Sep 22 - Daniel 4-6
Daniel
1NEBUCHADNEZZAR, the king, to all peoples, nations, and languages, who dwell in the whole world, may peace be increased with you2The supreme God has accomplished signs and wonders with me. Therefore, it has pleased me to proclai3his signs, which are great, and his wonders, which are mighty. For his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his power continues from generation to generation4I, Nebuchadnezzar, was content in my house and prospering in my palace5I saw a dream that terrified me, and my thoughts on my bed and the visions in my head disturbed me6And so a decree was established by me, that all of the wise men of Babylon should be brought in before me, and that they should reveal to me the answer to the dream7Then the seers, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers entered, and I explained about the dream in their presence, but they did not reveal its answer to me8And then their colleague came in before me, Daniel, (whose name is Belteshazzar according to the name of my god,) who has the spirit of the holy gods within his very self, and I told the dream directly to him9Belteshazzar, leader of the seers, since I know that you have in you the spirit of the holy gods, and that no mystery is unreachable to you, explain to me the visions of my dreams, which I saw, and the solution to them10This was the vision of my head on my bed. I looked, and behold, a tree in the middle of the earth, and its height was exceedingly great11The tree was great and strong, and its height reached up to heaven. It could be seen all the way to the ends of the entire earth12Its leaves were very beautiful, and its fruit was very abundant, and in it was food for the whole world. Under it, animals and beasts were dwelling, and in its branches, the birds of the sky were sheltered, and from it, all flesh was fed13I saw in the vision of my head upon my blanket, and behold, a watcher and a holy one descended from heaven14He cried out loudly, and he said this: "Cut down the tree and prune its branches; shake off its leaves and scatter its fruits; let flee the beasts, which are under it, and the birds from its branches15Nevertheless, leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and let it be bound with a band of iron and brass among the plants, which are close by, and let it be touched by the dew of heaven, and let its place be with the wild animals among the plants of the earth16Let his heart be changed from being human, and let the heart of a wild animal be given to him, and let seven periods of time pass over him17This is the decree from the judgment of the watchers, and the decision and proclamation of the holy ones, until the living shall know that the Supreme One is ruler in the kingdom of men, and that he will give it to whomever he wills, and he will appoint the lowest man over it.18I, king Nebuchadnezzar, saw this dream. And so you, Belteshazzar, must quickly explain to me the interpretation because all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to declare the meaning of it to me. But you are able because the spirit of the holy gods is in you19Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, began silently to think within himself for about one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. But the king responded, saying, "Belteshazzar, do not let the dream and its interpretation disturb you." Belteshazzar answered and said, "My lord, the dream is for those who hate you, and its interpretation may be for your enemies20The tree that you saw was lofty and strong; its height reached toward heaven, and it could be seen throughout the whole world21And its branches were very beautiful, and its fruit very abundant, and in it was food for all. Under it, dwelt the beasts of the field, and in its branches, the birds of the air stayed22It is you, O king, who has been greatly esteemed, and you have grown strong. And you have increased your power, and it reaches towards heaven, and your rule is to the ends of the whole earth23Yet the king also saw a watcher and a holy one descend from heaven and say: ‘Cut down the tree and scatter it; however, leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and let it be bound with iron and brass, among the surrounding plants, and let it be sprinkled with the dew of heaven, and let his feeding be with the wild beasts, until seven periods of time pass over him.24This is the interpretation of the judgment of the Most High, which has reached my lord, the king25They will expel you from among men, and your dwelling will be with the beasts and the wild animals, and you will eat hay like an ox, and you will be drenched with the dew of heaven. Likewise, seven periods of time will pass over you, until you know that the Supreme One rules over the kingdom of men, and he gives it to whomever he wills26But, since he commanded that the stump of its roots, that is, of the tree, should be left behind, your kingdom will be left for you, after you have realized that power is from divinity27Because of this, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you. And redeem your sins with alms, and your iniquities with mercy towards the poor. Perhaps he will forgive your offenses.28All these things came upon king Nebuchadnezzar29After the end of twelve months, he was taking a walk in the palace of Babylon30And the king spoke out loud, saying, "Isn’t this the great Babylon, which I have built, as the home of the kingdom, by the strength of my power and in the glory of my excellence?31And while the words were still in the king’s mouth, a voice rushed down from heaven, "To you, O king Nebuchadnezzar, it is said: ‘Your kingdom will be taken away from you32and they will expel you from among men, and your dwelling will be with the beasts and the wild animals. You will eat hay like an ox, and seven times will pass over you, until you know that the Supreme One rules in the kingdom of men, and he gives it to whomever he wills.’ 