Daniel 2

In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams. They troubled him deeply, and he could not sleep.

1And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him.

NoteNebuchadnezzar ruled Babylon from about 605 to 562 BC. His armies captured Jerusalem and deported many of its people, which is how Daniel, a Judean, came to be living in the Babylonian capital. Chapter 1 describes a three-year training course for the captive young men before they entered royal service; how that fits with "the second year of his reign" here is much debated, and the book itself does not explain it.

2So the king gave orders to call in the magicians, the men who read the stars, the sorcerers, and the Chaldean wise men, to tell him what he had dreamed. They came and stood in front of the king.

2Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king.

NoteThese are four named groups of professional experts kept at the Babylonian court, each with its own techniques for reading omens, dreams, and the movements of the stars. The exact difference between them is no longer recoverable; the point of listing them is that the king summoned every kind of specialist he had. "Chaldean" is used two ways in this book: for the people of southern Babylonia, whose dynasty then ruled the empire, and, as here, for this class of learned diviners.

3The king said to them, "I have had a dream, and I am troubled and want to know what it was."

3And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream.

4Then the Chaldean wise men spoke to the king in Aramaic: "May the king live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will tell you what it means."

4Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation.

NoteAramaic was the everyday international language of the Near East at this period, used for trade and government across the region. From this point in the verse the book of Daniel is itself written in Aramaic rather than Hebrew, and stays in Aramaic until the end of chapter 7. "May the king live forever" is a standard court greeting, roughly like "Your Majesty", the expected way to open when addressing a monarch.

5The king answered them, "My word on this is fixed. If you do not tell me the dream and what it means, you will be cut into pieces, and your houses will be turned into piles of rubble.

5The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream, with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill.

NoteThe Aramaic behind "My word on this is fixed" is genuinely uncertain and has been read two ways: "the word has gone out from me," meaning the decision is publicly announced and cannot be recalled, or "the matter has gone from me," meaning the king has forgotten the dream itself. Older English versions took the second sense. Being cut in pieces was a real form of execution in the ancient Near East, and demolishing a condemned man's house was a recognized penalty that wiped out his standing along with his life.

6But if you tell me the dream and what it means, you will get gifts and rewards and great honor from me. So tell me the dream and what it means."

6But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.

7They answered a second time, "Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will tell him what it means."

7They answered again and said, Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation of it.

8The king answered, "I know for certain that you are trying to buy time, because you see that my word on this is fixed.

8The king answered and said, I know of certainty that ye would gain the time, because ye see the thing is gone from me.

9If you do not tell me the dream, there is only one sentence waiting for you. You have agreed together to tell me lies and empty words, hoping the situation will change. So tell me the dream, and then I will know you can also tell me what it means."

9But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.

Note"Only one sentence" means a single verdict covers the whole group, with no separate hearings and no exceptions: they all die together.

10The Chaldean wise men answered the king, "There is no one on earth who can do what the king asks. No king, however great and powerful, has ever asked such a thing of any magician, star-reader, or Chaldean wise man.

10The Chaldeans answered before the king, and said, There is not a man upon the earth that can shew the king’s matter: therefore there is no king, lord, nor ruler, that asked such things at any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean.

11What the king asks is too hard. No one can tell it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among people."

11And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.

12This made the king angry and furious, and he ordered that all the wise men of Babylon be put to death.

12For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.

13So the order went out that the wise men were to be killed, and men went looking for Daniel and his friends to kill them too.

13And the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain.

14Arioch, the commander of the king's guard, had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon. Daniel answered him with careful and wise words.

14Then Daniel answered with counsel and wisdom to Arioch the captain of the king’s guard, which was gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon:

NoteThe title translated "commander of the guard" literally means "chief of the butchers" or "chief slaughterer." It named the head of the royal bodyguard, whose duties included carrying out the king's executions, which is why this officer, and not a jailer, is the one going around Babylon with the death list.

15He said to Arioch, the king's officer, "Why has the king given such a harsh order so suddenly?" Then Arioch explained the matter to Daniel.

15He answered and said to Arioch the king’s captain, Why is the decree so hasty from the king? Then Arioch made the thing known to Daniel.

16So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, so that he could tell the king what the dream meant.

16Then Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would give him time, and that he would shew the king the interpretation.

17Then Daniel went home and told the whole matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

17Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions:

NoteThese are the Hebrew names of the three friends deported with Daniel. At the Babylonian court they were renamed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, the names used in verse 49 and throughout chapter 3.

18He asked them to beg the God of heaven for mercy about this secret, so that Daniel and his friends would not be killed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

18That they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

Note"The God of heaven" was the usual way Jews living under foreign rule referred to their God when speaking in an imperial setting. It was a title outsiders could understand, since many peoples worshiped a chief sky-god, without naming the God of Israel directly.

19That night the secret was shown to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven.

19Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

20Daniel said, "May the name of God be praised forever and ever, because wisdom and power belong to him.

20Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his:

21He changes the times and the seasons. He removes kings and he sets up kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who can understand.

21And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:

22He reveals things that are deep and hidden. He knows what lies in the darkness, and light lives with him.

22He revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him.

23I thank you and praise you, God of my ancestors. You have given me wisdom and power, and now you have shown me what we asked of you. You have shown us what the king wanted to know."

23I thank thee, and praise thee, O thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of thee: for thou hast now made known unto us the king’s matter.

24So Daniel went to Arioch, the man the king had put in charge of killing the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, "Do not kill the wise men of Babylon. Take me in to the king, and I will tell him what the dream means."

24Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise men of Babylon: he went and said thus unto him; Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and I will shew unto the king the interpretation.

