Daniel Is Terrified by a Vision

10 In the third year of ^(A)Cyrus king of Persia a ^[a]message was revealed to ^(B)Daniel, who was named Belteshazzar; and the ^[b](C)message was true and one of great ^[c]conflict, but he understood the ^[d]message and had an ^(D)understanding of the vision.

² In those days, I, Daniel, had been ^(E)mourning for three entire weeks. ³ I ^(F)did not eat any ^[e]tasty food, nor did meat or wine enter my mouth, nor did I use any ointment at all until the entire three weeks were completed. ⁴ On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, while I was by the bank of the great ^(G)river, that is, the ^[f]Tigris, ⁵ I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a certain man ^(H)dressed in linen, whose waist was ^(I)girded with a belt of pure ^(J)gold of Uphaz. ⁶ His body also was like ^[g]beryl, his face ^[h]had the appearance of lightning, ^(K)his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and feet like the gleam of polished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a ^[i]tumult. ⁷ Now I, Daniel, ^(L)alone saw the vision, while the ^(M)men who were with me did not see the vision; nevertheless, a great ^(N)dread fell on them, and they ran away to hide themselves. ⁸ So I was ^(O)left alone and saw this great vision; yet ^(P)no strength was left in me, for my ^[j]natural color turned to ^[k]a deathly pallor, and I retained no strength. ⁹ But I heard the sound of his words; and as soon as I heard the sound of his words, I ^(Q)fell into a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground.

Daniel Comforted

¹⁰ Then behold, a hand ^(R)touched me and set me trembling on my ^[l]hands and knees. ¹¹ He said to me, “O ^(S)Daniel, man of ^[m]high esteem, ^(T)understand the words that I am about to tell you and ^(U)stand ^[n]upright, for I have now been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up ^(V)trembling. ¹² Then he said to me, “^(W)Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on ^(X)humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response ^(Y)to your words. ¹³ But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was ^[o]withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, ^(Z)Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia. ¹⁴ Now I have come to ^(AA)give you an understanding of what will happen to your people in the ^[p](AB)latter days, for the vision pertains to ^(AC)the days yet future.”

¹⁵ When he had spoken to me according to these words, I ^[q]turned my face toward the ground and became ^(AD)speechless. ¹⁶ And behold, ^[r](AE)one who resembled a human being was ^(AF)touching my lips; then I opened my mouth and spoke and said to him who was standing before me, “O my lord, as a result of the vision ^[s](AG)anguish has come upon me, and I have retained no strength. ¹⁷ For ^(AH)how can such a servant of my lord talk with such as my lord? As for me, there remains just now ^(AI)no strength in me, nor has any breath been left in me.”

¹⁸ Then this one with human appearance touched me again and ^(AJ)strengthened me. ¹⁹ He said, “O man of ^[t]high esteem, ^(AK)do not be afraid. Peace ^[u]be with you; take ^(AL)courage and be courageous!” Now as soon as he spoke to me, I received strength and said, “May my lord speak, for you have ^(AM)strengthened me.” ²⁰ Then he said, “Do you ^[v]understand why I came to you? But I shall now return to fight against the ^[w]prince of Persia; so I am going forth, and behold, the ^[x](AN)prince of ^[y]Greece is about to come. ²¹ However, I will tell you what is inscribed in the writing of ^(AO)truth. Yet there is no one who ^[z]stands firmly with me against these forces except ^(AP)Michael your prince.

Conflicts to Come

11 “In the ^(AQ)first year of Darius the Mede, ^[aa]I arose to be ^[ab]an encouragement and a protection for him. ² And now I will tell you the ^(AR)truth. Behold, three more kings are going to arise ^[ac]in Persia. Then a fourth will gain far more riches than all of them; as soon as he becomes strong through his riches, ^[ad]he will arouse the whole empire against the realm of ^[ae](AS)Greece. ³ And a ^(AT)mighty king will arise, and he will rule with great authority and ^(AU)do as he pleases. ⁴ But as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom will be broken up and parceled out ^(AV)toward the ^(AW)four ^[af]points of the compass, though not to his own descendants, nor according to his authority which he wielded, for his sovereignty will be ^(AX)uprooted and given to others besides ^[ag]them.

