and the LORD delivered Jehoiakim the king of Judah into his hand, with certain ornaments of the house of God, which he carried away into the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and there brought them into his god's treasury.

young men in whom there was no physical defect and who were handsome, well versed in all kinds of wisdom, well educated and having keen insight, and who were capable of entering the king's royal service -- and to teach them the literature and language of the Babylonians.

And among these there were, of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

And the king had talk with them; and among them all there was no one like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; so they were given places before the king.

So Daniel remained there in service until the first year of King Cyrus.

but if ye do not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you; for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me its interpretation.

The Chaldeans answered before the king and said, There is not a man upon the earth that can shew the king's matter; therefore there is no king, however great and powerful, that hath asked such a thing of any scribe, or magician, or Chaldean.

For the thing that the king demandeth is extraordinary, and there is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.

but there is a God in the heavens, who revealeth secrets, and maketh known to king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be at the end of days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed are these:

“You, O king, were looking, and behold, [there was] a single great statue; this image, which was large and of unsurpassed splendor, stood before you, and its appearance was awesome and terrifying.

After you there will arise another kingdom inferior to you, then another third kingdom of bronze, which will rule over all the earth.

Then there will be a fourth kingdom, as strong as iron. Just as all things are broken to pieces and shattered by iron, so it will shatter and crush everything.

And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potter's clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.

And whereas thou sawest that without any hands there was cut out of the mount a stone, which brake the iron, the copper, the earth, the silver and gold in pieces: by that hath the great God showed the king, what will come after this. This is a true dream, and the interpretation of it is sure."

At that time there being gathered together the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the chief judges, the treasurers, those skilled in law, the lawyers and all the rulers of the provinces, to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king set up; and standing before the image that Nebuchadnezzar set up.

Now were there certain men of the Chaldeans that went even then and accused the Jews,

There are certain Jews whom thou hast appointed over the administration of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego: these men, O king, regard thee not; they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image that thou hast set up.

Now, if you are ready at this very moment to obey "the sound of the trumpet, the flute, the lyre, the four-stringed lyre, and the harp,' and worship the image that I have made" If you do not so worship, you will immediately have cast yourselves into the middle of the blazing fire, and what god is there who can deliver you from my power?"

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, answering Nebuchadnezzar the king, said, There is no need for us to give you an answer to this question.

Then, Nebuchadnezzar the king, was amazed, and rose up in haste: he spake and said to his nearest friends - Were there not three men, we cast into the midst of the fire, fast bound? They answered and said to the king, Surely, O king!

He answered and said, Lo! I, see four men, unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and, injury, there is not in them, and, the appearance of the fourth, is like to a son of the gods!

And the captains, the chiefs, and the rulers, and the king's wise men who had come together, saw these men, over whose bodies the fire had no power, and not a hair of their heads was burned, and their coats were not changed, and there was no smell of fire about them.

Therefore I make a decree, that in every people, nation, and language, he who shall speak anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, shall be cut in pieces, and his house shall be made a dunghill: because there is no other God that is able to deliver after this sort.

So there came the soothsayers, charmers, Chaldeans and conjurers of devils: to whom I told the dream. But what it betokened, they could not show me:

Later Daniel entered (whose name is Belteshazzar after the name of my god, and in whom there is a spirit of the holy gods). I recounted the dream for him as well,

saying, "Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, in whom I know there to be a spirit of the holy gods and whom no mystery baffles, consider my dream that I saw and set forth its interpretation!

Here are the visions of my mind while I was on my bed. While I was watching, there was a tree in the middle of the land. It was enormously tall.

Its foliage was attractive and its fruit plentiful; on it there was food enough for all. Under it the wild animals used to seek shade, and in its branches the birds of the sky used to nest. All creatures used to feed themselves from it.

whose foliage was attractive and its fruit plentiful, and from which there was food available for all, under whose branches wild animals used to live, and in whose branches birds of the sky used to nest --

Therefore, O king, let my advice to you be [considered and found] acceptable; break away now from your sins and exhibit your repentance by doing what is right, and from your wickedness by showing mercy to the poor, so that [if you repent] there may possibly be a continuance of your prosperity and tranquility and a healing of your error.’

While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from the heavens: King Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken: The kingdom is departed from thee;

in comparison of whom, all they that dwell upon the earth are to be reputed as nothing. He handleth according to his will, among the powers of heaven and among the inhabiters of the earth - and there is none that may resist his hand, or say, 'What doest thou?'

Suddenly the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and began writing opposite the lampstand on [a well-lit area of] the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, and the king saw the part of the hand that did the writing.

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, like the wisdom of the gods was found in him; and the king Nebuchadnezzar thy father, even the king thy father, made him master of the scribes, magicians, Chaldeans, and astrologers;

Thus there was found in this man Daniel, whom the king renamed Belteshazzar, an extraordinary spirit, knowledge, and skill to interpret dreams, solve riddles, and decipher knotty problems. Now summon Daniel, and he will disclose the interpretation."

I have heard about you, how there is a spirit of the gods in you, and how you have insight, discernment, and extraordinary wisdom.

Now have there been brought me, wise and conjuring charmers, to read this writing, and to show me the meaning thereof: but they could not tell me, what this matter signified.

Then was there put forth from before him the part of the hand, - and, this writing, was inscribed:

Then this Daniel did his work better than the chief rulers and the captains, because there was a special spirit in him; and it was the king's purpose to put him over all the kingdom.

Then the presidents and the satraps sought to find a pretext against Daniel with respect to the kingdom; but they could not find any pretext or fault; inasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him.

Now when Daniel understood that the writing was made, he went into his house: and the windows of his hall toward Jerusalem stood open. There kneeled he down upon his knees, three times a day: there he made his petition, and praised his God, like as his manner was to do afore time.

A stone was brought and laid over the mouth of the den; and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the signet rings of his nobles, so that nothing would be changed concerning Daniel.

So the king went in to his palace, and kept him sober all night, so that there was no table spread before him, neither could he take any sleep.

Then the king was exceedingly glad over it and commanded [that] Daniel be lifted up from the pit; and [there] was not any wound found on him, because he had trusted in his God.

I make a decree that in all the domain of my kingdom, there shall be trembling and fear before the God of Daniel. For He is the living God, and endures forever, and His kingdom is that which shall not be destroyed, and His rule shall be to the end.

The first was as a Lion, and yet had he Eagle's wings. I saw, that his wings were plucked from him, and he taken away from the earth: that he stood upon his feet as a man, and that there was given him a man's heart.

"Then a second beast appeared, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and there were three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, 'Get up and devour much flesh!'

"After this, I continued to watch and look! there was another one, resembling a leopard with four birds' wings on its back. The animal also had four heads, and authority was imparted to it.

"After this, I continued to observe the night visions. And look! there was a fourth awe-inspiring, terrifying, and viciously strong animal! It had large, iron teeth. It devoured and crushed things, and trampled under its feet whatever remained. Different from all of the other previous animals, it had ten horns.

I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among them another, a little horn, before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots; and behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things.

There drew forth a fiery stream, and went out from him. A thousand times a thousand served him. Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The judgment was set, and the books opened.

Then took I heed there unto, because of the voice of the proud words, which the horn spake. I beheld, till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given over to be burnt in the fire.

I saw in the night visions, and behold, there came with the clouds of heaven one like a son of man, and he came up even to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.

And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.

I approached one of those who stood by and began asking him the exact meaning of all this. So he told me and explained to me the interpretation of the things:

I desired also to know the truth, as touching the ten horns that he had upon his head, and this other which came up afterward, before whose face there fell down three: which horn had eyes and a mouth that spake presumptuous things, and looked with a grimmer visage than his fellows.

"This is what he told me: 'The fourth beast means that there will be a fourth kingdom on earth that will differ from all the other kingdoms. It will devour all the earth and will trample and crush it.

The ten horns, are ten kings that shall arise out of that kingdom, after whom there shall stand up another, which shall be greater than the first.

In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar, there appeared a vision unto me Daniel, after that I had seen the first.

And I lifted up mine eyes and saw, and behold, there stood before the river a ram which had two horns; and the two horns were high; and one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last.

I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward, and no beast could stand before him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his hand; and he did according to his will, and became great.

I took heed unto this, and then came there a he goat from the west over the whole earth, and touched not the ground. This goat had a marvelous goodly horn betwixt his eyes,

And I saw him come close to the ram, and he was enraged with him, and smote the ram, and broke his two horns; and there was no power in the ram to stand before him; and he cast him down to the ground, and trampled upon him; and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand.

The male goat acted even more arrogantly. But no sooner had the large horn become strong than it was broken, and there arose four conspicuous horns in its place, extending toward the four winds of the sky.

Yea out of one of the least of these horns, there came up yet another horn, which waxed marvelous great: toward the south, toward the east, and toward the fair pleasant land.

Then there came to my ears the voice of a holy one talking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was talking, How long will the vision be while the regular burned offering is taken away, and the unclean thing causing fear is put up, and the holy place crushed under foot?

And it came to pass, when, I Daniel, had seen the vision, - and had sought discernment, that lo! there was standing before me, as the appearance of a man.

Now, as for its being broken in pieces, whereupon there stood up four in its stead, four kingdoms, out of his nation, shall stand up, but not with his strength;

but, in the aftertime of their kingdom, when transgressions, have filled up their measure, - there will stand up a king of mighty presence, and skilful in dissimulation;

And I, Daniel, have been, yea, I became sick for days, and I rise, and do the king's work, and am astonished at the appearance, and there is none understanding.

To thee, O Jehovah, justice, and to us shame of face, as this day to the men of Judah, and to those dwelling in Jerusalem, and to all Israel being near and being far off, in all the lands where thou didst thrust them there in their transgression which they transgressed against thee.

Thus hath he confirmed his words which he had spoken against us, and against our judges who had judged us, by bringing in upon us a great calamity, - as to which there had not been done, under all the heavens, as hath been done unto Jerusalem.

O Lord, give ear; O Lord, have forgiveness; O Lord, take note and do; let there be no more waiting; for the honour of your name, O my God, because your town and your people are named by your name.

So know and understand: From the issuing of the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until an anointed one, a prince arrives, there will be a period of seven weeks and sixty-two weeks. It will again be built, with plaza and moat, but in distressful times.

Then after the 62 weeks, the anointed one will be cut down (but not for himself). Then the people of the Coming Commander will destroy both the city and the Sanctuary. Its ending will come like a flood, and until the end there will be war, with desolations having been decreed.

And he shall confirm a covenant with the many for one week; and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and because of the protection of abominations there shall be a desolator, even until that the consumption and what is determined shall be poured out upon the desolate.

In the third year of king Cyrus of Persia, there was showed unto Daniel, otherwise called Balteshazzar, a matter: yea, a true matter, but it is yet a long time unto it. He understood the matter well, and perceived what the vision was.

so that I had no lust to eat bread: as for flesh and wine, there came none within my mouth: No, I did not once anoint myself, till the whole three weeks were out.

I lifted up my eyes to look, and to my surprise, there was a certain man dressed in linen, whose waist was encircled with gold from Uphaz!

I, therefore, was left alone, and beheld this great revelation, and there remained in me no strength, - but, my freshness, was turned upon me into disfigurement, and I retained no strength.

He told me, "Daniel, man highly regarded, understand the message that I'm about to relate to you. Stand up, because I've been sent to you.' When he spoke this statement to me, I stood there trembling.

But, the ruler of the kingdom of Persia, withstood me twenty-one days, but lo! Michael, one of the chief rulers, came in to help me, - and, I, left him there, beside the kings of Persia.

Now I have come to give you knowledge of the fate of your people in the later days; for there is still a vision for the days.

Behold, there touched my lips one very like unto a man. Then opened I my mouth, and said unto him, that stood before me, "O my lord, my joints are loosed in the vision, and there is no more strength within me:

How then can the servant of this my lord speak with this my lord, - seeing that, as for me - henceforth, there remaineth in me no strength, and no, spirit, is left in me?

Then again there touched me one like in appearance to a son of earth, and he strengthened me.

Howbeit I will tell thee that which is inscribed in the writing of truth, - but there is no one who holdeth strongly with me concerning these things, save Michael your ruler.

and, now, the truth, I will tell thee: - Lo! there are, yet three kings, to arise - belonging to Persia, and, the fourth, will amass greater riches than they all, and, when he hath strengthened himself in his riches, the whole, will stir up, the kingdom of Greece.

Then shall there arise yet a mighty king, that shall rule with great dominion, and do what him list.

"There will arise in his place one from her family line who will come against their army and will enter the stronghold of the king of the north and will move against them successfully.

And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of the south: also the robbers of thy people shall exalt themselves to establish the vision; but they shall fall.

Then will come in the king of the north, and cast up a rampart, and capture a city of strongholds, - and, the arms of the south, will not rise, nor the people of his chosen ones, and there shall be no strength to rise.

And he who is coming unto him doth according to his will, and there is none standing before him; and he standeth in the desirable land, and it is wholly in his hand.

There will arise after him one who will send out an exactor of tribute to enhance the splendor of the kingdom, but after a few days he will be destroyed, though not in anger or battle.

""In his place there will arise a despicable person, upon whom no royal authority has been conferred, but he'll invade in a time of tranquility, taking over the kingdom through deception.

These two kings, their minds filled with evil intentions, will trade lies with one another at the same table. But it will not succeed, for there is still an end at the appointed time.

Yea, some of those which have understanding shall be persecuted also: that they may be tried, purified, and cleansed, till the time be out. For there is yet another time appointed.

and he planteth the tents of his palace between the seas and the holy desirable mountain, and hath come unto his end, and there is no helper to him.

And, at that time, will Michael, the great ruler who standeth for the sons of thy people, make a stand, and there will be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, up to that time, - and, at that time, shall thy people, be delivered, every one found written in the hook;

And thou O Daniel, shut up these words, and seal the book, till the last time. Many shall go about here and there, and then shall knowledge increase."