Daniel 5; Daniel 6; Daniel 7; 2 John 1

1 King Belshazzar gave a big banquet for a thousand royal guests and drank wine with them.

2 As Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he gave orders to bring the gold and silver cups that his ancestor Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the Temple in Jerusalem. This was so the king, his royal guests, his wives, and his slave women could drink from those cups.

3 So they brought the gold cups that had been taken from the Temple of God in Jerusalem. And the king and his royal guests, his wives, and his slave women drank from them.

4 As they were drinking, they praised their gods, which were made from gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.

5 Suddenly the fingers of a person's hand appeared and began writing on the plaster of the wall, near the lampstand in the royal palace. The king watched the hand as it wrote.

6 King Belshazzar was very frightened. His face turned white, his knees knocked together, and he could not stand up because his legs were too weak.

7 The king called for the magicians, wise men, and wizards of Babylon and said to them, "Anyone who can read this writing and explain it will receive purple clothes fit for a king and a gold chain around his neck. And I will make that person the third highest ruler in the kingdom."

8 Then all the king's wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or tell the king what it meant.

9 King Belshazzar became even more afraid, and his face became even whiter. His royal guests were confused.

10 Then the king's mother, who had heard the voices of the king and his royal guests, came into the banquet room. She said, "O king, live forever! Don't be afraid or let your face be white with fear!

11 There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods. In the days of your father, this man showed understanding, knowledge, and wisdom like the gods. Your father, King Nebuchadnezzar, put this man in charge of all the wise men, fortune-tellers, magicians, and wizards.

12 The man I am talking about is named Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. He was very smart and had knowledge and understanding. He could explain dreams and secrets and could answer very hard problems. Call for Daniel. He will tell you what the writing on the wall means."

13 So they brought Daniel to the king, and the king asked, "Is your name Daniel? Are you one of the captives my father the king brought from Judah?

14 I have heard that the spirit of the gods is in you, and that you are very smart and have knowledge and extraordinary understanding.

15 The wise men and magicians were brought to me to read this writing and to explain what it means, but they could not explain it.

16 I have heard that you are able to explain what things mean and can find the answers to hard problems. Read this writing on the wall and explain it to me. If you can, I will give you purple clothes fit for a king and a gold chain to wear around your neck. And you will become the third highest ruler in the kingdom."

17 Then Daniel answered the king, "You may keep your gifts for yourself, or you may give those rewards to someone else. But I will read the writing on the wall for you and will explain to you what it means.

18 "O king, the Most High God made your father Nebuchadnezzar a great, important, and powerful king.

19 Because God made him important, all the people, nations, and those who spoke every language were very frightened of Nebuchadnezzar. If he wanted someone to die, he killed that person. If he wanted someone to live, he let that person live. Those he wanted to promote, he promoted. Those he wanted to be less important, he made less important.

20 "But Nebuchadnezzar became too proud and stubborn, so he was taken off his royal throne. His glory was taken away.

21 He was forced away from people, and his mind became like the mind of an animal. He lived with the wild donkeys and was fed grass like an ox and became wet with dew. These things happened to him until he learned his lesson: The Most High God rules over every kingdom on earth, and he sets anyone he chooses over those kingdoms.

22 "Belshazzar, you already knew these things, because you are a descendant of Nebuchadnezzar. Still you have not been sorry for what you have done.

23 Instead, you have set yourself against the Lord of heaven. You ordered the drinking cups from the Temple of the Lord to be brought to you. Then you and your royal guests, your wives, and your slave women drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone that are not really gods; they cannot see or hear or understand anything. You did not honor God, who has power over your life and everything you do.

24 So God sent the hand that wrote on the wall.

25 "These are the words that were written on the wall: 'Mene, mene, tekel, and parsin.'

26 "This is what the words mean: Mene: God has counted the days until your kingdom will end.

27 Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found not good enough.

28 Parsin: Your kingdom is being divided and will be given to the Medes and the Persians."

29 Then Belshazzar gave an order for Daniel to be dressed in purple clothes and to have a gold chain put around his neck. And it was announced that Daniel was the third highest ruler in the kingdom.

30 That very same night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonian people, was killed.

31 So Darius the Mede became the new king when he was sixty-two years old.

1 Darius thought it would be a good idea to choose one hundred twenty governors who would rule his kingdom.

2 He chose three men as supervisors over those governors, and Daniel was one of the supervisors. The supervisors were to ensure that the governors did not try to cheat the king.

3 Daniel showed that he could do the work better than the other supervisors and governors, so the king planned to put Daniel in charge of the whole kingdom.

4 Because of this, the other supervisors and governors tried to find reasons to accuse Daniel about his work in the government. But they could not find anything wrong with him or any reason to accuse him, because he was trustworthy and not lazy or dishonest.

5 Finally these men said, "We will never find any reason to accuse Daniel unless it is about the law of his God."

6 So the supervisors and governors went as a group to the king and said: "King Darius, live forever!

7 The supervisors, assistant governors, governors, the people who advise you, and the captains of the soldiers have all agreed that you should make a new law for everyone to obey: For the next thirty days no one should pray to any god or human except to you, O king. Anyone who doesn't obey will be thrown into the lions' den.

8 Now, O king, make the law and sign your name to it so that it cannot be changed, because then it will be a law of the Medes and Persians and cannot be canceled."

9 So King Darius signed the law.

10 Even though Daniel knew that the new law had been written, he went to pray in an upstairs room in his house, which had windows that opened toward Jerusalem. Three times each day Daniel would kneel down to pray and thank God, just as he always had done.

11 Then those men went as a group and found Daniel praying and asking God for help.

12 So they went to the king and talked to him about the law he had made. They said, "Didn't you sign a law that says no one may pray to any god or human except you, O king? Doesn't it say that anyone who disobeys during the next thirty days will be thrown into the lions' den?" The king answered, "Yes, that is the law, and the laws of the Medes and Persians cannot be canceled."

13 Then they said to the king, "Daniel, one of the captives from Judah, is not paying attention to you, O king, or to the law you signed. Daniel still prays to his God three times every day."

14 The king became very upset when he heard this. He wanted to save Daniel, and he worked hard until sunset trying to think of a way to save him.

15 Then those men went as a group to the king. They said, "Remember, O king, the law of the Medes and Persians says that no law or command given by the king can be changed."

16 So King Darius gave the order, and Daniel was brought in and thrown into the lions' den. The king said to Daniel, "May the God you serve all the time save you!"

17 A big stone was brought and placed over the opening of the lions' den. Then the king used his signet ring and the rings of his royal officers to put special seals on the rock. This ensured that no one would move the rock and bring Daniel out.

18 Then King Darius went back to his palace. He did not eat that night, he did not have any entertainment brought to him, and he could not sleep.

19 The next morning King Darius got up at dawn and hurried to the lions' den.

20 As he came near the den, he was worried. He called out to Daniel, "Daniel, servant of the living God! Has your God that you always worship been able to save you from the lions?"

21 Daniel answered, "O king, live forever!

22 My God sent his angel to close the lions' mouths. They have not hurt me, because my God knows I am innocent. I never did anything wrong to you, O king."

23 King Darius was very happy and told his servants to lift Daniel out of the lions' den. So they lifted him out and did not find any injury on him, because Daniel had trusted in his God.

24 Then the king commanded that the men who had accused Daniel be brought to the lions' den. They, their wives, and their children were thrown into the den. The lions grabbed them before they hit the floor of the den and crushed their bones.

25 Then King Darius wrote a letter to all people and all nations, to those who spoke every language in the world: I wish you great peace and wealth.

26 I am making a new law for people in every part of my kingdom. All of you must fear and respect the God of Daniel. Daniel's God is the living God; he lives forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his rule will never end.

27 God rescues and saves people and does mighty miracles in heaven and on earth. He is the one who saved Daniel from the power of the lions.

28 So Daniel was successful during the time Darius was king and when Cyrus the Persian was king.

1 In Belshazzar's first year as king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream. He saw visions as he was lying on his bed, and he wrote down what he had dreamed.

2 Daniel said: "I saw my vision at night. In the vision the wind was blowing from all four directions, which made the sea very rough.

3 I saw four huge animals come up from the sea, and each animal was different from the others.

4 "The first animal looked like a lion, but had wings like an eagle. I watched this animal until its wings were torn off. It was lifted from the ground so that it stood up on two feet like a human, and it was given the mind of a human.

5 Then I saw a second animal before me that looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, 'Get up and eat all the meat you want!'

