In [the] third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.

So the king said to call the magicians and the conjurers and the sorcerers and the {astrologers} to tell to the king his dreams. And they came in and they stood {before} the king.

Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent [directions] to assemble the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all of the officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the statue that Nebuchadnezzar the king [had] set up.

{Therefore} {at this time} [some] {astrologers} came forward and {they denounced the Jews}.

Then Nebuchadnezzar approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire, [and] he called out, saying, "Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, {servants} of the Most High God, come out and come here!"

And the satraps, the prefects, the governors and the advisors of the king [were] assembling, [and] they saw these men, that the fire had no power over their bodies, and the hair of their heads was not singed, and their garments were not harmed, and the smell of fire did not come from them.

Then the magicians, the conjurers, the {astrologers} and the diviners came in and I told them the dream, but they could not make known to me its explanation.

Then {at last} Daniel came before me {whose name was} Belteshazzar, {according to} the name of my god, [and] {in whom was the spirit of the holy gods}, {and I related the dream to him}.

" 'I was looking in the vision of my head [as I lay] on my bed, and look, a watcher, and holy [one], came down from heaven.

This [is] the explanation, O king, and it [is] a decree of the Most High that has come upon my lord the king:

[While] the words [were] still in the mouth of the king, a voice from heaven came, [saying], 'To you, King Nebuchadnezzar, [it] is declared that the kingdom has departed from you,

Then all the wise men of the king came in, but they were not able to read the writing or to make known its explanation.

Because of the words of the king and his lords, the queen came into {the banqueting hall} and the queen {spoke up} and said, "O king, live {forever}, and let not your thoughts terrify you and [do] not let your facial expressions {grow pale}.

And [now] you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven, and the vessels of his temple you have brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives and your concubines, have been drinking wine from them, and you have praised the gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone that [do] not see and [do] not hear and [do] not know, but the God {who holds your life in his hand} and all of your ways {come from him}, you have not honored.

Then these men came as a group and they found Daniel praying and pleading for mercy before his God.

Then these men came as group to the king and {said}, "Recall, O king, that [with respect to] [the] law of [the] Medes and Persians that {any} decree or edict that the king establishes cannot be changed."

And {when he came near} to the pit, he cried out to Daniel with distressed voice, [and] the king {spoke} and said to Daniel, "O Daniel, servant of the living God, your God whom you serve faithfully, was he able to rescue you from the lions?"

I was considering the horns, and look, another little horn came up {among} them, and three of the earlier horns {were rooted out} from before it, and there were eyes like the eyes of human in this horn and [also] a mouth [that was] speaking boastfully.

"{I continued watching} in the visions of the night, and look, with the clouds of heaven [one] like a son of man was coming, and he came to the Ancient of Days, and {was presented} before him.

and concerning the horns that [were] on its head, and [concerning] [the] other [horn] that came up and {before which three horns fell}, and this horn {had eyes} and mouth speaking {boastfully}, and its appearance [was] larger than its companions.

until the Ancient of Days came and gave judgment to [the] holy ones of [the] Most High; and the time arrived and [the] holy ones took possession of the kingdom.

And I lifted up my eyes and I saw, and look! A ram standing {before} the stream, and {it had} two horns, and the horns [were] long, but the one [was] longer than the second, and the longer [one] came up {after the other one}.

Then it came toward the ram {that had the two horns} that I saw standing {before} the stream, and it ran at it with the rage of its power.

And the he-goat grew {exceedingly great}, and {at the height of its power} the great horn was broken, and four conspicuous horns came up in place of it toward the four winds of heaven.

{And from one of them} came forth horn, {a little one}, and it grew exceedingly toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the beautiful land.

And he came beside {where I was standing}, and {when he came} I became terrified and I fell prostrate on my face. And he said to me, "Understand, son of man, that the vision [is] for [the] time of [the] end."

And the vision of the evening and the morning that has been {described}, it [is] true; and you, seal [up] the vision, for {it refers to many days to come}."

Just as [it is] written in the law of Moses, all of this calamity has come upon us, and {we have not implored} the face of Yahweh our God [so as] to turn from our iniquities and to attend closely to your faithfulness.

And he instructed [me] and he spoke with me and he said, "Daniel I have now come out to teach you understanding.

At the beginning of your pleas for mercy, a word went out, and [now] I have come to declare [it], for you [are] highly esteemed, and [so] consider the word and understand the vision.

And he said to me, "You must not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and to humble yourself {before} your God, your words were heard, and I [myself] have come because of your words.

But [the] prince of [the] kingdom of Persia stood {before me} [for] twenty-one days. And look, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to assist me, and I left [him] there beside [the] king of [the] Persians.

And I have come to instruct you about what will happen to your people {in the future}, for [there is] a further vision [here] {for the future}.

Then he asked, "Do you know why I have come to you? And now I return to fight against the prince of Persia and I [myself] [am] going, and look, [the] prince of Javan will come.

And at [the] end of [some] years they will make an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south will come to the king of the north to make a peace treaty, but {she will not retain her position of power}, and his offspring will not endure, and she will be given up, she and her attendants and her child supporting her, in those times.

And a branch from her roots will rise up [in] his place, and he will come against the army and he will enter the stronghold of the king of the north and he will take action against them and he will prevail.

And [then] he will come into the kingdom of the king of the south, but he will return to his land.

And the king of the north will again raise a multitude, greater than the former, and {at the end of some years} he will surely come with great army and with great supplies.

And the king of the north will come, and he will throw up siege ramps and capture a city of fortifications and the military forces of the south and {his choice troops} will not stand, for there is no strength [left] to resist.

And he will set his face to come with the authority of his whole kingdom and will form an agreement; and he will {act}, and the daughter of women he will give to him to destroy it, but [the ploy] will not succeed {and she will not support him}.

And in his place a despicable person will arise on whom they have not conferred the majesty of [the] kingdom, and he will come in {without warning} and he will seize [the] kingdom by deceit.

In [a time of] ease and in [the] rich parts of [the] province, he will come and he will do what {his predecessors} did not do; he will distribute plunder and spoil and possessions to them, and he will devise his plans against fortifications, but [only] {for a time}.

"At the appointed time he will return and he will come into the south, but it will not be {as it was before}.

And [the] ships of Kittim will come against him, and he will lose heart, and he will turn back, and he will be enraged {against the holy covenant}, and he will take action, and he will turn back, and he will pay attention to [those who] forsake {the holy covenant}.

And [even] some of those {who have insight} will fall [in order for] them to be refined by it, and to be purified and cleansed until the time of [the] end, for the appointed time [is] still to come.

And he will come {into the beautiful land} and many will fall victim, but these will escape from his power: Edom and Moab and the best part of the {Ammonites}.

And [then] he will pitch the tents of his palace between [the] sea [and] {the beautiful holy mountain}, and he will come to his end, and there is no one helping him."