⁵ “Then the ^(AY)king of the South will grow strong, ^[ah]along with one of his princes ^[ai]who will gain ascendancy over him and obtain dominion; his domain will be a great dominion indeed. ⁶ After some years they will form an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the South will come to the ^(AZ)king of the North to carry out ^[aj]a peaceful arrangement. But she will not retain her ^[ak]position of power, nor will he remain with his ^[al]power, but she will be given up, along with those who brought her in and the one who sired her as well as he who supported her in those times. ⁷ But one of the ^[am]descendants of her line will arise in his place, and he will come against their army and enter the ^(BA)fortress of the king of the North, and he will deal with them and display great strength. ⁸ Also their ^(BB)gods with their ^[an]metal images and their precious vessels of silver and gold he will take into captivity to Egypt, and he on his part will ^[ao]refrain from attacking the king of the North for some years. ⁹ Then ^[ap]the latter will enter the realm of the king of the South, but will return to his own land.

¹⁰ “His sons will ^[aq]mobilize and assemble a multitude of great forces; and one of them will keep on coming and ^(BC)overflow and pass through, that he may ^[ar]again wage war up to his very fortress. ¹¹ The ^(BD)king of the South will be enraged and go forth and fight ^[as]with the king of the North. Then the latter will raise a great multitude, but that multitude will be given into ^[at]the hand of the former. ¹² When the multitude is carried away, his heart will be lifted up, and he will cause tens of thousands to fall; yet he will not prevail. ¹³ For the king of the North will again raise a greater multitude than the former, and ^[au]after an ^(BE)interval of some years he will ^[av]press on with a great army and much equipment.

¹⁴ “Now in those times many will rise up against the king of the South; the violent ones among your people will also lift themselves up in order to fulfill the vision, but they will ^[aw]fall down. ¹⁵ Then the king of the North will come, cast up a ^(BF)siege ramp and capture a well-fortified city; and the forces of the South will not stand their ground, not even ^[ax]their choicest troops, for there will be no strength to make a stand. ¹⁶ But he who comes against him will ^(BG)do as he pleases, and ^(BH)no one will be able to withstand him; he will also stay for a time in the ^[ay](BI)Beautiful Land, with destruction in his hand. ¹⁷ He will ^(BJ)set his face to come with the power of his whole kingdom, ^[az]bringing with him ^[ba]a proposal of peace which he will put into effect; he will also give him the daughter of women to ruin it. But she will not take a stand for him or be ^[bb]on his side. ¹⁸ Then he will turn his face to the ^(BK)coastlands and capture many. But a commander will put a stop to his scorn against him; moreover, he will ^(BL)repay him for his scorn. ¹⁹ So he will turn his face toward the fortresses of his own land, but he will ^(BM)stumble and fall and be ^(BN)found no more.

²⁰ “Then in his place one will arise who will ^(BO)send an ^[bc]oppressor through the ^[bd]Jewel of his kingdom; yet within a few days he will be shattered, though not in anger nor in battle. ²¹ In his place a despicable person will arise, on whom the honor of kingship has not been conferred, but he will come in a time of tranquility and ^(BP)seize the kingdom by intrigue. ²² The overflowing ^(BQ)forces will be flooded away before him and shattered, and also the prince of the covenant. ²³ After an alliance is made with him he will practice deception, and he will go up and gain power with a small force of people. ^24 [be]In a time of tranquility he will enter the ^(BR)richest parts of the ^[bf]realm, and he will accomplish what his fathers never did, nor his ^[bg]ancestors; he will distribute plunder, booty and possessions among them, and he will devise his schemes against strongholds, but only for a time. ²⁵ He will stir up his strength and ^[bh]courage against the ^(BS)king of the South with a large army; so the king of the South will mobilize an extremely large and mighty army for war; but he will not stand, for schemes will be devised against him. ²⁶ Those who eat his choice food will ^[bi]destroy him, and his army will ^[bj](BT)overflow, but many will fall down slain. ²⁷ As for both kings, their hearts will be intent on ^(BU)evil, and they will ^(BV)speak lies to each other at the same table; but it will not succeed, for the ^(BW)end is still to come at the appointed time. ²⁸ Then he will return to his land with much ^[bk]plunder; but his heart will be set against the holy covenant, and he will take action and then return to his own land.

