Category: Daniel

[4:19] At this, Daniel, who is also called Belteshazzar, was so alarmed that he could not say anything. The king said to him, “Belteshazzar, don't let the dream and its message alarm you.” Belteshazzar replied, “Your Majesty, I wish that the dream and its explanation applied to your enemies and not to you.

[4:20] The tree, so tall that it reached the sky, could be seen by everyone in the world.

[4:21] Its leaves were beautiful, and it had enough fruit on it to feed the whole world. Wild animals rested under it, and birds made their nests in its branches.

[4:22] “Your Majesty, you are the tree, tall and strong. You have grown so great that you reach the sky, and your power extends over the whole world.

[4:23] While Your Majesty was watching, an angel came down from heaven and said, ‘Cut the tree down and destroy it, but leave the stump in the ground. Wrap a band of iron and bronze around it, and leave it there in the field with the grass. Let the dew fall on this man, and let him live there with the animals for seven years.’

[4:24] “This, then, is what it means, Your Majesty, and this is what the Supreme God has declared will happen to you.

[4:25] You will be driven away from human society and will live with wild animals. For seven years you will eat grass like an ox and sleep in the open air, where the dew will fall on you. Then you will admit that the Supreme God controls all human kingdoms and that he can give them to anyone he chooses.

[4:26] The angel ordered the stump to be left in the ground. This means that you will become king again when you acknowledge that God rules all the world.

[4:27] So then, Your Majesty, follow my advice. Stop sinning, do what is right, and be merciful to the poor. Then you will continue to be prosperous.”

[4:28] All this did happen to King Nebuchadnezzar.

[4:29] Only twelve months later, while he was walking around on the roof of his royal palace in Babylon,

[4:30] he said, “Look how great Babylon is! I built it as my capital city to display my power and might, my glory and majesty.”

[4:31] Before the words were out of his mouth, a voice spoke from heaven, “King Nebuchadnezzar, listen to what I say! Your royal power is now taken away from you.

[4:32] You will be driven away from human society, live with wild animals, and eat grass like an ox for seven years. Then you will acknowledge that the Supreme God has power over human kingdoms and that he can give them to anyone he chooses.”

[4:33] The words came true immediately. Nebuchadnezzar was driven out of human society and ate grass like an ox. The dew fell on his body, and his hair grew as long as eagle feathers and his nails as long as bird claws.

[4:34] “When the seven years had passed,” said the king, “I looked up at the sky, and my sanity returned. I praised the Supreme God and gave honor and glory to the one who lives forever. “He will rule forever, and his kingdom will last for all time.

[4:35] He looks on the people of the earth as nothing; angels in heaven and people on earth are under his control. No one can oppose his will or question what he does.

[4:36] “When my sanity returned, my honor, my majesty, and the glory of my kingdom were given back to me. My officials and my noblemen welcomed me, and I was given back my royal power with even greater honor than before.

[4:37] “And now, I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, honor, and glorify the King of Heaven. Everything he does is right and just, and he can humble anyone who acts proudly.”

[5:1] One night King Belshazzar invited a thousand noblemen to a great banquet, and they drank wine together.

[5:2] While they were drinking, Belshazzar gave orders to bring in the gold and silver cups and bowls which his father Nebuchadnezzar had carried off from the Temple in Jerusalem. The king sent for them so that he, his noblemen, his wives, and his concubines could drink out of them.

[5:3] At once the gold cups and bowls were brought in, and they all drank wine out of them

[5:4] and praised gods made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.

[5:5] Suddenly a human hand appeared and began writing on the plaster wall of the palace, where the light from the lamps was shining most brightly. And the king saw the hand as it was writing.

[5:6] He turned pale and was so frightened that his knees began to shake.

[5:7] He shouted for someone to bring in the magicians, wizards, and astrologers. When they came in, the king said to them, “Anyone who can read this writing and tell me what it means will be dressed in robes of royal purple, wear a gold chain of honor around his neck, and be the third in power in the kingdom.”

[5:8] The royal advisers came forward, but none of them could read the writing or tell the king what it meant.

[5:9] In his distress King Belshazzar grew even paler, and his noblemen had no idea what to do.

[5:10] The queen mother heard the noise made by the king and his noblemen and entered the banquet hall. She said, “May Your Majesty live forever! Please do not be so disturbed and look so pale.

[5:11] There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. When your father was king, this man showed good sense, knowledge, and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods. And King Nebuchadnezzar, your father, made him chief of the fortunetellers, magicians, wizards, and astrologers.

