Old/New Testament
The Vision of the Ram and Goat
8 [a]“During the third year of King Belshazzar’s reign, I, Daniel, saw a vision after the earlier vision that had appeared to me. 2 As I observed the vision, I looked around the citadel of Susa in Elam Province. While I watched, I found myself beside the Ulai Canal. 3 “Then I turned my head[b] to look, and to my surprise, a two-horned ram was standing beside the canal. The two horns grew long,[c] the first one growing longer than[d] the second, with the longer one springing up last. 4 I watched the ram charging westward, northward, and southward. No animal could stand before him, nor was there anyone who could deliver from his control.[e] He did as he pleased and exalted himself.
5 “As I watched and wondered, a male goat was coming from the west over the surface of the entire earth without touching the ground. The goat had a distinctive horn between its eyes. 6 It approached the ram with the two horns that I had observed while standing beside the canal, and charged at him, out of control with rage.[f] 7 I saw it approach the ram, overflowing with fury at him, and run into him with the full force of its strength. The goat[g] shattered the ram’s[h] two horns, and the ram could not oppose it. So the goat[i] threw him to the ground and trampled him. No one could rescue the ram from its control.[j] 8 Then the goat grew extremely great, but when it was strong, its great horn was shattered. In its place, four distinctive horns grew out in all directions.”[k]
The Insignificant Horn
9 “A somewhat insignificant horn emerged from one of them. It moved[l] rapidly[m] against the south, against the east, and against the Glory.[n] 10 Then it moved against the Heavenly Army. It persuaded some of the Heavenly Army to fall to the earth, along with some of the stars, and it trampled them. 11 Then it set itself in arrogant opposition to the Prince of the Heavenly Army, from whom the regular burnt offering was taken away, in order to overthrow his sanctuary. 12 Because of the transgression, the Heavenly Army will be given over, along with the regular burnt offering, and in that rebellion truth will be cast to the ground, while he continues to prosper and to act.”
The Duration of the Desolation
13 “Then I heard one holy person speaking, and another holy person addressed the one who was speaking: ‘In the vision about the regular burnt offering, how much time elapses while the desecration terrifies and both the Holy Place and the Heavenly Army are trampled?’
14 “He told me, ‘For 2,300 days.[o] Then the Holy Place will be restored.’”
Gabriel Interprets the Vision
15 “After I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I tried to understand it. All of a sudden, there was standing in front of me one who appeared to be valiant. 16 I heard the voice of a man calling out from the Ulai Canal,[p] ‘Gabriel, interpret what that fellow has been seeing.’
17 “As he approached where I was standing, I became terrified and fell on my face. But he told me, ‘Son of man, understand that the vision pertains to the time of the end.’
18 “While he had been speaking with me, I had fainted[q] on my face, but he touched me and enabled me to stand upright on my feet. 19 Then he said,
‘Pay attention! I’m going to brief you about what will happen at the end of the period of wrath, because its end is appointed. 20 The ram that you saw with a pair of horns are the kings of Media and Persia. 21 The demonic[r] goat is the king of Greece,[s] and the great horn between its eyes is its first king. 22 The shattered horn[t] and the four that took its place are four kingdoms that will come from his nation, but they will not have his strength.
23 “Toward the end of their rule, as the desecrations proceed, an insolent king will arise, proficient at deception. 24 Mighty will be his skills, but not from his own abilities. He’ll be remarkably destructive, will succeed, and will do whatever he wants, destroying mighty men and the holy people. 25 Through his skill he’ll cause deceit to prosper under his leadership. He’ll promote himself and will destroy many while they are secure. He’ll take a stand against the Prince of Princes, yet he’ll be crushed without human help.[u] 26 The vision about the twilights and dawnings that has been related is trustworthy, but keep its vision secret, because it pertains to the distant future.’
27 Then I, Daniel, was exhausted and ill for days, but afterward I got up and went about the king’s business. Nevertheless, I was astonished by the vision, and could not understand it.”
