John Calvin Commentary Daniel 4:27

"Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; if there may be a lengthening of thy tranquillity." — Daniel 4:27 (ASV)

Since interpreters do not agree about the meaning of these words, and as the doctrine derived from them partly depends on that, we must remark, first, that מלכי, meleki, means “my counsel.” Some translate it “my king,” and both words are derived from the same root, מלך, melek, which signifies “to reign.” However, it also signifies “counsel.”

There is no doubt that this passage ought to be explained as follows: — May my counsel therefore please you, and may you redeem your sins. The word פרוק, peruk, is here translated “to redeem;” it often signifies “to break off,” or “separate,” or “abolish.” In this passage it may conveniently be translated, “separate or break off your sins” by pity and humanity. It is as if he had said, 'In this way you will make an end of sin and enter upon a new course. Thus your cruelty may be changed into clemency, and your tyrannical violence into pity.'

But this is not of much consequence. The verb often signifies to free and to preserve; the context does not admit the sense of preserving, and it would be harsh to say, “Free your sins by your righteousness.” Hence, I readily embrace the meaning of Daniel exhorting the king of Babylon to a change of life, so as to break off his sins in which he had too long indulged.

Regarding the clause at the end of the verse, behold there will be a cure for your error, as I have mentioned, the Greeks translate it as, “if by chance there should be a cure.” But the other meaning seems to fit better, as if he had said, “this is the proper and genuine medicine.” Some translate it as “a promulgation,” since ארך, arek, signifies “to produce.” At the same time, they change the meaning of the other noun, for they say, “there will be a prolongation to your peace or quiet.”

That meaning would be tolerable, but the other fits better with the grammatical construction. Besides, the more received meaning is, this medicine may be suitable to the error. A different meaning may be elicited without changing the words at all: there will be a medicine for your errors, meaning, you may learn to cure your errors. For length of indulgence increases the evil, as we have sufficiently noted.

Hence, this last part of the verse may be understood in this way, and thus Daniel may proceed with his exhortation, as if he had said: 'It is time to cease from your errors, for until now you have deprived yourself of all your senses by giving unbridled license to your lusts. If, therefore, there is any moderation in your ignorance, you may open your eyes and understand at length how to repent.'

I now return to the substance of the teaching. May my counsel please you! he says. Here Daniel treats the profane king more indulgently than if he had addressed his own nation, for he used the prophetic office. But because he knew the king did not hold the first rudiments of piety, he here undertakes only the office of a counselor, since he was not an ordinary teacher.

As to Nebuchadnezzar sending for him, this was not a daily thing, nor did he do this because he wished to submit to his doctrine. Daniel therefore remembers the kind of person with whom he was treating when he tempers his words and says, may my counsel be acceptable to you! He afterwards explains his counsel in a few words: — Break away, he says, your sins — or cast them away — by righteousness, and your iniquities by pity to the poor. There is no doubt that Daniel wished to exhort the king to repentance; but he touched on only one kind, which we know was very customary with the Prophets.

For when they recall the people to obedience by repentance, they do not always explain it fully, nor define it generally, but touch upon it by a figure of speech and treat only of the outward duties of penitence. Daniel now follows this custom. If inquiry is made concerning the nature of repentance, it is the conversion of a person towards God, from whom they had been alienated.

Is this conversion then only in the hands, feet, and tongue? Does it not rather begin in the mind and the heart, and then pass on to outward works? Hence, true penitence has its source in the human mind, so that one who wishes to be wise must set aside their own prudence and put away their foolish confidence in their own reason.

Then, one must subdue their own depraved affections and submit them to God, and thus their outward life will follow the inward spirit. Besides this, works are the only testimonies to real repentance, for it is a thing too excellent to allow its root to appear to human observation. Therefore, by our fruits we must testify to our repentance.

But because the duties of the second table, in some sense, open a person's mind, hence the Prophets, in requiring repentance, only set before us the duties of charity, as Daniel says. Redeem, therefore, your sins, he says, or break away, or cast them away—but how? Namely, by righteousness.

Without doubt, the word “justice” here means the same as “grace” or “pity.” But those who here transfer “grace” to “faith” twist the Prophet’s words too violently; for we know of nothing more frequent among the Hebrews than to repeat one and the same thing under two forms of speech.

Therefore, as Daniel here uses sins and iniquities in the same sense, we conclude that justice and pity ought not to be separated, while the second word more fully expresses the meaning of justice. For when people see their lives must be changed, they feign for themselves many acts of obedience that scarcely deserve the name.

They have no regard for what pleases God, nor for what He commands in His word. Instead, just as they approve of one part or another, they thrust themselves rashly upon God, as we see in the Papacy. For what is a holy and religious life with them?

• To run about here and there
• To undertake pilgrimages imposed by vows
• To set up a statue
• To found masses, as they call it
• To fast on certain days
• And to lay stress on trifles about which God has never said a single word

Therefore, as people err so grossly in the knowledge of true righteousness, the Prophet here adds the word “pity” by way of explanation. It is as if he had said, 'Do not think to appease God by outward pomps, which delight people because they are carnal and devoted to earthly things, and fashion for themselves a depraved idea of God according to their own imagination. Do not let this vanity deceive you; but learn how true justice consists in pity towards the poor.'

In this second clause, then, only a part of the idea is expressed, since true justice is not restricted simply to the meaning of the word but embraces all the duties of charity. Hence, we ought to deal faithfully with humankind, not deceiving rich or poor, nor oppressing anyone, but rendering to everyone what is theirs. This manner of speaking ought to be familiar to us, if we are even moderately versed in the prophetic writings.

