Scripture Reference Window 
While you were looking at it, a great stone broke loose from a cliff without anyone touching it, struck the iron and clay feet of the statue, and shattered them. (35) At once the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold crumbled and became like the dust on a threshing place in summer. The wind carried it all away, leaving not a trace. But the stone grew to be a mountain that covered the whole earth. (36) "This was the dream. Now I will tell Your Majesty what it means. (37) Your Majesty, you are the greatest of all kings. The God of heaven has made you emperor and given you power, might, and honor. (38) He has made you ruler of all the inhabited earth and ruler over all the animals and birds. You are the head of gold. (39) After you there will be another empire, not as great as yours, and after that a third, an empire of bronze, which will rule the whole earth. (40) And then there will be a fourth empire, as strong as iron, which shatters and breaks everything. And just as iron shatters everything, it will shatter and crush all the earlier empires. (41) You also saw that the feet and the toes were partly clay and partly iron. This means that it will be a divided empire. It will have something of the strength of iron, because there was iron mixed with the clay. (42) The toes---partly iron and partly clay---mean that part of the empire will be strong and part of it weak. (43) You also saw that the iron was mixed with the clay. This means that the rulers of that empire will try to unite their families by intermarriage, but they will not be able to, any more than iron can mix with clay. (44) At the time of those rulers the God of heaven will establish a kingdom that will never end. It will never be conquered, but will completely destroy all those empires and then last forever. (45) You saw how a stone broke loose from a cliff without anyone touching it and how it struck the statue made of iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold. The great God is telling Your Majesty what will happen in the future. I have told you exactly what you dreamed, and have given you its true meaning." (46) Then King Nebuchadnezzar bowed to the ground and gave orders for sacrifices and offerings to be made to Daniel. (47) The king said, "Your God is the greatest of all gods, the Lord over kings, and the one who reveals mysteries. I know this because you have been able to explain this mystery." (48) Then he gave Daniel a high position, presented him with many splendid gifts, put him in charge of the province of Babylon, and made him the head of all the royal advisers. (49) At Daniel's request the king put Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in charge of the affairs of the province of Babylon; Daniel, however, remained at the royal court.
Daniel 2:1-49 ESV ...In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his spirit was troubled, and his sleep left him. (2) Then the king commanded that the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans [All Babylonians were considered Chaldeans. In Daniel's day the term referred to a cult or sect of diviners or prognosticators. These equate with modern religious leaders (Mat 23:1-15)] be summoned to tell the king his dreams. So they came in and stood before the king. (3) And the king said to them, "I had a dream, and my spirit is troubled to know the dream." (4) Then the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic, "O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation." (5) The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, "The word from me is firm: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall be torn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins. (6) But if you show the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. 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 gain time, because you see that the word from me is firm-- (9) if you do not make the dream known to me, there is but one sentence for you. You have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the times change. Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can show me its interpretation." (10) 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 Chaldean. (11) The thing that the king asks is difficult, and no one can show it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh." (12) Because of this the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all 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 Daniel and his companions, to kill them. (14) Then Daniel replied with prudence and discretion to Arioch, the captain of the king's guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon. (15) He declared to Arioch, the king's captain, "Why is the decree of the king 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. (17) Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, (18) and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. (19) Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven. (20) Daniel answered and said: "Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might. (21) He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding; (22) he reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him. (23) To you, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, for you have given me wisdom and might, and have now made known to me what we asked of you, for you have made known to us the king's matter." (24) Therefore Daniel went in 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; bring me in before the king, and I will show the king the interpretation." (25) Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste and said thus to him: "I have found among the exiles from Judah a man who will make known to the king the interpretation." (26) The king declared to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, "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, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, (28) but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream and 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, and he who reveals mysteries made known to you what is to be. (30) But 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 you may know the thoughts of your mind. (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) The head of this image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, (33) its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. (34) As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and 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 like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. (36) "This was the dream. Now we will tell the king its interpretation. (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 into whose hand he has given, wherever they dwell, the children of man, the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heavens, making you rule over them all--you are the head of gold. (39) Another kingdom inferior to you shall arise after you, and yet a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. (40) And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters all things. And like iron that crushes, it shall break and crush all these. (41) And as you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom, but some of the 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, but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay. (44) And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever, (45) just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A great God has made known to the king what shall be after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure." (46) Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face and paid homage to Daniel, and commanded that an offering and incense be offered up to him. (47) The king answered and said to Daniel, "Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings, and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery." (48) Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. (49) Daniel made a request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon. But Daniel remained at the king's court.