33The same hour, the sentence was fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and he was driven away from among men, and he ate hay like an ox, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until his hair increased like the feathers of eagles, and his nails like those of birds34Therefore, at the end of these days, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to heaven, and my mind was restored to me. And I blessed the Most High, and I praised and glorified him who lives forever. For his power is an everlasting power, and his kingdom is from generation to generation35And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing before him. For he acts according to his own will, with the inhabitants of the earth just as with the holy inhabitants of heaven. And there is no one who can resist his hand, or say to him, "Why have you done this?36At the same time, my mind returned to me, and I arrived at the honor and glory of my kingdom. And my appearance was given back to me. And my nobles and my magistrates needed me. And I was restored to my kingdom, and even greater majesty was added to me37Therefore I, Nebuchadnezzar, now praise, and magnify, and glorify the King of heaven, because all his works and the judgments of his way are true, and those who go forth in arrogance, he is able to bring low
1Belshazzar, the king, made a great feast for a thousand of his nobles, and each one of them drank according to his age2And so, when they were drunk, he instructed that the vessels of gold and silver should be brought, which Nebuchadnezzar, his father, had carried away from the temple, which was in Jerusalem, so that the king, and his nobles, and his wives, and the concubines, might drink from them3Then the gold and silver vessels were presented, which he had carried away from the temple and which had been in Jerusalem, and the king, and his nobles, wives, and concubines, drank from them4They drank wine, and they praised their gods of gold, and silver, brass, iron, and wood and stone5In the same hour, there appeared fingers, as of the hand of a man, writing on the surface of the wall, opposite the candlestick, in the king’s palace. And the king observed the part of the hand that wrote6Then the king’s countenance was changed, and his thoughts disturbed him, and he lost his self-control, and his knees knocked against one other7And the king cried out loudly for them to bring in the astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers. And the king proclaimed to the wise men of Babylon, saying, "Whoever will read this writing and make known to me its interpretation will be clothed with purple, and will have a golden chain on his neck, and will be third in my kingdom.8Then, in came all the wise men of the king, but they could neither read the writing, nor reveal the interpretation to the king9Therefore, king Belshazzar was quite confused, and his face was altered, and even his nobles were disturbed10But the queen, because of what had happened to the king and his nobles, entered the banquet house. And she spoke out, saying, "O king, live forever. Do not let your thoughts confuse you, neither should your face be altered11There is a man in your kingdom, who has the spirit of the holy gods within himself, and in the days of your father, knowledge and wisdom were found in him. For king Nebuchadnezzar, your father, appointed him leader of the astrologers, enchanters, Chaldeans, and soothsayers, even your father, I say to you, O king12For a greater spirit, and foresight, and understanding, and interpretation of dreams, and the revealing of secrets, and the solution to difficulties were found in him, that is, in Daniel, to whom the king gave the name Belteshazzar. Now, therefore, let Daniel be summoned, and he will explain the interpretation.13Then Daniel was brought in before the king. And the king spoke to him, saying, "Are you Daniel, of the sons of the captivity of Judah, whom my father the king led out of Judea14I have heard of you, that you have the spirit of the gods, and that greater knowledge, as well as understanding and wisdom, have been found in you15And now the wise astrologers have entered into my presence, so as to read this writing and to reveal to me its interpretation. And they were not able to tell me the meaning of this writing16Furthermore, I have heard about you that you can interpret obscure things and solve difficulties. So then, if you succeed in reading the writing, and in revealing its interpretation, you will be clothed with purple, and you will have a chain of gold around your neck, and you will be the third leader in my kingdom.17To this Daniel responded by saying directly to the king, "Your rewards should be for yourself, and the gifts of your house you may give to another, but I will read to you the writing, O king, and I will reveal to you its interpretation18O king, the Most High God gave to Nebuchadnezzar, your father, a kingdom and greatness, glory and honor19And because of the greatness that he gave to him, all peoples, tribes, and languages trembled and were afraid of him. Whomever he wished, he put to death; and whomever he wished, he destroyed; and whomever he wished, he exalted; and whomever he wished, he lowered20But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened in arrogance, he was deposed from the throne of his kingdom and his glory was taken away21And he was expelled from the sons of men, and so his heart was placed with the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys, and he ate hay like an ox, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he realized that the Most High holds power over the kingdom of men, and that whoever he wishes, he will set over it22Likewise, you, his son Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all these things23But you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of his house have been presented before you. And you, and your nobles, and