“Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever : for wisdom and might are his:”
My Notes
What Does Daniel 2:20 Mean?
Daniel's blessing of God is one of the most theologically rich doxologies in the Old Testament. "Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his." The blessing extends eternally — "for ever and ever" — and identifies two divine attributes: wisdom (chokmah — the capacity to know and understand) and might (gevurah — the power to act and accomplish).
The pairing of wisdom and might addresses the two dimensions of God's revelation to Daniel: God knew the dream (wisdom) and has the power to fulfill it (might). The knowledge without power would be interesting but impotent. The power without knowledge would be dangerous. God has both — infinite understanding paired with infinite capacity.
Daniel's doxology precedes his audience with the king. He blesses God before he serves the empire. The worship comes before the work because the worship acknowledges whose wisdom and power are actually operating. Daniel's success isn't Daniel's — it's God's, and he says so before anyone else can misattribute it.
Reflection Questions
- 1.When God gives you a breakthrough, do you worship first or act first?
- 2.How does Daniel's worship before action protect against taking credit for God's work?
- 3.What does the combination of wisdom and might mean for how you trust God?
- 4.How can you make blessing God your first response to revelation?
Devotional
Blessed be the name of God. Forever and ever. Wisdom and might are His.
Daniel's first words after receiving the revelation aren't "I figured it out" or "let me go tell the king." They're worship. Pure, unfiltered blessing of the God who revealed the secret. Before Daniel becomes the hero of the story, he ensures everyone knows who the actual hero is.
Wisdom and might — the two things you need and can't generate on your own. Wisdom to understand what's happening. Might to do something about it. Daniel has just experienced both: God gave him understanding (wisdom) of a secret no human could access, through a power (might) no human institution could replicate.
The "for ever and ever" makes the blessing permanent. Not "blessed be God for what He did tonight" — blessed be God's name eternally. The revelation of the dream is a moment; God's nature is forever. Daniel's blessing matches the permanence of the God being blessed.
This is the model for how to handle revelation, success, or breakthrough: bless God first. Before you use the information. Before you receive the credit. Before anyone can mistake the source. Blessed be the name of God. His are the wisdom and might. Not mine.
When God gives you a breakthrough, what's your first response — self-congratulation or worship?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Daniel answered and said,.... That is, he began his prayer, as Jacchiades observes, or his thanksgiving, and expressed…
Daniel answered and said - The word “answer,” in the Scriptures, often occurs substantially in the sense of “speak” or…
Wisdom and might are his - He knows all things, and can do all things.
When the king sent for his wise men to tell them his dream, and the interpretation of it (Dan 2:2), Daniel, it seems,…
Daniel's thanksgiving for the great mercy vouchsafed to him.
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture