Daniel 8

1In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, even unto me, Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first.

1In the third year of King Belshazzar’s reign, another vision appeared to me, Daniel, following the one I had seen before.

2And I saw in the vision; now it was so, that when I saw, I was in Shushan the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision, and I was by the river Ulai.

2In this vision, I saw myself in the fortress of Susa, in the province of Elam, standing beside the Ulai River.

3Then I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there stood before the river a ram which had two horns: and the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last.

3I looked up and saw a ram with two horns standing by the river. Both horns were long, but one was longer than the other, and the longer one grew up last.

4I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; and no beasts could stand before him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and magnified himself.

4I watched the ram charge toward the west, the north, and the south. No animal could stand against him, and no one could rescue anyone from his power. He did whatever he wanted and became very great.

5And as I was considering, behold, a he-goat came from the west over the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.

5While I was thinking about this, a male goat came from the west, crossing the whole earth so fast his feet didn't touch the ground. This goat had one prominent horn between his eyes.

6And he came to the ram that had the two horns, which I saw standing before the river, and ran upon him in the fury of his power.

6He came toward the two-horned ram I had seen by the river and charged at him with furious power.

7And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with anger against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns; and there was no power in the ram to stand before him; but he cast him down to the ground, and trampled upon him; and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand.

7I saw him attack the ram viciously. He struck the ram and broke both of his horns. The ram was too weak to stand against him; the goat knocked him to the ground and trampled him, and there was no one to rescue the ram.

8And the he-goat magnified himself exceedingly: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and instead of it there came up four notable horns toward the four winds of heaven.

8The goat became extremely powerful, but at the height of his power, his large horn was broken off. In its place, four prominent horns grew up, pointing toward the four directions of heaven.

9And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the glorious land.

9From one of these horns came a small horn that grew very large toward the south, toward the east, and toward the beautiful land of Israel.

10And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and some of the host and of the stars it cast down to the ground, and trampled upon them.

10It grew so high that it reached the army of heaven; it threw some of the heavenly stars down to the earth and trampled them.

11Yea, it magnified itself, even to the prince of the host; and it took away from him the continual burnt-offering, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.

11It even challenged the Prince of the heavenly army. It stopped the daily sacrifices offered to him and destroyed his holy Temple.

12And the host was given over to it together with the continual burnt-offering through transgression; and it cast down truth to the ground, and it did its pleasure and prospered.

12Because of rebellion, the army of the Lord and the daily sacrifices were given over to the horn. It threw truth to the ground and succeeded in everything it did.

13Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said unto that certain one who spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the continual burnt-offering, and the transgression that maketh desolate, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?

13Then I heard a holy angel speaking, and another holy angel asked him, 'How long will the events of this vision last—the daily sacrifice, the rebellion that causes destruction, and the trampling of the Temple and the heavenly army?'

14And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred evenings and mornings; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.

14He said to me, 'It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the Temple will be restored to its proper state.'

15And it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision, that I sought to understand it; and, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man.

15While I, Daniel, was watching the vision and trying to understand it, someone who looked like a man suddenly stood in front of me.

16And I heard a man’s voice betweenthe banks ofthe Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.

16I heard a human voice calling out from the Ulai River, 'Gabriel, explain the vision to this man.'

17So he came near where I stood; and when he came, I was affrighted, and fell upon my face: but he said unto me, Understand, O son of man; for the vision belongeth to the time of the end.

17As he came near where I was standing, I was terrified and fell face down. He said to me, 'Understand, son of man, that the vision is about the time of the end.'

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

18While he was speaking, I fell into a deep sleep with my face to the ground. But he touched me and helped me stand up.

19And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the latter time of the indignation; for it belongeth to the appointed time of the end.

19He said, 'I am going to tell you what will happen later in the time of God’s anger, because the vision concerns the appointed time of the end.'

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

20“The two-horned ram you saw represents the kings of Media and Persia.

21And the rough he-goat is the king of Greece: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king.

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

22And as for that which was broken, in the place whereof four stood up, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not with his power.

22The four horns that replaced the one that was broken represent four kingdoms that will emerge from his nation, but they will not have the same power.

23And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.

23At the end of their rule, when people have become completely wicked, a fierce-looking king who is a master of deception will arise.

24And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power; and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper and do his pleasure; and he shall destroy the mighty ones and the holy people.

24He will become very strong, but not by his own power. He will cause terrible destruction and succeed in everything he does. He will destroy powerful leaders and the holy people.

25And through his policy he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and in their security shall he destroy many: he shall also stand up against the prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.

25He will be a master of deceit and will become very arrogant. He will destroy many people when they feel safe. He will even challenge the Prince of princes, but he will be destroyed, though not by any human hand.

26And the vision of the evenings and mornings which hath been told is true: but shut thou up the vision; for it belongeth to many days to come.

26The vision about the evenings and mornings that was told to you is true. But keep the vision a secret, because it refers to a time far in the future.'

27And I, Daniel, fainted, and was sick certain days; then I rose up, and did the king’s business: and I wondered at the vision, but none understood it.

27I, Daniel, was exhausted and stayed sick for several days. Then I got up and went back to work for the king. I was deeply disturbed by the vision, and no one could explain it.