Daniel 2:21-49 ▼

21 And he changes seasons and times; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to them who know understanding;

22 He reveals the deep and secret things; he knows what is in the darkness, and the light is with him.

23 To thee, O God of my fathers, I give thanks, and I praise thee, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast now made known to me what we desired of thee; for thou hast made known to us the king's matter.

24 And in that very hour Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had ordered to destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and spoke thus to him: Destroy not the wise men of Babylon; but bring me in before the king and I will show the king the interpretation.

25 Then Arioch brought Daniel in before the king in haste, and spoke thus to him: I have found a man of the captives of Judah who will make known to the king the interpretation.

26 The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen, and its interpretation?

27 Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The mystery which the king has demanded to know, can no wise men, sorcerers, nor the magicians, nor the astrologers reveal to the king;

28 But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, who has made known to the King Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Your dream and the vision of your head upon your bed are these;

29 As for you, O king, your thoughts came into your mind concerning what shall come to pass hereafter; and he who reveals mysteries has made known to you what shall come to pass.

30 But as for me, this mystery is not revealed to me on account of any wisdom that I have more than any living person, but for the sake of the interpretation, that it might be known to the king and that you may know the thoughts of your heart.

31 You, O king, were looking, and behold, a great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before you; and its appearance was terrible.

32 This image's head was of fine gold, its breast and arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of brass,

33 Its legs of iron, its feet part of iron and part of clay.

34 Then you saw that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon its feet that were of iron and clay, and broke them to pieces.

35 Then the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold were all broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and a strong wind carried them away so that no place was found for them; and the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

36 This is the dream; now I will tell its interpretation before the king.

37 You, O king, are a king of kings; for the God of heaven has given you a mighty kingdom and honor.

38 And every country in which men dwell, the fowls of the air and the beasts of the field, he has placed under your authority, and has made you ruler over them all. You are the head of gold.

39 And after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to you, and a third kingdom of brass, which shall rule over all the earth.

40 And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron; for just as iron hammers and breaks everything in pieces, so shall it break and conquer every kingdom.

41 And whereas you saw the feet and toes, part of potter's clay and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it some of the strength of iron, just as you saw the iron mixed with miry clay.

42 And as for the toes of the feet which you saw, part of iron and part of clay, so some parts of the kingdom shall be strong and some parts weak.

43 And whereas you saw iron mixed with miry clay, so they shall mix themselves with one another in marriage; but they shall not cleave one to another, just as iron does not mix with clay.

44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up an everlasting kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and bring to an end all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

45 Forasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God has made known to you what shall come to pass in the latter days. The dream is true, and its interpretation is sure.

46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer incense and sacrifices to him.

47 The king answered Daniel and said, Truly, your God is the God of gods and the LORD of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.

48 Then the king advanced Daniel's rank and gave him a great many gifts and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and appointed him chief over all the generals of the armies and over all the wise men of Babylon.

49 Then Daniel requested of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel himself remained in the king's gate.