Daniel 1-4

English Standard Version

Daniel Taken to Babylon

1 In the third year of ^(A)the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. ² And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with some of ^(B)the vessels of the house of God. And he brought them to ^(C)the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, ^(D)and placed the vessels in the treasury of his god. ³ Then the king commanded Ashpenaz, ^(E)his chief eunuch, to bring some of the people of Israel, both of the royal family^[a] and of ^(F)the nobility, ⁴ youths without ^(G)blemish, of good appearance and ^(H)skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king's palace, and to ^(I)teach them the literature and language of the ^(J)Chaldeans. ⁵ The king assigned them a daily portion of ^(K)the food that the king ate, and of ^(L)the wine that he drank. They were to be educated for ^(M)three years, and at the end of that time they were to ^(N)stand before the king. ⁶ Among these were ^(O)Daniel, ^(P)Hananiah, ^(Q)Mishael, and ^(R)Azariah of the tribe of Judah. ⁷ And ^(S)the chief of the eunuchs ^(T)gave them names: ^(U)Daniel he called Belteshazzar, Hananiah he called Shadrach, Mishael he called Meshach, and Azariah he called Abednego.

Daniel's Faithfulness

⁸ But Daniel ^(V)resolved that he would not ^(W)defile himself with ^(X)the king's food, or with ^(Y)the wine that he drank. Therefore he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to ^(Z)defile himself. ^9 (AA)And God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs, ¹⁰ and the chief of the eunuchs said to Daniel, “I fear my lord the king, who assigned your food and your drink; for why should he see that you were in worse condition than the youths who are of your own age? So you would endanger my head with the king.” ¹¹ Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had assigned over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, ¹² “Test your servants for ^(AB)ten days; let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink. ¹³ Then let our appearance and the appearance of the youths who eat ^(AC)the king's food be observed by you, and deal with your servants according to what you see.” ¹⁴ So he listened to them in this matter, and tested them for ten days. ¹⁵ At the end of ten days it was seen that they were better in appearance and fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate ^(AD)the king's food. ^16 (AE)So the steward took away their food and the wine they were to drink, and gave them ^(AF)vegetables.

¹⁷ As for these four youths, ^(AG)God gave them learning and ^(AH)skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had ^(AI)understanding in all visions and dreams. ¹⁸ At the end of ^(AJ)the time, when the king had commanded that they should be brought in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. ¹⁹ And the king spoke with them, and among all of them none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Therefore ^(AK)they stood before the king. ²⁰ And in every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all ^(AL)the magicians and ^(AM)enchanters that were in all his kingdom. ²¹ And Daniel ^(AN)was there until the first year of ^(AO)King Cyrus.

Nebuchadnezzar's Dream

2 In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; ^(AP)his spirit was troubled, and ^(AQ)his sleep left him. ² Then the king commanded that ^(AR)the magicians, ^(AS)the enchanters, the ^(AT)sorcerers, and ^(AU)the Chaldeans be summoned to tell the king his dreams. So they came in and ^(AV)stood before the king. ³ And the king said to them, “I had a dream, and ^(AW)my spirit is troubled to know the dream.” ⁴ Then ^(AX)the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic,^{[b] (AY)}“O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.” ⁵ The king answered and said to ^(AZ)the Chaldeans, “The word from me is firm: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall be ^(BA)torn limb from limb, ^(BB)and your ^(BC)houses shall be laid in ruins. ⁶ But if you show the dream and its interpretation, ^(BD)you shall receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. ^(BE)Therefore show me the dream and its interpretation.” ⁷ They answered a second time and said, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will show its interpretation.” ⁸ The king answered and said, “I know with certainty that you are trying to ^(BF)gain time, because you see that the word from me is firm— ⁹ if you do not make the dream known to me, ^(BG)there is but one sentence for you. You have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till ^(BH)the times change. ^(BI)Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can show me its interpretation.” ^10 (BJ)The Chaldeans answered the king and said, “There is not a man on earth who can meet the king's demand, for no great and powerful king has asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or ^(BK)Chaldean. ¹¹ The thing that the king asks is difficult, and no one can show it to the king except ^(BL)the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”

¹² Because of this the king was angry and ^(BM)very furious, and ^(BN)commanded that all ^(BO)the wise men of Babylon be destroyed. ¹³ So the decree went out, and the wise men were about to be killed; and they sought ^(BP)Daniel and his companions, to kill them. ¹⁴ Then Daniel replied with prudence and discretion to ^(BQ)Arioch, the ^(BR)captain of the king's guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon. ¹⁵ He declared^[c] to Arioch, the king's captain, “Why is the decree of the king ^(BS)so urgent?” Then Arioch made the matter known to Daniel. ¹⁶ And Daniel went in and requested the king to appoint him a time, that he might show the interpretation to the king.