[5:12] He has unusual ability and is wise and skillful in interpreting dreams, solving riddles, and explaining mysteries; so send for this man Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar, and he will tell you what all this means.”

[5:13] Daniel was brought at once into the king's presence, and the king said to him, “Are you Daniel, that Jewish exile whom my father the king brought here from Judah?

[5:14] I have heard that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that you are skillful and have knowledge and wisdom.

[5:15] The advisers and magicians were brought in to read this writing and tell me what it means, but they could not discover the meaning.

[5:16] Now I have heard that you can find hidden meanings and explain mysteries. If you can read this writing and tell me what it means, you will be dressed in robes of royal purple, wear a gold chain of honor around your neck, and be the third in power in the kingdom.”

[5:17] Daniel replied, “Keep your gifts for yourself or give them to someone else. I will read for Your Majesty what has been written and tell you what it means.

[5:18] “The Supreme God made your father Nebuchadnezzar a great king and gave him dignity and majesty.

[5:19] He was so great that people of all nations, races, and languages were afraid of him and trembled. If he wanted to kill someone, he did; if he wanted to keep someone alive, he did. He honored or disgraced anyone he wanted to.

[5:20] But because he became proud, stubborn, and cruel, he was removed from his royal throne and lost his place of honor.

[5:21] He was driven away from human society, and his mind became like that of an animal. He lived with wild donkeys, ate grass like an ox, and slept in the open air with nothing to protect him from the dew. Finally he admitted that the Supreme God controls all human kingdoms and can give them to anyone he chooses.

[5:22] “But you, his son, have not humbled yourself, even though you knew all this.

[5:23] You acted against the Lord of heaven and brought in the cups and bowls taken from his Temple. You, your noblemen, your wives, and your concubines drank wine out of them and praised gods made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone—gods that cannot see or hear and that do not know anything. But you did not honor the God who determines whether you live or die and who controls everything you do.

[5:24] That is why God has sent the hand to write these words.

[5:25] “This is what was written: ‘Number, number, weight, divisions.’

[5:26] And this is what it means: number, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end;

[5:27] weight, you have been weighed on the scales and found to be too light;

[5:28] divisions, your kingdom is divided up and given to the Medes and Persians.”

[5:29] Immediately Belshazzar ordered his servants to dress Daniel in a robe of royal purple and to hang a gold chain of honor around his neck. And he made him the third in power in the kingdom.

[5:30] That same night Belshazzar, the king of Babylonia, was killed;

[5:31] and Darius the Mede, who was then sixty-two years old, seized the royal power.

[6:1] Darius decided to appoint a hundred and twenty governors to hold office throughout his empire.

[6:2] In addition, he chose Daniel and two others to supervise the governors and to look after the king's interests.

[6:3] Daniel soon showed that he could do better work than the other supervisors or the governors. Because he was so outstanding, the king considered putting him in charge of the whole empire.

[6:4] Then the other supervisors and the governors tried to find something wrong with the way Daniel administered the empire, but they couldn't, because Daniel was reliable and did not do anything wrong or dishonest.

[6:5] They said to each other, “We are not going to find anything of which to accuse Daniel unless it is something in connection with his religion.”

[6:6] So they went to see the king and said, “King Darius, may Your Majesty live forever!

[6:7] All of us who administer your empire—the supervisors, the governors, the lieutenant governors, and the other officials—have agreed that Your Majesty should issue an order and enforce it strictly. Give orders that for thirty days no one be permitted to request anything from any god or from any human being except from Your Majesty. Anyone who violates this order is to be thrown into a pit filled with lions.

[6:8] So let Your Majesty issue this order and sign it, and it will be in force, a law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be changed.”

[6:9] And so King Darius signed the order.

[6:10] When Daniel learned that the order had been signed, he went home. In an upstairs room of his house there were windows that faced toward Jerusalem. There, just as he had always done, he knelt down at the open windows and prayed to God three times a day.

[6:11] When Daniel's enemies observed him praying to God,

[6:12] all of them went together to the king to accuse Daniel. They said, “Your Majesty, you signed an order that for the next thirty days anyone who requested anything from any god or from any human being except you, would be thrown into a pit filled with lions.” The king replied, “Yes, that is a strict order, a law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be changed.”

[6:13] Then they said to the king, “Daniel, one of the exiles from Judah, does not respect Your Majesty or obey the order you issued. He prays regularly three times a day.”

