Daniel 2
1 In the second year of the rule of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; and his spirit was troubled and his sleep went from him.
In the secounde yeer of the rewme of Nabugodonosor, Nabugodonosor siy a dreem; and his spirit was aferd, and his dreem fledde awei fro hym.
2 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.
Therfor the kyng comaundide, that the dyuynours, and astronomyens, and witchis, and Caldeis schulden be clepid togidere, that thei schulden telle to the kyng hise dremys; and whanne thei weren comun, thei stoden bifor the king.
3 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.
And the king seide to hem, Y siy a dreem, and Y am schent in mynde, and Y knowe not what Y siy.
4 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.
And Caldeis answeriden the kyng bi Sirik langage, Kyng, liue thou with outen ende; seie thi dreem to thi seruauntis, and we schulen schewe to thee the expownyng therof.
5 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.
And the kyng answeride, and seide to Caldeis, The word is goen awei fro me; if ye schewen not to me the dreem, and expownyng therof, ye schulen perische, and youre housis schulen be forfetid.
6 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.
Forsothe if ye tellen the dreem, and the expownyng therof, ye schulen take of me meedis and yiftis, and myche onour; therfor schewe ye to me the dreem, and the interpretyng therof.
7 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.
Thei answeriden the secounde tyme, and seiden, The kyng seie the dreem to hise seruauntis, and we schulen schewe the interpretyng therof.
8 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;
The kyng answeride, and seide, Certis Y woot, that ye ayenbien the tyme, and witen that the word is goen awei fro me.
9 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.
Therfor if ye schewen not to me the dreem, o sentence is of you, for ye maken an interpretyng bothe fals and ful of disseit, that ye speke to me til the tyme passe; therfor seie ye the dreem to me, that Y wite, that ye speke also the veri interpretyng therof.
10 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.
Therfor Caldeis answeriden bifor the kyng, and seiden, Kyng, no man is on erthe, that mai fille thi word; but nether ony greet man and myyti of kyngis axith siche a word of ony dyuynour, and astronomyen, and of a man of Caldee.
11 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.
For the word which thou, kyng, axist, is greuouse, nether ony schal be foundun, that schal schewe it in the siyt of the king, outakun goddis, whos lyuyng is not with men.
12 Because of this the king was angry and full of wrath, and gave orders for the destruction of all the wise men of Babylon.
And whanne this word was herd, the kyng comaundide, in woodnesse and in greet ire, that alle the wise men of Babiloyne schulden perische.
13 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.
And bi the sentence goon out, the wise men weren slayn; and Danyel and hise felows weren souyt, that thei schulden perische.
14 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;
Thanne Danyel axide of the lawe and sentence, of Ariok, prynce of chyualrie of the kyng, that was gon out to sle the wise men of Babiloyne.
15 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.
And he axide hym, that hadde take power of the kyng, for what cause so cruel a sentence yede out fro the face of the kyng. Therfor whanne Ariok hadde schewid the thing to Danyel,
16 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.
Danyel entride, and preyede the kyng, that he schulde yyue tyme to hym to schewe the soilyng to the kyng.
17 And Daniel went to his house and gave his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah the news:
And he entride in to his hous, and schewide the nede to Ananye, and to Misael, and Asarie,
18 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.
hise felowis, that thei schulden axe merci of the face of God of heuene on this sacrament; and that Danyel and hise felowis schulden not perische with othere wise men of Babiloyne.
19 Then the secret was made clear to Daniel in a vision of the night. And Daniel gave blessing to the God of heaven.
Thanne the priuyte was schewid to Danyel bi a visioun in nyyt. And Danyel blesside God of heuene, and seide,
20 And Daniel said in answer, May the name of God be praised for ever and ever: for wisdom and strength are his:
The name of the Lord be blessid fro the world, and til in to the world, for wisdom and strengthe ben hise;
21 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:
and he chaungith tymes and ages, he translatith rewmes and ordeyneth; he yyueth wisdom to wise men, and kunnyng to hem that vndurstonden techyng, ether chastisyng;
22 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.
he schewith deepe thingis and hid, and he knowith thingis set in derknessis, and liyt is with hym.
23 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.
God of oure fadris, Y knowleche to thee, and Y herie thee, for thou hast youe wisdom and strengthe to me; and now thou hast schewid to me tho thingis, whiche we preieden thee, for thou hast openyd to vs the word of the kyng.
24 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.
Aftir these thingis Danyel entride to Ariok, whom the kyng hadde ordeyned, that he schulde leese the wise men of Babiloyne, and thus he spak to hym, Leese thou not the wise men of Babiloyne; leede thou me in bifor the siyt of the kyng, and Y schal telle the soilyng to the kyng.
25 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.
Thanne Ariok hastynge ledde in Danyel to the kyng, and seide to him, Y haue foundun a man of the sones of passyng ouer of Juda, that schal telle the soilyng to the kyng.
26 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?
