Daniel 7:15–28

The Vision Interpreted

¹⁵“As for me, Daniel, my spirit was distressed ¹within me, and the ^avisions of my head kept ^balarming me.

¹⁶“I came near to one of those who were ^astanding by and began seeking out from him the ¹exact meaning of all this. So he ^bsaid it to me and made known to me the interpretation of these things:

¹⁷‘These great beasts, which are four in number, are four kings who will arise from the earth.

¹⁸‘But the ^1asaints of the Highest One will ^breceive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, ²for all ages to come.’

¹⁹“Then I desired to know the ¹exact meaning of the ^afourth beast, which was different from all ²the others, extraordinarily fearsome, with its teeth of iron and its claws of bronze, and which devoured, crushed, and trampled down the remainder with its feet,

²⁰and the meaning of the ten horns that were on its head and the other horn which came up and before which three of them fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth speaking great boasts and ¹which was larger in appearance than its associates.

²¹“I kept looking, and that horn was ^awaging war with the saints and overcoming them

²²until the Ancient of Days came and ^ajudgment was given in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the season arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom.

²³“Thus he said: ‘The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it.

²⁴‘As for the ^aten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will make low three kings.

²⁵‘He will ^aspeak words against the ^bMost High and ^cwear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make ^dchanges in seasons and in law; and ¹they will be given into his hand for a ^2etime, ³times, and half a ⁴time.

²⁶‘But the court will sit for judgment, and his dominion will be ^ataken away, ¹annihilated and destroyed ²forever.

²⁷‘Then the ^1areign, the dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One; His kingdom will be an ^beverlasting kingdom, and all the dominions will ^cserve and obey Him.’

²⁸“¹At this point the matter of this revelation ended. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts were ^agreatly alarming me, and the ²splendor of my face changed, but I ^bkept the matter in my heart.”