Daniel 2
1 In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, he had dreams. His mind was troubled, and he could not sleep.
[One night] during the second year that Nebuchadnezzar ruled, he had a dream. The dream worried him very much; and [as a result] he could not sleep.
2 Then the king summoned the magicians and those who claimed to speak with the dead. He also called the sorcerers and wise men. He wanted them to tell him about his dreams. So they came in and stood before the king.
[The next morning] he summoned his men who worked magic, fortune-tellers, those who worked sorcery, and those who studied the stars. [Because he had forgotten what he had dreamed, ] he insisted that they tell him what he had dreamed. As they stood there in front of the king,
3 The king said to them, “I have had a dream, and my mind is anxious to know what the dream means.”
he said, “I had a dream [last night] that worries me. [Tell me what I dreamed, because] I want to know what the dream [means].”
4 Then the wise men spoke to the king in Aramaic, “King, live forever! Tell the dream to us, your servants, and we will reveal the meaning.”
The men who studied the stars replied to the king, speaking in the Aramaic [language]. They said, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we hope that you will live a long time! Tell us what you dreamed, and [then] we will tell you what it means!”
5 The king replied to the wise men, “This matter has been settled. If you do not reveal the dream to me and interpret it, your bodies will be torn apart and your houses made into rubbish heaps.
But the king replied, “I have firmly decided that you must tell me the dream, and [also tell me] what it means. If you do not do that, I will [order my soldiers to] cut you into pieces, and to cause your houses to become only piles of stones!
6 But if you will tell me the dream and its meaning, you will receive gifts from me, a reward, and great honor. So tell to me the dream and its meaning.”
But if you tell me what I dreamed and what it means, I will reward you. I will give you wonderful gifts and greatly honor you. So tell me what I dreamed and what it means!”
7 They replied again and said, “Let the king tell us, his servants, the dream and we will tell you its meaning.”
But again they said, “Tell us what you dreamed, and [then] we will tell you what it means.”
8 The king answered, “I know for certain that you want more time because you see how firm my decision is about this.
The king replied, “I know that you are just trying to get more time, because you know that I will do to you what I said that I would do.
9 But if you do not tell me the dream, there is only one sentence for you. You have decided to prepare false and deceptive words that you agreed together to say to me until I change my mind. So then, tell me the dream, and then I will know you can interpret it for me.”
If you do not tell me what I dreamed, you will be punished. [I think that] you have all agreed to tell me lies and [other] wicked things, because you hope that I will change ([my mind/what I am thinking]). But tell me the dream, and [then] I will know that you can [also] tell me what it means.”
10 The wise men replied to the king, “There is not a man on earth able to meet the king's demand. There is no great and powerful king who has demanded such a thing from any magician, or from anyone who claims to speak with the dead, or from a wise man.
The men who studied the stars replied, “There is no one on the earth who can do what you ask! There is no king, [even] a great and mighty king, who has [ever] asked his men who work magic or his fortune-tellers or men who study the stars to do something like that!
11 What the king demands is difficult, and there is no one who can tell it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among humans.”
What you are asking [us to do] is impossible. Only the gods can tell you what you dreamed, and they do not live among us!”
12 This made the king angry and very furious, and he gave an order to destroy all those in Babylon who were known for their wisdom.
The king was very angry when he heard that, so he commanded [his soldiers] that they execute all such wise men in Babylon.
13 So the decree went out that all those who were known for their wisdom were to be put to death. Because of this decree, they searched for Daniel and his friends so they could be put to death.
And because of what the king commanded, they sent some men to find me and my [three] friends, to execute us [also].
14 Then Daniel replied with prudence and discretion to Arioch the commander of the king's bodyguard, who had come to kill all those in Babylon who were known for their wisdom.
Arioch, the commander of the king’s guards, came to kill us. But I spoke to him very wisely and tactfully/skillfully.
15 Daniel asked the king's commander, “Why is the king's decree so urgent?” So Arioch told Daniel what had happened.
I asked Arioch, “Why has the king made such a harsh/terrible decree?” So Arioch told me all that had happened [because of the king’s dream].
16 Then Daniel went in and requested an appointment with the king so that he could present the interpretation to the king.
I [immediately] went to talk to the king and requested that the king give me some time, so that I could find out [what the dream was and] what the dream meant.
17 Then Daniel went to his house and explained to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, what had happened.
