Daniel 14

¹And Daniel was the king's guest, and honoured above all his friends.

²There was also an idol among the Babylonians named Bel: and there were bestowed on him every day of flour twelve arctabæs, and forty sheep, and of wine six great pots.

³The king also did worship him, and went every day to adore him: But Daniel adored his God. & the king said to him: Why dost thou not adore Bel.

⁴Who answering, said to him: Because I worship not idols made with hand, but the living God, that created heaven, and earth, and hath power over all flesh.

⁵And the king said to him: Doeth not Bel seem unto thee to be a living God? Seest thou not how much he eateth and drinketh every day?

⁶And Daniel smiling said: Be not deceived o king: For this same is within of clay, and without of brass, neither hath he eaten at any time.

⁷And the king being wrath called his priests, & said to them: Unless you tell me, who it is that eateth these expenses, you shall die.

⁸But if you shew, that Bel eateth these things Daniel shall die, because he hath blasphemed against Bel. And Daniel said to the king: Be it done according to thy word.

⁹And the priests of Bel were seventy, beside their wives, and little ones, & children. And the king came with Daniel into the temple of Bel.

¹⁰And the priests of Bel said: Behold we go forth: & thou o king set the meats, & mingle the wine, & shut the door, & seal it with thy ring:

¹¹and when thou shalt come in the morning, unless thou find all eaten of Bel, dying we will die, or Daniel that hath lied against us.

¹²And they contemned, because they had made under the table a secret entrance, & by it they came in always, and devoured those things.

¹³It came to pass therefore after they were gone out, the king set the meats before Bel: & Daniel commanded his servants, and they brought ashes, and he sifted them over all the temple before the king: and going forth they shut the door, and sealing it with the king's ring, they departed.

¹⁴But the priests went in by night, according to their custom, and their wives, and their children: and they did eat, and drink all.

¹⁵And the king arose in the first break of day, and Daniel with him.

¹⁶And the king said: Are the seals safe, Daniel? Who answered: Safe o king.

¹⁷And forthwith when he had opened the door, the king looking on the table, cried out with a loud voice: Great art thou o Bel, and there is not any deceit with thee.

¹⁸And Daniel laughed: and he held the king that he should not go in: and he said: Behold the pavement, mark whose steps these are.

¹⁹And the king said: I see the steps of men, & women, and of infants. And the king was angry.

²⁰Then apprehended he the priests, & their wives, & their children: and they shewed him secret little doors by which they came in, & consumed the things that were on the table.

²¹The king therefore slew them, & he delivered Bel into the power of Daniel: who overthrew him, & his temple.

²²And there was a great dragon in that place, & the Babylonians worshipped him.

²³And the king said to Daniel: Lo now thou canst not say, that this same is not a living god: adore him therefore.

²⁴And Daniel said: The Lord my God I do adore: because he is the living God:

²⁵but thou o king give me licence, and I will kill the dragon without sword and club. And the king said: I give thee licence.

²⁶Daniel therefore took pitch, and fat, and hairs, and sod them together: & he made lumps, and gave into the dragon's mouth, & the dragon burst in sunder. And he said: Lo whom you worshipped.

²⁷Which when the Babylonians had heard, they were wrath exceedingly: and being gathered together against the king, they said: The king is become a Jew. Bel he hath destroyed, the dragon he hath killed, & he hath slain the priests.

²⁸And they said when they were come to the king: Deliver us Daniel, otherwise we will kill thee, & thy house.

²⁹The king therefore saw that they pressed upon him vehemently: and compelled by necessity he delivered Daniel to them.

³⁰Who cast him into the lake of lions, and he was there six days.

³¹Moreover in the lake were seven lions, & there were given to them two bodies every day, & two sheep: and they were not given unto them, that they might devour Daniel.

³²And there was Habacuc a prophet in Jewry, & he had boiled broth, & had broken bread in a bowl: and he went into the field, to carry it to the reapers.

³³And the Angel of our Lord said to Habacuc: Carry the dinner which thou hast, into Babylon to Daniel, who is in the lake of lions.

³⁴And Habacuc said: Lord, Babylon I have not seen, and the lake I know not.

³⁵And the Angel of our Lord took him by the top of his head, and carried him by the hair of his head, & put him into Babylon over the lake in the force of his spirit.

³⁶And Habacuc cried, saying: Daniel, take the dinner that God hath sent to thee.

³⁷And Daniel said: Thou hast remembered me o God, and hast not forsaken them that love thee.

³⁸And Daniel rising up did eat. Moreover the Angel of our Lord restored Habacuc forthwith in his place.

³⁹The king therefore came the seventh day to lament Daniel: and he came to the lake, and looked in, and behold Daniel sitting in the midst of the lions.

⁴⁰And the king cried out with a loud voice, saying: Great art thou o Lord the God of Daniel. And he drew him out of the lake of lions.

⁴¹But those that had been the cause of his perdition, he cast into the lake, and they were devoured in a moment before him.

⁴²Then the king said: Let all inhabitants in the whole earth fear the God of Daniel: because he is the Saviour, doing signs, & marvels in the earth: who hath delivered Daniel out of the lions' den.