Daniel - Intro

At the end of the reign of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, we see him reported by the prophet Isaiah as falling into the crime of the devil's doing, pride. 1st Timothy 3:6 teaches that “(For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)”

Isaiah 39 shows us that this type of falling away will lead the nation into Judgment and the House of David will, for a time, fall. “Behold the days come that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried away to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the Lord.”

About one hundred years later, around 600 years before Christ, this prophecy was fulfilled. The opening portion of the book of Daniel reveals it. The Babylonian king came and conquered Jerusalem and carried away his spoils, including Daniel as a young man, and his companions.

This young man, through the providence of God, would become, under Nebuchadnezzar, essentially the prime minister of the pagan nation.

Daniel led his companions to live a life in captivity that was loyal and true to Jehovah and God honored him for his faith and loyalty. God gave Daniel the great vision of the future and the ability to reveal it. The Lord appeared to him, he talked with angels, and the messenger Gabriel addresses him as “the man greatly beloved”. Even in his far older years, he still was able to speak clearly the will of the Lord and we shall see how the Lord delivers him from the mouth of lions.

We will see how very importantly Daniel teaches us the value of constant prayer and its communion with our Lord. While his name is not listed in the roll call of heroes in Hebrews 11 (the faith chapter), his spirit and deeds are given (Hebrews 11:33).

It may be that modern believers have come to neglect somewhat the wonder of prophecy. If we do accept that the Lord is surely in control of all things at all times (as taught in Hebrews 1:1-3) then we cannot join in this neglect. The strength of our faith rests in the whole counsel of God. Jesus himself spoke of the importance of his servant Daniel in Matthew 24:15 as he revealed events to follow in time.

Daniel's book generally may be divided into chapters 1-6 as history and 7-12 as visions, that relate primarily to the church. While originally 70 years of captivity were foretold, we will see in Daniel the time of separation expanded to 70 weeks of years. The crucial Time of the Gentiles is folded within this vision and it is important that we study and understand it, for prophecy is truth. We must not forget that God sees in foresight what man sees only in hindsight.

Daniel is the scribe of God in revealing for all believers for all time the will of the creator for His people. How strongly Daniel stands for us as God's mouthpiece. He describes the coming of the Savior and announces the end of the shadow of the law since the Christ will fulfill it forever. When he predicts the death of Christ, he shows the purpose of that death, which is the abolishing of our sin debt by His sacrifice, and how it will bring eternal righteousness. He warns that the state of the church will not be tranquil, either in the time of the Messiah or after. He teaches us that sons of God must be militant in worship and service , hoping not for any fruit of victory until the dead shall rise again and Christ arrive again to deliver His forever kingdom.

Just to be sure that we all accept the assurance of the truth of prophecy in God's Word, let's review the detailed prophecies that were foretold and all fulfilled in just the last week of the earthly ministry of Jesus:

• Sold for 30 pieces of silver (Zech 11:12)

• Betrayal by a friend (Ps 41:9)

• Forsaken by disciples (Zech 13:7)

• Accused by false witnesses (Ps 35:11)

• Dumb before His accusers (Is 53:7)

• Spit upon and scourged (Is 53:5)

• Hands and feet pierced (Ps 22:16)

• His garments divided by lot (Ps 22:18)

• Mocked by enemies (Ps 22:7-8)

• Given gall and vinegar (Ps 69:21)

• Prayed for His murderers (Is 53:12)

• Not a bone broken (Ps 34:20)

• Crucified with thieves (Is 53:12)

• His forsaken cry (Ps 22:1)

• His side pierced (Zech 12:10)

• Buried like a rich man (Is 53:9)

We learn and grow through scripture if we read it, study it, and accept what it reveals into our lives. Our true church is shown by revelation. Our Old Testament gives us teachings on Jews and Gentiles. Our New Testament gives us teachings on the one true church (that of all believers). Daniel has been said to be the Revelation of the Old Testament as it points forward to the opening of the curtain of the last book in the New Testament.

Josephus wrote that when Alexander the Great came to Jerusalem to conquer it in 322 B.C., he was shown by Juddua, the high priest, the prophecy of himself written by Daniel in chapter 8, and was so moved by this writing that he spared the entire city.

Daniel will allow us to see the opening of the issue of the Evil One, The Son of Perdition, that spawn of Satan which is the Antichrist. Scripture is forceful to warn us that he will indeed come upon our world appearing to be the answer to all hopes and to be initially accepted to be the long awaited messiah for the Jews. 

In this regard we must not forget that 1st John 4:3 prepares us to view this matter in a longer time aspect than just the horror time of the tribulation.

“And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come, and even now already is it in the world.”

In every age the spirit of the antichrist has been active, capable of capturing the souls of the lost and diminishing the souls of those saved, and dragging to perdition entire nations and peoples, without the high drama of the Apocalypse. There have been many apocalypses since the time Jesus walked the earth. We saw them in the reigns of Nero, Hitler, Stalin, Mao, and we will study an early example in Daniel that will be under the horrors brought to God's Holy City by Antiochus Epiphanes. These are all shadows of the Man of Sin to come. They are also warnings, which are reminders that we must not view the struggle against the final Antichrist as simply a huge drama to be played out during some distant future time. The actual battle against that spirit is waged from the very beginning of human history and continues without interruption until today.

In Daniel we will see the curtain lifted that obscures human sight of the savage spiritual warfare that occurs every day and night. The forces of God's righteousness are standing against these evil forces constantly. The truth of this matter is revealed in detail to Daniel and therefore to us who study and believe and trust in His Holy Word.

LET'S OPEN OUR HEARTS HUMBLY AND BEGIN

Daniel - Chapter 1

(1:1-2) Man Proposes, God Disposes

Daniel and his companions were young disciples, set into adverse circumstances, and unpromising conditions for service to God.

Here we see their early beginnings in Babylon. Without these early steps of faithfulness from them, there would have been no later acts of heroism.

The book of Daniel opens with two strong statements about the taking of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. This thought focuses upon the fact that man is active in history but so is God. Here we see that Nebuchadnezzar came to Jerusalem and set his siege there but we also see that God gave Jehoiakim, the king of Judah into his hand. We see the when & what of this historical event from man's view, but we see the why from the perspective of the Lord. The city fell in three stages, 605, 597, & 587 B.C. And we see in 1st Kings 24 & 25 that “... Thus Judah was carried away from its own land...”.

The consequence of this event was clear. God was robbed of His possessions and blasphemy was committed against His name. His people were taken, and all His temple vessels and furnishings were taken to be placed in a pagan temple. But the Lord himself was instrumental in the defeat as He gave His anointed king and chosen ones to a pagan conqueror.

The prophecy of Deuteronomy 28 was fulfilled as it was foretold to Moses. “... the Lord will bring a nation against you from afar... they shall besiege you...”.

God's word is true and it endures.

(1:3-7) Brainwashing

The king of Babylon was cunning and sly. He commanded that young men of high families and good understanding be taken apart from the other spoils and that they be placed into a training program for three years to learn to serve in the king's court.

The king was taking a long view of what was necessary to keep the Jewish people subdued. He was using Jewish resources for his own purpose. What better agents would deal with the Jews than those of their own families? In addition, he was a master of self glory and he wished to surround himself with those of great learning and wisdom. Verse 4 tells us these men would serve in the king's palace.

Notice the methods this king used to conform Daniel and his three friends to his purposes:

Isolation: They were separated from the word of God and its worship. They no longer had the fellowship of their own people. They were separated out and the king felt this isolation would mold them to his ways.

Indoctrination: They were taught the language and literature of the Chaldeans. These writings were centered upon a completely different worldview and were focused upon pagan matters, not godly matters.

Compromise: They were given a daily portion of the king's best food and wine. Here they were to be seduced by the grand lifestyle and best of all things that were now available to them. The good life was meant to lure them away from the spareness of godly service that would have been theirs at home. These court managers knew well that almost all men have their price for their loyalty and that price was beginning to be granted to Daniel and his three companions.

Confusion: A final method used to wean these young men away from the Lord was to confuse their very nature by changing their names into Babylonian names. The king was forming them to actually BECOME Babylonian. They were given names in reference to pagan gods:

• Daniel (God Is My Judge) became Belteshazzar (Whom Bel Favors)

• Hananiah (Beloved Of The Lord) became Shadrach (Sun God Shining)

• Mishael (Who Is As God) became Meshach (Who Is Like Venus)

• Azariah (The Lord Is My Help) became Abed-Nego (Servant Of Nego)

(1:8-16) A Firm Purpose

Daniel determined that he would not defile himself with the king's food and wine. A forced change of names did not change his character. He quietly went to the chief who was responsible for the four men and kindly asked for assistance. There was no confrontation. Daniel was told by the manager that he was worried that their health would be diminished if they did not eat the king's food and he would be held responsible. So Daniel proposes a ten day trial of the four eating only vegetables and drinking only water. Consent was given. At the end of the ten days, the four were seen to be healthier and more fit than all others in the court. 