²⁹ “At the appointed time he will return and come into the South, but ^[bl]this last time it will not turn out the way it did before. ³⁰ For ships of ^[bm](BX)Kittim will come against him; therefore he will be disheartened and will return and become enraged at the holy covenant and take action; so he will come back and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant. ³¹ Forces from him will arise, ^(BY)desecrate the sanctuary fortress, and do away with the regular sacrifice. And they will set up the ^(BZ)abomination ^[bn]of desolation. ³² By ^(CA)smooth words he will ^[bo]turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will display ^(CB)strength and take action. ^33 [bp](CC)Those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many; yet they will ^(CD)fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder for many days. ³⁴ Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will ^(CE)join with them in ^(CF)hypocrisy. ³⁵ Some of ^[bq]those who have insight will fall, in order to ^(CG)refine, ^(CH)purge and make them ^[br](CI)pure until the ^(CJ)end time; because it is still to come at the appointed time.

³⁶ “Then the king will ^(CK)do as he pleases, and he will exalt and ^(CL)magnify himself above every god and will ^(CM)speak ^[bs]monstrous things against the ^(CN)God of gods; and he will prosper until the ^(CO)indignation is finished, for that which is ^(CP)decreed will be done. ³⁷ He will show no regard for the ^[bt]gods of his fathers or for the desire of women, nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will magnify himself above them all. ³⁸ But ^[bu]instead he will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know; he will honor him with gold, silver, costly stones and treasures. ³⁹ He will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god; he will give great honor to ^[bv]those who acknowledge him and will cause them to rule over the many, and will parcel out land for a price.

⁴⁰ “At the ^(CQ)end time the ^(CR)king of the South will collide with him, and the ^(CS)king of the North will ^(CT)storm against him with chariots, with horsemen and with many ships; and he will enter countries, ^(CU)overflow them and pass through. ⁴¹ He will also enter the ^[bw](CV)Beautiful Land, and many countries will fall; but these will be rescued out of his hand: Edom, ^(CW)Moab and the foremost of the sons of ^(CX)Ammon. ⁴² Then he will stretch out his hand against other countries, and the land of Egypt will not escape. ⁴³ But he will ^[bx]gain control over the hidden treasures of gold and silver and over all the precious things of Egypt; and ^(CY)Libyans and ^(CZ)Ethiopians will follow at his ^[by]heels. ⁴⁴ But rumors from the East and from the North will disturb him, and he will go forth with great wrath to destroy and ^[bz]annihilate many. ⁴⁵ He will pitch the tents of his royal pavilion between the seas and the beautiful ^(DA)Holy Mountain; yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.

The Time of the End

12 “Now at that time ^(DB)Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a ^(DC)time of distress ^(DD)such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the ^(DE)book, will be rescued. ^2 (DF)Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, ^(DG)these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting ^[ca]contempt. ^3 [cb]Those who have ^(DH)insight will ^(DI)shine brightly like the brightness of the ^[cc]expanse of heaven, and those who ^(DJ)lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. ⁴ But as for you, Daniel, ^(DK)conceal these words and ^(DL)seal up the book until the ^(DM)end of time; ^(DN)many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.”

