Daniel 8

A Ram, a Goat, and a Little Horn

Daniel 8:19-26

Throughout history the Jewish people are one of the most fascinating nationalities in the world. They have survived unbelievable atrocities-holocaust after holocaust, as one tyrant leader after another has tried to exterminate them.

Throughout their history this tiny little nation has been conquered again and again and its people have been exiled all over the world. Yet the nation of Israel has survived!! How is that possible? Only by the supernatural power of God.

You see thousands of years ago God made a promise to Abraham that through him the whole world would be blessed. And that promise came true, because it was through the nation of Israel that we received the Word of God. It was through the Jewish people we received the Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us in John 4:22, “that salvation comes from the Jews.”

And although most of the Jewish people fail to follow Christ today, there is a remnant of genuine believers. And because of that remnant God has protected the Jewish nation from extinction, and He always will because of the promise He made to Abraham and his descendants.

In the book of Daniel, Jerusalem had been destroyed. The Jews were living as exiles in Babylon. They had lost everything;. They had lost their homes, cities, nation, even Solomon’s temple, the place they worshipped God had been burned to the ground and destroyed.

Worst of all, their fathers, husbands, and sons had been killed in the battle. The survivors were living as slaves in a foreign land. They were gripped with a spirit of fear and hopelessness. There future was dark and oppressive. They wondered how they would ever survive as people much less become a nation again.

So, the Jewish people needed a word of encouragement and assurance from God, and they received it through Daniel’s visions. In fact, the remainder of the book of Daniel focuses on the Jewish people. We know that because the remainder of the book is written in Hebrew.

This is Daniel’s vision of the ram, the goat, and the little horn; A prophecy of the Greek conquest of the Medo-Persia empire, and the horrible atrocities committed by a man named Antiochus Epiphanes.

Antiochus was a forerunner of the Antichrist. He came before the first coming of Jesus. He desecrated the temple and persecuted God’s people. In the same way, in the last days the antichrist will come and do it again just before the return of Christ.

What we see is; God warning us through scripture of terrible times of oppression to come but assures us He will ultimately destroy the oppressor. (Read Daniel 8:19-26)

( The Bible reads) He said, “Behold, I am going to let you know what will occur at the final period of the indignation, for it pertains to the appointed time of the end.

20 “The ram which you saw with the two horns represents the kings of Media and Persia.

21 “The shaggy goat represents the kingdom of Greece, and the large horn that is between his eyes is the first king.

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.

23 “In the latter period of their rule,

When the transgressors have run their course,

A king will arise,

Insolent and skilled in intrigue.

24 “His power will be mighty, but not by his ownpower,

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.

26 “The vision of the evenings and mornings

Which has been told is true;

But keep the vision secret,

For it pertains to many days in the future.” (pray)

Last Sunday we studied Daniel chapter seven, and we got a panoramic view of the beastly leaders and nations that would rise to power throughout the history of the world. We saw that period climax in the last days with the rise of the antichrist, The judgment of God, and the return of Jesus.

Well, Daniel chapter eight gives us a more focused view of two of those kingdoms. and this time the events climax with the rise of Antiochus IV, also known as Epiphanies. All of this took place before the first coming of Christ and serves as an example for us of what to expect in the future.

We are going to look at this chapter in two parts: First, we will see the vision, Vs. 1-14 and then we will see the explanation Vs. 15-27.

The first thing I want you to see in this passage is the vision, but specifically, the when and where of the vision, and you will see that in Vs. 1-2. In Vs. 1 We are told Daniel’s vision takes place in the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar. in Vs. 2 we see that Daniel was in Susa the citadel when this vision takes place.

That means this event happened two years after what we read in chapter 7. Babylon was still the dominant world power. Belshazzar and his father were still new to the throne. This was probably sometime around 550 BC. Daniel has been captive in Babylon for 55 years now.

It’s important we understand that Daniel’s vision takes place a long way from home. Susa was over two hundred miles east of Babylon, in modern day Iran. It was under the authority of the Elamites at the time. So, Daniel was not physically in Susa but was transported there in the Spirit, similar to the way John was transported to heaven in the book of Revelation.

But why Susa? Because Susa was going to be the capitol of the Medo- Persia empire. They were going to conquer Babylon and become the next world power. If you remember Susa was the place where Queen Esther lived, and the events of her life played out nearly 80 years later. Also, this was the home of Nehemiah when he became troubled in his spirit about the report he receives from Jerusalem.

All of this took place in Susa 100 years after what we are reading in Daniel. So, Susa is an important place not only on the world stage but to the Jewish people in particular.

