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Daniel Praises God and Interprets the King’s Dream
24 Therefore[a] Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed[b] to destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and thus he said to him: “You must not destroy the wise men of Babylon; take me in before the king and I will give the explanation[c] to the king.”
25 Then Arioch quickly[d] brought Daniel in before the king and thus he said to him: “I have found a man among the exiles[e] of Judah[f] who can relate[g] the explanation[h] to the king. 26 The king then asked[i] and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream that I have seen and its explanation?”[j] 27 Daniel answered the king and said, “The mystery that the king asks, no wise men, conjurers,[k] magicians,[l] or diviners are able to make known to the king. 28 But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what it is that will be at the end of days. This is your dream and the visions of your head on your bed.
29 “As for you, king,[m] your thoughts on your bed turned to[n] what it was that would be in the future,[o] and the revealer of mysteries has made known to you what that would be. 30 And as for me, it is not because of wisdom that is in me more than any other living person[p] that this mystery is revealed to me, but in order that[q] the explanation[r] may be made known to the king and you will understand[s] the thoughts of your mind.[t]
31 “You, O king, were looking and, look, there was one great statue. This statue was huge and its brilliance extraordinary, standing there before you, and its appearance was frightening.[u] 32 The head of this statue was of fine gold, its chest and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet, part of them of iron and part of them of clay. 34 You were looking on until[v] a stone was chiseled out[w]—that not by hands—and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay, and it broke them in pieces. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold all at once[x] broke into pieces[y] and they became like chaff from the summer threshing floor, and the wind carried them away and any trace of them could not be found. But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and it filled the whole earth.
36 “This was the dream, and now we will tell its interpretation to the king. 37 You, O king, the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power and the might and the glory, 38 and also human beings wherever they dwell,[z] the animals of the field and the birds[aa] of heaven[ab]—he has given into your hand and made you ruler over all of them—you are the head of gold. 39 And after you another kingdom inferior to yours will arise, and another third kingdom of bronze that will rule over the whole earth. 40 And a fourth kingdom will be strong as iron, and just as[ac] iron crushes and smashes everything,[ad] and as iron shatters all of these other metals, so it will crush and it will shatter these nations. 41 And just as[ae] you saw the feet and the toes, partly potter’s clay[af] and partly iron,[ag] it will be a divided kingdom; and some hardness[ah] of the iron will be in it, just as[ai] you have seen the iron mixed with the wet clay. 42 And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so part of the kingdom will be strong and partly brittle.[aj] 43 And in that you saw the iron was mixed with wet clay, so they will mix in marriage[ak] and they will not cling to one another,[al] just as iron does not mix with clay. 44 And in the day of those kings,[am] the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never[an] be destroyed, and the kingdom will not be left for another nation,[ao] and it will bring an end to all these kingdoms, but it will stand forever.[ap] 45 Inasmuch as[aq] you saw that a stone from the mountain was chiseled out[ar] but not by hands, and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold, thereby the great God made known to the king what will be in the future,[as] and the dream is certain and its explanation trustworthy.”
The King’s Response to Daniel and His God
46 Then the king, Nebuchadnezzar, fell on his face and he paid homage to Daniel; and he commanded them to offer a grain offering and incense offering to him. 47 The king answered Daniel and said, “Truly[at] your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings, and he reveals mysteries, for you are able to reveal this mystery.” 48 Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and the chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. 49 And Daniel made a request from the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon, while Daniel remained in the court of the king.
The Faithfulness of Three Young Israelites and God’s Deliverance
3 Nebuchadnezzar the king made a statue of gold. Its height was sixty cubits and its width was six cubits; he set it up in the valley of Dura in the province of Babylon. 2 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent directions to assemble the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all of the officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the statue that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. 3 Then the satraps, the prefects, the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates, and all the officials of the province were assembled for the dedication of the statue that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up, and were standing before[au] the statue that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. 4 Then the herald proclaimed aloud,[av] “To you it is commanded,[aw] O peoples, nations and people of all languages,[ax] 5 that at the time that you hear the sound of the horn, the flute, the lyre, the trigon, the harp, the drum and all kinds of music, you must fall down and you must worship the statue of gold[ay] that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. 6 And whoever[az] does not fall down and worship will be thrown immediately[ba] into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire.” 7 Therefore,[bb] at that time,[bc] as soon as[bd] all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, the flute, the lyre, the trigon, the harp and all kinds of music, all the peoples, the nations and people of all languages[be] were falling down and were worshiping the statue of gold[bf] that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
8 Therefore[bg] at this time[bh] some astrologers[bi] came forward and they denounced the Jews.[bj] 9 They responded and said[bk] to Nebuchadnezzar the king, “O king, may you live forever![bl] 10 You, O king, have made a decree that everyone[bm] who hears the sound of the horn, the flute, the lyre, the trigon, the harp and the drum and all kinds of music, he shall fall down and shall worship the statue of gold.[bn] 11 And whoever[bo] does not fall down[bp] and worship shall be thrown into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire. 12 However there are Judean men whom you have appointed[bq] over the affairs of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—these men, O king, pay you no heed[br] and were not serving your god, and the statue of gold[bs] that you set up they are not worshiping.”
13 Then Nebuchadnezzar said in rage and anger to bring in Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego; then they brought in these men before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you are not serving my god, and you are not worshiping the statue of gold[bt] that I have set up? 15 Now if you are ready so that when[bu] you hear the sound of the horn, the flute, the lyre, the trigon, the harp and the drum and all kinds of music, you fall down and you worship the statue that I have made, that will be good. But if you do not worship it, immediately[bv] you will be thrown into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire, and who is the god[bw] who[bx] will rescue you from my hands?”