Daniel’s Prayer
9 “In the first year of the reign of Darius son of Ahasuerus, a descendant of the Medes, who was made king over the kingdom of the Chaldeans[v]— 2 in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, noted in the Scripture the total years that were assigned[w] by the message from the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem: 70 years.
3 “So I turned my attention to the Lord God, seeking him in prayer and supplication, accompanied with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. 4 I prayed to the Lord my God, confessing and saying:
‘Lord! Great and awesome God, who keeps his[x] covenant and gracious love for those who love him and obey his commandments, 5 we’ve sinned, we’ve practiced evil, we’ve acted wickedly, and we’ve rebelled, turning away from your commands and from your regulations. 6 Furthermore, we haven’t listened to your servants, the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, to our officials, to our ancestors, and to all of the people of the land.
7 ‘To you, Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us, open humiliation—even to this day, to the men of Judah, the residents of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, both those who are nearby and those who are far away in all the lands to which you drove them because of their unfaithful acts that they committed against you.
8 ‘Open humiliation belongs to us, Lord, to our kings, our officials, and our ancestors, because we’ve sinned against you. 9 But to the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we’ve rebelled against him 10 and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by walking in his laws that he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 And all Israel flouted your Law, turning aside from it and not obeying your voice. Because we’ve sinned against him, the curse has been poured upon us, along with the oath written in the Law of Moses the servant of God.
12 ‘He has confirmed his accusation[y] that he spoke against us and against our rulers who governed us by bringing upon us great calamity, because nowhere in the universe[z] has anything been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. 13 As it’s written in the Law of Moses,[aa] all this calamity has befallen us, but we still haven’t sought the Lord our God by turning from our lawlessness to pay attention to your truth. 14 So the Lord watched for the right time to bring the calamity upon us, because the Lord our God is righteous regarding everything he does, but we have not obeyed his voice.
15 ‘And now, Lord our God, who brought your people from the land of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made a name for yourself that remains to this day—we’ve sinned. We’ve acted wickedly. 16 Lord, in view of all your righteous acts, please turn your anger and wrath away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain. Because of our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors, Jerusalem and your people have become an embarrassment to all of those around us.
17 ‘So now, O[ab] God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his requests, and look with favor on your desolate sanctuary, for the sake of the Lord. 18 Turn your ear and listen, O God. Open your eyes and look at our desolation and at the city that is called by your name. We’re not presenting our requests before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great compassion.
19 ‘Lord, listen!
‘Lord, forgive!
‘Lord, take note and take action!
‘For your own sake, don’t delay, my God, because your city and your people are called by your name.’”
Gabriel’s Answer: The Seventy Weeks
20 “While I was still speaking in prayer, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and placing my request in the presence of the Lord my God on behalf of the holy mountain of God— 21 while I was still speaking, Gabriel, the man of God whom I had seen in the previous vision, appeared to me about the time of the evening offering. 22 He gave instructions, and this is what he spoke to me:
‘Daniel, I’ve now come to give you insight and understanding. 23 Because you’re highly regarded, the answer was issued when you began your prayer, and I’ve come to tell you. Pay attention to my message and you’ll understand the vision. 24 Seventy weeks[ac] have been decreed concerning your people and your holy city: to restrain transgression, to put an end to sin, to make atonement for lawlessness, to establish everlasting righteousness, to conclude vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy Place. 25 So be informed and discern that seven weeks and 62 weeks will elapse[ad] from the issuance of the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed Commander.[ae] The plaza and moat will be rebuilt, though in troubled times. 26 Then after the 62 weeks, the anointed one[af] will be cut down (but not for himself).[ag] Then the people of the Coming Commander[ah] will destroy both the city and the Sanctuary. Its ending will come like a flood, and until the end there will be war, with desolations having been decreed. 27 He will make a binding covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he will suspend both the sacrifice and grain offerings. Destructive people will cause desolation on the uttermost edge[ai] of the Sanctuary[aj] until it is complete and what has been decreed is poured out on the desolator.’”
Daniel’s Vision
10 In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a message was revealed to Daniel (also known as Belteshazzar). The message was trustworthy and concerned a great conflict. He understood it and had insight concerning the vision.
