He-goat: in contrast with verse 5, where a single term is used, here the text has both a Hebrew word and the corresponding Aramaic word placed in apposition. For this reason New Jerusalem Bible reads “the buck, the he-goat.” Since the Hebrew term is from the same family as the word for “hair,” certain translations have felt it necessary to say something like “shaggy goat” (New International Version) or “hairy he-goat” (New Jerusalem Bible). But this is unnecessary since the second term is probably not intended as a description of the animal. It is rather a means of more precise identification. And in any case, to speak of a “hairy goat” may be considered redundant in some languages.

King: since there is reference at the end of this verse to the first king as in a series of kings, the first use of this word seems to signify the “kingdom,” that is, the totality of the kings who ruled. Compare also verse 20 and 7.17.

Greece: literally “Javan” as in New Jerusalem Bible. But this is clearly the meaning, since Javan is the Hebrew word for Greece, and a transliteration of the Hebrew would hide the meaning from the ordinary reader.

Quoted with permission from Péter-Contesse, René & Ellington, John. A Handbook on Daniel. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .