New American Standard Bible 1995

Daniel 2

The King’s Forgotten Dream

1Now in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar 1 2had dreams; and his spirit was troubled and his 3sleep 4left him. 2Then the king 5gave orders to call in the 6 7magicians, the conjurers, the sorcerers and the 8Chaldeans to tell the king his dreams. So they came in and stood before the king. 3The king said to them, “I 9 10had a dream and my spirit 11is anxious to 12understand the dream.”

4Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in 13 14Aramaic: “15O king, live forever! 16Tell the dream to your servants, and we will declare the interpretation.” 5The king replied to the Chaldeans, “17The command from me is firm: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you will be 18 19torn limb from limb and your houses will be made a rubbish heap. 6But if you declare the dream and its interpretation, you will receive from me 20gifts and a reward and great honor; therefore declare to me the dream and its interpretation.” 7They answered a second time and said, “Let the king 21tell the dream to his servants, and we will declare the interpretation.” 8The king replied, “I know for certain that you are 22bargaining for time, inasmuch as you have seen that 23the command from me is firm, 9that if you do not make the dream known to me, there is only 24one 25decree for you. For you have agreed together to speak lying and corrupt 26words before me until the 27situation is changed; therefore tell me the dream, that I may 28know that you can declare to me its interpretation.” 10The Chaldeans answered 29the king and said, “There is not a man on earth who could declare the matter 30for the king, inasmuch as no great king or ruler has ever asked anything like this of any 31 32magician, conjurer or Chaldean. 11Moreover, the thing which the king demands is 33difficult, and there is no one else who could declare it 34to the king except 35gods, whose 36dwelling place is not with mortal flesh.”

12Because of this the king became 37indignant and very furious and gave orders to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. 13So the 38decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they looked for 39Daniel and his friends to 40kill them.

14Then Daniel replied with discretion and discernment to 41Arioch, the captain of the king’s 42bodyguard, who had gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon; 15he said to Arioch, the king’s commander, “For what reason is the 43decree from the king so 44urgent?” Then Arioch informed Daniel about the matter. 16So Daniel went in and requested of the king that he would 45give him time, in order that he might declare the interpretation to the king.

17Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends, 46Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, about the matter, 18so that they might 47request compassion from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his friends would not be 48destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

The Secret Is Revealed to Daniel

19Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a night 49vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven; 20Daniel said, “Let the name of God be 50blessed forever and ever, For 51wisdom and power belong to Him.21It is He who 52changes the times and the epochs; He 53removes kings and 54establishes kings; He gives 55wisdom to wise men And knowledge to 56men of understanding.22It is He who 57reveals the profound and hidden things; 58He knows what is in the darkness, And the 59light dwells with Him.23To You, O 60God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, For You have given me 61wisdom and power; Even now You have made known to me what we 62requested of You, For You have made known to us the king’s matter.”

24Therefore, Daniel went in to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and spoke to him as follows: “63Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon! Take me 64into the king’s presence, and I will declare the interpretation to the king.”

25Then Arioch hurriedly 65brought Daniel 66into the king’s presence and spoke to him as follows: “I have found a man among the 67 68exiles from Judah who can make the interpretation known to the king!” 26The king said to Daniel, whose name was 69Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen and its interpretation?” 27Daniel answered before the king and said, “As for the mystery about which the king has inquired, neither 70wise men, conjurers, 71magicians nor diviners are able to declare it to the king. 28However, there is a 72God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the 73 74latter days. This was your dream and the 75visions 76in your mind while on your bed. 29As for you, O king, while on your bed your thoughts 77turned to what would take place 78in the future; and 79He who reveals mysteries has made known to you what will take place. 30But as for me, this mystery has not been revealed to me for any 80wisdom 81residing in me more than in any other living man, but for the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king, and that you may 82understand the 83thoughts of your 84mind.

The King’s Dream

31“You, O king, were looking and behold, there was a single great statue; that statue, which was large and 85of extraordinary splendor, was standing in front of you, and its appearance was 86awesome. 32The 87head of that statue was made of fine gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze, 33its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 34You 88continued looking until a 89stone was cut out 90without hands, and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and 91crushed them. 35Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were crushed 92all at the same time and became 93like chaff from the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away so that 94not a trace of them was found. But the stone that struck the statue became a great 95mountain and filled the whole earth.

The Interpretation--Babylon the First Kingdom

36“This was the dream; now we will tell 96its interpretation before the king. 37You, O king, are the 97king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the 98kingdom, the 99power, the strength and the glory; 38and wherever the sons of men dwell, or the 100beasts of the field, or the birds of the sky, He has given them into your hand and has caused you to rule over them all. You are the head of gold.

Medo-Persia and Greece

39After you there will arise another kingdom inferior to you, then another third kingdom of bronze, which will rule over all the earth.

Rome

40Then there will be a 101fourth kingdom as strong as iron; inasmuch as iron crushes and shatters all things, so, like iron that breaks in pieces, it will crush and break all these in pieces. 41In that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have in it the toughness of iron, inasmuch as you saw the iron mixed with 102common clay. 42As the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of pottery, so some of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will be brittle. 43And in that you saw the iron mixed with 103common clay, they will combine with one another 104in the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, even as iron does not combine with pottery.

The Divine Kingdom

44In the days of those kings the 105God of heaven will 106set up a 107kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be 108left for another people; it will 109crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever. 45Inasmuch as you saw that a 110stone was cut out of the mountain without hands and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold, the 111great God has made known to the king what 112will take place 113in the future; so the dream is true and its interpretation is trustworthy.”

Daniel Promoted

46Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and did 114homage to Daniel, and gave orders to present to him an offering and 115 116fragrant incense. 47The king answered Daniel and said, “Surely 117your God is a 118God of gods and a Lord of kings and a 119revealer of mysteries, since you have been able to reveal this mystery.” 48Then the king 120 121promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts, and he made him ruler over the whole 122province of Babylon and chief 123prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. 49And Daniel made request of the king, and he 124appointed 125Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego over the administration of the province of Babylon, while Daniel was at the king’s 126 127court.

