Book Read Free

Septuagint Complete Greek and English Edition

Page 204

by Septuagint


  [9] I beheld until the thrones were set, and the Ancient of days sat; and his raiment was white as snow, and the hair of his head, as pure wool: his throne was a flame of fire, and his wheels burning fire. [10] A stream of fire rushed forth before him: thousand thousands ministered to him, and ten thousands of myriads, attended upon him: the judgment sat, and the books were opened. [11] I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which that horn spoke, until the wild beast was slain and destroyed, and his body given to be burnt with fire. [12] And the dominion of the rest of the wild beasts was taken away; but a prolonging of life was given them for certain times.

  [13] I beheld in the night vision, and, lo, one coming with the clouds of heaven as the Son of man, and he came on to the Ancient of days, and was brought near to him. [14] And to him was given the dominion, and the honour, and the kingdom; and all nations, tribes, and languages, shall serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom shall not be destroyed.

  [15] As for me Daniel, my spirit in my body trembled, and the visions of my head troubled me. [16] And I drew near to one of them that stood by, and I sought to learn of him the truth of all these things: and he told me the truth, and made known to me the interpretation of the things. [17] These four beasts are four kingdoms that shall rise up on the earth: [18] which shall be taken away; and the saints of the Most High shall take the kingdom, and possess it for ever and ever.

  [19] Then I enquired carefully concerning the fourth beast; for it differed from every other beast, exceeding dreadful: its teeth were of iron, and its claws of brass, devouring, and utterly breaking to pieces, and it trampled the remainder with its feet: [20] and concerning it ten horns that were in its head, and the other that came up, and rooted up some of the former, which had eyes, and a mouth speaking great things, and his look was bolder than the rest. [21] I beheld, and that horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; [22] until the Ancient of days came, and he gave judgment to the saints of the Most High; and the time came on, and the saints possessed the kingdom. [23] And he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom on the earth, which shall excel all other kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and trample and destroy it. [24] And his ten horns are ten kings that shall arise: and after them shall arise another, who shall exceed all the former ones in wickedness and he shall subdue three kings. [25] And he shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and shall think to change times and law: and power shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time. [26] And the judgment has sat, and they shall remove his dominion to abolish it, and to destroy it utterly. [27] And the kingdom and the power and the greatness of the kings that are under the whole heaven were given to the saints of the Most High; and his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all powers shall serve and obey him.

  [28] Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my thoughts greatly troubled me, and my countenance was changed: but I kept the matter in my heart.

  Chapter 8

  [1] In the third year of the reign of king Baltasar a vision appeared to me, even to me Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first. [2] And I was in Susa the palace, which is in the land of Ælam, and I was on the bank of Ubal. [3] And I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, a ram standing in front of the Ubal; and he had high horns; and one was higher than the other, and the high one came up last. [4] And I saw the ram butting westward, and northward, and southward; and no beast could stand before him, and there was none that could deliver out of his hand; and he did according to his will, and became great. [5] And I was considering, and, behold, a he-goat came from the south-west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the earth: and the goat had a horn between his eyes. [6] And he came to the ram that had the horns, which I had seen standing in front of the Ubal, and he ran at him with the violence of his strength. [7] And I saw him coming up close to the ram, and he was furiously enraged against him, and he smote the ram, and broke both his horns: and there was no strength in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him on the ground, and trampled on him; and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand.

  [8] And the he-goat grew exceedingly great: and when he was strong, his great horn was broken; and four other horns rose up in its place toward the four winds of heaven. [9] And out of one of them came forth one strong horn, and it grew very great toward the south, and toward the host: [10] and it magnified itself to the host of heaven; and there fell to the earth some of the host of heaven and of the stars, and they trampled on them. [11] And this shall be until the chief captain shall have delivered the captivity: and by reason of him the sacrifice was disturbed, and he prospered; and the holy place shall be made desolate. [12] And a sin-offering was given for the sacrifice, and righteousness was cast down to the ground; and it practised, and prospered. [13] And I heard one saint speaking, and a saint said to a certain one speaking, How long shall the vision continue, even the removal of the sacrifice, and the bringing in of the sin of desolation; and how long shall the sanctuary and host be trampled? [14] And he said to him, Evening and morning there shall be two thousand and four hundred days; and then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.

  [15] And it came to pass, as I, even I Daniel, saw the vision, and sought to understand it, that, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man. [16] And I heard the voice of a man between the banks of the Ubal; and he called, and said, Gabriel, cause that man to understand the vision. [17] And he came and stood near where I stood: and when he came, I was struck with awe, and fell upon my face: but he said to me, Understand, son of man: for yet the vision is for an appointed time. [18] And while he spoke with me, I fell upon my face to the earth: and he touched me, and set me on my feet. [19] And he said, Behold, I make thee know the things that shall come to pass at the end of the wrath: for the vision is yet for an appointed time.

