training school, not castration · The title does not require it · A figurative reading of Isaiah · Reporting a view while doubting it · A title and its comparative evidence do not identify Daniel as a eunuch

Check yourself

What test does Daniel request?

Ten days on vegetables and water, followed by comparison with the youths eating the royal food.117 118

Daniel 1:12–13

What does the narrative attribute to God?

Jehoiakim's defeat (with some temple vessels), Daniel's favour with the official, and the youths' learning and Daniel's insight into dreams.2 3 4

Daniel 1:2 Daniel 1:9 Daniel 1:17

Does the chapter say Daniel was castrated?

No. It gives his supervisor's title and describes the youths as without blemish, without reporting castration.9 10 11

Daniel 1:3–4

For reflection

How would your reading change if the refusal concerned luxury rather than forbidden food?46 52 53

What separates a possible chronological reconciliation from evidence that an event happened?5 sources5 sources8. Millard 1977106. Millard 19775. (1975)6. (1975)7. Josephus

How might accepting court education while refusing court food shape your understanding of faithfulness?116 1

Keep going

Cite this page

Plain citation

Daniel and his friends in Babylon. Know the Text. Seek lens, version 1, revised 2026-11-07, Fact-checked. https://knowthetext.com/seek/stories/daniel-in-babylon/

Chicago-style note

Know the Text, “Daniel and his friends in Babylon,” Seek lens, version 1, revised 2026-11-07, Fact-checked, https://knowthetext.com/seek/stories/daniel-in-babylon/.

BibTeX

@misc{knowthetext-daniel-in-babylon,
  author = {{Know the Text}},
  title = {Daniel and his friends in Babylon},
  howpublished = {Know the Text, Seek lens},
  url = {https://knowthetext.com/seek/stories/daniel-in-babylon/},
  year = {2026},
  note = {Version 1; revised 2026-11-07; Fact-checked}
}

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