Daniel 8

1In the third year of King Belshazzar’s reign, I, Daniel, had a vision, after the one I had seen earlier. 2In the vision I saw myself in the fortress city of Susa, in the province of Elam. In the vision I was beside the Ulai Canal. 3I looked up and saw a ram standing beside the canal. It had two long horns, one of them longer than the other, and it was the longer one that grew up last. 4I watched the ram butting toward the west, the north and the south. No animal could stand against it, and no one could rescue anything from its power. It did whatever it wanted and became great. 5As I was thinking about this, a male goat suddenly came from the west, crossing the whole earth without touching the ground. The goat had a prominent horn between its eyes. 6It came up to the two-horned ram that I had seen standing beside the canal, and charged at it with furious strength. 7I saw it reach the ram. It was furious with it, struck the ram and broke both its horns. The ram had no strength to stand against it. The goat threw it to the ground and trampled on it, and no one could rescue the ram from its power. 8The male goat became very great, but at the height of its power the great horn was broken off. In its place four prominent horns came up, pointing toward the four winds of heaven. 9Out of one of them came another horn, which started small but grew very great, toward the south and the east and toward the beautiful land. 10It grew until it reached the host of heaven, and it threw some of the host and some of the stars down to the earth and trampled on them. 11It even set itself up against the Prince of the host. It took away the regular offering from him, and the place of his sanctuary was overthrown. 12Because of rebellion, the host will be handed over to it, together with the regular offering. It will throw truth to the ground, and it will succeed in all it does. 13Then I heard a holy one speaking, and a second holy one asked the one who spoke, “How long will the vision last: the regular offering taken away, the rebellion that brings ruin, and the sanctuary and the host given over to be trampled?” 14He said to me, “For 2,300 evenings and mornings. Then the sanctuary will be restored to its proper state.” 15As I, Daniel, watched the vision and tried to make sense of it, someone who looked like a man suddenly stood in front of me. 16And I heard a human voice from between the banks of the Ulai calling, “Gabriel, explain the vision to this man.” 17He came near the place where I was standing, and when he came I was terrified and fell face down. But he said to me, “Understand, son of man, that the vision concerns the time of the end.” 18While he was speaking to me, I sank into a deep sleep, face down on the ground. Then he touched me and raised me to my feet. 19He said, “I am going to tell you what will happen later, in the time of wrath, for the vision concerns the appointed time of the end. 20The two-horned ram that you saw stands for the kings of Media and Persia. 21The shaggy goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn between its eyes is its first king. 22The four horns that came up in place of the one that was broken are four kingdoms that will arise from his nation, but not with his power. 23In the last part of their rule, when the rebels have run their full course, a king will arise who is fierce-looking and skilled in intrigue. 24He will become very strong, but not by his own power. He will cause terrible destruction, and he will succeed in all he does. He will destroy powerful people and the people of the holy ones. 25By his cunning he will make deceit succeed under his rule. He will make himself great in his own mind, and destroy many who feel secure. He will even rise up against the Prince of princes, but he will be broken, though not by human hands. 26The vision of the evenings and mornings that has been told to you is true. But keep the vision secret, for it concerns a time far in the future.” 27I, Daniel, was worn out and lay ill for several days. Then I got up and went about the king’s business. But I was dismayed by the vision; it was beyond understanding.