Parallel Bible results for "daniel 2"

Daniel 2

New Century Version NCV

1 During Nebuchadnezzar's second year as king, he had dreams that bothered him and kept him awake at night.

2 So the king called for his fortune-tellers, magicians, wizards, and wise men, because he wanted them to tell him what he had dreamed. They came in and stood in front of the king.

3 Then the king said to them, "I had a dream that bothers me, and I want to know what it means."

4 The wise men answered the king in the Aramaic language, "O king, live forever! Please tell us, your servants, your dream. Then we will tell you what it means."

5 King Nebuchadnezzar said to them, "I meant what I said. You must tell me the dream and what it means. If you don't, I will have you torn apart, and I will turn your houses into piles of stones.

6 But if you tell me my dream and its meaning, I will reward you with gifts and great honor. So tell me the dream and what it means."

7 Again the wise men said to the king, "Tell us, your servants, the dream, and we will tell you what it means."

8 King Nebuchadnezzar answered, "I know you are trying to get more time, because you know that I meant what I said.

9 If you don't tell me my dream, you will be punished. You have all agreed to tell me lies and wicked things, hoping things will change. Now, tell me the dream so that I will know you can tell me what it really means!"

10 The wise men answered the king, saying, "No one on earth can do what the king asks! No great and powerful king has ever asked the fortune-tellers, magicians, or wise men to do this;

11 the king is asking something that is too hard. Only the gods could tell the king this, but the gods do not live among people."

12 When the king heard their answer, he became very angry. He ordered that all the wise men of Babylon be killed.

13 So King Nebuchadnezzar's order to kill the wise men was announced, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to kill them.

14 Arioch, the commander of the king's guards, was going to kill the wise men of Babylon. But Daniel spoke to him with wisdom and skill,

15 saying, "Why did the king order such a terrible punishment?" Then Arioch explained everything to Daniel.

16 So Daniel went to King Nebuchadnezzar and asked for an appointment so that he could tell the king what his dream meant.

17 Then Daniel went to his house and explained the whole story to his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

18 Daniel asked his friends to pray that the God of heaven would show them mercy and help them understand this secret so he and his friends would not be killed with the other wise men of Babylon.

19 During the night God explained the secret to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven.

20 Daniel said: "Praise God forever and ever, because he has wisdom and power.

21 He changes the times and seasons of the year. He takes away the power of kings and gives their power to new kings. He gives wisdom to those who are wise and knowledge to those who understand.

22 He makes known secrets that are deep and hidden; he knows what is hidden in darkness, and light is all around him.

23 I thank you and praise you, God of my ancestors, because you have given me wisdom and power. You told me what we asked of you; you told us about the king's dream."

24 Then Daniel went to Arioch, the man King Nebuchadnezzar had chosen to kill the wise men of Babylon. Daniel said to him, "Don't put the wise men of Babylon to death. Take me to the king, and I will tell him what his dream means."

25 Very quickly Arioch took Daniel to the king and said, "I have found a man among the captives from Judah who can tell the king what his dream means."

26 The king asked Daniel, who was also called Belteshazzar, "Are you able to tell me what I dreamed and what it means?"

27 Daniel answered, "No wise man, magician, or fortune-teller can explain to the king the secret he has asked about.

28 But there is a God in heaven who explains secret things, and he has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen at a later time. This is your dream, the vision you saw while lying on your bed:

29 O king, as you were lying there, you thought about things to come. God, who can tell people about secret things, showed you what is going to happen.

30 God also told this secret to me, not because I have greater wisdom than any other living person, but so that you may know what it means. In that way you will understand what went through your mind.

31 "O king, in your dream you saw a huge, shiny, and frightening statue in front of you.

32 The head of the statue was made of pure gold. Its chest and arms were made of silver. Its stomach and the upper part of its legs were made of bronze.

33 The lower part of the legs were made of iron, while its feet were made partly of iron and partly of baked clay.

34 While you were looking at the statue, you saw a rock cut free, but no human being touched the rock. It hit the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them.

