And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams; and his spirit was troubled, and his sleep went from him.
Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the enchanters, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, to tell the king his dreams. So they came in and stood before the king.
And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit is troubled to know the dream.
Then spake the Chaldeans to the king {Or, in Aramaic.}in the Syrian language, {Chapter 2:4-7, 28 is in Aramaic.}O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.
The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, {Or, The word is gone forth from me}The thing is gone from me: if ye make not known unto me the dream and the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill.
But if ye show the dream and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honor: therefore show me the dream and the interpretation thereof.
They answered the second time and said, Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.
The king answered and said, I know of a certainty that ye would {Aramaic: buy the time.}gain time, because ye see {Or, the word is gone forth from me: that if &c.}the thing is gone from me.
But if ye make not known unto me the dream, there is but one law for you; for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can show me the interpretation thereof.
The Chaldeans answered before the king, and said, There is not a man upon the earth that can show the king's matter, forasmuch as no king, {Or, be he never so great and powerful, hath &c.}lord, or ruler, hath asked such a thing of any magician, or enchanter, or Chaldean.
And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is no other that can show it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.
For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.
So the decree went forth, and the wise men were to be slain; and they sought Daniel and his companions to be slain.
Then Daniel returned answer with counsel and prudence to Arioch the captain of the king's guard, who was gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon;
he answered and said to Arioch the king's captain, Wherefore is the decree so urgent from the king? Then Arioch made the thing known to Daniel.
And Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would {Or, give him time}appoint him a time, {Or, that he might}and he would show the king the interpretation.
Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions:
that they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his companions should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a vision of the night. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.
Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever; for wisdom and might are his.
And he changeth the times and the seasons; he removeth kings, and setteth up kings; he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that have understanding;
he revealeth the deep and secret things; he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him.
I thank thee, and praise thee, O thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast now made known unto me what we desired of thee; for thou hast made known unto us the king's matter.
Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and said thus unto him: Destroy not the wise men of Babylon; bring me in before the king, and I will show unto the king the interpretation.
Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus unto him, I have found a man of the children of the captivity of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation.
The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?
Daniel answered before the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded can neither wise men, enchanters, magicians, nor soothsayers, show unto the king;
but there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and he hath made known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these:
as for thee, O king, thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter; and he that revealeth secrets hath made known to thee what shall come to pass.
But as for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but to the intent that the interpretation may be made known to the king, and that thou mayest know the thoughts of thy heart.
Thou, O king, sawest, and, behold, a great image. This image, which was mighty, and whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the aspect thereof was terrible.
As for this image, its head was of fine gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of brass,
its legs of iron, its feet part of iron, and part of clay.
Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon its feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them in pieces.
Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken in pieces together, and 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 smote the image became a great {Or, rock}mountain, and filled the whole earth.
This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.
Thou, O king, art king of kings, unto whom the God of heaven hath given the kingdom, the power, and the strength, and the glory;
and wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the birds of the heavens hath he given into thy hand, and hath made thee to rule over them all: thou art the head of gold.
And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee; and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.
And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron, forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things; and as iron that crusheth all these, shall it break in pieces and crush.
And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with {Or, earthenware}miry clay.
And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly {Or, brittle}broken.
And whereas thou sawest the iron mixed with {Or, earthenware}miry clay, they shall mingle themselves {Or, by}with the seed of men; but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron doth not mingle with clay.
And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall the sovereignty thereof be left to another people; but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
Forasmuch as thou sawest that a stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake 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 thereof sure.
Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face, and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odors unto him.
The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth your God is the God of gods, and the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou hast been able to reveal this secret.
Then the king made Daniel great, and gave him many great gifts, and made him to rule over the whole province of Babylon, and to be chief governor over all the wise men of Babylon.
And Daniel requested of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon: but Daniel was {Or, at the king's court}in the gate of the king.
Querverweise zu Daniel 2,44 Dan 2,44
but there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and he hath made known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these:
The sceptre shall not depart from Judah,Nor {Or, a lawgiver}the ruler's staff from between his feet, {Or, Til he come to Shiloh, having the obedience of the peoples Or, according to Syriac, Til he come whose it is &c.}Until Shiloh come:And unto him shall the obedience of the peoples be.
How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation.
And through his policy he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and in their security shall he {Or, corrupt}destroy many: he shall also stand up against the prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.
Thou, O king, art king of kings, unto whom the God of heaven hath given the kingdom, the power, and the strength, and the glory;
Yet I have set my kingUpon my holy hill of Zion.
I will tell of the decree:Jehovah said unto me, Thou art my son;This day have I begotten thee.
Ask of me, and I will give thee the nations for thine inheritance,And the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron;Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.
Now therefore be wise, O ye kings:Be instructed, ye judges of the earth.
Serve Jehovah with fear,And rejoice with trembling.
Kiss the son, lest he be angry, and ye perish in the way,For his wrath {Or, may}will soon be kindled. {Or, Happy}Blessed are all they that take refuge in him.
And at the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the Most High, and I praised and honored him that liveth for ever; for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom from generation to generation;
Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron;Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.
A Psalm of Solomon.Give the king thy judgments, O God,And thy righteousness unto the king's son.
{Or, Let him (and so throughout the Psalm)}He will judge thy people with righteousness,And thy poor with justice.
The mountains shall bring peace to the people,And the hills, in righteousness.
He will judge the poor of the people,He will save the children of the needy,And will break in pieces the oppressor.
They shall fear thee while the sun endureth,And {Hebrew: before the moon.}so long as the moon, throughout all generations.
He will come down like rain upon the mown grass,As showers that water the earth.
In his days shall the righteous flourish,And abundance of peace, till the moon be no more.