your wives, and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. Likewise, you have praised the gods of silver, and gold, and brass, iron, and wood and stone, who neither see, nor hear, nor feel, yet you have not glorified the God who holds your breath and all your ways in his hand24Therefore, he has sent the part of the hand which has written this, which has been inscribed25But this is the writing that has been decreed: MANE, THECEL, PHARES26And this is the interpretation of the words. MANE: God has numbered your kingdom and has finished it27THECEL: you have been weighed on the scales and found lacking28PHARES: your kingdom has been divided and has been given to the Medes and the Persians29Then, by the king’s command, Daniel was dressed with purple, and a chain of gold was placed around his neck, and it was proclaimed of him that he held power as the third in the kingdom30That same night, king Belshazzar the Chaldean was killed31And Darius the Mede succeeded to the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two years
1It pleased Darius, and so he appointed over the kingdom one hundred twenty governors, to be placed throughout his whole kingdom2And over these, three leaders, of whom Daniel was one, so that the governors would be accountable to them and the king would have no trouble3And so Daniel excelled above all the leaders and governors, because a greater spirit of God was in him4Furthermore, the king considered setting him over the entire kingdom; whereupon the leaders and the governors sought to find a complaint against Daniel and in favor of the king. And they could find no case, or even suspicion, because he was faithful, and no fault or suspicion was found in him5Therefore, these men said, "We will not find any complaint against this Daniel, unless it is against the law of his God.6Then the leaders and governors took the king aside privately and spoke to him in this way: "King Darius, live forever7All the leaders of your kingdom, the magistrates and governors, the senators and judges, have taken counsel that an imperial decree and edict should be published, so that all who ask any petition of any god or man for thirty days, except of you, O king, will be cast into the den of lions8Now, therefore, O king, confirm this judgment and write the decree, so that what is established by the Medes and Persians may not be altered, nor will any man be allowed to transgress it.9And so king Darius set forth the decree and established it10Now when Daniel learned of this, namely, that the law had been established, he entered his house, and, opening the windows in his upper room towards Jerusalem, he knelt down three times a day, and he adored and gave thanks before his God, as he had been accustomed to do previously11Therefore, these men, inquiring diligently, discovered that Daniel was praying and making supplication to his God12And they approached and spoke to the king about the edict. "O king, did you not decree that every man who makes a request to any of the gods or men for thirty days, except to yourself, O king, would be cast into the den of lions?" To which the king replied, saying, "The sentence is true, and according to the decree of the Medes and Persians, it is not lawful to violate it.13Then they answered and said before the king, "Daniel, of the sons of the captivity of Judah, is not concerned about your law, nor about the decree that you have established, but three times a day he prays his supplication.14Now when the king had heard these words, he was greatly grieved, and, on behalf of Daniel, he set his heart to free him, and he labored even until sunset to rescue him15But these men, knowing the king, said to him, "You know, O king, that the law of the Medes and Persians is that every decree which the king has established may not be altered.16Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel and cast him into the den of lions. And the king said to Daniel, "Your God, whom you always serve, he himself will free you.17And a stone was brought, and it was placed over the mouth of the den, which the king sealed with his own ring, and with the ring of his nobles, so that no one would act against Daniel18And the king departed into his house, and he went to bed without eating, and food was not set before him, moreover, even sleep fled from him19Then the king, getting himself up at first light, went quickly to the den of lions20And coming near to the den, he cried out with a tearful voice to Daniel and spoke to him. "Daniel, servant of the living God, your God, whom you serve always, do you believe he has prevailed to free you from the lions?21And Daniel, answering the king, said, "O king, live forever22My God has sent his angel, and he has closed the mouths of the lions, and they have not harmed me, because before him justice has been found in me, and, even before you, O king, I have committed no offense.23Then was the king exceedingly glad for him, and he commanded that Daniel should be taken out of the den. And Daniel was taken out of the den, and no wound was found in him, because he believed in his God24Moreover, by order of the king, those men were brought who had accused Daniel, and they were cast into the lions’ den, they, and their sons, and their wives, and they did not reach the bottom of the den before the lions seized them and crushed all their bones25Then king Darius wrote to all peoples, tribes, and languages dwelling in all the land. "May peace be increased with you26It is hereby established by my decree that, in all my empire and my kingdom, they shall begin to tremble and fear the God of Daniel. For he is the living and eternal God forever, and his kingdom will not be destroyed, and his power will last forever27He is the liberator and the savior, performing signs and wonders in heaven and on earth, who has freed Daniel from the lions’ den.28Thereafter, Daniel continued through the reign of Darius until the reign of Cyrus, the Persian