The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?
The king's question springs from despair, he had trusted the Magi alone for wisdom, and their failure left him nowhere else to look. God drew this very interrogation from his proud lips to make His grace in Daniel shine the brighter. The less hope the king possessed, the more His revelation would astonish him when the captive stood where all the wise men had fallen.
AI summary
Daniel rushed to stop the executions, asking mercy even for men who deserved death as magicians. A good man is a common good: he secured the lives of all those wise men, though they repaid him with ingratitude later. God shows kindness to evil and good alike; so must we.
AI summary
Commenting on Daniel 2:24-30
He calls Daniel by his Babylonian name, the one given him by the eunuchs and known to the king. His question carries doubt mixed with wonder, amazement that one so young should accomplish what the Magi, his senior advisers, had utterly failed to do.
AI summary