At the Corner of Broadway and Babylon - 9

At the Corner of Broadway and Babylon - 9

Daniel 8:1 - 12:13

Introduction

Elizabeth Gilbert, famous author of Eat, Pray, Love, has recently articulated a central paradox of human existence…we are blessed with the ability to adapt quickly to almost any circumstance, yet cursed with high levels of anxiety about change. In theory, our ability to adapt should cancel out the anxiety, but it simply doesn’t work like that. While the Lord has wired us to adapt quickly to change, that doesn’t mean he has wired us to like it.

The world around us is speeding up. The pace of change, especially regarding technology, is mind-boggling. For example, an organization called Visual Capitalists monitors how long it takes society to adapt to new technologies. They measure by how long it takes 50 million people to adopt a new technology:

- airplanes - 68 years

- cars - 62 years

- television - 22 years

- cell phones - 12 years

- Facebook - 3 years

- Pokemon Go - 19 days

With a pace of change that is exponentially increasing, so goes the epidemic of anxiety and stress. We grow frantic and busy. We get cranky and overwhelmed. And with no end in sight for this pace of change, how do we find stability? Since we cannot ever fully unplug or go live in a cave, we must find a way toward greater stability, something more foundational.

TS - this was the challenge for Daniel. He’s been through so much. At age 16, a foreign army invaded and defeated his nation. Since Daniel was a member of the royal family, he was kidnapped and exiled to Babylon, the capital of the invading empire. There, he resolved to be faithful to the Lord, regardless of context or consequence. God blessed. Daniel rose up through the ranks, almost losing his life multiple times. He has been lied about, set up to fail, stabbed in the back by coworkers…yet he continued to honor the Lord.

After faithfully preaching truth to King Nebuchadnezzar over the years, the king finally saw the light. He converts and places his trust in the one, true God. I’m sure the years after that were a bit easier for the exiles like Daniel. Their king shared their faith. But then Nebuchadnezzar dies and is replaced by his pitiful and pagan grandson Belshazzar. After 15 years of his terrible reign, after grievously offending God, he is killed and the empire is destroyed. Now, the Persians are taking over. A new culture. A new worldview. New religions. New false gods. New kings.

But Daniel adapts. His new king, Darius, sees the potential in him and promotes him through the ranks in Persia. It has been a crazy life for Daniel. He’s been in exile for almost 70 years. He is now in his eighties. His homeland still lies in ruins. He cannot worship God at the temple because it is a heap of rubble. His people are trying to figure out how God can bring good out of this mess they’ve endured for decades.

God continues to speak to Daniel in a series of visions that are designed to bring that stability he was starving for. Daniel has already been through so much change, he needs to know what God is up to. So God gives him visions of the future. Knowing what is to come will certainly alleviate the stress.

In chapter 7, Daniel’s vision is of the eternal ruler to come. He will settle all the mess. In chapters 8-12, which we are going to look at from a 30,000 foot view today, contain the final 3 visions, not about the eternal king, but about the eternal kingdom. And though Daniel and his people have been through much change already, it’s about to get far worse. Their pace of change is going to increase exponentially in the coming centuries.

Before we jump into the text, let me again remind you that these chapters are a genre of literature called ‘apocalyptic.’ They are full of symbolism and metaphor. The numbers are symbolic, not literal. But they convey the reality of what is to come for Daniel and his people, and how God is going to work in the coming centuries after all they’ve endured.

Daniel 8:1-8 - 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.

This vision is partly a repeat of the vision from chapter 7 and from chapter 2. After all that Daniel has endured, he is still serving in Babylon under Belshazzar. But devastation is coming. The ram with two horns is the Medo-Persian Empire. One horn is higher because the Persians were stronger than the Medes. The empire will come and upend the way of life for the entire known world. We have to deal with stuff like this on a limited scale every 4 or 8 years when a new President is elected. Changes in policy, tax structure, etc. That is stressful enough and frustrating enough. When empires changes, it is the whole world that has to do that. New policies. New kings. New gods to worship. If you were a friend to the king before and enjoyed the perks that come with that, you are now an enemy to the new king with all the risks that come with that.

But, it won’t stay like that for long. Though the ram is in power now, the goat is coming. This is Greece. Alexander the Great, the one horn, comes and overpowers the ram. The Greeks will introduce another new king, more new policies, a pantheon of gods to worship. The entire deck reshuffles one more time. The entire world is shaken to its core.

But it won’t stay like that for long. The great horn is broken, Alexander dies of Malaria at age 32 and his kingdom is divided into four new kingdoms, each run by his four military generals. The deck reshuffles again. Two of those kings become more powerful and more popular than the others. Ptolemy, who rules in the South (Egypt) and Seleucid who rules in the North (Syria). If you are familiar with world history, or Greek history at all, then you know that these two names are highly critical on the world’s stage. Things go well for awhile, but eventually they start warring with one another.

Here is why this is important for us to know…before the Greeks even took over, King Cyrus of Persia decreed for the Jews to go back home from exile. So they leave Babylon and head back home to Jerusalem. They rebuild the walls under the leadership of Ezra the priest and Nehemiah the builder (both of whom have books written by them in your OT). Though they are back at home rebuilding the city and the temple, they are still under Persian rule. Cyrus didn’t reestablish national Israel. He knew that if the locals went back home then that area of his empire would flourish like never before. The Jews are just pawns in their empire building. Now, the Jews are under the rule of the Greeks. They continue to be pawns in the new empire.

Daniel 11:2-6 - 2 “And now I will show you the truth. Behold, three more kings shall arise in Persia, and a fourth shall be far richer than all of them. And when he has become strong through his riches, he shall stir up all against the kingdom of Greece. 3 Then a mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion and do as he wills. 4 And as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom shall be broken and divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not to his posterity, nor according to the authority with which he ruled, for his kingdom shall be plucked up and go to others besides these.

5 “Then the king of the south shall be strong, but one of his princes shall be stronger than he and shall rule, and his authority shall be a great authority. 6 After some years they shall make an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement. But she shall not retain the strength of her arm, and he and his arm shall not endure, but she shall be given up, and her attendants, he who fathered her, and he who supported her in those times.

The angel is revealing all this to Daniel. Persia will reign for awhile, but the Greeks will come and then be divided into the four kingdoms. And the king in the north and the king in the south will war. The rest of chapter 11 continues the warring of the Ptolemies and the Seleucids. If you compare ancient Greek history with Daniel 11, it is shockingly accurate. The Jews may think it is bad for them in Babylon and that the answer is to go home…not the case at all. Once home, they will be caught in the middle of these wars. You see, the Ptolemies rule in the South in Egypt. The Seleucids rule in the North in Syria. Do you know what is in between those two places? Israel! This would be like if Canada and Mexico were at constant war for decades and we couldn’t defend ourselves. What would happen to Americans? We would be shot, bombed, killed, confused for the enemy. Our economy would be devastated. It would be the worst things we have ever experienced. That is what the Jews have to deal with.

But it won’t stay like this for long. It is going to get worse. That was just four kings who were warring. From this point in history until this madness stops in the middle of the second-century BC (just a couple hundred years), there are 40 different kings that rise and fall among these Greek kingdoms. These monumental changes happen over and over and over again. Thing go from bad to worse. But they are going to get “worser.” Back to the vision from chapter eight and the four horns of the Greek kingdoms.

Daniel 8:9-14 - 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.”

One of these four kingdoms will become more powerful and will begin to persecute God’s people. Instead of the Jews being pawns in these wars, they will become the target. This is a direct reference to Antiochus IV Epiphanies, the Seleucid king who reigns from 175-164BC, 11 years of Hell for the Jews. Antiochus banned circumcision, ended sacrifices at the temple, burned copies of the Scriptures, and killed thousands of them. In one attack alone, he killed 80,000 Jews.

What he is known for, however, is what Daniel refers to as “the transgression that makes desolate.” You may know it better as the “abomination that causes desolation,” what Jesus referred to in Matthew 24. Antiochus sacrificed a pig on the altar in the temple and sprayed pig’s blood everywhere, defiling the entire temple. He also placed a sacred object to Zeus inside the Holy of Holies. He places himself against even the Lord. Why would he do such a thing? Because he thinks he is a god. Epiphanies was not his last name, it was a nickname. Epiphany means ‘manifest’ or ‘revealed.’ On the coins they used under his reign, next to his image, was two words: theos epiphanies. God manifest. God revealed. He believes he is god on the Earth.

These events cause an event we are a bit more familiar with. A Jewish priest at the time, Mattathias, was grieved over what had been done. He and his 5 sons lead a revolt to conquer Antiochus and reestablish Jewish rule. They succeed. In 164BC, one of the sons of Mattathias, named Judas Maccabeus, upon their victory in the Maccabean revolt, will cleanse the temple and reestablish God’s rule over it. This happens on December 14, 164BC. It is celebrated every year by the Jews…we know it as Hanukkah. This is a fulfillment of Daniel 8:14 that the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful condition.

What a terrible history, right? All that change. All that turmoil. In chapter 12, Daniel will finally ask the question we all want to know the answer to…how long until that madness ends?

Daniel 12:1-3 - “At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.

A time of ‘great trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time’ is coming. Hadn’t they already been through that? No. Rome is still to come after Greece. And if it was bad under the Greeks, it is worse under Rome. But…as chapter 2 promised, and as chapter 7 promised…it is during the days of the Roman Empire when God will settle this mess. God himself will establish a new kingdom. Not a kingdom of national borders or political policy. But a kingdom of grace that will supersede all the nations of the world, and be comprised of people from all the nations of the world.

In this kingdom, God’s eternal kingdom, there will be forgiveness for the sins of his people. 12:1 says “your people shall be delivered.” That’s a salvation term. The sin that had caused all this devastation among God’s people, the sin that separates us from him, will be erased in God’s kingdom.

Colossians 1:13-23a - 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard…

Not only will God forgive sin in his kingdom, he will raise the dead. Daniel 12:2 says that ‘many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life…’ In the kingdoms of men, there is so much death and destruction. There is only one way for one kingdom to take over another one…they kill the first one. And then for another empire to come along, they kill that one. And then another. And then another. The kingdoms of men are defined by death. God’s kingdom is defined by life. So not only will God redeem, he will resurrect.

Ephesians 2:1-7 - And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

There is so much change in the world. There is so much death in the world. Kingdoms rise and fall. Rulers come and go. And we have to deal with all that every single day. It is exhausting. It is confusing. It is frustrating. We need stability. We crave stability. How do we get that? We take God up on his offer to enter into his eternal kingdom. A kingdom that is defined by redemption and resurrection. We hope in the kingdom to come. In fact Jesus told us to pray for its coming…Matthew 6:9-10 - Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

This is the prayer to pray every single day. Pray for the eternal kingdom to come. Long for the eternal kingdom to come. Because it is coming. God showed Daniel the future and it brought stability. Knowing the future always does. God has done the same for us. Here is the future. Here is our hope.

Revelation 11:15 - 15 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”