Daniel 2

¹In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar saw a dream, and his spirit was terrified, and his dream fled from him.

²Yet the king commanded that the seers, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans be gathered together to reveal to the king his dreams. When they arrived, they stood in front of the king.

³And the king said to them, “I saw a dream, and, being confused in mind, I do not know what I saw.”

⁴And the Chaldeans answered the king in Syriac, “O king, live forever. Tell the dream to your servants, and we will reveal its interpretation.”

⁵And in answer, the king said to the Chaldeans, “The memory of it has slipped away from me. Unless you reveal the dream to me, and its meaning, you will be put to death, and your houses will be confiscated.

⁶But if you explain the dream and its meaning, you will receive from me rewards, and gifts, and great honor. Therefore, reveal to me the dream and its interpretation.”

⁷They answered again and said, “Let the king tell the dream to his servants, and we will reveal its interpretation.”

⁸The king answered and said, “I am certain that you are stalling for time because you know that the memory of it has slipped away from me.

⁹Therefore, if you do not reveal to me the dream, there is only one conclusion to be reached about you, that the interpretation is likewise false, and packed full of deception, so as to speak before me until the time passes away. And so, tell me the dream, so that I will also know that the interpretation that you tell me is likewise true.”

¹⁰Then the Chaldeans answered before the king, and they said, “There is no man on earth who can accomplish your word, O king. For neither has any king, however great and mighty, asked for an answer of this kind from every seer, and astrologer, and Chaldean.

¹¹For the answer that you seek, O king, is very difficult. Neither can anyone be found who can reveal it in the sight of the king, except the gods, whose conversation is not with men.”

¹²When he heard this, the king commanded, in fury and in great wrath, that all the wise men of Babylon should be destroyed.

¹³And when the decree had gone forth, the wise men were put to death; and Daniel and his companions were sought, to be destroyed.

¹⁴Then Daniel inquired, about the law and the sentence, of Arioch, the general of the king’s army, who had gone forth to execute the wise men of Babylon.

¹⁵And he asked him, who had received the orders of the king, for what reason such a cruel sentence had gone forth from the face of the king. And so, when Arioch had revealed the matter to Daniel,

¹⁶Daniel went in and asked of the king that he would grant him time to reveal the solution to the king.

¹⁷And he went into his house and explained the task to Hananiah, and Mishael, and Azariah, his companions,

¹⁸so that they would seek mercy before the face of the God of heaven, about this mystery, and so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the other wise men of Babylon.

¹⁹Then the secret was revealed to Daniel by a vision in the night. And Daniel blessed the God of heaven,

²⁰and speaking aloud, he said, “May the name of the Lord be blessed by the present generation and forever; for wisdom and fortitude are his.

²¹And he alters the times and the ages. He takes away kingdoms and he establishes them. He gives wisdom to those who are wise and teaching skills to those who understand.

²²He reveals deep and hidden things, and he knows what has been established in darkness. And the light is with him.

²³To you, God of our fathers, I confess, and you, I praise. For you have given wisdom and fortitude to me, and now you have revealed to me what we asked of you, for you have uncovered for us the king’s thoughts.”

²⁴After this, Daniel went in to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon, and he spoke to him in this way, “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon. Bring me in before the king, and I will explain the solution to the king.”

²⁵Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel to the king, and he said to him, “I have found a man of the sons of the transmigration of Judah, who would announce the solution to the king.”

²⁶The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Do you really think that you can reveal to me the dream that I saw and its interpretation?”

²⁷And Daniel, facing the king, answered and said, “The secret that the king seeks, the wise men, the seers, and the soothsayers are unable to reveal to the king.

²⁸But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, who has revealed to you, king Nebuchadnezzar, what will happen in the latter times. Your dream and the visions of your head upon your bed, are such as these.

²⁹You, O king, began to think, while in your blanket, about what will be hereafter. And he who reveals secrets showed you what will happen.

³⁰To me, likewise, this mystery is revealed, not according to the wisdom that is in me more than in other living things, but so that the interpretation might be made manifest to the king, and so that you may know the thoughts of your mind.

³¹You, O king, saw, and behold, something like a great statue. This statue, which was great and high, stood exalted above you, and you considered how terrible it was.

³²The head of this statue was of the finest gold, but the breast and the arms were of silver, and further on, the belly and the thighs were of brass;

³³but the shins were of iron, a certain part of the feet were of iron and another part were of clay.

