What does Daniel 2:26 mean?

Nebuchadnezzar challenged his court magicians to tell him his own dream, as a test of their powers (Daniel 2:8–9). The men admitted they could not (Daniel 2:10–11), and in a rage the king ordered his entire corps of wise men be slaughtered (Daniel 2:5, 12). Daniel, however, promised to give the king an answer (Daniel 2:13–16) and received the information from God in a vision (Daniel 2:17–19). Where the false, lying conjurers had failed, Daniel will succeed because of his reliance on the One True God (Daniel 2:27–28).

Even today, the wisest unbelievers cannot understand and apply supernatural truth (1 Corinthians 1:18–25; 2 Corinthians 4:1–6). Intellect and learning can only go so far in uncovering spiritual truth (Romans 1:18–23; Psalm 19:1). A person must submit to God and seek Him to understand certain things (1 Corinthians 2:14; Matthew 7:7–8). The apostle Paul declares in 1 Corinthians 2:6–10 that he imparted wisdom, not the wisdom of the world, but a secret and hidden wisdom of God. He adds that "none of the rulers of the age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." He points out that God has revealed His truths through the Spirit to those who love Him.

Here, the king refers to Daniel using the name given to him when he was taken from his home in Judea (Daniel 1:6–7). Daniel's Hebrew name means "God is my judge." His imposed Babylonian name, Belteshazzar, refers instead to the false deity Bel.