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.

Daniel’s Prayer for the People

9 In the first year ^(AO)of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans— ² in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the Lord through ^(AP)Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.

^3 (AQ)Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. ⁴ And I prayed to the Lord my God, and made confession, and said, “O ^(AR)Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, ^5 (AS)we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments. ^6 (AT)Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land. ⁷ O Lord, ^(AU)righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You.

⁸ “O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You. ^9 (AV)To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him. ¹⁰ We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. ¹¹ Yes, ^(AW)all Israel has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore the curse and the oath written in the ^(AX)Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against Him. ¹² And He has ^(AY)confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; ^(AZ)for under the whole heaven such has never been done as what has been done to Jerusalem.

^13 (BA)“As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us; ^(BB)yet we have not made our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth. ¹⁴ Therefore the Lord has ^(BC)kept the disaster in mind, and brought it upon us; for ^(BD)the Lord our God is righteous in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His voice. ¹⁵ And now, O Lord our God, ^(BE)who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made Yourself ^(BF)a name, as it is this day—we have sinned, we have done wickedly!

¹⁶ “O Lord, ^(BG)according to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, ^(BH)Your holy mountain; because for our sins, ^(BI)and for the iniquities of our fathers, ^(BJ)Jerusalem and Your people ^(BK)are a reproach to all those around us. ¹⁷ Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, ^(BL)and ^(BM)for the Lord’s sake ^[p]cause Your face to shine on ^[q]Your sanctuary, ^(BN)which is desolate. ^18 (BO)O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes ^(BP)and see our desolations, and the city ^(BQ)which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies. ¹⁹ O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name.”

The Seventy-Weeks Prophecy

²⁰ Now while I was speaking, praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God, ²¹ yes, while I was speaking in prayer, the man ^(BR)Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, ^[r]being caused to fly swiftly, reached me about the time of the evening offering. ²² And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill to understand. ²³ At the beginning of your supplications the ^[s]command went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly ^(BS)beloved; therefore ^(BT)consider the matter, and understand the vision:

Dedication to Theophilus

1 Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those ^(A)things which ^[a]have been fulfilled among us, ² just as those who ^(B)from the beginning were ^(C)eyewitnesses and ministers of the word ^(D)delivered them to us, ³ it seemed good to me also, having ^[b]had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, ^(E)most excellent Theophilus, ^4 (F)that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed.

John’s Birth Announced to Zacharias

⁵ There was ^(G)in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, ^(H)of the division of ^(I)Abijah. His ^(J)wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. ⁶ And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. ⁷ But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.

⁸ So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, ⁹ according to the custom of the priesthood, ^[c]his lot fell ^(K)to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. ^10 (L)And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense. ¹¹ Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of ^(M)the altar of incense. ¹² And when Zacharias saw him, ^(N)he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

¹³ But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and ^(O)you shall call his name John. ¹⁴ And you will have joy and gladness, and ^(P)many will rejoice at his birth. ¹⁵ For he will be ^(Q)great in the sight of the Lord, and ^(R)shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, ^(S)even from his mother’s womb. ¹⁶ And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. ^17 (T)He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

¹⁸ And Zacharias said to the angel, ^(U)“How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”

¹⁹ And the angel answered and said to him, “I am ^(V)Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you ^[d]these glad ^(W)tidings. ²⁰ But behold, ^(X)you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.”

²¹ And the people waited for Zacharias, and marveled that he lingered so long in the temple. ²² But when he came out, he could not speak to them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he beckoned to them and remained speechless.

²³ So it was, as soon as ^(Y)the days of his service were completed, that he departed to his own house. ²⁴ Now after those days his wife Elizabeth conceived; and she hid herself five months, saying, ²⁵ “Thus the Lord has dealt with me, in the days when He looked on me, to ^(Z)take away my reproach among people.”

Christ’s Birth Announced to Mary

²⁶ Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ²⁷ to a virgin ^(AA)betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ And having come in, the angel said to her, ^(AB)“Rejoice, highly favored one, ^(AC)the Lord is with you; ^[e]blessed are you among women!”

²⁹ But ^[f]when she saw him, ^(AD)she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. ³⁰ Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found ^(AE)favor with God. ^31 (AF)And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and ^(AG)shall call His name Jesus. ³² He will be great, ^(AH)and will be called the Son of the Highest; and ^(AI)the Lord God will give Him the ^(AJ)throne of His ^(AK)father David. ^33 (AL)And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

³⁴ Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I ^[g]do not know a man?”

³⁵ And the angel answered and said to her, ^(AM)“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called ^(AN)the Son of God. ³⁶ Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. ³⁷ For ^(AO)with God nothing will be impossible.”

³⁸ Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Mary Visits Elizabeth

³⁹ Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, ^(AP)to a city of Judah, ⁴⁰ and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was ^(AQ)filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴² Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, ^(AR)“Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ⁴³ But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴ For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. ^45 (AS)Blessed is she who ^[h]believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”

The Song of Mary

⁴⁶ And Mary said:

⁵⁶ And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house.

Birth of John the Baptist

⁵⁷ Now Elizabeth’s full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son. ⁵⁸ When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they ^(BK)rejoiced with her.

Circumcision of John the Baptist

⁵⁹ So it was, ^(BL)on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zacharias. ⁶⁰ His mother answered and said, ^(BM)“No; he shall be called John.”

⁶¹ But they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.” ⁶² So they made signs to his father—what he would have him called.

⁶³ And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, “His name is John.” So they all marveled. ⁶⁴ Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, praising God. ⁶⁵ Then fear came on all who dwelt around them; and all these sayings were discussed throughout all the hill country of Judea. ⁶⁶ And all those who heard them ^(BN)kept them in their hearts, saying, “What kind of child will this be?” And ^(BO)the hand of the Lord was with him.

Zacharias’ Prophecy

⁶⁷ Now his father Zacharias ^(BP)was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:

⁸⁰ So ^(CE)the child grew and became strong in spirit, and ^(CF)was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.