¶ In the second year of the reign of Nabuchodnosor, had Nabuchodnosor a dream, where thorow his spirit was vexed, and his sleep brake from him.
Then the king commanded to call together all the soothsayers, charmers, witches and Caldees, for to shew the king his dream. So they came, and stood before the king.
And the king said unto them: I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was so troubled therewith, that I have clean forgotten, what I dreamed.
Upon this the Caldees answered the king in the Syrians speech: O king, God save thy life forever. Shew thy servants the dream, and we shall shew thee, what it meaneth.
The king gave the Caldees their answer, and said: It is gone from me: If ye will not make me understand the dream with the interpretation thereof, ye shall die, and your houses shall be prised.
But if ye tell me the dream and the meaning thereof, ye shall have of me gifts, rewards and great honour: only, shew me the dream, and the signification of it.
They answered again, and said: the king must shew his servants the dream, and so shall we declare what it meaneth.
Then the king answered, saying: I perceive of a truth, that ye do but prolong the time: for so much as ye see, that the thing is gone from me.
Therefore, if ye will not tell me the dream, ye shall all have one judgement: But ye feign {fayne} and dissemble with vain words, which ye speak before me, to put off the time. Therefore tell me the dream, and so shall I know, if ye can shew me, what it meaneth.
Upon this, the Caldees gave answer before the king, and said: There is no man upon earth, that can tell the thing, which the king speaketh of: Yea there is neither king, prince, nor lord, that ever asked such things at a soothsayer, charmer, or Caldeer:
for it is a very hard matter, that the king requireth. Neither is there any, that can certify the king thereof, except the Gods: whose dwelling is not among the creatures.
For the which cause the king was wroth with great indignation, and commanded to destroy all the wise men at Babylon:
and the proclamation went forth, that the wise men should be slain. They sought also to slay Daniel with his companions.
¶ Then Daniel enquired Arioch the king's steward, of the judgement and sentence, that was gone forth already to kill such as were wise at Babylon.
He answered, and said to Arioch being then the king's deputy: Why hath the king proclaimed so cruel a sentence? So Arioch told Daniel the matter.
Upon this, went Daniel up, and desired the king, that he might have leisure, to shew the king the interpretation:
and then came he home again and shewed the thing unto Ananias, Misael, and Asarias his companions:
that they should beseech the God of heaven for grace in this secret, that Daniel and his fellows with others such as were wise in Babylon, perished not.
Then was the mystery shewed unto Daniel in a vision by night. And Daniel praised the God of heaven.
Daniel also cried aloud, and said: O that the name of God might be praised for ever and ever, for wisdom and strength are his own:
he changeth the times and ages: he putteth down kings, he setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and understanding to those that understand,
he openeth the deep secrets: he knoweth the thing that lieth in darkness, for the light dwelleth with him.
I thank thee, and pray thee, O thou God of my fathers, that thou hast lent me wisdom and strength, and hast shewed me the thing, that we desired of thee, for thou hast opened the king's matter unto me.
¶ Upon this went Daniel in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise at Babylon: he went unto him, and said: destroy not such as are wise in Babylon, but bring me in unto the king, and I shall shew the king the interpretation.
Then Arioch brought Daniel into the king in all the haste, and said unto him: I have found a man among the prisoners of Iudah, that shall shew the king the interpretation.
Then answered the king, and said unto Daniel, whose name was Balthasar: Art thou he, that canst shew me the dream, which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?
Daniel answered the king to his face, and said: As for this secret, for the which the king maketh inquisition: it is neither the wise, the sorcerer, the charmer nor the devil conjurer, that can certify the king of it:
Only God in heaven can open secrets, and he it is, that sheweth the king Nabuchodnosor, 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.
As for me, this secret is not shewed me, for any wisdom that I have, more than any other living: but only that I might shew the king the interpretation, that he might know the thoughts of his own heart.
¶ Thou king sawest, and behold: there stood before thee a great Image, whose figure was marvelous great, and his visage grim.
The image head was of fine gold, his breast and arms of silver, his body and loins were of copper,
his legs were of iron, his feet were part of iron, and part of earth.
This thou sawest, till the time that (without any hands) there was hewn of a stone which smote the image upon the feet, that were both of iron and earth, and brake them to powder:
Then was the iron, the earth, the copper, the silver and gold broken altogether in pieces: and became like the chaff of corn, that the wind bloweth away from the summer floors, that they can no more be found. But the stone that smote the Image, became a great mountain, which fulfilleth the whole earth:
This is the dream. And now will we shew before the king, what it meaneth.
O king, thou art a king of kings: For the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, riches, strength, and majesty:
And hath delivered thee all things, that are among the children of men: the beasts of the field, and the fowls under the heaven, and given thee dominion over them all. Thou art that golden head.
After thee there shall arise another kingdom, which shall be less than thine. The third kingdom shall be like copper, and have domination in all lands.
The fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron. For like as iron bruiseth and breaketh all things: Yea even as iron beateth everything down, so shall it beat down and destroy.
Where as thou sawest the feet and toes, part of earth and part of iron: that is a divided kingdom, which nevertheless shall have some of the iron ground mixt with it, for so much as thou hast seen the iron mixt with the clay.
The toes of the feet that were part of iron and part of clay, signifieth: that it shall be a kingdom partly strong and partly weak.
And whereas thou sawest iron mixt with clay: they shall mingle themselves with the seed of simple people: and yet not continue one with another, like as iron will not be soldered with a potsherd.
In the days of these kings, shall the God of heaven set up an everlasting kingdom, which shall not perish, and his kingdom shall not be given over to another people: Yea the same shall break and destroy all these kingdoms, but it shall endure for ever.
And where as 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 shewed the king, what will come after this. This is a true dream, and the interpretation of it is sure.
¶ Then the king Nabuchodnosor fell down upon his face, and bowed himself unto Daniel, and commanded that they should offer meatofferings and sweet odours unto him.
The king answered Daniel, and said: Yea of a truth your God is a God above all gods, and Lord above all kings, and an opener of secrets: seeing thou canst discover this mystery.
So the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many and great gifts. He made him ruler of all the countries of Babylon, and lord of all the nobles, that were at Babylon.
Now Daniel entreated the king for Sidrach, Misach, and Abednago, so that he made them rulers over all the offices in the land of Babylon: But Daniel himself remained still in the court by the king.
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Praise the Everlasting Lord for His Faithful Word.