then let our countenances be looked upon before thee, and the countenance of the youths that eat of the king's delicate food: and as thou shalt see, deal with thy servants.

I thank thee, and I praise thee, O God of my fathers, Who hast given me wisdom and might, And hast made known unto me already what we desired of thee; For thou hast made known unto us the king's matter.

Therefore, Daniel entered in unto Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon, - he went in, and, thus, he said unto him, The wise men of Babylon, do not thou destroy, bring me in before the king, and, the interpretation - unto the king, will I declare.

The king answered and said unto Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream that I have seen, and its interpretation?

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:

O king, thou didst cast in thy mind, what should come hereafter: So he that is the opener of mysteries, telleth thee what is for to come.

And as for me, this secret is revealed to me, not by any wisdom that I have more than any living, but to the intent that the interpretation should be made known to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.

Thou, O king, sawest, and behold, a great image. This image was mighty and its brightness excellent; it stood before thee, and its appearance was terrible.

Thou sawest till a stone was cut out without hands; and it smote the image upon its feet of iron and clay, and broke them to pieces.

Thou, O king, art a king of kings, unto whom the God of the heavens hath given the kingdom, the power, and the strength, and the glory;

and wheresoever the children of men, the beasts of the field, and the fowl of the heavens dwell, he hath given them into thy hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all: thou art this head of gold.

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 the iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men; but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron doth not mingle with clay.

Forasmuch as thou sawest that a stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold, the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter. And the dream is certain, and the interpretation of it sure.

The king answered Daniel and said, Of a truth it is that your God is the God of gods, and the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, because thou wast able to reveal this secret.

Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, pipe, lute, sambuca, psaltery, and bagpipe, and all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image;

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.

But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image that 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 dream I, king Nebuchadnezzar, have seen; and thou, Belteshazzar, tell the interpretation, forasmuch as all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known unto me the interpretation; but thou art able, for the spirit of the holy gods is in thee.

The tree that thou sawest, which grew and was strong, whose height reached unto the heavens, and the sight of it to all the earth;

it is thou, O king, who art grown and become strong; for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto the heavens, and thy dominion to the end of the earth.

They shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and thou shalt be bathed with the dew of heaven; and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the Most High ruleth over the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.

And whereas it was commanded to leave the stump of the roots of the tree; thy kingdom shall remain unto thee, after that thou shalt know that the heavens do rule.

Wherefore, O king, be content with my counsel, that thou mayest lose thy sins with righteousness, and thine offenses with mercy to poor people: for such things shall prolong thy peace."

and they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field; they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the Most High ruleth over the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.

And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and he doeth according to his will in the army of the heavens, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

Then was Daniel brought in before the king. The king spoke and said unto Daniel, Art thou that Daniel, of the children of the captivity of Judah, whom the king my father brought out of Judah?

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.

But I have heard of thee, that thou canst give interpretations, and solve problems. Now if thou canst read the writing, and make known to me the interpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with purple, and have a chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ruler in the kingdom.

O thou king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father the kingdom, and greatness, and glory, and majesty;

And thou, Belshazzar, his son, hast not humbled thy heart, although thou knewest all this;

but hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of the heavens; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou and thy nobles, 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:

TEKEL, Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting;

Then these presidents and satraps ran together with tumult to the king, and saying thus to him, O Darius the king, live thou forever.

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.'

Then they came near, and spoke before the king concerning the king's decree: Hast thou not signed a decree, that every man that shall ask anything of any god or man within thirty days, except 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 may not be revoked.

Then they answered and said before the king, That Daniel, who 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.

Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. The king spoke and said unto Daniel, Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will save thee.

And when he came near unto the den, he cried with a mournful voice unto Daniel: the king spoke and said unto Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, hath thy God whom thou servest continually been able to save thee from the lions?

So he came, and stood by me. But I was afraid at his coming, and fell down upon my face. Then said he unto me, "O thou son of man, mark well, for in the last time shall this vision be fulfilled."

The ram which thou sawest, having the two horns, representeth the kings of Media and Persia;

Now, the revelation of the evening and the morning which hath been told, faithful, indeed it is, - but, thou, close up the vision, because it is for many days.

I prayed before the LORD my God, and knowledged, saying, "O LORD, thou great and fearful God, thou that keepest covenant and mercy with them which love thee, and do thy commandments:

To thee, O Lord, belongeth righteousness, but, to us, the shame of faces, as at this day, - to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, the near and the far off, throughout all the lands whither thou hast driven them, in their treachery, wherewith they had been treacherous against thee.

And now, O LORD our God, thou that with a mighty hand hast brought thy people out of Egypt, to get thyself a name, which remaineth this day: we have sinned,

O Jehovah hear; O Jehovah forgive; O Jehovah, attend and do; thou wilt not delay for thy sake, O my God: for thy name was called upon thy city and upon thy people.

At the beginning of thy supplications, came forth a word, I, therefore, am arrived to tell, because, a man delighted in, thou art, - mark then the word, and have understanding in the revelation: -

Thou must know, then, and understand: From the going forth of the word to restore and to build Jerusalem - unto the Anointed One, the Prince, shall be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks, - the broadway and the wall, shall again be built, even in the end of the times.

Then said he unto me, O Daniel! man greatly delighted in! have understanding in the words which, I, am about to speak unto thee, and stand up where thou art, for, now, have I been sent unto thee. And, when he had spoken with me this word, I stood up trembling.

Then said he unto me, Do not fear, Daniel, for, from the first day that thou didst set thy heart to understand and to humble thyself before thy God, thy words were heard; and, I, am come, by reason of thy words.

And he said, Do not fear, O man greatly delighted in! peace to thee, be strong, yea be strong! And, as he spake with me, I gained strength, and said, Let my lord speak, for thou hast strengthened me.

And he said, Knowest thou wherefore I am come unto thee? But, now, must I return to fight with the ruler of Persia; I, therefore am going forth, and lo! the ruler of Greece, is coming.

But, thou, Daniel, close up the words, and seal the book, until the time of the end, - many will run to and fro, and knowledge, shall abound.

But, thou, go thy way to the end, - and thou shalt rest, and shalt rise to thy lot at the end of the days.