God Reveals Nebuchadnezzar's Dream

¹⁷ Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to ^(BT)Hananiah, ^(BU)Mishael, and ^(BV)Azariah, his companions, ^18 (BW)and told them to seek mercy from the ^(BX)God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not ^(BY)be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. ¹⁹ Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in ^(BZ)a vision of the night. Then Daniel ^(CA)blessed the ^(CB)God of heaven. ²⁰ Daniel answered and said:

²⁴ Therefore Daniel went in to ^(CP)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; bring me in before the king, and I will show the king the interpretation.”

²⁵ Then ^(CQ)Arioch brought in Daniel before the king ^(CR)in haste and said thus to him: “I have found ^(CS)among the exiles from Judah a man who will make known to the king the interpretation.” ²⁶ The king declared to Daniel, ^(CT)whose name was Belteshazzar, ^(CU)“Are you able to make known to me the dream that I have seen and its interpretation?” ²⁷ Daniel answered the king and said, “No wise men, ^(CV)enchanters, ^(CW)magicians, or ^(CX)astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, ²⁸ but ^(CY)there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar ^(CZ)what will be in the latter days. Your dream and ^(DA)the visions of your head as you lay in bed are these: ²⁹ To you, O king, as you lay in bed came thoughts of what would be after this, ^(DB)and he who reveals mysteries made known to you what is to be. ³⁰ But ^(DC)as for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because of any wisdom that I have more than all the living, but in order that the interpretation may be made known to the king, and that ^(DD)you may know the thoughts of your mind.

Daniel Interprets the Dream

³¹ “You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. This image, mighty and of exceeding brightness, stood before you, and its appearance was frightening. ^32 (DE)The head of this image was of fine gold, ^(DF)its chest and arms of silver, its middle and ^(DG)thighs of bronze, ^33 (DH)its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. ³⁴ As you looked, a stone was cut out ^(DI)by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and ^(DJ)broke them in pieces. ³⁵ Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together were broken in pieces, and became ^(DK)like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that ^(DL)not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became ^(DM)a great mountain ^(DN)and filled the whole earth.

³⁶ “This was the dream. Now we will tell the king its interpretation. ³⁷ You, O king, ^(DO)the king of kings, to whom ^(DP)the God of heaven ^(DQ)has given the kingdom, the power, and the might, and the glory, ³⁸ and into whose hand he has given, wherever they dwell, the children of man, ^(DR)the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heavens, making you rule over them all—you are ^(DS)the head of gold. ^39 (DT)Another kingdom inferior to you shall arise after you, and yet a third kingdom ^(DU)of bronze, ^(DV)which shall rule over all the earth. ⁴⁰ And ^(DW)there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron ^(DX)breaks to pieces and shatters all things. And like iron that crushes, it shall ^(DY)break and crush all these. ⁴¹ And as you saw ^(DZ)the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom, but some of the ^(EA)firmness of iron shall be in it, just as you saw iron mixed with the soft clay. ⁴² And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle. ⁴³ As you saw the iron mixed with soft clay, so they will mix with one another in marriage,^[d] but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay. ⁴⁴ And in the days of those kings ^(EB)the God of heaven will set up ^(EC)a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. ^(ED)It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and ^(EE)it shall stand forever, ⁴⁵ just as ^(EF)you saw that ^(EG)a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that ^(EH)it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A ^(EI)great God has made known to the king what shall be after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure.”

Daniel Is Promoted

⁴⁶ Then King Nebuchadnezzar ^(EJ)fell upon his face and ^(EK)paid homage to Daniel, and commanded that ^(EL)an offering and ^(EM)incense be offered up to him. ⁴⁷ The king answered and said to Daniel, “Truly, your ^(EN)God is God of gods and ^(EO)Lord of kings, and ^(EP)a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.” ⁴⁸ Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great ^(EQ)gifts, and made him ruler over the whole ^(ER)province of Babylon and ^(ES)chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. ⁴⁹ Daniel made a request of the king, and he ^(ET)appointed ^(EU)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of ^(EV)the province of Babylon. But Daniel ^(EW)remained at the king's court.

