Daniel 2:14-23

New American Standard Bible

¹⁴Then Daniel replied with discretion and discernment to ^(A)Arioch, the captain of the king’s ^[a]bodyguard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon; ¹⁵he said to Arioch, the king’s officer, “For what reason is the decree from the king so harsh?” Then Arioch informed Daniel of the matter. ¹⁶So Daniel went in and requested of the king that he would give him a grace period, so that he might declare the interpretation to the king.

¹⁷Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends, ^(B)Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, about the matter, ¹⁸so that they might ^(C)request compassion from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his friends would not be ^(D)killed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

The Secret Is Revealed to Daniel

¹⁹Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night ^(E)vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven; ²⁰Daniel said,

“May the name of God be ^(F)blessed forever and ever,
For ^(G)wisdom and power belong to Him.
²¹It is He who ^(H)changes the times and the periods;
He ^(I)removes kings and appoints kings;
He gives ^(J)wisdom to wise men,
And knowledge to ^[b]people of understanding.
²²It is He who ^(K)reveals the profound and hidden things;
^(L)He knows what is in the darkness,
And the ^(M)light dwells with Him.
²³To You, ^(N)God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise,
For You have given me ^(O)wisdom and power;
Even now You have made known to me what we ^(P)requested of You,
For You have made known to us the king’s matter.”