Then Arioch brought in Daniel … in haste: the words used here carry the idea of an action performed eagerly and in a hurry. Some versions use words like “immediately,” “quickly” (New American Bible), or “at once” (Good News Translation and New International Version). Anchor Bible begins this verse “Rushing excitedly….” New Jerusalem Bible translates “lost no time….” New English Bible, on the other hand, takes it to mean “in great trepidation,” but this interpretation is not recommended.

Among the exiles from Judah: literally “among the sons of the removed of Judah.” Some other ways of saying this may be “among those brought here from Judah” or “among the Jewish exiles” (Revised English Bible). Translators should also be careful of the structure of this verse. It is possible that this secondary information about Daniel will have to be made a separate sentence and placed after the main message to the king. It may be possible to say, for example, “I have found someone who can interpret your dream. He is one of those Jewish exiles.”

To the king: within the direct quotation it will be more natural in most cases to use the pronoun in place of the noun, “to you.”

The interpretation: we know, of course, that the interpretation is of the troublesome dream that is at the center of the whole story. But in some languages it may be desirable to state this clearly.

Quoted with permission from Péter-Contesse, René & Ellington, John. A Handbook on Daniel. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .