sons in whom was no blemish, but who were handsome and skillful in all wisdom; and who had knowledge and understanding, even those who were able to stand in the king's palace, and to whom they might teach the writing and the language of the Chaldeans.

And at the end of ten days their faces looked fairer and fatter in flesh than all the boys who had eaten the king's food.

As for these four boys, God gave them knowledge and skill in all writing and wisdom. And Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.

And the king talked with them. And among them all were found none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they stood before the king.

And in any matters of wisdom and understanding that the king asked them, he found them ten times better than all the horoscopists and conjurers who were in all his kingdom.

And the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic, O king, live forever. Tell your servants the dream, and we will reveal the meaning.

The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing has gone from me. If you will not make known to me the dream, with its meaning, you will be made into mere members, and your houses shall be made an outhouse.

They answered again and said, Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will reveal its meaning.

But if you will not make the dream known to me, there is only one judgment for you. For you have prepared lying and deceiving words to speak before me, until the time has changed. Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can reveal to me its meaning.

For this cause the king was enraged and angered, and commanded all the wise men of Babylon to be destroyed.

Then Daniel went in to Arioch, whom the king had chosen to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He went and said this to him; Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon. Bring me in before the king, and I will declare the meaning to the king.

Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel in before the king, and said this to him, I have found a man of the captives of Judah who will make the meaning known to the king.

Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were broken to pieces together. And they became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors. And the wind carried them away, so that no place was found for them. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

This is the dream. And we will tell its meaning before the king.

And wherever the sons of men, the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heavens live, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all. You are this head of gold.

And after you shall arise another kingdom lower than you, and another third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.

And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron. Since iron crushes and smashes all things; and as the iron that shatters all these, it will crush and shatter.

And in the days of these kings, the God of Heaven shall set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed. And the kingdom shall not be left to other peoples, but it shall crush and destroy all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.

Then the king made Daniel great, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over all the province of Babylon, and chief of the prefects over all the wise men of Babylon.

Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the satraps, the prefects, the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the justices, and all the officials of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

Then were gathered the satraps, the prefects, the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the justices, and all the officials of the provinces, to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. And they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

at the time you hear the sound of the horn, the pipe, zither, the lyre, harp, bagpipe, and all kinds of music, you shall fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up.

And whoever does not fall down and worship, at that moment they will be thrown into the middle of a burning fiery furnace.

Therefore at that time, when all the people heard the sound of the horn, the pipe, zither, the lyre, harp, and all kinds of music, all the people, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshiped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

You, O king, have made a decree that every man who shall hear the sound of the horn, the pipe, zither, the lyre, harp, and the bagpipe, and all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image.

Now if you are ready, at the time you hear the sound of the horn, the pipe, zither, the lyre, harp, and bagpipe, and all kinds of music, fall down and worship the image which I have made. But if you do not worship, in that moment you shall be thrown into the middle of a burning fiery furnace. And who is that god who shall deliver you out of my hand?

If it is so that our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, then He will deliver us out of your hand, O king.

But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods nor worship the golden image which you have set up.

Nebuchadnezzar the king, to all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you.

So I made a decree to bring in all the wise men of Babylon before me, that they might make known to me the meaning of the dream.

The tree grew and was strong, and its height reached to the heavens; and the sight of it reached to the end of all the earth.

Its leaves were beautiful, and its fruit plentiful, and in it was food for all. The animals of the field sought shade under it, and the birds of the heavens lived in its boughs, and all flesh was fed by it.

This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones, so that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will, and sets up over it the lowest of men.

I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen this dream. Now you, O Belteshazzar, declare its meaning, because all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make the meaning known to me. But you are able, for the spirit of the holy gods is in you.

The tree that you saw, which became great and strong, whose height reached to the heaven, and the sight of it to all the earth;

whose leaves were fair, and its fruit plentiful, and in it was food for all, under which the animals of the field dwelt, and on whose branches the birds of the heavens had their home;

They shall drive you from men, and your dwelling shall be with the animals of the field, and they shall make you eat grass like oxen. And they shall wet you with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will.

Therefore, O king, let my advice be pleasing to you, and break off your sins by righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor, whether there will be duration to your prosperity.

All this came on the King Nebuchadnezzar.

While the word was in the king's mouth, a voice fell from Heaven, saying, O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken. The kingdom has departed from you.

And they shall drive you from men, and your dwelling shall be with the animals of the field. They shall make you eat grass like oxen, and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will.

And all the people of the earth are counted as nothing; and He does according to His will in the army of heaven, and among the people of the earth. And none can strike His hand, or say to Him, What are You doing?

Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and exalt and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are truth and His ways judgment. And those who walk in pride He is able to humble.

At that moment fingers of a man's hand came out and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king's palace across from the lampstand. And the king saw the part of the hand that wrote.

Then all the king's wise men came in. But they could not read the writing, nor make the meaning known to the king.

because an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, explaining of dreams, and revealing of hard sentences, and the unraveling of knots, were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Now let Daniel be called, and he will reveal the meaning.

Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let your gifts be to yourself, and give your rewards to another. Yet I will read the writing to the king, and make the meaning known to him.

And for the majesty that He gave him, all people, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. He killed whom he would, and whom he would he kept alive. And whom he would, he set up; and whom he would, he put down.

And he was driven from the sons of men. And his heart was made like the animals, and his dwelling was with the wild asses. They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of the heavens, until he knew that the Most High God rules in the kingdom of men, and that He appoints over it whomever He will.

And you his son, O Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this.

But you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of Heaven. And they have brought the vessels of His house before you; and you, and your lords, your wives, and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver, and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see, nor hear, nor know. And you have not glorified the God in whose hand is your breath and all your ways.

It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps, that they might be over the whole kingdom.

Then this Daniel was made overseer of the presidents and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king was planning to set him over all the kingdom.

All the presidents of the kingdom, the prefects, and the satraps, and the officials and governors, have planned together to establish a royal law, and to make a strong ban that whoever shall ask a petition of any god or man for thirty days, except from you, O king, he shall be thrown into the den of lions.

Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions' den. The king answered and said to Daniel, Your God, whom you always serve, will deliver you.

And the king commanded, and they brought those men who had accused Daniel, and they threw them into the lions' den; them, their sons, and their wives. And the lions overpowered them and broke all their bones in pieces before they came to the bottom of the den.

Then King Darius wrote to all people, nations, and languages who dwell in all the earth. Peace be multiplied to you.

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.

After this I looked in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, frightening and terrifying, and very strong. And it had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped the rest with its feet. And it was different from all the beasts before it; and it had ten horns.

I watched until the thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days sat, whose robe was white as snow, and the hair of His head like the pure wool. His throne was like flames of fire, and His wheels like burning fire.

And dominion and glory was given Him, 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.

And I came near one of those who stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the meaning of the things.

Then I wanted to know the truth of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, very frightening, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of bronze; who devoured, broke in pieces, and stamped the rest with his feet;

And he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all kingdoms and shall devour the whole earth, and shall trample it and crush it.

And the kingdom and rulership, and the greatness of the kingdom under all the heavens, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. And all kingdoms shall serve and obey Him.

And in a vision I looked. And it happened when I looked, I was at Shushan the palace, which is in the province of Elam. And in a vision I looked, and I was by the Ulai Canal.

I saw the ram pushing westward and northward and southward; so that no beasts could stand before him, nor any that could deliver out of his hand. But he did according to his will, and became great.

And as I was watching, behold, a he-goat came from the west, over the face of the all earth, and did not touch the ground. And the he goat had an outstanding horn between his eyes.

And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai, which called and said, Gabriel, make this one understand the vision.

And he said, Behold, I will make you know what shall happen in the last end of the indignation. For it is for the time appointed for the end.

Neither have we listened to Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings, our rulers, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.

O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us the shame of our faces, as it is today to the men of Judah and to the people of Jerusalem, and to all Israel who are near and who are afar off, through all the countries where You have driven them because of their sin which they have sinned against You.

Yea, all Israel has transgressed Your Law, and turned aside, that they might not obey Your voice. Therefore the curse has been poured out on us, and the oath that is written in the Law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against Him.

And He has confirmed His Words which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing on us a great evil. For under all the heavens it has not been done as it has been done to Jerusalem.

As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this evil has come on us. Yet we did not make our prayer before Jehovah our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand Your truth.

Therefore Jehovah has watched over the evil, and has brought it on us. For Jehovah our God is righteous in all His works which He does; for we did not obey His voice.

O Lord, I pray You, according to all Your righteousness let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain. Because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people have become a curse to all those who are around us.

And while I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin, and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my cry before Jehovah my God for the holy mountain of my God;

yes, while I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, touched me in my severe exhaustion, about the time of the evening sacrifice.

Know therefore and understand, that from the going out of the command to restore and to build Jerusalem, to Messiah the Prince, shall be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks. The street shall be built again, and the wall, even in times of affliction.

I ate no food for delight, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, until three whole weeks were fulfilled.

Then he said, Do you know why I come to you? And now I will return to fight with the ruler of Persia. And when I have gone out, lo, the ruler of Greece shall come.

But I will show you that which is written in the Scripture of Truth. And there is none who holds strongly with me in these things, but Michael your ruler.

And now I will declare to you the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia. And the fourth shall be far richer than all of them. And by his strength, through his riches, he shall stir up all against the kingdom of Greece.

And a mighty king shall stand up, one who shall rule with great power and do according to his will.

So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a siege mound, and take a fortified city. And the arms of the south shall not hold out, nor his chosen people, nor will there be any strength to hold out.

But he who comes against him shall do according to his own will, and none shall stand before him. And he shall stand in the glorious land, which shall be destroyed by his hand.

He also shall set his face to enter with the strength of all his kingdom, and upright ones with him. So he shall do. And he shall give the daughter of women to him, to destroy it; but she shall not stand, nor be for him.

And he shall turn his face to the coastlands, and shall capture many. But a ruler shall make cease his reproach for him, but his reproach will return to him.

And a despised one shall stand up in his place, and they shall not give to him the honor of the king; but he will enter while at ease and seize the kingdom by intrigues.

And the forces of the overflow will be swept from before him, and they will be broken, and also the ruler of a covenant.

And after they join him, he will practice deceit. For he will come and be strong with a few people.

And he shall return to his land with great riches. And his heart shall be against the holy covenant. And he will act, and he shall return to his land.

And forces will stand from him, and they will profane the sanctuary, the fortress, and shall remove the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the desolating abomination.

And he will ruin by flattery those who do evil against the covenant. But the people who know their God will be strong and will work.

And when they stumble, they shall be helped with a little help, but many will join them, with hypocrisy.

And the king shall do according to his will. And he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper until the fury is fulfilled. For that which is decreed shall be done.

He will not regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god. For he shall magnify himself above all.

But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt. And the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.

But news out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him. Then he will go out with great fury to destroy, and to devote many to destruction.