me.lekh denotes a royal ruler, including a named monarch and multiple rulers envisioned as arising or being removed.

The term denotes royal rulers, most often a particular monarch who issues commands, receives reports, and exercises authority; its plural forms also identify multiple rulers who are removed, established, or arise.

1. Royal ruler or monarch · dominant

   The singular determined form identifies the monarch addressed or discussed in court settings: in Daniel 2:16 the APB renders Daniel's request for time from the ruler, and in Daniel 3:22 it renders the ruler's urgent word. The same designation extends to rulers as a group: plural absolute forms in Daniel 2:21 occur where God removes and sets up rulers, while Daniel 7:17 and Daniel 7:24 describe rulers who will arise.

   Daniel 2:16Daniel 2:21Daniel 3:22Daniel 2:37Daniel 7:17Daniel 7:24

In the Anselm Project Bible: Across these verses the APB commonly presents the term with "king" and, in plural contexts, "kings." Because the APB is a whole-verse translation, those renderings confirm the clauses' royal referents without assigning every English occurrence to a particular token.