Daniel 7:1-14: Son of Man (Part I)
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Review and Summary of Daniel Thus far
Structure
Theme verse:
He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding;
Summary statement
The book of Daniel is a plea for God’s people to be faithful as God exercises his authority over the nations.
Introduction
Shift in genre in the book from through to apocalyptic literature rather than narrative. I think the ground work that we’ve laid for the book will help provide color for our understanding of chapters 7-12. While there is a style change the structure has not. Chapters 7,8, and 9 correspond with chapter 2 and chapters 10, 11, and 12 correspond with chapter 1. While we are getting more detail in the form of prophetic visions many of the previous themes and topics from earlier in the book will be addressed. This is true for us in chapter 7. is an important chapter not just in Daniel but in all of scripture. Jesus refers to himself as the “son of man” often and this is a reference back to and . In short, the son of man is the promised old testament redeemer of Israel. If you can find him then you’ll find salvation.
Difficulty of apocalyptic literature.
Typical Trouble
Overly symbolic or overly spiritual
Overly futuristic or overly historical
Message that forgets this was written to a specific group of people in a point in time.
“crises literature”
Run like the wind.
I love you to the moon and back
Think of apocalyptic as the ugly picture on your fridge from your kid. A friend comes over and looks at it and asks you “What is this?” And you respond, “My kid drew it for me.” Your friend will likely come to the conclusion that the picture was drawn by the child because the child loves the parent.
Difficulty of from a literary standpoint
Shifts from Apocalyptic to poetry back to apocalyptic.
Look at the formatting in your ESV. It looks Psalm or Proverb-ish for verses 9-10, 13-14, and 23-27. (Greidanus, 205)
Last Aramaic chapter, going back to 2:4
Outline of
Setting (v1)
Trouble with timing.
We’re going backwards to get additional detail.
Where in the bible do we go backwards in time to get additional detail?
These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground,
“no man to work the ground” - but God had already created man previously in day 6.
Timing actually goes back to Babylonian rule. In the previous chapter we have Daniel likely in his 80s now we see the visions of a young 60 year old Daniel.
Timing actually goes back to Babylonian rule. In the previous chapter we have Daniel likely in his 80s now we see the visions of a young 60 year old Daniel.
Why does the timeline jump backwards? - to bring this story to the reader’s attention.
It is a literary structure for the reader to recall Genesis 2.
What happens in ?
Summary level: get additional details of day 6.
No filling yet…(5-6)
Man formed (7)
Garden planted (8)
Covenant of Works (9)
A water source (river) that yields 4 more (10-14)
Man put in the garden to work and keep (15)
Covenant of works (16-17)
Not beasts suitable for man (18-20)
Woman formed (21-23)
Earth filled with people (24-25)
And Daniel was there until the first year of King Cyrus.
In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his spirit was troubled, and his sleep left him.
What happened in ?
What happened in Daniel 2?
Scene 1: Night Visions: Three Beasts (2-6)
What do we see? A great sea
A Great Sea
Four beasts from out of the sea.
Different from one another.
What do we see in ?
A great image:
“You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. This image, mighty and of exceeding brightness, stood before you, and its appearance was frightening.
What do we see in ?
and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground—
What does the sea represent? Death
First beast
What is the first beast? Lion with eagles wings.
Lion with eagles wings
What was given to it? Mind of a man
Mind of a man.
“it was lifted” up and made to stand like a man.
Mind of man given to it.
Who is the first beast? Babylon
Babylon.
Nebuchadnezzar is a lion (described elsewhere as a lion) who has his lionness taken away and is given back his mind.
and into whose hand he has given, wherever they dwell, the children of man, the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heavens, making you rule over them all—you are the head of gold.
Second beast
What is the second beast? Bear
Bear
What was given to the second beast? Instructions
What are those instructions?
Devour much flesh.
Elisha and the she-bears in 2 Kings 2.
Who is the second beast? We aren’t told yet.
We aren’t told yet.
Third beast
What is the third beast? Leopard.
Leopard
What was given to the third beast? Dominion.
Dominion
Who is the third beast? We aren’t told yet.
We aren’t told yet.
Scene 2: Night Visions: Fourth Beast (7-12)
Fourth Beast
What is the fourth beast? ???
Not identified as an animal like the others.
Unique
Horns
10 - symbolic of perfection or completness
Sign of strength
11th horn - a little horn
up roots 3 other horns.
Eyes like a man
Mouth speaking great things
What was given to the fourth beast? A fiery death.
A fiery death.
Who is the fourth beast? We aren’t told yet.
We aren’t told yet.
Ancient of Days (v9-10)
What is the Ancient of Days? Not a beast nor a man
We’ll find out later that he is also not a man.
Not a beast.
The beasts come from a pit (“a great sea”), the Ancient of Days is without origin.
What was given to the Ancient of Days? Nothing.
What does the Ancient of Days take?
A seat.
He is reigning and ruling over these beasts. In fact,
Dominion.
Who is the Ancient of Days? God
What does the a
Scene 3: Night Visions: (13-14)
What is the son of man? A man.
A man.
Where does man come from? The dirt.
How can a man, come before the Ancient of Days?
Notice
What was given to the son of man? Everlasting dominion
All peoples serve him.
Who is the son of man? Jesus!
Application
Was there ever a human being who ascended before the Ancient of Days and received an everlasting kingdom?
So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”