What is our lesson?

• Daniel was decisive.

• Daniel was true of purpose.

• Daniel was modest in his request.

• Daniel expected positive results.

Do our ears hear the lesson of the results of obedience?

(1:16-21) God Honors Faithfulness

As they began this captive life still in obedience to the Lord, God grants them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom and he now grants Daniel understanding in visions and dreams.

All four were considered to be the very best of all the young men in training at the king's court and we are told they were ten times better than the king's own magicians and astrologers.

Daniel knew that the Lord alone blesses our food and that the nourishment given by God would strengthen their minds and bodies to His service. This first test showed the four that obedience to God brings positive results. This test prepared them for the trials and temptations ahead. By standing firm in this first trial they were gaining their inner resources in faithful devotion to Jehovah God that would serve them well in the trials to come.

It is not who you are or where you are that ultimately matters in the kingdom of God. What matters is what you are. Faithfulness is the foundation on which our devotion rests.  

Daniel - Chapter 2

(2:1-13) People's Basic Insecurity

As we begin chapter two, we have seen in 1:19-20 that Daniel and his three companions are finished with the training in the king's classes and are ready to take their positions at his court. 

We see in verse 4 that the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic, which was the international language of the time. The book of Daniel from this portion to verse 7:28 is actually written in Aramaic. This is not an exception to scripture. Ezra 4-6 and Jeremiah 10 are also written in this language. It is thought that since we will see in the first half of Daniel the discussion of kingdoms to rise, perhaps it was considered proper to write these chapters in a more expansive language.

We see in these first verses that the king has experienced a strong dream which has come to trouble him very much. While it appears that he cannot remember the dream he calls together his seers and astrologers and magicians to help him overcome the troubling dream meaning. The king was perplexed and he commanded that his mystical men both remind him of what the dream was and what it meant. He had placed an impossible task in front of his wise advisers. He demanded both the content and meaning from them. Their answer was that if the king told them the dream, they would interpret the meaning. Now the king was furious and commanded that if his wish was not fulfilled, all the wise men in the kingdom would die.

Nebuchadnezzar, who had all riches and possessions at his finger tips was insecure as to the dream's meaning. His wise men were insecure as to how to answer his demand. How can they interpret a dream if they do not know what it was? The king's spirit grew anxious and threatening.  In verse 10 the wise men expose a great truth without realizing it. They advise the king that no man on earth can tell him what he wants to know. How right they were we will shortly see.

The killings began. 

(2:14-30) Knocking At Heaven's Door

The captain of the king's guard, Arioch, came to Daniel and Daniel knew that these murders would soon include himself and his three friends. Daniel asks why the matter was so urgent and asked to see the king. Daniel asked for some time to fulfill the king's request and it was granted.

Now Daniel gathers his three friends, explains all, and they begin to earnestly knock on the door of heaven in prayer seeking the mercies of God. The necessary information was given to Daniel in a night vision and Daniel returned blessings to the Lord for His mercy toward his four servants.

Verses 20-23 are among the most beautiful in all of the Old Testament concerning the understanding that Daniel has of the wonder and working of the Lord.

Now Daniel goes back to Arioch, asking for time with the king to give the king the answer he seeks. Daniel appears before the king, and actually confirms what the king's own men had earlier told him, that NO man was able to provide the answer. Daniel tells the king that there is a God in Heaven who can reveal the answer and He has done so, not because Daniel held the wisdom, but because the king might know the thoughts of his own heart.

Daniel's speech was marked by wisdom, not by what he said but by how he said it.

Daniel's giving of all credit to God was clearly indicating that he was humble and was worshipful toward the Lord. We notice in verse 21 that Daniel even went so far as to advise that it is God who removes kings and raises up kings. Daniel further says that it is God who reveals secrets, not man (verse 28).

(2:31-49) A Kingdom That Cannot Be Shaken

Now Daniel reveals both the content and meaning of the dream. The dream was of a great figure, with its elements beginning with gold at the head, chest and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, legs of iron, and feet of iron and clay.

A stone cut without hands crushes that figure into chaff which the wind blows away. The stone grows into a mighty mountain over all the earth. Daniel reveals that each section of the figure is a kingdom, beginning with Babylon in gold, and other kingdoms to come, represented by other elements, with one final kingdom to overcome and crush all others. The last kingdom is known by Daniel, as all powerful, and is the eternal kingdom of the Messiah to come.

The king fell on his face before Daniel and then promoted Daniel over all the kingdom, along with his three companions at the request of Daniel.

It is understood that the kingdoms to come after Babylon are Medo-Persia, Greece, and finally Rome. While the king praised the God of Daniel, he did not convert nor seek the mercy of Daniel's God but The Lord did transform the wrath of this king into praise. Daniel began this chapter under a death sentence, and ends it with him sitting in power at the top of the court of the king.

Daniel - Chapter 3

(3:1-7) Tyranny Over Freedom To Worship

As Nebuchadnezzar tightens his control over the religious life of all in the kingdom, he decided to erect a large image which all in his kingdom are commanded to worship. Here we have a symbol of the world and the flesh versus the Lord. Babylon and the new worship image represent the paganism and false worship while Daniel and his three men represent faith toward the Living God, invisible but all powerful.

The threat from the throne was that those who refuse to worship the image will go into the fiery furnace. We see now the reason that the faith chapter, Hebrews 11, teaches in verse 34 that through faith the violence of fire was quenched.

The king had clearly missed the wisdom of Daniel's interpretation of his dream. While Daniel had revealed to him that he was the golden portion of the dream image and the king fell to the feet of Daniel upon the explanation, he now shows that he was still insistent upon his own resources for what is to be worshiped, not bowing a knee to the God who had brought him the truth.

This image was approximately 90 feet tall and 9 feet wide, covered in gold, a symbol of the sin of pride that this king held. Here he follows the original sinners of Babel in Genesis 11:4 who tried to build a tower to heaven to make a name for themselves. We should note carefully:

• Nebuchadnezzar possessed immense power but misused it.

• Nebuchadnezzar experienced religious conviction without conversion.

Unlike the Thessalonians later (1st Thess 1:9) he did not turn from idols and serve the true living God.

(3:8-18) Serving God Rather Than Men

Certain men tell the king that Daniel and his three have not paid proper respect or regard to the king. They refuse to bow to the king's massive image or to worship it. Now the king is in a rage and orders the three men, Shadrach, Mesach, & Abed-Nego, brought to him. He allows these three men of Jehovah one more chance, in his presence, to kneel to worship the statue or if not to go into the furnace. He then poses a sarcastic question to them if they refuse him in verse 15. “And who is the god will deliver you from my hand?”

In complete obedience to the Lord, the three answer that their God, even if He allows them to perish in the fire, or if He saves their lives, will indeed have delivered them. In absolute faith, they say that either way, death or life, they will refuse to worship the statue.

There is no episode in the entire Bible that better represents the teaching of Acts 5:29 which teaches us “... we ought to obey God rather than men...”. What can we say that these three faithful men did that remain examples to us today?

• They had confidence in the power of God.

• They were completely submissive to God's will.

Faith means a ready willingness to obey (often without full understanding) the Lord whatever His purpose may be in our lives. This moment was one more building block in the wall of faith these three were building in their hearts.

(3:19-25) Fiery Trials

The king commanded that the furnace be heated to seven times its normal temperature. He commanded the three to be bound fully clothed and cast into the furnace. The heat was so intense at the mouth of the furnace that those who took and bound the three were burned to death as they cast the three into the furnace.

God saved these three faithful men from the fire, and even though they were clearly seen within the furnace, no harm came upon them. The prophet Isaiah had written words that perfectly describe this moment:

“When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the Lord your God” (Is 43)

Now the king sees the truth and in verse 25 says that there are four men loose in the furnace walking, unhurt, and one is like the Son of God. These three trusted God never to leave them or forsake them. Even if death came for them, they knew they would meet the Lord either way. These are reverent and loving sons, ready to die rather than offend the Lord. They feared no man exactly because they were in loving fear of God.

(3:26-30) The King Impressed Once More

The king was astonished again. These three were unharmed. They were unscorched. They did not smell of smoke. Their hair was not singed as they walked out of the furnace.

The king elevates the three even higher and commands no person in the kingdom to speak against the God of these three and says that there is no other God who can deliver like this. The strength and faithfulness of these three impressed him, but we note that this God, the true and living God, was still considered by the king to be the God of these three, not the God of Nebuchadnezzar.

Further lessons are coming his way.

Daniel - Chapter 4

So far in Daniel we have seen a constant focus upon the concept of the sovereignty of God over nations and individuals. We saw the way God gives wisdom to His faithful servants in chapter 1. We saw this wisdom at work in the interpretation of the king's dream in chapter 2. We saw the divine protection given to the three faithful servants in chapter 3. Now we will see the confession of that sovereign power by a heathen king.

