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24 So Daniel went to see Arioch, the king's officer. The king had told Arioch to kill all the wise men of Babylon. But Daniel said to him, ‘Do not kill Babylon's wise men. Take me to the king. Then I will tell the king what his dream means.’
25 Then Arioch quickly took Daniel to meet the king. He said, ‘I have found this man, who is one of the people that you brought from Judah. He can tell you, sir, what your dream means.’
26 The king spoke to Daniel, whose other name was Belteshazzar. He asked Daniel, ‘Can you tell me my dream? And can you tell me what it means?’
27 Daniel answered the king, ‘Sir, your dream is a secret. No wise men, enchanters, magicians or diviners can tell you about it. 28 But there is a God in heaven. He explains secret things. In your dream, he has shown you what will happen in future years. Now I will tell you the dream and the visions that you had while you lay on your bed.
29 While you lay on your bed, you dreamed about future times. God explains secret things, and he has shown you what will happen in future years. 30 I am not more wise than other people. But God has explained your secret dream to me, because he wants you to know what it means. He wants you to understand the thoughts in your mind.’
The dream
31 Daniel said, ‘In your dream, you saw in front of you a statue with a man's shape. It was very big and very bright. It frightened people very much. 32 Its head was made from pure gold. The top of its body and its arms were made from silver. Its lower body was made from bronze. 33 The statue's legs were made from iron. Its feet had parts made from iron and parts made from clay. 34 While you looked, someone cut out a large stone from a mountain. But no human hand did this. The stone hit the statue on its iron and clay feet. The stone broke them into pieces. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold all broke into pieces. They became like chaff that the wind blows away. Nobody could see any of those pieces any more. But the stone that had hit the statue became a large mountain. It filled the whole earth.’
Daniel explains the dream to the king
36 Daniel continued to say, ‘That was your dream, King Nebuchadnezzar. Now we will tell you what it means. 37 You are a great king who rules over other kings. The God of heaven has given you authority to rule. He has given you power, strength and honour. 38 He has put all the people of this world, the wild animals and the birds under your power. He has given you authority to rule them all, in every place that they live. You are like the head of gold that you saw in your dream.
39 After you, there will be another kingdom. It will not be as great as your kingdom. Then a third kingdom will come. It will be like the bronze part of the statue. It will also rule the whole earth. 40 Then there will be a fourth kingdom. It will be as strong as iron which breaks everything into pieces. Like iron, that kingdom will destroy the other kingdoms. 41 In your dream, you saw that the statue's feet and toes had parts of clay and parts of iron. This shows that this kingdom will not be united as one. Some parts will be strong, like iron. The iron that you saw shows that strength. 42 But the iron parts of the statue were mixed with clay parts. This shows that the fourth kingdom will be strong in some parts and weak in other parts. 43 You saw iron and clay that were mixed together. The two parts of that kingdom will try to become united by marriage. But that will not help them to stay together as one. Iron cannot mix properly with clay.
44 During the time when those kings rule, the God of heaven will begin a new kingdom. That kingdom will continue for ever. No other people will ever have power over it. It will break up all those other kingdoms and it will destroy them. And it will continue for ever. 45 You saw the stone that came from the mountain. It was not a human hand that cut it out. That stone broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold into pieces.
In your dream, King Nebuchadnezzar, the great God has shown you what will happen in future years. I have told you the dream, and I have told you what it means. You can be sure that all this is true.’
The king thanks Daniel
46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar bent down with his face towards the ground. He gave honour to Daniel. He commanded his servants to offer sacrifices and to burn incense to praise Daniel. 47 The king said to Daniel, ‘It is true that your God rules all other gods. He rules over kings and he explains secret things. I know this because you were able to explain this dream to me.’
48 Then the king made Daniel an important officer. He also gave Daniel many valuable gifts. He gave Daniel authority to rule over the whole region of Babylon. Daniel also became the most important officer with authority over all the wise men in Babylon.
49 Daniel asked the king to give important jobs to Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So the king gave them authority over the region of Babylon. But Daniel himself stayed in the king's palace.
The king's statue
3 King Nebuchadnezzar caused his workers to make a gold statue. It was 30 metres high and 3 metres wide. He built it on the flat land called Dura, in the Babylon region. 2 Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent a message to all his government officers. He told them to meet together in the place where the statue was. He wanted them to see that he had built a great statue. 3 So all the officers came. Those were the rulers, the judges, the wise people, and all the leaders in the different regions of the Babylon nation. They all came together to give honour to the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had built.
4 Then an officer shouted aloud, ‘Listen to me, you people from every country and nation, who speak different languages! The king makes this command: 5 Listen for the sound of music from trumpets, flutes, lyres, harps or any other kind of music. When you hear the music, you must bend down low towards the ground. You must worship the gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has built. 6 The king will punish anyone who does not do that. His soldiers will throw them immediately into a very hot fire.’
