Did He Remember The Dream Or Not?

Q

In the King James Version of Daniel 2:1-11, it says that Nebuchadnezzar had forgotten the dream that so troubled him. However, in the New International Version, it suggests that he did not forget the dream but instead did not trust his wise men to render an accurate interpretation. Therefore, in order to be sure they got it right, he required that they tell him the dream and the interpretation. This raises a red flag of discrepancy between the two versions. Can you help clarify the difference?

A

Although in Daniel 2:5 the King James says the King claimed to not remember the dream, I think he was testing his advisers, like the NIV implies, and hadn’t really forgotten it. It seems clear that the King doubted their abilities. And after all, if he didn’t remember the dream, how would he have known if they were describing it accurately or not? There are several different interpretations of verse 5 among the English translations so it’s not a clear cut issue. In this case I think the NIV has the more accurate interpretation.