Old/New Testament
Daniel Has a Vision of a Goat and a Ram
8 [a] In the third year[b] of King Belshazzar’s reign, a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had appeared to me previously.[c] 2 In this[d] vision I saw myself in Susa[e] the citadel,[f] which is located in the province of Elam. In the vision I saw myself at the Ulai Canal.[g] 3 I looked up[h] and saw[i] a[j] ram with two horns standing at the canal. Its two horns were both long,[k] but one was longer than the other. The longer one was coming up after the shorter one. 4 I saw that the ram was butting westward, northward, and southward. No animal[l] was able to stand before it, and there was none who could deliver from its power.[m] It did as it pleased and acted arrogantly.[n]
5 While I was contemplating all this,[o] a male goat[p] was coming from the west over the surface of all the land[q] without touching the ground. This goat had a conspicuous horn[r] between its eyes. 6 It came to the two-horned ram that I had seen standing beside the canal and rushed against it with raging strength.[s] 7 I saw it approaching the ram. It went into a fit of rage against the ram[t] and struck it[u] and broke off its two horns. The ram had no ability to resist it.[v] The goat hurled the ram[w] to the ground and trampled it. No one could deliver the ram from its power.[x] 8 The male goat acted even more arrogantly. But no sooner had the large horn become strong than it was broken, and there arose four conspicuous horns[y] in its place,[z] extending toward the four winds of the sky.[aa]
9 From one of them came a small horn,[ab] but it grew to be very great toward the south and the east and toward the beautiful land.[ac] 10 It grew so great it reached the army[ad] of heaven, and it brought about the fall of some of the army and some of the stars[ae] to the ground, where it trampled them. 11 It also acted arrogantly against the Prince of the army,[af] from whom[ag] the daily sacrifice was removed and whose sanctuary[ah] was thrown down. 12 The army was given over,[ai] along with the daily sacrifice, in the course of his sinful rebellion.[aj] It hurled[ak] truth[al] to the ground and enjoyed success.[am]
13 Then I heard a holy one[an] speaking. Another holy one said to the one who was speaking, “To what period of time does the vision pertain—this vision concerning the daily sacrifice and the destructive act of rebellion and the giving over of both the sanctuary and army to be trampled?” 14 He said to me, “To 2,300 evenings and mornings;[ao] then the sanctuary will be put right again.”[ap]
An Angel Interprets Daniel’s Vision
15 While I, Daniel, was watching the vision, I sought to understand it. Now one who appeared to be a man was standing before me. 16 Then I heard a human voice coming from between the banks of the Ulai. It called out, “Gabriel,[aq] enable this person to understand the vision.” 17 So he approached the place where I was standing. As he came, I felt terrified and fell flat on the ground.[ar] Then he said to me, “Understand, son of man,[as] that the vision pertains to the time of the end.” 18 As he spoke with me, I fell into a trance with my face to the ground. But he touched me and stood me upright.[at]
19 Then he said, “I am going to inform you about what will happen in the latter time of wrath, for the vision[au] pertains to the appointed time of the end. 20 The ram that you saw with the two horns stands for the kings of Media and Persia. 21 The male goat[av] is the king of Greece,[aw] and the large horn between its eyes is the first king. 22 The horn that was broken[ax] and in whose place there arose four others stands for four kingdoms that will arise from his nation, though they will not have his strength. 23 Toward the end of their rule, when rebellious acts[ay] are complete, a rash[az] and deceitful[ba] king will arise.[bb] 24 His power will be great, but it will not be by his strength alone. He will cause terrible destruction.[bc] He will be successful in what he undertakes.[bd] He will destroy powerful people and the people of the holy ones.[be] 25 By his treachery[bf] he will succeed through deceit.[bg] He will have an arrogant attitude,[bh] and he will destroy many who are unaware of his schemes.[bi] He will rise up against the Prince of princes, yet he will be broken apart—but not by human agency.[bj] 26 The vision of the evenings and mornings that was told to you is correct.[bk] But you should seal up the vision, for it refers to a time many days from now.”
27 I, Daniel, was exhausted[bl] and sick for days. Then I got up and again carried out the king’s business. But I was astonished at the vision, and there was no one to explain it.
Daniel Prays for His People
9 In the first year of Darius[bm] son of Ahasuerus,[bn] who was of Median descent and who had been[bo] appointed king over the Babylonian[bp] empire— 2 in the first year of his reign[bq] I, Daniel, came to understand from the sacred books[br] that the number of years for the fulfilling of the desolation of Jerusalem, which had come as the Lord’s[bs] message to the prophet Jeremiah, would be 70 years. 3 So I turned my attention[bt] to the Lord God[bu] to implore him by prayer and requests, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.[bv] 4 I prayed to the Lord my God, confessing in this way:
“O Lord,[bw] great and awesome God who is faithful to his covenant[bx] with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned! We have done what is wrong and wicked; we have rebelled by turning away from your commandments and standards. 6 We have not paid attention to your servants the prophets, who spoke by your authority[by] to our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors,[bz] and to all the inhabitants[ca] of the land as well.
7 “You are righteous,[cb] O Lord, but we are humiliated this day[cc]—the people[cd] of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far away in all the countries in which you have scattered them, because they have behaved unfaithfully toward you. 8 O Lord, we have been humiliated[ce]—our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors—because we have sinned against you. 9 Yet the Lord our God is compassionate and forgiving,[cf] even though we have rebelled against him. 10 We have not obeyed[cg] the Lord our God by living according to[ch] his laws[ci] that he set before us through his servants the prophets.
11 “All Israel has broken[cj] your law and turned away by not obeying you.[ck] Therefore you have poured out on us the judgment solemnly threatened[cl] in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against you.[cm] 12 He has carried out his threats[cn] against us and our rulers[co] who were over[cp] us by bringing great calamity on us—what has happened to Jerusalem has never been equaled under all heaven! 13 Just as it is written in the law of Moses, so all this calamity has come on us. Still we have not tried to pacify[cq] the Lord our God by turning back from our sin and by seeking wisdom[cr] from your reliable moral standards.[cs] 14 The Lord was mindful of the calamity, and he brought it on us. For the Lord our God is just[ct] in all he has done,[cu] and we have not obeyed him.[cv]
15 “Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with great power[cw] and made a name for yourself that is remembered to this day—we have sinned and behaved wickedly. 16 O Lord, according to all your justice,[cx] please turn your raging anger[cy] away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain. For due to our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors, Jerusalem and your people are mocked by all our neighbors.
17 “So now, our God, accept[cz] the prayer and requests of your servant, and show favor to[da] your devastated sanctuary for your own sake.[db] 18 Listen attentively,[dc] my God, and hear! Open your eyes and look on our desolated ruins[dd] and the city called by your name.[de] For it is not because of our own righteous deeds that we are praying to you,[df] but because your compassion is abundant. 19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, pay attention, and act! Don’t delay, for your own sake, O my God! For your city and your people are called by your name.”[dg]
Gabriel Gives to Daniel a Prophecy of Seventy Weeks
20 While I was still speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and presenting my request before the Lord my God concerning his holy mountain[dh]— 21 yes, while I was still praying,[di] the man Gabriel, whom I had seen previously[dj] in a vision, was approaching me in my state of extreme weariness,[dk] around the time of the evening offering. 22 He spoke with me, instructing me as follows:[dl] “Daniel, I have now come to impart understanding to you. 23 At the beginning of your requests a message went out, and I have come to convey it to you, for you are of great value in God’s sight.[dm] Therefore consider the message and understand the vision:[dn]
24 “Seventy weeks[do] have been determined
concerning your people and your holy city
to put an end to[dp] rebellion,
to bring sin[dq] to completion,[dr]
to atone for iniquity,
to bring in perpetual[ds] righteousness,
to seal up[dt] the prophetic vision,[du]
and to anoint a Most Holy Place.[dv]
25 So know and understand:
From the issuing of the command[dw] to restore and rebuild
Jerusalem until an anointed one, a prince arrives,[dx]
there will be a period of seven weeks[dy] and sixty-two weeks.
It will again be built,[dz] with plaza and moat,
but in distressful times.
26 Now after the sixty-two weeks,
an anointed one will be cut off and have nothing.[ea]
As for the city and the sanctuary,
the people of the coming prince will destroy[eb] them.
But his end will come speedily[ec] like a flood.[ed]
Until the end of the war that has been decreed
there will be destruction.
27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one week.[ee]
But in the middle of that week
he will bring sacrifices and offerings to a halt.
On the wing[ef] of abominations will come[eg] one who destroys,
until the decreed end is poured out on the one who destroys.”
An Angel Appears to Daniel
10 [eh] In the third[ei] year of King Cyrus of Persia a message was revealed to Daniel (who was also called Belteshazzar). This message was true and concerned a great war.[ej] He understood the message and gained insight by the vision.
