Daniel 3:1–4:37
3 King Nebuchadnezzar made a gold statue,v ninety feet high and nine feet wide.E He set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.w 2 King Nebuchadnezzar sent word to assemble the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the rulersx of the provinces to attend the dedication of the statue King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. 3 So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the rulers of the provinces assembled for the dedication of the statue the king had set up. Then they stood before the statue Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
4 A herald loudly proclaimed, “People of every nation and language, you are commanded: 5 When you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither,F lyre,G harp, drum,H and every kind of music,y you are to fall facedown and worshipz the gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. 6 But whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire.”aa
7 Therefore, when all the people heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, and every kind of music, people of every nation and language fell down and worshiped the gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
8 Some Chaldeansab took this occasion to come forward and maliciously accuseI,ac the Jews. 9 They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “May the king live forever. 10 You as king have issued a decreead that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, drum, and every kind of music must fall down and worship the gold statue. 11 Whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire. 12 There are some Jews you have appointed to manage the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.a These men have ignored you,b the king; they do not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.”
13 Then in a furious ragec Nebuchadnezzar gave orders to bring in Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar asked them, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, is it true that you don’t serve my gods or worship the gold statued I have set up? 15 Now if you’re ready, when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, drum, and every kind of music, fall down and worship the statue I made. But if you don’t worship it, you will immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire—and who is the god who can rescue you from my power?”e
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we don’t need to give you an answer to this question. 17 If the God we serve exists,f then he can rescueg us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he canA rescue us from the power of you, the king. 18 But even if he does not rescue us,B we want you as king to know that we will not serveh your godsi or worship the gold statue you set up.”
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage,j and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave orders to heat the furnace seven times more than was customary, 20 and he commanded some of the best soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. 21 So these men, in their trousers, robes, head coverings,C and other clothes, were tied up and thrown into the furnace of blazing fire. 22 Since the king’s command was so urgentD,k and the furnace extremely hot, the raging flamesE killed those men who carried up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. 23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego fell, bound, into the furnace of blazing fire.
24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar jumped up in alarm.l He said to his advisers, “Didn’t we throw three men, bound, into the fire?”
“Yes, of course, Your Majesty,” they replied to the king.
25 He exclaimed, “Look! I see four men, not tied, walking around in the fire unharmed;m and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”F,n
26 Nebuchadnezzar then approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire and called, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, you servants of the Most High God—come out!” So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the fire.o 27 When the satraps, prefects, governors, and the king’s advisers gathered around, they saw that the fire had no effectp onG the bodies of these men: not a hair of their heads was singed, their robes were unaffected, and there was no smell of fire on them.q 28 Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, “Praise to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego! He sent his angelH,r and rescued his servants who trusted in him.s They violated the king’s command and risked their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.t 29 Therefore I issue a decreeu that anyone of any people, nation, or languagev who says anything offensive against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego will be torn limb from limb and his house made a garbage dump.w For there is no other god who is able to deliver like this.” 30 Then the king rewarded Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.x
4 King Nebuchadnezzar,
To those of every people, nation, and language, who live on the whole earth:y
May your prosperity increase.z 2 I am pleased to tell you about the miracles and wondersaa the Most High God has done for me.
and how mighty his wonders!ab
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom,ac
and his dominion is from generation to generation.a
4 I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and flourishing in my palace.b 5 I had a dream, and it frightened me; while in my bed, the images and visions in my mind alarmed me.c 6 So I issued a decreed to bring all the wise men of Babylon to me in order that they might make the dream’s interpretation known to me.e 7 When the magicians, mediums, Chaldeans, and diviners came in, I told them the dream, but they could not make its interpretation known to me.f
8 Finally Daniel, named Belteshazzarg after the name of my god—and a spirit of the holy gods is in himh—came before me. I told him the dream: 9 “Belteshazzar, head of the magicians, because I know that you have the spirit of the holy godsi and that no mystery puzzles you,j explain to me the visions of my dream that I saw, and its interpretation. 10 In the visions of my mind as I was lying in bed, I saw this:
There was a tree in the middle of the earth,
and it was very tall.
11 The tree grew large and strong;
its top reached to the sky,k
and it was visible to the ends of theA earth.
12 Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit was abundant,
and on it was food for all.l
Wild animals found shelter under it,
the birds of the skym lived in its branches,
and every creature was fed from it.n
13 “As I was lying in my bed, I also saw in the visions of my mind a watcher, a holy one,B,o coming down from heaven.p 14 He called out loudly:
Cut down the tree and chop off its branches;
strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit.
Let the animals flee from under it,
and the birds from its branches.q
15 But leave the stump with its roots in the groundr
and with a band of iron and bronze around it
in the tender grass of the field.
Let him be drenched with dew from the sky
and share the plants of the earths
with the animals.
16 Let his mind be changed from that of a human,
and let him be given the mind of an animal
for seven periods of time.C,D,t
17 This word is by decree of the watchers,
and the decision is by command from the holy ones.
This is so that the living will know
that the Most High is ruler
over human kingdoms.
He gives them to anyone he wants
and sets the lowliest of people over them.u
18 This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, had. Now, Belteshazzar, tell me the interpretation, because none of the wise men of my kingdom can make the interpretation known to me.v But you can, because you have a spirit of the holy gods.”
19 Then Daniel, whose name is Belteshazzar, was stunned for a moment, and his thoughts alarmed him. The king said, “Belteshazzar, don’t let the dream or its interpretation alarm you.”
Belteshazzar answered, “My lord, may the dream apply to those who hate you, and its interpretation to your enemies!w 20 The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, whose top reached to the sky and was visible to the whole earth, 21 and whose leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant—and on it was food for all, under it the wild animals lived, and in its branches the birds of the sky lived—22 that tree is you, Your Majesty. For you have become great and strong: your greatness has grown and even reaches the sky, and your dominion extends to the ends of the earth.x
23 “The king saw a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump with its roots in the ground and with a band of iron and bronze around it in the tender grass of the field. Let him be drenched with dew from the sky and share food with the wild animals for seven periods of time.’ 24 This is the interpretation, Your Majesty, and this is the decree of the Most High that has been issued against my lord the king:a 25 You will be driven away from people to live with the wild animals. You will feed on grass like cattleb and be drenched with dew from the sky for seven periods of time, until you acknowledge that the Most High is ruler over human kingdoms, and he gives them to anyone he wants.c 26 As for the command to leave the tree’s stump with its roots, your kingdom will be restoredA to you as soon as you acknowledge that HeavenB rules.d 27 Therefore, may my advice seem good to you my king. Separate yourself from your sins by doing what is right,e and from your injustices by showing mercy to the needy.f Perhaps there will be an extension of your prosperity.”g
28 All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar.h 29 At the end of twelve months, as he was …