The Book of Daniel - part 9

Daniel 8 : What Has Been and What Will Be

As we begin today, we should note a change in the book of Daniel. Chapter 8 marks the point when Daniel returns to the Hebrew language. Because of this change, we must be careful with our interpretation of the following chapters. Where the previous chapters would be stories given for the wide audience of Babylon and Persia, the rest of the book is reserved for God’s people.

I also want to note at the outset this chapter is the primary reason many scholars wish to give the book of Daniel a later date of second century BC. The prophecies in this chapter get fairly specific, and when we look back in history, it’s fairly easy to figure out how much of it was fulfilled. As we read, I will point out a couple of fuzzy spots, however what separates this chapter from previous visions and dreams is the fact we are on the other side of these prophecies, making their meaning fairly clear.

The Ram, The Goat, and the Abominable King : Daniel 8:1-14 

In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first. 2 And I saw in the vision; and when I saw, I was in Susa the citadel, which is in the province of Elam. And I saw in the vision, and I was at the Ulai canal. 3 I raised my eyes and saw, and behold, a ram standing on the bank of the canal. It had two horns, and both horns were high, but one was higher than the other, and the higher one came up last. 4 I saw the ram charging westward and northward and southward. No beast could stand before him, and there was no one who could rescue from his power. He did as he pleased and became great. 5 As I was considering, behold, a male goat came from the west across the face of the whole earth, without touching the ground. And the goat had a conspicuous horn between his eyes. 6 He came to the ram with the two horns, which I had seen standing on the bank of the canal, and he ran at him in his powerful wrath. 7 I saw him come close to the ram, and he was enraged against him and struck the ram and broke his two horns. And the ram had no power to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground and trampled on him. And there was no one who could rescue the ram from his power. 8 Then the goat became exceedingly great, but when he was strong, the great horn was broken, and instead of it there came up four conspicuous horns toward the four winds of heaven. 9 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 It grew great, even to the host of heaven. And some of the host and some of the stars it threw down to the ground and trampled on them. 11 It became great, even as great as the Prince of the host. And the regular burnt offering was taken away from him, and the place of his sanctuary was overthrown. 12 And a host will be given over to it together with the regular burnt offering because of transgression, and it will throw truth to the ground, and it will act and prosper. 13 Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to the one who spoke, “For how long is the vision concerning the regular burnt offering, the transgression that makes desolate, and the giving over of the sanctuary and host to be trampled underfoot?” 14 And he said to me, “For 2,300 evenings and mornings. Then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state.”

1-4 - Persia, the ram with two horns

As before Daniel receives a vision from God, however note that this vision does not come in his dreams. He is in a trance of sorts, possibly during a time of meditation and prayer. His location at the Ulai canal is more for reference of the ram’s origin than anything else. This ram charges to the west, to the north, and to the south. As he charged about, no other beast could stop him, and he became something great.

Verse 20 tells us this ram is the Medo-Persian empire. The two horns represent the two kings of the two nations. Media began as the stronger power, but when Cyrus took the throne over Persia, he consolidated the two kingdoms fully, and his empire would stretch from the eastern side of Greece to the western parts of India and into Egypt. Cyrus is the horn which grew second, but longer.

5-8 - Greece, the goat who flew

During Persia’s conquests it failed to conquer Greece on numerous occasions. However, about 330 BC, Alexander the Great took the throne over Macedon and consolidated the Greek city-states. In the next ten years, he conquered the eastern side of the Mediterranean, including Egypt and Persia. He extremely swift conquest makes him the goat that flew into the ram and demolished the Persian empire. He also setup several cities with his name on them, and spread the Greek culture creating the Hellenist Age. 

Verse 8 describes this king growing great, but when it was strong, it broke. Alexander certainly conquered the known world, however at the height of his power, and in the middle of his prime, he grew sick and died at the age of 32. His sons were killed before they could take the throne, and so after much in-fighting, the Greek empire was divided into four kingdoms, which are the four little horns that grow in the great horn’s place. 

9-14 - the four kingdoms and the abominable king

Now, from one of these four horns grows a little horn which grows exceedingly great. It even grows to the host of heaven and is able to throw down some of the stars. Later verses will explain who and what this little horn represents, however take note: this horn grows so great that it is able to accomplish the unbelievable for any faithful Jewish person. He is able to assault heaven itself. He takes away the daily sacrifice.

In verses 13-14, Daniel hears the question asked, “How long?” How long will this boastful horn trample upon the people of God? The answer is 2300 evenings and mornings until the sanctuary is restored. 

A Prophecy Fulfilled : Daniel 8:15-27

15 When I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I sought to understand it. And behold, 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, and it called, “Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.” 17 So he came near where I stood. And when he came, I was frightened and fell on my face. But he said to me, “Understand, O son of man, that the vision is for the time of the end.” 18 And when he had spoken to me, I fell into a deep sleep with my face to the ground. But he touched me and made me stand up. 19 He said, “Behold, I will make known to you what shall be at the latter end of the indignation, for it refers to the appointed time of the end. 20 As for the ram that you saw with the two horns, these are the kings of Media and Persia. 21 And the goat is the king of Greece. And the great horn between his eyes is the first king. 22 As for the horn that was broken, in place of which four others arose, four kingdoms shall arise from his nation, but not with his power. 23 And at the latter end of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their limit, a king of bold face, one who understands riddles, shall arise. 24 His power shall be great—but not by his own power; and he shall cause fearful destruction and shall succeed in what he does, and destroy mighty men and the people who are the saints. 25 By his cunning he shall make deceit prosper under his hand, and in his own mind he shall become great. Without warning he shall destroy many. And he shall even rise up against the Prince of princes, and he shall be broken—but by no human hand. 26 The vision of the evenings and the mornings that has been told is true, but seal up the vision, for it refers to many days from now.” 27 And I, Daniel, was overcome and lay sick for some days. Then I rose and went about the king's business, but I was appalled by the vision and did not understand it.

15-17 - Gabriel brings wisdom

Only three angels are given names in the Bible, and one of those is if you have a Catholic Bible. Gabriel makes his first appearance in the Bible as the angel who explains the vision to Daniel. 

Now, verse 17 presents us with a fuzzy phrase—“Understand, O son of man, that the vision is for the time of the end.” Later in verse 26, he will tell Daniel to seal up the vision, because it refers to “many days from now”. Because of this phrase, and because the vision is very similar to chapter 7, some have taken this to mean chapter 8 refers to an end time that has not yet occurred. However, as I stated before, this particular prophecy has unfolded. Its similarity with future prophecies, such as found in 1 Thessalonians and Revelation, however presents another possibly that I will discuss momentarily.

18-27 - the vision unfolds

Daniel is exhausted by this vision. However, Gabriel restores Daniel’s strength and reveals what is to come. He names the kingdoms of the ram and goat, and tells Daniel it concerns the “end of the indignation.” 

The following verses correspond to the horrific reign of Antiochus IV. 

Antiochus IV came from the Seleucid kingdom, one of the four kingdoms of Greece. He took the throne and began a campaign to solidify the Seleucid Empire’s hold in Greece. At its height, the Seleucid Empire consisted of what was once Persia and much of the Greek Empire Alexander held. The Israelites remained a captive people throughout this time, though for the most part they were able to live as they had during their days of freedom. Antiochus IV reversed this trend by enacting a series of persecutions against them. So great was his crimes against the Jews, the Jewish people revolted in what has been chronicled in the Maccabees of the Apocrypha. 

Just as Daniel predicted here in chapter 8, Antiochus grew so arrogant that he considered himself equal to God—his title “Antiochus IV Epiphanes” means “Antiochus IV ‘God Manifest’”. Likewise, he trampled the Temple, and though it was not destroyed, it was gutted of all its sacred ornaments. Then, to make his sin even greater, he made the daily sacrifices outlawed and erected an altar to Zeus inside the Temple of God.

These blasphemous actions were supposedly justified in the eyes of the Greeks, and in many modern scholars’ eyes, because the Jewish people were in the midst of a civil war. Now, it is true that many Jewish people had fought with each other concerning how Greek many had become. Some had even gone so far as to worship the Greek gods. Thus, when verse 23 states “when the transgressors have reached their limit”, it could be interpreted as either the sins committed by the oppressive army or the sins committed by the Israelites themselves. 

In either case, the reason Antiochus was able to overthrow even the “stars of heaven” is because the Israelites had wandered from their Lord. Here, I will state that many believe these stars represent the Jewish people. His assault on the Temple is an assault on “even the Prince of princes” in verse 27. 

How long does Antiochus continue his reign of terror against Jerusalem and the people of God? According to Daniel’s vision, it would be 2300 days. And, as we look in the annals of history, lo and behold, from the time the High Priest Onias III is assassinated by Antiochus sympathizers until the Temple is restored and rededicated, is just shy of 7 years, or 2300 days. The fuller story is quite amazing, and should you get your hands on the First and Second Maccabees, you can read it. You will also find the origins of the Jewish festival, Chanukah. 

Truth for Today

This prophecy and its historical reality gives us a few principles I want to leave you with today.

1) When the Lord says something is going to happen…that something is going to happen!

It is telling that many who deny the supernatural power of God point to this chapter as reasoning for giving Daniel a much later date than its writing. Before Persia rises against Babylon, in the third year of Balshazzar, Daniel receives this vision which foretells of a coming clash and Greece’s rise.

2) Understanding God’s Word requires Divine Assistance.

Daniel receives this vision, but does not understand it. God sends His messenger Gabriel to tell Daniel the meaning behind the vision. Today, if you see an angel giving you divine messages, some will call you crazy…and probably justifiably so. But, we don’t need angels to tell us God’s message, because God has given us His Word. Jesus came to reveal the nature, love and grace of our Lord, and He gives us His Holy Spirit so that we can know what we need to know in this life. As we open our Bibles, if we come to an area, such as Daniel 8, that is confusing, we can pray for guidance to help us interpret it.

3) Understanding God’s Word prepares us for what is coming.

It is no coincidence that many in our society today are confused, scared, and troubled about events in the world around us. Even in local churches, many do not understand the times we are in. But, for those who have studied, those who understand that God has already revealed what is to come, we do not need to be afraid. God’s Word has told us what to expect in this life, and in the life to come. In fact, I mentioned before the “fuzzy phrase” of “time of the end.” It is fuzzy because Jesus prophesied while teaching His disciples, and revealed to John on the Isle of Patmos, that another would rise up who sounds much like Antiochus IV. 

Daniel 8 is undoubtedly about Antiochus IV, but there is coming another who will be just as boastful, just as arrogant, and will also appear at the end of this age. Antiochus IV came during the time between testaments. He appeared when darkness covered God’s people, and Israel was split between those who continued to follow the Lord as prescribed by the Torah, and those who forsook the Torah in favor of Greek idols. After his demise, a short time passed, and then the Son of Man appeared. Jesus came at the end of the kingdom of Greece and the beginning of the Roman. 

Jesus’ appearance marks the end of the Jewish Age. The last vestiges of Judaism, as representing the people of God, were removed in 70 AD when the Temple of Jerusalem was destroyed. The Jewish leaders who denied Christ was the Messiah, also failed to understand that time of the end of their era had come. 

We are now in the next age of this earth. Jesus the Messiah has come. He died on a cross and rose on the third day ushering in the kingdom of heaven for all who will believe. But, He also told us that another age is coming. At the end of the age we are in now, another boastful leader will arise who considers himself greater than the Lord. And this leader will once again bring persecution to God’s people. But, we are also told that during this time, judgement will come upon him, and he will be cast into hell, along with Satan and death itself. Because at the end of this age, Jesus will return, gather His people, and then cleanse this earth of sin itself. The earth will be remade and heaven will come down. There will be a new heaven and new earth in which Jesus reigns and all God’s people will live eternally with Him. 

But we are also told that only those who have trusted in Jesus, asked for forgiveness of sin, and received eternal life will have a place in the new earth.