{And as for these four young men}, God gave to them knowledge and insight into all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had insight into all visions and dreams.

"[As for you], king, your thoughts on your bed {turned to} what [it was] that would be {in the future}, and the revealer of mysteries has made known to you what that would be.

And as for me, [it is] not because of wisdom that is in me more than {any other living person} [that] this mystery is revealed to me, but {in order that} the explanation may be made known to the king and you will {understand} the thoughts of your {mind}.

And fourth kingdom will be strong as iron, [and] {just as} iron crushes and smashes {everything}, and as iron shatters all of these [other metals], [so] it will crush and it will shatter [these nations].

{And just as} you saw the feet and the toes, {partly potter's clay} and {partly iron}, it will be a divided kingdom; and {some hardness} of the iron will be [in it], {just as} you have seen the iron mixed with the wet clay.

And [as] the toes of the feet [were] partly iron and partly clay, [so] part of the kingdom will be strong {and partly brittle}.

And [in] that you saw the iron was mixed with wet clay, [so] {they will mix in marriage} and they will not cling {to one another}, just as iron [does] not mix with clay.

{Inasmuch as} you saw that a stone from the mountain was chiseled out [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}, and the dream is certain and its explanation trustworthy."

{Therefore}, {at that time}, {as soon as} 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} [were] falling down [and] were worshiping the statue of gold that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

Now [these were] the visions of my head [as I was lying] on my bed: I was {gazing} and, look, a tree [was] in the midst of the earth, and its height [was] exalted.

" 'I was looking in the vision of my head [as I lay] on my bed, and look, a watcher, and holy [one], came down from heaven.

And the king answered and said, "Is this not the great Babylon which I have built as a royal palace by the strength of my own power, and for the glory of my own majesty?"

And all the dwellers of the earth are regarded as nothing, and he does {according to} his desire in the host of heaven and [among] the dwellers of earth, and there is not [one] who can hold back his hand, or {ask him}, 'What are you doing?'

The king cried {aloud} to bring [in] the conjurers, the {astrologers} and the diviners; the king {spoke} and said to [the] wise men of Babylon, "Any man that can read this writing and can tell me its explanation will be clothed [in] purple and [will have] necklace of gold [hung] around his neck and he will rule [as] third [in authority] in the kingdom."

There is a man in your kingdom {who has the spirit of the holy gods in him}. And in the days of your {predecessor}, enlightenment and insight and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods was found in him; and, O king, Nebuchadnezzar your {predecessor} appointed him [as] chief of the magicians, the conjurers, the {astrologers}, [and] the diviners. Your {predecessor} the king [did this]

But I have heard concerning you that you are able {to produce interpretations} and to solve riddles; now if you are able to read the writing and to make known its explanation to me, you will be clothed [in] purple and necklace of gold [will be placed] around your neck and you will rule [as] third [in command] in the kingdom."

But {when} his heart became arrogant and his spirit became hard [so as] to act proudly, he was deposed from the throne of his kingdom and the glory {was taken away from him}.

Now {when} Daniel realized that the document was signed, he went to his house ({now he had windows in his upper room that were open} toward Jerusalem), and three times {daily} he knelt on his knees and prayed and [gave] praise before his God, {just as} he had been doing {previously}.

Then these men came as a group and they found Daniel praying and pleading for mercy before his God.

Then they approached {and spoke with the king} concerning the edict of the king, "{Did you not sign an edict} that any person who would seek [anything] from any God or human within thirty days except from you, O king, would be thrown into {the lion pit}?" The king answered and said, "The matter [as you have just stated] is certain according to [the] law of [the] Medes and Persians which cannot be revoked."

Then these men came as group to the king and {said}, "Recall, O king, that [with respect to] [the] law of [the] Medes and Persians that {any} decree or edict that the king establishes cannot be changed."

In the first year of Belshazzar the king of Babylon, Daniel saw a dream and visions of his head [as he lay] on his bed; then he wrote down the dream [and] [the] {summary} of [the] words {as follows}:

And [as for] the remainder of the beasts, {their dominion was taken away}, but a prolongation {of their life} was given to them for a season and a time.

"{As for me, Daniel}, my spirit was troubled {within me}, and the visions of my head terrified me.

And [as for] the ten horns [coming] from it, [from] this kingdom ten kings will arise, and another will arise after them. And he will be different from the earlier [ones], and he will subdue three kings.

{This is the end of the account}. {As for me, Daniel}--my thoughts terrified me greatly and my face changed over me, but I kept the matter in my heart."

"{Righteousness belongs to you, O Lord}, and on us [is] open shame, [just] as [it is] this day to the people of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to all Israel, {those who are near and those who are far off} in all the lands [to] which you have driven them, because of their infidelity which they displayed against you.

"And all Israel transgressed your law and turned aside [so as] not to listen to your voice, and [so] the curse and the oath which [was] written in the law of Moses, the servant of God, has been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him.

And [so] he [has] carried out his words which he spoke against us and against our rulers who ruled us, to bring upon us great calamity which was not done under all [of] heaven as it was done in Jerusalem.

Just as [it is] written in the law of Moses, all of this calamity has come upon us, and {we have not implored} the face of Yahweh our God [so as] to turn from our iniquities and to attend closely to your faithfulness.

And I myself, Daniel, alone saw this great vision, and [as a result] {no strength was left in me} and {my complexion grew deathly pale}, and I did not retain any strength.

"And I, in the first year of Darius the Mede, {I stood} as a support and as a protection for him.

And a mighty king will arise, and he will rule [with] great dominion, and he will do {as he pleases}.

But {as he rises in power}, his kingdom will be divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not to his posterity, and not according to his dominion [by] which he ruled, for his kingdom will be uprooted and [be given] {to others besides them}.

"At the appointed time he will return and he will come into the south, but it will not be {as it was before}.

"Then the king will do {as he pleases}, and he will exalt himself and will consider himself above any god, and he will speak horrendous things {against} [the] God of gods, yet he will succeed until [the period] of anger is finished, for [what] is determined will be done.