Daniel 6-8

New American Bible (Revised Edition)

Chapter 6

¹ And Darius the Mede^[a] succeeded to the kingdom at the age of sixty-two.

The Lions’ Den. ² Darius decided to appoint over his entire kingdom one hundred and twenty satraps. ³ These were accountable to three ministers, one of whom was Daniel; the satraps reported to them, so that the king should suffer no loss. ⁴ Daniel outshone all the ministers and satraps because an extraordinary spirit was in him, and the king considered setting him over the entire kingdom. ⁵ Then the ministers and satraps tried to find grounds for accusation against Daniel regarding the kingdom. But they could not accuse him of any corruption. Because he was trustworthy, no fault or corruption was to be found in him. ⁶ Then these men said to themselves, “We shall find no grounds for accusation against this Daniel except in connection with the law of his God.” ⁷ So these ministers and satraps stormed in to the king and said to him, “King Darius, live forever! ^8 [b](A)All the ministers of the kingdom, the prefects, satraps, counselors, and governors agree that the following prohibition ought to be put in force by royal decree: for thirty days, whoever makes a petition to anyone, divine or human, except to you, O king, shall be thrown into a den of lions. ⁹ Now, O king, let the prohibition be issued over your signature, immutable and irrevocable^[c] according to the law of the Medes and Persians.” ¹⁰ So King Darius signed the prohibition into law.

¹¹ Even after Daniel heard that this law had been signed, he continued his custom of going home to kneel in prayer and give thanks to his God in the upper chamber three times a day, with the windows open toward Jerusalem. ¹² So these men stormed in and found Daniel praying and pleading before his God. ¹³ Then they went to remind the king about the prohibition: “Did you not sign a decree, O king, that for thirty days, whoever makes a petition to anyone, divine or human, except to you, O king, shall be cast into a den of lions?” The king answered them, “The decree is absolute, irrevocable under the law of the Medes and Persians.” ¹⁴ To this they replied, “Daniel, one of the Jewish exiles, has paid no attention to you, O king, or to the prohibition you signed; three times a day he offers his prayer.” ¹⁵ The king was deeply grieved at this news and he made up his mind to save Daniel; he worked till sunset to rescue him. ¹⁶ But these men pressed the king. “Keep in mind, O king,” they said, “that under the law of the Medes and Persians every royal prohibition or decree is irrevocable.” ¹⁷ So the king ordered Daniel to be brought and cast into the lions’ den.^[d] To Daniel he said, “Your God, whom you serve so constantly, must save you.” ¹⁸ To forestall any tampering, the king sealed with his own ring and the rings of the lords the stone that had been brought to block the opening of the den.

¹⁹ Then the king returned to his palace for the night; he refused to eat and he dismissed the entertainers. Since sleep was impossible for him, ²⁰ the king rose very early the next morning and hastened to the lions’ den. ²¹ As he drew near, he cried out to Daniel sorrowfully, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God whom you serve so constantly been able to save you from the lions?” ²² Daniel answered the king: “O king, live forever! ²³ My God sent his angel and closed the lions’ mouths so that they have not hurt me.^(B) For I have been found innocent before him; neither have I done you any harm, O king!” ²⁴ This gave the king great joy. At his order Daniel was brought up from the den; he was found to be unharmed because he trusted in his God. ²⁵ The king then ordered the men who had accused Daniel, along with their children and their wives, to be cast into the lions’ den. Before they reached the bottom of the den, the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.

²⁶ Then King Darius wrote to the nations and peoples of every language, wherever they dwell on the earth: “May your peace abound! ²⁷ I decree that throughout my royal domain the God of Daniel is to be reverenced and feared:

²⁹ So Daniel fared well during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.^(C)

II. Daniel’s Visions

Chapter 7

The Beasts and the Judgment.^{[e] 1} In the first year of King Belshazzar of Babylon, as Daniel lay in bed he had a dream, visions in his head. Then he wrote down the dream; the account began: ² In the vision I saw during the night, suddenly the four winds of heaven stirred up the great sea,^{[f] 3} from which emerged four immense beasts,^(D) each different from the others. ⁴ The first was like a lion, but with eagle’s wings.^[g] While I watched, the wings were plucked; it was raised from the ground to stand on two feet like a human being, and given a human mind. ⁵ The second beast was like a bear;^[h] it was raised up on one side, and among the teeth in its mouth were three tusks. It was given the order, “Arise, devour much flesh.” ⁶ After this I looked and saw another beast, like a leopard;^[i] on its back were four wings like those of a bird, and it had four heads. To this beast dominion was given. ^7 [j]After this, in the visions of the night I saw a fourth beast, terrifying, horrible, and of extraordinary strength; it had great iron teeth with which it devoured and crushed, and it trampled with its feet what was left. It differed from the beasts that preceded it. It had ten horns. ⁸ I was considering the ten horns it had, when suddenly another, a little horn, sprang out of their midst, and three of the previous horns were torn away to make room for it. This horn had eyes like human eyes, and a mouth that spoke arrogantly. ^9 [k]As I watched,

