1 Darius mederen tok over kongeriket da han var omkring sekstito år gammel.

And Darius the Mede took the kingdom, being then about sixty-two years old.

2 Darius bestemte seg for å sette hundre og tjue høvedsmenn over riket, spredt gjennom hele riket.

Darius was pleased to put over the kingdom a hundred and twenty captains, who were to be all through the kingdom;

3 Over dem var det tre ledere, og Daniel var en av dem; høvedsmennene skulle rapportere til lederne for å unngå tap for kongen.

And over them were three chief rulers, of whom Daniel was one; and the captains were to be responsible to the chief rulers, so that the king might undergo no loss.

4 Daniel gjorde jobben bedre enn lederne og høvedsmennene fordi det var en enestående ånd i ham; og kongen hadde til hensikt å sette ham over hele riket.

Then this Daniel did his work better than the chief rulers and the captains, because there was a special spirit in him; and it was the king's purpose to put him over all the kingdom.

5 Da prøvde lederne og høvedsmennene å finne noe å anklage Daniel for angående rikets anliggender, men de kunne ikke finne noe feil eller feiltrinn hos ham; fordi han var trofast, uten feil eller urett i seg.

Then the chief rulers and the captains were looking for some cause for putting Daniel in the wrong in connection with the kingdom, but they were unable to put forward any wrongdoing or error against him; because he was true, and no error or wrong was to be seen in him.

6 Så sa disse mennene: Vi vil bare finne en årsak til å angripe Daniel i hans lovlydighet mot sin Gud.

Then these men said, We will only get a reason for attacking Daniel in connection with the law of his God.

7 De kom da til kongen og sa: O konge Darius, leve du evig.

Then these chief rulers and the captains came to the king and said to him, O King Darius, have life for ever.

8 Alle rikets ledere, høvedsmenn, vise menn og styrere har enstemmig vedtatt å foreslå en kongelig lov og en streng befaling, at enhver som ber til noen gud eller menneske, bortsett fra deg, kongen, i tretti dager, skal kastes i løvehulen.

All the chief rulers of the kingdom, the chiefs and the captains, the wise men and the rulers, have made a common decision to put in force a law having the king's authority, and to give a strong order, that whoever makes any request to any god or man but you, O King, for thirty days, is to be put into the lions' hole.

9 Nå, konge, gi en kongelig befaling og signér loven slik at den ikke kan endres, slik som medernes og persernes lov som ikke kan omgjøres.

Now, O King, put the order in force, signing the writing so that it may not be changed, like the law of the Medes and Persians which may not come to an end.

10 Da satte kong Darius sitt navn på dokumentet og befalingene.

For this reason King Darius put his name on the writing and the order.

11 Da Daniel hørte at dokumentet var signert, gikk han inn i sitt hus; han hadde vinduer i rommet sitt som vendte mot Jerusalem; og tre ganger om dagen bøyde han seg i bønn og lovprisning for sin Gud, slik han alltid hadde gjort.

And Daniel, on hearing that the writing had been signed, went into his house; (now he had windows in his room on the roof opening in the direction of Jerusalem;) and three times a day he went down on his knees in prayer and praise before his God, as he had done before.

12 Disse mennene holdt øye med ham og så Daniel be og be om nåde foran sin Gud.

Then these men were watching and saw Daniel making prayers and requesting grace before his God.

13 Så gikk de fram for kongen og sa: O konge, har du ikke signert en befaling om at enhver som ber til noen gud eller menneske, bortsett fra deg, konge, i tretti dager, skal kastes i løvehulen? Kongen svarte: Jo, det er fastsatt i henhold til medernes og persernes lov som ikke kan oppheves.

Then they came near before the king and said, O King, have you not put your name to an order that any man who makes a request to any god or man but you, O King, for thirty days, is to be put into the lions' hole? The king made answer and said, The thing is fixed by the law of the Medes and Persians which may not come to an end.

14 Så svarte de og sa til kongen: Daniel, en av de bortførte fra Juda, bryr seg ikke om deg, konge, eller om befalingen du signerte, men tre ganger om dagen ber han til sin Gud.

Then they made answer and said before the king, Daniel, one of the prisoners of Judah, has no respect for you, O King, or for the order signed by you, but three times a day he makes his prayer to God.

