¹ And I^◦, in the first^◦ year of Darius the Mede, I stood for confirming and for strength for him.

² And now will I tell the truth to thee. Behold, there shall stand yet three kings for Persia, and the fourth shall be enriched with greater riches than all; and as is his strength by his riches, he shall stir·​·up all against the kingdom of Javan^*.

³ And a mighty king shall stand, and shall rule with much ruling, and do according·​·to his good·​·pleasure.

⁴ And as he shall stand, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be halved to the four winds of the heavens, and not to his posterity, and not according·​·to his rule which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be plucked·​·up, and be for others apart from these.

⁵ And the king of the south and those from his princes shall be·​·firm, and he shall be·​·firm over him, and rule; his rule shall be much ruling.

⁶ And in the end of years they shall come·​·together^◦; and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to^▵ the king of the north to do what is upright; but she shall not retain power of the arm; and he and his arm shall not stand; but she^◦ shall be given up, and they who brought her, and he who begot her, and he who confirmed her in these times.

⁷ But from a stem of her roots shall one stand in his position^◦, and he shall come to^▵ the host, and shall come into the stronghold of the king of the north, and shall make war against^◦ them, and shall hold·​·firm.

⁸ and also their gods, with their princes^◦, and with their desired vessels of silver and of gold they shall bring into captivity into Egypt; and he^◦ shall stand more years than the king of the north.

⁹ And the king of the south shall come into his kingdom, and shall return to^▵ his own ground.

¹⁰ But his sons shall be stirred·​·up^◦, and shall gather a multitude^◦ of great^◦ forces; and one shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass·​·through: and he shall return, and be stirred·​·up^◦, even·​·to his stronghold.

¹¹ And the king of the south shall be made·​·bitter, and shall go·​·out and fight with him, even with the king of the north; and he shall make a crowd of many to stand forth; but the crowd shall be given into his hand.

¹² And when he has borne away the crowd, his heart shall be lifted·​·up^◦; and he shall make myriads fall; but he shall not become·​·strong by it.

¹³ For the king of the north shall return, and cause a crowd to stand, many more than the first, and coming he shall come at the end of the times of the years with a great host and with many acquisitions.

¹⁴ And in those^◦ times shall many stand against the king of the south; and the sons of robbers^* of thy people shall lift· themselves ·up to make the vision stand; but they shall stumble.

¹⁵ And the king of the north shall come, and pour·​·out an embankment, and take^◦ the fortified city; and the arms of the south shall not stand, neither his chosen people, and there is not^◦ power to stand.

¹⁶ But he who comes to^▵ him shall do according·​·to his own good·​·pleasure, and none shall stand before him; and he shall stand in the elegant land, and there shall be a complete end by his hand.

¹⁷ And he shall set his face to come with the authority of all his kingdom, and the upright with him; and thus shall he do; and he shall give to him the daughter of the women to destroy her: and she shall not stand, and she shall not be for him.

¹⁸ And he shall turn· his face ·back to the islands, and shall capture many; but a captain shall cause his reproach to cease for him; without his own reproach he shall cause it to return to him.

¹⁹ Then he shall return his face toward^◦ the stronghold of his own land; but he shall stumble and fall, and not be·​·found.

²⁰ And there shall stand on his position^◦ one who causes a taskmaster to pass·​·through in the honor of the kingdom; but within^◦ the first^◦ days he shall be broken, but not in anger, nor in battle.

²¹ And upon his position^◦ shall stand someone despised, and they shall not put^◦ upon him the majesty of the kingdom; but he shall come with tranquility, and make· the kingdom ·firm by flatteries.

²² And with the arms of the overflow shall they overflow from before him, and shall be broken; and also the monarch of the covenant.

²³ And from coming·​·together^◦ unto^▵ him he shall do deceitfully; and he shall go·​·up, and shall become·​·numerous with a·​·little nation.

²⁴ In the tranquil and fat^* places of the province he shall come; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor^◦ the fathers of his fathers; he shall scatter^▵ to them^◦ plunder, and spoil, and acquisition; and he shall think his thoughts against the fortresses, and even until the time.

²⁵ And he shall stir·​·up his power and his heart against the king of the south with a great host; and the king of the south shall be stirred·​·up^◦ to battle with a very great and numerous host; and yet he shall not stand; for they shall think thoughts against him.

²⁶ And they who eat of his meat shall break him, and his host shall overflow; and many shall fall down slain.

²⁷ And two hearts of these kings shall be to do evil, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper; for yet the end shall be at the time·​·appointed.

²⁸ And he shall return into his land with great acquisitions; and his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits, and return to his own land.

²⁹ At the time·​·appointed he shall return, and come toward the south; but it shall not be as the first, or as the latter.

³⁰ And the boats of Kittim shall come against^◦ him; and he shall be dejected, and return, and have·​·indignation against the covenant of holiness: and he shall do, and shall return, and shall have understanding against those who forsake the covenant of holiness.

³¹ And arms shall stand still from him, and they shall profane the sanctuary of strength, and shall remove the continual offering, and they shall give what is detestable that makes·​·desolate.

³² And they who act·​·wickedly with the covenant shall he contaminate by flatteries; but the people who know their God shall be confirmed, and do.

³³ And the intelligent of the people shall make many understand; and they shall stumble by the sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder, for days.

³⁴ And when they shall stumble, they shall be helped with a·​·little help; but many shall join to them with flatteries.

³⁵ And some of them of intelligence shall stumble, to examine them, and to purify, and to make· them ·white, even·​·to the time of the end; because^◦ it is yet for a time·​·appointed.

³⁶ And the king shall do according·​·to his good·​·pleasure; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god^◦, and shall speak wonderful things against the God^◦ of gods^◦, and shall prosper until the indignation be completed; for that which is decided shall be done.

³⁷ Neither shall he understand the God of his fathers, nor^◦ the desire of women, nor^◦ understand any God^▵; for he shall magnify himself above all.

³⁸ But by^◦ his position^◦ he shall honor^◦ a god^▵ of strongholds, a god^▵ whom his fathers knew not shall he honor^◦ with gold, and with silver, and with precious stones, and with desirable things.

³⁹ And he shall make for fortifications strongholds with a foreign god^▵, whom he shall acknowledge and multiply with glory; and he shall cause them to rule among^◦ many, and shall part the ground at a price.

⁴⁰ And in the time of the end shall the king of the south charge·​·at him; and the king of the north shall rush upon him as a tempest, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall come into the lands, and shall overflow and pass·​·through.

⁴¹ And he shall come into the elegant land, and many shall stumble; but these shall escape from his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the head of the sons of Ammon.

⁴² And he shall put·​·forth^◦ his hand upon^◦ the lands; and the land of Egypt shall not escape^◦.

⁴³ But he shall rule over^◦ the hidden·​·stores of the gold and the silver, and over^◦ all that is desired of Egypt; and Libyans and Ethiopians shall be in his marchings.

⁴⁴ But a report from the sunrise and from the north shall vex him; and he shall go·​·out with great fury to blot·​·out and to doom many.

⁴⁵ And he shall plant the tabernacles of his pavilion^◦ between the seas in the elegant holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.