Also I in
the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood
to confirm and to strengthen him.
02 And now will I shew thee the truth. Behold,
there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia;
and the fourth shall be far richer than they all:
and by his strength through his riches he shall
stir up all against the realm of Grecia.
03 And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall
rule with great dominion, and do according to his
will.
04 And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall
be broken, and shall be divided toward the four
winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor
according to his dominion which he ruled: for his
kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others
beside those.
05 And the king of the south shall be strong, and
one of his princes; and he shall be strong above
him, and have dominion; his dominion shall be a
great dominion.
06 And in the end of years they shall join
themselves together; for the king's daughter of
the south shall come to the king of the north to
make an agreement: but she shall not retain the
power of the arm; neither shall he stand, nor his
arm: but she shall be given up, and they that
brought her, and he that begat her, and he that
strengthened her in these times.
07 But out of a branch of her roots shall one
stand up in his estate, which shall come with an
army, and shall enter into the fortress of the
king of the north, and shall deal against them,
and shall prevail:
08 And shall also carry captives into Egypt their
gods, with their princes, and with their precious
vessels of silver and of gold; and he shall
continue more years than the king of the north.
09 So the king of the south shall come into his
kingdom, and shall return into his own land.
10 But his sons shall be stirred up, and shall
assemble a multitude of great forces: and one
shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass
through: then shall he return, and be stirred up,
even to his fortress.
11 And the king of the south shall be moved with
choler, and shall come forth and fight with him,
even with the king of the north: and he shall set
forth a great multitude; but the multitude shall
be given into his hand.
12 And when he hath taken away the multitude, his
heart shall be lifted up; and he shall cast down
many ten thousands: but he shall not be
strengthened by it.
13 For the king of the north shall return, and
shall set forth a multitude greater than the
former, and shall certainly come after certain
years with a great army and with much riches.
14 And in those times there shall many stand up
against the king of the south: also the robbers
of thy people shall exalt themselves to establish
the vision; but they shall fall.
15 So the king of the north shall come, and cast
up a mount, and take the most fenced cities: and
the arms of the south shall not withstand,
neither his chosen people, neither shall there be
any strength to withstand.
16 But he that cometh against him shall do
according to his own will, and none shall stand
before him: and he shall stand in the glorious
land, which by his hand shall be consumed.
17 He shall also set his face to enter with the
strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones
with him; thus shall he do: and he shall give him
the daughter of women, corrupting her: but she
shall not stand on his side, neither be for him.
18 After this shall he turn his face unto the
isles, and shall take many: but a prince for his
own behalf shall cause the reproach offered by
him to cease; without his own reproach he shall
cause it to turn upon him.
19 Then he shall turn his face toward the fort of
his own land: but he shall stumble and fall, and
not be found.
20 Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of
taxes in the glory of the kingdom: but within few
days he shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor
in battle.
21 And in his estate shall stand up a vile
person, to whom they shall not give the honour of
the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and
obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
22 And with the arms of a flood shall they be
overflown from before him, and shall be broken;
yea, also the prince of the covenant.
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23 And after the league made with him he shall
work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall
become strong with a small people.
24 He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest
places of the province; and he shall do that
which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers'
fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey,
and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast
his devices against the strong holds, even for a
time.
25 And he shall stir up his power and his courage
against the king of the south with a great army;
and the king of the south shall be stirred up to
battle with a very great and mighty army; but he
shall not stand: for they shall forecast devices
against him.
26 Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat
shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow:
and many shall fall down slain.
27 And both of these kings' hearts shall be to do
mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table;
but it shall not prosper: for yet the end shall
be at the time appointed.
28 Then shall he return into his land with great
riches; 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
former, or as the latter.
30 For the ships of Chittim shall come against
him: therefore he shall be grieved, and return,
and have indignation against the holy covenant:
so shall he do; he shall even return, and have
intelligence with them that forsake the holy
covenant.
31 And arms shall stand on his part, and they
shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and
shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they
shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.
32 And such as do wickedly against the covenant
shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people
that do know their God shall be strong, and do
exploits.
33 And they that understand among the people
shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the
sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil,
many days.
34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen
with a little help: but many shall cleave to them
with flatteries.
35 And some of them of understanding shall fall,
to try them, and to purge, 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 will;
and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself
above every god, and shall speak marvellous
things against the God of gods, and shall prosper
till the indignation be accomplished: for that
that is determined shall be done.
37 Neither shall he regard the God of his
fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any
god: for he shall magnify himself above all.
38 But in his estate shall he honour the God of
forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall
he honour with gold, and silver, and with
precious stones, and pleasant things.
39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with
a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and
increase with glory: and he shall cause them to
rule over many, and shall divide the land for
gain.
40 And at the time of the end shall the king of
the south push at him: and the king of the north
shall come against him like a whirlwind, with
chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships;
and he shall enter into the countries, and shall
overflow and pass over.
41 He shall enter also into the glorious land,
and many countries shall be overthrown: but these
shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and
Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.
42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the
countries: and the land of Egypt shall not
escape.
43 But he shall have power over the treasures of
gold and of silver, and over all the precious
things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the
Ethiopians shall be at his steps.
44 But tidings out of the east and out of the
north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go
forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to
make away many.
45 And he shall plant the tabernacles of his
palace between the seas in the glorious holy
mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none
shall help him.
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