6 "After that, I looked, and there before me was another animal. This animal looked like a leopard with four wings on its back that looked like a bird's wings. This animal had four heads and was given power to rule.

7 "After that, in my vision at night I saw in front of me a fourth animal that was cruel, terrible, and very strong. It had large iron teeth. It crushed and ate what it killed, and then it walked on whatever was left. This fourth animal was different from any animal I had seen before, and it had ten horns.

8 "While I was thinking about the horns, another horn grew up among them. It was a little horn with eyes like a human's eyes. It also had a mouth, and the mouth was bragging. The little horn pulled out three of the other horns.

9 "As I looked, thrones were put in their places, and God, who has been alive forever, sat on his throne. His clothes were white like snow, and the hair on his head was white like wool. His throne was made from fire, and the wheels of his throne were blazing with fire.

10 A river of fire was flowing from in front of him. Many thousands of angels were serving him, and millions of angels stood before him. Court was ready to begin, and the books were opened.

11 "I kept on looking because the little horn was bragging. I kept watching until finally the fourth animal was killed. Its body was destroyed, and it was thrown into the burning fire.

12 (The power and rule of the other animals had been taken from them, but they were permitted to live for a certain period of time.)

13 "In my vision at night I saw in front of me someone who looked like a human being coming on the clouds in the sky. He came near God, who has been alive forever, and he was led to God.

14 He was given authority, glory, and the strength of a king. People of every tribe, nation, and language will serve him. His rule will last forever, and his kingdom will never be destroyed.

15 "I, Daniel, was worried. The visions that went through my mind frightened me.

16 I came near one of those standing there and asked what all this meant. "So he told me and explained to me what these things meant:

17 'The four great animals are four kingdoms that will come from the earth.

18 But the holy people who belong to the Most High God will receive the power to rule and will have the power to rule forever, from now on.'

19 "Then I wanted to know what the fourth animal meant, because it was different from all the others. It was very terrible and had iron teeth and bronze claws. It was the animal that crushed and ate what it killed and then walked on whatever was left.

20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the little horn that grew there. It had pulled out three of the other ten horns and looked greater than the others. It had eyes and a mouth that kept bragging.

21 As I watched, the little horn began making war against God's holy people and was defeating them

22 until God, who has been alive forever, came. He judged in favor of the holy people who belong to the Most High God; then the time came for them to receive the power to rule.

23 "And he explained this to me: 'The fourth animal is a fourth kingdom that will come on the earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will destroy people all over the world. It will walk on and crush the whole earth.

24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this fourth kingdom. After those ten kings are gone, another king will come. He will be different from the kings who ruled before him, and he will defeat three of the other kings.

25 This king will speak against the Most High God, and he will hurt and kill God's holy people. He will try to change times and laws that have already been set. The holy people that belong to God will be in that king's power for three and one-half years.

26 "'But the court will decide what should happen. The power of the king will be taken away, and his kingdom will be completely destroyed.

27 Then the holy people who belong to the Most High God will have the power to rule. They will rule over all the kingdoms under heaven with power and greatness, and their power to rule will last forever. People from all the other kingdoms will respect and serve them.'

28 "That was the end of the dream. I, Daniel, was very afraid. My face became white from fear, but I kept everything to myself."

1 From the Elder. To the chosen ladyn and her children: I love all of you in the truth, and all those who know the truth love you.

2 We love you because of the truth that lives in us and will be with us forever.

3 Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, will be with us in truth and love.

4 I was very happy to learn that some of your children are following the way of truth, as the Father commanded us.

5 And now, dear lady, this is not a new command but is the same command we have had from the beginning. I ask you that we all love each other.

6 And love means living the way God commanded us to live. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is this: Live a life of love.

7 Many false teachers are in the world now who do not confess that Jesus Christ came to earth as a human. Anyone who does not confess this is a false teacher and an enemy of Christ.

8 Be careful yourselves that you do not lose everything you have worked for, but that you receive your full reward.

9 Anyone who goes beyond Christ's teaching and does not continue to follow only his teaching does not have God. But whoever continues to follow the teaching of Christ has both the Father and the Son.

10 If someone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not welcome or accept that person into your house.

11 If you welcome such a person, you share in the evil work.

12 I have many things to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to come to you and talk face to face so we can be full of joy.

13 The children of your chosen sistern greet you.