(4:1-18) Night Visions

We see in these first verses language that many have determined to be the actual words written by Daniel for the king, or perhaps these words were written by the king under the strength of the powerful influence of Daniel. The words that end verse one “Peace be multiplied to you” are strongly words of one who understands the power of Jehovah God over all earthly matters and is the one who provides real peace. Verse 3 further confirms those thoughts as well with its majestic description of God and His workings that Nebuchadnezzar has seen with his own eyes.

We see in verse 4 that the king was at rest and was flourishing in his own palace when a dream has come upon him which once more troubles him.

The “tree dream” begins with a fairly straightforward vision of a tree that grows to great height, even to heaven, being seen by all on the earth. The vision of the tree itself was not so much a concern as the vision the king was given of one who then comes down from heaven which he calls a “watcher” and a “holy one” who gives commands to cut into the tree. As the vision begins to be described the king tells the story of the tree by using a non-personal description of “its height”, “it could be seen”, “its leaves”, “its fruit”, “its branches”. 

But when the watcher from heaven begins to speak, he speaks quite differently concerning the tree. Notice that the watcher speaks of “cut off HIS branches”, “shake off HIS leaves, “scatter HIS fruit”, leave the stump of HIS roots”, let HIS portion be”, “let HIS heart be changed”. Now the vision has become strongly personal.

None of the king's normal magicians or others could interpret the dream. But the king was sure that Belteshazzar (Daniel) can reveal its meaning, as he says in verse 8 that he knows Daniel is a man “in whom is the spirit of the holy gods”. We see that the king is not yet convinced that there is only ONE God, and the signs and wonders he has seen have not yet brought him to conversion.

(4:19-27) Warnings From God

When Daniel heard this dream he was troubled himself, so much so that for one hour he could not speak. Daniel knew the meaning and was at first concerned about revealing the truth to the king. He softens his words with a wish that this truth of this dream to be on the king's enemies, not on the king himself.

Daniel reveals that the tree represents king Nebuchadnezzar himself and that this tree will be cut down but the stump and roots will be left to spring up again. Daniel further tells the king that through a work of the hand of God, the king will be forced out for seven years to live as a beast in the field, eating grass as oxen do, soaked by the dew of heaven. Daniel is very clear that this decision is by the decree of the watchers, and is the sentence of the holy ones.

Daniel also tries again in verse 27 to convince the king to forsake his sins by righteousness and to show mercy on the poor, and if he did there would be further tranquility in the life of the king.

(4:28-33) The Kingdom Departs

The king did not take Daniel's advice and God allowed one year of grace before judgment. It is likely that this king may have thought or hoped that the prophecy of Daniel may have escaped the mind of God. But as we have earlier studied in this prophetic book, the word of God endures forever. Delayed judgment is not ever avoided.

After the year, as the king was looking out at the kingdom, he speaks in verse 30 of the “great Babylon that I have built... by the might of MY power... for the honor of MY majesty”. Probation time is over and judgment day is here.

The king was driven from men and ate grass as a beast and his body was wet from the dew and his hair grew long as did his fingernails, which became as claws. This he suffered for seven years. He becomes outwardly what he had been inwardly in spirit, a beast. The prophecy of his dream was fulfilled.

(4:34-37) Reason Restored

God's judgment on Nebuchadnezzar was done but was tempered with a slight glimmer of mercy. God said that he would live as a beast for those years, but verse 32 had promised that this would continue “... until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomever he will”.

Now the king says that he lifted his eyes to heaven and his understanding returned to him, and he blessed the most High, and praised and honored Him. The king's kingdom, counselors, and nobles were returned to him, and excellent majesty was added to him.

When the course of sin's dominion over the king was broken and when he lifted his eyes and heart in repentance and submission, mercy was granted.

We must carefully see the details of this change upon the king:

He confesses the sovereignty of God. He clearly states in verse 35 that no one questions the Lord.

He confesses the lower status of all creatures by saying that all the inhabitants of the earth are as nothing before God.

He confesses the truthfulness and righteousness of God by saying that all of the works of the Lord are truth and His ways justice.

Through these confessions, he shows that he recognizes that God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble. (Proverbs 3:34)

Peter many years later provides this very same teaching in 1st Peter 5:6: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt  you in due time:”

Daniel - Chapter 5

The book of Daniel is not simply a history lesson, just relating what happened during the life of this prophet in exile but is far more than that. It examines for us the clear view of what happens when a kingdom of the world comes into conflict with the kingdom of the Lord.

In this chapter we are introduced quickly to a new king of Babylon, Belshazzar. We were given no information before on him nor why he appears so abruptly for us. His appearance for us is a direct and strong illustration for us of the sovereignty of God and His ability to pull down kings from their thrones at will. Our New Testament brings this powerful message to us in Luke 1:52, “He hath put down the mighty from their seats...”.

(5:1-9) The Moving Finger Writes

We see quickly that this king has called a great feast to his palace and we are told that he drank wine in front of thousands. Wanting to make a greater impression of his power he calls for the gold and silver vessels brought from the Lord's temple to be brought out so that he, his lords, his wives and concubines may drink from them. Here we are given a small hint that these are the vessels that “his father” Nebuchadnezzar, had captured. We do not know if this meant he was truly the son of the king we saw in previous chapters, or some other relative. We do know the Old Testament provides no terms such as grandfather or great grandfather. We also know that at times some men used the term of father to describe more distant relatives. The Jews in John 8:39 appealed to Abraham and called him their father. So all we know for sure is there seemed to be some relation between these two kings.

Now these pagans at this feast begin to praise their false gods as they continued to drink.

Fingers of a man's hand appeared upward on a wall in full view and began to write upon the wall. The king saw this hand and the writing and was filled with fear. His face changed, his mind was troubled, his hips loosened, and his knees began to knock together. He called for all his wise men, astrologers and soothsayers, to come and to interpret this event for him. He promised great rewards for the man who would tell him the meaning of what he had seen, even offering the third ruling position in the kingdom. All his wise ones came and none could interpret this event.

As we will see, this event was the judgment of this wicked king by the Lord, which he did not yet realize. We should think first about the things this king had done to finalize God's will on him.

He had allowed his pagan ego to reach arrogant levels and he showed his disrespect for his own position by drinking to excess in front of thousands. All eyes were on him (just as he wanted) and he showed the sin of pride by his actions.

He further expressed his transgression against the One True God by blasphemy, using the holy vessels from the Lord's temple to consume wine. We can almost hear his boastful drunken spirit calling for the golden cups and using them for his pleasure, degrading their nature. Nebuchadnezzar, even in his worst moments, never did such a  thing to these holy vessels.

His sinful heart caused him to be sinfully blind, with help from much wine, as he enjoyed his self created spotlight.

The Lord's wrath is close at hand.

(5:10-31) Weighed In The Balances Of God

Now the queen remembers Daniel. She reminds the king of the position that Daniel had held under Nebuchadnezzar, and she describes him by saying that he is a man who has the Spirit of the Holy God in him. She reminds him that Daniel had been able to answer all matters in need of interpretation and that he should be called to explain this event to the king.

The king brings Daniel into the palace, and asks several questions to confirm who Daniel is and that the reference given by his queen was correct. He makes the same offer to Daniel of the material rewards and the position of ruling power.

Daniel kindly refuses any rewards, asking the king to keep them or to give them to another, but he assures the king he will read the writing so that the king may know its meaning.

Daniel reconstructs for the king the history of how God had dealt with Nebuchadnezzar and closes the history lesson by reminding the king that Nebuchadnezzar had ultimately understood that the Lord rules the kingdom of men.

Daniel further advises that this king had not humbled his heart, even though he knew the history Daniel had just related. Daniel now advises that this king had lifted himself up against the Lord of heaven, and he gives the king the meaning of the words written by the hand on the wall.

• MENE God has numbered your kingdom and finished it.

• TEKEL You have been weighed in the balance and found wanting.

• PERES Your kingdom had been divided and given to the Medes and Persians.

(Daniel changed the plural form of UPHARSIN to its singular form when he gave the meaning as the Medes and Persians were at that time a dual kingdom)

Belshazzar did give the rewards to Daniel even though Daniel did not want them, likely as a hope to curry favor with God's prophet. But judgment had been given and that very night it was carried out as that very night this king was slain and Darius the Mede conquered Babylon.

This king learned the harsh lesson that no kingdom of man not holding up in reverence the true and living God must fall.

Daniel - Chapter 6

It is likely that all of us who are raised in the Baptist church from childhood have the same response when anyone mentions Daniel. It is almost sure that our quick reaction is “the lion's den”. 

We see immediately in this chapter that another king has arisen, Darius the Mede, but we also see that Daniel still stands as the prophet and loyal servant of God. Kingdoms of man rise and fall, but Daniel is still serving the King of kings.

