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.

Daniel replied to the king, “The mystery that the king is asking about is such that no wise men, astrologers, magicians, or diviners can possibly disclose it to the king.

Then the king elevated Daniel to high position and bestowed on him many marvelous gifts. He granted him authority over the entire province of Babylon and made him the main prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.

But since the king’s command was so urgent, and the furnace was so excessively hot, the men who escorted ¹  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were killed ²  by the leaping flames. ³ 

Then King Nebuchadnezzar was startled and quickly got up. He said to his ministers, “Wasn’t it three men that we tied up and threw ¹  into ²  the fire?” They replied to the king, “For sure, O king.”

He answered, “But I see four men, untied and walking around in the midst of the fire! No harm has come to them! And the appearance of the fourth is like that of a god!” ¹ 

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.

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.

Then those men came by collusion to the king and ¹  said to him, ²  “Recall, ³  O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no edict or decree that the king issues can be changed.”

Only I, Daniel, saw the vision; the men who were with me did not see it. ¹  On the contrary, they were overcome with fright ²  and ran away to hide.

(3:1) ¹  After all of this ²  I will pour out my Spirit ³  on all kinds of people. ⁴  Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your elderly will have revelatory dreams; ⁵  your young men will see prophetic visions.

They are determined to be experts at doing evil; ¹  government officials and judges take bribes, ²  prominent men make demands, and they all do what is necessary to satisfy them. ³ 

I will bring distress on the people ¹  and they will stumble ²  like blind men, for they have sinned against the Lord. Their blood will be poured out like dirt; their flesh ³  will be scattered ⁴  like manure.

Moreover, the Lord who rules over all says, ‘Old men and women will once more live in the plazas of Jerusalem, each one leaning on a cane because of advanced age.

When he came to the other side, to the region of the Gadarenes, ¹  two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were extremely violent, so that no one was able to pass by that way.

When ¹  he went into the house, the blind men came to him. Jesus ²  said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.”

They said to him, “He will utterly destroy those evil men! Then he will lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his portion at the harvest.”

They ¹  tie up heavy loads, hard to carry, and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing even to lift a finger to move them.

“For this reason I ¹  am sending you prophets and wise men and experts in the law, ²  some of whom you will kill and crucify, ³  and some you will flog ⁴  in your synagogues ⁵  and pursue from town to town,

for he was teaching his disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man will be betrayed into the hands of men. ¹  They ²  will kill him, ³  and after three days he will rise.” ⁴