Daniel’s Special Dream of a Ram and Goat

8 In the third year that Belshazzar was king, I, Daniel, had another special dream. ² In the dream I looked and saw that I was in the strong city of Susa, in the land of Elam. I saw that I was beside the Ulai River. ³ Then I looked up and saw a ram with two horns standing by the river. The two horns were long, but one was longer than the other. And the longer one came up last. ⁴ I saw the ram pushing to the west, to the north, and to the south. No other animals could stop him or be saved from his power. He did as he pleased and made himself great.

⁵ While I was watching, a male goat came from the west across the whole earth without touching the ground. And the goat had a horn between his eyes that was very easy to see. ⁶ He came up to the ram with the two horns, which I had seen standing by the river, and rushed at him in his strong anger. ⁷ I saw him come at the ram in his anger. He hit the ram and broke his two horns to pieces. The ram was not strong enough to fight against him. So the goat threw him to the ground and crushed him under foot. And there was no one to save the ram from his power. ⁸ Then the male goat became very great. But as soon as he was powerful, the large horn was broken. And four large horns came up in its place, toward the four winds of heaven.

⁹ Out of them came a little horn which grew in power toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Beautiful Land. ¹⁰ It grew to be as great as the army of heaven and made some of them fall to the earth, and it crushed them into the ground. ¹¹ It thought itself to be as great as the Ruler of the army of heaven. It took away the burnt gifts which were given to Him each day, and destroyed His holy place. ¹² Because of sin, the army of heaven and the burnt gifts were given over to the horn. It did well in whatever it wanted to do, and truth was thrown to the ground. ¹³ Then I heard a holy one speaking. And another holy one said to the one that spoke, “How long will it take for the things seen in the dream to happen? How long will the burnt gifts be taken, and sin allowed to destroy, so that the holy place and the army of heaven are crushed under foot?” ¹⁴ He said to me, “For 2,300 evenings and mornings. Then the holy place will be put to use again.”

Gabriel Tells the Meaning of the Dream

¹⁵ When I, Daniel, had seen the special dream, I tried to understand it. Then I saw one standing in front of me who looked like a man. ¹⁶ And I heard a man’s voice from the Ulai River. He called out and said, “Gabriel, help this man to understand the special dream.” ¹⁷ When he came near the place where I was standing, I was afraid and fell on my face to the ground. But he said to me, “Son of man, understand that the special dream is about the time of the end.” ¹⁸ While he was talking to me, I fell into a deep sleep with my face to the ground. But he touched me and made me stand up. ¹⁹ He said, “I am going to let you know what the end of God’s anger will be. For the special dream is about the time of the end. ²⁰ The ram you saw had two horns which are the kings of Media and Persia. ²¹ The male goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn between his eyes is the first king. ²² The broken horn and the four horns that grew in its place are the four nations which will come from his nation. But they will not be as powerful. ²³ In the later part of their rule, when they have become as sinful as they can be, a king will rise to power. This king will be very proud and will understand secret things. ²⁴ He will become very strong, but not by his own power. He will destroy much, and do well in whatever he wants done. He will destroy powerful men and the holy people. ²⁵ He will do well by using his false ways and lies, and will think of himself as great. He will destroy many who are taking it easy. He will even go against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be destroyed, but not by a human hand. ²⁶ The special dream of the evenings and mornings that has been given to you is true. But keep the dream secret, for it has to do with things far into the future.”

²⁷ I, Daniel, was tired and sick for days. Then I got up again and did the work that the king had given me. But I was filled with wonder because of the special dream, and did not understand it.

Daniel’s Prayer for the People

9 Darius the son of Ahasuerus, who was born a Mede, was made king over the nation of the Babylonians. ² In the first year of his rule, I, Daniel, understood the books which were given by the Lord through Jeremiah that Jerusalem would lie waste for seventy years. ³ So I turned to the Lord God in prayer and did not eat. I dressed in cloth made from hair, and threw ashes on myself. ⁴ I prayed to the Lord my God and told him the sins of my people, saying, “O Lord, you are great and we fear You. You keep Your agreement and show loving-kindness to those who love You and keep Your Laws.

⁵ “But we have sinned. We have done wrong and have acted in sin. We have turned against You and against Your Laws. ⁶ We have not listened to Your servants who spoke for You, who spoke in Your name to our kings, our leaders, our fathers, and all the people of the land. ⁷ You are right and good, O Lord. But we are all covered with shame, all the men of Judah, the people of Jerusalem, and all Israel. The people both near and far away in all the countries where You have driven us are covered with shame because they have not been faithful to You. ⁸ We, our kings, our leaders and our fathers are all covered with shame, O Lord, because we have sinned against You. ⁹ O Lord our God, You are kind and forgiving, even when we would not obey You. ¹⁰ We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by following the Laws He gave us through His servants who spoke for Him. ¹¹ All Israel has sinned against Your Law and turned away, not obeying Your voice. So the curses and punishments have been poured out on us, which were written about in the Law of God’s servant Moses. For we have sinned against Him. ¹² He has done what He said He would do against us and our leaders, and has brought much trouble upon us. For under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. ¹³ All this trouble has come upon us just as it is written in the Law of Moses. Yet we have not looked for the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sin and following Your truth. ¹⁴ So the Lord brought trouble upon us. For the Lord our God is right and good in all He does, but we have not obeyed His voice.

