4 `Nebuchadnezzar the king to all peoples, nations, and languages, who are dwelling in all the earth: Your peace be great!

² The signs and wonders that God Most High hath done with me, it is good before me to shew.

³ His signs how great! and His wonders how mighty! His kingdom [is] a kingdom age-during, and His rule [is] with generation and generation.

⁴ `I, Nebuchadnezzar, have been at rest in my house, and flourishing in my palace:

⁵ a dream I have seen, and it maketh me afraid, and the conceptions on my bed, and the visions of my head, do trouble me.

⁶ And by me a decree is made, to cause all the wise men of Babylon to come up before me, that the interpretation of the dream they may cause me to know.

⁷ Then coming up are the scribes, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers, and the dream I have told before them, and its interpretation they are not making known to me.

⁸ And at last come up before me hath Daniel, whose name [is] Belteshazzar -- according to the name of my god -- and in whom [is] the spirit of the holy gods, and the dream before him I have told:

⁹ `O Belteshazzar, master of the scribes, as I have known that the spirit of the holy gods [is] in thee, and no secret doth press thee, the visions of my dream that I have seen, and its interpretation, tell.

¹⁰ As to the visions of my head on my bed, I was looking, and lo, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height [is] great:

¹¹ become great hath the tree, yea, strong, and its height doth reach to the heavens, and its vision to the end of the whole land;

¹² its leaves [are] fair, and its budding great, and food for all [is] in it: under it take shade doth the beast of the field, and in its boughs dwell do the birds of the heavens, and of it fed are all flesh.

¹³ `I was looking, in the visions of my head on my bed, and lo, a sifter, even a holy one, from the heavens is coming down.

¹⁴ He is calling mightily, and thus hath said, Cut down the tree, and cut off its branches, shake off its leaves, and scatter its budding, move away let the beast from under it, and the birds from off its branches;

¹⁵ but the stump of its roots leave in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field, and with the dew of the heavens is it wet, and with the beasts [is] his portion in the herb of the earth;

¹⁶ his heart from man's is changed, and the heart of a beast is given to him, and seven times pass over him;

¹⁷ by the decree of the sifters [is] the sentence, and by the saying of the holy ones the requirement, to the intent that the living may know that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom He willeth He giveth it, and the lowest of men He doth raise up over it.

¹⁸ `This dream I have seen, I king Nebuchadnezzar; and thou, O Belteshazzar, the interpretation tell, because that all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to cause me to know the interpretation, and thou [art] able, for the spirit of the holy gods [is] in thee.

¹⁹ `Then Daniel, whose name [is] Belteshazzar, hath been astonished about one hour, and his thoughts do trouble him; the king hath answered and said, O Belteshazzar, let not the dream and its interpretation trouble thee. Belteshazzar hath answered and said, My lord, the dream -- to those hating thee, and its interpretation -- to thine enemies!

²⁰ The tree that thou hast seen, that hath become great and strong, and its height doth reach to the heavens, and its vision to all the land,

²¹ and its leaves [are] fair, and its budding great, and food for all [is] in it, under it dwell doth the beast of the field, and on its boughs sit do the birds of the heavens.

²² `Thou it [is], O king, for thou hast become great and mighty, and thy greatness hath become great, and hath reached to the heavens, and thy dominion to the end of the earth;

²³ and that which the king hath seen -- a sifter, even a holy one, coming down from the heavens, and he hath said, Cut down the tree, and destroy it; but the stump of its roots leave in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field, and with the dew of the heavens it is wet, and with the beast of the field [is] his portion, till that seven times pass over him.

²⁴ `This [is] the interpretation, O king, and the decree of the Most High it [is] that hath come against my lord the king:

²⁵ and they are driving thee away from men, and with the beast of the field is thy dwelling, and the herb as oxen they do cause thee to eat, and by the dew of the heavens they are wetting thee, and seven times do pass over thee, till that thou knowest that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom He willeth He giveth it.

