Daniel 8

1 In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after that which appeared to me previously.

In the third year of the reign of king Baltasar a vision appeared to me, [even] to me Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first.

2 And I saw in the vision, and when I looked, I was in the citadel of Shushan, which is in the province of Elam. And I saw in the vision, and I was by the river Ulai.

And I was in Susa the palace, which is in the land of Ælam, and I was on the [bank of] Ubal.

3 Then I lifted up my eyes, and saw, and look, there stood before the river a ram which had two horns. And the two horns were long, but one was longer than the other, and the longer one came up last.

And I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, a ram standing in front of the Ubal; and he had high horns; and one was higher than the other, and the high one came up last.

4 I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; and no animals could stand before him, neither was there any who could deliver out of his hand. But he did according to his will, and became great.

And I saw the ram butting westward, and northward, and southward; and no beast could stand before him, and there was none that could deliver out of his hand; and he did according to his will, and became great.

5 As I was considering, look, a male goat came from the west over the surface of the whole earth, and did not touch the ground. And the goat had a prominent horn between his eyes.

And I was considering, and, behold, a he-goat came from the south-west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the earth: and the goat [had] a horn between his eyes.

6 He came to the ram that had the two horns, which I saw standing before the river, and rushed at him in the fury of his power.

And he came to the ram that had the horns, which I had seen standing in front of the Ubal, and he ran at him with the violence of his strength.

7 I saw him come close to the ram, and he was moved with anger against him, and struck the ram, and broke his two horns. And there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he threw him down to the ground and trampled on him, and there was no one who could deliver the ram from his power.

And I saw him coming up close to the ram, and he was furiously enraged against him, and he smote the ram, and broke both his horns: and there was no strength in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him on the ground, and trampled on him; and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand.

8 The male goat became very strong. But when he was strong, the large horn was broken; and instead of it there came up four prominent horns toward the four winds of heaven.

And the he-goat grew exceedingly great: and when he was strong, his great horn was broken; and four other [horns] rose up in its place toward the four winds of heaven.

9 Out of one of them came forth a little horn, which grew exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the beautiful land.

And out of one of them came forth one strong horn, and it grew very great toward the south, and toward the host:

10 It grew so great that it reached to the host of heaven, and some of the host and of the stars it cast down to the ground, and trampled on them.

and it magnified itself to the host of heaven; and there fell to the earth [some] of the host of heaven and of the stars, and they trampled on them.

11 And it magnified itself, even against the Prince of the host; and it took away from him the daily sacrifice, and the place of his sanctuary was thrown down.

And [this shall be] until the chief captain shall have delivered the captivity: and by reason of him the sacrifice was disturbed, and he prospered; and the holy place shall be made desolate.

12 The host was given over to it together with the daily sacrifice because of transgression. And it cast down truth to the ground, and kept prospering.

And a sin-offering was given for the sacrifice, and righteousness was cast down to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.

13 Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who spoke, "How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression that makes desolate, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled?"

And I heard one saint speaking, and a saint said to a certain one speaking, How long shall the vision continue, [even] the removal of the sacrifice, and the bringing in of the sin of desolation; and [how long] shall the sanctuary and host be trampled?

14 He said to me, "To two thousand and three hundred evenings and mornings; then shall the sanctuary be restored to its rightful state."

And he said to him, Evening and morning [there shall be] two thousand and four hundred days; and [then] the sanctuary shall be cleansed.

15 It came about when I, Daniel, had seen the vision, that I sought to understand it. And look, there stood before me someone who appeared to be a man.

And it came to pass, as I, [even] I Daniel, saw the vision, and sought to understand it, that, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man.

16 I heard a man's voice between the banks of the Ulai, and called out and said, "Gabriel, make this man understand the vision."

And I heard the voice of a man between [the banks of] the Ubal; and he called, and said, Gabriel, cause that man to understand the vision.

17 So he came near where I stood, and when he came I was frightened, and fell prostrate. But he said to me, "Understand, son of man, that the vision belongs to the time of the end."

And he came and stood near where I stood: and when he came, I was struck with awe, and fell upon my face: but he said to me, Understand, son of man: for yet the vision is for an appointed time.

18 Now as he was speaking with me, I fell into a deep sleep with my face toward the ground; but he touched me, and stood me upright.

And while he spoke with me, I fell upon my face to the earth: and he touched me, and set me on my feet.

19 He said, "Look, I will make you know what shall be in the latter time of wrath, for it belongs to the appointed time of the end.

And he said, Behold, I make thee know the things that shall come to pass at the end of the wrath: for the vision [is] yet for an appointed time.

20 The ram which you saw, that had the two horns, they are the kings of Media and Persia.

The ram which thou sawest that had the horns is the king of the Medes and Persians.

21 The male goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn that is between his eyes is the first king.

The he-goat is the king of the Greeks: and the great horn which was between his eyes, he is the first king.

22 As for that which was broken, in the place where four stood up, four kingdoms shall arise out of his nation, but not with his power.

And [as for] the one that was broken, in whose place there stood up four horns, four kings shall arise out of his nation, but not in their [own] strength.

23 In the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressions have reached their full measure, a rash and deceitful king shall arise.

And at the latter time of their kingdom, when their sins are coming to the full, there shall arise a king bold in countenance, and understanding riddles.

24 His power shall be great, but not by his own strength; and he shall cause terrible destruction, and shall succeed in whatever he does. And he shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.

And his power [shall be] great, and he shall destroy wonderfully, and prosper, and practise, and shall destroy mighty men, and the holy people.

25 Through his cunning he shall cause deceit to prosper by his influence, and he shall be great in his own mind, and without warning he shall destroy many. He shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be shattered, but not by human hands.

And the yoke of his chain shall prosper: [there is] craft in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by craft shall destroy many, and he shall stand up for the destruction of many, and shall crush them as eggs in his hand.

26 The vision of the evenings and mornings which has been told is true; but seal up the vision because it refers to many days from now."

And the vision of the evening and morning that was mentioned is true: and do thou seal the vision; for [it is] for many days.

27 I, Daniel, was overcome, and was ill for days. Then I rose up, and carried out the king's business. And I was astonished by the vision, but there was no one to explain it.

And I Daniel fell asleep, and was sick: then I arose, and did the king’s business; and I wondered at the vision, and there was none that understood [it].