~~~ The Book of Daniel ~~~
Introduction:

The prophet Daniel was a young man when Nebuchadnezzar invaded Judah, destroyed Jerusalem, and Solomon's temple in the seventh century BC. He and many other Hebrew people were taken as exiles to Babylon (modern-day Iraq). The prophecies recorded in his book concern the Hebrew people, Jerusalem, and the land of Israel. They cover an expanse of time from when he was alive right down to our day and the Second Coming of Jesus.

Wikipedia Links on the four great empires brought to light in the book of Daniel:
Neo-Babylonian Empire / Medo-Persian Empire / Alexander's Greek Empire / Roman Empire

Nebuchadnezzar's Dream: Daniel Chapter 2
  1. Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, saw in a dream an enormous statue. However, upon awakening the dream had left him. He asked his astrologers to tell him the dream and interpret it but they could not.
  2. God reveals Nebuchadnezzar's dream to Daniel:

    3. Your Majesty looked, and there before you stood a large statue - an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance.The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. While you were watching, a rock was cut out [of a mountain], but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. Daniel 2:31-34

    You [Nebuchadnezzar] are that head of gold. Daniel 2:38

    • Head of gold: Nebuchadnezzar's Neo-Babylonian Empire (626 BC)
    • Chest and arms of silver: The Persian Empire succeeded Babylon (550 BC)
    • Belly and thighs of bronze: Alexander's Greece conquers Persia (356 BC)
    • Legs of iron: Rome succeeds the Greek empire (27 BC)
    • Feet partly iron, partly clay: The kingdoms of Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire. Some were strong as iron while others were weak as clay.
    • The Rock: The everlasting kingdom of God that is established at Jesus' second coming.
  3. The statue Nebuchadnezzar saw symbolically represents the four great empires that dominated the European and Middle East regions and were the ancient enemies of Israel. The same region that is in the news today.
Daniel's Dream of Four Beasts: Daniel Chapter 7

In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
Daniel 7:2-3
The four great beasts are four kings [kingdoms] that will rise from the earth. Daniel 7:17

  1. Daniel's dream covers the same powers revealed in Nebuchadnezzar's statue but with expanded detail.
  2. The stormy sea represents the region about the Mediterranean where the four great empires ruled.
  3. The winged lion beast is the Babylonian Empire.
  4. The bear rearing up symbolizes the Persian Empire.
  5. The leopard beast having four heads and four wings is the Greek Empire.
  6. The incomparable fourth beast having ten horns and iron teeth is the Roman Empire.
Symbolism 101:
  1. The lion with the wings of an eagle: Just as winged creatures generally move quickly, so wings on a beast signify rapidity of conquest.
  2. The bear that rears up with three ribs in its mouth: Any creature that rears up on its hind feet suggests an aggressive pose. The three ribs in its mouth suggests that it aggressively and cruely expanded its territory.
  3. The leopard with four wings and four heads: Again, as with the lion beast, the wings suggest rapidity of conquest. The four heads alludes to the fact that the Greek Empire was divided after Alexander's death.
  4. The incomparable beast with iron teeth and ten horns: The iron teeth suggest that this was a cruel power as it devoured surrounding nations into its empire. The ten horns are symbolic of the divisions of the Roman Empire after its fall.
The Ten Horns and the Little Horn:

While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully. Daniel 7:8

  1. The little horn arises later, coming up from among the ten on the fourth beast (the Roman Empire).
  2. It utters blasphemies against the Most High and oppresses His holy people. Daniel 7:25(1)
  3. The holy people are delivered into his hands for a time, times, and half a time. Daniel 7:25(2)
  4. Some expositors believe this prophetic period equates to three and one half years of literal time or 1,260 years in prophetic time.
  5. Whichever it is, the significance of this period points to a time of great distress and persecution for God's people.
Identification of the Little Horn:

    But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. Daniel 7:26-27

  1. By understanding the verse above it is quite obvious that this Little Horn is the end-time antichrist that meets its end at Jesus' promised return.

    2. Men of Galilee, they said, why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven. Acts 1:11

  2. Since the Little Horn arises from the head of the fourth beast, identified as the Roman Empire, it can be assumed that it mirrors the same type of government and religion of that ancient power (i.e. an ungodly, oppressive, and authoritarian power).
  3. It was Rome that conquered and occupied Israel. It was Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea, who handed Jesus over to be crucified, and it was Rome that persecuted both Jews and Christians. Wiki Link: Roman Persecution
  4. Jesus calls us to stay alert, to "Watch out that no one deceives you." By doing so we will recognize the antichrist when it appears.
Daniel's Vision of a Ram and a Goat: Daniel 8

In the vision I was beside the Ulai Canal. I looked up, and there before me was a ram with two horns... One of the horns was longer than the other but grew up later. Suddenly a goat with a prominent horn between its eyes came from the west... It came toward the two-horned ram... I saw it attack the ram furiously,... striking the ram and shattering its two horns... the goat knocked it to the ground and trampled on it. Daniel 8:2-7

  1. At this time Daniel had been removed to Persia after its king, Cyrus the Great, had conquered Babylon.
    Wiki Link: Cyrus the Great
  2. The two-horned ram represents the kingdoms of Media and Persia Daniel 8:20, the goat is the kingdom of Greece, and the large horn between its eyes is its first king, Alexander the Great. Daniel 8:21.
    Wiki Link: Alexander the Great
Alexander's Empire Divided:

The goat became very great, but at the height of its power the large horn was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven. Daniel 8:8

  1. The large horn broken off is symbolic of Alexander's untimely death at the age of 32 at Nebuchadnezzar's palace in Babylon.
    Wiki Link: Death of Alexander
  2. The four horns that grew up after the large horn was broken represent the divisions of the Greek Empire by four of Alexander's generals:
    • Antigonus - Asia Minor.
    • Cassander - Greece and Macedonia.
    • Ptolemy - Egypt.
    • Seleucus - Southwest Asia.
Another Little Horn:

Out of one of them [the four horns] came another horn, which started small but grew in power to the south and to the east and toward the Beautiful Land. Daniel 8:9

  1. The history of the little horn power spans from the 4th century BC to the end of time and the Second Coming of the Messiah, though throughout this time it cannot be attributed to one single entity.

    2. Son of man, he [Gabriel] said to me, understand that the vision concerns the time of the end. Daniel 8:17

  2. From which one of the four horns did the little horn arise?
  3. Rome, as the Republic, occupied the Greek mainland beginning in the 3rd century BC through the Macedonian Wars.
  4. Brief History of Roman government:
    • The Monarchy: 753 BC
    • The Republic: 509 BC
    • The Empire: 27 BC (fall of the Western Empire AD 476)
  5. Thus it was from Cassander's kingdom from which appeared the little horn power that would eventually dominate all four divisions of Alexander's empire.
  6. As further proof, it is Rome that succeeds the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, and Greek Empires.
  7. From this point it grew more powerful as it expanded eastward and southward. The 'Beautiful Land' is a reference to Israel, the Holy Land.
  8. Rome occupied, annexed, and cruelly ruled the territory of Israel in the first century BC. Daniel 8:10
  9. The term 'host of the heavens' refers to God's people on earth, not the angelic host.
  10. Jesus (the prince of the host) was handed over to Roman authority and put to death by crucifixion. Daniel 8:11(p1)
  11. Roman forces destroyed Jerusalem and the temple In AD 70, putting an end to the Jewish sanctuary rituals.
    12. Daniel 8:11(p2)
  12. It succeeded in all its evil actions and by deception truth is destroyed. Daniel 8:12
  13. It became very strong but not by his own power, so what was the source that empowered it? Daniel 8:24{p1)

    14. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. Revelation 13:2

  14. It exalts itself equal with God and wages war on God's people. Daniel 8:24(p2)
  15. It's arrogance and pride will cause him to confront the Prince of princes at Jesus' second coming yet he will be defeated "but not by human power." Daniel 8:25
  16. These points connect this power with the little horn on Daniel's fourth beast, the first beast of Revelation 13 and the scarlet beast of Revelation 17.
The Seventy 'Sevens': Daniel 9

I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes. Daniel 9:3

  1. Daniel prays for Jerusalem and the angel Gabriel is sent with the good news.

    2. Seventy 'sevens' are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place. Daniel 9:24

  2. The seventy 'sevens' (or weeks) equals 490 days in literal time, or 490 years in prophetic time.

    3. Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven 'sevens,' and sixty-two 'sevens.' It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. Daniel 9:25
The Seventy 'Sevens' Timeline:
  1. The good news of the seventy 'sevens' finds its fulfillment in the coming of the Annointed One, the Messiah, first promised in Genesis 3:15.
  2. The decree in question is the one given to Ezra and issued by Artaxerxes, king of Persia, in the year 457 BC. This is the starting point of the seventy 'sevens'.

    3. After these things, during the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra son of Seraiah... came up from Babylon... to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes. Ezra 7:1-7

  3. The seventy 'sevens' are divided into three distinct periods:
    • Seven 'Sevens' = 49 days or years
    • Sixty-Two 'Sevens' = 434 days or years
    • One 'Seven' = 7 days or years.
  4. The first division of 49 years is the time given for the completion of the work of restoration.
  5. The second division of 434 years culminates to about AD 26. This may be about the time when Jesus was baptized in the Jordon river, anointed by the Holy Spirit, and afterward began his public ministry.

    6. After the sixty-two 'sevens,' the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. (or... death, but not for himsel) Daniel 9:26(p1)

  6. The most widely accepted date for Jesus' crucifixion is AD 33. 490 years added to 457 BC equals AD 33.
    Wiki Link: Crucifixion of Jesus
  7. This then is the culmination of the seventy 'sevens' and fulfills the objectives stated for it in verse 24. Jesus became the sacrificial Lamb of God for the salvation of the Earth.

    8. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven.' In the middle of the 'seven' he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple {or... at the wing) he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him. Daniel 9:26(p2)-27

  8. The verse above suggests there was an agreement between the Jewish authorities and Rome, which was broken with the outbreak of hostilities.
  9. Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed by the Roman General Titus in AD 70 as a result of the First Jewish Revolt against the Roman Empire ( AD 66–73).
The Kings of the South and the North: Daniel 10-12

In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia, a revelation was given to Daniel (who was called Belteshazzar). Its message was true and it concerned a great war. The understanding of the message came to him in a vision.

  1. Daniel's vision of a heavenly being:

    I looked up and there before me was a man dressed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist. His body was like topaz, his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and his voice like the sound of a multitude. Daniel 10:5-6

  2. The heavenly being's message to Daniel:

    Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come. Daniel 10:14

    A mighty king will arise, who will rule with great power and do as he pleases. After he has arisen, his empire will be broken up and parceled out toward the four winds of heaven. It will not go to his descendants, nor will it have the power he exercised, because his empire will be uprooted and given to others. Daniel 11:4

  3. The history of this conflict has its origins beginning with the breakup of Alexander's Empire following his death in 323 BC. The empire was divided up among four of his generals:
    • Antigonus - Asia Minor
    • Cassander - Greece & Macedonia
    • Ptolemy - Egypt
    • Seleucus - Southwest Asia
  4. This prophecy covers a very long history from its beginning down to the very end of time to Jesus' Second Coming.
  5. The main participants during the first three centuries:
    • Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt: The King of the South.
    • Antigonid Empire: The first King of the North.
    • Seleucid Empire: The second King of the North.
    • Roman Empire: The third King of the North.
  6. There were political alliances as well as military confrontations between the kings of the north and the kings of the south for control of Alexander's empire. And between these competing powers at the frontline of contested territory lay the Holy Land.
    Wars of the Diadochi / The Syrian Wars / Roman Egypt
  7. The Kings of the South, symbolized as Ptolemaic Egypt, represent geopolitical powers that feature materialistic ideals, polytheistic religions, and are historical enemies of God's people, notably the nation of Israel and Christianity that arose from it.

    8. The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been determined must take place. He will show no regard for the gods of his ancestors or for the one desired by women, nor will he regard any god, but will exalt himself above them all. Daniel 11:36-37

  8. This looks forward to the time of the end when "the time of wrath is completed." The description of this king who exalts himself is identical for the following:
    • The little horn of Daniel 7: He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people... As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them.
    • The little horn of Daniel 8: He will destroy those who are mighty, the holy people... He will cause deceit to prosper, and he will consider himself superior... and take his stand against the Prince of princes.
    • The leopard-like beast of Revelation 13: The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies... It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them.
    • The two-horned beast of Revelation 13: It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed.
    • The scarlet beast of Revelation 17: They [the ten horns on the beast] have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast. They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings.
  9. The king that exalts himself is the end-time antichrist as are the little horns of Daniel, The leopard beast of Revelation 13, and the scarlet beast of Revelation 17:
    • Considers himself superior.
    • Is boastful and speaks blasphemies against God.
    • Puts himself forward as the object of worship.
    • Persecutes God's faithful people.
  10. At Jesus' Second Coming, the end-time antichrist forms an alliance with the false prophet and the kings of earth but are defeated. Revelation 19:19-20