[6:14] When the king heard this, he was upset and did his best to find some way to rescue Daniel. He kept trying until sunset.

[6:15] Then Daniel's enemies came back to the king and said to him, “Your Majesty knows that according to the laws of the Medes and Persians no order which the king issues can be changed.”

[6:16] So the king gave orders for Daniel to be taken and thrown into the pit filled with lions. He said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve so loyally, rescue you.”

[6:17] A stone was put over the mouth of the pit, and the king placed his own royal seal and the seal of his noblemen on the stone, so that no one could rescue Daniel.

[6:18] Then the king returned to the palace and spent a sleepless night, without food or any form of entertainment.

[6:19] At dawn the king got up and hurried to the pit.

[6:20] When he got there, he called out anxiously, “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was the God you serve so loyally able to save you from the lions?”

[6:21] Daniel answered, “May Your Majesty live forever!

[6:22] God sent his angel to shut the mouths of the lions so that they would not hurt me. He did this because he knew that I was innocent and because I have not wronged you, Your Majesty.”

[6:23] The king was overjoyed and gave orders for Daniel to be pulled up out of the pit. So they pulled him up and saw that he had not been hurt at all, for he trusted God.

[6:24] Then the king gave orders to arrest all those who had accused Daniel, and he had them thrown, together with their wives and children, into the pit filled with lions. Before they even reached the bottom of the pit, the lions pounced on them and broke all their bones.

[6:25] Then King Darius wrote to the people of all nations, races, and languages on earth: “Greetings!

[6:26] I command that throughout my empire everyone should fear and respect Daniel's God. “He is a living God, and he will rule forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his power will never come to an end.

[6:27] He saves and rescues; he performs wonders and miracles in heaven and on earth. He saved Daniel from being killed by the lions.”

[6:28] Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.

[7:1] In the first year that Belshazzar was king of Babylonia, I had a dream and saw a vision in the night. I wrote the dream down, and this is the record

[7:2] of what I saw that night: Winds were blowing from all directions and lashing the surface of the ocean.

[7:3] Four huge beasts came up out of the ocean, each one different from the others.

[7:4] The first one looked like a lion, but had wings like an eagle. While I was watching, the wings were torn off. The beast was lifted up and made to stand up straight. And then a human mind was given to it.

[7:5] The second beast looked like a bear standing on its hind legs. It was holding three ribs between its teeth, and a voice said to it, “Go on, eat as much meat as you can!”

[7:6] While I was watching, another beast appeared. It looked like a leopard, but on its back there were four wings, like the wings of a bird, and it had four heads. It had a look of authority about it.

[7:7] As I was watching, a fourth beast appeared. It was powerful, horrible, terrifying. With its huge iron teeth it crushed its victims, and then it trampled on them. Unlike the other beasts, it had ten horns.

[7:8] While I was staring at the horns, I saw a little horn coming up among the others. It tore out three of the horns that were already there. This horn had human eyes and a mouth that was boasting proudly.

[7:9] While I was looking, thrones were put in place. One who had been living forever sat down on one of the thrones. His clothes were white as snow, and his hair was like pure wool. His throne, mounted on fiery wheels, was blazing with fire,

[7:10] and a stream of fire was pouring out from it. There were many thousands of people there to serve him, and millions of people stood before him. The court began its session, and the books were opened.

[7:11] While I was looking, I could still hear the little horn bragging and boasting. As I watched, the fourth beast was killed, and its body was thrown into the flames and destroyed.

[7:12] The other beasts had their power taken away, but they were permitted to go on living for a limited time.

[7:13] During this vision in the night, I saw what looked like a human being. He was approaching me, surrounded by clouds, and he went to the one who had been living forever and was presented to him.

[7:14] He was given authority, honor, and royal power, so that the people of all nations, races, and languages would serve him. His authority would last forever, and his kingdom would never end.

[7:15] The visions I saw alarmed me, and I was deeply disturbed.

[7:16] I went up to one of those standing there and asked him to explain it all. So he told me the meaning.

[7:17] He said, “These four huge beasts are four empires which will arise on earth.

[7:18] And the people of the Supreme God will receive royal power and keep it forever and ever.”

[7:19] Then I wanted to know more about the fourth beast, which was not like any of the others—the terrifying beast which crushed its victims with its bronze claws and iron teeth and then trampled on them.

[7:20] And I wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and the horn that had come up afterward and had made three of the horns fall. It had eyes and a mouth and was boasting proudly. It was more terrifying than any of the others.

