Sermon Tone Analysis

Wenstrom Bible Ministries

Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom

Wednesday July 3, 2013

www.wenstrom.org

Daniel: Daniel 8:3-In His Vision, Daniel Saw a Ram with Two Horns with One Horn Longer Than the Other

Lesson # 231

Please turn in your Bibles to Daniel 8:1.

Daniel 8:1 During the third year of the reign of Belshazzar, the king, a vision appeared to me, I, Daniel after the one appearing to me previously. 2 Indeed, I was staring because of this vision.

Specifically, I myself was in a trance like state staring as I myself was in Susa, the citadel, which was in the province of Elam.

Furthermore, I was staring because of this vision as I myself was beside the Ulai Canal.

(Author’s translation)

Daniel 8:3 Then I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, a ram which had two horns was standing in front of the canal.

Now the two horns were long, but one was longer than the other, with the longer one coming up last.

(NASB95)

“Looked” is the first person masculine singular qal active imperfect form of the verb rā∙ʾā(h) (רָאָה) (raw-aw), which means “to stare” in the sense of steadily looking at something with studious attention and with openmouthed wonder and amazement.

It refers to Daniel looking at a prophetic revelatory vision with studious attention and with open mouth wonder and amazement.

“And behold” is composed of the conjunction wa (וְ) (waw), “and” which is followed by the interjection hin·nē(h) (הִנֵּה) (hin-nay´), “behold.”

The conjunction wa means “as” since it is used as a temporal marker relating points of time.

The two points of time are Daniel in a trance like state staring and the vision of a ram with two horns, with one longer than the other.

Therefore, this word indicates that “as” Daniel was in a trance like state, a ram with two horns appeared, with one horn longer than the other.

The interjection hin·nē(h) means “behold” since it is used as a discourse marker to introduce a description of a vision, implying emphasis.

Here the word is used to introduce with emphasis a description of a ram which appeared to Daniel in the vision which possessed two horns, with one horn longer than the other.

It draws the attention of the reader in order to mark that what Daniel saw was impressive and astounding to him.

“A ram” is composed of the masculine singular noun ʾǎ·yil (אַיִל) (ah´-yil), “ram” which is modified by the masculine singular form of the cardinal number ʾě∙ḥāḏ (אֶחָד) (ekh-aw), “a.”

The noun ʾǎ·yil means “ram” referring to a mature male sheep.

This word is modified by the cardinal number ʾě∙ḥāḏ, which means “a” since it is functioning as an indefinite article.

Therefore Daniel is telling us with these two words that in the vision he was staring in a trance like state as behold “a ram” appeared.

Daniel 8:3 Then, I lifted up my eyes and then I was staring as behold a ram was standing in front of the canal with it possessing two horns.

Furthermore, the two horns were long.

However, one was longer than the other with the longer one growing up last.

(My translation)

After describing that he received a vision from God during the third year of Belshazzar’s reign and then identifying himself as being located in the fortified city of Susa in the province of Elam beside the Ulai Canal, Daniel informs the reader that as he was in a trance like state staring he saw a ram.

This ram possessed two long horns.

However, one was longer than the other with the longer of the two coming up after the shorter one.

In Daniel 8:20, the elect archangel Gabriel identifies this ram as representing the kings/kingdoms of Media and Persia.

Therefore, this ram corresponds to the silver arms and chest of the statue in the vision God gave Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel chapter two as well as the second beast which resembled a bear in Daniel chapter seven.

The fact that the ram had one horn longer than the other corresponds to the second beast raised up to one side in Daniel 7:5, which represents the fact that the kingdom of Persia would become more dominant over the kingdom of Media.

Interestingly Keil writes that “The ram was especially important for the Persians.

The guardian spirit of the Persian Empire was portrayed as a ram.

When the Persian king went into into battle, he carried the head of a ram.

Also Cumont writes that in the ancient world different zodiac signs represented various nations.

Aries, the ram, stood for Persia, and Capricorn (Latin caper, goat, and cornu, horn) was Greece.”

The Medo-Persian Empire was founded by Cyrus, who started out as the king of Anshan in Persia.

He fused the Iranian tribes into a great military machine.

He married the daughter of the king of Media and added Media to his empire.

Then, the Medo-Persian army conquered the Babylonians in 539 B.C.

Under Cryus, they defeated the Babylonian army outside the city of Babylon.

In Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, the arms of silver represented two distinct nations, namely, Media and Persia that together defeated Babylon.

Although the Medo-Persia Empire lasted over 200 years (539-330 B.C.) longer than the Neo-Babylonian Empire of 87 years (626-539), the Medo-Persian Empire was inferior to it, as silver is compared with gold.

History confirms that the Medo-Persian Empire, and the empire of Alexander which followed, lacked the central authority and fine organization which characterized the Babylonian Empire, thus the Babylonian Empire was greater.

Daniel 2:39 contains two statements.

The first records Daniel telling Nebuchadnezzar that after his kingdom there will arise another kingdom which will be inferior to his kingdom.

Since Daniel told the king at the end of Daniel 2:38 that he was the head of gold of the statue in his dream, this second kingdom is represented by the silver arms and chest of the statue.

History records that this part of the statue represented the Medo-Persian Empire.

It was inferior since it lacked the inner unity of Babylon because the Medes and the Persians, though united, never fused into one people.

Since the metals of the statue decrease in value but increase in strength, the silver arms and chest of the statue indicate that the character of authority in rulership of the Media-Persian Empire was superior to the third and fourth kingdoms, which history records were Greece and Rome respectively and inferior to only Babylon.

However, its power or strength was superior to Babylon but inferior to Greece and Rome.