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Daniel 12

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1 And at that time Michael will take up his place, the great angel, who is the supporter of the children of your people: and there will be a time of trouble, such as there never was from the time there was a nation even till that same time: and at that time your people will be kept safe, everyone who is recorded in the book.

2 And a number of those who are sleeping in the dust of the earth will come out of their sleep, some to eternal life and some to eternal shame.

3 And those who are wise will be shining like the light of the outstretched sky; and those by whom numbers have been turned to righteousness will be like the stars for ever and ever.

4 But as for you, O Daniel, let the words be kept secret and the book rolled up and kept shut till the time of the end: numbers will be going out of the way and troubles will be increased.

5 Then I, Daniel, looking, saw two others, one at the edge of the river on this side and one at the edge of the river on that side.

6 And I said to the man clothed in linen, who was over the waters of the river, How long will it be to the end of these wonders?

7 Then in my hearing the man clothed in linen, who was over the river, lifting up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, took an oath by him who is living for ever that it would be a time, times, and a half; and when the power of the crusher of the holy people comes to an end, all these things will be ended.

8 And the words came to my ears, but the sense of them was not clear to me: then I said, O my lord, what is the sense of these things?

9 And he said, Go on your way, Daniel: for the words are secret and shut up till the time of the end;

10 Till a number are tested and make themselves clean; and the evil-doers will do evil; for not one of the evil-doers will have knowledge; but all will be made clear to those who are wise.

11 And from the time when the regular burned offering is taken away, and an unclean thing causing fear is put up, there will be a thousand, two hundred and ninety days.

12 A blessing will be on the man who goes on waiting, and comes to the thousand, three hundred and thirty-five days.

13 But you, go on your way and take your rest: for you will be in your place at the end of the days.

   

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Daniel 10

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1 In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a secret was unfolded to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar; and the thing was true, even a hard work: and he had knowledge of it, and the vision was clear to him.

2 In those days I, Daniel, gave myself up to grief for three full weeks.

3 I had no pleasing food, no meat or wine came into my mouth, and I put no oil on my body till three full weeks were ended.

4 And on the twenty-fourth day of the first month I was by the side of the great river;

5 And lifting up my eyes I saw the form of a man clothed in a linen robe, and round him there was a band of gold, of the best gold:

6 And his body was like the beryl, and his face had the look of a thunder-flame, and his eyes were like burning lights, and his arms and feet like the colour of polished brass, and the sound of his voice was like the sound of an army.

7 And I, Daniel, was the only one who saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see it; but a great shaking came on them and they went in flight to take cover.

8 So I was by myself, and I saw this great vision, and all my strength went from me; and the colour went from my face.

9 But the sound of his words came to my ears, and on hearing his voice I went into a deep sleep with my face to the earth.

10 Then a hand gave me a touch, awaking me, and putting me on my knees and my hands.

11 And he said to me, O Daniel, you man dearly loved, take in the sense of the words I say to you and get up on to your feet: for to you I am now sent; and when he had said this to me I got on to my feet, shaking with fear.

12 Then he said to me, Have no fear, Daniel; for from the first day when you gave your heart to getting wisdom and making yourself poor in spirit before your God, your words have come to his ears: and I have come because of your words.

13 But the angel of the kingdom of Persia put himself against me for twenty-one days; but Michael, one of the chief angels, came to my help; and when I came he was still there with the angel of the kings of Persia.

14 Now I have come to give you knowledge of the fate of your people in the later days; for there is still a vision for the days.

15 And after he had said these words to me, I kept my face turned to the earth and was unable to say anything.

16 Then one whose form was like the sons of men put his finger on my lips; and opening my mouth, I said to him who was before me, O my lord, because of the vision my pains have come on me, and I have no more strength.

17 For how may this servant of my lord have talk with my lord? for, as for me, straight away my strength went from me and there was no breath in my body.

18 Then again one having the form of a man put his hand on me and gave me strength.

19 And he said to me, O man greatly loved, have no fear: peace be with you, be strong and let your heart be lifted up. And at his words I became strong, and said, Let my lord say on, for you have given me strength.

20 Then he said, It is clear to you why I have come to you. And now I will give you an account of what is recorded in the true writings:

21 But I am going back to make war with the angel of Persia, and when I am gone, the angel of Greece will come. And there is no one on my side against these, but Michael, your angel.

   

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Sacred Scripture # 61

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61. I have been granted the opportunity to talk with any number of individuals after their death who had believed they were going to shine like stars in heaven because, they said, they had revered the Word, had read it through time and again, and had gained much from their reading that served to support the dogmas of their faith. All this led to their being celebrated as scholars, which in turn led them to believe they would become Michaels and Raphaels.

[2] However, many of them were examined to find out what love had inspired their study of the Word, and it turned out that for some it was self-infatuation, a desire to look important in the eyes of the world and therefore be revered as leaders in the church, while for others it was worldliness and a desire for wealth. When they were asked what they had learned from the Word, it turned out that they knew nothing that was really true. All they knew was distorted truth, which is essentially false. They were told that this was because they themselves and the world were their goals - or were what they loved the most, which amounts to the same thing - and not the Lord and heaven. If ourselves and the world are our goals, then when we read the Word our minds are stuck on ourselves and the world. This means that our thinking is constantly focused on our self-importance, which is in darkness with respect to everything that has to do with heaven. People in this state cannot be lifted out of their self-infatuation by the Lord and thus raised up into heaven’s light, so they are not open to any inflow from the Lord through heaven, either.

[3] I have seen them let into heaven, but when it was found that they were lacking in truths, they were expelled. Even so, they retained the prideful conviction that they were worthy.

It worked out otherwise for individuals who studied the Word from a desire to know what was true because it was true and because it could be put to use in their lives not only for their own benefit but for the benefit of their neighbor. I have seen them raised up into heaven and therefore into the light of divine truth there; and at the same time they have been lifted up into angelic wisdom and into its happiness, which is eternal life.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Foundation for their permission to use this translation.