Notes

1. Daniel 2:1 Lit dreamed dreams ↩
2. Daniel 2:1 Gen 40:5-8; 41:1, 8; Job 33:15-17; Dan 2:3; 4:5 ↩
3. Daniel 2:1 Esth 6:1; Dan 6:18 ↩
4. Daniel 2:1 Lit was gone upon him ↩
5. Daniel 2:2 Lit said to call ↩
6. Daniel 2:2 Or soothsayer priests ↩
7. Daniel 2:2 Gen 41:8; Ex 7:11; Is 47:12, 13; Dan 1:20; 2:10, 27; 4:6; 5:7 ↩
8. Daniel 2:2 Or master astrologers, and so throughout the ch ↩
9. Daniel 2:3 Lit dreamed ↩
10. Daniel 2:3 Gen 40:8; 41:15; Dan 4:5 ↩
11. Daniel 2:3 Lit was troubled ↩
12. Daniel 2:3 Lit know ↩
13. Daniel 2:4 The text is in Aramaic from here through 7:28 ↩
14. Daniel 2:4 Ezra 4:7; Is 36:11 ↩
15. Daniel 2:4 Dan 3:9; 5:10 ↩
16. Daniel 2:4 Dan 2:7 ↩
17. Daniel 2:5 Another reading is The word has gone from me ↩
18. Daniel 2:5 Lit made into limbs ↩
19. Daniel 2:5 Ezra 6:11; Dan 2:12; 3:29 ↩
20. Daniel 2:6 Dan 2:48; 5:7, 16, 29 ↩
21. Daniel 2:7 Dan 2:4 ↩
22. Daniel 2:8 Lit buying ↩
23. Daniel 2:8 V 5, note 1 ↩
24. Daniel 2:9 Esth 4:11; Dan 3:15 ↩
25. Daniel 2:9 Or law ↩
26. Daniel 2:9 Lit word ↩
27. Daniel 2:9 Lit time ↩
28. Daniel 2:9 Is 41:23 ↩
29. Daniel 2:10 Lit before the ↩
30. Daniel 2:10 Lit of ↩
31. Daniel 2:10 Or soothsayer priest ↩
32. Daniel 2:10 Dan 2:2, 27 ↩
33. Daniel 2:11 Or rare ↩
34. Daniel 2:11 Lit before ↩
35. Daniel 2:11 Gen 41:39; Dan 5:11 ↩
36. Daniel 2:11 Ex 29:45; Is 57:15 ↩
37. Daniel 2:12 Ps 76:10; Dan 2:5; 3:13, 19 ↩
38. Daniel 2:13 Or law ↩
39. Daniel 2:13 Dan 1:19, 20 ↩
40. Daniel 2:13 Lit be killed ↩
41. Daniel 2:14 Dan 2:24 ↩
42. Daniel 2:14 Or executioners ↩
43. Daniel 2:15 Or law ↩
44. Daniel 2:15 Or harsh ↩
45. Daniel 2:16 Or appoint a time for him ↩
46. Daniel 2:17 Dan 1:6 ↩
47. Daniel 2:18 Esth 4:15, 16; Is 37:4; Jer 33:3; Ezek 36:37; Dan 2:23 ↩
48. Daniel 2:18 Gen 18:28; Mal 3:18 ↩
49. Daniel 2:19 Num 12:6; Job 33:15, 16; Dan 1:17; 7:2, 7, 13 ↩
50. Daniel 2:20 Ps 103:1, 2; 113:1, 2; 115:18; 145:1, 2, 21 ↩
51. Daniel 2:20 1 Chr 29:11, 12; Job 12:13, 16-22; Dan 2:21-23 ↩
52. Daniel 2:21 Ps 31:15; Dan 2:9; 7:25 ↩
53. Daniel 2:21 Job 12:18; Ps 75:6, 7; Dan 4:17, 32 ↩
54. Daniel 2:21 Or sets up ↩
55. Daniel 2:21 1 Kin 3:9, 10; 4:29; James 1:5 ↩
56. Daniel 2:21 Lit knowers ↩
57. Daniel 2:22 Job 12:22; Ps 25:14; Dan 2:19, 28 ↩
58. Daniel 2:22 Job 26:6; Ps 139:12; Is 45:7; Jer 23:24; Heb 4:13 ↩
59. Daniel 2:22 Ps 36:9; Dan 5:11, 14; James 1:17; 1 John 1:5 ↩
60. Daniel 2:23 Gen 31:42; Ex 3:15 ↩
61. Daniel 2:23 Dan 1:17; 2:21 ↩
62. Daniel 2:23 Ps 21:2, 4; Dan 2:18, 29, 30 ↩
