Study Desk

So the land of the Levites and the land of the city will be in the center of the ruler's land. And the ruler's land will be between the land of Judah and the land of Benjamin.

But Daniel made up his mind that he would not make himself unclean with the king's best food and wine. So he asked the head ruler to allow him not to make himself unclean.

The head ruler said to him, "I am afraid of my lord the king, who has said you were to have so much and he would see that you were not looking as good as the other young men who are as old as you. The king would cut off my head because of you."

So he listened to them, and tested them for ten days.

So the man who watched over them took away the best food and the wine they were to drink, and kept giving them vegetables.

The king talked with them, and found no one like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they became the king's own helpers.

Then the king called for the wonder-workers, those who used secret ways, those who learned from stars, to tell the king what he had dreamed. So they came in and stood in front of the king.

But if you tell me the dream and what it means, I will give you gifts and riches and great honor. So tell me the dream and what it means."

You know that if you do not tell me what I dreamed, there is only one penalty for you. You have agreed among yourselves to keep telling me lies until things change. So tell me the dream. Then I will know that you can tell me what it means."

So the law was sent out that the wise men must be killed. They looked for Daniel and his friends, to kill them also.

He said to Arioch, the king's captain, "Why is the king's law so hard?" Then Arioch told him what had happened.

So Daniel went in and asked the king for time, so that he could tell the king what the dream meant.

He told them to ask for loving-pity from the God of heaven about this secret, so that Daniel and his friends might not be killed with the other wise men of Babylon.

So Daniel went in to Arioch, whom the king had told to kill the wise men of Babylon. He went and said to him, "Do not kill the wise men of Babylon! Take me to the king, and I will tell him what his dream means."

But this secret has not been made known to me because I am wiser than any other living man. It was made known to me so that I can make it known to the king, and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind.

Then the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver and the gold were broken to pieces at the same time and became like dust on the grain-floor in the summer. The wind carried the dust away so nothing was to be found. But the stone that hit the large object became a large mountain and filled the whole earth.

Then there will be a fourth nation, as strong as iron. Iron crushes and breaks all things. So, like iron breaks things to pieces, this nation will crush and break all the others.

As the toes of the feet were made of part iron and part clay, so some of the nation will be strong and part of it will be weak.

So all the captains, leaders, rulers, wise men, money-keepers, judges, and law-keepers of Babylon's lands were gathered together for the special time of setting apart this object Nebuchadnezzar had set up. And they stood in front of it.

So the men were tied up in their coats and head-coverings and their other clothes, and were thrown into the fire.