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Daniel 8: 1-27
(1) In
the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king a vision appeared to
me, Daniel, subsequent to the one which appeared to me previously.
This is a second significant dream that Daniel had, two years after the first visionary dream. It is very similar in its message, with some important differences.
Daniel has been writing the last few chapters (2-7) in Aramaic, and now he goes back to using Hebrew again for the rest of the book.
This is because he wanted those chapters to be understood by all of the residents of the whole Babylonian Empire, because the subject matter pertained to the entire citizenry, and Aramaic was the lingua franca of the people in that day.
Now Daniel goes back to Hebrew to give the Jewish people God's message for them, specifically.
(2) I looked in the vision, and while I was looking I was in the citadel of Susa, which is in the province of Elam; and I looked in the vision and I myself was beside the Ulai Canal.
Daniel dreamed that he was in Susa, where he no doubt had previously visited sometime in all his years of serving the kings in the Empire, so he recognized where he was in his dream.
(3) Then I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, a ram which had two horns was standing in front of the Canal. Now the two horns were long, but one was longer than the other, with the longer one coming up last.
This ram corresponds to the bear in his other revelation.
(4) I saw the ram butting westward, northward, and southward, and no other beasts could stand before him nor was there anyone to rescue from his power, but he did as he pleased and magnified himself.
Westward toward Lydia, Ionia, Thrace, and Macedonia; northward toward the Caspians of the Caucasus range, and the Scythians east of the Caspian Sea, and the Oxux Valley all the way up to the Aral Sea; and southward toward the Babylonian Empire, and later to Egypt, too.
(5) While I was observing, behold, a male goat was coming from the west over the surface of the whole Earth without touching the ground; and the goat had a conspicuous horn between his eyes.
This male goat corresponds to the leopard in the previous vision. He was traveling so rapidly that his feet barely touched the ground. He came from the west, from Macedonia and Greece, as Alexander the Great did.
(6) He came up to the ram that had the two horns which I had seen standing in front of the Canal, and rushed at him in his mighty wrath.
(7) I saw him come beside the ram, and he was enraged at him; and he struck the ram and shattered his two horns, and the ram had no strength to withstand him. So he hurled him to the ground and trampled on him, and there was none to rescue the ram from his power.
Alexander's victories at Granicus (in 334), Issus (in 333), and the final contest at Arbela (in 331) is fittingly portrayed by this crushing attack on the ram, which he is unable to resist.
Alexander's conquest of the entire Near and Middle East within three years stands unique in military history and is appropriately portrayed by the lightening speed of this one-horned goat.
(8) Then the male goat magnified himself exceedingly.
This may refer to Alexander's thrust beyond the borders of the empire he had conquered, even into Afghanistan and the Indus Valley (in 327); or it may suggest the growth in arrogance that led him to presume the pretensions to divinity, as the Egyptian priesthood had solemnly announced that he had descended from Zeus-Ammon.
But as soon as he was mighty, the large horn was broken; and in its place there came up four conspicuous horns toward the four winds of Heaven.
This predicts that he would be cut off at the height of his power; Alexander died of a sudden fever (unless he was poisoned!) at the young age of 33.
And the division of his empire was unquestionably fourfold, with Cassander holding Macedonia and Greece, Lysimachus holding Thrace and the western half of Asia Minor as far as Cappadocia and Phrygia, Ptolemy consolidating Palestine, Cilicia and Cyprus with his Egyptian-Libyan domains, and Seleucus controlling the rest of Asia all the way to the Indus Valley.
(9) Out of one of them came forth a rather small horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Beautiful Land.
Now we have another small horn, this one on the Greek identity, rather than the future Roman. This is specific to Israel.
It looks to the career of Antiochus IV Epiphanes: as he usurped the Seleucid throne and succeeded in invading Egypt (170-169 BC); his expeditions against rebellious elements in Parthia and Armenia "to the east;" and his brutal suppression of Jewish worship at Jerusalem in his determination to impose religious and cultural uniformity on all his domains. This came to a head when he erected an idol of Zeus in the Temple and sacrificed swine to it, desecrating the altar.
This became known to the Jews as "the abomination of desolation," which served as a type of the future abomination that will be set up in the Jerusalem sanctuary to be built in the Last Days (see Jesus' prediction in Matthew 24: 15).
(10) It grew up to the host of Heaven and caused some of the host and some of the stars to fall to the Earth, and it trampled them down.
Since a mere human man cannot pull the stars or holy angels down to the Earth, the same words are also used for the host of God's people He rescued from Egypt as the Lord of hosts, and Daniel says in 12: 3 that the Lord's people will "shine like the stars of heaven" when we have also been Glorified.
So this must refer to when Antiochus overpowered the Jews and "walked all over them."
(11) It even magnified itself to be equal with the Commander of the host; and it removed the regular sacrifice from Him, and the place of His sanctuary was thrown down.
(12) And on account of transgression the host will be given over to the horn along with the regular sacrifice; and it will fling truth to the ground and perform its will and prosper.
This all happened when he desecrated the Lord's altar.
(13) Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to that particular one who was speaking, "How long will the vision about the regular sacrifice apply, while the transgression causes horror, so as to allow both the holy place and the host to be trampled?"
(14) He said to me, "For 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the holy place will be properly restored."
The number 2,300 may not refer to 24-hour days, but the number of evening and morning sacrifices that would not be allowed, until they could be properly restored. This is what happened, as the abolition of the sacrifices (the tamid) took place in 167. Then the sanctuary was reconsecrated on 25 Chislev 164, which all Jews everywhere still celebrate as Hanukkah.
(15) When I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I sought to understand it; and behold, standing before me was one who looked like a man.
This is no animal, he looks human.
(16) And I heard the voice of a man between the banks of Ulai, and he called out and said, "Gabriel, give this man an understanding of the vision."
No more animals, these are Heavenly angels; and we meet Gabriel here, who is the messenger God sent to announce to Mary that she was to be the mother of the Lord. Here, someone else commands Gabriel to speak to Daniel.
(17) So he came near to where I was standing, and when he came I was frightened and fell on my face;
This is a common reaction to the approach of one of God's holy angels. These angels must really be amazing creatures!
but he said to me, "Son of man, understand that the vision pertains to the time of the end."
Gabriel assures Daniel that these things aren't scheduled to happen until the time of the end.
(18) Now while he was talking with me I fell into a deep sleep with my face to the ground; but he touched me and made me stand upright.
Amazing how powerful a simple touch can be. I don't know if some kind of power was communicated to wake him and stand him up on his feet, but I wouldn't doubt it. I also know how a simple touch of another person can encourage and calm and reassure in a time of stress.
(19) He said, "Behold, I am going to let you know what will occur and the final period of the indignation, for it pertains to the appointed time of the end.
Gabriel is telling Daniel the human future history that God has planned out for this Earth and Mankind upon it, from his days forward.
(20) "The ram which you saw with the two horns represents the kings of Media and Persia.
The vision didn't include what was already past for Daniel as he was compiling his writings at the end of his life, only what was present for him and future. So it starts with Media and Persia, which he has experienced by this time.
(21) "The shaggy goat represents the kingdom of Greece, and the large horn that is between his eyes is the first king.
He's telling him that Alexander will be the solitary king of this domain, not a compound character, like Media and Persia.
(22) "The broken horn and the four horns that arose in its place represent four kingdoms which will arise from his nation, although not with his power.
Alexander's authority did not pass down to his generals who divided up his kingdom into four distinct areas, each had to establish his own authority in each of their domains.
(23) "In the latter period of their rule,
"When the transgressors have run their course,
God always gives enough time for sinners to repent.
"A king will arise,
"Insolent and skilled in intrigue.
In other words, crafty, and skilled in double-dealing.
(24) His power will be mighty, but not by his own power,
"And he will destroy to an extraordinary degree
"And prosper and perform his will;
"He will destroy mighty men and the holy people.
(25) "And through his shrewdness
"He will cause deceit to succeed by his influence;
"And he will magnify himself in his heart,
"And he will destroy many while they are at ease.
"He will even oppose the Prince of princes,
"But he will be broken without human agency.
All this accurately describes Antiochus IV Epiphanes, in his character and in his modus operandi.
And he died of a sudden malady. Ancient sources have somewhat diverse accounts of his fatal illness; what is agreed is that he met his end by a nonhuman agency.
(26)"The vision of the evenings and mornings
"Which has been told is true;
This vision is about the evenings and mornings, specifically, the evening and morning sacrifices.
"But keep the vision secret,
"For it pertains to many days in the future."
Daniel is told to not share this prophesy with his cohorts, for it will not come to pass for a long time.
(27) Then I, Daniel, was exhausted and sick for days.
This dream was so emotionally draining for Daniel in his old age, that he literally got sick from it, and had to take to his bed for several days.
Then I got up again and carried on the king's business;
He was still in the employ of King Belshazzar, even if this king didn't pay any attention to him, and hadn't even met him yet (see 5: 16).
but I was astounded at the vision, and there was none to explain it.
This dream overwhelmed him emotionally, and since he was the one who had the gift of interpreting dreams, there wasn't anyone else he could ask for help with it anyway, even if he hadn't been warned to keep it secret.
This revelation about Antiochus IV Epiphanes shows that this "monster" is only a foreshadowing of the "antichrist" who will appear on the world scene to force satanic attitudes and rituals on the populace as leader of the one-world government that every despot has desired to rule. This man will succeed in the power of the dragon (Revelation 13: 1-18), but only for a very short time.
O my Father, thank You for telling us what to expect. We see the world around us, we see what our national leaders are doing, and how the press misrepresents what is real. It looks like the truth has been cast to the ground, and is being trampled upon.
But, Father, Your Truth is what sets us free! We live, not to be enslaved by a tyrant, but to know true liberty in Christ. Even if we are to sit in a prison, we will still be free in You.
O Father, strengthen Your children, send us out to broadcast Your Truth and Your love and compassion to every nation. Let every living person hear and understand how You have loved all of us, and have used all the choices and decisions of all Your created beings to bring about what You have planned before time.
My Father, please let us be Your hands and feet to bring every inquiring mind to the knowledge of how You have done everything possible, and even impossible, to redeem us all, if we only will turn to You. Give understanding to every person, to bring Your children to the birth into Your family, and leave the rebels no excuse for refusing Your gracious, generous offer.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come swiftly, Lord Jesus!
