²In my visions at night I, Daniel, saw the four winds of heaven stirring up the Mediterranean Sea. ³Four large animals, each one different from the others, came out of the sea.

⁴The first animal was like a lion, but it had wings like an eagle. I watched until its wings were plucked off and it was lifted off the ground. It was made to stand on two feet like a human and was given a human mind.

⁵I saw a second animal. It looked like a bear. It was raised on one side and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, “Get up, and eat as much meat as you want.”

⁶After this, I saw another animal. It looked like a leopard. On its back it had four wings, like the wings of a bird. The animal also had four heads. It was given power to rule.

⁷After this, I saw a fourth animal in my vision during the night. It was terrifying, dreadful, extraordinarily strong, and had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed its victims and trampled whatever was left. It acted differently from all the other animals that I had seen before. It had ten horns. ⁸While I was thinking about the horns, another horn, a little horn, came up among them. It uprooted three of the other horns. This horn had eyes like human eyes and a mouth that spoke impressive things.

⁹I watched until thrones were set up

and the Ancient One, who has lived for endless years, sat down.

His clothes were as white as snow

and the hair on his head was like pure wool.

His throne was fiery flames,

and its wheels were burning fire.

¹⁰A river of fire flowed.

It came from him.

Thousands and thousands served him.

Ten thousand times ten thousand were stationed in front of him.

The court convened,

and the books were opened.

¹¹I continued to watch because of the impressive words that the horn was speaking. I watched until the animal was killed. Its body was destroyed and put into a raging fire. ¹²The power of the rest of the animals was taken away, but they were allowed to live for a period of time.

¹³In my visions during the night, I saw among the clouds in heaven someone like the Son of Man.^aHe came to the Ancient One, who has lived for endless years, and was presented to him. ¹⁴He was given power, honor, and a kingdom. People from every province, nation, and language were to serve him. His power is an eternal power that will not be taken away. His kingdom will never be destroyed.

¹⁵I, Daniel, was deeply troubled, and my visions frightened me. ¹⁶I went to someone who was standing there and asked him to tell me the truth about all this. So he told me what all this meant. ¹⁷He said, “These four large animals are four kingdoms that will rise to power on the earth. ¹⁸But the holy people of the Most High will take possession of the kingdom and keep it forever and ever.”

¹⁹Then I wanted to know the truth about the fourth animal, which was so different from all the others. It was very terrifying and had iron teeth and bronze claws. It devoured and crushed its victims, and trampled whatever was left. ²⁰I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that had come up and made three of the horns fall out. That horn had eyes and a mouth that spoke impressive things. It appeared to be bigger than the others. ²¹I saw that horn making war against the holy people and defeating them. ²²It did this until the Ancient One, who has lived for endless years, came and judged in favor of the holy people of the Most High. The time came when the holy people took possession of the kingdom.

²³He said, “The fourth animal will be the fourth of these kingdoms on earth. It will be different from all other kingdoms. It will devour, trample, and crush the whole world. ²⁴The ten horns are ten kings that will rise to power from that kingdom. Another king will rise to power after them. He will be different from the kings who came before him, and he will humble three kings. ²⁵He will speak against the Most High God, oppress the holy people of the Most High, and plan to change the appointed times and laws. The holy people will be handed over to him for a time, times, and half of a time. ²⁶But judgment will be handed down, his power will be taken away, and he will be completely and permanently destroyed. ²⁷The kingdom, along with the power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven, will be given to the holy people of the Most High. Their kingdom is eternal. All other powers will serve and obey them.”

²⁸Here is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was terrified by my thoughts, and I turned pale. I kept this to myself.

8TH CHAPTER

Daniel’s Vision about the Ram and the Goat

¹In Belshazzar’s third year as king, I, Daniel, saw a vision. This vision came after the one I saw earlier. ²In my vision I saw myself in the fortress of Susa in the province of Elam. In my vision I saw myself at Ulai Gate. ³I looked up and saw a single ram standing beside the gate. The ram had two long horns, one longer than the other, though the longer one had grown up later. ⁴I saw the ram charging west, north, and south. No other animal could stand in front of it, and no one could escape from its power. It did anything it pleased and continued to grow.

⁵As I was watching closely, I saw a male goat coming from the west. It crossed the whole earth without touching it. This goat had a prominent horn between its eyes. ⁶The goat was coming toward the two-horned ram that I had seen standing beside the gate. It furiously ran at the ram. ⁷I saw it come closer to the ram. The goat was extremely angry with the ram, so it attacked the ram. It broke both of the ram’s horns. The ram didn’t have the strength to stand up against the goat. So the ram was thrown down on the ground and trampled. No one could rescue the ram from the goat’s power.

⁸The male goat became very important. But when the goat became powerful, his large horn broke off. In its place grew four horns. They corresponded to the four winds of heaven. ⁹Out of one of the horns came a small horn. It gained power over the south, the east, and the beautiful land. ¹⁰It continued to gain power until it reached the army of heaven. It threw some of the army of heaven, the stars, down on the ground and trampled them. ¹¹Then it attacked the commander of the army so that it took the daily burnt offering from him and wrecked his holy place. ¹²In its rebelliousness it was given an army to put a stop to the daily burnt offering. It threw truth on the ground. The horn was successful in everything it did.

¹³Then I heard a holy one speaking. Another holy one said to the one who was speaking, “How long will the things in this vision—the daily burnt offering, the destructive rebellion, the surrender of the holy place, and the trampling of the army—take place?”

¹⁴He told me, “For 2,300 evenings and mornings. Then the holy place will be made acceptable to God.”

¹⁵Now as I, Daniel, watched the vision and tried to understand it, I saw someone who looked like a man standing in front of me. ¹⁶I heard a man in Ulai ⸤Gate⸥ call loudly, “Gabriel, explain the vision to this man.”

¹⁷Gabriel came up beside me, and when he came, I was terrified and immediately knelt down.

He said to me, “Son of man, understand that the vision is about the end times.” ¹⁸As he spoke to me, I fainted facedown on the ground, but he touched me and made me stand up. ¹⁹He said, “I will tell you what will happen in the last days, ⸤the time of God’s⸥ anger, because the end time has been determined.

²⁰“The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kingdoms of Media and Persia. ²¹The hairy male goat is the kingdom of Greece, and the large horn between its eyes is its first king. ²²The horn broke off, and four horns replaced it. Four kingdoms will come out of that nation, but they won’t be as strong as the first king was.

²³“In the last days of those kingdoms, when rebellions are finished, a stern-looking king who understands mysterious things will rise to power. ²⁴He will become very strong, but not by his own strength. He will cause astounding destruction and will be successful in everything he does. He will destroy those who are powerful along with some holy people. ²⁵He will cleverly use his power to deceive others successfully. He will consider himself to be great and destroy many people when they don’t expect it. He will oppose the Commander of Commanders, but he will be defeated, though not by any human power. ²⁶The vision about the ⸤2,300⸥ evenings and mornings that was explained to you is true. Seal the vision, because it is about things that will happen in the distant future.”

²⁷I, Daniel, was exhausted and sick for days. Then I got up and worked for the king. The vision horrified me because I couldn’t understand it.

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Footnotes

a 7:13 Or “like a human.”