Daniele 7
1 NELL'anno primo di Belsasar, re di Babilonia, Daniele vide un sogno, e delle visioni del suo capo, sopra il suo letto. Allora egli scrisse il sogno, [e] dichiarò la somma delle cose.
[Previously, ] during the first year that Belshazzar was the king of Babylonia, I had a dream and a vision one night as I lay on my bed. [The next morning] I wrote down what I had dreamed. This is what I wrote:
2 Daniele [adunque] prese a dire: Io riguardava nella mia visione, di notte, ed ecco, i quattro venti del cielo salivano impetuosamente in sul mar grande.
I, Daniel, had a vision last night. In the vision I saw that strong winds were blowing from all four directions, stirring up [the water in] the ocean.
3 E quattro gran bestie salivano fuor del mare, differenti l'una dall'altra.
Then [I saw] four beasts coming out of the ocean. All four of them were different.
4 La prima [era] simile ad un leone, ed avea delle ale d'aquila; io stava riguardando, finchè le furono divelte le ale, e fu fatta levar da terra, e che si rizzò in piè, a guisa d'uomo; e le fu dato cuor d'uomo.
The first one resembled a lion, but it had wings like an eagle has. But as I watched, something tore off its wings {its wings were pulled off}. The beast was left there, standing on its two hind/rear legs, like a human being stands. And it was given a mind like humans have.
5 Poi, ecco un'altra seconda bestia, simigliante ad un orso, la quale si levò da un lato, ed avea tre costole in bocca, fra i suoi denti. E le fu detto così: Levati, mangia molta carne.
The second beast resembled a bear. It was crouching, and it held between its teeth three ribs [from another animal that it had killed and eaten]. Someone said to it {It was told}, “Stand up and eat as much meat [as you want]!”
6 Poi io riguardava, ed eccone un'altra, simigliante ad un pardo, la quale avea quattro ale d'uccello in sul dosso; e quella bestia avea quattro teste, e le fu data la signoria.
Then I saw in front of me the third of those beasts. It resembled a leopard, but it had four wings protruding from its back. The wings were like a bird’s wings. It had four heads. It was given the power/authority to rule [people].
7 Appresso, io riguardava nelle visioni di notte, ed ecco una quarta bestia, spaventevole, terribile, e molto forte, la quale avea di gran denti di ferro; ella mangiava, e tritava e calpestava il rimanente co' piedi; ed era differente da tutte le bestie, ch'[erano state] davanti a lei, ed avea dieci corna.
In the vision I saw a fourth beast. It was stronger than the other beasts, and it was more terrifying. It crushed other creatures with its huge iron teeth and ate their flesh. The parts of animals that it did not grind with its teeth, it trampled [on the ground]. It was different from the other three beasts: It had ten horns [on its head].
8 Io poneva mente a queste corna, ed ecco un altro corno piccolo saliva fra quelle, e tre delle prime corna furono divelte d'innanzi a quello; ed ecco, quel corno avea degli occhi simiglianti agli occhi d'un uomo, ed una bocca che proferiva cose grandi.
While I was looking at those horns, I saw a little horn appear [on the head of that beast]. It tore out three of the other horns. This little horn had eyes like humans have, and it had a mouth [with which it spoke] very boastfully.
9 Io stava riguardando, finchè i troni furono posti, e che l'Antico de' giorni si pose a sedere; il suo vestimento [era] candido come neve, e i capelli del suo capo [erano] simili a lana netta, [e] il suo trono [era a guisa] di scintille di fuoco, [e] le ruote d'esso [simili a] fuoco ardente.
[Then] while I watched, thrones were put in the places [where they belonged], and [God], the one who had been living forever, sat on one of the thrones. His clothes were as white as snow, and his hair was as white as pure/clean wool. His throne had wheels that were blazing with fire, and his throne was [also] blazing.
10 Un fiume di fuoco traeva, ed usciva dalla sua presenza; mille migliaia gli ministravano, e diecimila decine di migliaia stavano davanti a lui; il giudicio si tenne, e i libri furono aperti.
A fire was rushing out of in front of him like a stream. Many thousands [of people] (OR, [angels]) [were there] serving him, and millions [of other people] (OR, [angels]) were standing in front of him. They started (the court session/judging people), and they opened the books [in which they had written the record of all the good and bad things that people had done].
11 Allora io riguardai, per la voce delle grandi parole, che quel corno proferiva; e riguardai, finchè la bestia fu uccisa, e il suo corpo fu distrutto, e fu dato ad essere arso col fuoco.
While I was watching, I could hear the little horn speaking very boastfully. As I [continued to] watch, the [fourth] beast was killed. Its corpse was thrown into a fire and completely burned.
12 La signoria fu eziandio tolta alle altre bestie, e fu loro dato prolungamento di vita, fino ad un tempo, e termine costituito.
The power/authority of the other [three] beasts was taken away from them, but they were allowed to continue to live for a while.
13 Io riguardava nelle visioni notturne, ed ecco, con le nuvole del cielo, veniva [uno], simile ad un figliuol d'uomo; ed egli pervenne fino all'Antico de' giorni, e fu fatto accostar davanti a lui.
While I [continued to] see the vision that night, I saw someone who resembled a human being. He was coming [closer to me], surrounded by clouds. Then he was taken to [God], the one who had been living forever.