35 Then the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold broke to pieces at the same time. They became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summertime; the wind blew them away, and there was nothing left. Then the rock that hit the statue became a very large mountain that filled the whole earth.

36 "That was your dream. Now we will tell the king what it means.

37 O king, you are the greatest king. God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory.

38 Wherever people, wild animals, and birds live, God made you ruler over them. King Nebuchadnezzar, you are the head of gold on that statue.

39 "Another kingdom will come after you, but it will not be as great as yours. Next a third kingdom, the bronze part, will rule over the earth.

40 Then there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron. In the same way that iron crushes and smashes things to pieces, the fourth kingdom will smash and crush all the other kingdoms.

41 "You saw that the statue's feet and toes were partly baked clay and partly iron. That means the fourth kingdom will be a divided kingdom. It will have some of the strength of iron in it, just as you saw iron was mixed with clay.

42 The toes of the statue were partly iron and partly clay. So the fourth kingdom will be partly strong like iron and partly breakable like clay.

43 You saw the iron mixed with clay, but iron and clay do not hold together. In the same way the people of the fourth kingdom will be a mixture, but they will not be united as one people.

44 "During the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up another kingdom that will never be destroyed or given to another group of people. This kingdom will crush all the other kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will continue forever.

45 "King Nebuchadnezzar, you saw a rock cut from a mountain, but no human being touched it. The rock broke the iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold to pieces. In this way the great God showed you what will happen. The dream is true, and you can trust this explanation."

46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell facedown on the ground in front of Daniel. The king honored him and commanded that an offering and incense be presented to him.

47 Then the king said to Daniel, "Truly I know your God is the greatest of all gods, the Lord of all the kings. He tells people about things they cannot know. I know this is true, because you were able to tell these secret things to me."

48 Then the king gave Daniel many gifts plus an important position in his kingdom. Nebuchadnezzar made him ruler over the whole area of Babylon and put him in charge of all the wise men of Babylon.

49 Daniel asked the king to make Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego leaders over the area of Babylon, so the king did as Daniel asked. Daniel himself became one of the people who stayed at the royal court.

Good News Translation GNT

1 In the second year that Nebuchadnezzar was king, he had a dream. It worried him so much that he couldn't sleep,

2 so he sent for his fortunetellers, magicians, sorcerers, and wizards to come and explain the dream to him. When they came and stood before the king,

3 he said to them, "I'm worried about a dream I've had. I want to know what it means."

4 They answered the king in Aramaic, "May Your Majesty live forever! Tell us your dream, and we will explain it to you."

5 The king said to them, "I have made up my mind that you must tell me the dream and then tell me what it means. If you can't, I'll have you torn limb from limb and make your houses a pile of ruins.

6 But if you can tell me both the dream and its meaning, I will reward you with gifts and great honor. Now then, tell me what the dream was and what it means."

7 They answered the king again, "If Your Majesty will only tell us what the dream was, we will explain it."

8 At that, the king exclaimed, "Just as I thought! You are trying to gain time, because you see that I have made up my mind

9 to give all of you the same punishment if you don't tell me the dream. You have agreed among yourselves to go on telling me lies because you hope that in time things will change. Tell me what the dream was, and then I will know that you can also tell me what it means."

10 The advisers replied, "There is no one on the face of the earth who can tell Your Majesty what you want to know. No king, not even the greatest and most powerful, has ever made such a demand of his fortunetellers, magicians, and wizards.

11 What Your Majesty is asking for is so difficult that no one can do it for you except the gods, and they do not live among human beings."

12 At that, the king flew into a rage and ordered the execution of all the royal advisers in Babylon.

13 So the order was issued for all of them to be killed, including Daniel and his friends.

14 Then Daniel went to Arioch, commander of the king's bodyguard, who had been ordered to carry out the execution. Choosing his words carefully,

15 he asked Arioch why the king had issued such a harsh order. So Arioch told Daniel what had happened.