15 Da kongen hørte dette, ble han meget bekymret, og han satte sitt hjerte på å redde Daniel og gjorde alt han kunne fram til solnedgang for å få ham fri.

When this thing came to the king's ears, it was very evil to him, and his heart was fixed on keeping Daniel safe, and till the going down of the sun he was doing everything in his power to get him free.

16 Men disse mennene sa til kongen: Husk, konge, at medernes og persernes lov sier at ingen befaling eller lov utstedt av kongen kan endres.

Then these men said to the king, Be certain, O King, that by the law of the Medes and Persians no order or law which the king has put into force may be changed.

17 Da ga kongen ordre, og de tok Daniel og kastet ham i løvehulen. Kongen sa til Daniel: Din Gud, som du stadig tjener, vil beskytte deg.

Then the king gave the order, and they took Daniel and put him into the lions' hole. The king made answer and said to Daniel, Your God, whose servant you are at all times, will keep you safe.

18 Så tok de en stein og la den over åpningen til hulen, og kongen forseglet den med sin ring og med sine stormenns segl, slik at avgjørelsen om Daniel ikke kunne endres.

Then they got a stone and put it over the mouth of the hole, and it was stamped with the king's stamp and with the stamp of the lords, so that the decision about Daniel might not be changed.

19 Kongen gikk deretter til sitt palass, og han fastet den natten; ingen underholdning ble brakt til ham, og han fikk ingen søvn.

Then the king went to his great house, and took no food that night, and no ... were placed before him, and his sleep went from him.

20 Tidlig om morgenen sto kongen opp og skyndte seg til løvehulen.

Then very early in the morning the king got up and went quickly to the lions' hole.

21 Da han nærmet seg hulen der Daniel var, ropte han med sorg i stemmen; han sa: Daniel, tjener av den levende Gud, har din Gud som du til enhver tid tjener, kunnet redde deg fra løvene?

And when he came near the hole where Daniel was, he gave a loud cry of grief; the king made answer and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is your God, whose servant you are at all times, able to keep you safe from the lions?

22 Daniel sa da til kongen: O konge, leve du evig.

Then Daniel said to the king, O King, have life for ever.

23 Min Gud sendte sin engel for å lukke løvenes munner, og de har ikke gjort meg noen skade, fordi jeg ble funnet uskyldig for ham; og også for deg, konge, har jeg ikke gjort noe galt.

My God has sent his angel to keep the lions' mouths shut, and they have done me no damage: because I was seen to be without sin before him; and further, before you, O King, I have done no wrong.

24 Da ble kongen svært glad og ga ordre om å løfte Daniel opp fra hulen. Så Daniel ble løftet ut av hulen, og det ble funnet at han var uskadd, fordi han hadde tro på sin Gud.

Then the king was very glad, and gave orders for them to take Daniel up out of the hole. So Daniel was taken up out of the hole and he was seen to be untouched, because he had faith in his God.

25 Etter kongens befaling ble de mennene som hadde anklaget Daniel, kastet i løvehulen med sine koner og barn; før de nådde bunnen av hulen, overmannet løvene dem og knuste alle deres knokler.

And at the king's order, they took those men who had said evil against Daniel, and put them in the lions' hole, with their wives and their children; and they had not got to the floor of the hole before the lions overcame them and all their bones were broken.

26 Kong Darius sendte så ut et brev til alle folkene, nasjonene og språkene som bodde på jorden: Må deres fred bli stor.

Then King Darius sent a letter to all the peoples, nations, and languages, living in all the earth: May your peace be increased.

27 Jeg gir ordre om at i hele riket jeg hersker over, skal folk skjelve av frykt for Daniels Gud: for han er den levende Gud, uforanderlig for alltid, og hans rike vil aldri bli ødelagt, hans herredømme vil vare til evig tid.

It is my order that in all the kingdom of which I am ruler, men are to be shaking with fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, unchanging for ever, and his kingdom is one which will never come to destruction, his rule will go on to the end.

28 Han redder og frigjør og gjør tegn og underverker i himmel og på jord, han som har reddet Daniel fra løvenes makt.

He gives salvation and makes men free from danger, and does signs and wonders in heaven and earth, who has kept Daniel safe from the power of the lions.

29 Så hadde Daniel fremgang under kong Darius og under kong Kyros av Persia.

So this Daniel did well in the kingdom of Darius and in the kingdom of Cyrus the Persian.