Daniel 3 · Verse 5

Daniel 3:5

That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up:

Daniel 3:5, King James Version

Daniel 3:5 in other translations

BSB	As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.
WEB	that whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, you fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up.
ASV	that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up;
YLT	at the time that ye hear the voice of the cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, the symphony, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and do obeisance to the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath raised up:
DARBY	that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, pipe, lute, sambuca, psaltery, bagpipe, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up;
BBE	That when the sound of the horn, pipe, harp, trigon, psaltery, bagpipe, and all sorts of instruments, comes to your ears, you are to go down on your faces in worship before the image of gold which Nebuchadnezzar the king has put up:
Webster	That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up.

What does Daniel 3:5 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

5. cornet--A wind instrument, like the French horn, is meant. flute--a pipe or pipes, not blown transversely as our "flute," but by mouthpieces at the end. sackbut--a triangular stringed instrument, having short strings, the sound being on a high sharp key. psaltery--a kind of harp. dulcimer--a bagpipe consisting of two pipes, thrust through a leathern bag, emitting a sweet plaintive sound. Chaldee sumponya, the modern Italian zampogna, Asiatic zambonja. fall down--that the recusants might be the more readily detected.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 5 The sound of the Cornet - There is not less difficulty in ascertaining the precise meaning of these musical instruments than there is in the offices in Dan 3:2. קרנא karna, here translated cornet, is the common blowing horn, which makes a deep and hollow sound, as well as one shrill and piercing. Flute - משרוקיתא mashrokitha, from שרק sharak, to whistle, shriek. A wind instrument which made a strong and shrill noise, such as the hautbois or clarionet. Harp - קיתרס kithros, cytharus; κιθαρα. Some kind of stringed instrument. It seems to be formed from the Greek word. Sackbut - סבכא sabbecha. The Greek has it σαμβυκη, from which our word sackbut, from סבך sabach, to interweave; probably on account of the number of chords, for it seems to have been a species of harp. Psaltery - פסנתרין pesanterin; Greek, ψαλτηριον. A stringed instrument, struck with a plectrum; that called santeer in Egypt is probably the same. Dr. Russel says: "It is a large triangle, and has two bottoms two inches from each other, with about twenty catguts of different sizes." It was the ancient psalterium, and most probably the same as David's harp. Dulcimer - סומפניה sumponeyah; Greek, συμφωνεια. Probably a kind of tamboor, tambourine, or tomtom drum. It does not mean the same as the Greek symphonia, which signifies a concert or harmony of many instruments, for here one kind of instrument only is intended. All kinds of music - כל זני זמרא col zeney zemara, the whole stock, or band, of music; the preceding being the chief, the most common, and the most sonorous. My old MS. Bible has, Trumpe, and Pipe, and Harpe: Sambuke, Santrie, and Synfonye, and al kynde of musykes.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Daniel 3:1-7

Nebuchadnezzar's golden image. (Dn 3:1-7) Shadrach and his companions refuse to worship it. (Dn 3:8-18) They are cast into a furnace, but are miraculously preserved. (Dn 3:19-27) Nebuchadnezzar gives glory to Jehovah. (Dn 3:28-30) Verses 1-7 In the height of the image, about thirty yards, probably is included a pedestal, and most likely it was only covered with plates of gold, not a solid mass of that precious…

Read the full comment on Daniel 3:1-7 →

Daniel 3:5 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

בְּעִדָּנָ֡אbe.'i.da.Na'at time theH5732

דִּֽי\־di-whichH1768

תִשְׁמְע֡וּןtish.me.'Unyou will hearH8086

קָ֣לkal[the] sound ofH7032

קַרְנָ֣אkar.Na'horn theH7162

מַ֠שְׁרוֹקִיתָאMash.ro.ki.ta'flute theH4953

קַתְר֨וֹסki.ta.roszitherH7030

סַבְּכָ֤אsa.be.Kha'trigonH5443

פְּסַנְתֵּרִין֙pe.san.te.RinharpH6460

סוּמְפֹּ֣נְיָ֔הsu.me.Po.ne.YahpipeH5481

וְכֹ֖לve.Kholand allH3606

זְנֵ֣יze.Nei<the> kinds ofH2178

זְמָרָ֑אze.ma.Ra'<the> musicH2170

תִּפְּל֤וּןti.pe.Lunyou will fall downH5308

וְתִסְגְּדוּן֙ve.tis.ge.Dunso you may pay homageH5457

לְצֶ֣לֶםle.Tze.lemto [the] image ofH6755

דַּהֲבָ֔אda.ha.Va'<the> goldH1722

דִּ֥יdiwhichH1768

הֲקֵ֖יםha.Keimhe has set upH6966

נְבוּכַדְנֶצַּ֥רne.vu.khad.ne.TzarNebuchadnezzarH5020

מַלְכָּֽא\׃mal.Ka'king theH4430

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Daniel 3:5

Daniel 3:15
Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?
Daniel 3:10
Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, shall fall down and worship the golden image:
Daniel 3:7
Therefore at that time, when all the people heard the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and all kinds of musick, all the people, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshipped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

the cornet.{Karna,} the horn.
10,15
flute.{Mashrokeetha,} in Syriac, {mashrookeetha,} the [syrinx (syrigx,)] pipe or flute, as Theodotion renders.
dulcimer. or, singing. Chal. symphony.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Daniel 3:4
Then an herald cried aloud, To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages,
Daniel 3:5
That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up:
Daniel 3:6
And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.

Read all of Daniel 3

Daniel 3:5 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	En oyendo el son de la bocina, del pífano, del tamboril, del arpa, del salterio, de la zampoña, y de todo instrumento músico, os postraréis y adoraréis la estatua de oro que el rey Nabucodonosor ha levantado:
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Aussitôt que vous entendrez le son du cor, de la flûte, de la cithare, de la sambuque, du psaltérion, de la musette, et toute espèce de musique, vous vous prosternerez et vous adorerez la statue d’or que Nebucadnetsar, le roi, a dressée;
German Elberfelder 1871	Sobald ihr den Klang des Hornes, der Pfeife, der Zither, der Sambuke der Laute, der Sackpfeife, und allerlei Art von Musik höret, sollt ihr niederfallen und das goldene Bild anbeten, welches der König Nebukadnezar aufgerichtet hat.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	in hora qua audieritis sonitum tubæ, et fistulæ, et citharæ, sambucæ, et psalterii, et symphoniæ, et universi generis musicorum, cadentes adorate statuam auream, quam constituit Nabuchodonosor rex.