Daniel 2
1 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.
And, in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, —and his spirit, was troubled, and, his sleep, had gone from him.
2 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.
So the king gave word to call for the sacred scribes and for the magicians, and for the users of incantations, and for the Chaldeans, that they might tell the king his dreams, —they came in therefore, and stood before the king.
3 And the king seide to hem, Y siy a dreem, and Y am schent in mynde, and Y knowe not what Y siy.
And the king, said to them, A dream, have I dreamed, —and my spirit is troubled to know the dream.
4 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.
Then spake the Chaldeans to the king, in Aramaic, —O king, to the ages, live! Tell the dream to thy servants, and, the interpretation, we will declare.
5 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.
The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The word from me, is unalterable: If ye shall not make known to me the dream and the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and, your houses, into a dunghill, shall be turned;
6 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.
but, if, the dream and the interpretation thereof, ye will declare, gifts and a present and great dignity, shall ye receive from before me, —therefore, the dream and the interpretation thereof, declare ye unto me.
7 Thei answeriden the secounde tyme, and seiden, The kyng seie the dreem to hise seruauntis, and we schulen schewe the interpretyng therof.
They answered again and said, —Let, the king, tell, the dream, to his servants, and, the interpretation thereof, we will declare.
8 The kyng answeride, and seide, Certis Y woot, that ye ayenbien the tyme, and witen that the word is goen awei fro me.
The king answered and said, Of a certainty, I know, that, time, ye, would gain, —merely because ye see that, unalterable, from me, is the word:
9 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.
That, if, the dream, ye shall not make known to me, one and the same, is the decree, and, a lying and wicked word, have ye agreed to speak before me, that meanwhile the time may be changed, —therefore, the dream, tell ye me, so shall I know that, the interpretation thereof, ye can declare for me.
10 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.
The Chaldeans answered before the king and said, There is not a man upon the earth, who can declare, the matter of the king, —although indeed, there is no king, chief ruler who, a thing like this, hath asked of any sacred scribe or magician or Chaldean;
11 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.
and, the thing which the king hath asked, is difficult, and, none other, is there, who can declare it before the king, —saving the gods whose dwelling is, not with flesh.
12 And whanne this word was herd, the kyng comaundide, in woodnesse and in greet ire, that alle the wise men of Babiloyne schulden perische.
For this cause, the king, was provoked and exceedingly indignant, —and gave word to destroy all the wise men of Babylon;
13 And bi the sentence goon out, the wise men weren slayn; and Danyel and hise felows weren souyt, that thei schulden perische.
and, the decree, went forth, that, the wise men, should be slain, —and they sought Daniel and his companions that they might be slain.
14 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.
Immediately, Daniel, made answer with prudence and discretion, to Arioch, chief of the executioners of the king, —who had come forth to slay the wise men of Babylon:
15 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,
he began to speak and said to Arioch the king’s captain, —For what cause, is the decree raging forth from before the king? Then did Arioch make the matter known unto Daniel.
16 Danyel entride, and preyede the kyng, that he schulde yyue tyme to hym to schewe the soilyng to the kyng.
So Daniel entered in, and desired of the king, —that, an appointed time, he would give him, and then, the interpretation, he would declare unto the king.
17 And he entride in to his hous, and schewide the nede to Ananye, and to Misael, and Asarie,
Then Daniel, to his own house, departed, —and, to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, made the matter known;
18 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.
that, tender compassion, they might seek from before the God of the heavens, concerning this secret, —that Daniel and his companions, might not be destroyed, with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
19 Thanne the priuyte was schewid to Danyel bi a visioun in nyyt. And Danyel blesside God of heuene, and seide,
Then, unto Daniel—in a vision of the night, the secret was revealed, —whereupon, Daniel, blessed the God of the heavens:
20 The name of the Lord be blessid fro the world, and til in to the world, for wisdom and strengthe ben hise;
Daniel responded, and said, Let the name of God be blessed from age to age, —in that wisdom and might, to him belong;
21 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;
And, he, changeth times and seasons, removeth kings, and setteth up kings, —giving wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to them who are skilled in understanding:
22 he schewith deepe thingis and hid, and he knowith thingis set in derknessis, and liyt is with hym.
He, revealeth the deep things, and the hidden, —knoweth what is in the darkness, and, light, with him, doth dwell.
23 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.
Unto the, O God of my fathers, do I render thanks and praise, in that, wisdom and might, thou hast given unto me, —yea, already, hast thou made known to me that which we desired of thee, for, the matter of the king, hast thou made known unto us.
24 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.