[7:21] While I was looking, that horn made war on God's people and conquered them.

[7:22] Then the one who had been living forever came and pronounced judgment in favor of the people of the Supreme God. The time had arrived for God's people to receive royal power.

[7:23] This is the explanation I was given: “The fourth beast is a fourth empire that will be on the earth and will be different from all other empires. It will crush the whole earth and trample it down.

[7:24] The ten horns are ten kings who will rule that empire. Then another king will appear; he will be very different from the earlier ones and will overthrow three kings.

[7:25] He will speak against the Supreme God and oppress God's people. He will try to change their religious laws and festivals, and God's people will be under his power for three and a half years.

[7:26] Then the heavenly court will sit in judgment, take away his power, and destroy him completely.

[7:27] The power and greatness of all the kingdoms on earth will be given to the people of the Supreme God. Their royal power will never end, and all rulers on earth will serve and obey them.”

[7:28] This is the end of the account. I was so frightened that I turned pale, and I kept everything to myself.

[8:1] In the third year that Belshazzar was king, I saw a second vision.

[8:2] In the vision I suddenly found myself in the walled city of Susa in the province of Elam. I was standing by the Ulai River,

[8:3] and there beside the river I saw a ram that had two long horns, one of which was longer and newer than the other.

[8:4] I watched the ram butting with his horns to the west, the north, and the south. No animal could stop him or escape his power. He did as he pleased and grew arrogant.

[8:5] While I was wondering what this meant, a goat came rushing out of the west, moving so fast that his feet didn't touch the ground. He had one prominent horn between his eyes.

[8:6] He came toward the ram, which I had seen standing beside the river, and rushed at him with all his force.

[8:7] I watched him attack the ram. He was so angry that he smashed into him and broke the two horns. The ram had no strength to resist. He was thrown to the ground and trampled on, and there was no one who could save him.

[8:8] The goat grew more and more arrogant, but at the height of his power his horn was broken. In its place four prominent horns came up, each pointing in a different direction.

[8:9] Out of one of these four horns grew a little horn, whose power extended toward the south and the east and toward the Promised Land.

[8:10] It grew strong enough to attack the army of heaven, the stars themselves, and it threw some of them to the ground and trampled on them.

[8:11] It even defied the Prince of the heavenly army, stopped the daily sacrifices offered to him, and ruined the Temple.

[8:12] People sinned there instead of offering the proper daily sacrifices, and true religion was thrown to the ground. The horn was successful in everything it did.

[8:13] Then I heard one angel ask another, “How long will these things that were seen in the vision continue? How long will an awful sin replace the daily sacrifices? How long will the army of heaven and the Temple be trampled on?”

[8:14] I heard the other angel answer, “It will continue for 2,300 evenings and mornings, during which sacrifices will not be offered. Then the Temple will be restored.”

[8:15] I was trying to understand what the vision meant, when suddenly someone was standing in front of me.

[8:16] I heard a voice call out over the Ulai River, “Gabriel, explain to him the meaning of what he saw.”

[8:17] Gabriel came and stood beside me, and I was so terrified that I fell to the ground. He said to me, “Mortal man, understand the meaning. The vision has to do with the end of the world.”

[8:18] While he was talking, I fell to the ground unconscious. But he took hold of me, raised me to my feet,

[8:19] and said, “I am showing you what the result of God's anger will be. The vision refers to the time of the end.

[8:20] “The ram you saw that had two horns represents the kingdoms of Media and Persia.

[8:21] The goat represents the kingdom of Greece, and the prominent horn between his eyes is the first king.

[8:22] The four horns that came up when the first horn was broken represent the four kingdoms into which that nation will be divided and which will not be as strong as the first kingdom.

[8:23] “When the end of those kingdoms is near and they have become so wicked that they must be punished, there will be a stubborn, vicious, and deceitful king.

[8:24] He will grow strong—but not by his own power. He will cause terrible destruction and be successful in everything he does. He will bring destruction on powerful men and on God's own people.

[8:25] Because he is cunning, he will succeed in his deceitful ways. He will be proud of himself and destroy many people without warning. He will even defy the greatest King of all, but he will be destroyed without the use of any human power.

[8:26] This vision about the evening and morning sacrifices which has been explained to you will come true. But keep it secret now, because it will be a long time before it does come true.”

[8:27] I was depressed and ill for several days. Then I got up and went back to the work that the king had assigned to me, but I was puzzled by the vision and could not understand it.