¹⁵ “O Lord our God, You have brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a powerful hand. And You have made a name for Yourself that is known to this day. Now we have sinned. We have done sinful things. ¹⁶ O Lord, because You are right and good in what You do, do not be angry any longer with Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain. For because of our sins and the sins of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people have been put to shame by everyone around us. ¹⁷ So now, our God, listen to Your servant’s prayer and what he is asking. And for Your good, O Lord, look with favor upon the House of God which now lies waste. ¹⁸ O my God, turn Your ear and hear! Open Your eyes and see our trouble and the city that is called by Your name. We are not asking this of You because we are right or good, but because of Your great loving-pity. ¹⁹ O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! For Your own good, O my God, do not wait, because Your city and Your people are called by Your name.”

Daniel Tells about the Future

²⁰ I was speaking and praying, and telling the Lord my sin and the sin of my people Israel. I was asking the Lord my God to show favor to His holy mountain. ²¹ And while I was still praying, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen before in the dream, flew to me in a hurry at about the time when the evening gift is given in worship. ²² He talked to me and told me things, saying, “O Daniel, I have now come to give you wisdom and understanding. ²³ As soon as you began to pray, an answer was given, which I have come to tell you. For you are loved very much. So listen to what I say and understand the special dream.

²⁴ “Seventy weeks are given for your people and your holy city to finish the wrong-doing and put an end to sin. By the end of this time, you must pay for your sins and follow what is right and good forever. You must finish what was shown in the special dream and what has been spoken in My name, and set apart the most holy place. ²⁵ Know and understand that seven weeks and sixty-two weeks will pass from the time the people are told to build Jerusalem again until the Chosen One comes. It will be built again, with streets and with a ditch of water around it. But that will be a troubled time. ²⁶ After the sixty-two weeks, the Chosen One will be killed and have nothing. And the people of the ruler who is to come will destroy the city and the holy place. The end will come like a flood. Even to the end there will be war. For the Lord has said that much will be destroyed. ²⁷ That ruler will make a strong agreement with many for one week. But when half that time is past, he will put a stop to burnt gifts and grain gifts. And a very sinful man-made god will be put there. It will stay there until the one who put it there is destroyed.”

Daniel’s Special Dream by the Tigris River

10 In the third year that Cyrus was the king of Persia, some news was made known to Daniel (who was called Belteshazzar). The news was true and it was about a battle. He received understanding of the news in a special dream.

² In those days, I, Daniel, had been full of sorrow for three weeks. ³ I did not eat any fine food, and no meat or wine came into my mouth. And I did not use any oil at all, until the three weeks were finished. ⁴ On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, I was standing by the side of the wide Tigris River. ⁵ I looked up and saw a certain man dressed in linen. Around him was a belt of fine gold. ⁶ His body was like shining stone. His face looked like lightning. His eyes were like fire. His arms and feet were like shining brass. And his voice was like the noise of many people. ⁷ I, Daniel, was the only one who saw the special dream. The men who were with me did not see it. But they were filled with much fear, and ran away to hide themselves. ⁸ So I was left alone and saw this special dream. I had no strength left. My skin color turned white as if I were dead, and there was no strength left in me. ⁹ Then I heard the sound of his words. And as soon as I heard him speak, I fell into a deep sleep with my face to the ground.

The Future for Persia and Greece

¹⁰ Then a hand touched me and I shook with fear on my hands and knees. ¹¹ And he said to me, “O Daniel, you who are loved very much, understand what I am about to tell you, and stand up. For I have now been sent to you.” When he said this to me, I stood up shaking in fear. ¹² Then he said to me, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind on understanding and getting rid of your pride before your God, your words were heard. And I have come because of your words. ¹³ But the ruler of Persia stood against me for twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the leading princes of honor, came to help me, because I had been left there with the king of Persia. ¹⁴ Now I have come to help you understand what will happen to your people in the last days. For the special dream is about the days yet to come.” ¹⁵ When he had said this to me, I turned my face toward the ground and could not speak. ¹⁶ Then one who looked like a man touched my lips, and I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who was standing in front of me, “O my lord, pain has come to me because of the special dream, and I have no strength left. ¹⁷ How can I, your servant, talk with you, my lord? My strength is gone and no breath is left in me.”

¹⁸ Then the one who looked like a man touched me again and gave me strength. ¹⁹ He said, “O man who is loved very much, do not be afraid. May peace be with you. Be strong and have strength of heart.” And when he had spoken to me, I received strength, and said, “May my lord speak, for you have given me strength.” ²⁰ He said, “Do you understand why I have come to you? Soon I will return to fight against the ruler of Persia. And when I go, the ruler of Greece will come. ²¹ But first I will tell you what is written in the Book of Truth. (No one helps me against these rulers except Michael, your leading angel.