Chapter 104

¹ In the first year of Belshazzar, king of the Chaldeans, Daniel saw a dream, and there were visions of his head upon his bed, and he wrote the dream down.

² Now whatever was revealed by the Spirit through visions to the blessed prophet, these things he also recounted ungrudgingly to others, so that he might appear not merely as one prophesying things to come to himself alone, but might also be shown a prophet to others who are willing to search the divine Scriptures with faith.

³ At any rate he says: “I, Daniel, was watching, and behold, the four winds of heaven were striking upon the great sea, and four great beasts were coming up out of the sea, differing from one another. The first was like a lioness, and it had wings like an eagle’s. I watched until its wings were plucked out, and it was lifted up from the earth and set upon human feet, and a human heart was given to it. And behold, a second beast like a bear, and it stood up on one side, and there were three ribs in its mouth between its teeth, and they spoke thus to it: ‘Arise, devour much flesh.’ After this I watched, and behold, another beast like a leopard, and it had four wings of a bird above it, and the beast had four heads, and authority was given to it. After this I watched, and behold, a fourth beast, fearful and astonishing and exceedingly strong; its teeth were of iron and its claws of bronze, devouring and crushing, and it trampled the remainder under its feet. And it differed exceedingly from all the beasts before it, and it had ten horns. I was observing its horns, and behold, another little horn came up among them, and three of the horns that were before it were uprooted from before it; and behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things. I watched until thrones were set, and the Ancient of Days took his seat, and his garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool. His throne was a flame of fire, its wheels a burning fire; a river of fire flowed before him. A thousand thousands ministered to him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood beside him. The court sat, and the books were opened. Then I watched, because of the sound of the great words which that horn was speaking, until the beast was slain and destroyed and its body given over to the burning of fire; and as for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was removed, but a prolonging of life was given to them until a season.”