Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream

2 Now in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; ^(A)and his spirit was so troubled that ^(B)his sleep left him. ^2 (C)Then the king gave the command to call the magicians, the astrologers, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans to tell the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king. ³ And the king said to them, “I have had a dream, and my spirit is anxious to ^[a]know the dream.”

⁴ Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic, ^(D)“O^[b] king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.”

⁵ The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “My ^[c]decision is firm: if you do not make known the dream to me, and its interpretation, you shall be ^(E)cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made an ash heap. ^6 (F)However, if you tell the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts, rewards, and great honor. Therefore tell me the dream and its interpretation.”

⁷ They answered again and said, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will give its interpretation.”

⁸ The king answered and said, “I know for certain that you would gain time, because you see that my decision is firm: ⁹ if you do not make known the dream to me, there is only one decree for you! For you have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the ^[d]time has changed. Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can ^[e]give me its interpretation.”

¹⁰ The Chaldeans answered the king, and said, “There is not a man on earth who can tell the king’s matter; therefore no king, lord, or ruler has ever asked such things of any magician, astrologer, or Chaldean. ¹¹ It is a ^[f]difficult thing that the king requests, and there is no other who can tell it to the king ^(G)except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”

¹² For this reason the king was angry and very furious, and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. ¹³ So the decree went out, and they began killing the wise men; and they sought ^(H)Daniel and his companions, to kill them.

God Reveals Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream

¹⁴ Then with counsel and wisdom Daniel answered Arioch, the captain of the king’s guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon; ¹⁵ he answered and said to Arioch the king’s captain, “Why is the decree from the king so ^[g]urgent?” Then Arioch made the decision known to Daniel.

¹⁶ So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell the king the interpretation. ¹⁷ Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, ^18 (I)that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. ¹⁹ Then the secret was revealed to Daniel ^(J)in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

²⁰ Daniel answered and said:

Daniel Explains the Dream

²⁴ Therefore Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He went and said thus to him: “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; take me before the king, and I will tell the king the interpretation.”

²⁵ Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel before the king, and said thus to him, “I have found a man of the ^[i]captives of Judah, who will make known to the king the interpretation.”

²⁶ The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen, and its interpretation?”

²⁷ Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, “The secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king. ^28 (T)But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar ^(U)what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these: ²⁹ As for you, O king, thoughts came to your mind while on your bed, about what would come to pass after this; ^(V)and He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will be. ^30 (W)But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me because I have more wisdom than anyone living, but for our sakes who make known the interpretation to the king, ^(X)and that you may ^[j]know the thoughts of your heart.

³¹ “You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. ^32 (Y)This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and ^[k]thighs of bronze, ³³ its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of ^[l]clay. ³⁴ You watched while a stone was cut out ^(Z)without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. ^35 (AA)Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became ^(AB)like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that ^(AC)no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image ^(AD)became a great mountain ^(AE)and filled the whole earth.

³⁶ “This is the dream. Now we will tell the interpretation of it before the king. ^37 (AF)You, O king, are a king of kings. ^(AG)For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory; ^38 (AH)and wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field and the birds of the heaven, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all—^(AI)you are this head of gold. ³⁹ But after you shall arise ^(AJ)another kingdom ^(AK)inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. ⁴⁰ And ^(AL)the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others. ⁴¹ Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. ⁴² And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, ^(AM)so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly ^[m]fragile. ⁴³ As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay. ⁴⁴ And in the days of these kings ^(AN)the God of heaven will set up a kingdom ^(AO)which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; ^(AP)it shall ^[n]break in pieces and ^[o]consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. ^45 (AQ)Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold—the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure.”

Daniel and His Friends Promoted

^46 (AR)Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face, prostrate before Daniel, and commanded that they should present an offering ^(AS)and incense to him. ⁴⁷ The king answered Daniel, and said, “Truly ^(AT)your God is the God of ^(AU)gods, the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret.” ^48 (AV)Then the king promoted Daniel ^(AW)and gave him many great gifts; and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and ^(AX)chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon. ⁴⁹ Also Daniel petitioned the king, ^(AY)and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel ^(AZ)sat in ^[p]the gate of the king.

Vision of the Four Beasts

7 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, ^(A)Daniel ^[a]had a dream and ^(B)visions of his head while on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, telling ^[b]the main facts.

² Daniel spoke, saying, “I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the Great Sea. ³ And four great beasts ^(C)came up from the sea, each different from the other. ⁴ The first was ^(D)like a lion, and had eagle’s wings. I watched till its wings were plucked off; and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man, and a ^(E)man’s heart was given to it.

^5 (F)“And suddenly another beast, a second, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And they said thus to it: ‘Arise, devour much flesh!’

⁶ “After this I looked, and there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird. The beast also had ^(G)four heads, and dominion was given to it.

⁷ “After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, ^(H)a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, ^(I)and it had ten horns. ⁸ I was considering the horns, and ^(J)there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes ^(K)of a man, ^(L)and a mouth speaking ^[c]pompous words.

Vision of the Ancient of Days

¹¹ “I watched then because of the sound of the ^[f]pompous words which the horn was speaking; ^(T)I watched till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given to the burning flame. ¹² As for the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.

