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Daniel 7-9    Listen

Daniel has a vision (Daniel 7)

1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head while on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, telling the main facts.
2 ¶ Daniel spoke, saying, “I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the Great Sea.
3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other.
4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings. I watched till its wings were plucked off; and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man, and a man’s heart was given to it.
5 ¶ “And suddenly another beast, a second, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And they said thus to it: ‘Arise, devour much flesh!’
6 ¶ “After this I looked, and there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird. The beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.
7 ¶ “After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.
8 I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.
9 “I watched till thrones were put in place,
And the Ancient of Days was seated;
His garment was white as snow,
And the hair of His head was like pure wool.
His throne was a fiery flame,
Its wheels a burning fire;
10 A fiery stream issued
And came forth from before Him.
A thousand thousands ministered to Him;
Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him.
The court was seated,
And the books were opened.
11 ¶ “I watched then because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking; I watched till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given to the burning flame.
12 As for the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.
13 “I was watching in the night visions,
And behold, One like the Son of Man,
Coming with the clouds of heaven!
He came to the Ancient of Days,
And they brought Him near before Him.
14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
Which shall not pass away,
And His kingdom the one
Which shall not be destroyed.
15 ¶ “I, Daniel, was grieved in my spirit within my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.
16 I came near to one of those who stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things:
17 “Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth.
18 But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.’
19 ¶ “Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet;
20 and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows.
21 ¶ “I was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them,
22 until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom.
23 ¶ “Thus he said:
‘The fourth beast shall be
A fourth kingdom on earth,
Which shall be different from all other kingdoms,
And shall devour the whole earth,
Trample it and break it in pieces.
24 The ten horns are ten kings
Who shall arise from this kingdom.
And another shall rise after them;
He shall be different from the first ones,
And shall subdue three kings.
25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High,
Shall persecute the saints of the Most High,
And shall intend to change times and law.
Then the saints shall be given into his hand
For a time and times and half a time.
26 “But the court shall be seated,
And they shall take away his dominion,
To consume and destroy it forever.
27 Then the kingdom and dominion,
And the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven,
Shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High.
His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
And all dominions shall serve and obey Him.’
28 ¶ “This is the end of the account. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly troubled me, and my countenance changed; but I kept the matter in my heart.”

Daniel sees four beasts, and they are all similar to something earthly, but weird looking in their own distinct way. We see in verse 17 what is meant, "Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth." These beasts represent the same four kingdoms as did the image we saw in Daniel 2 (see notes) - Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Greek and Roman. It's the fourth kingdom that deserves a little bit more attention in this passage; it speaks of the revived Roman Empire that is still future to us.

Much of the terminology and imagery of this fourth beast is also found in Revelation 13 (see notes); it describes the man many often refer to as the yet-to-come antichrist. You will often hear the beast of Revelation 13 (aka "antichrist") referred to as the "little horn," derived from his description in Daniel 7:8. He causes great distress to the saints of God in the last half of the tribulation represented by Daniel in verse 25 as "a time and times and half a time" - Daniel's way of expressing 3 1/2 years (times=2, time=1, half of time=1/2). This antichrist is the one who desecrates the temple in Jerusalem at the middle of the tribulation and declares himself to be God. That action is referred to as the "abomination of desolation." Christ refers to Daniel's prophecy regarding this event in Matthew 24:15 (see notes). Daniel has this as a recurring theme in these passages, Daniel 9:27 (see below); Daniel 11:31 and 12:11 (see notes). It is the same event Paul wrote about in II Thessalonians 2 (see notes). We'll be revisiting this event several times as we look at the rest of Daniel and the Book of Revelation. You will notice that this kingdom and the antichrist are destroyed beginning in verse 22 (God is the "Ancient of Days"); this corresponds to the Battle of Armageddon in Revelation 19:11-21 (see notes) and the possession by the saints represents the millennium immediately following this battle. The demise of the antichrist here is described in verses 10 and 26; this corresponds to the "sharp sword" which proceeds out of the mouth of the Messiah when he returns at the end of the tribulation in Revelation 19:15. It is obvious that Daniel and John, the Revelator, are speaking of the same incident and the same satanic leader commonly known as the antichrist.

We see a clear prophetic reference to the Messiah (Jesus) as the agent of God on earth here in verses 13-14, "I was watching in the night visions, And behold, One like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, Which shall not pass away, And His kingdom the one Which shall not be destroyed." And there's your Messianic rule as well. When Jesus frequently referenced himself as "the Son of man" in the Gospel accounts, the Jewish leaders obviously took exception to his use of that term. Although Ezekiel used the term as a self identifier many times throughout his prophecy, Daniel obviously uses it here as a reference for the Messiah.

The "fourth kingdom" represented by the "fourth beast" of verse 23 is undoubtedly the same as the fourth kingdom in Daniel 2:31-45 (see notes).
That fourth kingdom was identified as the Roman Empire in that passage - past and future.
That kingdom "shall devour the whole earth" (verse 23). This would indicate a world-wide kingdom. Certainly the Roman Empire was one of the great empires of history. Daniel's prophecies see the Roman Empire emerging once again to world-wide dominance.
The "ten kings" of verse 24 would indicate that the yet-future revived Roman Empire will be controlled by 10 equal leaders. The timing here seems to differ slightly from what appears to be the same scenario in Revelation 17:12 (see notes). Click here for a reconciliation of the two passages.
Another king will emerge which will "subdue" three of the ten kings in verse 24. The Aramaic word for subdue there means, "bring low, humble; put down."
This 11th king will "speak great words against the most High." He will also "persecute the saints of the Most High" (verse 25). There can be no question but that this is a reference to the yet-future character we commonly call the "antichrist," the first beast of Revelation 13 (see notes). Undoubtedly he is the same character about whom Paul wrote in II Thessalonians 2 (see notes).
This leader will "change times and laws" (verse 25). He'll make a covenant with Israel, but break that covenant at the middle of the tribulation (II Thessalonians 2, see notes) i.e. "change times and laws." As explained above, the period of time referenced here will be the last 3 1/2 years of the tribulation.
He'll be destroyed at the end of the tribulation (verse 26). This undoubtedly corresponds to the Battle of Armageddon (Revelation 19:11-21 (see notes).
Then, the kingdom of the antichrist "Shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High" (verse 27). Obviously, this is a reference to the yet-future millennium.

Another vision - more beasts (Daniel 8)

1 In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me—to me, Daniel—after the one that appeared to me the first time.
2 I saw in the vision, and it so happened while I was looking, that I was in Shushan, the citadel, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision that I was by the River Ulai.
3 Then I lifted my eyes and saw, and there, standing beside the river, was a ram which had two horns, and the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher one came up last.
4 I saw the ram pushing westward, northward, and southward, so that no animal could withstand him; nor was there any that could deliver from his hand, but he did according to his will and became great.
5 ¶ And as I was considering, suddenly a male goat came from the west, across the surface of the whole earth, without touching the ground; and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.
6 Then he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing beside the river, and ran at him with furious power.
7 And I saw him confronting the ram; he was moved with rage against him, attacked the ram, and broke his two horns. There was no power in the ram to withstand him, but he cast him down to the ground and trampled him; and there was no one that could deliver the ram from his hand.
8 ¶ Therefore the male goat grew very great; but when he became strong, the large horn was broken, and in place of it four notable ones came up toward the four winds of heaven.
9 And out of one of them came a little horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Glorious Land.
10 And it grew up to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and some of the stars to the ground, and trampled them.
11 He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down.
12 Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground. He did all this and prospered.
13 ¶ Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was speaking, “How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled underfoot?”
14 ¶ And he said to me, “For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.”
15 ¶ Then it happened, when I, Daniel, had seen the vision and was seeking the meaning, that suddenly there stood before me one having the appearance of a man.
16 And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of the Ulai, who called, and said, “Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.”
17 So he came near where I stood, and when he came I was afraid and fell on my face; but he said to me, “Understand, son of man, that the vision refers to the time of the end.”
18 ¶ Now, as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep with my face to the ground; but he touched me, and stood me upright.
19 And he said, “Look, I am making known to you what shall happen in the latter time of the indignation; for at the appointed time the end shall be.
20 The ram which you saw, having the two horns—they are the kings of Media and Persia.
21 And the male goat is the kingdom of Greece. The large horn that is between its eyes is the first king.
22 As for the broken horn and the four that stood up in its place, four kingdoms shall arise out of that nation, but not with its power.
23 “And in the latter time of their kingdom,
When the transgressors have reached their fullness,
A king shall arise,
Having fierce features,
Who understands sinister schemes.
24 His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power;
He shall destroy fearfully,
And shall prosper and thrive;
He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people.
25 “Through his cunning
He shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule;
And he shall exalt himself in his heart.
He shall destroy many in their prosperity.
He shall even rise against the Prince of princes;
But he shall be broken without human means.
26 “And the vision of the evenings and mornings
Which was told is true;
Therefore seal up the vision,
For it refers to many days in the future.”
27 ¶ And I, Daniel, fainted and was sick for days; afterward I arose and went about the king’s business. I was astonished by the vision, but no one understood it.

Chapter 8 contains a prophecy that has already been fulfilled. This time Daniel's vision involves a ram and a goat. Here, however, only two of the four kingdoms of Daniel 2 (see notes) and Daniel 7 (see above) are in view - the Medo-Persian and the Greek (clearly identified in verses 20-21).

"Horns" are key words in this vision; the two horns of the ram represent the coalition of the Medes and the Persians. The single horn of the goat represents the kingdom of Alexander the Great who overcame the Medo-Persian empire in verse 7. However, after leaving no heir to his kingdom, Alexander's Greek Empire was divided into four separate kingdoms after his death. This is represented by the horn in verse 8 being broken off and four horns replacing it.

It was the successor to one of those four kingdoms about which this vision is written over 400 years before it was to take place. This successor to one of the four portions of the Greek Empire was Antiochus Epiphanes IV. He was a weasel of a man who wreaked havoc on the Jews in Jerusalem after going to war and being soundly defeated in Egypt. On his return through Israel in 167 B.C., he desecrated the temple by offering a pig on the altar there and forced the Jews to offer pigs as sacrifices and eat swine meat...or die; he was determined to replace their Jewish culture with Greek culture. Daniel's reference to 2,300 in verse 14 could mean the 2,300 morning and evening sacrifices that were desecrated or could refer to the number of days. We don't know the exact number of days this ordeal took place (1,150 or 2,300 days). This all happened during the Maccabean period between the Old Testament and New Testament. These events are well documented in the apocryphal historical books of I and II Maccabees. While these books are not part of the canon of divinely-inspired scripture, no serious scholar doubts the historical authenticity of the writings, nor do they dispute the accuracy of the events as they are portrayed.

Daniel asks God some questions (Daniel 9:1-19)

1 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans—
2 in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the LORD through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
3 ¶ Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.
4 And I prayed to the LORD my God, and made confession, and said, “O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments,
5 we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments.
6 Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land.
7 O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You.
8 ¶ “O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You.
9 To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him.
10 We have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets.
11 Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore the curse and the oath written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against Him.
12 And He has confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; for under the whole heaven such has never been done as what has been done to Jerusalem.
13 ¶ “As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us; yet we have not made our prayer before the LORD our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth.
14 Therefore the LORD has kept the disaster in mind, and brought it upon us; for the LORD our God is righteous in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His voice.
15 And now, O Lord our God, who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made Yourself a name, as it is this day—we have sinned, we have done wickedly!
16 ¶ “O Lord, according to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain; because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people are a reproach to all those around us.
17 Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the Lord’s sake cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary, which is desolate.
18 O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies.
19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name.”

Daniel begins this chapter in prayer before God. He has some questions. Daniel fully acknowledges that Israel has gotten what they deserved - even makes reference to the prophecy of Moses (verse 11) with the associated curses for disobedience back in Deuteronomy 28-30 (see notes).

Babylon has fallen, and it's around 539 B.C. or so; Daniel (verse 2) has been reading Jeremiah 29:10 (see notes), "For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place." Now Daniel himself had gone into captivity in 605 B.C., but when does this 70-year countdown begin? He thinks maybe the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C., or would it be from the time the first captives were taken in 605 B.C. when the exiles would start returning to Jerusalem. Inquiring minds want to know - and Daniel too. Incidentally, the exiles did begin returning in 535 B.C., 70 years after the exile of Daniel. Daniel, being a man of God, goes to God in prayer on behalf of his people regarding their return, that it can begin now, 70 years after Daniel's own exile.

Gabriel's back with some amazing information (Daniel 9:20-23)

20 ¶ Now while I was speaking, praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God,
21 yes, while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, reached me about the time of the evening offering.
22 And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill to understand.
23 At the beginning of your supplications the command went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision:

Here's Gabriel again for an encore presentation to Daniel (refer back to 8:16, see above), and he's carrying with him one of the most amazing prophecies of the entire Bible - a remarkable prophecy! It's found in the next four verses.

Daniel's seventy weeks (Daniel 9:24-27)

24 “Seventy weeks are determined
For your people and for your holy city,
To finish the transgression,
To make an end of sins,
To make reconciliation for iniquity,
To bring in everlasting righteousness,
To seal up vision and prophecy,
And to anoint the Most Holy.
25 “Know therefore and understand,
That from the going forth of the command
To restore and build Jerusalem
Until Messiah the Prince,
There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks;
The street shall be built again, and the wall,
Even in troublesome times.
26 “And after the sixty-two weeks
Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself;
And the people of the prince who is to come
Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.
The end of it shall be with a flood,
And till the end of the war desolations are determined.
27 Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week;
But in the middle of the week
He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.
And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate,
Even until the consummation, which is determined,
Is poured out on the desolate.”

First of all, a look at the word "weeks" is in order regarding this passage. The Hebrew word for "weeks" is "shaw-boo´-ah." This is the general Hebrew word for a group of seven - seven of anything (days, weeks, years). So, these "weeks" in Daniel 9:24-27 are referencing a period of groups of seven years - not seven days. It's just the way they talked back then. This usage is further validated inasmuch as Daniel was contemplating the meaning of the "70 years" of Jeremiah's prophecy at the time of the appearance of Gabriel here in Daniel 9:2 (see above). Jeremiah's prophecy is first seen in Jeremiah 25:1-14 (see notes). Based upon that linkage, there's no question that Daniel is issuing a prophecy concerning a period of 70 years.

Now let's understand verse 24. This prophecy concerns 70 weeks (groups of 7 years or 490 years) of Jewish prophecy to fulfill the six conditions of verse 24; these will be realized for the first time in the millennium (the 1000-year period immediately following the 7-year tribulation). Daniel is made to understand that this criteria is not to be met at the conclusion of Jeremiah's prophesied 70 years of exile, but rather seven times longer than that - 490 years.

The six conditions to be fulfilled with regard to Israel in verse 24 are:

• to finish the transgression
• to make an end of sins
• to make reconciliation for iniquity
• to bring in everlasting righteousness
  
• to seal up vision and prophecy
  
• to anoint the Most Holy (Messiah rules)

Now, let's do the math in verse 25. Understanding each week to be 7 years, we have (7 x 7) + (62 x 7) = 483 years between two events. What are these two events? The first event is the decree that would result in the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem. We'll talk more about that later. The second event is the appearance of the Messiah. I am completely confident that the time lapse between these two events was exactly 483 years. HOW DID HE KNOW THAT? God told him in this vision. But wait! There's more! In verse 26, his vision reveals that after that (62 x 7) period (the end of the 483 years) the Messiah would be cut off. Daniel saw the crucifixion of Jesus, the Messiah! In that same verse he saw the destruction of the temple after that in 70 A.D. approximately 40 years later; it's a remarkable vision.

That being said, there are some differences of opinion regarding the exact beginning and ending points of this prophecy. It is most common for commentators to embrace one view as opposed to another - declining to make his readers aware of the controversy. Here, I'll attempt to show you the pertinent data regarding all three of the most prominent views on the issue and let my readers see the relevant math involved.

There has been a lot of speculation regarding the first period of 7 x 7 in verse 25...or 49 years. Is that significant of anything? I don't know. Some have suggested that to be the time it took to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem, but we are told in Nehemiah 6:15 (see notes) that it only took 52 days to do that. Others have suggested that after the wall had been rebuilt around Jerusalem, it took 49 years for the people in Nehemiah 7 (see notes) to get moved into their new houses they built. That's a reasonable speculation, but it is just that...speculation. I'm not convinced that the first 7 x 7 has to be significant of any event. It may be that Daniel was just expressing his prophecy in terms of sevens.

Here's the Beast (aka antichrist) again!
Now there's a gap. There's a gap because the progress towards fulfillment of the prophecy concerning the Jews is interrupted by the crucifixion of the long-awaited Messiah. Daniel saw that gap in verse 26. Therefore, verse 27 deals with the last seven-year period of this prophecy. This is the seven-year period commonly called "the tribulation" beginning in Revelation 6 (see notes). At the center of the controversy is the man we typically call the antichrist. That's perhaps an inaccurate designation for him; he's known as the "Beast" of Revelation 13 (see notes). He is a descendent of the people who destroyed the temple in verse 26; those people happen to be Romans in 70 A.D. under General Titus. Therefore, the antichrist will be of Roman descent. In verse 27 he makes a covenant with the people (during the tribulation) who make the sacrifices (the Jews) for seven years. In the middle of those seven years ("in the midst of the week"), he breaks the covenant and causes the sacrifices to cease; he also desecrates the temple at that 3 1/2 year midpoint. This "abomination of desolation" is referenced by Christ himself in Matthew 24:15 (see notes), "Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand)." Daniel speaks of it again in Daniel 11:31 (see notes) and Daniel 12:11 (see notes). The exact description of what takes place to constitute this "abomination of desolation" is found in II Thessalonians 2 (see notes). The antichrist moves into the Holy of Holies of the rebuilt temple and declares that he himself shall be worshipped as God.

All of this was prophesied by Daniel nearly 100 years before the decree to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem was issued. REMARKABLE!