²⁶ And that which they said -- to leave the stump of the roots of the tree; thy kingdom for thee abideth, after that thou knowest that the heavens are ruling.

²⁷ `Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and thy sins by righteousness break off, and thy perversity by pitying the poor, lo, it is a lengthening of thine ease.

²⁸ `All -- hath come on Nebuchadnezzar the king.

²⁹ `At the end of twelve months, on the palace of the kingdom of Babylon he hath been walking;

³⁰ the king hath answered and said, Is not this that great Babylon that I have built, for the house of the kingdom, in the might of my strength, and for the glory of mine honour?

³¹ `While the word is [in] the king's mouth a voice from the heavens hath fallen: To thee they are saying: O Nebuchadnezzar the king, the kingdom hath passed from thee,

³² and from men they are driving thee away, and with the beast of the field [is] thy dwelling, the herb as oxen they do cause thee to eat, and seven times do pass over thee, till that thou knowest that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom He willeth He giveth it.

³³ `In that hour the thing hath been fulfilled on Nebuchadnezzar, and from men he is driven, and the herb as oxen he eateth, and by the dew of the heavens his body is wet, till that his hair as eagles' hath become great, and his nails as birds.'

³⁴ `And at the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, mine eyes to the heavens have lifted up, and mine understanding unto me returneth, and the Most High I have blessed, and the Age-during Living One I have praised and honoured, whose dominion [is] a dominion age-during, and His kingdom with generation and generation;

³⁵ and all who are dwelling on the earth as nothing are reckoned, and according to his will He is doing among the forces of the heavens and those dwelling on the earth, and there is none that doth clap with his hand, and saith to Him, What hast Thou done?

³⁶ `At that time my understanding doth return unto me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my honour and my brightness doth return unto me, and to me my counsellors and my great men do seek, and over my kingdom I have been made right, and abundant greatness hath been added to me.

³⁷ `Now, I, Nebuchadnezzar, am praising and exalting and honouring the King of the heavens, for all His works [are] truth, and His paths judgment, and those walking in pride He is able to humble.'

5 Belshazzar the king hath made a great feast to a thousand of his great men, and before the thousand he is drinking wine;

² Belshazzar hath said -- while tasting the wine -- to bring in the vessels of gold and of silver that Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken from the temple that [is] in Jerusalem, that drink with them may the king, and his great men, his wives, and his concubines.

³ Then they have brought in the vessels of gold that had been taken out of the temple of the house of God that [is] in Jerusalem, and drunk with them have the king and his great men, his wives and his concubines;

⁴ they have drunk wine, and have praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

⁵ In that hour come forth have fingers of a man's hand, and they are writing over-against the candlestick, on the plaster of the wall of the king's palace: and the king is seeing the extremity of the hand that is writing;

⁶ then the king's countenance hath changed, and his thoughts do trouble him, and the joints of his loins are loosed, and his knees are smiting one against another.

⁷ Call doth the king mightily, to bring up the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. Answered hath the king, and said to the wise men of Babylon, that, `Any man who doth read this writing, and its interpretation doth shew me, purple he putteth on, and a bracelet of gold [is] on his neck, and third in the kingdom he doth rule.'

⁸ Then coming up are all the wise men of the king, and they are not able to read the writing, and the interpretation to make known to the king;

⁹ then the king Belshazzar is greatly troubled, and his countenance is changing in him, and his great men are perplexed.

¹⁰ The queen, on account of the words of the king and his great men, to the banquet-house hath come up. Answered hath the queen, and said, `O king, to the ages live; let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor thy countenance be changed:

¹¹ there is a man in thy kingdom in whom [is] the spirit of the holy gods: and, in the days of thy father, light, and understanding, and wisdom -- as the wisdom of the gods -- was found in him; and king Nebuchadnezzar thy father, chief of the scribes, enchanters, Chaldeans, soothsayers, established him -- thy father, O king --

¹² because that an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and showing of enigmas, and loosing of knots was found in him, in Daniel, whose name the king made Belteshazzar: now let Daniel be called, and the interpretation he doth show.'