Daniel’s Visions Interpreted

¹⁵ “I, Daniel, was grieved in my spirit ^[g]within my body, and the visions of my head troubled me. ¹⁶ I came near to one of those who stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things: ¹⁷ ‘Those great beasts, which are four, are four ^[h]kings which arise out of the earth. ¹⁸ But ^(Y)the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.’

¹⁹ “Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet; ²⁰ and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth which spoke ^[i]pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows.

²¹ “I was watching; ^(Z)and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them, ²² until the Ancient of Days came, ^(AA)and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom.

²³ “Thus he said:

²⁸ “This is the end of the ^[k]account. As for me, Daniel, ^(AN)my thoughts greatly troubled me, and my countenance changed; but I ^(AO)kept the matter in my heart.”

Vision of a Ram and a Goat

8 In^[a] the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me—to me, Daniel—after the one that appeared to me ^(A)the first time. ² I saw in the vision, and it so happened while I was looking, that I was in ^(B)Shushan,^[b] the ^[c]citadel, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision that I was by the River Ulai. ³ Then I lifted my eyes and saw, and there, standing beside the river, was a ram which had two horns, and the two horns were high; but one was ^(C)higher than the other, and the higher one came up last. ⁴ I saw the ram pushing westward, northward, and southward, so that no animal could ^[d]withstand him; nor was there any that could deliver from his hand, ^(D)but he did according to his will and became great.

⁵ And as I was considering, suddenly a male goat came from the west, across the surface of the whole earth, without touching the ground; and the goat had a notable ^(E)horn between his eyes. ⁶ Then he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing beside the river, and ran at him with furious power. ⁷ And I saw him confronting the ram; he was moved with rage against him, ^[e]attacked the ram, and broke his two horns. There was no power in the ram to withstand him, but he cast him down to the ground and trampled him; and there was no one that could deliver the ram from his hand.

⁸ Therefore the male goat grew very great; but when he became strong, the large horn was broken, and in place of it ^(F)four notable ones came up toward the four winds of heaven. ^9 (G)And out of one of them came a little horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, ^(H)toward the east, and toward the ^(I)Glorious Land. ^10 (J)And it grew up to ^(K)the host of heaven; and ^(L)it cast down some of the host and some of the stars to the ground, and trampled them. ^11 (M)He even exalted himself as high as ^(N)the Prince of the host; ^(O)and by him ^(P)the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of ^[f]His sanctuary was cast down. ¹² Because of transgression, ^(Q)an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast ^(R)truth down to the ground. He ^(S)did all this and prospered.

¹³ Then I heard ^(T)a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was speaking, “How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression ^[g]of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled underfoot?”

¹⁴ And he said to me, “For two thousand three hundred ^[h]days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.”

Gabriel Interprets the Vision

¹⁵ Then it happened, when I, Daniel, had seen the vision and ^(U)was seeking the meaning, that suddenly there stood before me ^(V)one having the appearance of a man. ¹⁶ And I heard a man’s voice ^(W)between the banks of the Ulai, who called, and said, ^(X)“Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.” ¹⁷ So he came near where I stood, and when he came I was afraid and ^(Y)fell on my face; but he said to me, “Understand, son of man, that the vision refers to the time of the end.”

^18 (Z)Now, as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep with my face to the ground; ^(AA)but he touched me, and stood me upright. ¹⁹ And he said, “Look, I am making known to you what shall happen in the latter time of the indignation; ^(AB)for at the appointed time the end shall be. ²⁰ The ram which you saw, having the two horns—they are the kings of Media and Persia. ²¹ And the ^[i]male goat is the ^[j]kingdom of Greece. The large horn that is between its eyes ^(AC)is the first king. ^22 (AD)As for the broken horn and the four that stood up in its place, four kingdoms shall arise out of that nation, but not with its power.

^27 (AN)And I, Daniel, fainted and was sick for days; afterward I arose and went about the king’s business. I was ^[o]astonished by the vision, but no one understood it.

Warring Kings of North and South

11 “Also ^(A)in the first year of ^(B)Darius the Mede, I, even I, stood up to confirm and strengthen him.) ² And now I will tell you the truth: Behold, three more kings will arise in Persia, and the fourth shall be far richer than them all; by his strength, through his riches, he shall stir up all against the realm of Greece. ³ Then ^(C)a mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion, and ^(D)do according to his will. ⁴ And when he has arisen, ^(E)his kingdom shall be broken up and divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not among his posterity ^(F)nor according to his dominion with which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be uprooted, even for others besides these.

Warring Kings of North and South

⁵ “Also the king of the South shall become strong, as well as one of his princes; and he shall gain power over him and have dominion. His dominion shall be a great dominion. ⁶ And at the end of some years they shall join forces, for the daughter of the king of the South shall go to the king of the North to make an agreement; but she shall not retain the power of her ^[a]authority, and neither he nor his ^[b]authority shall stand; but she shall be given up, with those who brought her, and with him who begot her, and with him who strengthened her in those times. ⁷ But from a branch of her roots one shall arise in his place, who shall come with an army, enter the fortress of the king of the North, and deal with them and prevail. ⁸ And he shall also carry their gods captive to Egypt, with their ^[c]princes and their precious articles of silver and gold; and he shall continue more years than the king of the North.

