Daniel 2

NEW AMERICAN BIBLE	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 In the second year of his reign, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream which left his spirit no rest and robbed him of his sleep.	1 In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar saw a dream, and his spirit was terrified, and his dream fled from him.
2 So he ordered that the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and Chaldeans be summoned to interpret the dream for him. When they came and presented themselves to the king,	2 Yet the king commanded that the seers, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans be gathered together to reveal to the king his dreams. When they arrived, they stood in front of the king.
3 he said to them, "I had a dream which will allow my spirit no rest until I know what it means."	3 And the king said to them, “I saw a dream, and, being confused in mind, I do not know what I saw.”
4 The Chaldeans answered the king (Aramaic): "O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream and we will give its meaning."	4 And the Chaldeans answered the king in Syriac, “O king, live forever. Tell the dream to your servants, and we will reveal its interpretation.”
5 The king answered the Chaldeans, "This is what I have decided: unless you tell me the dream and its meaning, you shall be cut to pieces and your houses destroyed.	5 And in answer, the king said to the Chaldeans, “The memory of it has slipped away from me. Unless you reveal the dream to me, and its meaning, you will be put to death, and your houses will be confiscated.
6 But if you tell me the dream and its meaning, you shall receive from me gifts and presents and great honors. Now tell me the dream and its meaning."	6 But if you explain the dream and its meaning, you will receive from me rewards, and gifts, and great honor. Therefore, reveal to me the dream and its interpretation.”
7 Again they answered, "Let the king tell his servants the dream and we will give its meaning."	7 They answered again and said, “Let the king tell the dream to his servants, and we will reveal its interpretation.”
8 But the king replied: "I know for certain that you are bargaining for time, since you know what I have decided.	8 The king answered and said, “I am certain that you are stalling for time because you know that the memory of it has slipped away from me.
9 If you do not tell me the dream, there can be but one decree for you. You have framed a false and deceitful interpretation to present me with till the crisis is past. Tell me the dream, therefore, that I may be sure that you can also give its correct interpretation."	9 Therefore, if you do not reveal to me the dream, there is only one conclusion to be reached about you, that the interpretation is likewise false, and packed full of deception, so as to speak before me until the time passes away. And so, tell me the dream, so that I will also know that the interpretation that you tell me is likewise true.”
10 The Chaldeans answered the king: "There is not a man on earth who can do what you ask, O king; never has any king, however great and mighty, asked such a thing of any magician, enchanter, or Chaldean.	10 Then the Chaldeans answered before the king, and they said, “There is no man on earth who can accomplish your word, O king. For neither has any king, however great and mighty, asked for an answer of this kind from every seer, and astrologer, and Chaldean.
11 What you demand, O king, is too difficult; there is no one who can tell it to the king except the gods who do not dwell among men."	11 For the answer that you seek, O king, is very difficult. Neither can anyone be found who can reveal it in the sight of the king, except the gods, whose conversation is not with men.”
12 At this the king became violently angry and ordered all the wise men of Babylon to be put to death.	12 When he heard this, the king commanded, in fury and in great wrath, that all the wise men of Babylon should be destroyed.
13 When the decree was issued that the wise men should be slain, Daniel and his companions were also sought out.	13 And when the decree had gone forth, the wise men were put to death; and Daniel and his companions were sought, to be destroyed.
14 Then Daniel prudently took counsel with Arioch, the captain of the king's guard, who had set out to kill the wise men of Babylon:	14 Then Daniel inquired, about the law and the sentence, of Arioch, the general of the king’s army, who had gone forth to execute the wise men of Babylon.
15 "O officer of the king," he asked, "what is the reason for this harsh order from the king?" When Arioch told him,	15 And he asked him, who had received the orders of the king, for what reason such a cruel sentence had gone forth from the face of the king. And so, when Arioch had revealed the matter to Daniel,
16 Daniel went and asked for time from the king, that he might give him the interpretation.	16 Daniel went in and asked of the king that he would grant him time to reveal the solution to the king.
