In the firstyear of Belshazzarking of BabylonDaniel had a dream and visions of his headupon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters.
The first was like a lion, and had eagle’swings: I beheldtill the wingsthereofwereplucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and madestandupon the feet as a man, and a man’sheart was given to it.
And beholdanotherbeast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had threeribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and theysaidthusunto it, Arise, devourmuchflesh.
Afterthis I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it fourwings of a fowl; the beast had alsofourheads; and dominion was given to it.
Afterthis I saw in the nightvisions, and behold a fourthbeast, dreadful and terrible, and strongexceedingly; and it had greatironteeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residuewith the feet of it: and it was diversefrom all the beaststhatwerebefore it; and it had ten horns.
I considered the horns, and, behold, therecame up amongthemanotherlittlehorn, beforewhomtherewerethree of the firsthornsplucked up by the roots: and, behold, in thishornwereeyeslike the eyes of man, and a mouthspeakinggreatthings.
I beheldtill the throneswerecastdown, and the Ancient of days did sit, whosegarment was white as snow, and the hair of his headlike the purewool: his throne was like the fieryflame, and his wheels as burningfire.
A fierystreamissued and cameforthfrombefore him: thousandthousandsministeredunto him, and ten thousandtimes ten thousandstoodbefore him: the judgment was set, and the bookswereopened.
I beheldthenbecause of the voice of the greatwordswhich the hornspake: I beheldeventill the beast was slain, and his bodydestroyed, and given to the burningflame.
I saw in the nightvisions, and, behold, one like the Son of man camewith the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and theybrought him nearbefore him.
And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, shouldserve him: his dominion is an everlastingdominion, whichshall not passaway, and his kingdomthatwhichshall not be destroyed.
Then I wouldknow the truth of the fourthbeast, which was diversefrom all the others, exceedingdreadful, whoseteethwere of iron, and his nails of brass; whichdevoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residuewith his feet;
And of the ten hornsthatwere in his head, and of the otherwhichcame up, and beforewhomthreefell; even of thathornthat had eyes, and a mouththatspakeverygreatthings, whoselook was morestoutthan his fellows.
Thus he said, The fourthbeastshall be the fourthkingdomuponearth, whichshall be diversefrom all kingdoms, and shalldevour the wholeearth, and shalltread it down, and break it in pieces.
And the ten horns out of thiskingdom are ten kingsthatshallarise: and anothershallriseafterthem; and he shall be diversefrom the first, and he shallsubduethreekings.
And he shallspeakgreatwordsagainst the mostHigh, and shallwear out the saints of the mostHigh, and think to changetimes and laws: and theyshall be giveninto his handuntil a time and times and the dividing of time.
And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdomunder the wholeheaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the mostHigh, whosekingdom is an everlastingkingdom, and all dominionsshallserve and obey him.
Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitationsmuchtroubled me, and my countenancechanged in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.