Kings of the South and North

1“And so, from the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood firm, so that he might be reinforced and strengthened. 2And now I will announce to you the truth. Behold, up to a certain point, three kings will stand in Persia, and the fourth will be exceedingly enriched in power above them all. And when he has grown strong by his resources, he will stir up all against the kingdom of Greece. 3But there will rise up a strong king, and he will rule with great power, and he will do what he pleases. 4And when he has been firmly established, his kingdom will be shattered and will be divided towards the four winds of the heaven, but not to his posterity, nor according to his power with which he ruled. For his kingdom will be torn to pieces, even for the outsiders who have been expelled from these.

5And the king of the South will be reinforced, yet one of his leaders will prevail over him, and he will rule with riches, for great is his domain. 6And after the end of years, they will form a federation, and the daughter of the king of the South will come to the king of the North to make friendship, but she will not obtain the strength of arms, neither will her offspring stand firm, and she will be handed over, along with those who brought her, her young men, and those who comforted her in these times. 7And a transplant from the germination of her roots will stand up, and he will come with an army, and will enter into the province of the king of the North, and he will abuse them, and will hold it fast. 8And, in addition, he will carry away captive into Egypt their gods, and their graven images, and likewise their precious vessels of gold and silver. He will prevail against the king of the North. 9And the king of the South will enter into the kingdom, and will return to his own land.

10But his sons will be challenged, and they will assemble a multitude of very many forces. And he will arrive rushing and overflowing. And he will be turned back, and he will be enraged, and he will join the battle in his redness. 11And the king of the South, having being challenged, will go forth and will fight against the king of the North, and he will prepare an exceedingly great multitude, and a multitude will be given into his hand. 12And he will seize a multitude, and his heart will be exalted, and he will cast down many thousands, but he will not prevail. 13For the king of the North will change strategy and will prepare a multitude much greater than before, and at the end of times and years, he will rush forward with a great army and exceedingly great resources.

14And in those times, many will rise up against the king of the South. And likewise the sons of the deceivers among your people will extol themselves, so as to fulfill the vision, and they will collapse. 15And the king of the North will arrive and will transport siege works, and he will seize the most fortified cities. And the arms of the South will not withstand him, and his elect will rise up to resist, but the strength will not. 16And when he arrives, he will do just as he pleases, and there will be none who stand against his face. And he will stand in the illustrious land, and it will be consumed by his hand. 17And he will set his face to strive to hold his entire kingdom, and he will make fair conditions with him. And he will give him a daughter among women, so as to overthrow it. But she will not stand, neither will she be for him. 18And he will turn his face towards the islands, and he will seize many. And he will cause the leader of his reproach to cease, and his reproach will be turned around for him. 19And he will turn his face to the empire of his own land, and he will strike, and will overthrow, but he will not succeed.

20And there will stand up in his place one who is most worthless and unworthy of kingly honor. And in a short time, he will be worn out, but not in fury, nor in battle. 21And there will stand up in his place the despicable one, and he will not be assigned the honor of a king. And he will arrive in secret, and he will obtain the kingdom by deceitfulness. 22And the arms of the fighting will be assaulted before his face and will be shattered, and, in addition, the leader of the federation. 23And, after making friends, he will trick him, and he will go up and will overcome with a small people. 24And he will enter into rich and resourceful cities, and he will do what his fathers never did, nor his fathers’ fathers. He will scatter their spoils, and their prey, and their riches, and will form a plan against the most steadfast, and this until a time. 25And his strength and his heart will be enraged against the king of the South with a great army. And the king of the South will be provoked into going to war by having many allies and exceedingly good circumstances, and yet these will not stand, for they will form plans against him. 26And those who eat bread with him will crush him, and his army will be suppressed, and very many will die, having been executed. 27And the heart of two kings will be similar, to do harm, and they will speak lies at one table, but they will not succeed, because as yet the end is for another time. 28And he will return to his land with many resources. And his heart will be against the holy testament, and he will act, and he will return to his own land.

29At the appointed time, he will return, and he will approach the South, but the latter time will not be like the former.

30And the Greek warships and the Romans will come upon him, and he will be pierced, and will retreat, and will have scorn against the testament of the sanctuary, and he will act. And he will return and will consult their adversaries, who have forsaken the covenant of the sanctuary. 31And arms will take his side, and they will pollute the sanctuary of the strength, and they will take away the continual sacrifice and will replace it with the abomination of desolation. 32And the impious within the testament will imitate deceitfully, but the people, knowing their God, will persevere and will act. 33And the teachers among the people will teach many, but they will be ruined by the sword, and by fire, and by captivity, and by assaults for many days. 34And when they have fallen, they will be supported with a little help, but many will apply to them deceitfully. 35And some of the learned will be ruined, that they may be kindled and chosen and purified, up to the predetermined time, because there will be still another time.

The King Who Exalts Himself

36And the king will act according to his will, and he will be lifted up and will be extolled against every god. And he will speak great things against the God of gods, and he will control, until the passion is completed. Once accomplished, the limit is reached with certainty. 37And he will give no thought to the God of his fathers, and he will be in the desire of women, and he will not attend to any gods, because he will rise up against all things. 38But he will do homage to the god Maozim in his place, and, a god whom his fathers did not know, he will worship with gold, and silver, and precious stones, and costly things. 39And he will act to reinforce Maozim with an alien god, of whom he has become aware, and he will increase their glory, and will give them power over many, and he will distribute land for free.

40And, at the predetermined time, the king of the South will fight against him, and the king of the North will come against him like a tempest, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with a great fleet, and he will enter into the lands, and will crush and pass through. 41And he will enter into the glorious land, and many will fall. But only these will be saved from his hand: Edom, and Moab, and the first part of the sons of Ammon. 42And he will cast his hand upon the lands, and the land of Egypt will not escape. 43And he will rule over the treasure chests of gold, and silver, and all the precious things of Egypt, and likewise he will pass through Libya and Ethiopia. 44And rumors from the East and from the North will trouble him. And he will arrive with a great multitude to destroy and to execute many. 45And he will fasten his tabernacle, Apadno, between the seas, upon an illustrious and holy mountain, and he will come even to its summit, and no one will help him.”