CHAPTER 7
1 In the first year of Belshazzar, king of Babylon, Daniel saw a sweven, either a dream. Forsooth he wrote the vision of his head in his bed, and the dream, and comprehended in short word;
2 and he touched shortly the sentence, and said, I saw in my vision in night, and lo! four winds of heaven fought in the midst of the great sea.
3 And four great beasts, diverse betwixt themselves, went up from the sea.
4 The first beast was as a lioness, and had wings of an eagle. I beheld till the wings thereof were pulled away, and it was taken away from [the] earth, and it stood as a man on the feet, and the heart thereof was given to it.
5 And lo! another beast, like a bear in part, stood, and three orders were in the mouth thereof, and three princes in the teeth thereof. And thus they said to it, Rise thou, eat thou full many fleshes.
6 After these things I beheld, and lo! another beast as a leopard, and it had on itself four wings of a bird; and four heads were in the beast, and power was given to it.
7 After these things I beheld in the vision of night, and lo! the fourth beast, fearedful, and wonderful, and full strong. It had great iron teeth, and it ate, and made less, and defouled with his feet other things; forsooth it was unlike other beasts, which I had seen before it, and it had ten horns.
8 I beheld the horns, and lo! another little horn came forth of the midst of those, and three of the first horns were drawn out from the face thereof; and lo! eyes as eyes of a man were in this horn, and a mouth speaking great things.
9 I beheld, till that thrones were set, and the Eld of days sat; his cloth was white as snow, and the hairs of his head were as clean wool; his throne was as flames of fire, his wheels were as fire kindled.
10 A flood of fire and running fast went out from before his face; a thousand thousands ministered to him, and ten times a thousand times an hundred thousand stood nigh [to] him; the doom sat, and books were opened.
11 I beheld for the voice of great words which that horn spake; and I saw that the beast was slain, and his body was perished, and was given to be burnt in fire.
12 And I saw that the power of other beasts was taken away, and the times of life were ordained to them, till to time and time.
13 Therefore I beheld in the vision of night, and lo! one as a son of man came with the clouds of heaven; and he came fully till to the Eld of days, and in the sight of him they offered him.
14 And he gave to him power, and honour, and realm, and all the peoples, lineages, and languages shall serve him; his power is everlasting power, that shall not be taken away, and his realm, that shall not be corrupted.
15 My spirit had horror, either hideousness; I, Daniel, was afeared in these things, and the sights of mine head disturbed me.
16 I nighed to one of the standers nigh, and I asked of him the truth of all these things. And he said to me the interpreting of these words, and he taught me.
17 These four great beasts be four realms, that shall rise of [the] earth.
18 Forsooth holy men shall take the realm of highest God, and they shall hold the realm, till into the world, and unto the world of worlds.
19 After these things I would learn diligently of the fourth beast, that was greatly unlike from all the others, and was full fearedful, the teeth and nails thereof were of iron; it ate, and made less, and defouled with his feet other things.
20 And of ten horns which it had in the head, and of the tother horn that came forth, before which three horns fell down; and of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth speaking great things, and was greater than others;
21 I beheld, and lo! that horn made battle against holy men, and had mastery of them,
22 till the Eld of days came, and high God gave doom to holy men; and lo! time came, and holy men got realm.
23 And he said thus, The fourth beast shall be the fourth realm in earth, that shall be more than all realms, and it shall devour all earth, and it shall defoul, and make less that earth.
24 Forsooth ten horns shall be ten kings of that realm; and another king shall rise after them, and he shall be mightier than the former, and he shall make low three kings.
25 And he shall speak words against the high God, and he shall defoul the saints of the Highest; and he shall guess, that he may change times and laws; and they shall be given into his hands, till to time, and times, and the half of time.
26 And the doom shall sit, that the power be taken away, and be all-broken, and perish till into the end.
27 Soothly that the realm, and power, and the greatness of realm, which is under each heaven, be given to the people of the saints of the Highest, whose realm is everlasting realm, and all kings shall serve, and obey to him.
28 Hitherto is the end of the word. I, Daniel, was disturbed much in my thoughts, and my face was changed in me; forsooth I kept the word in mine heart.