Daniel 2:16-47

New International Version

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.^(A) ¹⁸He urged them to plead for mercy^(B) from the God of heaven^(C) concerning this mystery,^(D) so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. ¹⁹During the night the mystery^(E) was revealed to Daniel in a vision.^(F) Then Daniel praised the God of heaven^(G) ²⁰and said:

“Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever;^(H)
    wisdom and power^(I) are his.
²¹He changes times and seasons;^(J)
    he deposes^(K) kings and raises up others.^(L)
He gives wisdom^(M) to the wise
    and knowledge to the discerning.^(N)
²²He reveals deep and hidden things;^(O)
    he knows what lies in darkness,^(P)
    and light^(Q) dwells with him.
²³I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors:^(R)
    You have given me wisdom^(S) and power,
you have made known to me what we asked of you,
    you have made known to us the dream of the king.^(T)”

Daniel Interprets the Dream

²⁴Then Daniel went to Arioch,^(U) 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^(V) from Judah^(W) who can tell the king what his dream means.”

²⁶The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar),^(X) “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,^(Y) ²⁸but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries.^(Z) He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come.^(AA) Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind^(AB) as you were lying in bed^(AC) are these:^(AD)

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.^(AE) ³⁰As for me, this mystery has been revealed^(AF) 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,^(AG) awesome^(AH) 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.^(AI) It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed^(AJ) them.^(AK) 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^(AL) without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain^(AM) and filled the whole earth.^(AN)

³⁶“This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king.^(AO) ³⁷Your Majesty, you are the king of kings.^(AP) The God of heaven has given you dominion^(AQ) 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.^(AR) 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.^(AS) 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.^(AT) 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^(AU) all those kingdoms^(AV) and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.^(AW) ⁴⁵This is the meaning of the vision of the rock^(AX) cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands^(AY)—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.^(AZ) The dream is true^(BA) and its interpretation is trustworthy.”

⁴⁶Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell prostrate^(BB) before Daniel and paid him honor and ordered that an offering^(BC) and incense be presented to him. ⁴⁷The king said to Daniel, “Surely your God is the God of gods^(BD) and the Lord of kings^(BE) and a revealer of mysteries,^(BF) for you were able to reveal this mystery.^(BG)”