Nebuchadnezzar Dreams About a Large Statue
1In the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s rule, he had a dream. His mind was troubled. He couldn’t sleep. 2So the king sent for those who claimed to get knowledge by using magic. He also sent for those who practiced evil magic and those who studied the heavens. He wanted them to tell him what he had dreamed. They came in and stood in front of the king. 3He said to them, “I had a dream. It troubles me. So I want to know what it means.”
4Then those who studied the heavens answered the king. They spoke in Aramaic. They said, “King Nebuchadnezzar, may you live forever! Tell us what you dreamed. Then we’ll explain what it means.”
5The king replied to them, “I have made up my mind. You must tell me what I dreamed. And you must tell me what it means. If you don’t, I’ll have you cut to pieces. And I’ll have your houses turned into piles of trash. 6So tell me what I dreamed. Explain it to me. Then I’ll give you gifts. I’ll reward you. I’ll give you great honor. So tell me the dream. And tell me what it means.”
7Once more they replied, “King Nebuchadnezzar, tell us what you dreamed. Then we’ll tell you what it means.”
8The king answered, “I know what you are doing. You are trying to gain more time. You realize that I’ve made up my mind. 9You must tell me the dream. If you don’t, you will pay for it. You have gotten together and made evil plans. You hope things will change. So you are telling me lies. But I want you to tell me what I dreamed. Then I’ll know that you can tell me what it means.”
10They answered the king, “There is no one on earth who can do what you are asking! No king has ever asked for anything like that. Not even a king as great and mighty as you has asked for it. Those who get knowledge by using magic have never been asked to do what you are asking. And those who study the heavens haven’t been asked to do it either. 11What you are asking is much too hard. No one can tell you what you dreamed except the gods. And they don’t live among human beings.”
12That made the king very angry. He ordered that all the wise men in Babylon be put to death. 13So the order was given to kill them. Men were sent out to look for Daniel and his friends. They were also supposed to be put to death.
14Arioch was the commander of the king’s guard. He went out to put the wise men of Babylon to death. So Daniel spoke to him wisely and carefully. 15He asked the king’s officer, “Why did Nebuchadnezzar give a terrible order like that?” Then Arioch explained to Daniel what was going on. 16When Daniel heard that, he went to the king. He told him he would explain the dream to him. But he needed more time.
17Then Daniel returned to his house. He explained everything to his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. 18He asked them to pray that the God of heaven would give him mercy. He wanted God to help him understand the mystery of the king’s dream. Then he and his friends wouldn’t be killed along with Babylon’s other wise men. 19During that night, God gave Daniel a vision. He showed him what the mystery was all about. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven. 20He said,
“May God be praised for ever and ever!
He is wise and powerful.
21He changes times and seasons.
He removes some kings from power.
He causes other kings to rule.
The wisdom of those who are wise comes from him.
He gives knowledge to those who have understanding.
22He explains deep and hidden things.
He knows what happens in the darkest places.
And where he is, everything is light.
23God of my people of long ago, I thank and praise you.
You have given me wisdom and power.
You have made known to me what we asked you for.
You have shown us the king’s dream.”
Daniel Tells the King What His Dream Means
24Then Daniel went to Arioch. The king had appointed him to put the wise men of Babylon to death. Daniel said to him, “Don’t kill the wise men of Babylon. Take me to the king. I’ll tell him what his dream means.”
25So Arioch took Daniel to the king at once. Arioch said, “I have found a man among those you brought here from Judah. He can tell you what your dream means.”
26Nebuchadnezzar spoke to Daniel, who was also called Belteshazzar. The king asked him, “Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream? And can you tell me what it means?”
27Daniel replied, “You have asked us to explain a mystery to you. But no wise man can do that. And those who try to figure things out by using magic can’t do it either. 28But there is a God in heaven who can explain mysteries. King Nebuchadnezzar, he has shown you what is going to happen. Here is what you dreamed while lying in bed. And here are the visions that passed through your mind.
29“Your Majesty, while you were still in bed your mind was troubled. You were thinking about things that haven’t happened yet. The God who explains mysteries showed these things to you. 30Now the mystery has been explained to me. But it isn’t because I have greater wisdom than anyone else alive. It’s because God wants you to know what the mystery means, Your Majesty. He wants you to understand what went through your mind.
31“King Nebuchadnezzar, you looked up and saw a large statue standing in front of you. It was huge. It shone brightly. And it terrified you. 32The head of the statue was made out of pure gold. Its chest and arms were made out of silver. Its stomach and thighs were made out of bronze. 33Its legs were made out of iron. And its feet were partly iron and partly baked clay. 34While you were watching, a rock was cut out. But human hands didn’t do it. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay. It smashed them. 35Then the iron and clay were broken to pieces. So were the bronze, silver and gold. All of them were broken to pieces. They became like straw on a threshing floor at harvest time. The wind blew them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain. It filled the whole earth.
36“This was your dream. Now I will tell you what it means. 37King Nebuchadnezzar, you are the greatest king of all. The God of heaven has given you authority and power. He has given you might and glory. 38He has put everyone under your control. He has also given you authority over the wild animals and the birds in the sky. It doesn’t matter where they live. He has made you ruler over all of them. You are that head of gold.
