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This
is really the beginning of another division in the book of Daniel. A division in the language in which the book
is written.
From
chapter one verse one through to chapter two verse three the language used is
Hebrew. It is no coincidence that these verses concern mainly the deportation
of Israel into Babylon.
From
chapter eight-verse one through to the end of the book we are back in Hebrew.
Again these verses deal mainly with Israel. The Gentiles are mentioned only in
relationship to Israel.
Dr Ironside remarked,
“It seems as if Daniel inspired by the Holy Ghost is giving to each
dispensation or period of God’s special dealing with men, the portions that
apply to each.”
One
can imagine Daniel’s thoughts after the vision in chapter seven. There would be
a further three kingdoms after Babylon but what about Israel? From chapter eight to the end of this book
we have the answer.
In
Daniel chapter two as we looked at the great image, we could see a broad
outline of the times of the Gentiles.
In chapter seven we discover further details concerning the great world
empires and in particular the fourth great kingdom. Here in chapter eight,
Daniel zooms in on the second and third kingdoms and especially how they affect
Israel. Let us now examine this passage of scripture.
The
Prophets Position.
Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first.
In
chapter seven of Daniel we discover that it was the first year of Belshazzar’s
reign.
We
know that chapter five was written when Belshazzar was slain, and chapter eight
takes us to the third year of Belshazzar’s reign. We can see, once again, that
the chapters in Daniel do not run in chronological order.
Daniel
had these two visions, chapters seven and eight, before Belshazzar’s great
feast. No wonder Daniel had no time for
his offer of third rule in the kingdom.
A man who knows God’s word will think less of worldly wealth or
position. Look at verse two.
Daniel
8:2 And I saw in a vision; and it came
to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the
province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai.
Daniel
is at Shusan. Now it’s unlikely he was actually there, Shusan was two hundred
and thirty miles east of Babylon. It’s likely he was transported there in the
vision.
Rev.
17:3 So he carried me away in the
spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured
beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
Shusan
is significant, although at the time of the vision it had little significance,
it was set to become the next centre of world rule. Look at Nehemiah chapter
one.
Neh.
1:1 The words of Nehemiah the son of
Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as
I was in Shushan the palace,
We
read of it again in the days of Esther.
Daniel’s vision was all about the future. God was giving to his people
Israel a warning about what lay ahead so that they may be prepared. In a
wonderful way God has given us insight into world events that others know
nothing about. How does it effect us?
The
Vision Viewed.
What
did Daniel see on this occasion?
Daniel
8:3 Then I lifted up mine eyes, and
saw, and, behold, there stood before the river a ram which had two horns: and
the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher came
up last.
He
saw a ram standing beside a river, which had two horns, and the two horns are
high. Here we have this two-horned ram. What does it symbolise?
A
ram was stamped on the coins of Persia, and in battle they carried a banner
with a ram on it. The Persian king wore
the head of a ram on his head when in public.
The
two horns would remind us of the two powers in this one kingdom, Medes and
Persians. Notice one was higher than the other, the higher came up last. This
is what happened, the Medes were the dominant force until Cyrus arrived on the
scene and Persia became the dominant force.
We
are reminded in the word of God.
Eccles.
4:12 And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold
cord is not quickly broken.
A threefold cord is not quickly broken. This is the
third time in Daniel’s prophecy that we are told of the kingdom of the Medes
and Persians that will arise [Daniel chapters two and seven] Such is the
accuracy of Daniel’s prophecies that critics say it is not possible and they
come to the conclusion that Daniel’s prophecies must have been a forgery and
they were written after the events prophesied.
How we as God’s children rejoice in the accuracy and infallibility of
God’s word.
Psalm
119:97 O how love I thy law! it is my
meditation all the day.
The
Bible does not need to be rewritten but reread.
Look
at verse four.
Daniel
8:4 I saw the ram pushing westward,
and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before him, neither
was there any that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his
will, and became great.
You
see how this mighty power pushed west, north and south therefore it must have
come from the east. This great power would conquer all in sight, he did
according to his will and became great. Nothing could stop this power, it
seemed, but God was in control of the future.
What would happen?
Daniel
8:5 And as I was considering, behold,
an he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not
the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.
As
Daniel is watching this world power a he goat comes from the west. The world
power base was now shifting to the west.
Here is the first European world power.
Of course it must be Greece. The capital of the empire was Aegea, which
means Goat City. The Aegean Sea is actually the Goat Sea.
In
days of old, nations where given zodiac signs. Persia was Aries the ram and
Greece was Capricorn the goat. Once again in agreement with chapters two and
seven, Greece is identified as the next world power to follow the Mede Persian
Empire.
Daniel
8:5 And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on the face
of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn
between his eyes.
Notice
it says, “Touched not the ground.” This would surely speak of swiftness.
Remember how the leopard with four wings represented Greece previously. What a
wonderful book we have. This kingdom
had a notable horn between its eyes. This would speak of an intelligent
leader.
This
of course is Alexander the Great. At the age of twenty-two he began to conquer
the world. He was a military genius. The son of Philip of Macedonia, he was
educated by Aristotle. Although opposed
by much larger armies and greater financial resources than his own his personal
resourcefulness at devising successful tactics was such that he crushed the Medes and Persians [
334-331bc] Look at verse six.
Daniel
8:6 And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before
the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power.
Notice
the words, “In the fury of his power,” there was revenge on Alexander the
Great’s mind for something the Persians did on the Greeks.
·
In
483 BC, the Persian king Xerxes I invaded Greece, captured Athens, and burned
the Acropolis. Although the Greeks eventually won, they never forgot the
indignities suffered at the hands of the Persians.
·
In
334 BC, in his first campaign outside Greece, Alexander turned his armies
eastward to punish the Persians for the attack led by Xerxes.
·
Over
the next 3 years, Greece and Persia clashed three times. Though greatly
outnumbered, Alexander struck with reckless fury and wanton bloodshed.
·
Finally,
at the end of 331 BC, Alexander entered Shushan and seated himself upon the
Persian throne. His victory was complete.
Daniel
recorded it all over two hundred years before it happen. What a book we have. Look now at verse
seven.
Daniel
8:7 And I saw him come close unto the
ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his
two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast
him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could
deliver the ram out of his hand.
Alexander
the Great destroyed the Medes and Persians in great anger. [ Choler means
anger]
Daniel
8:8 Therefore the he goat waxed very
great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up
four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven.
When
he was strong the great horn was broken. At the zenith of his power he was
broken. What happened to Alexander the
Great? He died at the age of thirty-two or three from a fever, many say his
drunkenness or perhaps his homosexual tendencies all played a part in his
death. He conquered the world but not himself.
God’s
word had prophesied that when he was strong the great horn was broken. Look
again at verse eight.
Daniel
8:8 Therefore the he goat waxed very great:
and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four
notable ones toward the four winds of heaven.
We are reading what happened after Alexander the Great’s death. Four notable ones come out of this towards the four winds of heaven. That is north, south, east and west. Remember the four heads in Daniel seven? Here we have four horns, what happens the kingdom? His four generals divided it up between them.
·
Cassander
claimed the Western Empire
·
Seleucus
claimed the Eastern Empire
·
Ptolemy
took Egypt and North Africa, the Southern Empire
·
Lysimachus
took the Northern Empire
This
is history written in advance all we can do is read in wonder at God’s precious
word .
An
Amazing Arrival.
Daniel
8:9 And out of one of them came forth
a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the
east, and toward the pleasant land.
Verse
nine is where we find some controversy.
Is the little horn of Daniel seven and Daniel eight the same?
In
Daniel seven it came from ten horns, that is the Roman Empire. In Daniel eight
it comes from the Grecian Empire.
In
Daniel seven the establishment of the kingdom of God follows it. We don’t find
that in chapter eight.
I
believe we can find an historical fulfilment for the little horn of Daniel
eight. However, it is also true that much of what we read regarding this little
horn applies also to the antichrist and especially at the end of the chapter as
it becomes clear that the prophecy goes further than the Grecian little horn.
This prophecy then had a double fulfilment.
We
will see the historical fulfilment in Antiochus Epiphanes, who is a type of the
antichrist.
Daniel
8:9 And out of one of them came forth
a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the
east, and toward the pleasant land.
This
little horn came from one of the four divisions. He began small and waxed exceedingly great. Antiochus Epiphanes
bribed and cheated his way to power. Let me quote what one commentator says
about him.
“The eighth king in the dynasty of the Seleucids was a man named Antiochus Epiphanes, who reigned from about 170 B.C. His capital city was Antioch and was named for him. (Antioch appears in the New Testament as the place where believers were first called Christians, {Acts 11:26}.) This man, Antiochus Epiphanes (Epiphanes means "great"). was such a wicked and vicious individual that the Jews nicknamed him "Antiochus Epimanes," a play on his name. Epimanes means "Madman,"
Antiochus
Epiphanes was
fiercely anti- Jewish. As verse nine says he certainly turned against the
pleasant land. Consider verse eight.
Daniel
8:10 And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of
the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.
He
turned against the stars. That is God’s people, especially Israel, remember how
God described Abraham’s seed in Genesis.
Genesis
15:5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and
tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall
thy seed be.
If the world calls
those men and women stars, who excel in some area, why should such a statement
similarly, not be appropriate to God’s people? Look at verse eleven.
Daniel
8:11 Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the
daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.
The book of
Maccabees, which is of historical value only, tells us what he said.
“And
the king sent letters by messengers to Jerusalem and the cities of Judah. He
directed them to follow customs strange to their land, to forbid burnt
offerings and sacrifices and drink offering,”
To disobey would mean death. He desecrated the temple and destroyed their worship of God.
In the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew the Lord Jesus, speaking of a yet coming time, said to the disciples "when you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet standing in the holy place" {Matt 24:15}, then, he said, they would know it is time to get out of the city. Do not waste any time, he urges, do not even go back for your coat, just go, because then shall be great tribulation such as has not been since the world began. Now that was spoken more than one hundred and sixty-five years after Antiochus Epiphanes had desecrated the temple, so it clearly establishes a yet future fulfilment of this historic event.
Yes it had fulfilment
in Antiochus Epiphanes and yet it will have a further fulfilment in a day yet
to come. Antichrist will arise.
Daniel 8:12 And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.
He attacks the truth and he seems to prosper. He was a wicked and a cruel man. History tells us that he ordered the Jews to sacrifice pigs. He had copies of the law torn and burned. He decreed that all the Jews who disobeyed would be killed. He had circumcised babies hanged. On one assault on Jerusalem according to Sam Gordon, four hundred thousand were killed in three days.
He had coins
minted with, “Antiochus Theos Epiphanes” upon them. He was defying
himself. He attacked the saints, their
sacrifices, the scriptures and the very sovereign God and yet it practised and
prospered. But God was still in control.
The
Conversation Caught.
Daniel
8:13 Then I heard one saint speaking,
and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be
the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation,
to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?
How long, the very
angels wondered how long this would go on.
Daniel
8:14 And he said unto me, Unto two
thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.
Two thousand and three hundred days. Some have tried to make this fit here, there and everywhere. When was the sanctuary cleansed?
On
the twenty fifth of December 165 BC, Judas Maccabees cleansed and restored the
temple. The Feast of Dedication, or lights, is still remembered today by the
Jews.
Two
thousand three hundred days prior would take us back to sixth September 171
BC. This fits in during the reign of
Antiochus Epiphanes, in fact some say it was the very day he announced the
inauguration of his regime against the Jews.
It is good to know
that God puts a limit on our suffering.
The heavenly Help.
Daniel 8:15-16 And it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision, and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man. [16] And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.
Here
is the first time an angel is named, Gabriel. Daniel just gets down on his
knees, he sought for the meaning.
Daniel
8:17 So he came near where I stood:
and when he came, I was afraid, and fell upon my face: but he said unto me,
Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end shall be the vision.
If a Godly man like Daniel would fall at the sight of a holy One. How much should we reverence the very presence of the Lord? Daniel now is told that this relates to the time of the end. Many would see complete fulfilment of this vision in Antiochus Epiphanes, but ignore this comment or have no good explanation. Others see no one but antichrist in this Chapter but they ignore the plain sense of the passage. Yes this is fulfilled in Antiochus Epiphanes but it is at the very least a type of the antichrist, in a day yet to be, there is a future fulfilment.
Daniel
8:18 Now as he was speaking with me, I
was in a deep sleep on my face toward the ground: but he touched me, and set me
upright.
Perhaps
like Daniel you and I need a touch from the Lord? Daniel sought and received
heavenly help.
The End Envisaged.
Daniel
8:19 And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the last end
of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end shall be.
Here again Daniel is pointed to the end of the indignation. That is God’s anger with Israel. It refers to the time when God is chastising his people. This can apply to the time of Antiochus Epiphanes or the end of the Tribulation. We come back again to the dual fulfilment of this prophecy.
Daniel
8:20-22 The ram which thou sawest
having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia. [21] And the rough goat is
the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first
king. [22] Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms
shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.
These
verses confirm what we have already stated. And to add to this now the Kingdoms
are named. Daniel knew well that the
Medes and Persians would succeed against Belshazzar in chapter five.
The Dark Days.
Let’s look at verse twenty-three and again
keep in our minds the double fulfilment of this prophecy.
Daniel
8:23 And in the latter time of their
kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce
countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.
We can see that
this verse could apply to Antiochus Epiphanes or antichrist. I want to apply them to the end time ruler.
It describes a
king of fierce countenance. He will have a commanding presence, a very intense
personality, a man with charismatic appeal to the people. It also says, “and
understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.” He will be like a skilled
physiologist, he will understand what makes people tick.
Consider his
power, look at verse twenty four.
Daniel
8:24 And his power shall be mighty,
but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper,
and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.
This power is
described as not being his own. Surely that reminds us of our previous studies
on antichrist.
Rev.
13:4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they
worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make
war with him?
2
Thes. 2:9 Even him, whose coming is
after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Consider his
progress again in verse twenty-four.
Daniel
8:24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall
destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the
mighty and the holy people.
He will prosper at
the expense of the holy people. Compare this with Revelation thirteen.
Rev.
13:7 And it was given unto him to make
war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all
kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
Consider his
propaganda in verse twenty-five.
Daniel
8:25 “And through his policy also he
shall cause craft to prosper in his hand;”
By craft and
deceit he shall prosper, he will make good use of spin doctors.
Consider his
position in verse twenty-five.
“ And he shall
magnify himself in his heart,” he will occupy a high position. Compare this
with Revelation thirteen.
Rev.
13:5 And there was given unto him a
mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to
continue forty and two months.
Consider his
peace.
“And by peace
shall destroy many.” He will instigate a phoney peace. Compare this with 1
Thes. Chapter five.
1 Thes. 5:3
For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon
them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
Consider his
punishment.
Daniel 8:25
“He shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken
without hand.”
He will be
destroyed but not by human hands. Christ shall destroy him.
Daniel
2:34 Thou sawest till that a stone was
cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron
and clay, and brake them to pieces.
2 Thes.
2:8 And then shall that Wicked be
revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall
destroy with the brightness of his coming:
Rev. 17:14
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is
Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and
chosen, and faithful.
Rev. 19:15
And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the
nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the
winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
Rev. 19:20
And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles
before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the
beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a
lake of fire burning with brimstone.
There are dark
days ahead for Daniel’s people Israel.
The Sick Seer.
Daniel
8:26-27 And the vision of the evening
and the morning which was told is true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for
it shall be for many days. [27] And I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain
days; afterward I rose up, and did the king's business; and I was astonished at
the vision, but none understood it.
Daniel fainted and
was sick. This man who wasn’t afraid of
the den of lions, felt sick after this vision. In Daniel two we had a glimpse
of the future through man’s eyes. In Daniel seven we were looking through God’s
eyes and in Daniel eight we see it through Jewish eyes. The Jews would suffer
under tyrant after tyrant. What dark days are ahead for Israel?
What dark days for
those who are without Christ. Does it make us faint? Does it make us sick at
the though of what our loved ones perhaps will face, when Christ returns?
Look what Daniel
does. He rose up and did the King’s business. May we do the same in the light
of prophetic truth. Occupy till I come.
Email Pastor Ian Wilson
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