Daniel 2

1 I sit andet Regeringsaar drømte Nebukadnezar, og hans Sind blev uroligt, saa han ikke kunde sove.

In the second year of the rule of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; and his spirit was troubled and his sleep went from him.

2 Saa lod Kongen Drømmetyderne, Manerne, Sandsigerne og Kaldæerne kalde, for at de skulde sige ham, hvad han havde drømt. Og de kom og traadte frem for Kongen.

Then the king gave orders that the wonder-workers, and the users of secret arts, and those who made use of evil powers, and the Chaldaeans, were to be sent for to make clear to the king his dreams. So they came and took their places before the king.

3 Da sagde Kongen til dem: »Jeg har haft en Drøm, og mit Sind falder ikke til Ro, før jeg faar at vide, hvad den betyder.«

And the king said to them, I have had a dream, and my spirit is troubled by the desire to have the dream made clear to me.

4 Kaldæerne svarede Kongen (paa Aramaisk): »Kongen leve evindelig! Sig dine Trælle Drømmen, saa skal vi tyde den.«

Then the Chaldaeans said to the king in the Aramaean language, O King, have life for ever: give your servants an account of your dream, and we will make clear to you the sense of it.

5 Men Kongen svarede Kaldæerne: »Mit Ord staar fast! Hvis I ikke baade kundgør mig Drømmen og tyder den, skal I hugges sønder og sammen og eders Huse gøres til Skarndynger;

The king made answer and said to the Chaldaeans, This is my decision: if you do not make clear to me the dream and the sense of it, you will be cut in bits and your houses made waste.

6 men gengiver I mig Drømmen og tyder den, faar I Skænk og Gave og stor Ære af mig. Gengiv mig, derfor Drømmen og tyd den!«

But if you make clear the dream and the sense of it, you will have from me offerings and rewards and great honour: so make clear to me the dream and the sense of it.

7 De svarede atter: »Kongen sige sine Trælle Drømmen, saa skal vi tyde den.«

A second time they said in answer, Let the king give his servants an account of his dream, and we will make clear the sense.

8 Kongen svarede: »Nu ved jeg for vist, at I kun søger at vinde Tid, fordi I ser, mit Ord staar fast,

The king made answer and said, I am certain that you are attempting to get more time, because you see that my decision is fixed;

9 saa eders Dom kun kan blive een, hvis I ikke kundgør mig Drømmen, og at I derfor er blevet enige om at lyve for mig og føre mig bag Lyset, til der kommer andre Tider. Sig mig derfor Drømmen, saa jeg kan vide, at I ogsaa kan tyde mig den.«

That if you do not make my dream clear to me there is only one fate for you: for you have made ready false and evil words to say before me till the times are changed: so give me an account of the dream, and I will be certain that you are able to make the sense of it clear.

10 Kaldæerne svarede Kongen: »Der findes ikke et Menneske paa Jorden, som kan sige, hvad Kongen ønsker at vide; aldrig har jo heller nogen Konge, hvor stor og mægtig han end var, krævet sligt af nogen Drømmetyder, Maner eller Kaldæer;

Then the Chaldaeans said to the king in answer, There is not a man on earth able to make clear the king's business; for no king, however great his power, has ever made such a request to any wonder-worker or user of secret arts or Chaldaean.

11 hvad Kongen kræver, er umuligt, og der er ingen, som kan sige Kongen det, undtagen Guderne, og de bor ikke hos de dødelige.«

The king's request is a very hard one, and there is no other who is able to make it clear to the king, but the gods, whose living-place is not with flesh.

12 Herover blev Kongen vred og saare harmfuld, og han bød, at alle Babels Vismænd skulde henrettes.

Because of this the king was angry and full of wrath, and gave orders for the destruction of all the wise men of Babylon.

13 Da nu Befalingen var udgaaet, og man skulde til at slaa Vismændene ihjel, ledte man ogsaa efter Daniel og hans Venner for at slaa dem ihjel.

So the order went out that the wise men were to be put to death; and they were looking for Daniel and his friends to put them to death.

14 Da henvendte Daniel sig med kloge og vel overvejede Ord til Arjok, Øversten for Kongens Livvagt, som var draget ud for at slaa Babels Vismænd ihjel.

Then Daniel gave an answer with wisdom and good sense to Arioch, the captain of the king's armed men, who had gone out to put to death the wise men of Babylon;

15 Han tog til Orde og spurgte Arjok, Kongens Høvedsmand: »Hvorfor er saa skarp en Befaling udgaaet fra Kongen?« Og da Arjok havde sat ham ind i Sagen,

He made answer and said to Arioch, O captain of the king, why is the king's order so cruel? Then Arioch gave Daniel an account of the business.

16 gik Daniel ind til Kongen og bad ham give sig en Frist, saa skulde han tyde Kongen Drømmen.

And Daniel went in and made a request to the king to give him time and he would make clear the sense of his dream to the king.

17 Saa gik Daniel hjem og satte sine Venner Hananja, Misjael og Azarja ind i Sagen,

And Daniel went to his house and gave his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah the news:

18 og han paalagde dem at bede Himmelens Gud om Barmhjertighed, saa han aabenbarede Hemmeligheden, for at ikke Daniel og hans Venner skulde blive henrettet med Babels andre Vismænd.

