The Dream and the King’s Search for an Interpreter

4 “I, Nebuchadnezzar, was content in my house and prospering in my palace. 5 And I saw a dream and a revelation on my bed and it frightened me, and the visions of my head terrified me. 6 And a decree was sent out,[fn]ordering that all the wise men of Babylon were to be brought in before me so that they may make known to me the explanation of the dream. 7 Then the magicians,[fn] the conjurers,[fn] theastrologers[fn] and the diviners came in and I told them the dream, but they could not make known to me its explanation.[fn] 8 Then at last[fn] Daniel came before mewhose name was[fn] Belteshazzar,according to[fn] the name of my god,and in whom was the spirit of the holy gods,[fn]and I related the dream to him.[fn]

9 “ ‘O Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians,[fn] I myself know thatthe spirit[fn] ofthe holy gods is in you, and no mystery is too difficult[fn] for you.Now tell me the visions of my dream that I saw, and its explanation.[fn] 10 Now these were the visions of my head as I was lying on my bed: I was gazing[fn] and, look, a treewas in the midst of the earth, and its height was exalted.

• 11 and its height reached to heaven,[fn]
• and[fn]
• 12 was beautiful, and its fruit abundant,
• and in it was provision for all.
• Under it the animals[fn] of the field sought shade,
  • and in its branches the birds of heaven[fn] nested,
  • and from it all the living beings were fed.

13 “ ‘I was looking in the vision of my head as I lay on my bed,and, look, a watcher,[fn] anda holy one, came down from heaven.

• 14 He cried aloud[fn] and so he said:“Cut down the tree and chop off its branches;
  • shake off its foliage and scatter its fruit.
• Let the animals flee from under it,
  • and the birds from its branches.
  • 15  leave in the earth,
• [fn] a band of iron and bronze;
  • leave it in the grass of the field.
• And in[fn] the dew of heaven
  • let it[fn] be watered,
• and with the animals[fn]
  • let his lot be in the grass of the earth.
  • 16 that of a human,[fn]and let the mind of an animal be given to him,
  • and let seven times pass over him.
  • 17 is by the decree of the watchers, and the decision by the command of the holy ones,
• [fn] the living will know
  • that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdom of humankind,
• and[fn] he wills he gives it,
  • and he even sets the humblest of men over it.”

18 “ ‘This is the dream that I, Nebuchadnezzar the king, saw. Now[fn] you, Belteshazzar, declare its explanation,for[fn] all ofthe wise men of my kingdom were not able to make the explanation known to me, but you are able because the spirit of holy gods is in you.’