³⁴And so you looked until a stone was broken off without hands from a mountain, and it struck the statue on its feet, which were of iron and clay, and it shattered them.

³⁵Then the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold were crushed together and diminished like the ashes of a summer courtyard, and they were quickly taken away by the wind, and no place was found for them; but the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

³⁶This is the dream; we will also tell its interpretation before you, O king.

³⁷You are a king among kings, and the God of heaven has given to you a kingdom, and fortitude, and power, and glory,

³⁸and all the places wherein the sons of men and the beasts of the field dwell. He has likewise given the flying creatures of the air into your hand, and he has placed all things under your realm. Therefore, you are the head of gold.

³⁹And after you, another kingdom will rise up, inferior to you, of silver, and another third kingdom of brass, which will rule over the whole world.

⁴⁰And the fourth kingdom will be like iron. Just as iron shatters and conquers all things, so will it shatter and crush all these.

⁴¹Furthermore, because you saw the feet and the toes to be part of potter’s clay and part of iron, the kingdom will be divided, but still, from the slip of iron it will take its origin, since you saw the iron mingled with the earthenware from clay.

⁴²And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, part of the kingdom will be strong and part will be crushed.

⁴³Yet, because you saw the iron mingled with pottery from the earth, they will indeed be combined together with the offspring of man, but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron cannot be mixed with earthenware.

⁴⁴But in the days of those kingdoms, the God of heaven will inspire a kingdom that will never be destroyed, and his kingdom will not be handed over to another people, and it will crush and will consume all these kingdoms, and this kingdom itself will stand in eternity.

⁴⁵In accordance with what you saw, because the stone was torn away from the mountain without hands, and it crushed the earthenware, and the iron, and the brass, and the silver, and the gold, the great God has shown the king what will happen after this. And the dream is true, and its interpretation is faithful.”

⁴⁶Then king Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and adored Daniel, and he commanded that they should offer in sacrifice to him victims and incense.

⁴⁷And so the king spoke with Daniel and said, “Truly, your God is the God of gods, and Lord of kings, and also a revealer of secrets, since you could uncover this mystery.”

⁴⁸Then the king raised Daniel to a high rank and gave him many great gifts, and he appointed him as leader over all the provinces of Babylon and as chief of the magistrates over all the other wise men of Babylon.

⁴⁹However, Daniel required of the king that he appoint Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the works of the province of Babylon. But Daniel himself was at the king’s door.

Daniel 2

¹In the second year of the reign of Nabuchodonosor, Nabuchodonosor had a dream, and his spirit was terrified, and his dream went out of his mind.

²Then the king commanded to call together the diviners and the wise men, and the magicians, and the Chaldeans: to declare to the king his dreams: so they came and stood before the king.

³And the king said to them: I saw a dream: and being troubled in mind I know not what I saw.

⁴And the Chaldeans answered the king in Syriac: O king, live for ever: tell to thy servants thy dream, and we will declare the interpretation thereof.

⁵And the king, answering, said to the Chaldeans: The thing is gone out of my mind: unless you tell me the dream, and the meaning thereof, you shall be put to death, and your houses shall be confiscated.

⁶but if you tell the dream, and the meaning of it, you shall receive of me rewards, and gifts, and great honour: therefore, tell me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.

⁷They answered again and said: Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will declare the interpretation of it.

⁸The king answered and said: I know for certain, that you seek to gain time, since you know that the thing is gone from me.

⁹If, therefore, you tell me not the dream, there is one sentence concerning you, that you have also framed a lying interpretation, and full of deceit, to speak before me till the time pass away. Tell me, therefore, the dream, that I may know that you also give a true interpretation thereof.

¹⁰Then the Chaldeans answered before the king, and said: There is no man upon earth, that can accomplish thy word, O king; neither doth any king, though great and mighty, ask such a thing of any diviner, or wise man, or Chaldean.

¹¹For the thing that thou asketh, O king, is difficult: nor can any one be found that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose conversation is not with men.

¹²Upon hearing this, the king in fury, and in great wrath, commanded that all the wise men of Babylon should be put to death.

¹³And the decree being gone forth, the wise men were slain: and Daniel and his companions were sought for, to be put to death.

¹⁴Then Daniel inquired concerning the law and the sentence, of Arioch, the general of the king's army, who was gone forth to kill the wise men of Babylon.

¹⁵And he asked him that had received the orders of the king, why so cruel a sentence was gone forth from the face of the king. And when Arioch had told the matter to Daniel,

¹⁶Daniel went in, and desired of the king, that he would give him time to resolve the question, and declare it to the king.

