Discovery BoxDaniel 8:4 
Context8:4 I saw that the ram was butting westward, northward, and southward. No animal 1 was able to stand before it, and there was none who could deliver from its power. 2 It did as it pleased and acted arrogantly. 3
Daniel 8:8
Context8:8 The male goat acted even more arrogantly. But no sooner had the large horn become strong than it was broken, and there arose four conspicuous horns 4 in its place, 5 extending toward the four winds of the sky. 6
1 tn Or “beast” (NAB).
2 tn Heb “hand.” So also in v. 7.
3 tn In the Hiphil the Hebrew verb גָּדַל (gadal, “to make great; to magnify”) can have either a positive or a negative sense. For the former, used especially of God, see Ps 126:2, 3; Joel 2:21. In this chapter (8:4, 8, 11, 25) the word has a pejorative sense, describing the self-glorification of this king. The sense seems to be that of vainly assuming one’s own superiority through deliberate hubris.
4 tn The word “horns” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied.
5 sn The four conspicuous horns refer to Alexander’s successors. After his death, Alexander’s empire was divided up among four of his generals: Cassander, who took Macedonia and Greece; Lysimachus, who took Thrace and parts of Asia Minor; Seleucus, who took Syria and territory to its east; and Ptolemy, who took control of Egypt.
6 tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
