¹Belshazzar the king  ²made a great feast for a thousand of his lords; and he  ²drank wine before the thousand.

Belshazzar,  ¹under the influence of the wine, commanded men to bring the gold and silver vessels that Nebuchadnezzar his forefather had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem, that the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them.

Then they brought the golden vessels that had been taken out of the temple of the house of God, which was in Jerusalem; and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them.

They drank wine and praised the  ¹gods of gold and of silver, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone.

At that moment the fingers of a man's hand came forth and wrote opposite the lampstand upon the plaster of the wall of the king's palace. And the king saw that part of the hand that wrote.

Then the king's countenance changed and his thoughts alarmed him; and the joints of his hips loosened and his knees began to knock together.

The king cried loudly to bring the conjurers, the Chaldeans, and the diviners. The king responded and said to the wise men of Babylon, Any man who reads this writing and declares its interpretation to me shall be clothed in purple and shall have a chain of gold around his neck and shall rule as the third ruler in the kingdom.

Then all the king's wise men came, but they could not read the writing nor make its interpretation known to the king.

Then King Belshazzar was greatly alarmed; his countenance was further changed, and his lords were perplexed.

The queen mother, because of the words of the king and his lords, came to the banquet house. The queen mother responded and said, O king, live forever! Do not let your thoughts alarm you, nor let your countenance change.

There is a man in your kingdom in whom is a spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of your forefather light and insight and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods were found in him. And King Nebuchadnezzar your forefather — your forefather, O king — made him chief of the magicians, conjurers, Chaldeans, and diviners,

Because an excellent spirit and knowledge and insight, and the interpretation of dreams, the declaring of riddles, and the resolving of problems were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Let Daniel now be called, and he will declare the interpretation.

Then Daniel was brought before the king. The king responded and said to Daniel, Are you Daniel, one of the captives of Judah, whom my forefather the king brought from Judah?

Now I have heard about you that a spirit of the gods is in you and that light and insight and surpassing wisdom are found in you.

And now the wise men, the conjurers, have been brought in before me that they might read this writing and make its interpretation known to me, but they cannot declare the interpretation of the thing.

But I have heard about you that you can give interpretations and resolve problems. If you can now read the writing and make its interpretation known to me, you shall be clothed in purple and shall have a chain of gold around your neck and shall rule as the third ruler in the kingdom.

Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let your gifts remain with you, or give your rewards to another; nevertheless I will read the writing for the king and make the interpretation known to him.

Regarding  ¹you, O king, God the Most High gave to Nebuchadnezzar your forefather kingship, greatness, glory, and majesty;

And because of the greatness which He gave to him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him; whomever he wished he slew, and whomever he wished he kept alive, and whomever he wished he raised up, and whomever he wished he brought down.

But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit became so arrogant that he conducted himself in pride, he was deposed from his royal throne, and his glory was taken away from him.

And he was driven from the sons of men, and his heart was made like that of the beasts, and his dwelling place was with the wild donkeys; men fed him with grass as they do bulls, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, until he came to know that God the Most High is the Ruler over the kingdom of men and sets over it whomever He wills.

And you his descendant, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this;

But you have exalted yourself against the Lord of the heavens; and they have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them; and you have praised the gods of silver and of gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see nor hear nor know. But the God in whose hand is your breath and to whom all your ways belong, you have not honored.

Then that part of the hand was sent from before Him, and this writing was inscribed.

And this is the writing that was inscribed:  ¹MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.

This is the interpretation of the matter: MENE — God has numbered your kingdom and brought it to an end;

TEKEL — You have been weighed in the scales and found to be lacking.

PERES — Your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians.

Then Belshazzar commanded; and they clothed Daniel in purple and put a chain of gold around his neck, and they made the proclamation concerning him that he should rule as the third ruler in the kingdom.

In that very night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was  ¹slain.

And Darius the Mede received the kingdom at about the age of sixty-two.

It pleased Darius to set up over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps, who would be throughout the whole kingdom;

And over them, three chief ministers — of whom Daniel was one — so that these satraps might give account to them and the king might not suffer loss.

Then this Daniel distinguished himself among the chief ministers and satraps because in him there was an excellent spirit, and the king considered setting him over the whole kingdom.

Then the chief ministers and satraps sought to find a ground for accusation against Daniel from the perspective of the kingdom, but they could find no ground for accusation or fault, inasmuch as he was faithful, and no negligence or fault was found related to him.

Then these men said, We will not find any ground for accusation against this Daniel unless we find something related to him due to the law of his God.

Then these chief ministers and satraps came to prevail upon the king and said thus to him, King Darius, live forever!