(6:1-9) Kingdom Against Kingdom

After the defeat of Belshazzar by Darius, he decided to set up the kingdom using 120 representatives, known as satraps. He further decided to have these 120 report to three governors, and Daniel was named one of these three. The abilities of Daniel were quickly recognized by Darius and he considered placing Daniel over all the governors. Word of this possible change must have leaked out because the other governors and the satraps set themselves a mission to find a way to bring Daniel down. With no chance of any negative shadow found in Daniel, these men concluded they could only arrange his downfall by using his faith in his God against him.

So a conspiracy was founded to have the king sign a law that all petitions to any god be made to the king only. Any who disobeyed were to be cast into the lion's den as a death sentence. This effort was a direct attack and offense against the kingdom of the Lord, whom Daniel served and he would serve no other. We see that when this decree idea was presented to Darius no mention is made whether Daniel had approved of this new decree. He was manipulated by his counselors because of his sin of pride, elevating himself over all gods, and he was filled with self deceit. One of the characteristics of the Medes was that once a decree was signed, it could not normally be revoked. This was handed down from the older code of Hammurabi and Darius, intoxicated by this honor of self, was willing to sign it. He exchanged the truth of God for the lie of self. This same mistake was tempted successfully upon our first parents in the garden by Satan in Genesis 3:5 (“... you will be like God...”)

(6:10-17) Faithful Unto Death

This event happened in the first year of the rule of Darius. We will see in chapter 9  verse 2 that Daniel was well studied in the book of Jeremiah and he was sure the restoration promised originally after 70 years was at hand. With the wisdom and courage provided by God Daniel saw through this conspiracy. He knew the previous trials had taught him to trust only in God and he stood firm against this evil decree. He saw it as the ultimate test of his faith and he still prayed three times daily. When his prayers were reported the king had no choice but to send Daniel to the lions. But he gave Daniel an indication of his own faith by telling Daniel that “... your God will deliver you...”.

Daniel's prayer life was seriously devout. He prayed three times daily, always facing Jerusalem (although there is no command to do so), and served God continually, and his prayer life included thanksgiving and supplication for others (verse 10-11). We will see the private part of the prayer Daniel sent upward in chapter 9, as he continued strongly in confession. It seems clear that his prayer life nourished and refreshed his soul.

Daniel was cast into the lion's den, with a rock sealing the entrance and the king's seal on the rock.

(6:18-28) Shut The Mouths

The king fasted all night and found no sleep. He was much troubled. Early in the morning he went to the lion's den and called out asking if God had delivered Daniel. The answer came from Daniel that God had sent his angel to shut the mouths of the lions and  no harm had come to him and he said that this was because he was innocent before God and had done no wrong to the king. Daniel was removed from the lions and we are told there was no injury to him BECAUSE he believed in God.

Those who had accused Daniel, along with their wives and children, were cast to the same lions who tore them to pieces.

Next a new decree was signed by Darius that in every part of his kingdom the God of Daniel would be feared and respected. Darius had confessed the supreme authority of the true and living God of Daniel's worship and faith. 

Daniel - Chapter 7

When we began our study, we noted that the first six chapters were history chapters and our study of them has been basically a study of what happened. These chapters were a foundation to the last six chapters, which we begin now, that are the chapters of prophecy. Now we come to the meat of the book, which is not only to see what happened but to go deeper into the Word and try to gain wisdom as to what it means.

Daniel writes in a fashion that is not chronological. This chapter should precede chapters 5 & 6. But chronological writing has not been used by Daniel so that the clear division of history and prophecy might be held.

The opening words of this chapter take us back to the first year of Belshazzar's rule. History tells us he died in 538 B.C. so the first year of his rule would have been 541 B.C. Daniel would have then been approaching 90 years old, about 62 years after Nebuchadnezzar had his vision of the golden headed image. The years between these events have commonly been named as “The Silent Years” of Daniel. We will see in chapter 9 that he had been much in study of the Lord's previous books, likely seeking more light upon the “Times of the Gentiles” and how this affected his own people. Now we see the granting of Daniel's own vision, known as the vision the four wild beasts. It makes sense to note that both Daniel & John were quite old when visions were granted to them and it was because of their lifelong faithfulness that they were so blessed.

This chapter records three visions that Daniel had:

• Four Wild Beasts

• Judgment  Scene

• Son of Man Receiving the Kingdom

Just as in the Revelation of Christ to John, the curtain that hides the glory of God is drawn back. We are given a brief look into the throne room of the universe and the complete sovereignty of God over all things in creation.

(7:1-8) Four Wild Beasts

Daniel introduces his vision which came to him by night and it begins with the four winds of heaven blowing across the great sea (the Mediterranean) and four beasts arise, each different from the others. Isaiah 17 had warned of these winds that are the rushing of nations like the rushing of mighty waters. These winds are said to represent the “powers of the air” which are the forces of the evil one that Paul warns in Ephesians 6 to be not of flesh and blood. 

These beasts seen by Daniel are shown to be fierce in nature and they maintain their positions in the world by brute force. The beasts generally correspond to the metal elements seen in the vision Daniel interpreted for Nebuchadnezzar.

(Babylonian / Mede Persian / Greek / Roman)

The first beast was a lion with wings. This symbol decorated the palaces and great halls of Nineveh & Babylon during their times of greatness. It corresponded to the head of gold of the man image seen before. It is a combination of the king of beasts with the king of birds, the eagle. Daniel saw it lifted up and walking on two legs, like a man, and a man's heart was given to it, but it remained a beast. It no longer relied upon its teeth and claws but began to have some perspective of humanity.

The second beast was like a bear, the strongest beast after the lion. It is a powerful beast but has none of the agility and majesty of the lion. It is awkward and does its work by slowness and brute strength. This view was a description of the Mede Persian empire which gained its victories with enormous force of numbers. Xerses sent an army of over 2,500,000 soldiers to battle Greece. While the bear is seen to be inferior to the lion in nature, the Mede Persian empire was inferior to the Babylonian empire, not necessarily in power but in wealth and majesty. Just as in the vision of the image, each beast is inferior to the one before it.

The third beast was like a leopard, except it had four heads and four wings. The leopard is the most agile and graceful of beasts in nature. While it is slight of build, it is strong, swift, and fierce. It represents the smaller but highly agile armies of Alexander the Great who led Greece to greatness, conquering the Mede Persian empire over ten years and taking the entire civilized world. We notice that the wings were not wings of an eagle but of a fowl, which would be helpful but not as powerful as that of an eagle. The four heads represent the four kingdoms to come from this empire, Thrace, Macedonia, Syria, and Egypt. Verse 15 allows us to see that that Daniel was troubled by these views and it was two years until he understood this part of his vision when a solution would come to him that we will see in chapter eight.

The fourth beast was dreadful, terrible, and strong, with iron teeth. It devoured and broke in pieces the previous three creatures. It was quite different from the other beasts and it had ten horns as well as a “little horn” that grew along with three of the first ten being ripped out by the roots. In the little horn were eyes like a man and a mouth speaking great things. These four beasts came to Daniel in one vision, all coming from the sea, one after the other, forming a complete vision, just as all the different metals made up one vision of a standing man creature in earlier years. This beast represents the Roman empire chewing up all other empires with its iron teeth. Generally, it is thought that the little horn likely represents the Antichrist. But before Daniel could seek God's counsel on the meaning of the little horn, another vision came to him.

(7:9-14) Judgment Scene

A new vision arrives with Daniel seeing into the throne room of heaven itself, with a view of Jesus Christ receiving the Kingdom promised and a view of the judgment of the Gentile nations, filling out God's program for His creation.

Step by step Daniel was receiving the light of wisdom as to the things that should come to pass in latter days. This judgment scene is NOT the Great White Throne judgment NOR is it the Judgment Seat of Christ. Those are after the rapture of His church. This scene represents judgment of the Gentiles. This Roman empire is slain, and its body destroyed by flame, while the other beast representations are allowed to remain, but without dominion.

Here is a view for Daniel of the judgment of nations that we are shown in Matthew 24, which Joel 3 teaches will occur in the valley of Jehoshaphat, and in this manner the sheep and goat nations will be separated with the ultimate purpose at the end to convert the Jews. This one shown to sit in judgment is the Lord Jesus, which we know from John 5:22 which teaches us that the Father judges no man but has committed all judgment to the Son. The physical description given is close to identical to the view John was given in the first part of The Revelation. When the one like the Son of Man is now shown to arrive in the clouds of heaven, we are given confirmation that the Son and the Father are ONE. Jesus taught us this lesson in John 10:30 “... I and my Father are one”.

(7:15-28) The Everlasting Kingdom

The immediate result of these visions to Daniel was a troubled spirit. So to gain some understanding, and to calm his mind, Daniel asks one who was in the vision what did it all mean, and the truth is given to the prophet.

