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36 “Then the king will do as he pleases,[a] and he will exalt himself and will consider himself above any god, and he will speak horrendous things against[b] the God of gods, yet he will succeed until the period of anger is finished, for what is determined will be done. 37 He will not pay respect to the gods of his ancestors,[c] or to the darling of women, and not to any god will he pay respect, for he will consider himself great over all gods. 38 But instead[d] he will honor the god of fortresses, a god whom his ancestors[e] did not know. He will honor him with gold, and with silver, and with precious stones[f] and with costly gifts. 39 And he will deal with the fortified strongholds[g] with the help of a foreign god;[h] and he will increase wealth for whoever will acknowledge him, and he will cause them to rule[i] over the many, and he will distribute land for a price.
40 “And at the time of the end the king of the south will attack him, and the king of the north will storm against him with chariots[j] and with horsemen and with many ships, and he will advance against the countries and he will sweep through like a flood.[k] 41 And he will come into the beautiful land[l] and many will fall victim, but these will escape from his power: Edom and Moab and the best part[m] of the Ammonites.[n] 42 And he will stretch out his hand against countries and the land of Egypt will not escape.[o] 43 And he will rule over the treasures of gold and the silver and over all the precious things of Egypt; and the Libyans and the Cushites will follow in his footsteps. 44 But reports will terrify him from the east and from the north, and he will go out with great fury to destroy and to exterminate many. 45 And then he will pitch the tents of his palace between the sea and the beautiful holy mountain,[p] and he will come to his end, and there is no one[q] helping him.”
The Time of the Judgment and the Resurrection of Two Groups
12 “Now at that time, Michael, the great prince, will arise, the protector[r] over the sons of your people, and it will be a time of distress that has not been since your people have been[s] a nation until that time. And at that time your people will escape, everyone who is found[t] written in the scroll.[u] 2 And many from those sleeping in the dusty ground[v] will awake, some to everlasting life[w] and some to disgrace and everlasting contempt.[x] 3 But the ones having insight will shine like the brightness of the expanse, and the ones providing justice for the many[y] will be like the stars forever and ever.[z] 4 But you, Daniel, keep the words secret and seal the scroll[aa] until the time of the end; many will run back and forth and knowledge will increase.”
5 Then I looked, I myself, Daniel, and look, there were two others standing: one on this bank of the stream and one on the other.[ab] 6 Then he said to the man who was clothed in linen who was above[ac] the water of the stream,[ad] “How long until[ae] the end of the wonders?” 7 And I heard the man who was clothed in linen who was above[af] the water of the stream,[ag] and he raised his right hand and his left hand to heaven and he swore by the one who lives forever[ah] that an appointed time, appointed times, and half an appointed time would pass when the shattering of the power of the holy people[ai] would be completed;[aj] then all these things will be accomplished.
Daniel Seeks Additional Insights
8 Now I myself heard, but I did not understand, and I said, “My lord, what will be the outcome of these things?” 9 And he said, “Go, Daniel, for the words are secret and are sealed up until the time of the end. 10 Many will be purified and will be cleansed and will be refined, but the wicked will act wickedly and none of the wicked will understand,[ak] but those who have insight[al] will understand. 11 And from the time the regular burnt offering is removed and the abomination that causes desolation is set up[am] there will be one thousand two hundred and ninety days. 12 Happy is the one who is persevering, and attains to the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five days. 13 But you, go on to the end and rest, and you will arise for your allotted inheritance at the end of the days.”
How to Recognize the Spirit of God
4 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to determine if they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses Jesus Christ[a] has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God, and this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.
4 You are from God, little children, and have conquered them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore[b] they speak from the world and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. The one who knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit.
God’s Love Revealed
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been fathered by God and knows God. 8 The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 By this the love of God is revealed in us: that God sent his one and only Son into the world in order that we may live through him. 10 In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation[c] for our sins.
11 Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God resides in us and his love is perfected in us. 13 By this we know that we reside in him and he in us: that[d] he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God resides in him and he in God. 16 And we have come to know and have believed the love that God has in us. God is love, and the one who resides in love resides in God, and God resides in him. 17 By this love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment, because just as that one is, so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear includes punishment, and the one who is afraid has not been perfected in love. 19 We love, because he first loved us.
20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar, for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen is not able to love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this is the commandment we have from him: that the one who loves God should love his brother also.
Prayer for Yahweh’s Action in the Face of Scorn
A song of ascents.[a]
123 I lift up my eyes to you,
the one enthroned[b] in the heavens.
2 Behold, as the eyes of servants
look to the hand of their master,[c]
as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to Yahweh our God,
until he is gracious to us.
3 Be gracious to us, O Yahweh, be gracious to us,
for long enough we have had our fill of contempt.
4 For long enough our soul has had its fill of
the derision of the self-confident,
the contempt of the arrogant.
2 When the righteous are numerous, the people will rejoice,
but when the wicked are ruling, people will groan.
3 A man who loves wisdom will make his parents glad,
but the friend of prostitutes[a] will squander his wealth.
4 By justice a king gives stability to a land,
but a man of bribes will ruin it.
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