I 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.

Only God in heaven can open secrets; and he it is, that showeth the king Nebuchadnezzar what is for to come in the latter days. Thy dream, and that which thou hast seen in thine head upon thy bed, is this:

As to that which thou hast seen: the feet and toes, part of them potter's clay, and part of them iron, the kingdom is divided: and some of the standing of the iron is to be in it, because that thou hast seen the iron mixed with miry clay.

Because thou hast seen iron mixed with miry clay, they are mixing themselves with the seed of men: and they are not adhering one with another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.

Because that thou hast seen that out of the mountain cut hath been a stone without hands, and it hath beaten small the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king that which is to be after this; and the dream is true, and its interpretation stedfast.

Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell face downward and paid respect to Daniel [as a great prophet of the highest God], and gave orders for an offering and fragrant incense to be presented to him [in honor of his God].

The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth your God is the God of gods, and the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou hast been able to reveal this secret.

Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, shall fall down and worship the golden image:

There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

"O Balteshazzar, thou prince of soothsayers: Forsomuch as I know that thou hast the spirit of the holy gods, and no secret is hid from thee. Tell me therefore, what the vision of my dream that I have seen may signify.

This errand of the watcher, is a commandment grounded and sought out, in the counsel of him that is most holy: to learn men for to understand, that the highest hath power over the kingdoms of men; and giveth them to whom it liketh him, and bringeth the very outcasts of men over them.'

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,

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;

This, O king, is the interpretation: yea, it is the very device of him that is highest of all, and it toucheth my lord the king.

Thou shalt be cast out from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: with grass shalt thou be fed like an ox. Thou must be wet with the dew of the heaven: yea, seven years shall come and go upon thee, till thou know that the highest hath power upon the kingdoms of men, and giveth them to whom he list.

Moreover, whereas it was said that the root of the tree should be left still in the ground: it betokeneth that thy kingdom shall remain whole unto thee, after thou hast learned to know that the power cometh from heaven.

Thou shalt be cast out of men's company: thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, so that thou shalt eat grass like as an ox, till seven years be come and gone over thee: even until thou knowest, that the highest hath power upon the kingdoms of men, and that he may give them, unto whom it pleaseth him.'"

When this time was past, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lift up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding was restored unto me again. Then gave I thanks to the highest. I magnified and praised him that liveth for evermore, whose power endureth alway, and his kingdom from one generation to another:

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?

The king called out to bring in the mediums, Chaldeans, and astrologers. He said to these wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this inscription and gives me its interpretation will be clothed in purple, have a gold chain around his neck, and have the third highest position in the kingdom.”

I have heard speak of thee, that thou hast the spirit of the holy gods, experience and understanding, and that there hath been great wisdom found in thee.

However, I have heard about you that you can give interpretations and solve problems. Therefore, if you can read this inscription and give me its interpretation, you will be clothed in purple, have a gold chain around your neck, and have the third highest position in the kingdom.”

O king, God the highest gave unto Nebuchadnezzar, thy father, the dignity of a king, with worship and honor:

He was shot out from among men, his heart was like a beast's heart, and his dwelling was with the wild asses: he was fain to eat grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven: till he knew, that the highest had power upon the kingdoms of men, and setteth over them, whom he list.

And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this;

But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified:

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

Then Belshazzar gave orders to clothe Daniel in purple, to place a chain of gold around his neck, and to proclaim him the third highest ruler of the kingdom.

Then they came near, and spake before the king concerning the king's decree; Hast thou not signed a decree, that every man that shall ask a petition of any God or man within thirty days, save of thee, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions? The king answered and said, The thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not.

Then answered they and said before the king, That Daniel, which is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regardeth not thee, O king, nor the decree that thou hast signed, but maketh his petition three times a day.

but the holy ones of the Highest, shall receive the kingdom, - and shall possess the kingdom for the age, yea for the age of ages.

until that the Ancient of Days, came, and, justice, was granted to the holy ones of the Highest, - and, the time, arrived, that the holy ones should possess, the kingdom.

and, words against the Most High, will he speak, and, the holy ones of the Highest, will he afflict, - and will hope to change times and law, and they will be given into his hand, for a season and seasons and the dividing of a season,

And, the kingdom, and the dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under all the heavens, shall be given to the people of the holy ones of the Highest, - his kingdom, is an age-abiding kingdom, and, all the dominions, unto him, will render service, and show themselves obedient.

Then I looked up, and saw, and behold, there stood before the river, a ram, which had horns: and these horns were high, but one was higher than another, and the highest came up last.

And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.

Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.

And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.

Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?

The ram that thou hast seen possessing two horns, are the kings of Media and Persia.

O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.

And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.

And said, O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when he had spoken unto me, I was strengthened, and said, Let my lord speak; for thou hast strengthened me.

And he saith, Hast thou known why I have come unto thee? and now I turn back to fight with the head of Persia; yea, I am going forth, and lo, the head of Javan hath come;

yea, even their gods, with their molten images, with their delightful vessels of silver and gold, with a host of captives, will he bring into Egypt, - and, he, will stand more, years, than the king of the north;

Wherefore his sons shall be displeased, and shall gather together a mighty great host of people: and one of them shall come, and go through like a water flood: then shall he return, and go forth with defying and boasting unto his own land.

For the king of the north shall gather, of the new, a greater heap of people than afore, and come forth after a certain time and years with a mighty host and exceeding great goods.

His power and heat shall be stirred up with a great army against the king of the south: wherethrough the king of the south shall be moved then unto battle, with a great mighty host also. Nevertheless, he shall not be able to stand, for they shall conspire against him.

Yea, they that eat of his meat, shall hurt him: so that his host shall fall, and many be slain down.