16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego answered and said to the king, Nebuchadnezzar, “We have no need on this matter to present a defense to you.[by] 17 If it is so,[bz] our God, whom we serve, is able to rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire. And from your hand, O king, let him rescue us. 18 And if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods,[ca] and the statue of gold[cb] that you have set up we will not worship.”
The Wrath of the King and His Fiery Furnace of Death
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with anger and the image of his face was changed toward[cc] Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, so he ordered and said[cd] to heat up the one furnace seven times what was usual to heat it up. 20 And he commanded the strongest men of the guards[ce] who were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. 21 Then these men were bound with their garments, their trousers and their turbans and their other clothing, and they were thrown into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire. 22 Therefore[cf] because[cg] the word of the king was severe and the furnace was exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed these men who lifted up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. 23 But these men, the three of them, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, fell down into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire, and they were bound.
24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonished, and he rose up in haste and he asked, saying to his advisers, “Did we not throw three men, bound, into the midst of the fire? They answered, saying to the king, “Certainly, O king!” 25 He answered,[ch] saying, “Look, I see four men unbound walking in the midst of the fire and there is no damage to them, and the[ci] appearance of the fourth man resembles the son of a god.” 26 Then Nebuchadnezzar approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire, and he called out, saying, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants[cj] of the Most High God, come out[ck] and come here!” 27 And the satraps, the prefects, the governors and the advisors of the king were assembling, and they saw these men, that the fire had no power over their bodies, and the hair of their heads was[cl] not singed, and their garments were not harmed, and the smell of fire did not come from them.
The King’s Praise for the Great Deliverance of the Three Young Israelites
28 Nebuchadnezzar responded,[cm] saying, “Blessed be their God, the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who sent his angel[cn] and rescued his servants who trusted in him, and the command of the king they disobeyed, and they gave their bodies so that they did not serve and did not worship any god except their God. 29 And from me is set forth[co] a decree that any people, nation, or language that may utter criticism against their God—the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—will be broken into pieces and their[cp] house will be made like ruins. For[cq] there is not another God who is able to rescue like this God.” 30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
Serving to the Glory of God
7 Now the end of all things draws near. Therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for your prayers. 8 Above all, keep[a] your love for one another constant, because love covers a large number of sins. 9 Be hospitable to one another without complaining. 10 Just as each one has received a gift, use it for serving one another, as good stewards of the varied grace of God. 11 If anyone speaks, let it be as the oracles of God; if anyone serves, let it be as by the strength that God provides, so that in all things God will be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom is the glory and the power forever and ever[b]. Amen.
Sharing the Sufferings of Christ
12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, when it[c] takes place to test you, as if something strange were happening to you. 13 But to the degree that you share in the sufferings of Christ, rejoice, so that also at the revelation of his glory you may rejoice and be glad. 14 If you are reviled on account of the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15 By all means do not let anyone of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. 16 But if someone suffers as a Christian, he must not be ashamed, but must glorify God with this name. 17 For it is the time for the judgment to begin out from the household of God. But if it begins out from us first, what will be the outcome for those who are disobedient to the gospel of God? 18 And if the righteous are saved with difficulty, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner[d]?[e] 19 So then also those who suffer according to the will of God must entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing good.
Leadership and Humility
5 Therefore I, your fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and[f] also a sharer of the glory that is going to be revealed, exhort the elders among you: 2 shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not by compulsion but willingly, in accordance with God, and not greedily but eagerly, 3 and not as lording it over those under your care[g], but being examples for the flock. 4 And when[h] the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
5 In the same way, younger men, be subject to the elders, and all of you clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. 6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you at the right time, 7 casting all your cares on him, because he cares[i] for you.
8 Be sober; be on the alert. Your adversary the devil walks around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him[j], steadfast in your[k] faith, because you[l] know the same kinds of sufferings are being accomplished by your community of believers in the world. 10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ,[m] after you[n] have suffered for a short time, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 11 To him be the power forever and ever[o].[p] Amen.
Conclusion and Final Greetings
12 Through Silvanus, the faithful brother (as I consider him), I have written to you briefly[q] to encourage you and to attest that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it. 13 She who is in Babylon, chosen the same as you, greets you, and so does my son Mark. 14 Greet one another with a loving kiss. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.
Kaph
81 My soul languishes for your salvation;
I hope in your word.
82 My eyes long for[a] your word,[b]
saying, “When will you comfort me?”
83 For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke,
yet I have not forgotten your statutes.
84 How many are the days of your servant?
When will you execute justice against those who persecute me?
85 The arrogant have dug pits[c] for me,
which is not according to[d] your law.
86 All your commands are faithful.
They persecute me deceitfully; help me!
87 They have almost destroyed me on the earth,
but I have not forsaken your precepts.
88 According to your loyal love preserve me alive,
so that I may heed the testimony from your mouth.
Lamed
89 Forever, O Yahweh,
your word is settled[e] in heaven.
90 Your faithfulness endures throughout all generations.[f]
You have established the earth and it stands.
91 By your ordinances they stand today,
for all are your servants.
92 Unless your law had been my delight,
then I would have perished in my misery.
93 I will not ever forget your precepts,
for by them you revive me.[g]
94 I am yours. Save me,
for I have sought your precepts.
95 For me the wicked lie in wait to destroy me.
I give attention to your testimonies.
96 I have seen a limit to every perfection;[h]
your command is very broad.
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