youths without blemish, of good appearance and skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king’s palace, and to teach them the literature and language of the Chaldeans.
These youths were no mere children but young men of ripening years, flawless in body, open and ingenuous in face. Notice that wisdom here means not hidden knowledge alone but the power to express it, some understand well yet cannot teach; Daniel marks both the grasp of knowledge and the vigor to communicate it to others.
AI summary
Nebuchadnezzar seized Jerusalem, took whom he pleased, and left Jehoiakim tributary, for a time. Mark how short-lived are the kingdoms of earth; Daniel lived to see this empire rise, reign, and fall within his own lifetime. The righteous who watch them take root shall see their ruin.
AI summary
Commenting on Daniel 1:1-7
These were young men of fifteen or twenty years, not children; the Orientals have always chosen their great officers by beauty and stature, believing that a sordid soul cannot dwell in a serene and graceful form. They must be unblemished, well-favored, sound in body and mind both.
AI summary