Therefore, Daniel entered in unto Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon, —he went in, and, thus, he said unto him, The wise men of Babylon, do not thou destroy, bring me in before the king, and, the interpretation—unto the king, will I declare.
25 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.
Thereupon, Arioch—with haste, brought in Daniel before the king, —and, thus, he said to him—I have found a man of the sons of the exile of Judah, who, the interpretation—unto the king, will make known.
26 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?
The king answered and said unto Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, —Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?
27 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.
Daniel answered before the king, and said, —The secret which the king hath asked, the wise men, the magicians, the sacred scribes, the astrologers, are not able to declare unto the king;
28 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.
but there is a God in the heavens, who revealeth secrets, and hath made known to King Nebuchadnezzar, what shall come to pass, in the afterpart of the days: Thy dream and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are, these: —
29 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.
As for thee, O king, thy thoughts upon thy bed, arose regarding what should come to pass hereafter; and, he that revealeth secrets, made known to thee what shall come to pass.
30 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.
But, as for me—not for any wisdom that is in me, more than any of the living, is, this secret, revealed to me, —therefore, it is in order that, the interpretation—unto the king, they should make known, and that, the thoughts of thy heart, thou shouldst get to know.
31 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.
As for thee, O king, thou wast looking, when lo! a great image, this image, being mighty, and the brightness thereof surpassing, was standing before thee, —and, the appearance thereof, was terrible.
32 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,
As for this image, its head, was of fine gold, its breast and its arms, were of silver, —its belly and its thighs, of bronze;
33 but the leggis weren of irun; forsothe sum part of the feet was of irun, sum was of erthe.
its legs, of iron, —and, its feet, part of them, of iron, and, part of them, of clay.
34 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.
Thou didst look, until that a stone tare itself away, not by the aid of hands, and smote the image upon its feet, which were of iron and clay, —and they were broken in pieces.
35 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.
Then were broken in pieces at once, the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, and became like chaff out of the summer threshing-floors, and the wind, carried them away, and, no place, was found for them, —but, the stone that smote the image, became a mighty rock, and filled all the land.
36 This is the dreem. Also, thou kyng, we schulen seie bifor thee the interpretyng therof.
This, is the dream, and, the interpretation thereof, we will tell before the king.
37 Thou art kyng of kyngis, and God of heuene yaf to thee rewme, strengthe, and empire, and glorie;
Thou, O king, art the king of kings, —for, the God of the heavens, hath given unto thee, the kingship, the might, the power and the dignity;
38 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.
and, wheresoever the sons of men do dwell, the wild beasts of the field and the birds of the heavens, hath he given into thy hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou, art the head of gold.
39 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.
And, after thee, shall arise another kingdom, inferior to thee, —and another—a third kingdom, of bronze, which shall bear rule throughout all the earth.
40 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.
And, the fourth kingdom, shall be hard as iron, —in like manner as iron breaketh in pieces and crusheth all things, —even as iron which bringeth to ruins all these, shall it break in pieces and bring to ruins.
41 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,
And, whereas thou sawest the feet and the toes, part of them of potter’s clay, and part of them of iron, the kingdom, shall be, divided, and, of the hardness of the iron, shall there be in it, —forasmuch as thou sawest, the iron, combined with the miry clay;
42 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.
and, the toes of the feet, part of them, iron, and, part, of clay, —some part of the kingdom, shall be strong, but, a part thereof, shall be brittle;
43 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.
and, whereas thou sawest, the iron, combined with the miry clay, they shall be combined with the seed of men, but shall not cleave firmly one to another, —lo! as iron is not to be combined with clay.
44 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,
And, in the days of those kings, shall the God of the heavens, set up, a kingdom which, to the ages, shall not be destroyed, and, the kingdom, to another people, shall not be left, —it shall break in pieces and make an end of all these kingdoms, but, itself, shall stand to the ages.
45 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.
Forasmuch as thou sawest that, out of the rock, a stone tare itself away, but not with hands, and brake in pieces the clay, the iron, the bronze, the silver and the gold, the mighty God, hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter. Exact then is the dream, and trusty its interpretation.
46 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.
Then, King Nebuchadnezzar, fell upon his face, and, unto Daniel, paid adoration; and, a present and sweet odours, gave he word to pour out unto him.
47 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.
The king answered Daniel, and said—Of a truth, your God, is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a Revealer of secrets, —seeing thou wast able to reveal this secret.
48 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.
Then, the king, exalted, Daniel, and, many large presents, gave he unto him, and set him to be ruler over all the province of Babylon, —and chief of the nobles, over all the wise men of Babylon.
49 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.
And, Daniel, desired of the king, and he appointed—over the business of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, —but, Daniel himself, was in the gate of the king.