2 “At that time I, Daniel, had been mourning for three straight weeks.[ak] 3 I ate no fancy foods—neither meat nor wine entered my mouth. Furthermore, I didn’t use any ointment until the end of the entire three weeks.[al] 4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, while I was beside the bank of the great Tigris[am] River, 5 I lifted up my eyes to look, and to my surprise, there was a certain man dressed in linen, whose waist was encircled with gold from Uphaz! 6 His body was like beryl,[an] his face flashed like lightning, his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and legs were like polished bronze, and his speech roared[ao] like that of a crowd.
7 “Now I, Daniel, was the only one to receive the vision—the men who were with me didn’t see it.[ap] However, an enormous fear overwhelmed them, so they ran away to hide, 8 and I was left alone to observe this magnificent vision. Nevertheless, no strength remained in me—my face lost its color, and I became weak. 9 As I listened to the sound of his words, I fell down on my face unconscious, with my face to the ground.”
Daniel is Given Understanding
10 “All of a sudden, a hand touched me and lifted me upon my hands and knees. 11 He told me, ‘Daniel, man highly regarded, understand the message that I’m about to relate to you. Stand up, because I’ve been sent to you.’ When he spoke this statement to me, I stood there trembling.
12 “‘Don’t be afraid, Daniel,’ he told me, ‘because from the first day that you committed yourself to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard. I’ve come in answer to[aq] your prayers. 13 However, the prince of the kingdom of Persia opposed me for 21 days. Then all of a sudden, Michael, one of the chief angels,[ar] came to assist me! I had been detained there near the kings of Persia. 14 Now I’ve come to help you understand what will happen to your people in the days to come, because the vision pertains to those days.’
15 “After he had spoken to me like this, I bowed my face to the ground, unable to speak. 16 But suddenly someone who resembled a human being touched my lips, so addressing the one who was standing in front of me, I opened my mouth and said, ‘Sir,[as] I’m overwhelmed with anguish by this vision. I have no strength left.[at] 17 So how can a servant of my lord talk with someone like you, sir?[au] And as for me, there’s no strength left in me, and I can hardly breathe.’
18 “Then this person who looked like a man touched me again and strengthened me 19 and said, ‘Don’t be afraid, man highly regarded. Be at peace, and be strong.’
“As soon as he spoke to me, I gained strength and replied, ‘Sir, please[av] speak, now that you’ve strengthened me.’
20 “Then he said, ‘Do you understand why I came to you? Soon I’ll return to fight the prince of Persia. I’m going forth to war—and take note—the prince of Greece[aw] is coming! 21 I’ll inform you about what has been recorded in the Book of Truth. No one stands firmly with me against these opponents,[ax] except Michael your prince.
Greetings from John
1 From:[a] The Elder
To: My dear friend Gaius, whom I genuinely love.
Encouragement for Gaius
2 Dear friend, I pray that you are doing well in every way and that you are healthy, just as your soul is healthy. 3 I was overjoyed when some brothers arrived and testified about your truthfulness and how you live according to the truth. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are living according to the truth.
5 Dear friend, you are faithful in whatever you do for the brothers, especially when they are strangers. 6 They have testified before the church about your love. You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God. 7 After all, they went on their trip for the sake of the Name,[b] accepting no support from gentiles. 8 Therefore, we ought to support such people so that we can become genuine helpers with them.
Criticism of Diotrephes
9 I wrote a letter[c] to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be in charge, will not recognize our authority.[d] 10 For this reason, when I come I will call attention to what he is doing in spreading false charges against us. And not content with that, he refuses to receive the brothers. He even tries to stop those who want to accept them[e] and throws them out of the church.
Praise for Demetrius
11 Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The person who does what is good is from God. The person who does what is evil has never seen God. 12 Demetrius has received a good report from everyone, including the truth itself. We, too, can testify to this report, and you know that our testimony is true.
Final Greeting
13 Although I have a great deal to write to you,[f] I would rather not write with pen and ink. 14 Instead, I hope to see you[g] soon and speak face to face.
15 May peace be with you![h] Your friends greet you.[i] Greet[j] each of our friends by name.
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