“1 And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar
Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and
his sleep brake from him. 2 Then the king commanded to call the
magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans,
for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king.
3 And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was
troubled to know the dream. 4 Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in
Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will
shew the interpretation. 5 The king answered and said to the Chaldeans,
The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream,
with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your
houses shall be made a dunghill. 6 But if ye shew the dream, and the
interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and
great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation
thereof. 7 They answered again and said, Let the king tell his servants
the dream, and we will shew the interpretation of it. 8 The king
answered and said, I know of certainty that ye would gain the time,
because ye see the thing is gone from me. 9 But if ye will not make
known unto me the dream, [there is but] one decree for you: for ye have
prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be
changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew
me the interpretation thereof. 10 The Chaldeans answered before the
king, and said, There is not a man upon the earth that can shew the
king’s matter: therefore [there is] no king, lord, nor ruler, [that]
asked such things at any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean. 11 And
[it is] a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other
that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not
with flesh. 12 For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and
commanded to destroy all the wise [men] of Babylon. 13 And the decree
went forth that the wise [men] should be slain; and they sought Daniel
and his fellows to be slain.”
“14 Then Daniel answered with counsel and wisdom to Arioch the captain
of the king’s guard, which was gone forth to slay the wise [men] of
Babylon: 15 He answered and said to Arioch the king’s captain, Why [is]
the decree [so] hasty from the king? Then Arioch made the thing known to
Daniel. 16 Then Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would
give him time, and that he would shew the king the interpretation. 17
Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah,
Mishael, and Azariah, his companions: 18 That they would desire mercies
of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows
should not perish with the rest of the wise [men] of Babylon. 19 Then
was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel
blessed the God of heaven. 20 Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the
name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: 21 And he
changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up
kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know
understanding: 22 He revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth
what [is] in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him. 23 I thank
thee, and praise thee, O thou God of my fathers, who hast given me
wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of
thee: for thou hast [now] made known unto us the king’s matter.”
“24 Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained
to destroy the wise [men] of Babylon: he went and said thus unto him;
Destroy not the wise [men] of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and
I will shew unto the king the interpretation. 25 Then Arioch brought in
Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus unto him, I have found a
man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the
interpretation. 26 The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name
[was] Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which
I have seen, and the interpretation thereof? 27 Daniel answered in the
presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded
cannot the wise [men], the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers,
shew unto the king; 28 But there is a God in heaven that revealeth
secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in
the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed,
are these; 29 As for thee, O king, thy thoughts came [into thy mind]
upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that revealeth
secrets maketh known to thee what shall come to pass. 30 But as for me,
this secret is not revealed to me for [any] wisdom that I have more than
any living, but for [their] sakes that shall make known the
interpretation to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of
thy heart.”
“31 Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image,
whose brightness [was] excellent, stood before thee; and the form
thereof [was] terrible. 32 This image’s head [was] of fine gold, his
breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, 33 His
legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. 34 Thou sawest
till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon
his feet [that were] of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. 35 Then
was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to
pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer
threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found
for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain,
and filled the whole earth. 36 This [is] the dream; and we will tell the
interpretation thereof before the king. 37 Thou, O king, [art] a king of
kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and
strength, and glory. 38 And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the
beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine
hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou [art] this head of
gold. 39 And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee,
and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the
earth. 40 And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as
iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all [things]: and as iron that
breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise. 41 And whereas
thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters’ clay, and part of iron,
the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength
of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. 42
And [as] the toes of the feet [were] part of iron, and part of clay,
[so] the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken. 43 And
whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle
themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to
another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. 44 And in the days of
these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never
be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, [but]
it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall
stand for ever. 45 Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out
of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the
brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known
to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream [is]
certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.”
“46 Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face, and worshipped
Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet
odours unto him. 47 The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth
[it is], that your God [is] a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a
revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret. 48 Then
the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and
made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the
governors over all the wise [men] of Babylon. 49 Then Daniel requested
of the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the
affairs of the province of Babylon: but Daniel [sat] in the gate of the
king.” (Daniel 2:1-49 AV)
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