7 So, when all the people heard the different kinds of music, they obeyed. The people from every country and nation, who spoke different languages all bent down low. They worshipped the gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had built.
8 Then some wise men went to the king. They told him bad things against the Jews. 9 They said to the king, ‘King, live for ever! 10 You made a rule. You said that everyone must listen for the sound of the special music. When they hear it, they must bend down and they must worship the gold statue. 11 You said that you would punish everyone who does not obey you. You said you would throw them into the middle of a very hot fire. 12 But there are some Jewish men who do not obey you. They are Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. You gave them authority to take care of everything in Babylon region. Those men do not respect your authority. They do not give honour to your gods. They do not worship your gold statue.’
13 When King Nebuchadnezzar heard this, he was very angry. He told his servants to bring Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to him. So they brought those men to stand in front of the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar said to them, ‘Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, is it true that you do not give honour to my gods? And you do not worship the gold statue that I have built? 15 Next time you hear the sound of the special music, you must obey my rule. You must bend down and you must worship the statue that I have built. If you do not worship the statue, my servants will throw you immediately into the middle of a very hot fire. There is no god who can save you from my power.’
16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego answered the king, ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to say anything to show you that we are not guilty. 17 We serve a great God. If you throw us into the very hot fire, he is able to keep us safe. Yes, sir, he will keep us safe from your power too. 18 But even if he does not save us, we still would not serve your gods. And we will not worship the gold statue that you have built. We want you to understand that very clearly, sir.’
The king punishes Daniel's three friends
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was even more angry with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. His face became red. He said to his servants, ‘Make the fire in the oven seven times hotter than usual.’ 20 He told the strongest men in his army, ‘Tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Then throw them into the very hot fire!’
21 So the soldiers tied up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego with ropes. They were still wearing their coats, their hats and their other clothes when the soldiers took hold of them. The soldiers threw them into the middle of the hot fire with all their clothes on. 22 The soldiers needed to obey the king in a hurry. The fire was very hot. As a result, flames from the fire killed the men who threw Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego into it. 23 So the three men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, fell into the middle of the hot fire. The ropes still held them very strongly.
24 What King Nebuchadnezzar saw next surprised him very much. He jumped up and he shouted to his officers, ‘We tied up three men and we threw them into the fire. Isn't that right?’ The officers answered the king, ‘Yes, sir, we certainly did that.’ 25 The king said, ‘But I see four men walking about in the fire! No ropes are holding them and the fire has not hurt them. The fourth man seems like a son of the gods.’
26 King Nebuchadnezzar went near to the door of the oven where the very hot fire was. He shouted aloud to the men inside, ‘Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, I see that you are servants of the powerful God who rules over everything. Now come out here!’
So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire. 27 Then the king's officers, his wise men and the government rulers and leaders came near to the three men. They saw that the fire had not hurt Shadrach, Meshach or Abednego. The fire had not even burnt their hair or their clothes. They did not even have any smell from the fire.
Nebuchadnezzar's new command
28 Then King Nebuchadnezzar said, ‘Praise the God that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego serve! He sent his angel to keep his servants safe. They continued to trust in their God. So they did not obey the command that I had made as king. They would not agree to serve any other god except their own God. They would rather have died than worship any other god. 29 No other god can save people like their God has done for them. So I make a command for the people of every nation who speak any language. They must never say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. If anyone does that, my soldiers will cut them into pieces. They will knock down those people's houses so that they become heaps of stones.’
30 Then the king gave more authority to Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to rule in the region of Babylon.
We must use God's gifts properly
7 All things in this world will soon come to an end. So you must think clearly. Then you will be able to pray in a serious way. 8 Continue to love each other very much. That is more important than anything else. If you love people, you will forgive them for any wrong things that they have done. 9 Always be happy to have other believers as visitors in your homes.
10 God has helped each of you in a certain way. Think carefully about how to use that gift from God well. Remember that God has given many different gifts to his people so that they can help each other. 11 Has God helped you to speak well? Then speak God's messages to people. Or has God helped you to serve other people? Then let God make you strong to do that. Do everything so that people will praise God. They will say that God is great, because of Jesus Christ. He is the one who has all authority and power for ever. Everyone should praise him! Amen! This is true!
Christians must be ready to have trouble and pain
12 My friends, I know that people are causing you to have bad trouble. It is like a fire that is burning you. Do not be surprised about that. These things are happening to you, to show whether you really trust God. Do not think that something strange is happening to you. 13 Instead, be happy when you have trouble. Remember that Christ also received much trouble and pain. If you have trouble like he did, then you will be happy when he returns. At that time, everyone will see how great Christ really is. Then you will be very happy with a great joy. 14 People may insult you because you belong to Christ. But God will bless you when that happens. It shows that the Holy Spirit is with you. He is God's great Spirit.
