Daniel’s Resolve

⁸ But Daniel ^[a]made up his mind that he would not ^(A)defile himself with the ^(B)king’s choice food or with the ^(C)wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself. ⁹ Now God granted Daniel ^(D)favor and compassion in the sight of the commander of the officials. ¹⁰ The commander of the officials said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has allotted your food and your drink; for why should he see your faces looking gaunt in comparison to the youths who are your own age? Then you would ^[b]make me forfeit my head to the king.” ¹¹ But Daniel said to the overseer whom the commander of the officials had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, ¹² “Please put your servants to the test for ten days, and let us be ^(E)given some vegetables to eat and water to drink. ¹³ Then let our appearance be ^[c]examined in your presence and the appearance of the youths who are eating the king’s choice food; and deal with your servants according to what you see.”

¹⁴ So he listened to them in this matter, and put them to the test for ten days. ¹⁵ And at the end of ten days their appearance seemed ^(F)better, and ^[d]they were fatter than all the youths who had been eating the king’s choice food. ¹⁶ So the overseer continued to ^[e]withhold their choice food and the wine they were to drink, and kept ^(G)giving them vegetables.

¹⁷ And as for these four youths, ^(H)God gave them knowledge and intelligence in every kind of ^[f]literature and expertise; Daniel even understood all kinds of ^(I)visions and dreams.

¹⁸ Then at the end of the days which the king had ^[g]specified ^[h]for presenting them, the commander of the officials ^[i]presented them before Nebuchadnezzar. ¹⁹ And the king talked with them, and out of them all not one was found like ^(J)Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; so they ^[j](K)entered the king’s personal service. ²⁰ As for every matter of ^(L)expertise ^[k]and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them ^(M)ten times ^(N)better than all the ^(O)soothsayer priests and conjurers who were in all his realm. ²¹ And Daniel ^[l]continued until the ^(P)first year of Cyrus the king.