The kyng answeride, and seide to Danyel, to whom the name was Balthasar, Whethir gessist thou, that thou maist verili schewe to me the dreem which Y siy, and the interpretyng therof?
27 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;
And Danyel answeride bifore the king, and seide, The priuytee which the kyng axith, wise men, and astronomyens, and dyuynours, and lokeris of auteris, moun not schewe to the kyng.
28 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:
But God is in heuene, that schewith priuytees, which hath schewid to thee, thou king Nabugodonosor, what thingis schulen come in the laste tymes. Thi dreem and visiouns of thin heed, in thi bed, ben sich.
29 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.
Thou, kyng, bigunnest to thenke in thi bed, what was to comynge aftir these thingis; and he that schewith priuetees, schewide to thee what thingis schulen come.
30 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.
And this sacrament is schewid to me, not bi wisdom which is in me more than in alle lyuynge men, but that the interpretyng schulde be maad opyn to the kyng, and thou schuldist knowe the thouytis of thi soule.
31 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.
Thou, kyng, siyest, and lo! as o greet ymage; thilke ymage was greet, and hiy in stature, and stood bifore thee, and the loking therof was ferdful.
32 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,
The heed of this ymage was of best gold, but the brest and armes weren of siluer; certis the wombe and thies weren of bras,
33 Its legs of iron, its feet were in part of iron and in part of potter's earth.
but the leggis weren of irun; forsothe sum part of the feet was of irun, sum was of erthe.
34 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.
Thou siyest thus, til a stoon was kit doun of the hil, with outen hondis, and smoot the ymage in the irun feet therof and erthene feet, and al to-brak tho.
35 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.
Thanne the irun, tijl stoon, ether erthene vessel, bras, siluer, and gold, weren al to-brokun togidere, and dryuun as in to a deed sparcle of a large somer halle, that ben rauyschid of wynd, and no place is foundun to tho; forsothe the stoon, that smoot the ymage, was maad a greet hil, and fillide al erthe.
36 This is the dream; and we will make clear to the king the sense of it.
This is the dreem. Also, thou kyng, we schulen seie bifor thee the interpretyng therof.
37 You, O King, king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, and the strength, and the glory,
Thou art kyng of kyngis, and God of heuene yaf to thee rewme, strengthe, and empire, and glorie;
38 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.
and he yaf in thin hond alle thingis, in whiche the sones of men, and the beestis of the feeld, and the briddis of the eir dwellen, and ordeynede alle thingis vndur thi lordschip; therfor thou art the goldun heed.
39 And after you another kingdom, lower than you, will come to power; and a third kingdom, of brass, ruling over all the earth.
And another rewme lesse than thou schal rise aftir thee; and the thridde rewme, an other of bras, that schal haue the empire of al erthe.
40 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.
And the fourthe rewme schal be as irun, as irun makith lesse, and makith tame alle thingis, so it schal make lesse, and schal al to-breke alle these rewmes.
41 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.
Forsothe that thou siest a part of the feet and fyngris of erthe of a pottere, and a part of irun, the rewme shal be departid; which netheles schal rise of the plauntyng of irun, `bi that that thou siest irun meynd with a tijl stoon of clei,
42 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.
and the toos of the feet in parti of irun, and in parti of erthe, in parti the rewme schal be sad, and in parti to-brokun.
43 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.
Forsothe that thou siest irun meynd with a tiel stoon of clei, sotheli tho schulen be meynd togidere with mannus seed; but tho schulen not cleue to hem silf, as irun mai not be meddlid with tyel stoon.
44 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.
Forsothe in the daies of tho rewmes, God of heuene shal reise a rewme, that schal not be distried with outen ende, and his rewme schal not be youun to another puple; it schal make lesse, and schal waste alle these rewmes, and it schal stonde with outen ende,
45 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.
bi this that thou siest, that a stoon was kit doun of the hil with outen hondis, and maad lesse the tiel stoon, and irun, and bras, and siluer, and gold. Greet God hath schewid to the kyng, what thingis schulen come aftirward; and the dreem is trewe, and the interpretyng therof is feithful.
46 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;
Thanne king Nabugodonosor felle doun on his face, and worschipide Danyel, and comaundide sacrifices and encense to be brouyt, that tho schulden be sacrifised to hym.
47 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.
Therfor the kyng spak, and seide to Danyel, Verili youre God is God of goddis, and Lord of kyngis, that schewith mysteries, for thou miytist opene this sacrament.
48 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.
Thanne the kyng reiside Danyel an hiy, and yaf many yiftis and grete to hym; and ordeynede hym prince and prefect, ether cheef iustise, ouer alle the prouynces of Babiloyne, and maister ouer alle the wise men of Babiloyne.
49 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.
Forsothe Danyel axide of the kyng, and ordeynede Sidrac, Misaac, and Abdenago ouer alle the werkis of the prouynce of Babiloyne; but Danyel hym silf was in the yatis of the kyng.