¹⁷And he went into his house, and told the matter to Ananias, and Misael, and Azarias, his companions:

¹⁸To the end that they should ask mercy at the face of the God of heaven, concerning this secret, and that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

¹⁹Then was the mystery revealed to Daniel by a vision in the night: and Daniel blessed the God of heaven,

²⁰And speaking, he said: Blessed be the name of the Lord from eternity and for evermore: for wisdom and fortitude are his.

²¹And he changeth times and ages: taketh away kingdoms, and establisheth them: giveth wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to them that have understanding:

²²He revealeth deep and hidden things, and knoweth what is in darkness: and light is with him.

²³To thee, O God of our fathers, I give thanks, and I praise thee: because thou hast given me wisdom and strength: and now thou hast shewn me what we desired of thee, for thou hast made known to us the king's discourse.

²⁴After this Daniel went in to Arioch, to whom the king had given orders to destroy the wise men of Babylon, and he spoke thus to him: Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and I will tell the solution to the king.

²⁵Then Arioch in haste brought in Daniel to the king, and said to him: I have found a man of the children of the captivity of Juda, that will resolve the question to the king.

²⁶The king answered, and said to Daniel, whose name was Baltassar: Thinkest thou indeed that thou canst tell me the dream that I saw, and the interpretation thereof?

²⁷And Daniel made answer before the king, and said: The secret that the king desireth to know, none of the wise men, or the philosophers, or the diviners, or the soothsayers, can declare to the king.

²⁸But there is a God in heaven that revealeth mysteries, who hath shewn to thee, O king Nabuchodonosor, what is to come to pass in the latter times. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these:

²⁹Thou, O king, didst begin to think in thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that revealeth mysteries shewed thee what shall come to pass.

³⁰To me also this secret is revealed, not by any wisdom that I have more than all men alive: but that the interpretation might be made manifest to the king, and thou mightest know the thought of thy mind.

³¹Thou, O king, sawest, and behold there was as it were a great statue: this statue, which was great and high, tall of stature, stood before thee, and the look thereof was terrible.

³²The head of this statue was of fine gold, but the breast and the arms of silver, and the belly and the thighs of brass.

³³And the legs of iron, the feet part of iron and part of clay.

³⁴Thus thou sawest, till a stone was cut out of a mountain without hands: and it struck the statue upon the feet thereof that were of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces.

³⁵Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of a summer's threshing floor, and they were carried away by the wind: and there was no place found for them: but the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

³⁶This is the dream: we will also tell the interpretation thereof before thee, O king.

³⁷Thou art a king of kings: and the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, and strength, and power, and glory:

³⁸And all places wherein the children of men, and the beasts of the field do dwell: he hath also given the birds of the air into thy hand, and hath put all things under thy power: thou, therefore, art the head of gold.

³⁹And after thee shall rise up another kingdom, inferior to thee, of silver: and another third kingdom of brass, which shall rule over all the world.

⁴⁰And the fourth kingdom shall be as iron. As iron breaketh into pieces, and subdueth all things, so shall that break, and destroy all these.

⁴¹And whereas thou sawest the feet, and the toes, part of potter's clay, and part of iron: the kingdom shall be divided, but yet it shall take its origin from the iron, according as thou sawest the iron mixed with the miry clay.

⁴²And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay: the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.

⁴³And whereas thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay, they shall be mingled indeed together with the seed of man, but they shall not stick fast one to another, as iron cannot be mixed with clay.

⁴⁴But in the days of those kingdoms, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, and his kingdom shall not be delivered up to another people: and it shall break in pieces, and shall consume all these kingdoms: and itself shall stand for ever.

⁴⁵According as thou sawest, that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and broke in pieces the clay and the iron, and the brass, and the silver, and the gold, the great God hath shewn the king what shall come to pass hereafter, and the dream is true, and the interpretation thereof is faithful.

⁴⁶Then king Nabuchodonosor fell on his face, and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer in sacrifice to him victims and incense.

⁴⁷And the king spoke to Daniel, and said: Verily, your God is the God of gods, and Lord of kings, and a revealer of hidden things: seeing thou couldst discover this secret.

⁴⁸Then the king advanced Daniel to a high station, and gave him many and great gifts: and he made him governor over all the provinces of Babylon: and chief of the magistrates over all the wise men of Babylon.

⁴⁹And Daniel requested of the king, and he appointed Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, over the works of the province of Babylon: but Daniel himself was in the king's palace.