17 Daniel went home and informed his companions Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah,	17 And he went into his house and explained the task to Hananiah, and Mishael, and Azariah, his companions,
18 that they might implore the mercy of the God of heaven in regard to this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.	18 so that they would seek mercy before the face of the God of heaven, about this mystery, and so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the other wise men of Babylon.
19 During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision, and he blessed the God of heaven:	19 Then the secret was revealed to Daniel by a vision in the night. And Daniel blessed the God of heaven,
20 "Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and power are his.	20 and speaking aloud, he said, “May the name of the Lord be blessed by the present generation and for ever; for wisdom and fortitude are his.
21 He causes the changes of the times and seasons, makes kings and unmakes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who understand.	21 And he alters the times and the ages. He takes away kingdoms and he establishes them. He gives wisdom to those who are wise and teaching skills to those who understand.
22 He reveals deep and hidden things and knows what is in the darkness, for the light dwells with him.	22 He reveals deep and hidden things, and he knows what has been established in darkness. And the light is with him.
23 To you, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, because you have given me wisdom and power. Now you have shown me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the king's dream."	23 To you, God of our fathers, I confess, and you, I praise. For you have given wisdom and fortitude to me, and now you have revealed to me what we asked of you, for you have uncovered for us the king’s thoughts.”
24 So Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, "Do not put the wise men of Babylon to death. Bring me before the king, and I will tell him the interpretation of the dream." Arioch quickly brought Daniel to the king and said,	24 After this, Daniel went in to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon, and he spoke to him in this way, “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon. Bring me in before the king, and I will explain the solution to the king.”
25 "I have found a man among the Judean captives who can give the interpretation to the king."	25 Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel to the king, and he said to him, “I have found a man of the sons of the transmigration of Judah, who would announce the solution to the king.”
26 The king asked Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, "Can you tell me the dream that I had, and its meaning?"	26 The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Do you really think that you can reveal to me the dream that I saw and its interpretation?”
27 In the king's presence Daniel made this reply: "The mystery about which the king has inquired, the wise men, enchanters, magicians, and astrologers could not explain to the king.	27 And Daniel, facing the king, answered and said, “The secret that the king seeks, the wise men, the seers, and the soothsayers are unable to reveal to the king.
28 But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what is to happen in days to come; this was the dream you saw as you lay in bed.	28 But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, who has revealed to you, king Nebuchadnezzar, what will happen in the latter times. Your dream and the visions of your head upon your bed, are such as these.
29 To you in your bed there came thoughts about what should happen in the future, and he who reveals mysteries showed you what is to be.	29 You, O king, began to think, while in your blanket, about what will be hereafter. And he who reveals secrets showed you what will happen.
30 To me also this mystery has been revealed; not that I am wiser than any other living person, but in order that its meaning may be made known to the king, that you may understand the thoughts in your own mind.	30 To me, likewise, this mystery is revealed, not according to the wisdom that is in me more than in other living things, but so that the interpretation might be made manifest to the king, and so that you may know the thoughts of your mind.
31 "In your vision, O king, you saw a statue, very large and exceedingly bright, terrifying in appearance as it stood before you.	31 You, O king, saw, and behold, something like a great statue. This statue, which was great and high, stood exalted above you, and you considered how terrible it was.
32 The head of the statue was pure gold, its chest and arms were silver, its belly and thighs bronze,	32 The head of this statue was of the finest gold, but the breast and the arms were of silver, and further on, the belly and the thighs were of brass;
33 the legs iron, its feet partly iron and partly tile.	33 but the shins were of iron, a certain part of the feet were of iron and another part were of clay.
34 While you looked at the statue, a stone which was hewn from a mountain without a hand being put to it, struck its iron and tile feet, breaking them in pieces.	34 And so you looked until a stone was broken off without hands from a mountain, and it struck the statue on its feet, which were of iron and clay, and it shattered them.
