Dan 8-12 | ESV | STEP | In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me , Daniel , after that which appeared to me at the first .

1 In the third year of the reign of ^aKing Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, ^bafter that which appeared to me ^cat the first. 2 And I saw in the vision; and when I saw, I was in ^dSusa the citadel, which is in the province of ^eElam. And ^fI saw in the vision, ^gand I was at the ^hUlai canal. 3 I raised my eyes and saw, and behold, ⁱa ram standing on the bank of the canal. It had two horns, and both horns were high, but one was higher than the other, and the higher one came up last. 4 I saw ^jthe ram charging westward and northward and southward. No ^kbeast ^lcould stand before him, ^mand there was no one who could rescue from his power. ⁿHe did as he pleased and ^obecame great.

5 As I was considering, behold, a ^pmale goat came from the west across the face of the whole earth, without touching the ground. And the goat had ^qa conspicuous horn between his eyes. 6 He came to ^rthe ram with the two horns, which I had seen standing on the bank of the canal, ^sand he ran at him in his powerful wrath. 7 I saw him come close to the ram, ^tand he was enraged against him and struck the ram and broke his two horns. ^uAnd the ram had no power to stand before him, but he ^vcast him down to the ground and trampled on him. And there was no one who could rescue the ram from his power. 8 Then ^wthe goat ^xbecame exceedingly great, but when he was strong, the great horn was broken, and instead of it there came up four ^yconspicuous horns toward ^zthe four winds of heaven.

9 Out of one of them came ^aaa little horn, which grew exceedingly great toward ^abthe south, toward the east, and toward ^acthe glorious land. 10 ^adIt grew great, ^aeeven to the host of heaven. And some of the host ^afand some ^{▼▼Or host, that is, some} of ^ahthe stars it threw down to the ground and ^aitrampled on them. 11 ^ajIt became great, even as great as ^akthe Prince of the host. ^alAnd the regular burnt offering was taken away from him, and the place of his sanctuary was overthrown. 12 And a host will be given over to it together with the regular burnt offering because of transgression, ^{▼▼Or in an act of rebellion} and it will throw truth to the ground, and ^anit will act and prosper. 13 Then I heard ^aoa holy one speaking, and another holy one said to the one who spoke, ^ap“For how long is the vision concerning the regular burnt offering, ^aqthe transgression that makes desolate, and the giving over of the sanctuary and host to be trampled underfoot?” 14 And he said to me, ^{▼▼Hebrew; Septuagint, Theodotion, Vulgate to him} “For 2,300 ^asevenings and mornings. Then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state.”

The Interpretation of the Vision

15 When I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I ^atsought to understand it. And behold, there stood before me one having ^authe appearance of a man. 16 ^avAnd I heard a man’s voice ^awbetween the banks of the ^axUlai, and it called, ^ay“Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.” 17 So he came near where I stood. And when he came, ^azI was frightened ^baand fell on my face. But he said to me, “Understand, ^bbO son of man, that the vision is for ^bcthe time of the end.”

18 And when he had spoken to me, ^bdI fell into a deep sleep with my face to the ground. But ^behe touched me and made me stand up. 19 He said, “Behold, I will make known to you what shall be at the latter end of ^bfthe indignation, for it refers to ^bgthe appointed time of the end. 20 As for ^bhthe ram that you saw with the two horns, these are the kings of ^biMedia and Persia. 21 And ^bjthe goat ^{▼▼Or the shaggy goat} is the king of Greece. And ^blthe great horn between his eyes is ^bmthe first king. 22 ^bnAs for the horn that was broken, in place of which four others arose, four kingdoms shall arise from his ^{▼▼Theodotion, Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew the} nation, ^bpbut not with his power. 23 And at the latter end of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their limit, a king of bold face, one who understands riddles, shall arise. 24 His power shall be great— ^bqbut not by his own power; and he shall cause fearful destruction ^brand shall succeed in what he does, ^bsand destroy mighty men and the people who are the saints. 25 ^btBy his cunning he shall make deceit prosper under his hand, and in his own mind ^buhe shall become great. ^bvWithout warning he shall destroy many. And he ^bwshall even rise up against the Prince of princes, and he shall be broken—but ^bxby no human hand. 26 The vision of ^bythe evenings and the mornings that has been told ^bzis true, but ^caseal up the vision, ^cbfor it refers to many days from now.”

27 And ^ccI, Daniel, was overcome and lay sick for some days. Then I rose and went about the king’s business, but I was appalled by the vision ^cdand did not understand it.

Daniel 9

Daniel’s Prayer for His People

1 ^ceIn the first year of ^cfDarius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a ^cgMede, who was made king over the realm of the ^chChaldeans— 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to ^cithe word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.

3 Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by ^cjprayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. 4 I prayed to the Lord my God and ^ckmade confession, saying, ^cl“O Lord, the ^cmgreat and awesome God, who ^cnkeeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 ^cowe have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly ^cpand rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. 6 ^cqWe have not listened to ^cryour servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to ^csour kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. 7 To you, ^ctO Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, ^cuthose who are near and ^cvthose who are far away, in ^cwall the lands to which you have driven them, because of ^cxthe treachery that they have committed against you. 8 To us, O Lord, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because ^cywe have sinned against you. 9 ^czTo the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him 10 ^daand have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by ^dbhis servants the prophets. 11 ^dcAll Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, ^ddrefusing to obey your voice. ^deAnd the curse and oath ^dfthat are written in the Law of ^dgMoses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because ^dhwe have sinned against him. 12 He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against ^diour rulers who ruled us, ^{▼▼Or our judges who judged us} by ^dkbringing upon us a great calamity. ^dlFor under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what has been done against Jerusalem. 13 ^dmAs it is written in the Law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us; yet we have not entreated the favor of the Lord our God, ^dnturning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth. 14 ^doTherefore the Lord has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, ^dpfor the Lord our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and ^dqwe have not obeyed his voice. 15 And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt ^drwith a mighty hand, and ^dshave made a name for yourself, as at this day, ^dtwe have sinned, we have done wickedly.

16 “O Lord, ^duaccording to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, ^dvyour holy hill, ^dwbecause for our sins, and for ^dxthe iniquities of our fathers, ^dyJerusalem and your people have become ^dza byword among all who are around us. 17 Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, ^{▼▼Hebrew for the Lord’s sake} ^ebmake your face to shine upon ^ecyour sanctuary, which is desolate. 18 ^edO my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see ^eeour desolations, and ^efthe city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. ^egDelay not, ^ehfor your own sake, O my God, because ^eiyour city and ^ejyour people are called by your name.”

Gabriel Brings an Answer

20 ^ekWhile I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea before the Lord my God for ^elthe holy hill of my God, 21 while I was speaking in prayer, the man ^emGabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first, ^encame to me in swift flight at ^eothe time of the evening sacrifice. 22 ^epHe made me understand, speaking with me and saying, “O Daniel, I have now come out to give you ^eqinsight and understanding. 23 ^erAt the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, ^esand I have come to tell it to you, for ^etyou are greatly loved. Therefore consider the word ^euand understand the vision.

The Seventy Weeks

24 ^ev“Seventy weeks ^{▼▼Or sevens; also twice in verse 25 and once in verse 26} are decreed about your people and ^exyour holy city, to finish ^eythe transgression, to put an end to sin, ^ezand to atone for iniquity, ^fato bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and ^fbto anoint a most holy place. ^{▼▼Or thing, or one} 25 ^fdKnow therefore and understand that ^fefrom the going out of the word to restore and ^ffbuild Jerusalem to the coming of an ^fganointed one, a ^fhprince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again ^{▼▼Or there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks. It shall be built again} with squares and moat, ^fjbut in a troubled time. 26 And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall ^fkbe cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come ^flshall destroy the city and the sanctuary. ^fmIts ^{▼▼Or His} end shall come with a flood, ^foand to the end there shall be war. ^fpDesolations are decreed. 27 And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, ^{▼▼Or seven; twice in this verse} and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. ^frAnd on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until ^fsthe decreed end is poured out on the desolator.”

