17 Then Daniel went to his house and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah about the matter, 18 urging them to ask the God of the heavensh for mercyi concerning this mystery, so Daniel and his friends would not be destroyed with the rest of Babylon’s wise men.j 19 The mystery was then revealed to Daniel in a visionk at night, and Daniel praised the God of the heavens 20 and declared:

May the name of God

be praised forever and ever,l

for wisdomm and power belong to him.

21 He changes the times and seasons;

he removes kings and establishes kings.n

He gives wisdom to the wise

and knowledge to those

who have understanding.o

22 He reveals the deep and hidden things;

he knows what is in the darkness,p

and light dwells with him.q

23 I offer thanks and praise to you,

God of my ancestors,r

because you have given me

wisdom and power.

And now you have let me know

what we asked of you,

for you have let us knows

the king’s mystery.C

24 Therefore Daniel went to Arioch,t whom the king had assigned to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He came and said to him, “Don’t destroy the wise men of Babylon! Bring me before the king, and I will give him the interpretation.”u

25 Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel before the king and said to him, “I have found a man among the Judean exilesv who can let the king know the interpretation.”

26 The king said in reply to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar,w “Are you able to tell me the dream I had and its interpretation?”x