Nebuchadnezzar's Golden Image

3 King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits^[e] and its breadth six cubits. He set it up on ^(EX)the plain of Dura, in ^(EY)the province of Babylon. ² Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent to gather ^(EZ)the satraps, the prefects, and ^(FA)the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. ³ Then ^(FB)the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces gathered for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. And they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. ⁴ And the herald ^(FC)proclaimed aloud, “You are commanded, O ^(FD)peoples, nations, and languages, ⁵ that when you hear the ^(FE)sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you ^(FF)are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. ⁶ And whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately ^(FG)be cast into a burning fiery furnace.” ⁷ Therefore, as soon as all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, all ^(FH)the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

The Fiery Furnace

⁸ Therefore at that time certain ^(FI)Chaldeans ^(FJ)came forward and maliciously accused the Jews. ⁹ They declared^[f] to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! ¹⁰ You, O king, ^(FK)have made a decree, that every man who ^(FL)hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, ^(FM)shall fall down and worship the golden image. ¹¹ And whoever does not fall down and worship ^(FN)shall be cast into a burning fiery furnace. ¹² There are certain Jews whom you have ^(FO)appointed over the affairs of ^(FP)the province of Babylon: ^(FQ)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, ^(FR)pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

¹³ Then Nebuchadnezzar ^(FS)in furious rage commanded that ^(FT)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought. So they brought these men before the king. ¹⁴ Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them, “Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up? ¹⁵ Now if you are ready when ^(FU)you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good.^[g] But if you do not worship, ^(FV)you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. And ^(FW)who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?”

^16 (FX)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. ¹⁷ If this be so, ^(FY)our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king.^{[h] 18} But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

¹⁹ Then Nebuchadnezzar was ^(FZ)filled with fury, and the expression of his face ^(GA)was changed against ^(GB)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace heated seven times more than it was usually heated. ²⁰ And he ordered some of the mighty men of his army ^(GC)to bind ^(GD)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. ²¹ Then these men were ^(GE)bound in their cloaks, their tunics,^[i] their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the burning fiery furnace. ²² Because the king's order was ^(GF)urgent and the furnace overheated, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up ^(GG)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. ²³ And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell ^(GH)bound into the burning fiery furnace.

²⁴ Then King Nebuchadnezzar was ^(GI)astonished and rose up ^(GJ)in haste. He declared to his ^(GK)counselors, “Did we not cast three men ^(GL)bound into the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” ²⁵ He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, ^(GM)walking in the midst of the fire, and they ^(GN)are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like ^(GO)a son of the gods.”

²⁶ Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the burning fiery furnace; he declared, ^(GP)“Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the ^(GQ)Most High God, come out, and come here!” Then ^(GR)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire. ²⁷ And the ^(GS)satraps, the prefects, the governors, and ^(GT)the king's counselors gathered together and saw that ^(GU)the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men. The hair of their heads was not singed, their ^(GV)cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them. ²⁸ Nebuchadnezzar answered and said, “Blessed be the God of ^(GW)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who ^(GX)has sent his angel and ^(GY)delivered his servants, who ^(GZ)trusted in him, and set aside^[j] the king's command, and yielded up their bodies rather than ^(HA)serve and worship any god except their own God. ²⁹ Therefore ^(HB)I make a decree: Any ^(HC)people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of ^(HD)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego ^(HE)shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins, for there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way.” ³⁰ Then the king promoted ^(HF)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in ^(HG)the province of Babylon.

Nebuchadnezzar Praises God

4 ^[k] King Nebuchadnezzar to all ^(HH)peoples, nations, and languages, ^(HI)that dwell in all the earth: ^(HJ)Peace be multiplied to you! ² It has seemed good to me to show the ^(HK)signs and wonders that the ^(HL)Most High God has done for me.