So that they might make a request for the mercy of the God of heaven in the question of this secret; so that Daniel and his friends might not come to destruction with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

19 Da blev Hemmeligheden aabenbaret Daniel i et Nattesyn; og Daniel priste Himmelens Gud,

Then the secret was made clear to Daniel in a vision of the night. And Daniel gave blessing to the God of heaven.

20 tog til Orde og sagde: »Lovet være Guds Navn fra Evighed og til Evighed, thi ham tilhører Visdom og Styrke!

And Daniel said in answer, May the name of God be praised for ever and ever: for wisdom and strength are his:

21 Han lader Tider og Stunder skifte, afsætter og indsætter Konger, giver de vise deres Visdom og de indsigtsfulde deres Viden;

By him times and years are changed: by him kings are taken away and kings are lifted up: he gives wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to those whose minds are awake:

22 han aabenbarer det dybe og lønlige; han ved, hvad Mørket gemmer, og Lyset bor hos ham.

He is the unveiler of deep and secret things: he has knowledge of what is in the dark, and the light has its living-place with him.

23 Dig, mine Fædres Gud, takker og priser jeg, fordi du gav mig Visdom og Styrke, og nu har du kundgjort mig, hvad vi bad dig om; thi hvad Kongen vil vide, har du kundgjort os!«

I give you praise and worship, O God of my fathers, who have given me wisdom and strength, and have now made clear to me what we were requesting from you: for you have given us knowledge of the king's business.

24 Derfor gik Daniel til Arjok, hvem Kongen havde paalagt at henrette Babels Vismænd, og sagde til ham: »Henret ikke Babels Vismænd, men før mig frem for Kongen, saa vil jeg tyde ham Drømmen!«

For this reason Daniel went to Arioch, to whom the king had given orders for the destruction of the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, Do not put to death the wise men of Babylon: take me in before the king and I will make clear to him the sense of the dream.

25 Saa førte Arjok i Hast Daniel frem for Kongen og sagde til ham: »Jeg har blandt de bortførte Judæere fundet en Mand, som vil tyde Kongen Drømmen!«

Then Arioch quickly took Daniel in before the king, and said to him, Here is a man from among the prisoners of Judah, who will make clear to the king the sense of the dream.

26 Kongen tog til Orde og spurgte Daniel, som havde faaet Navnet Beltsazzar: »Er du i Stand til at kundgøre mig den Drøm, jeg har haft, og tyde den?«

The king made answer and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Are you able to make clear to me the dream which I saw and its sense?

27 Daniel svarede Kongen: »Den Hemmelighed, Kongen ønsker at vide, kan Vismænd, Manere, Drømmetydere og Stjernetydere ikke sige Kongen;

Then Daniel said in answer to the king, No wise men, or users of secret arts, or wonder-workers, or readers of signs, are able to make clear to the king the secret he is searching for;

28 men der er en Gud i Himmelen, som aabenbarer Hemmeligheder, og han har kundgjort Kong Nebukadnezar, hvad der skal ske i de sidste Dage:

But there is a God in heaven, the unveiler of secrets, and he has given to King Nebuchadnezzar knowledge of what will take place in the last days. Your dreams and the visions of your head on your bed are these:

29 Du tænkte, o Konge, paa dit Leje over, hvad der skal ske i Fremtiden, og han, som aabenbarer Hemmeligheder, kundgjorde dig, hvad der skal ske.

As for you, O King, the thoughts which came to you on your bed were of what will come about after this: and the unveiler of secrets has made clear to you what is to come.

30 Og mig er denne Hemmelighed aabenbaret, ikke ved nogen Visdom, som jeg har forud for alle andre levende Væsener, men for at Drømmen kan blive tydet Kongen, saa du kan kende dit Hjertes Tanker.

As for me, this secret is not made clear to me because of any wisdom which I have more than any living man, but in order that the sense of the dream may be made clear to the king, and that you may have knowledge of the thoughts of your heart.

31 Du saa, o Konge, for dig en vældig Billedstøtte; denne Billedstøtte var stor og dens Glans overmaade stærk; den stod foran dig, og dens Udseende var forfærdeligt.

You, O King, were looking, and a great image was there. This image, which was very great, and whose glory was very bright, was placed before you: its form sent fear into the heart.

32 Billedstøttens Hoved var af fint Guld, Bryst og Arme af Sølv, Bug og Lænder af Kobber,

As for this image, its head was made of the best gold, its breast and its arms were of silver, its middle and its sides were of brass,

33 Benene af Jern og Fødderne halvt af Jern og halvt af Ler.

Its legs of iron, its feet were in part of iron and in part of potter's earth.

34 Saaledes skuede du, indtil en Sten reves løs, dog ikke ved Menneskehænder, og ramte Billedstøttens Jern— og Lerfødder og knuste dem;

While you were looking at it, a stone was cut out, but not by hands, and it gave the image a blow on its feet, which were of iron and earth, and they were broken in bits.

