The king thanks Daniel

Then King Nebuchadnezzar bent down with his face towards the ground. He gave honour to Daniel. He commanded his servants to offer sacrifices and to burn incense to praise Daniel.

The king said to Daniel, ‘It is true that your God rules all other gods. He rules over kings and he explains secret things. I know this because you were able to explain this dream to me.’

Then the king made Daniel an important officer. He also gave Daniel many valuable gifts. He gave Daniel authority to rule over the whole region of Babylon. Daniel also became the most important officer with authority over all the wise men in Babylon.

But there are some Jewish men who do not obey you. They are Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. You gave them authority to take care of everything in Babylon region. Those men do not respect your authority. They do not give honour to your gods. They do not worship your gold statue.’

Nebuchadnezzar said to them, ‘Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, is it true that you do not give honour to my gods? And you do not worship the gold statue that I have built?

Next time you hear the sound of the special music, you must obey my rule. You must bend down and you must worship the statue that I have built. If you do not worship the statue, my servants will throw you immediately into the middle of a very hot fire. There is no god who can save you from my power.’

We serve a great God. If you throw us into the very hot fire, he is able to keep us safe. Yes, sir, he will keep us safe from your power too.

But even if he does not save us, we still would not serve your gods. And we will not worship the gold statue that you have built. We want you to understand that very clearly, sir.’

The king punishes Daniel's three friends

Then Nebuchadnezzar was even more angry with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. His face became red. He said to his servants, ‘Make the fire in the oven seven times hotter than usual.’

So the soldiers tied up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego with ropes. They were still wearing their coats, their hats and their other clothes when the soldiers took hold of them. The soldiers threw them into the middle of the hot fire with all their clothes on.

The king said, ‘But I see four men walking about in the fire! No ropes are holding them and the fire has not hurt them. The fourth man seems like a son of the gods.’

King Nebuchadnezzar went near to the door of the oven where the very hot fire was. He shouted aloud to the men inside, ‘Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, I see that you are servants of the powerful God who rules over everything. Now come out here!’ So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire.

Nebuchadnezzar's new command

Then King Nebuchadnezzar said, ‘Praise the God that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego serve! He sent his angel to keep his servants safe. They continued to trust in their God. So they did not obey the command that I had made as king. They would not agree to serve any other god except their own God. They would rather have died than worship any other god.

No other god can save people like their God has done for them. So I make a command for the people of every nation who speak any language. They must never say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. If anyone does that, my soldiers will cut them into pieces. They will knock down those people's houses so that they become heaps of stones.’

I am happy to tell you about the powerful God who rules over everything. He has done miracles and great things for me.

Last of all, Daniel came to me and I told him the dream. I call him Belteshazzar, like my god's name. The spirit of the holy gods is in this man, Daniel.

I said to him, ‘Belteshazzar you are the leader of my wise men. I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you. I know that no secret is too difficult for you to explain. Here is the dream that I saw. Tell me what it means.

But leave the base of the tree and its roots in the ground. Tie iron and bronze round it. Then leave it there in the grass. Make him wet with dew from the sky. Cause him to live with the animals in the fields of grass.

The holy angels who take care of the earth have decided this. It is their command. Now everyone will be sure that the powerful God above rules over human kingdoms. He gives authority to rule to anyone that he chooses. He causes humble men to rule as kings.” ’

Then I said to Belteshazzar, ‘This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, had. Now, you must tell me what it means. None of the wise men in any region of my kingdom can tell me what it means. But you can tell me, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.’

In your dream, you saw a holy angel who came down from heaven. He said, “Cut down the tree and destroy it. But leave the base of the tree and its roots in the ground. Tie iron and bronze round it. Then leave it in the grass. Make him wet with dew from the sky. Cause him to live in the fields with the wild animals for seven years.”

Now sir, this is what the dream means. The powerful God above has decided what he will do to my lord, the king.

People will chase you away from the city, so that you have to live with the wild animals. You will eat grass like cows do. Dew from the sky will make you wet. You will live in that way for seven years. Then you will understand that the powerful God above rules over human kingdoms. He gives authority to rule to anyone that he chooses.

The command was to leave the base of the tree and its roots in the ground. This means that you will be king again later. But before that, you will have to understand that it is God in heaven who rules.

One year later, he was walking on the flat roof of the king's palace in Babylon.