Daniel 10

Daniel’s Terrifying Vision of a Man

1 ^ftIn the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a word was revealed to Daniel, ^fuwho was named Belteshazzar. And ^fvthe word was true, and it was a great conflict. ^{▼▼Or and it was about a great conflict} And ^fxhe understood the word and ^fyhad understanding of the vision.

2 In those days I, Daniel, was mourning for ^fzthree weeks. 3 I ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I ^gaanoint myself at all, for ^gbthe full three weeks. 4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was standing ^gcon the bank of the great river ( ^gdthat is, the Tigris) 5 ^geI lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, ^gfa man clothed in linen, ^ggwith a belt of fine ^ghgold from Uphaz around his waist. 6 His body was like ^giberyl, his face ^gjlike the appearance of lightning, ^gkhis eyes like flaming torches, his arms and ^gllegs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and ^gmthe sound of his words like the sound of a multitude. 7 ^gnAnd I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision, but a great trembling fell upon them, and they fled to hide themselves. 8 So I was left alone and saw this great vision, and ^gono strength was left in me. My radiant appearance was fearfully changed, ^{▼▼Hebrew My splendor was changed to ruin} ^gqand I retained no strength. 9 Then I heard the sound of his words, ^grand as I heard the sound of his words, I fell on my face in deep sleep ^gswith my face to the ground.

10 And behold, ^gta hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. 11 And he said to me, “O Daniel, ^guman greatly loved, ^gvunderstand the words that I speak to you, and ^gwstand upright, for ^gxnow I have been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling. 12 Then he said to me, ^gy“Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you ^gzset your heart to understand and ^hahumbled yourself before your God, ^hbyour words have been heard, ^hcand I have come because of your words. 13 ^hdThe prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me ^hetwenty-one days, but ^hfMichael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia, 14 ^hgand came to make you understand what is to happen to your people ^hhin the latter days. For ^hithe vision is for days yet to come.”

15 When he had spoken to me according to these words, ^hjI turned my face toward the ground ^hkand was mute. 16 And behold, ^hlone in the likeness of the children of man ^hmtouched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who stood before me, “O my lord, by reason of the vision pains have come upon me, and ^hnI retain no strength. 17 How can my lord’s servant talk with my lord? For now no strength remains in me, and no breath is left in me.”

18 Again ^hoone having the appearance of a man ^hptouched me and strengthened me. 19 And he said, ^hq“O man greatly loved, ^hrfear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage.” And as he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.” 20 Then he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the ^hsprince of Persia; and when I go out, behold, the prince of ^htGreece will come. 21 But I will tell you ^huwhat is inscribed in the book of truth: there is none who contends by my side against these except ^hvMichael, your prince.

Daniel 11

The Kings of the South and the North

1 “And as for me, ^hwin the first year of ^hxDarius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him.

2 “And now I will show you ^hythe truth. Behold, three more kings shall arise in Persia, and a fourth shall be far richer than all of them. And when he has become strong through his riches, he shall stir up all against the kingdom of Greece. 3 Then ^hza mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion and ^iado as he wills. 4 And as soon as he has arisen, ^ibhis kingdom shall be broken and divided ^ictoward the ^idfour winds of heaven, but ^ienot to his posterity, nor according to the authority with which he ruled, for his kingdom shall be plucked up and go to others besides these.

5 “Then the king of the south shall be strong, but one of his princes shall be stronger than he ^ifand shall rule, and his authority shall be a great authority. 6 After some years ^igthey shall make an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement. But she shall not retain the strength of her arm, and he and his arm shall not endure, but she shall be given up, and her attendants, he who fathered her, and he who supported ^{▼▼Or obtained} her in those times.

