< Daniel 7 >
1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel has seen a dream, and the visions of his head on his bed, then he has written the dream, the chief of the things he has said.
In the firste yeer of Balthasar, kyng of Babiloyne, Danyel siy a sweuene. Forsothe he wroot the visioun of his hed in his bed, and the dreem, and comprehendide in schort word; and he touchide schortli the sentence,
2 Daniel has answered and said, “I was seeing in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of the heavens are coming forth to the Great Sea;
and seide, Y siy in my visioun in niyt, and lo! foure wyndis of heuene fouyten in the myddis of the greet see.
3 and four great beasts are coming up from the sea, diverse from one another.
And foure grete beestis dyuerse bitwixe hem silf stieden fro the see.
4 The first [is] like a lion, and it has an eagle’s wings. I was seeing until its wings have been plucked, and it has been lifted up from the earth, and on feet as a man it has been caused to stand, and a heart of man is given to it.
The firste beeste was as a lionesse, and hadde wyngis of an egle. Y bihelde til the wyngis therof weren pullid awei, and it was takun awei fro erthe, and it stood as a man on the feet, and the herte therof was youun to it.
5 And behold, another beast, a second, like to a bear, and to the same authority it has been raised, and three ribs [are] in its mouth, between its teeth, and thus they are saying to it, Rise, consume much flesh.
And lo! another beeste, lijk a bere in parti, stood, and thre ordris weren in the mouth therof, and thre princes in the teeth therof. And thus thei seiden to it, Rise thou, ete thou ful many fleischis.
6 After this I was seeing, and behold, another like a leopard, and it has four wings of a bird on its back, and the beast has four heads, and dominion is given to it.
Aftir these thingis Y bihelde, and lo! anothir beeste as a pard, and it hadde on it silf foure wyngis of a brid, and foure heedis weren in the beeste, and power was youun to it.
7 After this I was seeing in the visions of the night, and behold, a fourth beast, terrible and fearful, and exceedingly strong; and it has very great iron teeth, it has consumed, indeed, it breaks small, and it has trampled the remnant with its feet; and it [is] diverse from all the beasts that [are] before it; and it has ten horns.
Aftir these thingis Y bihelde in the visioun of niyt, and lo! the fourthe beeste, ferdful, and wondirful, and ful strong. It hadde grete irun teeth, and it ete, and made lesse, and defoulide with hise feet othere thingis; forsothe it was vnlijk othere beestis, which Y hadde seyn bifore it, and it hadde ten hornes.
8 I was considering about the horns, and behold, another horn, a little one, has come up between them, and three of the first horns have been eradicated from before it, and behold, eyes as the eyes of man [are] in this horn, and a mouth speaking great things.
Y bihelde the hornes, and lo! an other litil horn cam forth of the myddis of tho, and thre of the firste hornes weren drawun out fro the face therof; and lo! iyen as iyen of a man weren in this horn, and a mouth spekynge grete thingis.
9 I was seeing until thrones have been thrown down, and the Ancient of Days is seated, His garment [is] white as snow, and the hair of His head [is] as pure wool, His throne flames of fire, its wheels burning fire.
Y bihelde, til that trones weren set, and the elde of daies sat; his cloth was whijt as snow, and the heeris of his heed weren as cleene wolle, his trone was as flawmes of fier, hise wheelis weren fier kyndlid.
10 A flood of fire is proceeding and coming forth from before Him, one million serve Him and one hundred million rise up before Him, judgment has been set, and the scrolls have been opened.
A flood of fier and rennynge faste yede out fro his face, a thousynde thousynde mynistriden to hym, and ten sithis a thousynde sithis an hundrid thousynde stoden niy hym; the dom sat, and bookis weren opened.
11 I was seeing, then, because of the voice of the great words that the horn is speaking, I was seeing until the beast is slain, and his body has been destroyed, and given to the burning fire;
Y bihelde for the vois of grete wordis whiche thilke horn spak; and Y siy that the beeste was slayn, and his bodi was perischid, and was youun to be brent in fier.
12 and the rest of the beasts have caused their dominion to pass away, and a prolongation in life is given to them, until a season and a time.
And Y siy that the power of othere beestis was takun awei, and the tymes of lijf weren ordeyned to hem, til to tyme and tyme.
13 I was seeing in the visions of the night, and behold, [One] like a Son of Man was coming with the clouds of the heavens, and to the Ancient of Days He has come, and before Him they have brought Him near.
Therfor Y bihelde in the visyoun of niyt, and lo! as a sone of man cam with the cloudis of heuene; and he cam fulli til to the elde of daies, and in the siyt of hym thei offriden hym.