14 Ed esso gli diede signoria, e gloria, e regno; e tutti i popoli, nazioni, e lingue, devono servirgli; la sua signoria [è] una signoria eterna, la qual non trapasserà [giammai]; e il suo regno [è un regno] che non sarà [giammai] distrutto.
He was honored and given great authority to rule over all the nations in the world, in order that people from every people-group and every nation, people from all language groups, would worship/serve him. He will rule forever; he will never stop ruling. The kingdom that he rules will never be destroyed.
15 Quant'è a me Daniele lo spirito mi venne meno in mezzo del corpo, e le visioni del mio capo mi conturbarono.
As for me, Daniel, I was very terrified by what I had seen in that vision, and I did not know what to think about it.
16 E mi accostai ad uno de' circostanti, e gli domandai la verità intorno a tutte queste cose; ed egli me [la] disse, e mi dichiarò l'interpretazione delle cose, [dicendo: ]
I went to one of those who were standing in front of the throne of God, and I asked him to tell me what it meant. So he told me the meaning of it.
17 Queste quattro gran bestie[significano] quattro re, [che] sorgeranno dalla terra.
[He said], “The four huge beasts represent four kingdoms/empires that will exist on the earth.
18 E [poi] i santi dell'Altissimo riceveranno il regno, e lo possederanno in perpetuo, ed in sempiterno.
But the Supreme God will give power/authority to his people [to rule], and they shall rule forever.”
19 Allora io desiderai di sapere la verità intorno alla quarta bestia, ch'era differente da tutte [le altre, ed era] molto terribile; i cui denti [erano] di ferro, e le unghie di rame; che mangiava, tritava, e calpestava il rimanente co' piedi;
Then I wanted to know what the fourth beast signified—[the beast] that was different from the other three, the beast that crushed [those that it attacked] with its bronze claws, and [then] ate [their flesh] with its iron teeth, and trampled on the parts of their bodies [that it did not eat].
20 e intorno alle dieci corna ch'ella avea in capo, e intorno a quell'ultimo, che saliva, e d'innanzi al quale tre erano cadute; e intorno a ciò che quel corno avea degli occhi, e una bocca che proferiva cose grandi; e che l'aspetto di esso [era] maggiore [di quello] de' suoi compagni.
[I also wanted to know about] the ten horns on its head, and about the horn that appeared later, which got rid of three of the other horns. [I wanted to know what it meant that] it had eyes and a mouth with which it spoke very boastfully. [The beast that was represented by] that horn was more terrifying than the other beasts.
21 Io avea riguardato, e quel corno faceva guerra co' santi, e li vinceva;
While I was having the vision, I saw that this horn attacked God’s people and was defeating them.
22 finchè l'Antico de' giorni venne, e il giudicio fu dato a' santi dell'Altissimo; e venne il tempo che i santi doveano possedere il regno.
But then the Supreme God, the one who had been living forever, came and judged in favor of the people who belonged to him. And [I knew that] it was time for God’s people to receive authority [to rule].
23 [E colui mi] disse così: La quarta bestia [significa] un quarto regno[che] sarà in terra, il qual sarà differente da tutti quegli [altri] regni, e divorerà tutta le terra, e la calpesterà, e la triterà.
[Then] the man who was standing there said [to me], “The fourth beast represents an empire that will exist on the earth; that [empire] will be different from all [other] empires. [The army of] that empire will crush/kill [people all over] the world and trample [on their bodies].
24 E le dieci corna [significano] dieci re, [che] sorgeranno di quel regno; ed un altro sorgerà dopo loro, il qual sarà differente da' precedenti, ed abbatterà tre re.
As for its ten horns, they represent ten kings who will rule that empire, [one after the other]. Then another [king] will appear. He will be different from the previous kings. He will defeat the three kings [that were represented by the three horns that were pulled out].
25 E proferirà parole contro all'Altissimo, e distruggerà i santi dell'Altissimo; e penserà di mutare i tempi, e la Legge; e [i santi] gli saran dati nelle mani fino ad un tempo, più tempi, e la metà d'un tempo.
He will revile the Supreme God, and he will oppress God’s people. He will try to change the [sacred] festivals and their [religious] laws/regulations. He will control them for three and a half years.
26 Poi si terrà il giudicio, e la sua signoria [gli] sarà tolta; [ed] egli sarà sterminato, e distrutto fino all'estremo.
But there will be a session/meeting of the court/judges in heaven, and that king’s authority/power will be taken away, and he will be completely destroyed.
27 E il regno, e la signoria, e la grandezza de' regni, [che sono] sotto tutti i cieli, sarà data al popolo de' santi dell'Altissimo; il regno d'esso [sarà] un regno eterno, e tutti gl'imperi gli serviranno, ed ubbidiranno.
Then all the power and the greatness of all the kingdoms on the earth will be given to the people who belong to the Supreme God. The kingdom that he rules (OR, they rule) will endure forever. And the rulers of all the nations on the earth will serve and obey him (OR, them).”
28 Qui [è] la fine delle parole. Quant'è a me Daniele, i miei pensieri mi spaventarono forte, e il color del mio volto fu mutato in me; e conservai la cosa nel mio cuore.
That is [what I saw in] my vision/dream. I, Daniel, was terrified, with the result that my face became pale. But I did not tell anyone about the vision [that I had seen].