⁵ Then I, Daniel, looked and behold, two others were standing, one on this bank of the river and the other on that bank of the river. ⁶ And ^(DO)one said to the man ^(DP)dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, “^(DQ)How long will it be until the end of these wonders?” ⁷ I heard the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, ^[cd]as he ^(DR)raised his right hand and his left toward heaven, and swore by ^(DS)Him who lives forever that it would be for a ^[ce](DT)time, ^[cf]times, and half a ^[cg]time; and as soon as ^[ch]they finish ^(DU)shattering the ^[ci]power of the holy people, all these events will be completed. ⁸ As for me, I heard but could not understand; so I said, “My lord, what will be the ^[cj]outcome of these events?” ⁹ He said, “Go your way, Daniel, for these words are concealed and ^(DV)sealed up until the end time. ^10 (DW)Many will be purged, ^[ck]purified and refined, but the ^(DX)wicked will act wickedly; and none of the wicked will understand, but ^[cl]those who ^(DY)have insight will understand. ¹¹ From the time that the regular sacrifice is abolished and the ^[cm](DZ)abomination of desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. ¹² How ^(EA)blessed is he who keeps waiting and attains to the ^(EB)1,335 days! ¹³ But as for you, go your way to the ^[cn]end; then you will enter into ^(EC)rest and rise again for your ^(ED)allotted portion at the end of the ^[co]age.”

The Empty Tomb

20 ^(A)Now on the first day of the week ^(B)Mary Magdalene *came early to the tomb, while it *was still dark, and *saw ^(C)the stone already taken away from the tomb. ² So she *ran and *came to Simon Peter and to the other ^(D)disciple whom Jesus loved, and *said to them, “^(E)They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” ^3 (F)So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. ⁴ The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; ⁵ and ^(G)stooping and looking in, he *saw the ^(H)linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. ⁶ And so Simon Peter also *came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he *saw the linen wrappings lying there, ⁷ and ^(I)the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the ^(J)linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself. ⁸ So the other disciple who ^(K)had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. ⁹ For as yet ^(L)they did not understand the Scripture, ^(M)that He must rise again from the dead. ¹⁰ So the disciples went away again ^(N)to their own homes.

^11 (O)But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she ^(P)stooped and looked into the tomb; ¹² and she *saw ^(Q)two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. ¹³ And they *said to her, “^(R)Woman, why are you weeping?” She *said to them, “Because ^(S)they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.” ¹⁴ When she had said this, she turned around and *^(T)saw Jesus standing there, and ^(U)did not know that it was Jesus. ¹⁵ Jesus *said to her, “^(V)Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she *said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.” ¹⁶ Jesus *said to her, “Mary!” She turned and *said to Him ^(W)in ^[a]Hebrew, “^(X)Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). ¹⁷ Jesus *said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to ^(Y)My brethren and say to them, ‘I ^(Z)ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’” ^18 (AA)Mary Magdalene *came, ^(AB)announcing to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her.

Jesus among His Disciples

¹⁹ So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for ^(AC)fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and *said to them, “^[b](AD)Peace be with you.” ²⁰ And when He had said this, ^(AE)He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then ^(AF)rejoiced when they saw the Lord. ²¹ So Jesus said to them again, “^(AG)Peace be with you; ^(AH)as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” ²² And when He had said this, He breathed on them and *said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. ^23 (AI)If you forgive the sins of any, their sins ^[c]have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”

²⁴ But ^(AJ)Thomas, one of ^(AK)the twelve, called ^[d](AL)Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. ²⁵ So the other disciples were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in ^(AM)His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, ^(AN)I will not believe.”

^26 [e]After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus *came, the doors having been ^[f]shut, and stood in their midst and said, “^(AO)Peace be with you.” ²⁷ Then He *said to Thomas, “^(AP)Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.” ²⁸ Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” ²⁹ Jesus *said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? ^(AQ)Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”

Why This Gospel Was Written

^30 (AR)Therefore many other ^[g](AS)signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; ³¹ but these have been written ^(AT)so that you may believe that Jesus is ^[h]the Christ, ^(AU)the Son of God; and that ^(AV)believing you may have life in His name.