20 Daniel answered and said:

(A)“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
(B)For wisdom and might are His.
21 And He changes (C)the times and the seasons;
(D)He removes kings and raises up kings;
(E)He gives wisdom to the wise
And knowledge to those who have understanding.
22 (F)He reveals deep and secret things;
(G)He knows what is in the darkness,
And (H)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 (I)asked of You,
For You have made known to us the king’s [a]demand.”

Daniel Explains the Dream

24 Therefore 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.”

25 Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel before the king, and said thus to him, “I have found a man of the [b]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 secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king. 28 (J)But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar (K)what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these: 29 As for you, O king, thoughts came to your mind while on your bed, about what would come to pass after this; (L)and He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will be. 30 (M)But 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, (N)and that you may [c]know the thoughts of your heart.

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. 32 (O)This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and [d]thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of [e]clay.

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Footnotes

  1. Daniel 2:23 Lit. word
  2. Daniel 2:25 Lit. sons of the captivity
  3. Daniel 2:30 Understand
  4. Daniel 2:32 Or sides
  5. Daniel 2:33 Or baked clay, also vv. 34, 35, 42

20 and said:

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

Daniel Interprets the Dream

24 Then Daniel went to Arioch,(N) 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.”

25 Arioch took Daniel to the king at once and said, “I have found a man among the exiles(O) from Judah(P) who can tell the king what his dream means.”

26 The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar),(Q) “Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and interpret it?”

27 Daniel replied, “No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about,(R) 28 but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries.(S) He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come.(T) Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind(U) as you were lying in bed(V) are these:(W)

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.(X) 30 As for me, this mystery has been revealed(Y) 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,(Z) awesome(AA) in appearance. 32 The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay.

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