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.

"This [is] the explanation of the matter: 'Mene'--God has numbered your kingdom and brought an end [to] it.

Then these men {said}, "We will not find any pretext against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God."

All of [the] administrators of the kingdom, and the prefects, the satraps, the counselors and the governors took counsel [and have] agreed to establish an edict of the king and to enforce a decree that {whoever} will seek a prayer from any god or human except from you [for] up to thirty days will be thrown into {the lion pit}.

Now {when} Daniel realized that the document was signed, he went to his house ({now he had windows in his upper room that were open} toward Jerusalem), and three times {daily} he knelt on his knees and prayed and [gave] praise before his God, {just as} he had been doing {previously}.

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

Then they approached {and spoke with the king} concerning the edict of the king, "{Did you not sign an edict} that any person who would seek [anything] from any God or human within thirty days except from you, O king, would be thrown into {the lion pit}?" The king answered and said, "The matter [as you have just stated] is certain according to [the] law of [the] Medes and Persians which cannot be revoked."

Then the king gave the command, and Daniel was brought in and they threw [him] into {the lion pit}. {The king said} to Daniel, "Your God, whom you serve {faithfully}, may he rescue you!"

Then the king got up at daybreak, at first light, and he went {in haste} to {the lion pit}.

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?"

My God sent his angel and he shut the mouth of the lions and they did not hurt me, {because} before him {I was found} blameless, and also before you, O king, I have not done [any] wrong."

Then the king was exceedingly glad over it and commanded [that] Daniel be lifted up from the pit; and [there] was not any wound found on him, because he had trusted in his God.

{I make a decree} that in all the dominion of my kingdom [people] will be trembling and fearing before the God of Daniel, for he [is] the living God and endures {forever} and his kingdom [is] one that will not be destroyed and his {dominion has no end}.

And I was considering [this], and look, a he-goat coming from the west across the face of the whole earth, and [it] was not touching the ground; and the he-goat [had] {a conspicuous horn} between its eyes.

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 the hairy he-goat [is] the {kingdom} of Greece, and the great horn that [is] between his eyes--he [is] the first king.

Then I turned my face to the Lord God to seek [him] [by] prayer and pleas for mercy, in fasting and [in] sackcloth and ashes.

And I prayed to Yahweh my God, and I made confession and I said, "O Lord, the great and awesome God, keeping the covenant and loyal love with [those who] love him and with [those who] keep his commandments,

{Compassion and forgiveness belong to the Lord, our God}, for we have rebelled against him,

and we have not listened to the voice of Yahweh our God, by following his law {which he placed before us} by [the] hand of his servants the prophets.

"And all Israel transgressed your law and turned aside [so as] not to listen to your voice, and [so] the curse and the oath which [was] written in the law of Moses, the servant of God, has been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him.

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.

So Yahweh [has] kept watch over the calamity, and [now] he [has] brought it upon us. Indeed, Yahweh our God [is] righteous concerning all his works that he has done, but we have not listened to his voice.

"And now, Lord our God, who have brought your people out from [the] land of Egypt with a strong hand, and you [have] made for yourself a name [until] this day--we have sinned, we have acted wickedly.

Incline your ear, my God, and listen; open your eyes and look at our desolation and the city that is called [by] your name, for we [are] not presenting our pleas for mercy {before you} because of our righteousness, but [rather] because of your great compassion.

Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, pay heed and act! You must not delay {for your sake}, my God; because {your city and your people are called by your name}."

Now I [was] still speaking and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea {before} Yahweh my God, on behalf {of the holy mountain of my God}.

"And after the sixty and two weeks an anointed one shall be cut off, and {he shall have nothing}, and [the] people of the coming leader will destroy the city and the sanctuary, and its end [will be] with the flood and [on] to [the] end [there shall be] war; [these] desolations are determined.

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.

And now I will reveal [the] truth to you. Look! Still three kings will arise in Persia, and the fourth will get abundance [and] great wealth, [even] more than all [of them], and {when he becomes strong} through his wealth, [then] he will stir up {everyone} against [the] kingdom of Javan.

"And those who violate [the] covenant he will seduce with flattery, but the persons who know their God will stand firm and will take action.

"Then the king will do {as he pleases}, and he will exalt himself and will consider himself above any god, and he will speak horrendous things {against} [the] God of gods, yet he will succeed until [the period] of anger is finished, for [what] is determined will be done.