All the chief ministers of the kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the counselors and the governors, have taken counsel together that the king should establish a statute and make firm an edict that anyone who makes a  ¹petition within the next thirty days to any god or man besides you, O king, shall be cast into the lions' den.

Now, O king, establish the edict and sign the writing, so that it is not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot pass away.

Therefore King Darius signed the writing, that is, the edict.

Now when  ¹Daniel came to know that the writing had been signed, he went to his house (in his upper room he had windows open  ²toward Jerusalem) and three times daily he knelt on his knees and prayed and gave thanks before his God, because he had always done so previously.

Then these men assembled and found Daniel making petition and supplication before his God.

Then they came near and spoke before the king concerning the king's edict: Did you not sign an edict that anyone who petitions, within the next thirty days, any god or man besides you, O king, shall be cast into the lions' den? The king answered and said, The thing is certain, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot pass away.

Then they answered and said before the king, Daniel, one of the captives from Judah, has not respected you, O king, or the edict that you have signed, but three times daily makes his petition.

Then the king, when he heard the thing, was very displeased with himself and set his heart on delivering Daniel; and until the sun set, he made efforts to deliver him.

Then these men came to prevail upon the king and said to the king, Know, O king, that it is the law of the Medes and Persians that no edict or statute which the king establishes can be changed.

Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions' den. The king responded and said to Daniel, Your God, whom you serve continually, He will deliver you.

And a stone was brought and set over the mouth of the den. And the king sealed it with his signet ring and with the signet rings of his lords that nothing might be changed regarding Daniel.

Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; and no entertainment was brought before him, and his sleep fled from him.

Then the king arose at dawn at the first light, and went in haste to the lions' den.

And when he had come near the den, he shouted to Daniel with a sad voice; the king responded and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?

Then Daniel said to the king, O king, live forever!

My God has sent His angel and has shut the lions' mouth, and they have not hurt me, inasmuch as before Him innocence was found in me; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm.

Then the king was very pleased concerning him, and he commanded that they take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and he was found completely unhurt, because he had trusted in his God.

Then the king commanded, and they brought those men who had accused Daniel and threw them into the lions' den, them, their children, and their wives; and they had not reached the bottom of the den before the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.

 ¹Then Darius the king wrote to all the peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in the whole land: May your peace abound!

I make a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel;
For He is the living God
And enduring forever;
And His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed,
And His dominion will be unto the end.

He delivers and rescues,
And He does signs and wonders
In heaven and on earth;
It is He who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.

And this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian.

In the  ¹first year of Belshazzar the king of Babylon Daniel saw a dream and  ²visions of his head upon his bed. Then he wrote down the dream; he related the sum of the matters.

Daniel responded and said, I was watching in my vision by night, and there were the  ¹four winds of heaven, stirring up the  ²Great Sea.

And four great  ¹beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other.

The  ¹first was like a lion and had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were plucked and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man; and a man's heart was given to it.

And there was  ¹another beast, a second one, resembling a bear. And it was raised up on one side, and three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth; and they said thus to it, Arise, devour much flesh.

After this I watched and there was  ¹another beast, like a leopard; and it had four wings of a bird on its back; and the beast had four heads, and dominion was given to it.

After this I watched in the night visions, and there was a  ¹fourth beast, dreadful and frightful and exceedingly strong; and it had large iron teeth; it devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns.

I was considering the horns; then there was another horn, a  ¹small one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted from before it. And there were  ²eyes like the eyes of a man in this horn and a  ²mouth speaking great things.

I watched
Until thrones were set,
And the Ancient of Days sat down.
His clothing was like white  ¹snow,
And the hair of His head was like pure  ¹wool;
His throne was flames of  ²fire;
Its wheels, burning fire.

A stream of fire issued forth
And came out from before Him.
Thousands of thousands ministered to Him,
And ten thousands of ten thousands stood before Him.
The  ¹court of judgment sat,
And the books were opened.

I watched then because of the sound of the great things that the horn was speaking; I watched until the beast was  ¹slain and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire.

And as for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an  ¹extension of life was given to them for a season and a time.

I watched in the night visions,
And there with the clouds of heaven
One like a  ¹Son of Man was coming;
And He came to the Ancient of Days,
And they brought Him near before Him.

And to Him was  ¹given dominion, glory, and a kingdom,
That all the peoples, nations, and languages might serve Him.
His dominion is an eternal dominion, which will not pass away;
And His kingdom is one that will not be destroyed.

As for me, Daniel, my spirit within me was distressed, and the visions of my head alarmed me.

I came near to one of those standing by and asked of him the exact meaning of all this. So he told me and made the interpretation of the things known to me:

These great beasts, which are four, are four kings who will arise from the earth.