7 “And from a branch from her roots one shall arise in his place. He shall come against the army and enter the ⁱⁱfortress of the king of the north, and he shall deal with them and shall prevail. 8 He shall also carry off to Egypt their gods with their metal images and their precious ^ijvessels of silver and gold, and for some years he shall refrain from attacking the king of the north. 9 Then the latter shall come into the realm of the king of the south but shall return to his own land.

10 “His sons shall wage war and assemble a multitude of great forces, which shall keep coming ^ikand overflow and pass through, and again shall carry the war as far as his ^ilfortress. 11 Then the king of the south, ^immoved with rage, shall come out and fight against the king of the north. ⁱⁿAnd he shall raise a great multitude, but it shall be given into his hand. 12 And when the multitude is taken away, his heart shall be exalted, and he shall cast down tens of thousands, but he shall not prevail. 13 For the king of the north shall again ^ioraise a multitude, greater than the first. And ^ipafter some years ^{▼▼Hebrew at the end of the times} he shall come on with a great army and abundant supplies.

14 “In those times many shall rise against the king of the south, and the violent among your own people shall lift themselves up in order to fulfill the vision, but ^irthey shall fail. 15 Then the king of the north shall come and ^isthrow up siegeworks and take a well-fortified city. And the forces of the south shall not stand, or even his best troops, for there shall be no strength to stand. 16 But he who comes against him shall ^itdo as he wills, and ^iunone shall stand before him. And he shall stand in ^ivthe glorious land, with destruction in his hand. 17 He shall ^iwset his face to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and he shall bring terms of an agreement and perform them. He shall give him the daughter of women to destroy the kingdom, ^{▼▼Hebrew her, or it} but it shall not stand or be to his advantage. 18 Afterward he shall turn his face to the coastlands and shall capture many of them, but a commander shall put an end to his insolence. Indeed, ^{▼▼The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain} he ^izshall turn his insolence back upon him. 19 Then he shall turn his face back toward the ^jafortresses of his own land, but he shall ^jbstumble and fall, ^jcand shall not be found.

20 “Then shall arise in his place one who shall send an ^jdexactor of tribute for the glory of the kingdom. But within a few days he shall be broken, neither in anger nor in battle. 21 In his place shall arise a contemptible person to whom royal majesty has not been given. ^jeHe shall come in without warning and obtain the kingdom ^jfby flatteries. 22 Armies shall be ^jgutterly swept away before him and broken, even the prince of the covenant. 23 And from the time that an alliance is made with him he shall act deceitfully, and he shall become strong with a small people. 24 ^jhWithout warning he shall come into ^jithe richest parts ^{▼▼Or among the richest men} of the province, and he shall do what neither his fathers nor his fathers’ fathers have done, scattering among them plunder, spoil, and goods. He shall devise plans against strongholds, but only for a time. 25 And he shall stir up his power and his heart against ^jkthe king of the south with a great army. And the king of the south shall wage war with an exceedingly great and mighty army, but he shall not stand, for plots shall be devised against him. 26 Even those who eat his food shall break him. His army shall be ^jlswept away, and many shall fall down slain. 27 And as for the two kings, their hearts shall be bent on doing evil. They shall speak lies at the same table, but to no avail, for ^jmthe end is yet to be at the time appointed. 28 And he shall return to his land with great wealth, but his heart shall be set against the holy covenant. And he shall work his will and return to his own land.

