Daniel 7:1-18

English Standard Version

Daniel's Vision of the Four Beasts

7 In the first year of ^(A)Belshazzar king of Babylon, ^(B)Daniel saw a dream and ^(C)visions of his head as he lay in his bed. Then he wrote down the dream and told the sum of the matter. ²Daniel declared,^[a] “I saw in my vision by night, and behold, ^(D)the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea. ³And four great beasts ^(E)came up out of the sea, different from one another. ⁴The first was like a lion and had eagles' wings. Then as I looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man, and the mind of a man was given to it. ⁵And behold, ^(F)another beast, a second one, like a bear. It was raised up on one side. It had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth; and it was told, ‘Arise, devour much flesh.’ ⁶After this I looked, and behold, another, like a ^(G)leopard, with four wings of a bird on its back. And the beast had four heads, and ^(H)dominion was given to it. ⁷After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, ^(I)terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth; ^(J)it devoured and broke in pieces ^(K)and stamped what was left with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and ^(L)it had ten horns. ⁸I considered the horns, and behold, ^(M)there came up among them another horn, a little one, ^(N)before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots. And behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and ^(O)a mouth speaking great things.

The Ancient of Days Reigns

⁹“As I looked,

^(P)thrones were placed,
    and the ^(Q)Ancient of Days took his seat;
^(R)his clothing was white as snow,
    and ^(S)the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames;
    ^(T)its wheels were burning fire.
¹⁰^(U)A stream of fire issued
    and came out from before him;
^(V)a thousand thousands ^(W)served him,
    ^(X)and ten thousand times ten thousand ^(Y)stood before him;
the ^(Z)court sat in judgment,
    and ^(AA)the books were opened.

¹¹“I looked then because of the sound of ^(AB)the great words that the horn was speaking. And as I looked, ^(AC)the beast was killed, and its body destroyed ^(AD)and given over to be burned with fire. ¹²As for the rest of the beasts, ^(AE)their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.

The Son of Man Is Given Dominion

¹³“I saw in the night visions,

and ^(AF)behold, with the clouds of heaven
    there came one like a son of man,
and he came to the ^(AG)Ancient of Days
    and was presented before him.
¹⁴^(AH)And to him was given dominion
    and glory and a kingdom,
that all ^(AI)peoples, nations, and languages
    should serve him;
^(AJ)his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
    which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
    that shall not be destroyed.

Daniel's Vision Interpreted

¹⁵“As for me, Daniel, my spirit within me^[b] was anxious, and ^(AK)the visions of my head alarmed me. ¹⁶I approached one of those who stood there and asked him the truth concerning all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of the things. ¹⁷^(AL)‘These four great beasts are four kings who shall arise out of the earth. ¹⁸But ^(AM)the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, forever and ever.’