This was the dream. Now we ¹  will set forth before the king its interpretation.

This is the interpretation of the words: ¹  As for mene ²  – God has numbered your kingdom’s days and brought it to an end.

Because of this the king got furiously angry ¹  and gave orders to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.

Now ¹  at that time certain ²  Chaldeans came forward and brought malicious accusations against ³  the Jews.

“But you, his son ¹  Belshazzar, have not humbled yourself, ²  although you knew all this.

Therefore the palm of a hand was sent from him, and this writing was inscribed.

So King Darius issued the written interdict.

So this Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and ¹  the reign of Cyrus the Persian.

And ¹  in that you saw iron mixed with wet clay, so people will be mixed ²  with one another ³  without adhering to one another, just as ⁴  iron does not mix with clay.

He asked them to pray for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery so that he ¹  and his friends would not be destroyed along with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

“As for you, O king, while you were in your bed your thoughts turned to future things. ¹  The revealer of mysteries has made known to you what will take place.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to King Nebuchadnezzar, ¹  “We do not need to give you a reply ²  concerning this.

this is the interpretation, O king! It is the decision of the Most High that this has happened to my lord the king.

Now the wise men and ¹  astrologers were brought before me to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation. But they were unable to disclose the interpretation of the message.

So these men concluded, ¹  “We won’t find any pretext against this man Daniel unless it is ²  in connection with the law of his God.”

I approached one of those standing nearby and asked him about the meaning ¹  of all this. So he spoke with me and revealed ²  to me the interpretation of the vision: ³ 

Then Daniel went in to see ¹  Arioch (whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon). He came ²  and said to him, “Don’t destroy the wise men of Babylon! Escort me ³  to the king, and I will disclose the interpretation to him!” ⁴ 

However, there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, ¹  and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in the times to come. ²  The dream and the visions you had while lying on your bed ³  are as follows.

As for me, this mystery was revealed to me not because I possess more wisdom ¹  than any other living person, but so that the king may understand ²  the interpretation and comprehend the thoughts of your mind. ³ 

You saw that a stone was cut from a mountain, but not by human hands; it smashed the iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold into pieces. The great God has made known to the king what will occur in the future. ¹  The dream is certain, and its interpretation is reliable.”