  [20] The ram which thou sawest that had the horns is the king of the Medes and Persians. [21] The he-goat is the King of the Greeks: and the great horn which was between his eyes, he is the first king. [22] And as for the one that was broken, in whose place there stood up four horns, four kings shall arise out of his nation, but not in their own strength. [23] And at the latter time of their kingdom, when their sins are coming to the full, there shall arise a king bold in countenance, and understanding riddles. [24] And his power shall be great, and he shall destroy wonderfully, and prosper, and practise, and shall destroy mighty men, and the holy people. [25] And the yoke of his chain shall prosper: there is craft in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by craft shall destroy many, and he shall stand up for the destruction of many, and shall crush them as eggs in his hand. [26] And the vision of the evening and morning that was mentioned is true: and do thou seal the vision; for it is for many days.

  [27] And I Daniel fell asleep, and was sick: then I arose, and did the king’s business; and I wondered at the vision, and there was none that understood it.

  Chapter 9

  [1] In the first year of Darius the son of Assuerus, of the seed of the Medes, who reigned over the kingdom of the Chaldeans, [2] I Daniel understood by books the number of the years which was the word of the Lord to the prophet Jeremias, even seventy years for the accomplishment of the desolation of Jerusalem.

  [3] And I set my face toward the Lord God, to seek him diligently by prayer and supplications, with fastings and sackcloth. [4] And I prayed to the Lord my God, and confessed, and said, O Lord, the great and wonderful God, keeping thy covenant and thy mercy to them that love thee, and to them that keep thy commandments; we have sinned, [5] we have done iniquity, we have transgressed, and we have departed and turned aside from thy commandments and from thy judgments: [6] and we have not hearkened to thy servants the prophets, who spoke in thy name to our kings, and our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. [7] To thee, O Lord, belongs righteousness, an to us confusion o
f face, as at this day; to the men of Juda, and to the dwellers in Jerusalem, and to all Israel, to them that are near, and to them that are far off in all the earth, wherever thou has scattered them, for the sin which they committed. [8] In thee, O Lord, is our righteousness, and to us belongs confusion of faced, and to our kings, and to our princes, and to our fathers, forasmuch as we have sinned. [9] To thee, the Lord our God, belong compassions and forgivenesses, whereas we have departed from thee; [10] neither have we hearkened to the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by the hands of his servants the prophets.

  [11] Moreover all Israel have transgressed thy law, and have refused to hearken to thy voice; so the curse has come upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against him. [12] And he has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us, and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us great evils, such as have not happened under the whole heaven, according to what has happened in Jerusalem. [13] As it is written in the law of Moses, all these evils have come upon us: yet we have not besought the Lord our God, that we might turn away from our iniquities, and have understanding in all thy truth. [14] The Lord also has watched, and brought the evils upon us: for the Lord our God is righteous in all his work which he has executed, but we have not hearkened to his voice. [15] And now, O Lord our God, who broughtest thy people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and madest to thyself a name, as at this day; we have sinned, we have transgressed.

  [16] O Lord, thy mercy is over all: let, I pray thee, thy wrath turn away, and thine anger from thy city Jerusalem, even thy holy mountain: for we have sinned, and because of our iniquities, and those of our fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach among all that are round about us. [17] And now, O lord our God, hearken to the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine on thy desolate sanctuary, for thine own sake, O Lord. [18] Incline thine ear, O my God, and hear; open thine eyes and behold our desolation, and that of thy city on which thy name is called: for we do not bring our pitiful case before thee on the ground of our righteousness, but on the ground of thy manifold compassions, O Lord. [19] Hearken, O Lord; be propitious, O Lord; attend, O Lord; delay not, O my God, for thine own sake: for thy name is called upon thy city and upon thy people.

  [20] And while I was yet speaking, and praying, and confessing my sins and the sins of my people Israel, and bringing my pitiful case before the Lord my God concerning the holy mountain; [21] yea, while I was yet speaking in prayer, behold the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, came flying, and he touched me about the hour of the evening sacrifice. [22] And he instructed me, and spoke with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to impart to thee understanding. [23] At the beginning of thy supplication the word came forth, and I am come to tell thee; for thou art a man much beloved: therefore consider the matter, understand the vision.

  [24] Seventy weeks have been determined upon thy people, and upon the holy city, for sin to be ended, and to seal up transgressions, and to blot out the iniquities, and to make atonement for iniquities, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal the vision and the prophet, and to anoint the Most Holy.

  [25] And thou shalt know and understand, that from the going forth of the command for the answer and for the building of Jerusalem until Christ the prince there shall be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks; and then the time shall return, and the street shall be built, and the wall, and the times shall be exhausted.