He shall have dominion also from sea to sea,And from the River unto the ends of the earth.
They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him;And his enemies shall lick the dust.
The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall render tribute:The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
Yea, all kings shall fall down before him;All nations shall serve him.
For he will deliver the needy when he crieth,And the poor, {Or, and he that hath}that hath no helper.
He will have pity on the {Or, weak}poor and needy,And the souls of the needy he will save.
He will redeem their soul from {Or, fraud}oppression and violence;And precious will their blood be in his sight:
And {Or, he }they shall live; and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba:And men shall pray for him continually; {Or, he}They shall bless him all the day long.
There shall be {Or, a handful}abundance of grain in the {Or, land}earth upon the top of the mountains;The fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon:And they of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.
His name shall endure for ever;His name shall {Or, have issue}be continued {Hebrew: before the sun.}as long as the sun:And men shall {Or, bless themselves}be blessed in him;All nations shall call him happy.
Blessed be Jehovah God, the God of Israel,Who only doeth wondrous things:
And blessed be his glorious name for ever;And let the whole earth be filled with his glory.Amen, and Amen.
The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
I make a decree, that in all the dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel; for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, And his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed; and his dominion shall be even unto the end.
Thy hand will find out all thine enemies;Thy right hand will find out those that hate thee.
I have made a covenant with my chosen,I have sworn unto David my servant:
I saw in the night-visions, and, behold, there came with the clouds of heaven one like unto a son of man, and he came even to the ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
Thou wilt make them as a fiery furnace in the time of thine {Or, presence Hebrew: countenance.}anger:Jehovah will swallow them up in his wrath,And the fire shall devour them.
Thy seed will I establish for ever,And build up thy throne to all generations. [Selah
And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the 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.
For that nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.
Then thou spakest in vision to thy {Or, as otherwise read, saint.}saints,And saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty;I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
I have found David my servant;With my holy oil have I anointed him:
With whom my hand shall be established;Mine arm also shall strengthen him.
The enemy shall not {Or, do him violence}exact from him,Nor the son of wickedness afflict him.
And I will beat down his adversaries before him,And smite them that hate him.
But my faithfulness and my lovingkindness shall be with him;And in my name shall his horn be exalted.
I will set his hand also on the sea,And his right hand on the rivers.
He shall cry unto me, Thou art my Father,My God, and the rock of my salvation.
I also will make him my first-born,The highest of the kings of the earth.
My lovingkindness will I keep for him for evermore;And my covenant shall {Or, be faithful}stand fast with him.
His seed also will I make to endure for ever,And his throne as the days of heaven.
If his children forsake my law,And walk not in mine ordinances;
If they {Hebrew: profane.}break my statutes,And keep not my commandments;
Then will I visit their transgression with the rod,And their iniquity with stripes.
But my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him,Nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.
My covenant will I not {Hebrew: profane.}break,Nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
{Or, One thing}Once have I sworn by my holiness:I will not lie unto David:
His seed shall endure for ever,And his throne as the sun before me.
Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,And thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.
Then cometh the end, when he shall deliver up the kingdom to {Greek: the God and Father.}God, even the Father; when he shall have abolished all rule and all authority and power.
A Psalm of David.Jehovah saith unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand,Until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
Jehovah will {Or, stretch}send forth the rod of thy strength out of Zion:Rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.
Thy people {Hebrew: are freewill-offering.}offer themselves willinglyIn the day of thy {Or, army}power, in {Or, in the beauty of holiness}holy array:Out of the womb of the morning {Or, Thy youth are to thee as the dew}Thou hast the dew of thy youth.
Jehovah hath sworn, and will not repent:Thou art a priest for everAfter the {Or, manner}order of Melchizedek.
And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, they, and their children, and their children's children, for ever: and David my servant shall be their prince for ever.
For he must reign, till he hath put all his enemies under his feet.
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called {Or, Wonderful counsellor}Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, {Hebrew: Father of Eternity.}Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
and I will make that which was lame a remnant, and that which was cast far off a strong nation: and Jehovah will reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth even for ever.
and he shall rule them with a rod of {Or, iron;as vessels of the potter, are they broken}iron, as the vessels of the potter are broken to shivers; as I also have received of my Father:
Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of Jehovah of hosts will perform this.
He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
And out of his mouth proceedeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the {Greek: winepress of the wine of the fierceness.}winepress of the fierceness of the wrath of God, the Almighty.
And he hath on his garment and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
And I saw {Greek: one.}an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in mid heaven, Come and be gathered together unto the great supper of God;
that ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of {Or, military tribunes Greek: chiliarchs.}captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses and of them that sit thereon, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, and small and great.
And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat upon the horse, and against his army.
And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought the signs in his sight, wherewith he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast and them that {See marginal note on chapter 3:9}worshipped his image: they two were cast alive into the lake of fire that burneth with brimstone:
Repent ye; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
and he shall reign over the house of Jacob {Greek: unto the ages.}for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
For this is he that was spoken of through Isaiah the prophet, saying, {Isaiah 40:3.}The voice of one crying in the wilderness,Make ye ready the way of the Lord,Make his paths straight.
The multitude therefore answered him, We have heard out of the law that the Christ abideth for ever: and how sayest thou, The Son of man must be lifted up? who is this Son of man?
And Jesus came to them and spake unto them, saying, All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth.
And the seventh angel sounded; and there followed great voices in heaven, and they said,The kingdom of the world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of his Christ: and he shall reign {Greek: unto the ages of the ages}for ever and ever.
which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and made him to sit at his right hand in the heavenly places,
far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this {Greek: age.}world, but also in that which is to come:
and he put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the church,