Sermon Tone Analysis

Rejoice in the Lord's sovereignty Daniel 7

I. Anticipatory set

A. A lifetime fighting "the bear"

B. Iran possibly acquiring nuclear weapons

C. N. Korea possessing nuclear weapons

June: North Korea says it has a stockpile of nuclear weapons and is building more, even as it discusses a return to six-party talks on its nuclear program.

D. China

A number of lawmakers, former ambassadors and foreign policy experts who testified in a Washington hearing late last month asserted that the United States needs to wise up to the fact that China plans to become a superpower militarily, economically and politically — by any means necessary.

E. Jihad

LAHORE, Pakistan — Each year, thousands of Pakistani children learn from history books that Jews are tightfisted moneylenders and Christians are vengeful conquerors.

One textbook tells kids they should be willing to die as martyrs for Islam.

II.

Setting the stage for learning

A. Questions

1.

When was Daniel written?

2. Who was the author originally writing to?

3. What was the author's original purpose?

4. What does this passage mean to us?

B. Finding truth

1. Historical context

2. Internal consistency

3. External consistency

4. Literary context

5. Textual analysis

C. How to apply apocalyptic in our day

1.

Be reserved and cautious

2. Remember we are dealing with truth, not precision

3. Be careful of numerical interpretation

4. Imagine yourself among those who heard this message for the first time

D. Background

1. Apocalyptic literature

"Apocalyptic" comes from the Greek word apokalypsis, meaning "revelation."

a) The truth hidden in plain sight

·          We think of apocalyptic literature as being strange and mysterious.

And yet there is a tension here…

·          It is meant to "reveal" something to its readers

·          IMPORTANCE to us: We should look for the meaning to be revealed.

·          See section on finding truth

b) "...truly and accurately, but not precisely"

Longman, p. 178

"It is a travesty, then, to interpret apocalyptic images too finely, to press them for details" (p.

178).

c) Power and drama

"...Because the original readers had a more immediate understanding of these images, the feelings would be more potent and natural in them" (p.

178).

d) Different from "prophesy"

"Whereas the classic prophetic mode of communication is direct from God to the seer, apocalyptic literature reports a more indirect mode of communication" (p.

180).

Written rather than spoken.

e) An "uncovering"

"The term 'apocalypse" literally means 'uncovering' or 'revelation'" (Traina, p. 71).

2. How is the book organized?

<see chart>

3. Themes

Longman, p. 178-9

a) Horror of human evil

b) Time table for deliverance announced

c) Repentance that leads to deliverance

d) Cosmic war as behind human conflict

e) Certainty of new life for God's people

III.

Text

A. Daniel 7: 1-8 Horror by the sea

1.

The sea as chaos and a source of dread

In broader mythology of the Near East the sea was something to be feared.

It's ability to destroy made it a "potent symbol of chaos, indeed of destructive evil" (Longman, p. 181).

"It was a threatening force that was ranged against the beneficial forces of creation" (Longman, p. 182).

a) Psalm 18:15

15 The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare at your rebuke, O LORD, at the blast of breath from your nostrils.

b) Job 7:12

2 Am I the sea, or the monster of the deep,  that you put me under guard?

c) Jeremiah 5:22

Should you not fear me?” declares the LORD.

“Should you not tremble in my presence?

I made the sand a boundary for the sea,

an everlasting barrier it cannot cross.

The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail;

they may roar, but they cannot cross it.

d) Nahum 1:4

He rebukes the sea and dries it up;

e) Isaiah 27:1

In that day, the LORD will punish with his sword, his fierce, great and powerful sword, Leviathan he gliding serpent, Leviathan the coiling serpent; he will slay the monster of the sea.

2. The beasts

"The beasts are like none to be found in God's creation" (Longman, p. 183).

By their nature they are designed to evoke horror and revulsion.

"...an organized plurality of sinners" (Longman, p. 196).

a) Background

(1) Interpretations

Four kingdoms:

·          Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome

·          Babylon, Media, Persia, Greece

Longman argues the weakness of this view lies in the fact that v13 and v18 have not yet been fulfilled.

(2) Alternative

"...Though the vision begins with the Babylonian empire, its multi-valent imagery intends to prohibit definite historical identifications with the remaining three beasts.

Rather the fourfold pattern simply imforms us that evil kingdoms will succeed one another (at least seemingly) until the end of time" (p.

184).

b) 1st beast: Lion with eagles wings that becomes a man

it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a man, and the heart of a man was given to it.

This is clearly a reference to Nebuchadnezzar therefore this beast refers to Babylonia (see Daniel 4).

c) 2nd beast: Bear eating ribs and flesh

Numerous arguments about what the three ribs represent.

We cannot definitively interpret this.

d) 3rd beast: Winged leopard with four heads

Perhaps Persian army and the four kings of Persia.