Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
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1 While the lion was speaking
in this way to the eagle, I
looked
2 and saw that the last head
of the eagle was gone. Then the two
small wings that had moved over to
that head rose up to govern, but
their rule was short and full of trouble.
3 They disappeared before my
eyes, and the whole body of the
eagle burst into flames, and the
world was terrified.
The Interpretation of the Vision
3 I was so disturbed and so afraid
that I woke up. I said,
4 “I have
brought this on myself, because I
have tried to study the ways of God
-- --
Most High.
5 I am mentally exhausted
and completely worn out.
The terrible fears I have experienced
this night have taken my last bit of
strength.
6 All I can do now is pray
to God Most High to give me
strength until the end.”
7 Then I
prayed, “Master and Lord, if it is
true that you consider me more
righteous than many others and if
you hear my prayers, then I beg you,
8 give me strength. Show me, O
Lord, the full meaning of this terrifying
vision, and set my mind at ease.
9 After all, you did consider me worthy
to be shown the end of this age.”
10 God's angel said to me, “Here is
the interpretation of the vision you
saw.
11 The eagle you saw coming up
out of the sea represents the fourth
kingdom in the vision that your
brother Daniel saw. note
12 But he was
not given the same interpretation of
it that I am giving you.
13 The time is
coming when an empire will be established
on earth that is more terrible
than any before it.
14 Twelve
kings will rule over it, one after the
other.
15 The second king will rule
longer than any of the others.
16 That
is the meaning of the twelve wings
that you saw.
17 “You heard the voice speaking
from the middle of the eagle's body,
instead of from its heads.
18 That
means that after the rule of the second
king, a great struggle for power
will take place, and the empire will
be in danger of breaking up. But that
will not happen, and the empire will
regain its earlier power.
19 “You saw the eight small wings
growing out of the eagle's big wings.
That means
20 that eight kings will
rise up in the empire, but their rule
will be brief and unimportant.
21 Two
of them will appear briefly near the
middle of the period, four of them
will not appear until near the end,
and two will be left until the very
end.
22 “You saw the three heads that
were asleep. That means
23 that in
the last days of the empire, God
Most High will raise up three kings;
they note will restore much of the empire
and rule over the world
24 and
its people with more harshness than
any before them. The reason they
are called the eagle's heads
25 is that
these three kings will bring to a head
and complete the godless work of
the eagle.
26 You saw the largest
head disappear. This means that one
of the kings will die in his bed, in
great agony.
27 The other two will die
in battle.
28 One of them will kill the
other; then he also will be killed in
battle at the end of time.
29 “You saw the two small wings
moving under the head on the right
side.
30 That means that God Most
High has kept them until the end,
but their rule was short and full of
trouble, as you saw.
31 “You saw the angry lion come
roaring out of the forest, and you
heard it speak to the eagle and rebuke
it for the evil that it had done
and for all that it had said.
32 The lion
represents the Messiah, whom God
Most High has held back until the
end. He will be a descendant of David
and will come and speak note to the
rulers. He will rebuke them for their
wickedness, their sinfulness, and
their contempt for God's ways. note
33 While they are still living, he will
bring them to judgment, condemn
them for their sin, and destroy them.
34 But he will have mercy on the rest
of my people, those who are left in
my land; he will set them free and
make them happy until the end
comes, the Judgment Day about
which I told you at the beginning.
35 “That is the dream you had, and
that is its interpretation.
36 But you
are the only one that God Most High
has considered worthy to reveal this
secret to.
37 So write in a book everything
you saw, and put it in a safe
hiding place.
38 Then teach these secrets
to those who are wise among
your people, those who will be able
to understand them and keep them
secret.
39 But you must stay here
seven more days, so that God Most
-- --
High may reveal to you whatever he
wishes.” Then the angel left me.
The People Come to Ezra
40 When the seven days had
passed and all the people heard that
I had not yet returned to the city, all
of them, rich and poor, came and
asked me,
41 “What wrong have we
done to you? How have we mistreated
you? Why have you abandoned
us and settled down in this
place?
42 You are the only one of all
our prophets who is left. You are
like the last bunch of grapes in a
vineyard, like a lantern in a dark
place, like a safe harbor for a ship in
a storm.
43 Haven't we suffered
enough already?
44 If you abandon
us, it would have been better if we
had died like the others in the fire
that destroyed Jerusalem.
45 We are
no better than those who died.”
Then they all started crying loudly.
45 I answered,
46 “Be brave, Israel,
put away your sorrow.
47 God Most
High will keep you in mind; the Almighty
One has not forgotten you in
all your troubles.
48 And I haven't
left you or abandoned you. I came
here to pray for Jerusalem in her
time of trouble and to ask mercy for
her and for your Temple, now in disgrace.
49 Please return to your
homes, all of you. I will come back
to you in a few days.”
50 So they left
me and went back to the city.
THE SIXTH VISION
The Vision
51 I stayed in the field for seven
days, as the angel had commanded
me. I ate nothing but wild flowers; I
was a vegetarian in those days.
Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
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