The king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the Israelites from the royal family(A) and from the nobility— young men without any physical defect, good-looking, suitable for instruction in all wisdom,(B) knowledgeable, perceptive, and capable of serving in the king’s palace.(C) He was to teach them the Chaldean language(D) and literature. The king assigned them daily provisions from the royal food and from the wine that he drank.(E) They were to be trained for three years, and at the end of that time they were to attend the king.[a](F)

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Footnotes

  1. 1:5 Lit to stand before the king

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