Now the unnamed one tells Daniel that the four beasts are indeed earthly kingdoms which shall be overcome by the saints of the Most High, which will then possess the Kingdom that results forever. Who are these saints? The saints of the church will have already been called away. Although there are always numerous interpretations of scripture, we are often granted clues as to the right one. We see the evidence here in verse 25 of 3 ½ years (time and times and dividing of time) and this arranges a clue toward the time of the Great Tribulation (and verse 25 speaks of the speaking of great words against the Most High). So the ending faithful saints after this period plus the now reclaimed Jews may be the most promising notion as to this identity. We should not overlook that Duet 28:13 also teaches that the Jews are to be the “head of the nations”.

Daniel seeks even further wisdom and comes to understand that a covenant will be seen changing times & laws, further leading us toward the Antichrist who will make his covenant with the Jews for seven years, and will break it after 3 ½ years. We will see the this fact in 9:27. We will also see the wisdom granted by the angel Gabriel to Daniel in chapter 8 concerning the policy of this counterfeit to the Lord.

Paul teaches on this matter in his letter to the Thessalonians calling this one that Daniel is considering the Man of Sin, The Son of Perdition, and That Wicked.

What are the lessons we should learn from this complex and difficult scripture? 

The people of God must never be naive about the strength, the reality, or the durability of evil. Daniel was horrified because of what he saw. His concern for God's people should be a good example to us all. While we live here in relative tranquility are we concerned for those who are coming later and how dark their world may be under Satan's growing power?

The people of God must once more learn and accept that the Kingdom is one of suffering. The forces of hell will never prevail against it but will do all in their power to overwhelm the saints. Suffering in one way or another is crucial to being a Christian.

Romans 8:17 teaches that “... we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together”.

 The people of God must look beyond the terrible events of man's kingdoms to seek a view of the ultimate Kingdom which Daniel was shown so that he may tell us that it is only that righteous Kingdom which will be everlasting.

Our great hope is not in man, nor his power. It rests only in the Lord. This is the lesson for us in Daniel's vision.

Daniel - Chapter 8

This chapter opens in the third year of the rule of Belshazzar, two years after the events of chapter seven. Daniel has been in continual study of the scriptures and he knows that Jeremiah has foretold 70 years of exile. But in Belshazzar's time, Daniel has begun to grasp that the 70 years are being stretched into far longer. 

We should also note (as we did in our beginning) that this chapter begins the return to being written in Hebrew while most of the previous chapters were expressed in Aramaic. Those chapters dealt mostly with the Gentiles. Now Daniel turns his attention (and his language) to the Hebrew matters of the people, the Holy City of Jerusalem, and the Temple. We enter now the second vision granted to Daniel, filled with symbols but now we see these vision symbols given meaning by the angel of God.

• (8:1-4 & 15-20) The Ram With Two Horns

• (8:5-8 & 21-22) The Goat With The Horn Between His Eyes

• (8:9-14 & 23-27) The Little Horn

In the new vision, Daniel finds himself in Shushan, the capital of Persia, on the banks of the river Ulai. Daniel sees a ram with two horns, one grown higher than the other, which are meant to represent the kings of Media and Persia, with the higher one being the symbol of the Persian kingdom. Daniel sees the ram pushing to the west and north and south, with no animal found to stand against it. We remember how boldly Daniel spoke to this king on the last day of his rule (after the wall writing) and now we see that Daniel knew already by vision what was going to occur.

The Lord's angel, Gabriel, is present, under command to make sure that Daniel understood the vision. The angel speaks in strongly specific terms. This description by Gabriel once more confirms for Daniel (and us) that all things are happening according to the plan of God and God is providing a small portion of foresight of these things to his chosen prophet. Our first reminder lesson in today's chapter is that God rules human history.

Now a second animal symbol approaches, A goat with a single horn between his eyes. It moves across the whole earth while not touching the ground, an empire expanding quickly and without delay. The goat confronts the ram and the ram has no power to withstand him. History unfolded just as the vision foretold and as the angel explained. The goat with the single horn was Greece.

We know that in 334 B.C. Alexander the Great, commanding the Greek army, attacked the Persian forces at the Granicus river. Alexander had in that battle 35,000 men and he attacked forces of more than 110,000 and won a decisive victory, killing over 20,000 Persians while losing only 100 of his own men. Within one year the Greeks under Alexander had conquered Persia.

After these events, Alexander's early death caused his empire to be broken into four divisions, represented by Daniel seeing the single horn broken and four other horns taking its place. (Macedonia (west)/ Thrace (north)/ Syria (east)/ Egypt (south) )

One of the four divisions was Syria, from which a terrible and demonic leader rose known as Antiochus Epiphanes. He is thought to be one of the many antichrists foretold by John in 1st John 2:18. 

This leader was anxious to extend his empire into Palestine, and this effort brought him into conflict with the dynasty in Egypt. On the way to confront Egypt, he travels through Jerusalem, replaced the high priest with a man of his own choosing, and then invaded Egypt. The Jews would not accept the new high priest and were in rebellion against him. Antiochus, hearing of the rebellion, turned his efforts back to Jerusalem, brutally putting down the rebellion. Forty thousand Jews were killed in the Holy City in three days. He then entered the Holy Temple and sacrificed a pig upon the Holy Altar, and removed all the Lord's furnishings.

After defeat in Egypt, Antiochus returned to Jerusalem and took out his wrath on the Jews, slaughtering over 20,000 Jews on the Sabbath day of worship. He ended all sacrifice and in its place began human sacrifice in the Temple after placing a statue of Zeus within the holy place. All feast days were profaned by his commands and Psalm 79 foretold this horrible time, “... blood they have shed like water all around Jerusalem”.

While this awful time brought the revolt of Judas Maccabeus from the Jews, it was not successful. At that time Antiochus was afflicted with a mysterious disease, never revealed, and he died a horrible death in painful agony.

Daniel asks the angel how long must be this terrible time and the reply was 2300 days until the Temple would be restored. (The actual Hebrew wording is “evening-morning sacrifices” which assures the time is meant as 24 hour days).

There are three things brought to focus in this vision lesson:

1. It was of strong importance that Daniel should understand the meaning of these things. Verses 17-19 indicates the priority of Daniel's understanding.

2. What did understanding mean? No names were given of nations nor men. All the vision was in symbol form. The understanding was not a simple future history lesson, but was that Daniel absorbed the fact that the cause of these conflicts was the nature of evil, and that it will be ultimately destroyed.

3. Daniel was clearly advised in verse 26 that these events were to be many days in the future. But these events were so difficult to accept that Daniel tells us that he fainted and was sick for days, and was astonished by what he had seen. He was burdened about the future of his people and the evil that must befall his land.

Daniel's understanding leads us to a deeper understanding ourselves, which is that we must lead holy lives now, among a darkening world. All the darkness coming is only the time before the bright dawn when the Lord will arrive and bring his light to overcome all darkness.

Verse 25 is clear. Evil will stand against the Prince of princes, and will be broken without hand. While at times evil seems to prosper, sin in individuals, rulers, and nations  will yield to the will of God. We see in the New Testament that Jesus was arrested, beaten, convicted and crucified. Did it seem during that dark time that evil had won?

YES!

But in three days what was the final verdict?

Paul teaches us in 2nd Thessalonians this lesson once more. The final future evil had its origin in the garden and had thousands of years of a form of freedom, permitted by God. But the climax of all things will be divine arrival and judgment.

Peter also taught us in 1st Peter 5 that he knew these things well, and that we should be sober & vigilant, because the evil one walks among us seeking those he may devour. We must resist, and be steadfast. 

Daniel is assured in verse 26 that the vision was true but also was for the future (for many days) and that it must be now shut up. While Daniel rose up to continue the king's business as was his work, he is clear in his final words in the chapter that he did not understand it. Here we see that is it not necessary that the Lord's prophet grasp each and every detail of the vision he may be given. His role was to be given some understanding by the angel and to write it.

Daniel allows us who study his book that the primary lesson of all the prophecy given him for all who will come after him is that all things not residing within the Lord will perish. 

Daniel - Chapter 9

While our study of Daniel is about the blessings of knowing God, and Daniel himself is probably one of our best biblical examples of what it means to know the Lord, we see in chapter nine the time in which Daniel is in the presence of God, and see God sharing His secrets and revealing His mysteries to His servant. 

Here we see the true nature of the spirit of the man chosen by the Lord to be His prophet and see his usefulness to His kingdom. Daniel is a man of prayer. He prayed in crisis times but he did far more than that. His life was a life of regular and strongly disciplined praying. His prayer life was a life long communion, heart to heart, with the true and living God, and in this chapter we will see how the Lord accepted and blessed Daniel's prayers.

(9:1-3) Inspired to Pray

King Belshazzar is gone. Now Darius is the king so we begin our view in a time of transition. By careful and constant study of scripture and especially the book of Jeremiah, Daniel had become inspired to pray to seek out the mind of God because the 70 years of captivity Jeremiah had taught were now finished.  We notice the special manner in which Daniel begins, not with the people still held in Babylon, including himself, but by placing his focus on the 70 years of desolation of Jerusalem. Daniel knew that God's will expressed in Jeremiah was not conditional. The number of years had been specified clearly by Jeremiah, inspired of the Holy Spirit.

Daniel felt a responsibility to ask God his question. He knew that God employs His own means to fulfill His purpose. What follows now is Daniel pouring out his heart to the Lord. We see one of the longest and most sincere prayers in all of scripture. 

This prayer is given to us to clearly show that God does hear, honor and answer secret prayers from the heart of any believer. We see the true value of these prayers in the scripture of the end of all things, Revelation 8, which describes an angel carrying the prayers of all the saints to the golden altar before God's throne.

Daniel also provides us with the highly personal and devoted manner in which he sought God in prayer, that of fasting, sackcloth and ashes. These represent the willingness to be in denial of self to commune with the Lord. They further show the humility of this one who had already known that he was chosen as a prophet, but still lowered himself personally in appearance, effort, and heart to approach the Lord.

(9:4-19) The Inspirer of Prayer

We read the gracious prayer given in supplication by Daniel in the verses.

Immediately we see much revealed.

Daniel realized that the great promise of God was yet unfulfilled. He knew that God's word never returns void so he sought the Lord to reveal His will.

He confessed sin. God's people had broken His laws. They had ignored the solemn  warnings of His prophets. He acknowledges the lordship of God over all things. 

He knows that God is a covenant God and therefore the relationship with Him is primary.  He knows God is a God who speaks and He had spoken through Jeremiah. We will later be taught in Hebrews 1:1 that this fact is truth. (God, who at various times and in various ways spoke to the fathers by the prophets). The Lord is always true to the covenants He has made. But Daniel is careful to pray that Israel has transgressed the law with shame, and has not obeyed His voice.

Daniel seeks the glory of the Lord as he expresses that He is a great and awesome God. He keeps His covenants and is a God of righteousness and shows mercy and forgiveness. He confirms that God's word is truth and that He is a deliverer of those oppressed. At the end Daniel also asks God to deliver His people “for your own sake”.

Like Isaiah, Daniel appeals to the Lord for the needs of the people. God said in Isaiah 63 that “these are MY people” and Daniel prays for this fact to continue.

These verses show what it means to have faith in the covenant Lord and to know Him as the inspirer of prayer.

(9:20-23) The Hearer of Prayer

In these few verses we see one of the most amazing moments in all of scripture concerning the effect of prayer. 

WHILE Daniel was still in prayer, the command came from God to the angel Gabriel to fly swiftly to him. The angel is quite clear in the nature and quickness of the command. He tells Daniel that “at the beginning of your supplication the command went out”.  Here is the proof reality of God's hearing of prayer.

The angel was sent to assure Daniel's understanding. Now the Lord wanted His prophet to have a far more complete understanding of His will concerning the 70 years and God intended Daniel to develop a more pointed acceptance of the coming expansion of those years as His will unfolds into human history.

Now he is to see the full version of the path that has been set for the rise of God's people in greater detail. He must look not at the 70 years as described in Jeremiah, but at the 70 weeks  (70 sevens) now revealed by Gabriel. We see one more important lesson moment in these few verses as Gabriel tells Daniel in verse 23 that he is greatly beloved, a gracious encouragement of divine love. If we are not careful we will miss one of the reasons Daniel is greatly beloved. 

He tells us that these comments by the angel came about the time of the evening offering. It would be easy for us to skim this comment as not of great value but that would be a serious mistake. It had been many decades since Daniel had been in Jerusalem, yet his thinking and his life was still regulated by the worship time of his people in the Holy City.

Daniel was loved in heaven because he lived for God. His waking moments were focused upon God's promises and the truth of His word. Daniel's experience in these moments with God's angel was a foretaste of glory that awaits those who seek and serve the Lord.

(9:24-27) The Seventy Weeks

Gabriel provides to Daniel a view of the plan of God for His people in prophetic language. The view reveals the intent of the Lord to fold into human history both the 70 weeks as well as the plan for the Gentiles and for His chosen people, the Jews.

Most importantly, the view provides the prophecy of the coming Messiah whose precious death for all sin is foretold. In addition we are granted the teaching in verse 24 that He will come “to seal up vision and prophecy” which means that in Him all the promises of God receive their final YES and their AMEN. In Him prophecy and prophet are united into one and very importantly, after Him none other will appear. He is the full and final revelation of God to man.

Verse 26 teaches us of His death which will not be for himself just as Isaiah foretold in his prophecy, chapter 53, that God's suffering servant would be cut off from the land of the living, for the transgressions of my people.

As we look deeply into the likely meaning of this angel's revelation, we should remember that we see heaven willing to communicate the plans to the chosen prophet. The Lord wanted Daniel to see beyond the 70 years to see the people delivered from captivity, to see Jerusalem and the Temple rebuilt, to see the Temple of forever come in the person of the Messiah (said to be a Temple not built with hands) and to see that it was to this new and holiest of all temples, Jesus himself, that God wished people to turn to as it once and for all gave forgiveness through grace. Now to Daniel his earlier vision of the Son of man receiving the kingdom must have begun to seem real when he heard it from the lips of an angel. 

The Lord's timing for all these things is provided to Daniel in these verses. Now let us examine exactly how perfect the plan revealed is shown to be.

Daniel - Chapter 10

Chapter 10 allows us the view of another heavenly visitation and then the final two chapters will focus on the future.

This chapter will give us biblical insight into the the nature of reality and it will emphasize that human causes and their effects are not the only forces working on the history of our world. We will see that these human causes are actually not even nearly as important as we once thought.

We have already seen that Daniel's long season of prayer and fasting brought God's angel, Gabriel, from heaven to tell him the secrets of the centuries to come. The strength of the prayer life of Daniel is one of the main principles taught us in this book of history and prophecy. Once more we are given a look into the understanding granted to Daniel that the foresight of history not yet here is in the hand of God and in His grace, He opens the eyes of Daniel, sharing with him the picture of events to come.

(10:1-3) Concern for the People of God

With special care and detail Daniel begins the chapter giving us a view of his final vision from The Lord. He pinpoints the exact time and will give even the exact date of the vision as he tells us the message was true, the time was long and he understood the message. However, he also advises that in those days he was fasting for three full weeks.

Remember that this type of fast clearly shows Daniel to be in full submission to the Lord, denying comfort or sustenance to himself.

We know from Ezra 1:1-4 that this time was the period which granted the return of God's chosen people to Jerusalem. The allowance granted for the return is related so clearly by Ezra to be the word of God himself, not of the king from his own goodness.

Ezra writes, “... that the word of the Lord spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation... and put it in writing”.

Daniel did not return under this proclamation. Perhaps he considered himself too old for the journey and physical labor of rebuilding. It may also be that his close relation to the Lord led him to remain where he was and to continue his prayer warrior position for his people. He likely knew that there was resistance to the rebuilding (as seen so clearly in Nehemiah) and felt he could do more by prayer than he could in the Holy City.

This position assumed by Daniel who had longed for the restoration, includes him within the roll call of heroes in Hebrews 11, which labored long and prayed in mighty belief, but never saw the promise kept with their mortal eyes. The Lord had nurtured this spirit within Daniel by the visions given him before and now the Lord prepares him to see this further revelation.

(10:4-21) Vision of God as Sufficient and The Kingdom is Shown

God took Daniel in spirit to the edge of the Tigris river, and there he saw a majestic figure before him. While there were others with Daniel, they did not see the vision but felt it and fled in fear. The physical description of this one almost matches in all aspects the vision John relates in the beginning of the Revelation. Daniel quickly falls to the ground, trembles and is speechless, with his face on the ground. He finds himself weak and unable to find any confidence in his own body strength. But quickly he is granted grace and strength to begin the vision. Here we see a preview of the perfect answer to Paul's request of the Lord to remove the thorn of his flesh. Jesus told him that His strength is made perfect in weakness. Here is proof. 

Daniel is told that the vision has been given so that he may understand what will happen to his people in the latter days. Now Daniel finds himself able to speak and says that because of the vision, sorrows have overwhelmed him. Once more Daniel is told that he is a man greatly beloved. Daniel had once more been seeking the face of God in most serious prayer and fasting, preparing himself in humility and surely was hoping to grasp a better understanding of the previous vision of the weeks.

While the original being of the vision seems clearly to be a view of Jesus in His glory we see in verses 10 & 11 that he was not alone. There was with Him one that came and touched Daniel, helping him up and preparing him for the vision to come. 

The messenger had seemed to have intended to come as soon as Daniel began to pray but we are given a strong and supernatural reason for the arrival. He says that the king of Persia had withstood him and that God's angel Michael arrived to help him overcome whatever was causing the delay. The conflict being described to Daniel is not one of flesh and blood but is one of spiritual warfare against principalities, powers and rulers of the darkness of this world. (Our first study together was on this issue in Ephesians 6).  Daniel is being allowed to know of the warfare that rages invisible to men, and this description was a view of only one battle in this perpetual war. 

If this curtain were to be drawn back for all of us, we would see warfare so intense and fierce that all the wars of mankind for all time would be viewed as only a speck in importance.

Daniel was learning that the ultimate power struggle is a ruthless conflict between the forces of light and the forces of darkness. Through his own willingness to pray and fast, Daniel himself now was connected to this raging conflict through the vision. Now he is beginning to fully grasp the power of prayer and it being the only path to see more of God's kingdom while we are here. 

Mary, Queen of Scots, (a Roman Catholic), once said that she feared the prayers of John Knox more than any invading army on earth.

Two things we must know about this revealing moment, given to us by Daniel:

The power of prayer does not belong to the one who prays, but to God. Prayer has no power within itself. It is wholehearted dependence on God and is a confession that we can do nothing without the Lord. God alone is sufficient and we are nothing more than a channel for communication. It is in our weakness that His strength is found and revealed.

We should also remember that the only prayer that has any hope of effect through God's will is a prayer that is sent from the sinner's heart seeking only His righteousness, for we have none on our own.

Once more it makes sense to recall that the object of all prayer is not to get our will done in heaven but to get God's will done on earth. When Jesus prepared the teaching for his twelve (and therefore us) he was so very clear to ask for the will of the Lord to be done on earth as it is done in heaven.

Daniel had become a crossroads of sort through his seeking the face of the Lord and greater understanding through humble asking with much fasting and willingness to devote himself to the seeking first the Lord, and then all other things were added to him, and we are told many times that he was beloved above.

We should not leave this chapter without strong focus on the verses concerning the day of the arrival of Gabriel. This curtain drawn back for us is the supernatural protection God provided through His angel for king Darius, who had confirmed the decree of Cyrus allowing the return of God's people to Jerusalem. In addition to confirming the decree, Darius commanded that the cost for the rebuilding, including God's Holy Temple, would be paid from his own treasury and any violation of his command would result in death (Ezra 6:8-12). In this way Darius “blessed” the sons of Abraham and was himself in turn “blessed” by God, protected by God's angel in Persia in accordance with the promise God made to Abraham in Genesis 12:3 “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you”.

We should be sure to remember that this promise is still in effect even in later times, even in our own times as well. When the Greeks over took Palestine and desecrated the Temple, they were conquered by the Romans. When the Romans killed Paul, and many other faithful ones, and ruined the Temple, Rome fell after it was overwhelmed by Christian faith led by the mother of Constantine. Spain was reduced to weakness after the inquisition against non Catholics AND Jews. Poland fell to Germany after the persecution of the Jews and Germany then fell after its horrible treatment of the  chosen people. 

We should be much in prayer for our own leaders that none will lead us away from the strongest possible support for Israel.

Daniel - Chapter 11

The last three chapters (10-11-12) of Daniel are considered to be a unity. Chapter 10 provided the context within Daniel's life for the last revelation given to him, with details given in chapter 11. Daniel was helped to understand the moral and spiritual character of all of reality. This help was given so that he may be prepared for the revelation of chapter 11. In many ways, this chapter is the most remarkable of all of the chapters of Daniel. It will provide Daniel (and therefore us) a pre-written view of actual history.

It has been seen to be so accurate in foretelling specific matters that occur long after Daniel's time is over that some scholars have tried to bring doubt upon it. Here God reveals to His people secrets and mysteries that cannot be understood by others to have been pure and true. Daniel himself gives us a clue to why these things were shown to him back in 2:30:

“As for me, this secret has not been revealed to me because I have more wisdom than anyone living, but for our sakes”.

We see in these last moments of Daniel the ultimate arrangement of things to come as revealed by God's holy angel. In these events foretold, the angel does not provide visions of animals or representations. Here we have direct and clear facts given to Daniel to record BEFORE they become facts. 

We must remember that these matters of history, told before they happen, are from the same Lord who saves His faithful from fire in the furnace, shuts the mouth of lions, and grants wisdom beyond all other men's wisdom to His chosen prophet. This last portion of Daniel, as we will see how truthful it will be over the centuries, should put a stamp of positive confirmation on our faith. We serve a living Lord who is in absolute control of all human matters. The future flows only at His will. Hebrews 1:3 will later teach this lesson far more clearly:

“...upholding all things by the word of his power...”.

(11:2-4) Persia and Greece

(11:5-35) Wars of Southern & Northern Aggression

Daniel's visitor, the holy angel Gabriel, reveals to Daniel that the truth is about to be revealed by him. 

Three more kings will arise in Persia with the fourth to be far richer than all before him, and he will stir up all against Greece. A mighty king shall arise in Greece who will rule and then his kingdom will be divided into four kingdoms, with none being ruled by his own children (not among his posterity). Daniel tells us this moment was in the third year of the rule of Cyrus (533 B.C.) and after him came:

• Ahasuerus (529-522)

• Artaxerses (522-521)

• Darius (521-485)

The fourth king was Xerses (485-465) whose riches allowed him to buy war making armies and material to invade Greece on 480 B.C., but his invasion was not successful.

After these came Alexander the Great of Greece who conquered all the known world by age 33, and at his death, his kingdom was divided into four parts, none of which went to any of his children:

• Cassander ruled Macedonia in the west.

• Lysimachus ruled Thrace in the north.

• Seleucus ruled Syria in the east.

• Ptolemy ruled Egypt in the south.

Verses 5 & 6 foretell the rise of Egypt and the agreement made between it and Syria. Ptolemy's son married a daughter of Seleucus and this marriage, meant to join the nations later led to war between them. After years of war Ptolemy offered his daughter Bernice as an offering to the Syrian king (at the end of the years), to secure peace. But when Ptolemy died, Bernice was cast aside and was “unable to retain the power of her arm”.

But a brother of Bernice (a branch of of her roots), Ptolemy Eugertus, took vengeance upon Syria and captured it, carrying massive amounts of silver and gold back to Egypt, exactly as verses 7 & 8 foretold.

After a peace of 13 years, the new king of the north, made war against Egypt, and this new king along the way made war also against the Jews in Palestine who were wicked, and always trying to play both sides, thereby known as “robbers of thy people” as foretold in verse 14.

In all these wars, Israel was caught between the millstones of war around them, and was ground up consistently as these kingdoms continued to strive for victory against each other. Verse 20 is quite clear on this matter as to what happened.

A next generation ruler in Syria was unable to pay the war tribute imposed upon his father, and he invaded Israel and robbed the treasury and the many vessels of the Temple to pay the tribute due. He had taken from “the glory of the kingdom” and only a few days later was mysteriously poisoned and died. So he died “neither in anger nor in battle”, exactly as was foretold.

Verses 21-31 bring us the story of Antiochus Epiphanes, the next king of the north, called by the angel a “vile person” who shall “come in peaceably and obtain the kingdom by flatteries”. 

He was a younger son of Antiochus the Great and was known to be a cruel and savage ruler. The angel said he would not be given the honor of the kingdom and it was so. His nephew was the rightful heir, but with the help of enemies, any opposition was removed. Also, working through cunning he was able to remove the High Priest of Israel, Onais III. He was the “Prince of the Covenant” noted in these verses. He attacked Egypt successfully, and on his return, when a rumor of his death went before him, the Jewish priests tried to recapture the office of High Priest, and this so angered Antiochus Epiphanes that he diverted his forces to Jerusalem and killed 40,000 and sold many thousand more as slaves, also plundering the Holy Temple once more.

After preparing to attack Egypt again, and moving his forces there, he was confronted with Roman forces under Popilus and was ordered to leave Egypt as it was now in covenant with Rome and under its protection. He left humiliated without a war and took out his wrath on Jerusalem again as he went homeward. In Jerusalem, he commanded all Jews to worship his gods and in order to drive home this command, he profaned the Temple altar with swine flesh and constructed a new idol altar over the altar of Jehovah. While this was an abomination, it was not the “Abomination of Desolation” mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 24:15, also noted separately in Daniel 12:11.

These events caused the revolt in Israel of the Maccabees.

This strongly prophetic (history pre-written) account given by the angel to Daniel, as recorded in verses 21-31 details the wars between the Greek divisions of Syria and Egypt from 536 B.C. to 164 B.C. This matter revealed is the second most perfect foresight in the Bible, next to the prophecy of the Messiah to come in the Old Testament.

Verses 32-35 teaches of the period between Antiochus Epiphanes and the Messiah, which are the years 164 B.C. to 32 A.D.

The behavior of the Jews during these years was one of two paths. Many of the Jews did “wickedly” and forsook the Covenant with the religion and faith of their fathers and worshiped idols, led into these failures by the “flatteries” of these pagan outsiders that were consistently moving through the Holy City.

But there were some who “knew God” could deliver them and in their faith, the Lord strengthed them and led them toward their “exploits”. This refers to Mattathias, a very old priest, and his sons, known as the Maccabees, who from 166 to 47 B.C. fought all pagan forces to restore the Holy City to the Lord. One of the sons, Judas the Hammer, led the forces to repel the Syrians and actually retook the city in 165 B.C. and purified the Temple, restoring daily sacrifice. Judas died in battle in 160 B.C. and was followed as leader by his brother Jonathan, who was killed in 143 B.C. He was followed by his brother Simon who was killed in 135 B.C. and was followed by his son John. John arranged a treaty with the Romans and the Spartans, leading to a long period of peace in the Holy City.

In the “fulness of time” The Messiah arrived. But he was rejected by His people and we are told that “His own knew Him not”. In the glory of His once and forever sufficient sacrifice for all sin, He was crucified (cut off the angel said) and 40 years later the Holy City was taken by the Romans under Titus, the Temple destroyed, and the time of Gentiles arose. Luke teaches us in Luke 21:24 that:

“They shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations, and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles,  until the times of the Gentiles shall be fulfilled”.

This time is known as the GAP, representing the time between Daniel's 69th and 70th week, proving still more that the prophecy remains true and is still ongoing in our own day.

In our final chapter we will see the end of the Gap, the rise of the evil one on the earth, and the fulfilling of the final revelation made by God's holy angel of that one who will lead in the time of the Great Tribulation.

Daniel - Chapter 12

Daniel 11:36 - 12:13

Last chapter in verses 1-35 we saw the amazing detailed prophecies containing over 100 prophetic events foretold by the holy angel, Gabriel, to the chosen prophet, Daniel. All were fulfilled in human history over the next few centuries. None have been left open and none have ever been successfully challenged as untrue. 

Until this last portion of the book of Daniel, we have seen the prophet seek the heart of God concerning his own people, the Lord's chosen people. In the answers granted to this holy prayer warrior God commanded one of His highest angels to bring understanding to Daniel. In this effort, God through His angel, expanded the knowledge Daniel had begun to gather from previous scripture to include not only the answers Daniel sought for the Jewish people but also wisdom was given to explain the plan of the Lord for the Gentile people who would fill most of the human time after the 70 years Daniel found in the writing of Jeremiah. This plan allowed Daniel to know that there would be 7 times 70 in years and these years would be described as “weeks”.

Now, the wisdom is further expanded for Daniel into a view of the events that will accompany the end times of the “Times of the Gentiles” and the final “week” in which the Lord will resolve the relation of His originally chosen people to Himself.

Beginning in verse 11:36 we see the sharp break in the prophecy. Up to this point, the truth has been revealed of the Persian, Greek, and Gentile peoples in minute detail. This last and by far most important section we will study will detail the events that will fill the human time after the 69 weeks as the 70th and final week transpires. This “week” or 7 year period is one of tragic promise as one will arise to appear to the Jews to be their Messiah, long awaited after they had rejected the Lord's Christ. He will be “of the Jews” in order to be accepted by them, and will bring in a false peace and then betrayal to Israel. 

This will be the Antichrist.

(11:36-45)

There is a jump of time in the explanation of the angel as to the events now to be described. We note in the final words of verse 35 “... it is yet for a time appointed”.

Now as verse 36 begins we see the prophecy of “the” king, not a king. He will do as he wills, and shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god. He shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods (Jehovah) and he shall prosper until the indignation be accomplished (tribulation). We notice that the verse ends with the wisdom that it has been determined these things shall be done. (God's permissive will in evidence).

We had already been granted foreknowledge in 9:26-27 that such a one would come. 

Next we are told that he will not regard the God of his fathers, our sure notice that he will be of the Jews. He will not enter into the desire of women, meaning he will not enter into marriage nor make any Jewish woman a mother to his child. John teaches us in 1st John 2:22 that “... he is Antichrist that denieth the Father and the Son...”. Now we see once more that he will magnify himself, not regarding any god. 

In the place of Jehovah, he will honor the god of fortresses, that is he will lean upon the only one who would use his might to secure him in this world. That is Satan, who offered all the kingdoms of this world to Jesus and Jesus declined. Now Satan has one that will not say no to him. Revelation 13:2 teaches us that “.. the dragon shall give him his power and his seat and great authority...”. This new evil one will increase this god of his choosing with glory and will use the division of the land for his gain. 

Warfare will follow from north and south and he will control (stretch his hand) over other nations, with power over their riches. He will ultimately set the tabernacles of his palace between the seas of the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea, in the glorious holy mountain, in Jerusalem.

(12:1-13)

Michael, God's angel, will now stand for the chosen people. We are told that he will arrive “at that time”, meaning the time of great troubles. This time seems to speak of the tribulation years and these times are described as times such as there never was, which is almost the same words Jesus uses in Matthew just before His death as He taught that “There shall be great tribulation such as was not since the beginning of the world, no, nor ever shall be...”. The angel's words of prophecy and the later words of Jesus do not stand alone on this subject. Jeremiah 3 calls it “Jacob's trouble”. Ezekiel 20 says that Israel “shall pass under the rod”. Ezekiel 22, Zech 13, and Malachi 3 echo these words. These last scriptures speak of a refining process, as of metal. We should remember that the Great Tribulation is a time of judgment for the Jews through which they will be refined to once more stand as God's chosen people.

We see resurrection language next and we must understand that it is a third type of resurrection. There are three. First, spiritual, second physical, and lastly national. Here the language speaks of the national resurrection of Israel who will be revived and restored to their own lands. Jesus teaches us in Matthew 24 that at the end time there will be a gathering together of the elect. Remember the faithful elect are already raptured before the tribulation. This is NOT a rapture (catching away) but is a gathering of the Jewish elect formed through the tribulation. Paul taught us this truth in Romans 9:27 by teaching that “a remnant of Israel will be saved”.

Daniel is told to “shut up the words and seal the book even to the time of the end”.

We remember that Jesus had a manner of shutting up his meanings in parables and He taught in Matthew 13 that it was so that many would not understand for their ears are dull of hearing. Paul taught us in 2nd Cor 3 that “... minds were blinded”.  Therefore as far as the Jews are concerned, the book of Daniel is sealed. How long?

Verse 7 explains that it will be so until the 31/2 years of the tribulation time occurs (time, times, and half a time). Daniel says he heard but did not understand. The answer was clear and direct. “Go thy way Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed til the time of the end”.

Next is the promise. Many will be purified (saved) and made white and none of the wicked shall understand but the wise shall. Now once more the time of the last days is defined. From the time daily sacrifice is taken away and the desolation abomination is set up, 1290 days, 31/2 years will pass (half of the 7 years that make up the tribulation)

We are not granted the full and detailed understanding through the angel or by Daniel of the time defined in verse 12 of 1335 days or of the 1260 days referenced in Revelation 11:3. However, scholars and dedicated writers have seemed view these references as Jesus comes again at the end of 1260 days, His government on earth is officially established in 1290 days, and at the end of 1335 days, the nations are judged as foretold in Matthew 25:31-46. 

Now Daniel was well over 90 years of age, and he had been active in public life through two empires. His faith had passed all of the most severe tests. God had honored him by taking him into his confidence regarding the divine plan for both the Jewish and Gentile peoples. He had held the trust and understanding of holy angels who battle the forces of evil in spiritual warfare invisible to us.

Now it was time for Daniel to know that his work was done and he could look forward to his rest. God tells him to “go thy way”. But at the last days we are given the wisdom blessing to know that Daniel will once more “stand in thy lot”. 

When he departed to his heavenly home to await those last days, it seems sure that he was welcomed with the words we all hope to hear:

Welcome thy good and faithful servant.

Daniel vs. Revelation

DANIEL 7 / REVELATION 13

As we consider the vision given to Daniel concerning coming events, we cannot escape the close similarities to Daniel's vision revealed in chapter 7 and the vision given to John of events to come as revealed to us in chapter 13.

Please review:

THE BEAST (Rev 13:4)

LITTLE HORN (Daniel 7:11)

OUT OF SEA (Rev 13:1)

FROM THE SEA (Daniel 7:3)

10 HORNS 7 HEADS (Rev 13:1)

10 HORNS (Daniel 7:8)

10 DIADEMS = 10 KINGS (Rev 13:1 & 17:12)

10 KINGS (Daniel 7:24)

LIKE A LEOPARD AND A BEAR AND A LION (Rev 13:2)

LIKE A LION AND A BEAR AND A LEOPARD (Daniel 7:4/5/6)

GIVEN AUTHORITY OVER EVERY TRIBE, PEOPLE, TONGUE, NATION (Rev 13:7)

WILL DEVOUR THE WHOLE EARTH (Daniel 7:23)

MOUTH SPEAKING ARROGANT WORDS (Rev 13:5)

MOUTH UTTERING GREAT BOASTS (Daniel 7:8/11/20)

AUTHORITY TO ACT 42 MONTHS (Rev 13:5)

TIME, TIMES, AND HALF A TIME (Daniel 7:25)

BLASPHEMIES AGAINST GOD (Rev 13:5)

WILL SPEAK OUT AGAINST THE MOST HIGH (Daniel 7:25)