Daniel 7

Last Time

Daniel was Once Again Climbing the Ladder in a Foreign Kingdom’s Government

But His Peers Were Envious and Devised a Plan to Get Rid of Him

They Convinced King Darius to Throw Everyone Who Didn’t Pray Only to Him for the Next 30 Days in a Den of Lions

Daniel Refused to Budge on His Custom of Praying to God 3 Times a Day

Now He had to be Thrown into the Lions’ Den

Darius Didn’t Want to, but the Law Demanded it

Daniel was Protected by God from the Lions and His Accusers and Their Families Were Torn Apart by Them

Darius Gave Glory Throughout the Empire to Daniel’s God

Daniel 7

Now We are Getting into the Crazy Half of Daniel that We Might Normally Try to Avoid

Daniel Chapter 7 is Alluded to Several Times in the New Testament

It is One of the Most Important Chapters of the Old Testament

But it’s Also One of the Hardest Sections of the Old Testament to Understand

We Must Be Careful in Trying to Understand it Correctly and Completely

It’s Probably Not Going to Happen

We are Starting a New Genre of Literature in Daniel: Apocalyptic Literature

Other Places We Find Apocalyptic Literature in the Bible are:

Revelation

Parts of Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Zechariah

Apocalyptic = apokalypto = “to reveal”

It Gives Us Visions of the Future that Generate Hope in the Present

A Few Important Rules for Reading and Interpreting Apocalyptic Literature:

Don’t Force Literalness

God Both Reveals and Conceals in Apocalyptic Literature

It is Typically Written in Signs and Symbols

We are Supposed to Get the Basic Point but Not Every Detail

Don’t Be Dogmatic

Approach this Literature with Humility

If the Wise Daniel Couldn’t Figure Out a Lot of this Stuff Without God’s Help, then We Shouldn’t be so Dogmatic in Believing We’ve Got it Figured Out

Don’t Miss the Forest for the Trees

If We Get Bogged Down Trying to Decipher Every Symbol, We will End Up Missing the Whole Point

Maybe God Chose to Communicate Certain Things Through Visions, Rather than Speech, in Order to Arouse Our Emotions More than to Instruct Our Minds

We Need to Allow These Visions to Inspire Our Faith in the Future Triumph of God

Daniel 7:1 (NASB)

In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel saw a dream and visions in his mind as he lay on his bed; then he wrote the dream down and related the following summary of it.

This Took Place Sometime Between Chapters 4 & 5

Babylon was Around 10 Years Away from Falling to the Medo-Persians

Daniel is About to Have a Crazy Nightmare

Daniel 7:2–8 (NASB95)

Daniel said, “I was looking in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea. And four great beasts were coming up from the sea, different from one another.

The first was like a lion and had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man; a human mind also was given to it.

And behold, another beast, a second one, resembling a bear. And it was raised up on one side, and three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth; and thus they said to it, ‘Arise, devour much meat!’

After this I kept looking, and behold, another one, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird; the beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.

After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.

While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts.”

We See the Winds Stirring Up the Sea

To Ancient Near Eastern People, the Sea was Considered a Scary, Dangerous, and Evil Place

The Word for “Winds” Corresponds to the Word for “Spirit”

This Should Remind Us of the Spirit Hovering Over the Waters Preparing to Do Something Amazing in Genesis 1:2

God is in Control of Everything We are About to See

All of a Sudden 4 Mutant Hybrid Beasts Come Up Out of the Water 1 by 1

We Find Out Later that Each Represents a Kingdom that will Arise from the Earth

1.) A Lion-Like Creature with Eagle Wings Likely Represented Babylon

Numerous Depictions of Lions with Wings Have Been Found in the Ruins of Babylon

All of its Wings Were Plucked

It Began Losing it’s Amazing Power in its Final Decades

It Being Lifted Up and Given the Mind of a Human Reminds Us of Nebuchadnezzar’s Humiliation and Restoration by God

2.) A Bear-Like Creature Which Might Have Represented Medo-Persia

It Being Raised Up on One Side Might Refer to the Unequal Balance of Persia Over Media

The 3 Bones in its Mouth May Represent the 3 Kingdoms Cyrus First Conquered to Forge His Empire

Or 3 Could be Symbolic of the Greedy Appetite for Additional Conquests

3.) A Leopard-Like Creature with 4 Wings and 4 Heads Which Might Have Represented Alexander the Great’s Grecian Rule

After Alexander the Great’s Death (in Nebuchadnezzar’s Old Palace), His Kingdom was Divided Between His 4 Generals

4.) A Beast, Which Daniel Found More Terrifying than Any of the Others Combined, Came Out of the Water

He had No Natural Animals to Compare this Beast to

It had Iron Teeth and 10 Horns (Horns Represented Power and Here Represent Kings)

Then an 11th Little Horn Came Up with Eyes and a Mouth Speaking Greatly (Likely Representing a Man)

The Older View is that this Beast Represents Rome

Some Later Views Have Considered it to be Greece

I Believe that it Could Be Immediately Referring to Rome…

But Possibly to All Kingdoms that will Rise on the Earth as Well

Ultimately, it Doesn’t Matter to Understanding the Point of the Dream

Daniel 7:9–12 (NASB)

“I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His vesture was like white snow And the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames, Its wheels were a burning fire.

A river of fire was flowing And coming out from before Him; Thousands upon thousands were attending Him, And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him; The court sat, And the books were opened.

Then I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was slain, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire.

As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was granted to them for an appointed period of time.

Daniel then Sees God (the Ancient of Days) with Clothes and Hair of Bright White Sitting on His Throne of Fire

He had a River of Fire Flowing from Him and a Great Multitudes (People?) Were Standing Before Him

Then They All Sat When the Books Were Opened (Likely the Books of Revelation 20:12

Revelation 20:12 (NASB)

And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.

Then the 4th Beast with the Talking Horn was Killed and its Body was Burned with the Fire from the Throne

But the Other Beasts had Their Power and Authority Taken Away but Were Not Immediately Destroyed

Daniel 7:13–14 (NASB)

“I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him.

And to Him was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed.”

Then Daniel Saw One More Figure

This One was Coming from the Clouds of the Sky Instead of the Sea

It Wasn’t Like a Lion, Bear, Leopard, or Monster

It was Like a Human

This Human Went Up to God and was Given Power, Dominion, and a Kingdom so that All People of the World Could Serve Him

His Dominion Would Never be Taken Away, Unlike the Dominion of the Beasts

And His Kingdom will Never be Destroyed

I Think it is Abundantly Clear that Daniel is Seeing Jesus in this Vision

Jesus Would Call Himself by this Name (Son of Man) More than Any Other

There are Several Prophecies that Refer to God Riding on the Clouds Like a Chariot

Jesus Said He Would Do the Same on Mulitple Occasions as Well

Daniel was Very Disturbed by His Dream (Who Wouldn’t Be?)

He was Told in the Vision that the 4 Beasts Represented 4 Kings/Kingdoms

Daniel 7:18 (NASB)

‘But the saints of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, for all ages to come.’

This is Good News for Those Who Trust in God

But Daniel Can’t Stop Thinking About the 4th Beast and its Little Horn

Daniel 7:21–22 (NASB)

“I kept looking, and that horn was waging war with the saints and overpowering them until the Ancient of Days came and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom.

The Little Horn Persecuted the Saints of God for 3 1/2 Times

3 1/2 is Half of 7, Which is the Number for Completeness

The Saints will be Persecuted for an Incomplete Amount of Time

And Then God Judge in Favor of the Saints

Then the Beast will be Annihilated Forever

Daniel 7:27 (NASB)

‘Then the sovereignty, the dominion and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One; His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the dominions will serve and obey Him.’

After Daniel’s Revelation Ended, He Remained Very Alarmed and Afraid

Application

This was a Crazy Dream and a Wonderful Example of Apocalyptic Literature

In Looking at the Chapter, We’ve Been Looking at the Trees

Now it’s Time to Step Back and Look at the Forest

We Have Seen Throughout Daniel that God Establishes Governments

But Those Governments Have a Beastly Side to Them in that They Don’t Honor God

Instead They Often Seek to Honor Themselves as God

And Throughout History, Satan has Used Human Governments to Persecute, Attack, and Seek to Destroy God’s People

He Continues to Do So, But God will Cut Short the Days of Persecution of His People

And One Day His Human Son is Going to Come Back from the Sky Where He Ascended and He will Take the Power and Dominion Away from the Powers of this World

Then He will Reign with His Saints in an Everlasting Kingdom Filled with Righteousness and Justice

Satan, the Beastly Empires, and All Those Who Never Placed Their Trust in God will be Thrown into the Fire

What is it that We are to Gain from this Chapter?

Hope

We Know Whatever Persecutions, Injustices, or Trials that Come Our Way, King Jesus will One Day Put an End to

It’s Like Recording the Ballgame But Finding Out Your Team Won Before Being Able to Watch it

No Matter the Amount of Turnovers, Penaties, or Mistakes that are Made, You Know that Your Team will be Victorious

We Don’t Know the Specifics of All the Bad Things that are Going to Happen to Us in this Life…

But We Know We are Going to Win in the End

We are on Jesus’ Team, and He has Already Assured Us the Victory

All We Have to Do Now is:

Sit Back and be Amazed at God

Worship Before His Throne of Grace

Be Excited to be a Citizen of a Kingdom that Will Never End

And Anxiously Await Jesus’ Return Like a Child Waiting for Christmas Morning Fill Us with Joyful Expectation of Jesus’ Return…

Like a Child Waiting for Christmas Morning