Daniel 11:36-12:13

Contemporary English Version

³⁶^(A) This king will do as he pleases. He will proudly claim to be greater than any god and will insult the only true God. Indeed, he will be successful until God is no longer angry with his people. ³⁷This king will reject the gods his ancestors worshiped and the god preferred by women.^[a] In fact, he will put himself above all gods ³⁸and worship only the so-called god of fortresses, who was unknown to his ancestors. And he will honor it with gold, silver, precious stones, and other costly gifts. ³⁹With the help of this foreign god, he will capture the strongest fortresses. Everyone who worships this god will be put in a position of power and rewarded with wealth and land.

Part Three: The Time of the End

⁴⁰At the time of the end, the king of the south will attack the kingdom of the north. But its king will rush out like a storm with war chariots, cavalry, and many ships. Indeed, his forces will flood one country after another, ⁴¹and when they reach the holy land,^[b] tens of thousands will be killed. But the countries of Edom and Moab and the ruler of Ammon^[c] will escape.

⁴²The king of the north will invade many countries, including Egypt, ⁴³and he will take its rich treasures of gold and silver. He will also conquer Libya and Ethiopia.^[d] ⁴⁴But he will be alarmed by news from the east and the north, and he will become furious and cause great destruction. ⁴⁵After this, he will set up camp between the Mediterranean Sea and Mount Zion. Then he will be destroyed, and no one will be able to save him.

Part Four: The Dead Will Rise to Life

12 ^(B) Michael, the chief of the angels, is the protector of your people, and he will come at a time of terrible suffering, the worst in all of history. And your people who have their names written in The Book^[e] will be protected. ²^(C) Many of those who lie dead in the ground will rise from death. Some of them will be given eternal life, and others will receive nothing but eternal shame and disgrace. ³^(D) Everyone who has been wise will shine as bright as the sky above, and everyone who has led others to please God will shine forever like the stars.

⁴^(E) Daniel, I now command you to keep the message of this book secret until the end of time, even though many people will go everywhere, searching for the knowledge to be found in it.^[f]

The End of Time

⁵Daniel wrote:

I looked around and saw two other people—one on this side of the river and one on the other side. ⁶The angel who had spoken to me was dressed in linen and was standing upstream from them.^[g] So one of the two beside the river asked him, “How long before these amazing things happen?”

⁷^(F) The angel then raised both hands toward heaven and said, “In the name of the God who lives forever, I solemnly promise that it will be a time, two times, and half a time.^[h] Everything will be over, when the suffering of God's holy people comes to an end.”

⁸I heard what the angel said, but I didn't understand. So I asked, “Sir, how will it all end?”

The angel in my vision then replied:

⁹Daniel, go about your business, because the meaning of this message will remain secret until the end of time. ¹⁰^(G) Many people will have their hearts and lives made pure and clean, but those who are evil will keep on being evil and never understand. Only the wise will understand. ¹¹^(H) There will be 1,290 days from the time that the daily sacrifices are stopped, until someone sets up the “Horrible Thing” that causes destruction. ¹²God will bless everyone who patiently waits until 1,335 days have gone by.

¹³So, Daniel, be faithful until the end! You will rest, and at the end of time, you will rise from death to receive your reward.

Footnotes

11.37 god preferred by women: Perhaps Tammuz or Adonis, which were popular among the women of that time.
11.41 the holy land: See the note at 8.9.
11.41 the ruler of Ammon: Or “what is left of Ammon.”
11.43 Ethiopia: The Hebrew text has “Cush,” which was a region south of Egypt that included parts of the present countries of Ethiopia and Sudan.
12.1 The Book: Either the book with the names of God's people in it or the book with the record of the good and evil that people have done.
12.4 even though … in it: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
12.6 angel … upstream from them: See 10.4-6.
12.7 a time, two times, and half a time: Or “a year, two years, and half a year,” that is, about 1,260 days.