But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.
Here the king, on the other hand, desires to entice them by the hope of gain, to apply themselves to narrate his dream. He had already attempted to strike them with horror, that even if they are unwilling he may wrest the narration of the dream from them, as well as its interpretation.
The date troubles many readers, but Daniel likely finished his schooling early and entered the king's service in just one year rather than three, making this event fall in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign when he was already trusted with high matters. The dream itself, forgotten yet troubling, is what brought this great need upon the king.
AI summary
Commenting on Daniel 2:1-13
But if ye show the dream, and the interpretation thereof,.... Which he was extremely intent upon to know; and therefore makes use of every way to obtain it, first by threatenings, to terrify, and next by promises, to allure: ye shall receive of me gifts, and rewards, and great honour; gold, silver, jewels, rich apparel, houses, lands, and great promotion to some of the highest...