24 Therefore Daniyel went in to Areyok, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Bavel (Babylon). He went and said this to him: “Don’t destroy the wise men of Bavel. Bring me in before the king, and I’ll show to the king the interpretation.”

25 Then Areyok brought in Daniyel before the king in haste, and said this to him: “I’ve found a man of the children of the captivity of Yehudah (Judah) who’ll make known to the king the interpretation.”

26 The king answered Daniyel, whose name was Belteshatsar (Belteshazzar), “Are you able to make known to me the dream which I’ve seen, and its interpretation?”

27 Daniyel answered before the king, and said, “The secret which the king has demanded can’t be shown to the king by wise men, enchanters, magicians, or soothsayers; 28 but there’s a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and he’s made known to King Nevukadnetsar (Nebuchadnezzar) what’ll be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head on your bed, are these:

29 “As for you, Oh king, your thoughts came on your bed, what should happen in the future; and he who reveals secrets has made known to you what’ll happen. 30 But as for me, this secret isn’t 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 you may know the thoughts of your heart.

31 “You, Oh king, saw, and[fn] a great image. This image, which was mighty, and whose brightness was excellent, stood before you; and its appearance was terrifying. 32 As for this image, its head was of fine gold, its chest and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet part of iron, and part of clay. 34 You saw until a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet that were of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were broken in pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors. The wind carried them away, so that no place was found for them. The stone that struck the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

36 “This is the dream; and we’ll tell its interpretation before the king. 37 You, Oh king, are king of kings, to whom the god of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, the strength, and the glory. 38 Wherever the children of men live, he’s given the animals of the field and the birds of the sky into your hand, and has made you rule over them all. You’re the head of gold.

39 “After you, another kingdom will arise that’s inferior to you; and a third kingdom of bronze, which will rule over all the earth. 40 The fourth kingdom will be strong as iron, because iron breaks in pieces and subdues all things; and as iron that crushes all these, it’ll break in pieces and crush. 41 Whereas you saw the feet and toes, part of potters’ clay, and part of iron, it’ll be a divided kingdom; but there’ll be in it of the strength of the iron, because you saw the iron mixed with miry clay. 42 As the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom will be partly strong, and partly brittle. 43 Whereas you saw the iron mixed with miry clay, they’ll mingle themselves with the seed of men; but they won’t cling to one another, even as iron doesn’t mix with clay.

44 “In the days of those kings the god of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, nor will its sovereignty be left to another people; but it’ll break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it’ll stand forever. 45 Because you saw that a stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. The great God has made known to the king what’ll happen in the future. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure.”