Daniel 12:3

Daniel 12:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
• New International Version (NIV)Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Those who are wise shall shine Like the brightness of the firmament, And those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever.

Context of Daniel 12:3

1Then the angel said to me, ‘At that time God's great angel Michael will come. He is the leader who takes care of your people. There will be a time of great trouble. It will be worse than any trouble that has happened since God first made your nation. But many of your own people will escape from that trouble. Those are all the people whose names are written in the book. 2Many dead people who lie under the ground will become alive again. Some of them will receive life that continues for ever with God. But other people will receive shame that continues for ever. People who are wise will shine like the bright sky. Those who help many people to do what is right will also shine brightly for ever. They will shine like the stars in the sky at night. 4Daniel, you must now close this message. Put seals on the book so that nobody can open it until it is time for the end of this world. Many people will try to understand about these things. They will travel everywhere to get more knowledge.’ 5After the angel said this, I, Daniel, looked up. I saw two other people. One of them stood on the same side of the river as me. The other one stood on the other side of the river.

Daniel 12:3 word by word

וְהַ֨מַּשְׂכִּלִ֔ים יַזְהִ֖רוּ כְּזֹ֣הַר הָרָקִ֑יעַ וּמַצְדִּיקֵי֙ הָֽרַבִּ֔ים כַּכּוֹכָבִ֖ים לְעוֹלָ֥ם וָעֶֽד׃ פRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And they that be wiseשָׂכַלώâkal · be prudentH7919
• shall shineזָהַרzâhar · to shineH2094
• as the brightnessזֹ֫הַרzôhar · brightnessH2096
• of the firmamentרָקִיעַrâqîya‛ · expanseH7549
• and they that turn manyרַבrab · manyH7227
• to righteousnessצָדֵקtsâdaq · to justifyH6663
• as the starsכּוֹכָבkôkâb · starH3556
• for everעוֹלָם‛ôlâm ‛ôlâm · forever: enduringH5769
• and everעַד‛ad · perpetuityH5703

Cross-references for Daniel 12:3

• Daniel 11:33Wise Israelite leaders will teach many other people. But these teachers will suffer for some time. People will kill them in battle, or with fire. People will rob them. People will put some of them in prison.
• Proverbs 11:30The good things that a righteous person does bring life. A person who saves people's lives shows that he is wise.
• Matthew 24:45Jesus then said, ‘You should be like a wise servant. Be someone that the master can trust. The master will choose a man like that. He will say to him, “Rule over my house and all my other servants. Give everyone their food to eat at the right time.”
• 1 Corinthians 3:10I am like a good builder. God has given that job to me and he has helped me to do it well. I was the person who built the foundation. Now other people are building on that foundation. But each person must be careful how he builds.
• 2 Peter 3:15Remember that our Lord wants to save people from their sins. That is why he is now waiting patiently for people to turn to him before he will return. Paul has also written to you about these things. He is our friend that we love like a brother. God helped him to understand these things.
• Acts 13:1There were some prophets among the group of believers in Antioch. They taught the other believers more about Jesus. Barnabas and Simeon were two of these men. (People also called Simeon ‘Niger’.) There was Lucius who had lived in Cyrene. There was also Manaen who had lived together with the ruler Herod when they were children. And there was Saul.
• Ephesians 4:11It was Christ who chose to give different gifts to his people. He chose some to be apostles. He chose some to speak messages from God. He chose some to tell God's good news to many people. He chose some to take care of his people, and to teach them.
• Hebrews 5:12After all this time as believers in Jesus, you ought to be teachers. Instead of that, you still need someone to teach you the first lessons about God's message. You have become like babies, who need milk instead of proper food.
• Proverbs 4:18The life of righteous people is like the sun at dawn. It gets brighter and brighter until midday.
• Matthew 13:43The people who obeyed God will shine like the sun. They will be in the kingdom of their Father. You have ears, so listen well to what I say!’
• Matthew 19:28Jesus said to his disciples, ‘I tell you this: One day God will cause all things to become new. I, the Son of Man, will sit on my great throne as King and I will rule that new world. You who are my disciples will also sit like kings on thrones. You will judge the people of the 12 tribes of Israel.
• 1 Corinthians 15:40Also, there are things up in the sky that are different from the things here on the earth. They have different bodies. Also, the things in the sky are beautiful in a different way from the things on the earth.
• 1 Thessalonians 2:19You are the people that make us very happy! We know that you will continue to trust God. So, when our Lord Jesus returns, we will be proud of you. You will be like a crown that he gives us when we stand in front of him.
• Revelation 1:20You saw seven stars that I held in my right hand. You saw seven lights in their gold lampstands. Now I will tell you what they mean. The seven stars show what the angels of the seven churches are like. The seven lights in their lampstands show what the seven churches themselves are like.’
• Jeremiah 23:22If they had really met with me, they would have spoken my message to my people. They would have caused my people to turn away from their wicked way of life. They would have stopped my people doing evil things.’
• Luke 1:16He will teach many people in Israel. Then they will turn their lives back to the Lord their God and they will obey God again.

Commentaries on Daniel 12:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3And they that be wise - Those who are thoroughly instructed in Christ's word and doctrine, shall shine - shall be eminently distinguished in the Christian Church by the holiness of their lives, and the purity of their creed. And they that turn many to righteousness - They who, by preaching Christ crucified among their brethren, shall be the means of converting them to the Christian faith; shall be as the stars - bright luminaries in the Gospel kingdom of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3And they that be wise - This is the language which, in the Scriptures, is employed to denote the pious, or those who serve God and keep his commandments. See the book of Proverbs, passim. True religion is wisdom, and sin is folly, and they who live for God and for heaven are the truly wise. The meaning is, that they have chosen the path which true wisdom suggests as that in which man should walk, while all the ways of sin are ways of folly. The language…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Wise people know their God (compare Daniel 1:4, 17; 8:25; 9:22, 25; 11:32–35; 12:10). To shine is a common metaphor for life, purity, righteousness, and glory.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. wise--(Pr 11:30). Answering to "they that understand" (Da 11:33, 35), the same Hebrew, Maskilim; Israelites who, though in Jerusalem when wickedness is coming to a head, are found intelligent witnesses against it. As then they appeared worn out with persecutions (typically, of Antiochus; antitypically, of Antichrist); so now in the resurrection they "shine as the brightness of the firmament." The design of past afflictions here appears "to make them…Read the comment

Topics related to Daniel 12:3

• Church
• Firmament
• Heaven
• Immortality
• Minister, Christian
• Resurrection
• Righteous
• Righteousness
• Wisdom
• Zeal, Religious

In the dictionaries

• Bel, and the Dragon
• Judgment, Last
• Maccabees, Books of
• Shine
• Teach; Teacher; Teaching

Commentaries on Daniel 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings