HIS KINGDOM STANDS

Introduction

-In 1945 Eric Arthur Blair (aka George Orwell) wrote Animal Farm, a condemnation of oppressive society expressed in a witty & sweeping indictment of totalitarianism, particularly communism—describes a farm in which the animals take over. Sadly their inner nature wins out and the whole project ends in chaos. Considering the strength of communism in 1945, Orwell comes across as somewhat of a prophet, especially considering not long after he wrote 1984 with Big Brother.

-Orwell was not the first to represent empires and world power as animals. God did that with a vision that He gave to Daniel in Daniel 7. Daniel saw a turbulent sea out of which four beasts emerge one after another. Then the vision changes scenes and Daniel is taken to heaven where the Ancient of Days is holding court and judges these beasts. But then another figure, like the son of man—human but more than human—appears before the throne and is given an everlasting kingdom. This vision is too much for Daniel to take in and understand, so he seeks some help. And in the portion we look at today, we get a little bit more of the meaning of what he saw.

Daniel 7:15–28 ESV

15 “As for me, Daniel, my spirit within me was anxious, and the visions of my head alarmed me. 16 I approached one of those who stood there and asked him the truth concerning all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of the things. 17 ‘These four great beasts are four kings who shall arise out of the earth. 18 But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, forever and ever.’ 19 “Then I desired to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the rest, exceedingly terrifying, with its teeth of iron and claws of bronze, and which devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet, 20 and about the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn that came up and before which three of them fell, the horn that had eyes and a mouth that spoke great things, and that seemed greater than its companions. 21 As I looked, this horn made war with the saints and prevailed over them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given for the saints of the Most High, and the time came when the saints possessed the kingdom. 23 “Thus he said: ‘As for the fourth beast, there shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all the kingdoms, and it shall devour the whole earth, and trample it down, and break it to pieces. 24 As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise, and another shall arise after them; he shall be different from the former ones, and shall put down three kings. 25 He shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and shall think to change the times and the law; and they shall be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time. 26 But the court shall sit in judgment, and his dominion shall be taken away, to be consumed and destroyed to the end. 27 And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; his kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.’ 28 “Here is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly alarmed me, and my color changed, but I kept the matter in my heart.”

-Daniel is troubled by this vision of earthly chaos and heavenly judgment, not knowing what it all mean for his people. He is especially intrigued by the fourth beast with 10 horns and an arrogant, loud-mouthed 11th horn. Daniel approaches one of the angelic beings amongst the multitude in the heavenly courtroom scene and asks for an explanation of everything that he seen. The angel first gives a summary followed by some more detail that is still hard to decipher some 2500+ years later.

-The four beasts are four kingdoms that will rule the land (and, more specifically, have some sort of rule in Israel). But Daniel is not to worry that these beastly empires will have control forever, because God’s kingdom will eventually fully take over and exist forever. God will give this kingdom to His saints, to His people. God’s people will possess a kingdom and the one like a son of man, but more than human, will be its king. From our perspective it is easy to understand that part to mean Jesus and the kingdom that came through Him. That kingdom was initiated at Christ’s first coming, is continuing to grow, and will come to completion at Christ’s second coming.

-But I find it interesting that the kingdom, for now, is spiritual. The beasts represented earthly kingdoms, and so the kingdom of the son of man might also be expected to be earthly. And I think in Jesus’ day that was the expectation. The first century Jews knew the vision given to Daniel. They may have connected the beasts to the four kingdoms that ruled their land for a time—Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and then Rome. Believing Rome to be the fourth beast (which it probably is), the Jews may have thought that God’s kingdom would be earthly and defeat the fourth beast at that time. This may be part of the reason that Messianic fever was running rampant. And then here comes Jesus saying amazing things and doing amazing miracles, and in their mind it was time for the eternal kingdom of God to destroy the earthly kingdoms / beasts through military might and set up an earthly Israeli kingdom immediately. If you think about it, this was still on the minds of the disciples even after Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection.

Acts 1:6–8 ESV

6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 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.”

-Jesus was going to destroy the fourth beast and rule, but not in the way they thought at the time they thought. His kingdom would grow through the advancement of the gospel—the fulfillment of the Great Commission. The Roman empire would eventually fall as all earthly empires will. But now His kingdom advances and it is still advancing and there is nothing that can stop it—it is a kingdom that will literally last forever. Jesus’ kingdom did not originate in the chaotic sea of the earth like the kingdoms of the beasts. Even Jesus said:

John 18:36 ESV

36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.”