He will not pay respect to the gods of his ancestors, or to [the] darling of women, and not to any god will he pay respect, for he will consider himself great over all [gods].

But {instead} he will honor the god of fortresses, a god whom his ancestors did not know. He will honor [him] with gold, and with silver, and with precious stones and with costly gifts.

And he will deal with [the] {fortified strongholds} with [the help of] {a foreign god}; and he will increase wealth for whoever will acknowledge [him], and he will cause them to rule over the many, and he will distribute land for a price.

But I will have pity [on] the house of Judah and I will save them by Yahweh their God, and will not deliver them by bow, sword, war, horses, or horsemen.

And he said, "{Name him} Lo-ammi, for you [are] not my people and I am not your [God].

The number of the children of Israel will be like the sand of the sea that cannot be measured or counted; and in the place where it is said to them, "You are not my people," it will be said to them, "Children of [the] living God."

I will sow her for myself in the land; I will have pity on Lo-ruhama; I will say to Lo-ammi, "You are my people," and he himself will say, "[you are] my God."

Afterward the children of Israel will return and seek Yahweh their God and David their king. They will come in fear to Yahweh and to his goodness at the end of days.

Hear the word of Yahweh, children of Israel, for Yahweh has an indictment against the inhabitants of the land. There is no faithfulness or loyalty, there is no knowledge of God in the land.

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from acting as a priest for me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your children.

My people, consult {their wooden idols}, and their divining rod gives them oracles; because a spirit of whoredom led [them] astray, and they played the whore from under their God.

On the tops of the mountains they sacrifice, and on the hills they make offerings, under oak, poplar, and terebinth, because their shade is good. Therefore your daughters play the whore, and all your daughters-in-law commit adultery.

Their deeds do not permit them to return them to God. Because a spirit of whoredom [is] in their midst, they do not know Yahweh.

Because I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, and knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

The pride of Israel {testifies against him}-- they do not return to Yahweh their God; they do not seek him for all of this.

They cry out to me, "My God! We, Israel, know you!"

Israel has spurned [the] good; [the] enemy will pursue him.

Because [it is] from Israel, an artisan made it, it [is] not a god; for the calf of Samaria will be broken [to] pieces.

Do not rejoice, Israel, do not exult like the nations! For you played the whore, departing from your God; you loved a harlot's wage on all the threshing floors of grain.

The prophet keeps watch [over] Ephraim for my God; the snare of a fowler [is] on all his ways, and hostility in the house of his God.

My God will reject them because they did not listen to him, and they will be wanderers among the nations.

{I will not execute} {my fierce anger}, I will not again destroy Ephraim; because I [am] God and not a mortal, [the] Holy [One] in your midst; and I will not come in wrath.

Ephraim has surrounded me with lies, and the house of Israel with deceit; and Judah is still wandering with God and [is] faithful to the Holy One.

In the womb he deceived his brother, and in his manhood he struggled with God.

Yahweh the God of hosts, Yahweh [is] his renowned name!

But you, you must return to your God; keep love and justice, and wait continually for your God.

But I [am] Yahweh your God since the land of Egypt; I will make you live in tents again, like the days of [the] appointed festival.

I [am] Yahweh your God since the land of Egypt; you know no god except me, and no one saves besides me.

Samaria will be guilty, because she has rebelled against her God; they will fall by [the] sword, their children will be dashed to pieces, and their pregnant women will be ripped open.

Return to Yahweh your God, Israel, for you have stumbled because of your sin.

Take words with you, and return to Yahweh. Say to him, "Take away all guilt; accept good, and we will offer the fruit of our lips.

Assyria will not save us; we will not ride on horses, and we will say no more, "Our God," to the work of our hands because in you [the] fatherless child finds mercy.

Wake up, drunkards, and weep! Wail, all drinkers of wine, over the new wine, for it is cut off from your mouth.

Gird yourselves and lament, O priests! Wail, ministers of [the] altar! Come spend the night in sackcloth, ministers of my God, because offering and libation are withheld from the house of your God.

Solemnize a fast! Call an assembly! Gather [the] elders, all [of] the inhabitants of the land [in] the house of Yahweh your God, and cry out to Yahweh.

[Is] not food cut [off] before our eyes, from the house of our God, joy and gladness?

Rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to Yahweh your God, because he [is] gracious and compassionate, {slow to anger} and great in loyal love, and relenting from harm.