35 og paa een Gang knustes Jern, Ler, Kobber, Sølv og Guld og blev som Avner fra Somrens Tærskepladser, og Vinden bar det sporløst bort; men Stenen, som ramte Billedstøtten, blev til et stort Bjerg, der fyldte hele Jorden.

Then the iron and the earth, the brass and the silver and the gold, were smashed together, and became like the dust on the floors where grain is crushed in summer; and the wind took them away so that no sign of them was to be seen: and the stone which gave the image a blow became a great mountain, covering all the earth.

36 Saaledes var Drømmen, og nu vil vi tyde Kongen den:

This is the dream; and we will make clear to the king the sense of it.

37 Du, o Konge, Kongernes Konge, hvem Himmelens Gud gav Kongedømme, Magt, Styrke og Ære,

You, O King, king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, and the strength, and the glory,

38 i hvis Haand han gav Menneskene, saa vide de bor, Markens Dyr og Himmelens Fugle, saa han gjorde dig til Hersker over dem alle, — du er Hovedet, som var af Guld.

Wherever the children of men are living; into whose hands he has given the beasts of the field and the birds of heaven, and has made you ruler over them all, you are the head of gold.

39 Men efter dig skal der komme et andet Rige, ringere end dit, og derpaa atter et tredje Rige, som er af Kobber, og hvis Herredømme skal strække sig over hele Jorden.

And after you another kingdom, lower than you, will come to power; and a third kingdom, of brass, ruling over all the earth.

40 Siden skal der komme et fjerde Rige, stærkt som Jern; thi Jern knuser og søndrer alt; og som Jern sønderslaar, skal det knuse og sønderslaa alle hine Riger.

And the fourth kingdom will be strong as iron: because, as all things are broken and overcome by iron, so it will have the power of crushing and smashing down all the earth.

41 Men naar du saa Fødderne og Tæerne halvt af Pottemagerler og halvt af Jern, betyder det, at det skal være et Rige uden Sammenhold; dog skal det have noget af Jernets Fasthed, thi du saa jo, at Jern var blandet med Ler.

And as you saw the feet and toes, part of potter's work and part of iron, there will be a division in the kingdom; but there will be some of the strength of iron in it, because you saw the iron mixed with the potter's earth.

42 Og at Tæerne var halvt af Jern og halvt af Ler, betyder, at Riget delvis skal være stærkt, delvis svagt.

And as the toes of the feet were in part of iron and in part of earth, so part of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will readily be broken.

43 Og naar du saa, at Jernet var blandet med Ler, betyder det, at de skal indgaa Ægteskaber med hverandre, men dog ikke indbyrdes holde sammen, saa lidt som Jern kan blandes med Ler.

And as you saw the iron mixed with earth, they will give their daughters to one another as wives: but they will not be united one with another, even as iron is not mixed with earth.

44 Men i hine Kongers Dage vil Himmelens Gud oprette et Rige, som aldrig i Evighed skal forgaa, og Herredømmet skal ikke gaa over til noget andet Folk; det skal knuse og tilintetgøre alle hine Riger, men selv staa i al Evighed;

And in the days of those kings, the God of heaven will put up a kingdom which will never come to destruction, and its power will never be given into the hands of another people, and all these kingdoms will be broken and overcome by it, but it will keep its place for ever.

45 thi du saa jo, at en Sten reves løs fra Klippen, dog ikke ved Menneskehænder, og knuste Jern, Ler, Kobber, Sølv og Guld. En stor Gud har kundgjort Kongen, hvad der skal ske herefter; og Drømmen er sand og Tydningen troværdig.«

Because you saw that a stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that by it the iron and the brass and the earth and the silver and the gold were broken to bits, a great God has given the king knowledge of what is to take place in the future: the dream is fixed, and its sense is certain.

46 Saa faldt Kong Nebukadnezar paa sit Ansigt og bøjede sig for Daniel, og han bød, at man skulde bringe ham Ofre og Røgelse.

Then King Nebuchadnezzar, falling down on his face, gave worship to Daniel, and gave orders for an offering and spices to be given to him;

47 Og Kongen tog til Orde og sagde til Daniel: »I Sandhed, eders Gud er Gudernes Gud og Kongernes Herre, og han kan aabenbare Hemmeligheder, siden du har kunnet aabenbare denne Hemmelighed.«

And the king made answer to Daniel and said, Truly, your God is a God of gods and a Lord of kings, and an unveiler of secrets, for you have been able to make this secret clear.

48 Derpaa ophøjede Kongen Daniel og gav ham mange store Gaver, og han satte ham til Herre over hele Landsdelen Babel og til Overherre over alle Babels Vismænd.

Then the king made Daniel great, and gave him offerings in great number, and made him ruler over all the land of Babylon, and chief over all the wise men of Babylon.

49 Men paa Daniels Bøn overdrog Kongen Sjadrak, Mesjak og Abed-Nego at styre Landsdelen Babel, medens Daniel selv blev i Kongens Gaard.

And at Daniel's request, the king gave Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego authority over the business of the land of Babylon: but Daniel was kept near the king's person.