The meaning of the phrase is this: — Daniel wished to show the king of Babylon the duty of living justly, and cultivating faith and integrity before people, without forgetting the former table of the law. For the worship of God is more precious than all the righteousness which people cultivate among themselves.

But true justice is known by its outward proofs, as I have said. He treats here the second table rather than the first: for, while hypocrites pretend to worship God by many ceremonies, they allow themselves to commit all kinds of cruelty, plunder, and fraud, without obeying any law of right living with their neighbors.

Because hypocrites cover their malice by this frivolous pretense, God sets before them a true test to recall them to the duties of charity. This, then, is the meaning of the verse from which we have elicited a double sense. If we retain the future time, behold, there will be a medicine! it will be a confirmation of the former doctrine; as if he had said, 'We must not travel long and roundabout ways—there is this single remedy.' Or, if we are better pleased with the word of exhortation, the context will be suitable: may there be a medicine for your errors!

May you not indulge yourself hereafter as you have until now done, but you must open your eyes and perceive how miserably and wickedly you have lived, and so desire to heal your errors. As the Papists have abused this passage to show God to be appeased by satisfactions, it is too frivolous and ridiculous to refute their doctrine; for when they speak of satisfactions, they mean works of supererogation.

If anyone could fulfill God’s law completely, yet he could not satisfy for his sins. The Papists are compelled to confess this; what then remains? — The offering to God more than He demands, which they call works not required! But Daniel does not here exact of King Nebuchadnezzar any work of supererogation; he exacts justice, and afterwards shows how a person's life cannot be justly spent unless humanity prevails and flourishes among people, and especially when we are merciful to the poor.

Truly there is no supererogation here! To what end then serves the law? Surely this has no reference to satisfactions, according to the ridiculous and foolish notions of the Papists! But if we grant them this point, still it does not follow that their sins are redeemed before God, as if works compensated either their fault or penalty, as they assert; for they confess their fault not to be redeemed by satisfactions—this is one point gained—and then as to the penalty, they say it is redeemed; but we must see whether this agrees with the Prophet’s intention.

I will not contend about a word; I will allow it to mean “to redeem”—You may redeem your sins; but we must ascertain whether this redemption is in the judgment of God or of man. Clearly enough, Daniel here regards the conduct of Nebuchadnezzar as unjust and inhuman, in harassing his subjects, and in proudly despising the poor and miserable.

Since, therefore, he had so given himself up to all iniquity, Daniel shows the remedy; and if this remedy is treated as a redemption or liberation, there is nothing absurd in saying we redeem our sins before people while we satisfy them. I redeem my sins before my neighbor if, after I have injured him, I desire to become reconciled to him, I acknowledge my sins and seek pardon.

If, therefore, I have injured his fortunes, I restore what I have unjustly taken, and thus redeem my transgression. But this does assist us in expiating sin before God, as if the beneficence which I put in practice was any kind of expiation. We see, therefore, the Papists to be foolish and silly when they wrest the Prophet’s words to themselves.

We may now inquire, in the last place, for what purpose Daniel exhorted King Nebuchadnezzar to break away from or redeem his sins. Now this was either a matter of no consequence—which would be absurd—or it was a heavenly decree, as the king’s dream was a promulgation of the edict, as we have formerly seen.

But this was determined before God and could not be changed in any way; it was therefore superfluous to wish to redeem sins. If we follow a different explanation, no difficulty will remain; but even if we allow the Prophet to be here discussing the redemption of sins, yet the exhortation is not without its use.

In whatever way Nebuchadnezzar should prepare to bear God’s chastisement, yet this would prove most useful to him: to acknowledge God to be merciful. And yet the time might be contracted during which his obstinate wickedness should extend; not as if God changed His decree, but because He always warns by threatening, for the purpose of treating people more kindly and tempering vigor with His wrath, as is evident from many other examples.

This would not have been without its use to a teachable disposition, nor yet without fruit, when Daniel exhorted King Nebuchadnezzar to redeem his sins, because he might obtain some pardon, even if he had paid the penalty, since not even a single day had been allowed out of the seven years.

Yet this was great progress if the king had at last humbled himself before God, so as to be in a fit state for receiving the pardon which had been promised. For as a certain time had been fixed beforehand, or at least shown by the Prophet, hence it would have profited the king if, by wishing to appease his judge, he had prepared his mind for obtaining pardon.

This doctrine was therefore in every way useful, because the same reason applies to us. We ought always to be prepared to suffer God’s chastisements; yet it is no slight or common alleviation of our sufferings when we so submit ourselves to God as to be persuaded of His desire to be propitious to us, when He sees us dissatisfied with ourselves and heartily detesting our transgressions.

Prayer:

Grant, Almighty God, that we may learn to bear patiently all adverse misfortunes, and know that You exercise towards us the duties of a judge as often as we are afflicted in this world. Thus may we prevent Your wrath, and so condemn ourselves with true humility, that trusting in Your pity we may always flee to You, relying upon the mediation of Your only-begotten Son, which You have provided for us. Grant, also, that we may beg pardon from You, and resolve upon a true repentance, not with vain and useless fictions, but by true and serious proofs, cultivating true charity and faith among ourselves, and testifying in this way our fear of Your name, that You may be truly glorified in us by the same, our Lord. — Amen.