The Book of Daniel Page #2

They are Belteshazzar,

Shadrach,

Meshach, and Abednego.

Who am I?

You are Nebuchadnezzar,

son and heir of Nabopolassar,

king of Babylon.

You have destroyed

Nineveh the Mighty,

seat of Assyria,

and taken from her hand

the scepter of nations.

You are the commander of

commanders and king of kings,

from the rising of the sun unto

its setting in the western sea,

and beneath heaven there is

none more powerful than thee.

You, come forth.

Why should I allow you,

sons of my former enemies,

to serve in my court?

Because you have spared

the lives of our people...

who were delivered

into your hand...

and because the word

of the prophet Jeremiah...

has come unto us saying,

"This is what

the Lord God Almighty,

"the God of Israel,

says to all those...

"carried into exile

from Jerusalem to Babylon,

"'Build houses,

and settle down.

'"Plant gardens,

and eat what they produce.

Marry and have

sons and daughters.

'"Also, seek the

prosperity of the city...

'"to which I have

carried you into exile.

Pray to the Lord for it,

for if it prospers,

you too will prosper."'

This is good.

So now even your God

commands you to serve me.

I have no need

of lap dogs.

Would you dare

to tell me the truth...

even if you knew

it would displease me?

Lord, king,

it must be so.

I will speak only the truth,

and when you

would not hear it,

you must ask me nothing.

I pronounce them worthy.

Have their names be written

in the Book of the Wise.

Nebuchadnezzar's

questioning showed wisdom.

A former enemy

can be a good counselor.

If they can be trusted.

And a wise king is capable

of choosing whom to trust,

for are you not Croesus,

formerly king of Lydia...

and once the richest

man in the world...

whose name alone

signified riches...

almost beyond

comprehending?

I am he.

Trusting the words

of the Oracle of Delphi,

I went to war with Cyrus

and was defeated.

Cyrus pardoned me

and my family.

I am eternally grateful.

Worthy

counselors, rare indeed,

as Nebuchadnezzar

came to learn at a time...

when his Babylonian

counselors, his magi,

sorcerers, diviners,

magicians, and astrologers...

were unable to help him.

were unable to help him.

No!

What is it, my king?

Summon my counselors.

The enchanters, the sorcerers,

or the astrologers?

All of them!

Oh, king!

Your wisest subjects

have arrived.

Command, and it is done.

I've had a dream

that troubles me.

I need to know

what it means.

Oh, king, tell your

servants your dream,

and we will

interpret it for you.

No.

What need I have wise men

who are not wise, hmm?

Astrologers who read

nothing in the stars.

Magicians who

perform children's tricks.

Sorcerers who divine nothing

except what I tell them.

No, it is enough for the

king to dream his dreams.

It is up to you

to discern and interpret them.

But, my lord, if only

you would tell us your dream...

we could interpret it,

as we have always done.

Always.

I know you're

trying to gain time...

or trick me into revealing

what I've seen.

Either may I'll have none of it.

But there's no man on

earth who can do what the king asks.

No king has ever asked

such a thing before.

Only the gods

could know these things,

and when we ask

they don't answer.

Well, I suggest you try

and get them to answer,

or beg that they endow you

with the necessary skills...

to divine it on your own,

for as I am king I swear

that when the sun rises,

if my dream is not

made known to me...

along with its interpretation,

you will all be made shorter

by the height of your heads.

You may withdraw

Now!

Lord Ashpenaz, is it true?

It is.

Why has the king

issued such a harsh decree?

Why don't you come along with me

and ask him yourself?

- Lord, king.

- What?

Belteshazzar

requests an audience.

Speak.

Oh king, live forever.

I have heard your decree,

and I understand that

I shall fall beneath the blade...

if your dream is not

made known and interpreted.

I ask only for more time that

I might withdraw for a while,

my friends and I,

to pray to our God...

and see if he might not

make the dream known to us.

The time is fixed.

It cannot be altered.

The sentence is to be

carried out at sunrise.

You may withdraw

so long as you return at dawn,

as your fate

and that of the others...

is one in the same,

and when you return be sure to

bring your companions with you.

Shall I send

guards along, my king?

No.

No, if he says he'll pray,

he'll pray not flee.

Of that much

at least I'm sure.

Even if we

were to flee the city...

the whole world

would've been against us,

not that it mattered...

I had given my word

and intended to keep it.

I would pray and hope

that the answer came.

Prepare to

bind the prisoners.

Once the sun rises

there can be no delay.

Bring forth the councilors!

Oh king, live forever.

Oh king, do not

execute these men, I beg you.

Belteshazzar,

your death is upon you as well...

unless you know my dream

and can interpret it.

I am, and I will.

Praise be to the God

of my fathers forever and ever.

He gives wisdom to the wise

and knowledge to the discerning.

He reveals

deep and hidden things...

and has made plain

all that you have asked,

for he has shown me

the vision of the king.

Then speak!

As you lay upon your bed,

oh king, you looked,

and there before you

stood a large statue,

awesome in its appearance.

The head of the statue

was made of pure gold,

its chest and arms of silver,

its belly

and thighs of bronze,

its legs of iron,

its feet partly of iron

and partly of baked clay.

As you were watching,

a rock was cutout...

but not by human hands.

It struck the statue

on its feet of iron and clay...

and smashed them.

Then the iron, the clay, the

bronze, the silver, and the gold...

were all broken

to pieces at the same time,

and the winds swept them

away without a trace,

but the rock that struck

the statue became a mountain...

and filled the whole earth.

You have done what

I was told was impossible.

This mystery

has been revealed to me...

not because I am

wiser than other men...

but because God wishes you...

to understand

the meaning of your dream.

You know my dream

as if you dreamt it yourself.

What does it mean?

You, oh king,

are the king of kings.

The God of heaven

has given you dominion...

and power

and might and glory.

In your hands

he has placed mankind.

He has made you

ruler over the nation,

for you are

the head of pure gold.

After you,

another kingdom will rise,

inferior to yours.

Next, a third kingdom,

one of bronze,

will rule over

the whole earth.

Finally, there will be

a fourth kingdom strong as iron,

for iron breaks

and smashes things to pieces,

but just as you saw...

that the feet and toes

were partly of baked clay...

and partly of iron,

so this people will be a mixture

and not remain united...

any more than

iron mixes with clay.

And in the time

of those kings...

the God of heaven

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