⁹ “Also the king of the North shall come to the kingdom of the king of the South, but shall return to his own land. ¹⁰ However his sons shall stir up strife, and assemble a multitude of great forces; and one shall certainly come ^(G)and overwhelm and pass through; then he shall return ^(H)to his fortress and stir up strife.

¹¹ “And the king of the South shall be ^(I)moved with rage, and go out and fight with him, with the king of the North, who shall muster a great multitude; but the ^(J)multitude shall be given into the hand of his enemy. ¹² When he has taken away the multitude, his heart will be ^[d]lifted up; and he will cast down tens of thousands, but he will not prevail. ¹³ For the king of the North will return and muster a multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come at the end of some years with a great army and much equipment.

¹⁴ “Now in those times many shall rise up against the king of the South. Also, ^[e]violent men of your people shall exalt themselves ^[f]in fulfillment of the vision, but they shall ^(K)fall. ¹⁵ So the king of the North shall come and ^(L)build a siege mound, and take a fortified city; and the ^[g]forces of the South shall not withstand him. Even his choice troops shall have no strength to resist. ¹⁶ But he who comes against him ^(M)shall do according to his own will, and ^(N)no one shall stand against him. He shall stand in the Glorious Land with destruction in his ^[h]power.

¹⁷ “He shall also ^(O)set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdom, and ^[i]upright ones with him; thus shall he do. And he shall give him the daughter of women to destroy it; but she shall not stand with him, ^(P)or be for him. ¹⁸ After this he shall turn his face to the coastlands, and shall take many. But a ruler shall bring the reproach against them to an end; and with the reproach removed, he shall turn back on him. ¹⁹ Then he shall turn his face toward the fortress of his own land; but he shall ^(Q)stumble and fall, ^(R)and not be found.

²⁰ “There shall arise in his place one who imposes taxes on the glorious kingdom; but within a few days he shall be destroyed, but not in anger or in battle. ²¹ And in his place ^(S)shall arise a vile person, to whom they will not give the honor of royalty; but he shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue. ²² With the ^[j]force of a ^(T)flood they shall be swept away from before him and be broken, ^(U)and also the prince of the covenant. ²³ And after the league is made with him ^(V)he shall act deceitfully, for he shall come up and become strong with a small number of people. ²⁴ He shall enter peaceably, even into the richest places of the province; and he shall do what his fathers have not done, nor his forefathers: he shall disperse among them the plunder, ^[k]spoil, and riches; and he shall devise his plans against the strongholds, but only for a time.

²⁵ “He shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the South with a great army. And the king of the South shall be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand, for they shall devise plans against him. ²⁶ Yes, those who eat of the portion of his delicacies shall destroy him; his army shall ^[l]be swept away, and many shall fall down slain. ²⁷ Both these kings’ hearts shall be bent on evil, and they shall speak lies at the same table; but it shall not prosper, for the end will still be at the ^(W)appointed time. ²⁸ While returning to his land with great riches, his heart shall be moved against the holy covenant; so he shall do damage and return to his own land.

The Northern King’s Blasphemies

²⁹ “At the appointed time he shall return and go toward the south; but it shall not be like the former or the latter. ^30 (X)For ships from ^[m]Cyprus shall come against him; therefore he shall be grieved, and return in rage against the holy covenant, and do damage.

“So he shall return and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant. ³¹ And ^[n]forces shall be mustered by him, ^(Y)and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation. ³² Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall ^[o]corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits. ³³ And those of the people who understand shall instruct many; yet for many days they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plundering. ³⁴ Now when they fall, they shall be aided with a little help; but many shall join with them by ^[p]intrigue. ³⁵ And some of those of understanding shall fall, ^(Z)to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time.

³⁶ “Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall ^(AA)exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done. ³⁷ He shall regard neither the ^[q]God of his fathers nor the desire of women, ^(AB)nor regard any god; for he shall exalt himself above them all. ³⁸ But in their place he shall honor a god of fortresses; and a god which his fathers did not know he shall honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and pleasant things. ³⁹ Thus he shall act against the strongest fortresses with a foreign god, which he shall acknowledge, and advance its glory; and he shall cause them to rule over many, and divide the land for ^[r]gain.

The Northern King’s Conquests

⁴⁰ “At the ^(AC)time of the end the king of the South shall attack him; and the king of the North shall come against him ^(AD)like a whirlwind, with chariots, ^(AE)horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through. ⁴¹ He shall also enter the Glorious Land, and many countries shall be overthrown; but these shall escape from his hand: ^(AF)Edom, Moab, and the ^[s]prominent people of Ammon. ⁴² He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of ^(AG)Egypt shall not escape. ⁴³ He shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; also the Libyans and Ethiopians shall follow ^(AH)at his heels. ⁴⁴ But news from the east and the north shall trouble him; therefore he shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many. ⁴⁵ And he shall plant the tents of his palace between the seas and ^(AI)the glorious holy mountain; ^(AJ)yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him.