Daniel 8

New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised Catholic Edition

Vision of a Ram and a Goat

8 In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had appeared to me at first. ² In the vision I was looking and saw myself in Susa the capital, in the province of Elam,^[a] and I was by the river Ulai.^{[b] 3} I looked up and saw a ram standing beside the river.^[c] It had two horns. Both horns were long, but one was longer than the other, and the longer one came up second. ⁴ I saw the ram charging westwards and northwards and southwards. All beasts were powerless to withstand it, and no one could rescue from its power; it did as it pleased and became strong.

⁵ As I was watching, a male goat appeared from the west, coming across the face of the whole earth without touching the ground. The goat had a horn^[d] between its eyes. ⁶ It came towards the ram with the two horns that I had seen standing beside the river,^[e] and it ran at it with savage force. ⁷ I saw it approaching the ram. It was enraged against it and struck the ram, breaking its two horns. The ram did not have power to withstand it; it threw the ram down to the ground and trampled upon it, and there was no one who could rescue the ram from its power. ⁸ Then the male goat grew exceedingly great; but at the height of its power, the great horn was broken, and in its place there came up four prominent horns towards the four winds of heaven.

⁹ Out of one of them came another^[f] horn, a little one, which grew exceedingly great towards the south, towards the east, and towards the beautiful land. ¹⁰ It grew as high as the host of heaven. It threw down to the earth some of the host and some of the stars, and trampled on them. ¹¹ Even against the prince of the host it acted arrogantly; it took the regular burnt-offering away from him and overthrew the place of his sanctuary. ¹² Because of wickedness, the host was given over to it together with the regular burnt-offering;^[g] it cast truth to the ground, and kept prospering in what it did. ¹³ Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to the one that spoke, ‘For how long is this vision concerning the regular burnt-offering, the transgression that makes desolate, and the giving over of the sanctuary and host to be trampled?’^{[h] 14} And he answered him,^[i] ‘For two thousand three hundred evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state.’

Gabriel Interprets the Vision

¹⁵ When I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I tried to understand it. Then someone appeared standing before me, having the appearance of a man, ¹⁶ and I heard a human voice by the Ulai, calling, ‘Gabriel, help this man understand the vision.’ ¹⁷ So he came near where I stood; and when he came, I became frightened and fell prostrate. But he said to me, ‘Understand, O mortal,^[j] that the vision is for the time of the end.’

¹⁸ As he was speaking to me, I fell into a trance, face to the ground; then he touched me and set me on my feet. ¹⁹ He said, ‘Listen, and I will tell you what will take place later in the period of wrath; for it refers to the appointed time of the end. ²⁰ As for the ram that you saw with the two horns, these are the kings of Media and Persia. ²¹ The male goat^[k] is the king of Greece, and the great horn between its eyes is the first king. ²² As for the horn that was broken, in place of which four others arose, four kingdoms shall arise from his^[l] nation, but not with his power.

²⁶ The vision of the evenings and the mornings that has been told is true. As for you, seal up the vision, for it refers to many days from now.’

²⁷ So I, Daniel, was overcome and lay sick for some days; then I arose and went about the king’s business. But I was dismayed by the vision and did not understand it.