Daniel 2:1-49 GW ...During the second year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign, he had some dreams. He was troubled, but he stayed asleep. (2) The king sent for the magicians, psychics, sorcerers, and astrologers [equates with modern religious leaders (Mat 23:1-15)] so that they could tell him what he had dreamed. So they came to the king. (3) The king said to them, "I had a dream, and I'm troubled by it. I want to know what the dream was." (4) The astrologers spoke to the king in Aramaic, "Your Majesty, may you live forever! Tell us the dream, and we'll interpret it for you." (5) The king answered the astrologers, "I meant what I said! If you don't tell me the dream and its meaning, you will be torn limb from limb, and your houses will be turned into piles of rubble. (6) But if you tell me the dream and its meaning, I will give you gifts, awards, and high honors. Now tell me the dream and its meaning." (7) Once more they said, "Your Majesty, tell us the dream, and we'll tell you its meaning." (8) The king replied, "I'm sure you're trying to buy some time because you know that I meant what I said. (9) If you don't tell me the dream, you'll all receive the same punishment. You have agreed among yourselves to make up a phony explanation to give me, hoping that things will change. So tell me the dream. Then I'll know that you can explain its meaning to me." (10) The astrologers answered the king, "No one on earth can tell the king what he asks. No other king, no matter how great and powerful, has ever asked such a thing of any magician, psychic, or astrologer. (11) What you ask is difficult, Your Majesty. No one can tell what you dreamed except the gods, and they don't live with humans." (12) This made the king so angry and furious that he gave an order to destroy all the wise advisers in Babylon. (13) So a decree was issued that the wise advisers were to be killed, and some men were sent to find Daniel and his friends and kill them. (14) While Arioch, the captain of the royal guard, was leaving to kill the wise advisers in Babylon, Daniel spoke to him using shrewd judgment. (15) He asked Arioch, the royal official, "Why is the king's decree so harsh?" So Arioch explained everything to Daniel. (16) Daniel went and asked the king to give him some time so that he could explain the dream's meaning. (17) Then Daniel went home and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah about this matter. (18) He told them to ask the God of heaven to be merciful and to explain this secret to them so that they would not be destroyed with the rest of the wise advisers in Babylon. (19) The secret was revealed to Daniel in a vision during the night. So Daniel praised the God of heaven. (20) He said, "Praise God's name from everlasting to everlasting because he is wise and powerful. (21) He changes times and periods of history. He removes kings and establishes them. He gives wisdom to those who are wise and knowledge to those who have insight. (22) He reveals deeply hidden things. He knows what is in the dark, and light lives with him. (23) God of my ancestors, I thank and praise you. You gave me wisdom and power. You told me the answer to our question. You told us what the king wants to know." (24) Then Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy Babylon's wise advisers. Daniel told him, "Don't destroy Babylon's wise advisers. Take me to the king, and I'll explain the dream's meaning to him." (25) Arioch immediately took Daniel to the king. He told the king, "I've found one of the captives from Judah who can explain the dream's meaning to you, Your Majesty." (26) The king asked Daniel (who had been renamed Belteshazzar), "Can you tell me the dream I had and its meaning?" (27) Daniel answered the king, "No wise adviser, psychic, magician, or fortuneteller can tell the king this secret. (28) But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets. He will tell King Nebuchadnezzar what is going to happen in the days to come. This is your dream, the vision you had while you were asleep: (29) Your Majesty, while you were lying in bed, thoughts about what would happen in the future came to you. The one who reveals secrets told you what is going to happen. (30) This secret wasn't revealed to me because I'm wiser than anyone else. It was revealed so that you could be told the meaning and so that you would know your innermost thoughts. (31) "Your Majesty, you had a vision. You saw a large statue. This statue was very bright. It stood in front of you, and it looked terrifying. (32) The head of this statue was made of fine gold. Its chest and arms were made of silver. Its stomach and hips were made of bronze. (33) Its legs were made of iron. Its feet were made partly of iron and partly of clay. (34) While you were watching, a stone was cut out, but not by humans. It struck the statue's iron-and-clay feet and smashed them. (35) Then all at once, the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold were smashed. They became like husks on a threshing floor in summer. The wind carried them away, and not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the statue became a large mountain which filled the whole world. (36) This is the dream. Now we'll tell you its meaning. (37) "Your Majesty, you are the greatest king. The God of heaven has given you a kingdom. He has given you power, strength, and honor. (38) He has given you control over people, wild animals, and birds, wherever they live. He has made you ruler of them all. You are the head of gold. (39) Another kingdom, inferior to yours, will rise to power after you. Then there will be a third kingdom, a kingdom of bronze, that will rule the whole world. (40) There will also be a fourth kingdom. It will be as strong as iron. (Iron smashes and shatters everything.) As iron crushes things, this fourth kingdom will smash and crush all the other kingdoms. (41) You also saw the feet and toes. They were partly potters' clay and partly iron. This means that there will be a divided kingdom which has some of the firmness of iron. As you saw, iron was mixed with clay. (42) The toes were partly iron and partly clay. Part of the kingdom will be strong, and part will be brittle. (43) As you saw, iron was mixed with clay. So the two parts of the kingdom will mix by intermarrying, but they will not hold together any more than iron can mix with clay. (44) "At the time of those kings, the God of heaven will establish a kingdom that will never be destroyed. No other people will be permitted to rule it. It will smash all the other kingdoms and put an end to them. But it will be established forever. (45) This is the stone that you saw cut out from a mountain, but not by humans. It smashed the iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold. The great God has told you what will happen in the future, Your Majesty. The dream is true, and you can trust that this is its meaning." (46) King Nebuchadnezzar immediately bowed down on the ground in front of Daniel. He ordered that gifts and offerings be given to Daniel. (47) The king said to Daniel, "Your God is truly the greatest of gods, the Lord over kings. He can reveal secrets because you were able to reveal this secret." (48) Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many wonderful gifts. Nebuchadnezzar made Daniel governor of the whole province of Babylon and head of all Babylon's wise advisers. (49) With the king's permission, Daniel appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to govern the province of Babylon. But Daniel stayed at the king's court.
Use browser "Back Arrow" or "Alt + Left_Arrow" keys to previous page. | Home