¹³ Then Daniel hath been caused to come up before the king; answered hath the king, and said to Daniel, `Thou art that Daniel who [art] of the sons of the Removed of Judah, whom the king my father brought in out of Judah?

¹⁴ And I have heard of thee, that the spirit of the gods [is] in thee, and light, and understanding, and excellent wisdom have been found in thee.

¹⁵ `And now, caused to come up before me have been the wise men, the enchanters, that this writing they may read, and its interpretation to cause me to know: and they are not able to shew the interpretation of the thing:

¹⁶ and I -- I have heard of thee, that thou art able to give interpretations, and to loose knots: now, lo -- thou art able to read the writing, and its interpretation to cause me to know -- purple thou dost put on, and a bracelet of gold [is] on thy neck, and third in the kingdom thou dost rule.'

¹⁷ Then hath Daniel answered and said before the king, `Thy gifts be to thyself, and thy fee to another give; nevertheless, the writing I do read to the king, and the interpretation I cause him to know;

¹⁸ thou, O king, God Most High, a kingdom, and greatness, and glory, and honour, gave to Nebuchadnezzar thy father:

¹⁹ and because of the greatness that He gave to him, all peoples, nations, and languages were trembling and fearing before him: whom he willed he was slaying, and whom he willed he was keeping alive, and whom he willed he was raising up, and whom he willed he was making low;

²⁰ and when his heart was high, and his spirit was strong to act proudly, he hath been caused to come down from the throne of his kingdom, and his glory they have caused to pass away from him,

²¹ and from the sons of men he is driven, and his heart with the beasts hath been like, and with the wild asses [is] his dwelling; the herb like oxen they cause him to eat, and by the dew of the heavens is his body wet, till that he hath known that God Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and whom He willeth He raiseth up over it.

²² `And thou, his son, Belshazzar, hast not humbled thy heart, though all this thou hast known;

²³ and against the Lord of the heavens thou hast lifted up thyself; and the vessels of His house they have brought in before thee, and thou, and thy great men, thy wives, and thy concubines, are drinking wine with them, and gods of silver, and of gold, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone, that are not seeing, nor hearing, nor knowing, thou hast praised: and the God in whose hand [is] thy breath, and all thy ways, Him thou hast not honoured.

²⁴ `Then from before Him sent is the extremity of the hand, and the writing is noted down;

²⁵ and this [is] the writing that is noted down: Numbered, Numbered, Weighed, and Divided.

²⁶ This [is] the interpretation of the thing: Numbered -- God hath numbered thy kingdom, and hath finished it.

²⁷ Weighed -- Thou art weighed in the balances, and hast been found lacking.

²⁸ Divided -- Divided is thy kingdom, and it hath been given to the Medes and Persians.'

²⁹ Then hath Belshazzar said, and they have clothed Daniel with purple, and a bracelet of gold [is] on his neck, and they have proclaimed concerning him that he is the third ruler in the kingdom.

³⁰ In that night Belshazzar king of the Chaldeans is slain,

³¹ and Darius the Mede hath received the kingdom, when a son of sixty and two years.

6 It hath been good before Darius, and he hath established over the kingdom satraps -- a hundred and twenty -- that they may be throughout the whole kingdom,

² and higher than they three presidents, of whom Daniel [is] first, that these satraps may give to them an account, and the king have no loss.

³ Then this Daniel hath been overseer over the presidents and satraps, because that an excellent spirit [is] in him, and the king hath thought to establish him over the whole kingdom.

⁴ Then the presidents and satraps have been seeking to find a cause of complaint against Daniel concerning the kingdom, and any cause of complaint and corruption they are not able to find, because that he [is] faithful, and any error and corruption have not been found in him.

⁵ Then these men are saying, `We do not find against this Daniel any cause of complaint, except we have found [it] against him in the law of his God.'

