1In the first year of Belshazzar, the king of Babylon, Daniel
saw a dream, and the visions of his mind [while asleep] on his bed; then he
wrote the dream and said the beginnings of the matters.
2Daniel raised his voice and said: I saw in my vision during the
night, and behold the four winds of the heavens were stirring up the Great Sea.
3And four huge beasts were coming up out of the sea, each one
different from the other.
4The first one was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle,
until its wings were plucked and it was taken from the earth, and it stood on
feet like a man, and the heart of a mortal was given it.
5And behold another second beast, resembling a bear, and it stood
to one side, and there were three ribs in its mouth between its teeth, and so
did they say to it, 'Get up, eat much meat.'
6After this, I saw, and behold another one, like a leopard, and it
had four wings of a bird on its back, and the beast had four heads, and
dominion was given it.
7After this, I saw in the visions of the night, and behold a
fourth beast, awesome and dreadful and exceedingly strong, and it had huge iron
teeth. It ate and crushed, and trampled the rest with its feet, and it was
different from all the beasts that were before me, and it had ten horns.
8I looked at these horns and behold another small horn came up
among them, and three of the first horns were plucked out before it, and behold
eyes like human eyes were on this horn, and a mouth speaking arrogantly.
9I was looking until thrones were set up, and the Ancient of Days
sat; His raiment was as white as snow, and the hair of His head was like clean
wool; His throne was sparks of fire, its wheels were a burning fire.
10A river of fire was flowing and emerging from before Him; a
thousand thousands served Him, and ten thousand ten thousands arose before Him.
Justice was established, and the books were opened.
11I saw then from the sound of the arrogant words that the horn
spoke, I looked until the beast was slain, and its body was destroyed and given
to a flame of fire.
12But as for the other beasts, their dominion was removed, and
they were given an extension of life until a set time.
13I saw in the visions of the night, and behold with the clouds of
the heaven, one like a man was coming, and he came up to the Ancient of Days
and was brought before Him.
14And He gave him dominion and glory and a kingdom, and all
peoples, nations, and tongues shall serve him; his dominion is an eternal
dominion, which will not be removed, and his kingdom is one which will not be
destroyed.
15My spirit-I, Daniel-became troubled within its sheath, and the
visions of my mind terrified me.
16I drew near to one of those standing [there], and I asked him
the truth of all this, and he told it to me, and he let me know the
interpretation of the matters.
17[He said] "These huge beasts, which are four, are four
kingdoms, which will arise from the earth.
18And the high holy ones will receive the kingdom, and they will
inherit the kingdom forever and to all eternity."
19Then I wished to determine the truth of the fourth beast, which
was different from all of them- excessively dreadful; its teeth were of iron
and its nails of copper; it ate and crushed to powder, and the rest it trampled
with its feet.
20And concerning the ten horns that were on its head, and the
other one that came up and [the] three [that] fell before it, and the horn that
was like this and that had eyes and a mouth speaking arrogantly, and its
appearance was greater than [that of] its companions.
21I looked and the horn that was like this waged war with the holy
ones and overwhelmed them.
22Until the Ancient of Days came and gave revenge to the high holy
ones, and the time arrived that the holy ones inherited the kingdom.
23So he said, "The fourth beast [represents] a fourth kingdom
[that] will be on the earth, which will be different from all the kingdoms, and
it will devour the whole land and trample it and crush it.
24And the ten horns that [sprout] from that kingdom [represent]
ten kings [that] will rise, and the last one will rise after them, and he will
be different from the first, and he will humble three kings.
25And he will speak words against the Most High, and he will
oppress the high holy ones, and he will think to change the times and the law,
and they will be delivered into his hand until a time, two times, and half a
time.
26And the judgment shall be established, and they will remove his
dominion to be destroyed and annihilated until the end.
27And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the
kingdoms under all the heavens will be given to the people of the high holy
ones; its kingdom is a perpetual kingdom, and all dominions will serve and obey
[it]."
28Until here is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my
thoughts terrified me greatly, and my colors changed upon me, and I kept the
matter in my heart