15 Do not murder anyone. Do not rob anyone. Do not do evil things. Do not try to cause trouble for other people. If you do those things, you deserve to have trouble. 16 But if you receive trouble because you are a Christian, do not be ashamed about that. Instead, you should praise God that you belong to Christ.
17 The time has come when God will start to judge people. He will first judge the people who belong to him. If he will start with his own people, what will happen to other people? They have refused to obey God's good news, so it will surely be very bad for them. 18 The Bible says:
‘When God saves righteous people, that is a difficult thing.
It will surely be much worse for people who turn away from God and who do bad things.’[a]
19 So remember this. If you receive trouble because that is what God wants, you should continue to trust him. God made you and he always does what he has promised. So you should continue to do what is good.
Peter writes to leaders and young men
5 Now I want to say something to you who are leaders of the groups of believers. Like you, I am also a leader. I myself saw how people caused Christ to have great pain so that he died. One day people will see how great he really is. Then I will be among those people who join with him in heaven. So I say this to you who are leaders: 2 Watch over the group of believers that God has given to you. Be like a shepherd that takes care of his sheep. Lead them well because you want to do it. Do not do it just because you have to do it. Do it in the way that God wants for you. Do not be a leader because you want to receive money for yourself. Instead, do it because you want to help people.
3 God has given you a group of believers to take care of them. Do not try to rule over them with power. Instead, show them how to live in a good way, so that they can copy you. 4 Then our master, Christ, will give you a beautiful crown when he appears. That is a great gift that will never become old or less beautiful. He is the great Shepherd who takes care of us.[b]
5 I want to say the same thing to you who are young men. You must respect the authority of the leaders. All of you who are believers must respect one another. Do not think that you are more important than other people. The Bible says:
‘God is against proud people.
But he is kind to humble people.’[c]
6 Remember that God is strong and powerful. So be humble in front of him. Then he will lift you up to a good place at the right time. 7 If you have any kind of trouble in your mind, give it to God. God has promised to take care of you.[d]
8 Think seriously about how you live. Watch carefully for danger. Remember that the Devil is your enemy. He wants to hurt you. He walks about like a hungry lion. He is looking for someone to kill and then eat them! 9 But you must be strong to fight against him. Trust God completely. Remember this: Believers all over the world are having the same kind of trouble. 10 Yes, you will have trouble like this for a short time. But after that, God will make everything right. He is completely kind and he will always help you. Because you belong to Christ, God has chosen you to live with him in heaven for ever. You will join him in that beautiful place. Then God will make you well again. He will make you strong in your spirits. You will be able to stand strongly. 11 Yes, God rules with power for ever! Amen! This is true!
Peter finishes his letter
12 Silas has helped me to write this short letter to you. I know that he continues to trust Christ well.[e] I have written to you because I want you to be strong. I have told you how God is kind to us and he helps us. This is God's true message to you. So continue to believe it and be strong.
13 The believers here in Babylon say ‘hello’ to you.[f] God has chosen them as his people, together with you. Mark, who is like my son, also says ‘hello’ to you. 14 When you meet, kiss each other as Christian brothers and sisters.
I pray for all of you who belong to Christ. I pray that God will give you peace in your minds.
KAPH
81 As I wait for you to save me,
I feel tired and weak.
I trust in your word.
82 As I wait for you to do what you have promised,
my eyes are too tired to stay open.
I ask, ‘When will you come to help me?’
83 I am like an old wineskin that has become useless.
But I have not forgotten your rules.
84 As your servant, help me to be patient.
Please punish the people who want to hurt me.
Please do it soon.
85 Proud people want to catch me in their traps.
That is against your Law!
86 I know that I can trust all your commands,
but people still give me trouble with their lies.
Quickly, help me!
87 People here on earth have almost destroyed me,
but I continue to obey your teaching.
88 Please use your faithful love to keep me alive.
Then I can continue to obey the rules that you have taught me.
LAMED
89 Lord, your teaching will always be there.
You keep it safe in heaven.
90 You continue to show that people can trust you,
from one century to the next.
You have fixed the earth in its place,
and it will remain.
91 It is by your command that all things continue.
You have put them there to serve you.
92 If your Law had not made me happy,
I would have been sad until I died.
93 I will never forget your rules,
because you have used them to give me life.
94 I belong to you. Please save me!
I have respected your rules.
95 Wicked people are ready to kill me,
but I think carefully about your teaching.
96 I have learned that all things will come to an end,
but your commands have no end.
15 A wicked ruler brings danger to poor people.
He is as dangerous as an angry lion or a hungry bear.
16 If a ruler is cruel, it shows that he is not wise.
But a ruler who refuses bribes will rule for a long time.
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