2 In those days I, Daniel, was mourning for three whole weeks.[ek] 3 I ate no choice food, no meat or wine came to my lips,[el] nor did I anoint myself with oil[em] until the end of those three weeks.
4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month[en] I was beside the great river, the Tigris.[eo] 5 I looked up[ep] and saw a[eq] man[er] clothed in linen;[es] around his waist was a belt made of gold from Ufaz.[et] 6 His body resembled yellow jasper,[eu] and his face had an appearance like lightning. His eyes were like blazing torches;[ev] his arms and feet had the gleam of polished bronze. His voice[ew] thundered forth like the sound of a large crowd.
7 Only I, Daniel, saw the vision; the men who were with me did not see it.[ex] On the contrary, they were overcome with fright[ey] and ran away to hide. 8 I alone was left to see this great vision. My strength drained from[ez] me, and my vigor disappeared;[fa] I was without energy.[fb] 9 I listened to his voice,[fc] and as I did so[fd] I fell into a trance-like sleep with my face to the ground. 10 Then[fe] a hand touched me and set me on my hands and knees.[ff] 11 He said to me, “Daniel, you are of great value.[fg] Understand the words that I am about to[fh] speak to you. So stand up,[fi] for I have now been sent to you.” When he said this[fj] to me, I stood up shaking. 12 Then he said to me, “Don’t be afraid, Daniel, for from the very first day you applied your mind[fk] to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard. I have come in response to your words. 13 However, the prince of the kingdom of Persia was opposing me for twenty-one days. But[fl] Michael, one of the leading princes, came to help me, because I was left there[fm] with the kings of Persia. 14 Now I have come to help you understand what will happen to your people in future days, for the vision pertains to days to come.”[fn]
15 While he was saying this to me,[fo] I was flat on[fp] the ground and unable to speak. 16 Then[fq] one who appeared to be a human being[fr] was touching my lips. I opened my mouth and started to speak, saying to the one who was standing before me, “Sir,[fs] due to the vision, anxiety has gripped me and I have no strength. 17 How, sir, am I able to speak with you?[ft] My strength is gone,[fu] and I am breathless.” 18 Then the one who appeared to be a human being touched me again[fv] and strengthened me. 19 He said to me, “Don’t be afraid, you who are highly valued.[fw] Peace be to you! Be strong! Be really strong!” When he spoke to me, I was strengthened. I said, “Sir, you may speak now,[fx] for you have given me strength.” 20 He said, “Do you know why I have come to you?[fy] Now I am about to return to engage in battle with the prince of Persia. When I go, the prince of Greece is coming. 21 However, I will first tell you what is written in a dependable book.[fz] (There is no one who strengthens me against these princes,[ga] except Michael your[gb] prince.
Introduction and Thanksgiving
1 From[a] the elder,[b] to Gaius[c] my dear brother, whom I love in truth.[d] 2 Dear friend, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, just as it is well with your soul.[e] 3 For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, just as you are living according to the truth.[f]
4 I have no greater joy than this: to hear[g] that my children are living according to the truth.[h]
The Charge to Gaius
5 Dear friend,[i] you demonstrate faithfulness[j] by whatever you do for the brothers (even though they are strangers). 6 They[k] have testified to your love before the church.[l] You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God.[m] 7 For they have gone forth[n] on behalf of “The Name,”[o] accepting nothing from the pagans.[p] 8 Therefore we[q] ought to support such people, so that we become coworkers in cooperation with the truth.[r]
Diotrephes the Troublemaker
9 I wrote something to the church,[s] but Diotrephes,[t] who loves to be first among them, does not acknowledge us.[u] 10 Therefore, if I come,[v] I will call attention to the deeds he is doing[w]—the bringing of unjustified charges against us with evil words! And not being content with that, he not only refuses to welcome the brothers himself, but hinders the people who want to do so and throws them out of the church! 11 Dear friend, do not imitate what is bad but what is good.[x] The one who does good is of God; the one who does what is bad has not seen God.[y]
Worthy Demetrius
12 Demetrius[z] has been testified to by all, even by the truth itself. We also testify to him,[aa] and you know that our testimony is true.
Conclusion
13 I have many things to write to you, but I do not wish to write to you with[ab] pen and ink.[ac] 14 But I hope to see you right away, and we will speak face to face.[ad] 15 Peace be with you.[ae] The friends here[af] greet you. Greet the friends[ag] there[ah] by name.
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