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In the third place, the language of Daniel has, in common with that of the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, certain Aryan elements or Parsisms, which can only be explained on the supposition that their authors lived and wrote in the Babylonish exile or under the Persian rule.[1]
But the expedient adopted by the opponents of the genuineness to explain these characteristic agreements from imitation, is inadmissible from this consideration, that in the Hebrew complexion of the Chaldee portion as in the Aryan element found in the language there used, this book shows, along with the agreements, also peculiarities which announce[2] the independent character of its language.
- ↑ Not to mention the name of dignity פּחה used in the Assyrian period, and the two proper names, אשׁפּנז, Dan 1:3, and אריוך, Dan 2:14, cf. Gen 14:1, Gen 14:9, there are in this book the following words of Aryan origin: אזדּא, Dan 2:5, Dan 2:8, derived from the Old Persian âzandâ, found in the inscriptions of Bisutun and Nakhschi-Rustam, meaning science, knowledge; גּדברין, Dan 3:2-3, and גּזבּר, גּזּברין, Ezr 1:8; Ezr 7:21, from the Old Persian gada or gãnda, in Zend. gaza or ganga, thus gadȧbara, treasurer, the Old Persian form, while גּזבּר corresponds with the Zend. gaza'-'bara; דּתבר, Dan 3:2-3, Old Persian and Zend. dâta'-'bara (New Pers. dâtavar), one who understands the law, a judge; הדּם (הדּמין, Dan 2:5; Dan 3:29), from the Old Persian handâm, organized body, member (μελος); פּתבּג, costly food, Dan 1:5, Dan 1:8,Dan 1:13, Dan 1:15 and Dan 11:26, from the Old Persian pati-baga, Zend. paiti'-'bagha, Sanskr. prati'-'bhâga, allotted food “a share of small articles, as fruit, flowers, etc., paid daily to the rajah for household expenditure”; פּתגּם, Dan 3:16; Dan 4:14, Ezr 4:17; Ezr 5:7; Ezr 6:11, from the Old Persian pati'-'gama, a message, a command; פּרתּמים, Dan 1:3, Est 1:3; Est 6:9, the distinguished, the noble, in Pehlevi, pardom, Sanskr. prathama, the first; and the as yet unexplained מלצר, Dan 1:11, Dan 1:16, and נבזבּה, Dan 2:6, and finally כּרוזא, a crier, a herald, Dan 3:4, Old Persian khresii, crier, from which the verb כּרז, Dan 5:29, in Chald. and Syr. of similar meaning with the Greek κηρύσσειν.
- ↑ Thus Daniel uses only the plur. suffixes כון, הון, לכון, להון, while in Ezra the forms כם and הם are interchanged with כון and הון in such a way, that הון is used fifteen times, הום ten times, כון once, and כם five times. The forms with םused by Ezra, and also by Jeremiah, Jer 10:11, prevail in the Targum. Moreover Daniel has only המּון (Dan 2:34-35; Dan 3:22), Ezra, on the contrary, has the abbreviated form המּו (Ezr 4:10,Ezr 4:23; Ezr 5:5, Ezr 5:11, etc.); Daniel דכּן, Dan 2:31; Dan 7:20-21, Ezra דך, Ezr 4:13, Ezr 4:15-16, Ezr 4:18, Ezr 4:21; Ezr 5:8, and דך, Ezr 5:16., Ezr 6:7., Ezr 6:12; Daniel נולי, Dan 2:5, Ezra נולוּ, Ezr 6:11; Daniel גּדבריּא, Dan 3:2, Ezra גּזבּר, Ezr 1:8; Ezr 7:21.