16 Daniel went at once and obtained royal permission for more time, so that he could tell the king what the dream meant.

17 Then Daniel went home and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah what had happened.

18 He told them to pray to the God of heaven for mercy and to ask him to explain the mystery to them so that they would not be killed along with the other advisers in Babylon.

19 Then that same night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision, and he praised the God of heaven:

20 "God is wise and powerful! Praise him forever and ever.

21 He controls the times and the seasons; he makes and unmakes kings; it is he who gives wisdom and understanding.

22 He reveals things that are deep and secret; he knows what is hidden in darkness, and he himself is surrounded by light.

23 I praise you and honor you, God of my ancestors. You have given me wisdom and strength; you have answered my prayer and shown us what to tell the king."

24 So Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had commanded to execute the royal advisers. He said to him, "Don't put them to death. Take me to the king, and I will tell him what his dream means."

25 At once Arioch took Daniel into King Nebuchadnezzar's presence and told the king, "I have found one of the Jewish exiles who can tell Your Majesty the meaning of your dream."

26 The king said to Daniel (who was also called Belteshazzar), "Can you tell me what I dreamed and what it means?"

27 Daniel replied, "Your Majesty, there is no wizard, magician, fortuneteller, or astrologer who can tell you that.

28 But there is a God in heaven, who reveals mysteries. He has informed Your Majesty what will happen in the future. Now I will tell you the dream, the vision you had while you were asleep.

29 "While Your Majesty was sleeping, you dreamed about the future; and God, who reveals mysteries, showed you what is going to happen.

30 Now, this mystery was revealed to me, not because I am wiser than anyone else, but so that Your Majesty may learn the meaning of your dream and understand the thoughts that have come to you.

31 "Your Majesty, in your vision you saw standing before you a giant statue, bright and shining, and terrifying to look at.

32 Its head was made of the finest gold; its chest and arms were made of silver; its waist and hips of bronze,

33 its legs of iron, and its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.

34 While you were looking at it, a great stone broke loose from a cliff without anyone touching it, struck the iron and clay feet of the statue, and shattered them.

35 At once the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold crumbled and became like the dust on a threshing place in summer. The wind carried it all away, leaving not a trace. But the stone grew to be a mountain that covered the whole earth.

36 "This was the dream. Now I will tell Your Majesty what it means.

37 Your Majesty, you are the greatest of all kings. The God of heaven has made you emperor and given you power, might, and honor.

38 He has made you ruler of all the inhabited earth and ruler over all the animals and birds. You are the head of gold.

39 After you there will be another empire, not as great as yours, and after that a third, an empire of bronze, which will rule the whole earth.

40 And then there will be a fourth empire, as strong as iron, which shatters and breaks everything. And just as iron shatters everything, it will shatter and crush all the earlier empires.

41 You also saw that the feet and the toes were partly clay and partly iron. This means that it will be a divided empire. It will have something of the strength of iron, because there was iron mixed with the clay.

42 The toes - partly iron and partly clay - mean that part of the empire will be strong and part of it weak.

43 You also saw that the iron was mixed with the clay. This means that the rulers of that empire will try to unite their families by intermarriage, but they will not be able to, any more than iron can mix with clay.

44 At the time of those rulers the God of heaven will establish a kingdom that will never end. It will never be conquered, but will completely destroy all those empires and then last forever.

45 You saw how a stone broke loose from a cliff without anyone touching it and how it struck the statue made of iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold. The great God is telling Your Majesty what will happen in the future. I have told you exactly what you dreamed, and have given you its true meaning."

46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar bowed to the ground and gave orders for sacrifices and offerings to be made to Daniel.

47 The king said, "Your God is the greatest of all gods, the Lord over kings, and the one who reveals mysteries. I know this because you have been able to explain this mystery."

48 Then he gave Daniel a high position, presented him with many splendid gifts, put him in charge of the province of Babylon, and made him the head of all the royal advisers.

49 At Daniel's request the king put Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in charge of the affairs of the province of Babylon; Daniel, however, remained at the royal court.