29 “At the time appointed he shall return and come into the south, but it shall not be this time as it was before. 30 For ships of ^jnKittim shall come against him, and he shall be afraid and withdraw, and shall turn back and ^jobe enraged and ^jptake action against the holy covenant. He shall turn back and pay attention to those who forsake the holy covenant. 31 Forces from him shall appear and ^jqprofane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering. And ^jrthey shall set up the abomination that makes desolate. 32 He shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action. 33 ^jsAnd the wise among the people shall make many understand, though for some days they shall stumble by sword and flame, by captivity and plunder. 34 When they stumble, they shall receive a little help. And many shall join themselves to them with flattery, 35 and some of the wise shall stumble, so that they may be refined, ^jtpurified, and ^jumade white, until ^jvthe time of the end, ^jwfor it still awaits the appointed time.

36 “And the king shall ^jxdo as he wills. ^jyHe shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god, ^jzand shall speak astonishing things against ^kathe God of gods. ^kbHe shall prosper ^kctill the indignation is accomplished; for what is decreed shall be done. 37 He shall pay no attention to the gods of his fathers, or to the one beloved by women. He shall not pay attention to any other god, for ^kdhe shall magnify himself above all. 38 He shall honor the god of fortresses instead of these. A god whom his fathers did not know he shall honor ^kewith gold and silver, with precious stones and costly gifts. 39 He shall deal with the strongest fortresses with the help of a foreign god. Those who acknowledge him he shall load with honor. He shall make them rulers over many and ^kfshall divide the land for a price. ^{▼▼Or land as payment}

40 ^kh“At the time of the end, the king of the south shall attack ^{▼▼Hebrew thrust at} him, but the king of the north shall rush upon him ^kjlike a whirlwind, with chariots and horsemen, and with many ships. And he shall come into countries and ^kkshall overflow and pass through. 41 He shall come into ^klthe glorious land. And tens of thousands shall fall, but these shall be delivered out of his hand: ^kmEdom and ^knMoab and the main part of the ^koAmmonites. 42 He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. 43 He shall become ruler of the treasures of gold and of silver, and all the precious things of Egypt, and the ^kpLibyans and the ^kqCushites shall follow in his train. 44 But news from the east and the north shall alarm him, and he shall go out with great fury to destroy and devote many to destruction. 45 And he shall pitch his palatial tents between the sea and the glorious holy mountain. Yet he shall come to his end, with none to help him.

Daniel 12

The Time of the End

1 “At that time shall arise ^krMichael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And ^ksthere shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, ^kteveryone whose name shall be found written in the book. 2 And many of those who ^kusleep in ^kvthe dust of the earth shall ^kwawake, ^kxsome to everlasting life, and ^kysome to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 ^kzAnd those who are wise ^lashall shine like the brightness of the sky above; ^{▼▼Hebrew the expanse; compare Genesis 1:6–8} and ^lcthose who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, ^ldshut up the words and ^leseal the book, until ^lfthe time of the end. ^lgMany shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.”

5 Then I, Daniel, looked, and behold, two others stood, one on ^lhthis bank of the stream and one on that bank of the stream. 6 And someone said to ^lithe man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, ^{▼▼Or who was upstream; also verse 7} ^lk“How long shall it be till the end of these wonders?” 7 And I heard ^llthe man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream; ^lmhe raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven and ^lnswore by him who lives forever that it would be for a ^lotime, times, and half a time, and that when the shattering of ^lpthe power of ^lqthe holy people comes to an end all these things would be finished. 8 I heard, ^lrbut I did not understand. Then I said, “O my lord, what shall be the outcome of these things?” 9 He said, ^ls“Go your way, Daniel, ^ltfor the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end. 10 ^luMany shall purify themselves and make themselves white and be refined, but ^lvthe wicked shall act wickedly. And none of the wicked shall understand, ^lwbut those who are wise shall understand. 11 And from the time that ^lxthe regular burnt offering is taken away and ^lythe abomination that makes desolate is set up, there shall be 1,290 days. 12 ^lzBlessed is he who waits and arrives at the 1,335 days. 13 ^maBut go your way till the end. ^mbAnd you shall rest and shall stand in your allotted place at ^mcthe end of the days.”