This verse begins with four parallel verbs followed by a fifth verb that has two dependent nouns. These five affirmations have more or less the same meaning, but it is the piling up of these verbs that results in the strong impact of the verse as a whole, rather than the precise shades of meaning of the individual forms. The following list attempts to show the shades of difference in meaning between these near synonyms:
Sinned (repeated in verses 8, 11, and 15): this is a very common term to indicate a break in a right relationship with God. The basic meaning is that of missing a target (or goal) or losing the way. To sin is to fail to meet God’s standards.
Done wrong: only this verb is not found elsewhere in this chapter. It is related to the verb meaning “bend,” “twist,” or “make crooked.” It is the opposite of doing what is right or “straight.” In 1 Kgs 8.47 it is used along with two other words in this list and is translated “acted perversely.”
Acted wickedly (repeated in verse 15): this term is especially common in the wisdom literature of the Old Testament (Job, Psalms, and Proverbs). It has to do with something that is abnormal, disjointed, or outside the realm of accepted behavior. In some cases it may have to be translated “done what we should not have done.”
Rebelled (repeated in verse 9): in the Old Testament people may rebel against unwanted human authority (Gen 14.4; 2 Kgs 18.7) or against divine authority (Num 14.9; Josh 22.16). The same word can be used figuratively of not accepting the light (Job 24.13). To translate this term some languages will use verbs or verbal expressions like “resist,” “defy,” “show no respect for,” or something similar. But it will be important in some cases to make it clear that it is God’s authority that the people had challenged. In the context of this prayer, some may translate “we have refused you (God),” or as Good News Translation puts it, “we have rejected what you commanded.”
Turning aside … (repeated in verse 11): the verb literally carries the idea of turning away from something. It is the two words that follow that make this ordinary word into a more technical expression for disobeying God.
Each of these terms portrays the idea of a break in normal relations between God and his people. If the translator cannot find five different terms more or less equivalent in the receptor language, it is possible to limit the rendering to three or four verbs. But since the cumulative effect is important, it may be worth the effort to try to find an equivalent for each one.
Commandments and ordinances: these two nouns also represent two different ways of talking about the same thing. They may be reduced to a single noun or noun phrase, or they may be rendered separately.
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 .