Daniel 8

King James Version (1769) · Tap a verse to see it in context

About this chapter

AI-assisted, sourced

In a vision at Shushan, Daniel sees a ram with two horns, then a he goat with a great horn that breaks the ram, and a little horn that grows great, takes away "the daily sacrifice" and casts down the sanctuary. Gabriel explains: "The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia. And the rough goat is the king of Grecia." Daniel is told to shut up the vision, "for it shall be for many days." Daniel 8:2 Daniel 8:3 Daniel 8:5 Daniel 8:7 Daniel 8:9 Daniel 8:11 Daniel 8:16 Daniel 8:20 Daniel 8:21 Daniel 8:26

Who, where, when, and the key verses

Who

Daniel tells the vision in the first person. Gabriel is sent to make him understand it. Daniel 8:1 Daniel 8:15 Daniel 8:16

Where

"At Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam... by the river of Ulai," in the vision. Daniel 8:2

When

"In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar." Gabriel, sent to explain, says "at the time of the end shall be the vision." Traditionally written by Daniel in the 500s BC. Many critical scholars date the book's final form to about 167-164 BC. Daniel 8:1 Daniel 8:16 Daniel 8:17 Daniel overview

How it fits

It follows the vision of chapter 7, "after that which appeared unto me at the first." Chapter 9 moves to "the first year of Darius," when Daniel understands "by books" the seventy years of Jeremiah. Daniel 8:1 Daniel 9:1 Daniel 9:2

Key verses

Verse 20
Gabriel, sent to "make this man to understand the vision," names the symbols: "The ram... are the kings of Media and Persia," and "the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king." Daniel 8:16 Daniel 8:17 Daniel 8:20 Daniel 8:21
Verse 22
When the great horn is broken, "four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power." The text does not name these four kingdoms or the king of fierce countenance who follows. Daniel 8:8 Daniel 8:22 Daniel 8:23
Verse 25
The king who stands "up against the Prince of princes" "shall be broken without hand." His power is "not by his own power," and his end does not come by human hand. Daniel 8:24 Daniel 8:25

Takeaway

God knows and names the rise and fall of empires before they happen; even the proudest power "shall be broken without hand." Daniel 8:19 Daniel 8:20 Daniel 8:21 Daniel 8:25

Drafted by AI from the Scripture and data shown under “Show sources,” then checked automatically and by a separate AI reader. Updated 2026-10-29.

The ram and the he goat

¹In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first. ²And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai. ³Then I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there stood before the river a ram which had two horns: and the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last. ⁴I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and became great. ⁵And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes. ⁶And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power. ⁷And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand. ⁸Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven.

The little horn

⁹And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land. ¹⁰And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them. ¹¹Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down. ¹²And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered. ¹³Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot? ¹⁴And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.

Gabriel explains the vision

¹⁵And it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision, and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man. ¹⁶And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision. ¹⁷So he came near where I stood: and when he came, I was afraid, and fell upon my face: but he said unto me, Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end shall be the vision. ¹⁸Now as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep on my face toward the ground: but he touched me, and set me upright. ¹⁹And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end shall be. ²⁰The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia. ²¹And the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king. ²²Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power. ²³And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. ²⁴And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. ²⁵And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand. ²⁶And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days. ²⁷And I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain days; afterward I rose up, and did the king’s business; and I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it.