But the  ¹saints of the Most High will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, indeed, forever and ever.

Then I wished to know the exact meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its claws of bronze, which devoured, crushed, and trampled under the remainder with its feet,

And of the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn that came up, and before which three horns fell, even that horn that had eyes and a mouth speaking great things and whose appearance was greater than that of its companions.

I watched and that horn  ¹waged war with the saints and prevailed against them,

Until the Ancient of Days came; and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High; and the time came when the saints possessed the kingdom.

Thus he said, The fourth beast will be the fourth kingdom upon the earth, which will be different from all the other kingdoms; and it will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it.

And as for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise, and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones; and he will subdue three kings.

And he will speak things against the Most High and wear out the saints of the Most High; and his intention will be to change the  ¹times and the law; and they will be given into his hand for  ²a time and times and half a time.

But the court of judgment will sit, and they will take away his dominion, so as to annihilate and destroy it unto the end.

And the kingdom and dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; His kingdom is an eternal kingdom, and all the dominions will serve and obey Him.

Here is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts alarmed me greatly, and my countenance was changed, but I kept the matter in my heart.

In the  ¹third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that appeared to me at the beginning.

And I looked in the vision, and while I looked, now I was in the fortress of Shushan, which is in the province of Elam; and while I looked in the vision, I was beside the river Ulai.

Then I lifted my eyes, and I looked, and there was a  ¹ram, standing before the river, and he had two horns. And the two horns were high, but one was higher than the other; and the higher one came up last.

I saw the ram  ¹pushing westward, northward, and southward; and no beast could stand before him, and there was no one who could deliver from his power; but he  ²did as he pleased, and he became great.

And while I considered this, there was a  ¹male goat, coming from the west over the face of the whole earth without touching the ground; and the goat had a  ²conspicuous horn between his eyes.

And he came up to the ram that had the two horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran toward him in his mighty wrath.

And I saw him come close to the ram, and he was enraged at him; and he struck the ram and  ¹broke his two horns; and the ram had no strength to withstand him, but the goat threw him down to the ground and trampled him; and there was none to deliver the ram from his power.

And the male goat became very  ¹great. But once he became strong, the great horn was  ¹broken, and in its place  ²four conspicuous ones came up toward the four winds of heaven.

And out of one of them came forth a  ¹little horn, which grew very great toward the south, toward the east, and toward that which is beautiful.

And it grew great,  ¹as high as the host of heaven; and it caused some of the host and some of the stars to fall to the earth, and it trampled them.

Indeed, he grew in greatness to that of the  ¹Prince of the host; and  ²from Him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was thrown down.

And an army was given to him together with the daily sacrifice because of transgression; and he cast truth down to the ground, and he took action and prospered.

Then I heard a  ¹holy one speaking; and another  ¹holy one said to the particular one who was speaking, How long will the vision concerning the daily sacrifice and the transgression that desolates apply, so that the sanctuary and the host are trampled down?

And he said to me, For  ¹two thousand three hundred nights and days; then the sanctuary will be  ²cleansed.

And when I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I sought an understanding of it; and immediately there was someone with an appearance like that of a man standing before me.

And I heard the voice of a man between the banks of the Ulai; and He called out and said, Gabriel, cause this man to understand the vision.

So he came near to where I stood; and when he came, I was afraid, and I fell on my face; but he said to me, Understand, O son of man, that the vision pertains to the end time.

And as he was speaking with me, I fell into a deep sleep on my face upon the ground; but he touched me and made me stand in my place.

And he said, I now make known to you what will happen at the end of the indignation, for the vision pertains to the appointed time of the end.

The ram that you saw, which had the two horns, are the kings of Media and Persia.

And the hairy goat is the king of  ¹Javan; and the great horn which was between its eyes is the first king.

And the broken horn and the four horns that arose in its place are four kingdoms that will arise from his nation, but not with his power.

And in the latter time of their kingdom,
When the transgressors have filled up their transgressions,
A  ¹king will arise,
 ²Of fierce countenance and skilled in  ³ambiguities.

And his power will be mighty, but not by his own power.
And he will destroy in an extraordinary manner
And will prosper and take action.
He will destroy mighty men
And the holy people.

Through his craftiness
He will also cause deceit to prosper in his hand;
And he will magnify himself in his heart;
And he will destroy many who are complacently secure.
And against the Prince of princes he will stand up;
But he will be broken, yet not by human hands.

And the vision of the evenings and the mornings,
Which has been told, is true.
But shut the vision up,
For it pertains to something many days from now.

Then I, Daniel, was spent, and I was sick for days. Then I arose and conducted the king's affairs; but I was astonished at the vision, and there was no one to explain it.