Then notice the ram of Daniel’s vision. The first thing he sees is this lopsided Ram. It had two horns on its head that were uneven. That means one was higher and mightier than the other. We know this ram had incredible power because it was able to charge in different directions. We’re told that no one could resist his power.

We know this Ram is the Medes and the Persians because we are told that in Vs. 20. However, the ram was not going to remain king of the hill for long, no one ever does, there is always someone bigger that comes along. This time it comes in the form of a goat.

Daniel’s goat comes charging out of the west in Vs. 5, and it appeared as though it wasn’t even touching the ground. In other words, this goat was moving fast. It had one horn on its head, like a unicorn, and we’re told the whole earth felt its fury.

This was an unstoppable goat. It was like some kind of MMA fighter, able to ground and pound the ram into the dirt.

But notice even as powerful as this goat was, it vulnerable. Look at Vs. 8, “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.” That tells us at the height of this nation’s power something happened to its king, and the kingdom was divided into four parts.

Then we are introduced to the little horn in Vs. 9, and we want to be careful here. Even though some of the language is similar to the previous chapter, the little horn of Daniel chapter 8 is not the same as the little horn of chapter 7.

Look at Vs. 9-12, “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. 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. It (little horn) even magnified itself to be equal with the Commander of the host; and it removed the regular sacrifice from Him, (commander of the host) and the place of His sanctuary was thrown down. 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.”

At this point Daniel doesn’t fully understand what he is seeing. However, he can start to make the connection that this is about his people. The beautiful land is a reference to Jerusalem, and the host of heaven is a reference to God’s people. They are worshipping and sacrificing at a newly rebuilt temple. Then this little horn begins to throw them down. In other words, he begins to persecute God’s people.

So, Daniel’s vision is both a blessing and a burden to him, because on the one hand he could see his people. They were at home, they were in a rebuilt temple, worshiping God, but on the other hand he was witnessing an incredible persecution that was to come.

Thankfully, Daniel also heard that the persecution wasn’t going to last for long. Notice Vs. 13-14, “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?” He said to me, “For 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the holy place will be properly restored.”

In other words, for three and a half years. So, we are reminded once again that God is in control. The common theme throughout the book of Daniel is that God has the power to raise up kings and kingdoms and God has the power to bring them down. There is only one kingdom that will rise and will not fall and that is the kingdom of God.

That is the assurance we have while living in this world, whether it is a time of peace or of oppressive government authority, God is in control. No matter what we face, no matter what’s going on in the world, God’s people will prevail.

Revelation 3:21, Jesus said, “He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.”

The next thing I want you to see in this passage is the explanation of the vision, Vs. 15-27. Here Daniel tells us what God has told him about this vision.

Notice Vs. 15, Daniel seeks to understand it, he wanted to know what it meant. Notice, before he can even ask God, God has anticipated his need, and commanded the angel Gabriel to make known to Daniel. As the angel appears before Daniel, Daniel is overwhelmed. At one point he just collapses and the angel touches him and raises him up.

Then the angel makes an important statement about this vision I want you to see. Vs. 17. He says, “Son of man, understand that the vision pertains to the time of the end.” And then again, look at Vs. 19 he says, “Behold, I am going to let you know what will occur at the final period of the indignation, for it pertains to the appointed time of the end.”

So, twice we are told this has to do with the time of the end, so we know this is an interpretive key. This is supposed to help us understand what this vision means. However, in many ways it doesn’t really help us because now we must ask, what does he mean by the time of the end?

Scholars have debated this for years. Some believe Chapter seven and chapter eight describe the same thing, because both chapters describe the rise of a little horn who will persecute God’s people. However, I don’t believe these are the same people, because there are a lot of differences in the details given to us.

For example, 1. The little horn of chapter seven rises out of the fourth empire on the world stage, the Roman empire. Meanwhile, we only have two kingdoms mentioned in chapter eight and clearly the little horn rises from the Greek empire. I mean God tells us that in Vs. 21, “The shaggy goat represents the kingdom of Greece.” So, most commentators agree with me, these are not the same people.

2. And probably the most compelling, the little horn of chapter seven meets his demise at the judgment throne of God and the second coming of Christ. Meanwhile here in chapter eight, notice Vs. 14. It says, “He said to me, “For 2300 evenings and mornings then the holy place will be properly restored.” So, when you come to the end of time described in Daniel chapter eight the sanctuary is restored to its rightful state. We don’t see the arrival of the everlasting kingdom of God.

So, we understand this ruler of chapter eight not to be the final man of sin we know as the antichrist, but to be a man named Antiochus Epiphanes who historically rose from the Grecian empire, when the empire was divided up into four regions. Antiochus committed all sorts of atrocities against the Jewish people. In 167 BC he took over Jerusalem, desecrated the temple, and killed thousands of God’s people. And we know historically when his life ended, Judas Maccabeus made sure the sanctuary was restored to its rightful place.

So, when Daniel chapter eight refers to the “time of the end,” I believe it is talking about the end of an era. The end of the Greek empire and not the end of the world. These are two different times and two different horns.

And we must ask ourselves why would God do that? Why would He talk about a little horn in chapter seven that is not the same as the little horn in chapter eight? I believe this second little horn serves as a type. What I mean is Antiochus Epiphanes gives us a picture of what the antichrist will be like.

In fact, I believe God has allowed us to see many examples of the antichrist throughout history. We have seen many men who were blood thirsty and power-hungry rise to power on the world stage. Men like Napoleon, Stalin, and Hitler, would be rulers and dictators that give us a picture of who the antichrist will be.

Now, I pray I explained that in a way that you understand. I’m not sure I completely understand it. One thing I love about preaching through books of the Bible is it forces us to discuss difficult passages. This is a passage that most people probably avoid.

Then God gives us some of the most staggering prophecy in the Bible. In Vs. 20-21 he calls out these two nations by name. He tells us The Medes and Persians and the Greeks who would rise to power in years to come. He gives us incredible details of what would take place within these kingdoms, in some cases hundreds of years before it happens.

For example, notice the interpretation of the goat in Vs. 21-23, “The shaggy goat represents the kingdom of Greece, and the large horn that is between his eyes is the first king.” 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. In the latter period of their rule, when the transgressors have run their course, a king will arise, insolent and skilled in intrigue.”

We have already talked about this. We know who the first king of Greece was. This is a reference to Alexander the Great. Even though Alexanders father, “Philip” was considered the ruler, Alexander is considered the first king. We know historically, after his death, at age 33, the kingdom was divided into four regions. That’s the reference here to the four horns that rose in its place. This is spectacular. Remember Daniel is writing this in the sixth century BC. This wouldn’t happen for four hundred years.

It's during that period, notice Vs. 23, “In the latter period of their rule.” That is when Antiochus shows up on the scene. That’s why I believe the angels reference to the “time of the end” is referring to the end of the Greek empire, and not the end of the world. That’s the time being prophesied about.

But the question is, why would God allow his people to suffer persecution under a maniac dictator like Antiochus? Notice Vs. 19, It says, “Behold I am going to let you know what will occur at the final period of the indignation.” This is a reference to God’s indignation toward His people. They had turned their backs on God and continued to live in sin.

And the point of this prophecy is to show them that even though they were going home, and they were going to be restored in the promise land, God’s judgment was not complete. They were not free to go on continuing to sin against God in the future.

Then I want you to notice God’s mercy in this passage, because as bad as things were going to be under the rule of Antiochus, God was only going to allow it for so long.

Notice the end of Vs. 25, “He will oppose the Prince of princes, but he will be broken without human agency.” In other words, God was going to bring him down. Antiochus didn’t die in battle as some great leader, but we learn from the book of Second Maccabees that he fell from a chariot and was left to die in the street. God destroyed the oppressor of His people.

Herschel Hobbs tells the story of being raised on a small farm in Alabama. He said, one hot summer day, as an eleven-year-old boy, He was working in a corn field next to his neighbor’s farm. He said, “I was overjoyed when I saw dark clouds coming. I knew if it started rained, I could go home!

And the rain did come. It rained on the neighbor’s field, right up to the fence. But only a few drops fell. So, he had to keep working.

He said, I learned a lesson that day that has helped me through all the storms of life. And that is, storm clouds come, and storm clouds go. They always end somewhere.

And the same thing is true in our life today. We live in a world where storm clouds are coming. We live in a world where transgressions are growing. Many of you wonder how long God will allow it to continue. We don’t know for sure, we know there is a time of judgment coming.

The Bible tells us mankind will be living just like they did in the days of Noah, and the Son of God will return like a thief in the night. Well in the days of Noah the sin of mankind was so great, it grieved the heart of God. I can’t help but wonder what He sees when He looks out at our world today.

The good news is there is a remnant of true believers in the world, and God provided a means of salvation for them. He sent His Son to die on a cross so we could be saved. So that we could be forgiven and spend eternity with God in heaven.

That’s His promise. He promises that even though perilous times are coming, He is still in control of it all. And just like this warning in the book of Daniel, God warns us today of terrible times of oppression to come, but He assures us He will ultimately destroy the oppressor.