39“After you, another kingdom will take over. It won’t be as powerful as yours. Next, a third kingdom will rule over the whole earth. The bronze part of the statue stands for that kingdom. 40Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom. It will be as strong as iron. Iron breaks and smashes everything to pieces. And the fourth kingdom will crush and break all the others. 41You saw that the feet and toes were made out of iron and baked clay. And the fourth kingdom will be divided up. But it will still have some of the strength of iron. That’s why you saw iron mixed with clay. 42The toes were partly iron and partly clay. And the fourth kingdom will be partly strong and partly weak. 43You saw the iron mixed with baked clay. And the fourth kingdom will be made up of all kinds of people. They won’t hold together any more than iron mixes with clay.
44“In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom. It will never be destroyed. And no other nation will ever take it over. It will crush all those other kingdoms. It will bring them to an end. But it will last forever. 45That’s what the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain means. Human hands didn’t cut out the rock. It broke the statue to pieces. It smashed the iron, bronze, clay, silver and gold.
“The great God has shown you what will take place in days to come. The dream is true. And you can trust the meaning of it that I have explained to you.”
46Then King Nebuchadnezzar bowed low in front of Daniel. He wanted to honor him. So he ordered that an offering and incense be offered up to him. 47The king said to Daniel, “I’m sure your God is the greatest God of all. He is the Lord of kings. He explains mysteries. That’s why you were able to explain the mystery of my dream.”
48Then the king put Daniel in a position of authority. He gave him many gifts. He made him ruler over the city of Babylon and the towns around it. He put him in charge of all its other wise men. 49The king also did what Daniel asked him to. He appointed Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to help Daniel govern Babylon and the towns around it. Daniel himself remained at the royal court.
Nebuchadnezzar’s dream
1In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his mind was troubled and he could not sleep. 2So the king summoned the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers2:2 Or Chaldeans; also in verses 4, 5 and 10 to tell him what he had dreamed. When they came in and stood before the king, 3he said to them, ‘I have had a dream that troubles me and I want to know what it means.2:3 Or was’
4Then the astrologers answered the king,2:4 At this point the Hebrew text has in Aramaic, indicating that the text from here to the end of chapter 7 is in Aramaic. ‘May the king live for ever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it.’
5The king replied to the astrologers, ‘This is what I have firmly decided: if you do not tell me what my dream was and interpret it, I will have you cut into pieces and your houses turned into piles of rubble. 6But if you tell me the dream and explain it, you will receive from me gifts and rewards and great honour. So tell me the dream and interpret it for me.’
7Once more they replied, ‘Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will interpret it.’
8Then the king answered, ‘I am certain that you are trying to gain time, because you realise that this is what I have firmly decided: 9if you do not tell me the dream, there is only one penalty for you. You have conspired to tell me misleading and wicked things, hoping the situation will change. So then, tell me the dream, and I will know that you can interpret it for me.’
10The astrologers answered the king, ‘There is no-one on earth who can do what the king asks! No king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or astrologer. 11What the king asks is too difficult. No-one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among humans.’
12This made the king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the wise men of Babylon. 13So the decree was issued to put the wise men to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put them to death.
14When Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard, had gone out to put to death the wise men of Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with wisdom and tact. 15He asked the king’s officer, ‘Why did the king issue such a harsh decree?’ Arioch then explained the matter to Daniel. 16At this, Daniel went in to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him.
17Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. 18He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 19During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven 20and said:
‘Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever;
wisdom and power are his.
21He changes times and seasons;
he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to the discerning.
22He reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what lies in darkness,
and light dwells with him.
23I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors:
you have given me wisdom and power,
you have made known to me what we asked of you,
you have made known to us the dream of the king.’
Daniel interprets the dream
24Then Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to execute the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, ‘Do not execute the wise men of Babylon. Take me to the king, and I will interpret his dream for him.’
25Arioch took Daniel to the king at once and said, ‘I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can tell the king what his dream means.’
26The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar), ‘Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and interpret it?’
27Daniel replied, ‘No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about, 28but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind as you were lying in bed are these:
29‘As Your Majesty was lying there, your mind turned to things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed you what is going to happen. 30As for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because I have greater wisdom than anyone else alive, but so that Your Majesty may know the interpretation and that you may understand what went through your mind.
31‘Your Majesty looked, and there before you stood a large statue – an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. 32The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. 34While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 35Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were all broken to pieces and became like chaff on a threshing-floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.
36‘This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. 37Your Majesty, you are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; 38in your hands he has placed all mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds in the sky. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.
39‘After you, another kingdom will arise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. 40Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron – for iron breaks and smashes everything – and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. 41Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.
44‘In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure for ever. 45This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands – a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.
‘The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and its interpretation is trustworthy.’
46Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell prostrate before Daniel and paid him honour and ordered that an offering and incense be presented to him. 47The king said to Daniel, ‘Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you were able to reveal this mystery.’
48Then the king placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on him. He made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men. 49Moreover, at Daniel’s request the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego chief ministers over the province of Babylon, while Daniel himself remained at the royal court.
