8:4a For the king’s word is supreme,

The king’s command has complete power. (EEB)
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He has the authority to give commands (English Easy-to-Read Version)
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Surely the king’s authority is absolute (NET Bible)

8:4b and who can say to him,

So, who can ask him, (New International Reader’s Version)
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and no one can tell him (English Easy-to-Read Version)
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and so no one can question his actions

8:4c “What are you doing?”

“Do you really want to do this ⌊bad/evil thing? You should not do it!”⌋
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what to do. (English Easy-to-Read Version)
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or tell him, “You should not do that.”

8:4a-c (reordered)

The king’s word is law. No one can ask him, “Why are you doing this?” (Contemporary English Version)
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We need to obey what the king says more than we need to obey what anyone else says; no one can say to the king, “Why are you doing that? You should not be doing that.” (Translation for Translators)
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The king is the highest authority, therefore no one can question his actions.

© 2006 by SIL International®
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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
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