2. The king sent for the magicians, psychics, sorcerers, and astrologers so that they could tell him what he had dreamed. So they came to the king.
3. The king said to them, “I had a dream, and I’m troubled by it. I want to know what the dream was.”
4. The astrologers spoke to the king in Aramaic, “Your Majesty, may you live forever! Tell us the dream, and we’ll interpret it for you.”
5. The king answered the astrologers, “I meant what I said! If you don’t tell me the dream and its meaning, you will be torn limb from limb, and your houses will be turned into piles of rubble.
6. But if you tell me the dream and its meaning, I will give you gifts, awards, and high honors. Now tell me the dream and its meaning.”
7. Once more they said, “Your Majesty, tell us the dream, and we’ll tell you its meaning.”
8. The king replied, “I’m sure you’re trying to buy some time because you know that I meant what I said.
9. If you don’t tell me the dream, you’ll all receive the same punishment. You have agreed among yourselves to make up a phony explanation to give me, hoping that things will change. So tell me the dream. Then I’ll know that you can explain its meaning to me.”
10. The astrologers answered the king, “No one on earth can tell the king what he asks. No other king, no matter how great and powerful, has ever asked such a thing of any magician, psychic, or astrologer.
11. What you ask is difficult, Your Majesty. No one can tell what you dreamed except the gods, and they don’t live with humans.”
12. This made the king so angry and furious that he gave an order to destroy all the wise advisers in Babylon.
13. So a decree was issued that the wise advisers were to be killed, and some men were sent to find Daniel and his friends and kill them.
14. While Arioch, the captain of the royal guard, was leaving to kill the wise advisers in Babylon, Daniel spoke to him using shrewd judgment.
15. He asked Arioch, the royal official, “Why is the king’s decree so harsh?” So Arioch explained everything to Daniel.
16. Daniel went and asked the king to give him some time so that he could explain the dream’s meaning.
17. Then Daniel went home and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah about this matter.