14 And to Him is given dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, and all peoples, nations, and languages serve Him, His dominion [is] a continuous dominion, that does not pass away, and His kingdom that which is not destroyed.
And he yaf to hym power, and onour, and rewme, and alle the puplis, lynagis, and langagis schulen serue hym; his power is euerlastynge power, that schal not be takun awei, and his rewme, that schal not be corrupt.
15 My spirit has been pierced—I, Daniel—in the midst of the sheath, and the visions of my head trouble me;
My spirit hadde orrour, ether hidousnesse; Y, Danyel, was aferd in these thingis, and the siytis of myn heed disturbliden me.
16 I have drawn near to one of those standing, and the certainty I seek from him of all this; and he has spoken to me, indeed, the interpretation of the things he has caused me to know:
Y neiyede to oon of the stonderis niy, and Y axide of hym the treuthe of alle these thingis. And he seide to me the interpretyng of wordis, and he tauyte me.
17 These great beasts, that [are] four, [are] four kings, they rise up from the earth;
These foure grete beestis ben foure rewmes, that schulen rise of erthe.
18 and the saints of the Most High receive the kingdom, and they strengthen the kingdom for all time, even for all time and all ages.
Forsothe hooli men schulen take the rewme of hiyeste God, and thei schulen holde the rewme, til in to the world, and `til in to the world of worldis.
19 Then I wished for certainty concerning the fourth beast, that was diverse from them all, exceedingly fearful; its teeth of iron, and its nails of bronze, it has devoured, it breaks small, and it has trampled the remnant with its feet;
Aftir these thingis Y wolde lerne diligentli of the fourthe beeste, that was greetli vnlijk fro alle, and was ful ferdful, the teeth and nailis therof weren of irun; it eet, and made lesse, and defoulide with hise feet othere thingis.
20 and concerning the ten horns that [are] in its heads, and of the other that came up, and before which three have fallen, even of that horn that has eyes, and a mouth speaking great things, and whose appearance [is] great above its companions.
And of ten hornes whiche it hadde in the heed, and of the tother horn, that cam forth, bifore which thre hornes fellen doun, and of that horn that hadde iyen, and a mouth spekynge grete thingis, and was grettere than othere;
21 I was seeing, and this horn is making war with the saints, and has prevailed over them,
I bihelde, and lo! thilke horn made batel ayens hooli men, and hadde maistrie of hem,
22 until the Ancient of Days has come, and judgment is given to the saints of the Most High, and the time has come, and the saints have strengthened the kingdom.
til the elde of daies cam, and hiy God yaf doom to hooli men; and lo! tyme cam, and hooli men goten rewme.
23 Thus he said: The fourth beast is the fourth kingdom in the earth, that is diverse from all kingdoms, and it consumes all the earth, and treads it down, and breaks it small.
And he seide thus, The fourthe beeste schal be the fourthe rewme in erthe, that schal be more than alle rewmes, and it schal deuoure al erthe, and it schal defoule, and make lesse that erthe.
24 And the ten horns out of the kingdom [are] ten kings, they rise, and another rises after them, and it is diverse from the former, and it humbles three kings;
Forsothe ten hornes schulen be ten kyngis of that rewme; and another kyng schal rise after hem, and he schal be miytiere than the formere, and he schal make low thre kyngis.
25 and it speaks words as an adversary of the Most High, and it wears out the saints of the Most High, and it hopes to change seasons and law; and they are given into its hand, until a time, and times, and a division of a time.
And he schal speke wordis ayens the hiy God, and he schal defoule the seyntis of the hiyeste; and he schal gesse, that he mai chaunge tymes and lawis; and thei schulen be youun in to his hondis, til to tyme, and times, and the half of tyme.
26 And judgment is set, and they cause his dominion to pass away, to perish, and to be destroyed—to the end;
And doom schal sitte, that the power be takun awei, and be al to-brokun, and perische til in to the ende.
27 and the kingdom, and the dominion, even the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heavens, is given to the people—the saints of the Most High, His kingdom [is] a continuous kingdom, and all dominions serve and obey Him.
Sotheli that the rewme, and power, and the greetnesse of rewme, which is vndur ech heuene, be youun to the puple of the seintis of the hiyeste, whos rewme is euerlastynge rewme, and alle kingis schulen serue, and obeie to hym.
28 Here [is] the end of the matter. I, Daniel, [am] greatly troubled [by] my thoughts, and my countenance is changed on me, and I have kept the matter in my heart.”
Hidur to is the ende of the word. Y, Danyel, was disturblid myche in my thouytis, and my face was chaungid in me; forsothe Y kepte the word in myn herte.