63. Daniel 2:24 Dan 2:12, 13; Acts 27:24 ↩
64. Daniel 2:24 Lit in before the king ↩
65. Daniel 2:25 Gen 41:14 ↩
66. Daniel 2:25 Lit in before the king ↩
67. Daniel 2:25 Lit sons of the exile of ↩
68. Daniel 2:25 Dan 1:6; 5:13; 6:13 ↩
69. Daniel 2:26 Dan 1:7; 4:8; 5:12 ↩
70. Daniel 2:27 Dan 2:2, 10, 11; 5:7, 8 ↩
71. Daniel 2:27 Or soothsayer priests ↩
72. Daniel 2:28 Gen 40:8; 41:16; Dan 2:22, 45 ↩
73. Daniel 2:28 Lit end of the days ↩
74. Daniel 2:28 Gen 49:1; Is 2:2; Dan 10:14; Mic 4:1 ↩
75. Daniel 2:28 Dan 4:5 ↩
76. Daniel 2:28 Lit of your head ↩
77. Daniel 2:29 Lit came up ↩
78. Daniel 2:29 Lit after this ↩
79. Daniel 2:29 Dan 2:23, 47 ↩
80. Daniel 2:30 Gen 41:16; Dan 1:17 ↩
81. Daniel 2:30 Lit which is ↩
82. Daniel 2:30 Lit know ↩
83. Daniel 2:30 Ps 139:2; Amos 4:13 ↩
84. Daniel 2:30 Lit heart ↩
85. Daniel 2:31 Lit its splendor was surpassing ↩
86. Daniel 2:31 Hab 1:7 ↩
87. Daniel 2:32 Dan 2:38 ↩
88. Daniel 2:34 Lit were ↩
89. Daniel 2:34 Dan 2:45 ↩
90. Daniel 2:34 Dan 8:25; Zech 4:6 ↩
91. Daniel 2:34 Ps 2:9; Is 60:12 ↩
92. Daniel 2:35 Lit like one ↩
93. Daniel 2:35 Ps 1:4; Is 17:13; 41:15, 16; Hos 13:3 ↩
94. Daniel 2:35 Ps 37:10, 36 ↩
95. Daniel 2:35 Is 2:2; Mic 4:1 ↩
96. Daniel 2:36 Dan 2:24 ↩
97. Daniel 2:37 Is 47:5; Jer 27:6, 7; Ezek 26:7 ↩
98. Daniel 2:37 Or sovereignty ↩
99. Daniel 2:37 Ps 62:11 ↩
100. Daniel 2:38 Ps 50:10, 11; Dan 4:21, 22 ↩
101. Daniel 2:40 Dan 7:23 ↩
102. Daniel 2:41 Lit clay of mud ↩
103. Daniel 2:43 Lit clay of mud ↩
104. Daniel 2:43 Or with ↩
105. Daniel 2:44 Dan 2:28, 37 ↩
106. Daniel 2:44 Is 9:6, 7 ↩
107. Daniel 2:44 Ps 145:13; Ezek 37:25; Dan 4:3, 34; 6:26; 7:14, 27; Mic 4:7; Luke 1:32, 33 ↩
108. Daniel 2:44 Or passed on to ↩
109. Daniel 2:44 Ps 2:9; Is 60:12; Dan 2:34, 35 ↩
110. Daniel 2:45 Dan 2:34 ↩
111. Daniel 2:45 Deut 10:17; 2 Sam 7:22; Ps 48:1; Jer 32:18, 19; Dan 2:29; Mal 1:11 ↩
112. Daniel 2:45 Gen 41:28, 32 ↩
113. Daniel 2:45 Lit after this ↩
114. Daniel 2:46 Dan 3:5, 7; Acts 10:25; 14:13; Rev 19:10; 22:8 ↩
115. Daniel 2:46 Lit sweet odors ↩
116. Daniel 2:46 Lev 26:31; Ezra 6:10 ↩
117. Daniel 2:47 Dan 3:15; 4:25 ↩
118. Daniel 2:47 Deut 10:17; Ps 136:2, 3; Dan 11:36 ↩
119. Daniel 2:47 Dan 2:22, 30; Amos 3:7 ↩
120. Daniel 2:48 Lit made great ↩
121. Daniel 2:48 Gen 41:39-43; Dan 2:6; 5:16, 29 ↩
122. Daniel 2:48 Dan 3:1, 12, 30 ↩
123. Daniel 2:48 Lit of the prefects ↩
124. Daniel 2:49 Dan 3:12 ↩
125. Daniel 2:49 Dan 1:7 ↩
126. Daniel 2:49 Lit gate ↩
127. Daniel 2:49 Esth 2:19, 21; Amos 5:15 ↩