Nebuchadnezzar's Second Dream

^4 [l] I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and prospering in my palace. ⁵ I saw a dream that made me afraid. As I lay in bed the fancies and ^(HQ)the visions of my head alarmed me. ⁶ So ^(HR)I made a decree that ^(HS)all the wise men of Babylon should be brought before me, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream. ⁷ Then ^(HT)the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers came in, and I told them the dream, but ^(HU)they could not make known to me its interpretation. ⁸ At last Daniel came in before me—he who was named ^(HV)Belteshazzar after the name of my god, and in whom is ^(HW)the spirit of the holy gods^[m]—and I told him the dream, saying, ⁹ “O Belteshazzar, ^(HX)chief of the magicians, because I know that ^(HY)the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that no ^(HZ)mystery is too difficult for you, tell me ^(IA)the visions of my dream that I saw and their interpretation. ^10 (IB)The visions of my head as I lay in bed were these: I saw, and ^(IC)behold, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great. ^11 (ID)The tree grew and became strong, and its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth. ^12 (IE)Its leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in it was food for all. ^(IF)The beasts of the field found shade under it, and ^(IG)the birds of the heavens lived in its branches, and all flesh was fed from it.

¹³ “I saw in ^(IH)the visions of my head as I lay in bed, and behold, ^(II)a watcher, ^(IJ)a holy one, came down from heaven. ¹⁴ He ^(IK)proclaimed aloud and said thus: ^(IL)‘Chop down the tree and ^(IM)lop off its branches, ^(IN)strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. ^(IO)Let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches. ¹⁵ But leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, amid the tender grass of the field. Let him be wet with the dew of heaven. Let his portion be with the beasts in the grass of the earth. ¹⁶ Let his mind be changed from a man's, and let a beast's mind be given to him; ^(IP)and let seven periods of time ^(IQ)pass over him. ¹⁷ The sentence is by the decree of ^(IR)the watchers, the decision by the word of ^(IS)the holy ones, to the end that the living may know that the Most High ^(IT)rules the kingdom of men ^(IU)and gives it to whom he will and ^(IV)sets over it the lowliest of men.’ ¹⁸ This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, saw. And you, O ^(IW)Belteshazzar, tell me the interpretation, because ^(IX)all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me the interpretation, but you are able, for ^(IY)the spirit of the holy gods is in you.”

Daniel Interprets the Second Dream

¹⁹ Then Daniel, whose name was ^(IZ)Belteshazzar, was ^(JA)dismayed for a while, and ^(JB)his thoughts alarmed him. The king answered and said, “Belteshazzar, let not the dream or the interpretation alarm you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, ^(JC)may the dream be for those who hate you ^(JD)and its interpretation for your enemies! ^20 (JE)The tree you saw, which grew and became strong, so that its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth, ^21 (JF)whose leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in which was food for all, under which beasts of the field found shade, and in whose branches the birds of the heavens lived— ^22 (JG)it is you, O king, who have grown and become strong. ^(JH)Your greatness has grown and reaches to heaven, ^(JI)and your dominion to the ends of the earth. ²³ And because the king saw ^(JJ)a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, ^(JK)‘Chop down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field, and let him be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till ^(JL)seven periods of time pass over him,’ ²⁴ this is the interpretation, O king: It is a decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king, ^25 (JM)that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You shall be made ^(JN)to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and ^(JO)seven periods of time shall pass over you, till ^(JP)you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. ²⁶ And as it was commanded ^(JQ)to leave the stump of the roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be confirmed for you from the time that you know that Heaven rules. ²⁷ Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you: break off your sins by ^(JR)practicing righteousness, ^(JS)and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed, ^(JT)that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your prosperity.”

Nebuchadnezzar's Humiliation

²⁸ All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. ²⁹ At the end of twelve months he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, ³⁰ and the king answered and said, ^(JU)“Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by ^(JV)my mighty power as a royal residence and for ^(JW)the glory of my majesty?” ^31 (JX)While the words were still in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, ^32 (JY)and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, ^(JZ)until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” ³³ Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar. ^(KA)He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles' feathers, and his nails were like birds' claws.

Nebuchadnezzar Restored

^34 (KB)At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and ^(KC)my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored ^(KD)him who lives forever,

³⁶ At the same time ^(KK)my reason returned to me, and for ^(KL)the glory of my kingdom, ^(KM)my majesty and splendor returned to me. ^(KN)My counselors and ^(KO)my lords sought me, and I was established in my kingdom, and still more greatness was ^(KP)added to me. ³⁷ Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, ^(KQ)praise and extol and honor the ^(KR)King of heaven, ^(KS)for all his works are right and his ways are just; and ^(KT)those who walk in pride he is able to humble.