-Jesus’ kingdom was given to Him by the Ancient of Days—it is heavenly and divine. And it will conquer and outlast any empire or government that comes from man. The Ancient of Days is sitting on the throne and judging the governments of the earth and they are all found wanting. Specifically, those four beasts, those four kingdoms, are judged and will be destroyed.

-But Daniel is still thinking about that fourth beast because it was not like any of the other beasts. He knows there is something significant about that beast and that 11th horn with the big mouth. The angel reveals that the fourth beast will devour and take over much of the known world. In v. 23 where it says that it will devour the whole earth it does not necessarily mean that it would take over the globe as we know it. In Daniel’s context it meant the area specifically where he was located—the fourth beast would devour that Ancient Near East area along with most of the surrounding areas (Europe, Asia, Africa).

-The ten horns are ten kings that are a part of the beast, but the little horn grows and overtakes three of the kings. This little horn speaks blaspheme against God, makes war against God’s people, he changes times and laws (meaning he changes the religious ordinances and feasts which would be especially significant for the Jews, and the saints are given over to his power for a time, times, and half a time. That phrase is very vague. Some think it means 3 1/2 years, others believe it is not a specific amount of time but just speaks of an extended period. But the fourth beast and the little horn will not last forever, they will be judged. That is a lot to take in, but what does it all mean? There are several different options and views that I will share and that I want you to prayerfully consider and study for yourself.

-Some scholars believe that the four kingdoms represent Babylon, Media, Persia, and Greece, with Greece being the fourth beast. The little horn represents Antiochus Epiphanes who greatly persecuted the Jews. In fact, there was a time that lasted about 3 1/2 years (~168-165 BC) that he desecrated the temple (putting a statue of Zeus in it and sacrificing to said statue), forbidding Jewish feasts, etc. Much of what he did sounds like what is described here. However, that just doesn’t seem to fit the description or the timeline. Christ did not come and set up the kingdom during this period, and the third beast with its four wings and four heads sounds too much like what happened within the Greco-Macedonian empire.

-The premillennial view believes that the 10 horns represent 10 kingdoms in a revived Roman Empire. The little horn is the Antichrist that arises within that empire and he takes out 3 kings or kingdoms that stand against him. The Antichrist makes a 7 year truce with Israel, in the midst of which he turns against them and persecutes them for 3 1/2 years until Christ returns. This Antichrist will require worship, speak great things against God, even set up worship within a rebuilt Jewish temple. The problem being how do you account for a break in time between the third and fourth beast or how do you explain some sort of split in the fourth beast when nothing of the sort is indicated.

-Another view believes the fourth beast is the Roman Empire with the 10 horns being 10 Caesars, with the little horn being Vespasian or Titus (some even say Nero). Vespasian was emperor and Titus (his son and general) at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem where they warred against the Jews for 3 1/2 years (from AD 67 until the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70). With the destruction of the city and the temple, there was a disruption of the feast and laws of the Jews (and they still are to this day). Since the Romans did not make much of a distinction between Jews and Christians both were persecuted by the Romans. The problem with this view is figuring out how the Caesars fit the number of horns.

-In whatever way the fourth beast is meant, the vision was given to be an encouragement to God’s people. The earthly empirical beasts will set themselves against God, His Christ, and His chosen people, but they will not ultimately prevail. Yes, they may have their way for a time, but it is limited. And these beasts have spiritual powers behind them, but even these rebellious spirits have a limited amount of time. Our battle is not just against flesh and blood, but against rulers and authorities and powers of this dark world and against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. But even they are judged and they will receive their sentence.

-But if I have received the Messiah, if I have believe in Jesus, I am part of His kingdom and I will not ultimately be overcome.

Daniel The Message of the Vision

The result of his sacrifice, though, is that whatever now faces me in this life—whether death or life, angels or monsters, dictators or demons—nothing in all creation can separate me from the love of God in Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:38–39). If God is my judge and the Son of Man is my savior, then let the world do its worst. Ultimately, the world has no power to hurt me, and I know that after the world has done its worst, God will welcome me into his very best. The Lord has a glorious inheritance stored up for me, along with all of the saints, a kingdom that is mine by grace alone, through faith in Christ alone. There is a day coming when the beasts will all be gone and only the saints will remain.

So when you feel the beasts surrounding you and their hot breath closing in upon you, look upward and onward. Look up to your Judge; look up to your Savior; look onward to your glorious inheritance.

Lessons: (1) No human power can or will overcome God’s plans, purposes, & kingdom; (2) believers can always have hope that no kingdom on earth or spiritual will overcome them because greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world; (3) Present sadness pales in comparison to eternal joy; (4) God’s timings are for Him to know alone, and for us to trust they will happen; (5) Live like Jesus can come any minute, and when He does we know that His kingdom will stand for eternity