The court was convened, and the books were opened. ¹¹ I watched, then, from the first of the arrogant words which the horn spoke, until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the burning fire. ¹² As for the other beasts, their dominion was taken away, but they were granted a prolongation of life for a time and a season. ¹³ As the visions during the night continued, I saw coming with the clouds of heaven^(F)

¹⁵ Because of this, my spirit was anguished and I, Daniel, was terrified by my visions. ¹⁶ I approached one of those present and asked him the truth of all this; in answer, he made known to me its meaning: ¹⁷ “These four great beasts stand for four kings which shall arise on the earth. ¹⁸ But the holy ones^[m] of the Most High shall receive the kingship, to possess it forever and ever.”

¹⁹ Then I wished to make certain about the fourth beast, so very terrible and different from the others, devouring and crushing with its iron teeth and bronze claws, and trampling with its feet what was left; ²⁰ and about the ten horns on its head, and the other one that sprang up, before which three horns fell; and about the horn with the eyes and the mouth that spoke arrogantly, which appeared greater than its fellows. ²¹ For, as I watched, that horn made war against the holy ones and was victorious ²² until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was pronounced in favor of the holy ones of the Most High, and the time arrived for the holy ones to possess the kingship. ²³ He answered me thus:

²⁸ This is the end of the report. I, Daniel, was greatly terrified by my thoughts, and my face became pale, but I kept the matter to myself.^[o]

Chapter 8

The Ram and the He-goat.^{[p] 1} After this first vision, I, Daniel, had another, in the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar. ² In my vision I saw myself in the fortress of Susa^[q] in the province of Elam; I was beside the river Ulai. ³ I looked up and saw standing by the river a ram with two great horns, the one larger and newer than the other. ⁴ I saw the ram butting toward the west, north, and south. No beast could withstand it or be rescued from its power; it did what it pleased and grew powerful.

⁵ As I was reflecting, a he-goat with a prominent horn on its forehead suddenly came from the west across the whole earth without touching the ground. ⁶ It came to the two-horned ram I had seen standing by the river, and rushed toward it with savage force. ⁷ I saw it reach the ram; enraged, the he-goat attacked and shattered both its horns. The ram did not have the strength to withstand it; the he-goat threw the ram to the ground and trampled upon it. No one could rescue the ram from its power.

⁸ The he-goat grew very powerful, but at the height of its strength the great horn was shattered, and in its place came up four others, facing the four winds of heaven. ⁹ Out of one of them came a little horn^[r] which grew and grew toward the south, the east, and the glorious land. ¹⁰ It grew even to the host of heaven,^[s] so that it cast down to earth some of the host and some of the stars and trampled on them. ¹¹ It grew even to the Prince of the host, from whom the daily sacrifice was removed, and whose sanctuary was cast down. ¹² The host was given over together with the daily sacrifice in the course of transgression. It cast truth to the ground, and was succeeding in its undertaking.

¹³ I heard a holy one speaking, and another said to whichever one it was that spoke, “How long shall the events of this vision last concerning the daily sacrifice, the desolating sin,^[t] the giving over of the sanctuary and the host for trampling?” ¹⁴ He answered him, “For two thousand three hundred evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary shall be set right.”

¹⁵ While I, Daniel, sought the meaning of the vision I had seen, one who looked like a man stood before me, ¹⁶ and on the Ulai I heard a human voice that cried out, “Gabriel,^[u] explain the vision to this man.” ¹⁷ When he came near where I was standing, I fell prostrate in terror. But he said to me, “Understand, O son of man, that the vision refers to the end time.”^{[v] 18} As he spoke to me, I fell forward unconscious; he touched me and made me stand up. ¹⁹ “I will show you,” he said, “what is to happen in the last days of wrath; for it is for the appointed time of the end.

²⁰ “The two-horned ram you saw represents the kings of the Medes and Persians.^{[w] 21} The he-goat is the king of the Greeks, and the great horn on its forehead is the first king. ²² The four that rose in its place when it was shattered are four kingdoms that will issue from his nation, but without his strength.

²⁷ I, Daniel, was weak and ill for some days; then I arose and took care of the king’s affairs. But the vision left me desolate, without understanding.