So Daniel was brought in before the king. The king said to Daniel, “Are you that Daniel who is one of the captives of Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah?

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

Then Nebuchadnezzar in a fit of rage ¹  demanded that they bring ²  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego before him. So they brought them ³  before the king.

When the time appointed by the king arrived, ¹  the overseer of the court officials brought them into Nebuchadnezzar’s presence.

Then the king departed to his palace. But he spent the night without eating, and no diversions ¹  were brought to him. He was unable to sleep. ² 

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.

So they brought the gold and silver ¹  vessels that had been confiscated from the temple, the house of God ²  in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, together with his wives and concubines, drank from them.

Then a stone was brought and placed over the opening ¹  to the den. The king sealed ²  it with his signet ring and with those ³  of his nobles so that nothing could be changed with regard to Daniel.

“Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with great power ¹  and made a name for yourself that is remembered to this day – we have sinned and behaved wickedly.

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 the king gave the order, ¹  and Daniel was brought and thrown into a den ²  of lions. The king consoled ³  Daniel by saying, “Your God whom you continually serve will rescue you!”

The LORD was mindful of the calamity, and he brought it on us. For the LORD our God is just ¹  in all he has done, ²  and we have not obeyed him. ³ 

So I issued an order ¹  for all the wise men of Babylon to be brought ²  before me so that they could make known to me the interpretation of the dream.

The king gave another order, ¹  and those men who had maliciously accused ²  Daniel were brought and thrown ³  into the lions’ den – they, their children, and their wives. ⁴  They did not even reach the bottom of the den before the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.

Now the Lord ¹  delivered ²  King Jehoiakim of Judah into his power, ³  along with some of the vessels ⁴  of the temple of God. ⁵  He brought them to the land of Babylonia ⁶  to the temple of his god ⁷  and put ⁸  the vessels in the treasury of his god.

It grew so big it reached the army ¹  of heaven, and it brought about the fall of some of the army and some of the stars ²  to the ground, where it trampled them.

Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. You brought before you the vessels from his temple, and you and your nobles, together with your wives and concubines, drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone – gods ¹  that cannot see or hear or comprehend! But you have not glorified the God who has in his control ²  your very breath and all your ways!

After some years have passed, they ¹  will form an alliance. Then the daughter ²  of the king of the south will come to the king of the north to make an agreement, but she will not retain her power, ³  nor will he continue ⁴  in his strength. ⁵  She, together with the one who brought her, her child, ⁶  and her benefactor will all be delivered over at that time. ⁷ 

Due to the greatness that he bestowed on him, all peoples, nations, and language groups were trembling with fear ¹  before him. He killed whom he wished, he spared ²  whom he wished, he exalted whom he wished, and he brought low whom he wished.

So Arioch quickly ushered Daniel into the king’s presence, saying to him, “I ¹  have found a man from the captives of Judah who can make known the interpretation to the king.”