| New King James Version | New International Version |
| 1Now in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; and his spirit was so troubled that his sleep left him. | 1In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his mind was troubled and he could not sleep. |
| 2Then the king gave the command to call the magicians, the astrologers, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans to tell the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king. | 2So the king summoned the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers to tell him what he had dreamed. When they came in and stood before the king, |
| 3And the king said to them, “I have had a dream, and my spirit is anxious to know the dream.” | 3he said to them, "I have had a dream that troubles me and I want to know what it means." |
| 4Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.” | 4Then the astrologers answered the king, "May the king live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it." |
| 5The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “My decision is firm: if you do not make known the dream to me, and its interpretation, you shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made an ash heap. | 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. |
| 6However, if you tell the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts, rewards, and great honor. Therefore tell me the dream and its interpretation.” | 6But if you tell me the dream and explain it, you will receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. So tell me the dream and interpret it for me." |
| 7They answered again and said, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will give its interpretation.” | 7Once more they replied, "Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will interpret it." |
| 8The king answered and said, “I know for certain that you would gain time, because you see that my decision is firm: | 8Then the king answered, "I am certain that you are trying to gain time, because you realize that this is what I have firmly decided: |
| 9if you do not make known the dream to me, there is only one decree for you! For you have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the time has changed. Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can give me its interpretation.” | 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 Chaldeans answered the king, and said, “There is not a man on earth who can tell the king’s matter; therefore no king, lord, or ruler has ever asked such things of any magician, astrologer, or Chaldean. | 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. |
| 11It is a difficult thing that the king requests, and there is no other who can tell it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.” | 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." |
| 12For this reason the king was angry and very furious, and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. | 12This made the king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the wise men of Babylon. |
| 13So the decree went out, and they began killing the wise men; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them. | 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. |
| 14Then with counsel and wisdom Daniel answered Arioch, the captain of the king’s guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon; | 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 answered and said to Arioch the king’s captain, “Why is the decree from the king so urgent?” Then Arioch made the decision known to Daniel. | 15He asked the king's officer, "Why did the king issue such a harsh decree?" Arioch then explained the matter to Daniel. |
| 16So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell the king the interpretation. | 16At this, Daniel went in to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him. |
| 17Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, | 17Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. |
| 18that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. | 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. |
| 19Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven. | 19During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven |
| 20Daniel answered and said: “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His. | 20and said: "Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. |
| 21And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding. | 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 secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him. | 22He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him. |
| 23“I thank You and praise You, O God of my fathers; You have given me wisdom and might, And have now made known to me what we asked of You, For You have made known to us the king’s demand.” | 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." |
| 24Therefore Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He went and said thus to him: “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; take me before the king, and I will tell the king the interpretation.” | 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." |
| 25Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel before the king, and said thus to him, “I have found a man of the captives of Judah, who will make known to the king the interpretation.” | 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 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?” | 26The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar), "Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and interpret it?" |
| 27Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, “The secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king. | 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 secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these: | 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: |
| 29As for you, O king, thoughts came to your mind while on your bed, about what would come to pass after this; and He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will be. | 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. |
| 30But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me because I have more wisdom than anyone living, but for our sakes who make known the interpretation to the king, and that you may know the thoughts of your heart. | 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“You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. | 31"Your Majesty looked, and there before you stood a large statue--an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. |
| 32This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, | 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 clay. | 33its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. |
| 34You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. | 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 crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. | 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 is the dream. Now we will tell the interpretation of it before the king. | 36"This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. |
| 37You, O king, are a king of kings. For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory; | 37Your Majesty, you are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; |
| 38and wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field and the birds of the heaven, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all—you are this head of gold. | 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. |
| 39But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. | 39"After you, another kingdom will arise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. |
| 40And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others. | 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. |
| 41Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. | 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. |
| 42And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. | 42As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. |
| 43As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay. | 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. |
| 44And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. | 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 forever. |
| 45Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold—the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure.” | 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 on his face, prostrate before Daniel, and commanded that they should present an offering and incense to him. | 46Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell prostrate before Daniel and paid him honor and ordered that an offering and incense be presented to him. |
| 47The king answered Daniel, and said, “Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret.” | 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 promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts; and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon. | 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. |
| 49Also Daniel petitioned the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel sat in the gate of the king. | 49Moreover, at Daniel's request the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego administrators over the province of Babylon, while Daniel himself remained at the royal court. |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. |
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