Then I went home, and I told my friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, what had happened.
18 He urged them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery so that he and they might not be killed with the rest of the men of Babylon who were known for their wisdom.
I urged them to ask God, who lives/rules in heaven, to have mercy on us by telling us the secret [meaning of what the king dreamed], in order that we and the other wise men in Babylon would not be executed.
19 That night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven
And that night [God] gave to me a vision in which he revealed the secret. Then I praised God,
20 and said, “Praise the name of God forever and ever; for wisdom and power belong to him.
saying, “We should praise God [MTY] forever, because [only] he truly is wise and powerful.
21 He changes the times and seasons; he removes kings and places kings on their thrones. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding.
He determines what events will happen through the years. He removes [some] kings and gives their authority to [new] kings. He is the one who causes people to become wise and enables those who study to understand [many] things.
22 He reveals the deep and hidden things because he knows what is in the darkness, and the light lives with him.
He reveals things that are very mysterious; he is surrounded by light, but he knows things that are hidden [as though they were] in the darkness.
23 God of my ancestors, I thank you and praise you for the wisdom and power you gave to me. Now you have made known to me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the matter that concerns the king.”
God, whom my ancestors [worshiped], I thank you and I praise you, because you have caused me to be wise and made me strong. You have told me what my friends and I asked you to tell us; and you have revealed to us what the king demanded to know.”
24 Then Daniel went in to see Arioch (the one the king appointed to kill everyone who was wise in Babylon). He went and said to him, “Do not kill the wise men in Babylon. Take me to the king and I will show the king the interpretation of his dream.”
Then I went to Arioch, the man whom the king had appointed to execute the wise men in Babylon. I said to him, “Do not kill those wise men. Take me to the king, and I will tell him what his dream means.”
25 Then Arioch quickly brought in Daniel before the king and said, “I have found among the exiles of Judah a man who will reveal the meaning of the king's dream.”
So Arioch quickly took me to the king. He said to the king, “I have found [this man], one of the men whom we brought from Judah who [says he can] can tell you what your dream means!”
26 The king said to Daniel (who was called Belteshazzar), “Are you able to tell me the dream that I saw and its meaning?”
The king said to me, whose [new] name was Belteshazzar, “[Is this true]? Can you tell me what I dreamed and what it means?”
27 Daniel answered the king and said, “The mystery that the king has asked about cannot be revealed by those who have wisdom, nor by those who claim to speak with the dead, nor by magicians, and not by astrologers.
I replied, “There are no wise men or fortune-tellers or men who work magic or men who work sorcery who can tell such things to you.
28 Nevertheless, there is a God who lives in the heavens, who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to you, King Nebuchadnezzar, what will happen in the days to come. These were your dream and the visions of your mind as you lay on your bed.
But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets. And he has shown in [your dream] what will happen in the future. Now I will tell you what you dreamed, the vision you saw [as you were lying] on your bed.
29 As for you, king, your thoughts on your bed were about things to come, and the one who reveals mysteries has made known to you what is about to happen.
O King, while you were sleeping, you dreamed about events that will happen in the future. The one who reveals mysteries has shown you what is going to happen.
30 As for me, this mystery was not revealed to me because of any wisdom that I have more than any other living person. This mystery was revealed to me so that you, king, may understand the meaning, and so that you may know the thoughts deep within you.
And it is not because I am wiser than anyone else on earth that I know the meaning of this mysterious dream. It is because God wanted you to understand what you were thinking.
31 King, you looked up and you saw a large statue. This statue, which was very powerful and bright, stood before you. Its brightness was terrifying.
O King, [in your vision] you saw in front of you a huge and terrifying statue [of a man. It was] shining very brightly, and it was frightening and awesome.
32 The head of the statue was made of fine gold. Its breast and arms were of silver. Its middle and its thighs were made of bronze,
The head of the statue was [made] of pure gold. Its chest and arms [were made of] silver. Its belly and thighs [were made of] bronze.
33 and its legs were made of iron. Its feet were made partly of iron and partly of clay.
Its legs [were made of] iron, and its feet were a mixture of clay and iron.
34 You looked up, and a stone was cut out, although not by human hands, and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay, and it shattered them.
As you watched, something cut a rock [from a mountain, but it was] not a human [who cut it]. The rock [tumbled down and] smashed the feet of the statue, feet [that were made of] iron and clay. It smashed them to bits.