  [26] And after the sixty-two weeks, the anointed one shall be destroyed, and there is no judgment in him: and he shall destroy the city and the sanctuary with the prince that is coming: they shall be cut off with a flood, and to the end of the war which is rapidly completed he shall appoint the city to desolations.

  [27] And one week shall establish the covenant with many: and in the midst of the week my sacrifice and drink-offering shall be taken away: and on the temple shall be the abomination of desolations; and at the end of time an end shall be put to the desolation.

  Chapter 10

  [1] In the third year of Cyrus king of the Persians a thing was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Baltasar; and the thing was true, and great power and understanding in the vision was given to him. [2] In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks. [3] I ate no pleasant bread, and no flesh or wine entered into my mouth, neither did I anoint myself with oil, until three whole weeks were accomplished.

  [4] On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, I was near the great river, which is Tigris Eddekel. [5] And I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a man clothed in linen, and his loins were girt with gold of Ophaz: [6] and his body was as Tharsis, and his face was a the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his legs as the appearance of shining brass, and the voice of his words as the voice of a multitude. [7] And I Daniel only saw the vision: and the men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great amazement fell upon them, and they fled in fear. [8] So I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there was no strength left in me, and my glory was turned into corruption, and I retained no strength. [9] Yet I heard the voice of his words: and when I heard him I was pricked in the heart, and I fell with my face to the earth.

  [10] And, behold, a hand touched me, and it raised me on my knees. [11] And he said to me, O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words which I speak to thee, and stand upright: for I am now sent to thee. And when he had spoken to me this word, I stood trembling. [12] And he said to me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to afflict thyself before the Lord thy God, they words were heard, and I am come because of thy words. [13] But the prince of the kingdom of the Persians withstood me twenty-one days: and behold, Michael, one of the princes, came to help me; and I left him there with the chief of the kingdom of the Persians: [14] and I have come to inform thee of all that shall befall thy people in the last days: for the vision is yet for many days. [15] And when he had spoken with me according to these words, I turned my face to the ground, and was pricked in the heart.

  [16] And, behold, as it were the likeness of a son of man touched my lips; and I opened my mouth, and spoke, and said to him that stood before me, O my lord, at the sight of thee my bowels were turned within me, and I had no strength. [17] And how shall thy servant be able, O my lord, to speak with this my lord? and as for me, from henceforth strength will not remain in me, and there is no breath left in me. [18] And there touched me again as it were the appearance of a man, and he strengthened me, [19] and said to me, Fear not, man greatly beloved: peace be to thee, quit thyself like a man, and be strong. And when he had spoken with me, I received strength, and said, Let my lord speak; for thou hast strengthened me.

  [20] And he said, Knowest thou, wherefore I am come to thee? and now I will return to fight with the prince of the Persians: and I was going in, and the prince of the Greeks came. [21] But I will tell thee that which is ordained in the scripture of truth: and there is no one that holds with me in these matters but Michael your prince.

  Chapter 11

  [1] And I in the first year of Cyrus stood to strengthen and confirm him.

  [2] And now I will tell thee the truth. Behold, there shall yet rise up three kings in Persia: and the fourth shall be very far richer than all: and after that he is master of his wealth, he shall rise up against all the kingdoms of the Greeks.

  [3] An there shall rise up a mighty king, and he shall be lord of a great empire, and shall do according to his will.

  [4] And when his kingdom shall stand up, it shall be broken, and shall be divided to the four winds of heaven; but not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled over: for his kingdom shall be plucked up, and given to others beside these.

  [5] And the king of the south shall be strong; and one of their princes shall prevail against him, and shall obtain a grea
t dominion. [6] And after his years they shall associate; and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north, to make agreements with him: but she shall not retain power of arm; neither shall his seed stand: and she shall be delivered up, and they that brought her, and the maiden, and he that strengthened her in these times.

  [7] But out of the flower of her root there shall arise one on his place, and shall come against the host, and shall enter into the strongholds of the king of the north, and shall fight against them, and prevail. [8] Yea, he shall carry with a body of captives into Egypt their gods with their molten images, and all their precious vessels of silver and gold; and he shall last longer than the king of the north. [9] And he shall enter into the kingdom of the king of the south, and shall return to his own land.

  [10] And his sons shall gather a multitude among many: and one shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass through, and he shall rest, and collect his strength. [11] And the king of the south shall be greatly enraged, and shall come forth, and shall war with the king of the north: and he shall raise a great multitude; but the multitude shall be delivered into his hand. [12] And he shall take the multitude, and his heart shall be exalted; and he shall cast down many thousands; but he shall not prevail. [13] For the king of the north shall return, and bring a multitude greater than the former, and at the end of the times of years an invading army shall come with a great force, and with much substance.

 

‹ Prev