16. When Daniel heard the story, he went to King Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel asked the king to give him some more time. Then he would tell the king what the dream meant.
17. So Daniel went to his house. He explained the whole story to his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
18. Daniel asked his friends to pray to the God of heaven that God would be kind to them and help them understand this secret. Then Daniel and his friends would not be killed with the other wise men of Babylon.
19. During the night, God explained the secret to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven.
20. He said, “Praise God’s name forever and ever! Power and wisdom belong to him.
21. He changes the times and seasons. He gives power to kings, and he takes their power away. He gives wisdom to people, so they become wise. He lets people learn things and become wise.
22. He knows hidden secrets that are hard to understand. Light lives with him, so he knows what is in the dark and secret places.
23. God of my ancestors, I thank you and praise you. You gave me wisdom and power. You told us what we asked for. You told us about the king’s dream.”
24. Then Daniel went to Arioch, the man who King Nebuchadnezzar had chosen to kill the wise men of Babylon. Daniel said to Arioch, “Don’t kill the wise men of Babylon. Take me to the king. I will tell him what his dream means.”
25. So very quickly, Arioch took Daniel to the king. Arioch said to the king, “I have found a man among the captives from Judah who can tell the king what his dream means.”
26. The king asked Daniel (Belteshazzar) a question. He said, “Are you able to tell me about my dream, and what it means?”
27. Daniel answered, “King Nebuchadnezzar, no wise man, no man who does magic, and no Chaldean could tell the king the secret things he has asked about.
28. But there is a God in heaven who tells secret things. God has given King Nebuchadnezzar dreams to show him what will happen later. This was your dream, and this is what you saw while lying on your bed:
29. King, as you were lying there on your bed, you began thinking about what might happen in the future. God can tell people about secret things—he has shown you what will happen in the future.
30. God also told this secret to me, not because I have greater wisdom than other men, but so that you, king, may know what it means. In that way you will understand what went through your mind.
31. “King, in your dream you saw a large statue in front of you that was very large and shiny. It was very impressive.