35 The iron, tile, bronze, silver, and gold all crumbled at once, fine as the chaff on the threshing floor in summer, and the wind blew them away without leaving a trace. But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.	35 Then the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold were crushed together and diminished like the ashes of a summer courtyard, and they were quickly taken away by the wind, and no place was found for them; but the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
36 "This was the dream; the interpretation we shall also give in the king's presence.	36 This is the dream; we will also tell its interpretation before you, O king.
37 You, O king, are the king of kings; to you the God of heaven has given dominion and strength, power and glory;	37 You are a king among kings, and the God of heaven has given to you a kingdom, and fortitude, and power, and glory,
38 men, wild beasts, and birds of the air, wherever they may dwell, he has handed over to you, making you ruler over them all; you are the head of gold.	38 and all the places wherein the sons of men and the beasts of the field dwell. He has likewise given the flying creatures of the air into your hand, and he has placed all things under your realm. Therefore, you are the head of gold.
39 Another kingdom shall take your place, inferior to yours, then a third kingdom, of bronze, which shall rule over the whole earth.	39 And after you, another kingdom will rise up, inferior to you, of silver, and another third kingdom of brass, which will rule over the whole world.
40 There shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron; it shall break in pieces and subdue all these others, just as iron breaks in pieces and crushes everything else.	40 And the fourth kingdom will be like iron. Just as iron shatters and conquers all things, so will it shatter and crush all these.
41 The feet and toes you saw, partly of potter's tile and partly of iron, mean that it shall be a divided kingdom, but yet have some of the hardness of iron. As you saw the iron mixed with clay tile,	41 Furthermore, because you saw the feet and the toes to be part of potter’s clay and part of iron, the kingdom will be divided, but still, from the slip of iron it will take its origin, since you saw the iron mingled with the earthenware from clay.
42 and the toes partly iron and partly tile, the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile.	42 And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, part the kingdom will be strong and part will be crushed.
43 The iron mixed with clay tile means that they shall seal their alliances by intermarriage, but they shall not stay united, any more than iron mixes with clay.	43 Yet, because you saw the iron mingled with pottery from the earth, they will indeed be combined together with the offspring of man, but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron cannot be mixed with earthenware.
44 In the lifetime of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed or delivered up to another people; rather, it shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and put an end to them, and it shall stand forever.	44 But in the days of those kingdoms, the God of heaven will inspire a kingdom that will never be destroyed, and his kingdom will not be handed over to another people, and it will crush and will consume all these kingdoms, and this kingdom itself will stand in eternity.
45 That is the meaning of the stone you saw hewn from the mountain without a hand being put to it, which broke in pieces the tile, iron, bronze, silver, and gold. The great God has revealed to the king what shall be in the future; this is exactly what you dreamed, and its meaning is sure."	45 In accordance with what you saw, because the stone was torn away from the mountain without hands, and it crushed the earthenware, and the iron, and the brass, and the silver, and the gold, the great God has shown the king what will happen after this. And the dream is true, and its interpretation is faithful.”
46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell down and worshiped Daniel and ordered sacrifice and incense offered to him.	46 Then king Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and adored Daniel, and he commanded that they should offer in sacrifice to him victims and incense.
47 To Daniel the king said, "Truly your God is the God of gods and Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries; that is why you were able to reveal this mystery."	47 And so the king spoke with Daniel and said, “Truly, your God is the God of gods, and Lord of kings, and also a revealer of secrets, since you could uncover this mystery.”
48 He advanced Daniel to a high post, gave him many generous presents, made him ruler of the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.	48 Then the king raised Daniel to a high rank and gave him many great gifts, and he appointed him as leader over all the provinces of Babylon and as chief of the magistrates over all the other wise men of Babylon.
49 At Daniel's request the king made Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego administrators of the province of Babylon, while Daniel himself remained at the king's court.	49 However, Daniel required of the king that he appoint Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the works of the province of Babylon. But Daniel himself was at the king’s door.