Who knows [whether] he will turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, an offering and a libation, for Yahweh your God?

Between the colonnade and the altar, let the priests, the ministers of Yahweh, weep. And let them say, "Take pity, Yahweh, on your people. Do not make your inheritance a reproach, a byword among [the] nations. Why should they say among the nations, 'Where [is] their God?'"

Be glad, children of Zion, be glad and rejoice in Yahweh your God, because he has given for you the autumn rains for [your] righteousness, and he has {poured down} for you rainwater, [the] autumn and spring rains, as before.

And you will eat abundantly and be satisfied, and praise the name of Yahweh your God, who has dealt with you {wondrously}. My people {will never be ashamed}.

And you will know that I [am] in the midst of Israel, and I [am] Yahweh, your God, and there is no [other]. My people {will never be ashamed again}.

And you will know that I, Yahweh your God, [am] dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain. And Jerusalem will be [a place of] holiness, and strangers will pass through [it] no longer.

I will break the gate bars of Damascus and I will cut off the inhabitants from the Valley of Aven and the one who takes hold of the scepter of Beth Eden, and the people of Aram will go into exile to Kir," says Yahweh.

And I will cut off the inhabitants from Ashdod and the one who takes hold of the scepter of Ashkelon. I will also turn my hand against Ekron, and the remnant of the Philistines will perish," says the Lord Yahweh.

And I will cut off [the] ruler from its midst and I will kill all of its officials with him," says Yahweh.

They stretch themselves out beside every altar on clothing taken in pledge and they drink wine, bought with fines imposed, in the house of their God.

"Listen and testify against the house of Jacob," {declares} my Lord Yahweh, the God of hosts.

"For on the day I punish Israel for {its transgression}, I will also punish the altars of Bethel and the horns of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground.

"I overthrew some of you as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were as a stick snatched from [the] fire, and yet you did not return to me," [is] the declaration of Yahweh.

"Therefore, thus I will do to you, Israel. Because I will do this to you, O Israel, prepare to meet your God!

Yes, here is the one who forms [the] mountains, and the one who creates the wind, and the one who reveals to humans what his thoughts [are], and the one who treads on the heights of the earth; Yahweh, the God of hosts, [is] his name!"

They hate the one who reproves in the gate and they abhor the one who speaks honestly.

For I know your transgressions [are] many and your sins [are] numerous, [you] foes of [the] righteous, those who take a bribe, and {those who} push aside [the] poor [ones] in the gate!

Seek good and not bad in order that you may live, and so Yahweh, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said.

Hate evil and love good and establish justice in the gate; perhaps Yahweh, the God of hosts, will be gracious [to] the remnant of Joseph.

Therefore, thus says Yahweh, the God of hosts, my Lord, "In all [of] the public squares [there will be] wailing, and in all [of] the streets [they will say], 'Alas, alas, alas!' They shall call [the] farmers to mourning and [to] wailing, to those who are skilled [in] lamentation.

And I will deport you beyond Damascus," says Yahweh--the God of hosts [is] his name.

My Lord Yahweh has sworn by himself, {declares} Yahweh, the God of hosts: "I abhor the pride of Jacob and I hate his citadel fortresses and I will deliver [the] city and its fullness!"

Indeed, I [am] going to raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel, {declares} Yahweh, the God of hosts. And they shall oppress you from Lebo-hamath up to the wadi of the Arabah.

"And the songs of the temple shall become wailings in that day," {declares} my Lord Yahweh. "The corpses are numerous; he throws them in every place. Be quiet!"

And [even] if they go into captivity before their enemies, from there I will command the sword and it will kill them, and I will fix my eyes on them for harm and not for good."

And I will plant them on their land and they will not be uprooted again from their land that I have given to them," says Yahweh your God.

And your warriors will be shattered, Teman, so that {everyone} from the mountain of Esau will be cut off because of the slaughter!

"Because of the violence done to your brother Jacob, shame will cover you and you will be cut off forever.

You should not have entered the gate of my people on the day of their disaster. You also should not have gloated over his misery on the day of his disaster, and you should not have stretched out [your hands] on the day of his disaster.

And you should not have stood at the crossroad to cut off his fugitives and you should not have handed over his survivors on the day of distress.

"Get up! Go to the great city Nineveh and cry out against her, because their evil has come up {before me}."