The Skeptics Annotated Bible (672 page)

9 And
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.

(8.9)
“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.”

10 And 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.

(8.10)
“It cast down some … of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.”
To Daniel, the stars are small objects that can fall from the sky and then be “stamped upon.”

11 Yea, 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.

12 And 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.

13
Then 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?

(8.13)
“Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision?”

14 And
he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed
.

(8.14)
“He said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.”

(8.15-27) Daniel didn’t know what to make of his vision. But then a guy that looked like a man dropped by to interpret it for him.

15 And 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.

(8.15)
“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.”

16 And
I heard a man’s voice
between the banks of Ulai,
which
called, and
said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.

(8.16)
“I heard a man’s voice … which … said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.”

17
So 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.

(8.17)
“So 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.”

18
Now 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.

(8.18)
“Now 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.”

19 And
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.

(8.19)
“He said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the last end … for at the time appointed the end shall be.”

20
The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia
.

(8.20)
“The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia.”

21 And
the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king.

(8.21)
“The rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king.”

22
Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.

(8.22)
“Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.”

23 And
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.

(8.23)
“In the latter time … a king … shall stand up.”

24 And
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
.

(8.24) “His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall … destroy the mighty and the holy people.”

25 And 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.

(8.25) “By peace [he] shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken.”

26 And 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.

27 And 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.

(8.27) “I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain days … I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it.” (If Daniel couldn’t understand his visions, then how could anyone else?) This is the one true prophecy in the book of Daniel: “none understood it.”

9
In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans;

2 In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.

3 And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes:

4 And I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;

5 We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments:

6 Neither have we hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, which spake in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.

7 O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.

8 O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee.

9 To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him;

10 Neither have we obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.

11 Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against him.

12 And he hath confirmed his words, which he spake against us, and against our judges that judged us, by bringing upon us a great evil: for under the whole heaven hath not been done as hath been done upon Jerusalem.

13 As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil is come upon us: yet made we not our prayer before the LORD our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand thy truth.

14 Therefore hath the LORD watched upon the evil, and brought it upon us: for the LORD our God is righteous in all his works which he doeth: for we obeyed not his voice.

15 And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.

16 O Lord, according to all thy righteousness, I beseech thee, let thine anger and thy fury be turned away from thy city Jerusalem, thy holy mountain: because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that are about us.

17 Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord’s sake.

18 O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.

19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name.

20 And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God;

(9.21-27) A man named Gabriel flies by and touches Daniel. After landing, he talks complete gibberish to Daniel about seventy weeks, seven weeks, sixty-two weeks, destroyed cities, wars, floods, and abominations.