Daniel 2:1–12

¹And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, dreamed hath Nebuchadnezzar dreams, and his spirit doth move itself, and his sleep hath been against him; ²and the king saith to call for scribes, and for enchanters, and for sorcerers, and for Chaldeans, to declare to the king his dreams. And they come in and stand before the king; ³and the king saith to them, ‘A dream I have dreamed, and moved is my spirit to know the dream.’ ⁴And the Chaldeans speak to the king in Aramaean, ‘O king, to the ages live, tell the dream to thy servants, and the interpretation we do shew.’ ⁵The king hath answered and said to the Chaldeans, ‘The thing from me is gone; if ye do not cause me to know the dream and its interpretation, pieces ye are made, and your houses are made dunghills; ⁶and if the dream and its interpretation ye do shew, gifts, and fee, and great glory ye receive from before me, therefore the dream and its interpretation shew ye me.’ ⁷They have answered a second time, and are saying, ‘Let the king tell the dream to his servants, and the interpretation we do shew. ⁸The king hath answered and said, ‘Of a truth I know that time ye are gaining, because that ye have seen that the thing is gone from me, ⁹so that, if the dream ye do not cause me to know—one is your sentence, seeing a word lying and corrupt ye have prepared to speak before me, till that the time is changed, therefore the dream tell ye to me, then do I know that its interpretation ye do shew me.’ ¹⁰The Chaldeans have answered before the king, and are saying, ‘There is not a man on the earth who is able to shew the king’s matter; therefore, no king, chief, and ruler, hath asked such a thing as this of any scribe, and enchanter, and Chaldean; ¹¹and the thing that the king is asking is precious, and others are there not that do shew it before the king, save the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.’ ¹²Therefore the king hath been angry and very wroth, and hath said to destroy all the wise men of Babylon;