25Arioch quickly brought Daniel in to the king and said, "I have found a man among the captives from Judah who will tell the king what his dream means."

25Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus unto him, I have found a man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation.

NoteThe captives from Judah were the population Nebuchadnezzar had deported to Babylon after conquering Jerusalem. Arioch's phrasing quietly claims credit for the discovery, though Daniel had already approached the king himself in verse 16.

26The king said to Daniel, who was also called Belteshazzar, "Are you able to tell me the dream I saw and what it means?"

26The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?

NoteBelteshazzar was the Babylonian name assigned to Daniel when he entered royal training, a standard practice for foreign officials taken into imperial service. It is a different name from Belshazzar, the king who appears in chapter 5.

27Daniel answered the king, "No wise man, star-reader, magician, or fortune-teller can tell the king the secret he is asking about.

27Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the king;

28But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and he has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in the days to come. This was your dream, and this is what you saw in your mind as you lay on your bed.

28But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these;

Note"The days to come" translates an idiom that literally means "the end of the days." In older Hebrew and Aramaic writing it usually means simply the later time, the future, rather than the end of the world; in some later texts it carries the stronger sense of a final age. Both readings have been argued for here.

29As for you, O king, while you were lying on your bed your thoughts turned to what would happen in the future. And the one who reveals secrets has shown you what is going to happen.

29As for thee, O king, thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that revealeth secrets maketh known to thee what shall come to pass.

30As for me, this secret was not shown to me because I am wiser than anyone else alive. It was shown so the king could be told what it means, and so you would understand the thoughts of your own mind.

30But as for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.

31You, O king, were watching, and you saw a huge statue. This statue was enormous and shone brightly. It stood in front of you, and it was frightening to look at.

31Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible.

32The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its stomach and thighs of bronze,

32This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,

NoteThe four metals run downward in value (gold, silver, bronze, iron) while running upward in hardness, since iron is the toughest of them and gold the softest. The clay at the bottom breaks the pattern: it is neither valuable nor strong.

33its legs of iron, and its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.

33His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.

34You kept watching until a stone was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them to pieces.

34Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.

35Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were all broken to pieces together. They became like the husks blown off grain on a summer threshing floor. The wind carried them away, and not a trace of them was left. But the stone that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.

35Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

NoteGrain was threshed on a flat, exposed patch of ground, then tossed into the air so the summer wind blew away the light husks and left the heavy grain behind. Chaff was the standard image for something weightless and worthless that vanishes without trace once the wind touches it.

36That was the dream. Now we will tell the king what it means.

36This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.

37You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory.

37Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.

Note"King of kings" was an official title used by Babylonian and later Persian rulers. It is not flattery but an administrative description: an emperor whose subjects included other kings ruling their own territories under him.

38Wherever people live, he has handed over to you the wild animals and the birds of the sky, and has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.

38And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold.

39After you, another kingdom will rise, lower than yours. Then a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth.

39And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.

NoteThe text names only the first kingdom, Nebuchadnezzar's. The second, third, and fourth are left unidentified, and readers from ancient times onward have matched them to different empires. The book itself declines to say.

40There will be a fourth kingdom, as strong as iron. Iron breaks and crushes everything, and like iron that smashes all things, this kingdom will break and crush the others.

40And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

41You saw that the feet and toes were partly baked clay and partly iron. So this will be a divided kingdom, though it will have some of the hardness of iron in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with wet clay.

41And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters’ clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.

NoteTwo different words for clay are in play. One is the potter's fired clay, hard but brittle, which shatters rather than bends; the other is wet, unfired mud. Neither will bond with iron: cast them together and you get a mass that holds its shape only until something strikes it.

42The toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so the kingdom will be partly strong and partly easy to break.

42And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.

43You saw the iron mixed with wet clay, so they will mix themselves with other people, but they will not hold together, just as iron does not blend with clay.

43And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.

NoteThe phrase is literally "they will mix themselves with the seed of men." It is most often taken as marriage alliances between ruling houses, dynasties intermarrying to bind themselves together, but the wording is broad enough to cover any attempted merging of peoples, and the text does not specify.

44In the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, and it will not be handed over to another people. It will break all these kingdoms to pieces and bring them to an end, and it will last forever.

44And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

45You saw a stone cut out of the mountain, but not by human hands, and it broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold to pieces. In the same way, the great God has shown the king what will happen in the future. The dream is true, and its meaning can be trusted.

45Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.

46Then King Nebuchadnezzar bowed with his face to the ground before Daniel, honoring him, and ordered that an offering of grain and incense be presented to him.

46Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face, and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odours unto him.

NoteBowing face to the ground, presenting an offering of grain, and burning incense were acts normally directed to a god, not to a man. The narrator reports what the king ordered without commenting on it, and Daniel's reply in the next verse redirects the king's words to the God who gave the answer.

47The king said to Daniel, "Truly your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings, and the one who reveals secrets, since you were able to reveal this secret."

47The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret.

48Then the king gave Daniel a high position and many rich gifts. He made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and head over all its wise men.

48Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.

NoteA province was an administrative district of the empire under a governor. The province of Babylon was the central one containing the capital itself, so this was a senior appointment rather than a posting to the edges of the empire.

49At Daniel's request, the king put Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in charge of the business of the province of Babylon, while Daniel himself stayed at the king's court.

49Then Daniel requested of the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon: but Daniel sat in the gate of the king.

NoteThe King James "sat in the gate of the king" uses a standard idiom. The gateway of a city or palace was where officials held court, heard cases, and conducted business, so "sitting in the gate" means holding an official post at the seat of government, Daniel stayed at the center while his three friends took up the provincial administration.