⁶ Then these presidents and satraps have assembled near the king, and thus they are saying to him: `O king Darius, to the ages live!

⁷ Taken counsel have all the presidents of the kingdom, the prefects, and the satraps, the counsellors, and the governors, to establish a royal statute, and to strengthen an interdict, that any who seeketh a petition from any god and man until thirty days, save of thee, O king, is cast into a den of lions.

⁸ Now, O king, thou dost establish the interdict, and sign the writing, that it is not to be changed, as a law of Media and Persia, that doth not pass away.'

⁹ Therefore king Darius hath signed the writing and interdict.

¹⁰ And Daniel, when he hath known that the writing is signed, hath gone up to his house, and the window being opened for him, in his upper chamber, over-against Jerusalem, three times in a day he is kneeling on his knees, and praying, and confessing before his God, because that he was doing [it] before this.

¹¹ Then these men have assembled, and found Daniel praying and entreating grace before his God;

¹² then they have come near, yea, they are saying before the king concerning the king's interdict: `Hast thou not signed an interdict, that any man who seeketh from any god and man until thirty days, save of thee, O king, is cast into a den of lions?' Answered hath the king, and said, `The thing [is] certain as a law of Media and Persia, that doth not pass away.'

¹³ Then they have answered, yea, they are saying before the king, that, `Daniel, who [is] of the sons of the Removed of Judah, hath not placed on thee, O king, [any] regard, nor on the interdict that thou hast signed, and three times in a day he is seeking his petition.'

¹⁴ Then the king, when he hath heard the matter, is greatly displeased at himself, and on Daniel he hath set the heart to deliver him, and till the going up of the sun he was arranging to deliver him.

¹⁵ Then these men have assembled near the king, and are saying to the king, `know, O king, that the law of Media and Persia [is]: That any interdict and statute that the king doth establish is not to be changed.'

¹⁶ Then the king hath said, and they have brought Daniel, and have cast [him] into a den of lions. The king hath answered and said to Daniel, `Thy God, whom thou art serving continually, Himself doth deliver thee.'

¹⁷ And a stone hath been brought and placed at the mouth of the den, and the king hath sealed it with his signet, and with the signet of his great men, that the purpose be not changed concerning Daniel.

¹⁸ Then hath the king gone to his palace, and he hath passed the night fasting, and dahavan have not been brought up before him, and his sleep hath fled [from] off him.

¹⁹ Then doth the king rise in the early morning, at the light, and in haste to the den of lions he hath gone;

²⁰ and at his coming near to the den, to Daniel, with a grieved voice, he crieth. The king hath answered and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, thy God, whom thou art serving continually, is He able to deliver thee from the lions?'

²¹ Then Daniel hath spoken with the king: `O king, to the ages live:

²² my God hath sent His messenger, and hath shut the lions' mouths, and they have not injured me: because that before Him purity hath been found in me; and also before thee, O king, injury I have not done.'

²³ Then was the king very glad for him, and he hath commanded Daniel to be taken up out of the den, and Daniel hath been taken up out of the den, and no injury hath been found in him, because he hath believed in his God.

²⁴ And the king hath said, and they have brought those men who had accused Daniel, and to the den of lions they have cast them, they, their sons, and their wives; and they have not come to the lower part of the den till that the lions have power over them, and all their bones they have broken small.

²⁵ Then Darius the king hath written to all the peoples, nations, and languages, who are dwelling in all the land: `Your peace be great!

²⁶ From before me is made a decree, that in every dominion of my kingdom they are trembling and fearing before the God of Daniel, for He [is] the living God, and abiding to the ages, and His kingdom that which [is] not destroyed, and His dominion [is] unto the end.

²⁷ A deliverer, and rescuer, and doer of signs and wonders in the heavens and in earth [is] He who hath delivered Daniel from the paw of the lions.'

²⁸ And this Daniel hath prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian.