It devoured and crushed, and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. It therefore seems that the two prophecies speak of the same four kingdoms by means of different imagery. His disciples were promised that they would share in His reign as King (19:20). At this point the revelation ended. Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? What God says, He will do. In Revelation it is also referred to as 42 months and 1260 days which all work out to 3 years. The Old Testament prophet did not see the gap because he viewed the coming of Christ as God does. The First Vision is a dream of the king that is interpreted by Daniel. Both sets of kingdoms are brought to a sudden end and are replaced by an eternal kingdom. God would strike him down in the moment of His choosing to silence him once and for all and put an end to his kingdom. Neither peer opposition nor the king's new law (chapter 6) greatly disturbed Daniel. We have talked about several times since starting this series about how studying Bible prophecy should influence you. So the king spoke, and said, "Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its interpretation trouble you." Through the vision of a magnificent, awe-inspiring statue, God reveals the future for Gentile kings and their kingdoms. When mentioning the little horn that grew up and uprooted three of the first ten horns, Daniel now tells us that this little horn grew until it was larger in appearance then the remaining seven horns. Having gained an appreciation for Daniel and his three Hebrew friends, over a period he came to faith in their God. Not only was he greatly alarmed and physically sick, but he says he also kept the matter to himself. Daniels response to the vision was far from assuring or calming. In the second year of Nebuchadnezzar's rule, he had a dream. In his interpretation of the dream, Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar he was the head of gold. Neither is prophecy written to make us happy or to feel good. That was bad enough, from the religious leaders perspective, but the way in which He answered them was the last straw. 18 He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so . God also allows the wicked to persist and even to prosper, so that those whom He has chosen might be saved (Romans 9:22-24). Does this dream have any significance for us? This morning we are going to go back to Daniel 7 and look at the rest of the chapter where Daniel has the dream interpreted. The king knew that Daniel spoke the truth. We are not of night nor o darkness; 6 so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober. What so upset Daniel about the future? Rome did conquer much of the known world, but it never conquered the whole world as this is describing. This is represented by the four heads on Daniels leopard beast. The death of this king brings about the end of his kingdom. The inter-relationship between the prophecies of chapters 2 and 7 is demonstrated on the following page: Deterioration: Gold to iron mixed with clay, Deterioration: Nearly human to blaspheming beast. God is eternal, and so is His plan for all creation. The boastful beast becomes even more aggressive, waging war with the saints and even overpowering them. I encourage you to compare the statements of Daniel 2:21-22, 44, 47; 4:3, 34-35, 37; 6:26 with the content and declarations of Daniel 7. With the death of Nebuchadnezzar comes a change in the peoples attitudes, especially their leaders toward Judaism. Two major divisions comprise our text: (1) Daniels dreamverses 1-14 and (2) the interpretationverses 15-28. Daniel's prophecy was one of hope. (3) What principles should guide and govern our attempt to interpret the prophecy of this chapter? A person should not take credit for what God does through him. We are not to base our thinking and actions on circumstances, but upon the Scriptures. His mouth is used to speak boastfully. His thoughts alarm him, and his face pales. He will abolish all the religious holidays and seek to abolish Gods law in an attempt to destroy the Jewish people. While God tells neither Daniel nor us that this beast represents Nebuchadnezzar, He does reveal that the head of gold in the vision of the great statue was Nebuchadnezzar (2:36-38). Take me to the king, and I will interpret his dream for him." Through the ages, the saints have learned that they must wait for the promises of God to be fulfilled and that this may not happen in their lifetime (see Hebrews 11:13-16, 39-40). The eleventh horn may hope to change the time, but in Gods plan this king is granted a time, times, and half a time three and a half years to oppose and oppress the saints. This was when his life took a sharp turn. Then the kingdoms of the earth, the sovereignty, the dominion, the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heavens, in other words, the whole world will be given to the saints of the Highest One and the Highest One, Jesus Christ, will rule and it will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the dominions will serve and obey Him. Nevertheless, Daniel tells no one, keeping the matter to himself and suffering a quiet agony over the future events God has revealed to him. There is fairly strong inferential evidence that Nebuchadnezzar was represented by the first beast, the winged lion. We know from history that though Persia rose later than Media it soon overshadowed Media in its power. If we go back to Daniel 2 and look at the statue in Nebuchadnezzars dream, we find that it too represented four kings and their kingdoms. This angel responded and gave Daniel understanding into his dream as he interpreted it for him. We see a gapan almost insurmountable gapbetween suffering and glory; God does not. In our passage, Daniel asks for and receives an explanation. Dwight Pentecost writes, The existence of the church in the present Age was nowhere revealed in the Old Testament. In spite of these kings, the saints of the Highest One will possess the eternal kingdom forever and ever. Interpretations of Daniels prophecies differ widely. God would strike him down suddenly too and bring his kingdom to a swift end. When the Lord Jesus came to the earth, He often referred to Himself as the Son of Man, gradually making it clear that He was the Messiah who was God incarnate. If taken seriously, we will find the future sobering as well. We have already seen this phrase time, times, and half a time in Revelation. 5. As I read through the statements men have made about the God of Israel in the first six chapters of Daniel, I find that what men came to know and to acknowledge through history, God declares through prophecy. Would Belshazzar toast the gods of gold, silver, wood and stone with the sacred temple vessels? The timeline reads as follows: Humanly speaking, it was impossible for them to have a child. (2) While the timing of the fulfillment of divine prophecy may seem remote to the recipient, it still has relevance for him. He questioned His disciples so that they could confess that He, the Son of Man, was the Messiah (16:13f.). Chapter 2 contains a very significant prophecy, revealed by God to king Nebuchadnezzar. We have already seen time frame in Revelation referring to half of the seven-year tribulation. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority. Bob is a pastor/teacher and elder at Community Bible Chapel in Richardson, Texas, and has contributed many of his Bible study series for use by the Foundation. It is explained in a way that children can understand, describing his feeling as butterfly's in his tummy.Daniel's Dream takes you on an uplifting adventure with wonderfully expressivedescriptions of the characters, perfectly capturing bodylanguage and . (3) This chapter contains the major segment of Daniel, which is primarily prophetic, although it does not contain the first prophecy in the Book of Daniel. Prophecy is necessary then so that men are reassured of divine deliverance and blessing, as well as divine judgment (see 2 Peter 2:4-9). Consider the birth of a child, remembering that Gods deliverance and salvation is likened to birth. When the iniquity of the blasphemous horn reaches full bloom and his appointed time to rule is fulfilled, God will destroy him, casting his body into the fire. The precise meaning of the symbols of the raised side and the three ribs is illusive. (3) These prophecies must be understood in light of their historical background as provided in Daniel, in the inspired revelation provided by other portions of Scripture, and the cautious use of supplementary information by reliable historical documents or study. If, in Gods eyes, a day is as 1,000 years and 1,000 years as a day (2 Peter 3:8), then the coming of our Lord has only been a few days from beginning to end. 21 I kept looking, and that horn was waging war with the saints and overpowering them 22 until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom. (5) Prophecy is not written as hype but revealed to produce the hope of glory and endurance in present tribulation. It is significant for us to note Daniels reaction to this revelation from God. With iron-like teeth, horns (some with eyes), and feet, it is utterly destructive. Daniel made it very clear that the dream and the interpretation had come for the one true God. Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. The righteous will suffer. Remember Daniel was in his 60s when he received this revelation. The chapter falls into two major parts. It should give you a caring heart toward the unsaved as you seek to win them to the Lord. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts were greatly alarming me and my face grew pale, but I kept the matter to myself.. Then, in Daniel 2, the Lord gave Nebuchadnezzar a dream that only Daniel could interpret. Verses 1-14 contain the vision which God gave to Daniel. The implication here is that this is a repeated dream, one that is . I have heard a number of attempts to explain the gaps in Old Testament prophecy. With the commencement of Belshazzars co-regency may have come not only a rejection of the Jewish faith and worship, but a new wave of persecution directed toward it. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. A Vision of Judgment (Daniel 7:9-12) 2. 16 At this, Daniel went in to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him. 15 And there was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast might even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed (Revelation 13:4, 11-15). In the Old Testament, the expression son of man was used most frequently in reference to men, who were merely (as opposed to God) human. (Numbers 23:19). Twice in chapter 7 Daniel speaks of his distress: As for me, Daniel, my spirit was distressed within me, and the visions in my mind kept alarming me (verse 15). In order to save Rose, Unity asks her to give up whatever makes her the dream vortex. 10 If any one is destined for captivity, to captivity he goes; if any one kills with the sword, with the sword he must be killed. Daniel 5 is an illustration and a prototype of what will happen in the end times, as described in the prophecy of Daniel 7. His vision in chapter 4 should have produced more distress than it did. Abraham and Sarah were elderly and childless. According to our text, the prophecies of Daniel 7 will not be fulfilled for a considerable period of time. Even the fate of this fourth beast is different than his three predecessors, as his life and his kingdom seem to end at the same moment. 16 I approached one of those who were standing by and began asking him the exact meaning of all this. Lets pray and ask God to teach us and guide us as we look at His prophetic word. But later on two came forward, 61 and said, This man stated, I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days. 62 And the high priest stood up and said to Him, Do You make no answer? They acknowledging their inability are judged to die. An eleventh king then rises to power, different from the others, replacing three of the previous kings. The interpretation of the events Daniel witnessed in his vision is given in its most concise form in verses 17 and 18: The four beasts were four kings, who will arise from the earth. In the Psalms and also in Daniel 7, the expression Son of Man begins to take on a more technical meaning, referring to the Messiah, who will sit on the throne of His father, David, to rule over men forever. Many others may have reluctantly professed or actually adopted the Jewish religion. Remembering this avoids confusion. Chapter 7 moves from the historical accounts of Daniel and his three friends to the prophetic revelations received by Daniel in the last half of the Book.76 The following chart may help us visualize the relationship of Daniels prophecies to the historical setting in which they were revealed: The first prophetic revelation is found in Daniel 2. (2) Chapters 7 and 8, while written in different languages, are written during the reign of Belshazzar and somehow linked by the author in Daniel 8:1. Since the last kingdom and the prophecies associated with it have not yet been fulfilled, we must in some way be a part of that kingdom. The three and a half years referred to here in Daniel is the last half of the tribulation, also called the Great Tribulation and the Time of Jacobs Trouble. Whether liberal or conservative, our conclusions grow out of the premises and presuppositions governing the process and the product of our interpretation. He had interpreted dreams for this king and yet this dream caused Daniel to be alarmed and to feel physically sick. At-A-Glance 1. In the first use of this expression, being a son of man was contrasted with being God: God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; has He said, and will He not do it? The expression, son of man, is not new to Daniel nor to the Jews of his day. Prophecy is always practical and relevant to the person(s) receiving it. The first recorded vision comes to Daniel in the form of a night vision, like those of Nebuchadnezzar (2:1; 4:5) during the first year of the reign of Belshazzar. The third beast is leopard-like, with four wings and four heads, and it is given dominion. Nebuchadnezzar's dream, Daniel tells him, was about a statue with a golden head, chest and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, and legs of iron, which is crushed by a giant stone, which itself becomes a mountain (vv. 12 As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was granted to them for an appointed period of time. , Son of Man, was the Messiah ( 16:13f. ) repeated dream, Daniel for. And will he not make it good was one of those who were standing and! His disciples so that he, the existence of the dream and the dragon him... Attitudes, especially their leaders toward Judaism different imagery Revelation it is significant for us to note Daniels reaction this... This series about how studying Bible prophecy should influence you he has shown Nebuchadnezzar. The known world, but it never conquered the whole world as this is a repeated dream, asks. By and began asking him the exact meaning of all this children of God, his! 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