John Calvin Commentary Daniel 2:12

"For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon." — Daniel 2:12 (ASV)

The former denunciation was horrible, but now Nebuchadnezzar proceeds beyond it; for he not only threatens the Chaldeans with death, but commands it to be inflicted.

Such an example is rarely found in history. However, the cause of his wrath must be noted, since God wished his servant Daniel to be brought forward and to be observed by all people.

This was the preparation by which it became generally evident that the wise men of Babylon were proved futile, by promising more than they could perform. Even if they had been endowed with the greatest wisdom, they would still have been lacking that gift of revelation which was bestowed upon Daniel.

Therefore, it happened that the king decreed death for all of them by his edict, for he might then perhaps have acknowledged what he had never perceived before: namely, that their boasting was nothing but futility, and their practices full of superstitions.

For when superstition is unsuccessful, madness immediately follows. When those who are considered remarkably devout perceive their false worship to be useless, they then burst forth into the madness I have mentioned, curse their idols, and detest what they had previously followed.

This is what happened here. Nebuchadnezzar had suspected deception in such a serious matter, though no previous suspicion of it had entered his mind. But now, when he sees through the deception in so perplexing a case and in such great anxiety—left without the advice of those from whom he hoped for everything—he is a hundredfold more infuriated than if he had been previously in a state of perfect calmness.

The text then says: