¶ And in¹ the second² year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar⁴ Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his⁵ sleep brake from him.

⁶Then 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.

⁷And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream.

Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in⁸ Syriack⁹, O king¹⁰, live for ever: tell¹¹ thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation.

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 shall¹² be cut in pieces¹³, and your houses shall be made a dunghill.

But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall¹⁴ receive of me gifts and rewards¹⁵ and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.

They answered again and said, Let¹⁶ the king tell his servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation of it.

The king answered and said, I know of certainty that ye would gain¹⁷ the time, because ye see the thing is gone from me.

But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is¹⁸ but one decree for¹⁹ you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time²⁰ be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall²¹ know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.

¶ 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 magician²², or astrologer, or Chaldean²³.

And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there²⁵ is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose²⁶ dwelling is not with flesh.

²⁷For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.

And the decree²⁸ went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they²⁹ sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain.

¶ Then Daniel answered³⁰ with counsel and wisdom to Arioch the captain of the king's guard³¹, which was gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon:

He answered and said to Arioch the king's captain, Why is the decree so hasty from the king? Then Arioch made³² the thing known to Daniel.

Then Daniel went in, and desired³³ of the king that he would give him time, and that he would shew the king the interpretation.

Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah³⁴, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions:

That they would³⁵ desire mercies of the God of heaven³⁶ concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

Then was³⁷ the secret revealed unto Daniel in³⁸ a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

¶ Daniel answered and said, Blessed³⁹ be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom⁴⁰ and might are his:

And he changeth⁴¹ the times and the seasons: he removeth⁴² kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth⁴³ wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:

He revealeth⁴⁴ the deep and secret things: he knoweth⁴⁵ what is in the darkness, and the⁴⁶ light dwelleth with him.

I thank⁴⁷ thee, and praise thee, O thou⁴⁸ God of my fathers, who hast⁴⁹ given me wisdom and might, and hast⁵⁰ made known unto me now what we desired of thee: for thou hast now made known unto us the king's matter.

¶ Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch⁵¹, whom the king had ordained to destroy⁵² 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.

Then Arioch brought⁵³ in Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus unto him, I have⁵⁴ found a man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation.

The king answered and said to Daniel⁵⁵, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art⁵⁶ thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?

Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot⁵⁷ the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the king;

But there is a God⁵⁸ in heaven that revealeth⁵⁹ secrets, and maketh known⁶⁰ to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these;

As for thee, O king, thy thoughts came into thy mind⁶¹ upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that⁶² revealeth secrets maketh known to thee what shall come to pass.

¶ But as for me, this secret⁶³ is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but⁶⁴ for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the⁶⁵ king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.

¶ Thou, O king, sawest⁶⁶, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible⁶⁷.

This image's head⁶⁸ was of fine gold, his breast⁶⁹ and his arms of silver, his belly⁷⁰ and his thighs⁷¹ of brass,

⁷²His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.

Thou sawest till that a stone⁷³ was cut⁷⁴ out without hands⁷⁵, which⁷⁶ smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.

Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like⁷⁷ the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place⁷⁸ was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became⁷⁹ a great mountain, and filled⁸⁰ the whole earth.

⁸¹This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.

Thou, O king, art a king⁸² of kings: for the God⁸³ of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power⁸⁴, and strength, and glory.

And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts⁸⁵ of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art⁸⁶ this head of gold.

And after thee shall arise another kingdom⁸⁷ inferior to thee, and another third⁸⁸ kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.

¶ And the fourth⁸⁹ kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch⁹⁰ as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

And whereas thou sawest the feet⁹¹ 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.

And as the toes⁹² of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken⁹³.

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 another⁹⁴, even as iron is not mixed with clay.

And in the days⁹⁵ of these kings shall the God⁹⁶ of heaven set up⁹⁷ a kingdom, which shall never⁹⁸ be destroyed: and the kingdom⁹⁹ shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

Forasmuch as thou sawest¹⁰⁰ that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands¹⁰¹, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great¹⁰² God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter¹⁰⁴: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.

¶ Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell¹⁰⁵ upon his face, and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet¹⁰⁶ odours unto him.

The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth it is, that your God is a God¹⁰⁷ of gods, and a Lord¹⁰⁸ of kings, and a revealer¹⁰⁹ of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret.

Then the king made Daniel a great¹¹⁰ man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler¹¹¹ over the whole province of Babylon, and chief¹¹² of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.

Then Daniel requested of the king, and he set¹¹³ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon: but Daniel sat¹¹⁴ in the gate of the king.