35 Then the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold at the same time were broken into pieces and became like the chaff of the threshing floors in the summer. The wind carried them away and there was no trace of them left. But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
Then the rest of the statue collapsed into a big heap of iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold. The pieces of the statue were as small as bits of chaff on the ground where it is threshed, and the wind blew away all the tiny pieces. There was nothing left. But the rock that smashed the statue became a large mountain that covered the whole earth.
36 This was your dream. Now we will tell the king the meaning.
That was what you dreamed. Now I will tell you what it means.
37 You, king, are king of the kings to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, the strength, and the honor.
You are a king [who rules] over [many other] kings. The God who rules in heaven has caused you to rule over them and has given you great power [DOU] and has honored you.
38 He has given into your hand the place where the human beings live. He has given over the animals of the fields and the birds of the heavens into your hand, and he has made you rule over them all. You are the statue's head of gold.
He has caused you to be the ruler over all people, and [even] the animals and birds are controlled by you. [So] the head [of the statue] represents you.
39 After you, another kingdom will arise that is inferior to you, and yet a third kingdom of bronze will rule over all the earth.
But after your [kingdom/rule] ends, there will be another [great] kingdom, [but it] will not be as great as yours. [The silver parts of the statue represent that kingdom]. Then there will be a third [great] kingdom [whose king] will rule over the whole earth. The bronze parts [of the statue represent] that kingdom.
40 There will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks other things into pieces and shatters everything. It will shatter all these things and crush them.
After that kingdom ends, there will be a fourth [great] kingdom. The iron [parts of the statue represent that kingdom]. [The army of] that kingdom will smash the previous kingdoms, just like iron smashes everything that it strikes.
41 Just as you saw, the feet and toes were partly made of baked clay and partly made of iron, so it will be a divided kingdom; some of the strength of iron will be in it, just as you saw iron mixed with the soft clay.
The feet and toes of the statue that you saw, that were a mixture of iron and clay, indicate that the kingdom they represent will [later] be divided.
42 As the toes of the feet were partly made of iron and partly made of clay, so the kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle.
Some parts of that kingdom will be as strong as iron, but some parts will not remain together, just as iron and clay do not stick together.
43 As you saw the iron mixed with soft clay, so the people will be a mixture; they will not stay together, just as iron does not mix with clay.
The mixture of iron and clay [in the statue] shows also that the rulers of those kingdoms that separate from each other will try to form alliances with each other as a result of members of the royal families of those kingdoms marrying each other. But that will not succeed, just as iron and clay do not stick together.
44 In the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be conquered by another people. It will break the other kingdoms into pieces and put an end to all of them, and it will remain forever.
But while those kings are ruling, God who rules in heaven will establish a kingdom that will never end. No one will ever defeat its king. He will completely destroy all those kingdoms, but his kingdom will remain forever.
45 Just as you saw, a stone was cut out of the mountain, but not by human hands. It broke the iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold into pieces. The great God has made known to you, king, what will happen after this. The dream is true and this interpretation is reliable.”
That is the meaning of the rock that something cut from the mountain, the rock that will crush to tiny bits the statue that is made of iron, bronze, silver, and gold. O king, the great God has shown you what will truly happen in the future. And you can trust [what I told you about] the meaning of the dream.”
46 King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face before Daniel and honored him; he commanded that an offering be made and that incense be offered up to him.
Then King Nebuchadnezzar prostrated himself in front of me [in great respect]. He commanded [his people] that they burn incense and burn an offering of grain to honor me.
47 The king said to Daniel, “Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and the one who reveals mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.”
The king said to me, “[Your God has enabled] you to tell me the meaning of this dream/mystery, so now I truly know that your God is greater than all the other gods and all other kings. He reveals [to people] things that they cannot know.”
48 Then the king made Daniel highly honored and gave him many wonderful gifts. He made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon. Daniel became chief governor over the wisest men of Babylon.
Then the king gave many gifts to me, and he [also] appointed me to rule over the entire province of Babylon, and [also] to be the boss of all his wise men.
49 Daniel made a request of the king, and the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be administrators over the province of Babylon. But Daniel remained at the king's court.
I asked the king to appoint Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to [also] have important positions in Babylon province, and the king did what I asked him to do. But [I did my work while] I stayed at the king’s palace.
