Daniel 7
The Night Vision

Sea = the Gentile Nations

Out of the Sea Rises

Symbol

Meaning

Winged Lion

Babylon

Raised Bear: on one side and three ribs in its mouth

Medo-Persian Empire

Winged Leopard: moves so fast that it doesn’t touch the ground

Greece

Creature so dreadful it could not be likended to any animal

 

Ten head

Ten Kings

Treaty of Paris: 1951 effective January 1952

European Coal and Steal Community

Treaty of Rome: March 1957/effective in 1958

6 nations: Germany, Italy, France, Luxembourg, Belgium, Netherlands

European Economic Community ("Common Market")

Goals: 1. Customs union by 1970

2. Unity of the currency 1980

3. Unity politically in 1990

In 1968, all the objectives were achieved.

Early in 1970 Ford had 60,000 employees in Britain and 40,000 in Cologne. Over ½ of Ford’s assets were moved into Europe

Treaty of the "European Atomic Energy Community" was the merger of all three treats in 1967.

The European Parliament has some controls over monetary policies and international policies.

Court of Justice:

1965 France wanted to withdraw

1966 Italy wanted to withdraw

the International Court of Justice said no

That is the reason Sweden didn’t join the EC

January 1973 England & Denmark joined

World Federation in Rome

European Community in Brussels

Chronology of Daniel 7 –12:

chapter 7 occurs about 14 years before chapter 5

chapters 7 & 8 occur between 4 and 5

chapters 9-12 occur during the Persian Empire

Background:

  • Chapter 2: Nebuchadnezzar’s vision has 4 divisions in the image representing Gentile governments
  • Chapter 7: Daniel’s dream has 4 beasts representing Gentile governments: Babylonian, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome and the 2nd Coming is seen
  • Prevailing orthodoxy since the early church has held to the above 4 kingdom interpretation. It was only after Darwin and Rationalism (dissolving miracles) and higher criticism (textual criticism) arose in the 20th Century that there has been much dissent on this subject.

Jesus predicts the abomination of desolation as future. (Daniel 9:27, 11:31; 12:11 and Matt. 24:15)

Revelations prophecies parallel Daniel:

  • Rev. 13: the final stages of Daniel’s 4th empire – couldn’t possibly be before the 2nd century B. C. events
  • Daniel 9:26 occurs in Roman times
  • Critics alternatives can only be held if you resign to factual error where the alternative differs from Scripture.

verse 1.

In the first year of Belshazzar = Daniel was around 84 or 85 years old

"Sum of the Matters" = essential matters

2. "I saw" occurs 9 times means literally "I was beholding"

  • the great sea = the Mediterranean (Joshua 1:4; 9:1; 15:11, 12, 47; Ez. 47: 10, 15 etc. through 48) and means symbolically the Gentile nations in restlessness
  • Rev. 17:1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will show unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
  • Rev. 17:15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

Hosea 13:5-8 I did know thee in the wilderness, in the land of great drought.

6 According to their pasture, so were they filled; they were filled, and their heart was exalted; therefore have they forgotten me.

7 Therefore I will be unto them as a lion: as a leopard by the way will I observe them:

8 I will meet them as a bear that is bereaved of her whelps, and will rend the caul of their heart, and there will I devour them like a lion: the wild beast shall tear them.

This was written 300 years before....

3. 4 great beasts

4. Winged Lion: symbol of Babylon (King of the Beasts)

  • Jer 4: 7 The lion is come up from his thicket, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid waste, without an inhabitant.
  • Jer. 48:40 For thus saith the LORD; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab

 

  • Jer. 49:19 Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the swelling of Jordan against the habitation of the strong: but I will suddenly make him run away from her: and who is a chosen man, that I may appoint over her? for who is like me? and who will appoint me the time? and who is that shepherd that will stand before me?
    20 Therefore hear the counsel of the LORD, that he hath taken against Edom; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out: surely he shall make their habitations desolate with them.
    21 The earth is moved at the noise of their fall, at the cry the noise thereof was heard in the Red sea.
    22 Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle, and spread his wings over Bozrah: and at that day shall the heart of the mighty men of Edom be as the heart of a woman in her pangs..
  • Ezekiel 17:43 Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat.

A man’s heart is given to it = chapter 4

 

5. Bear: lower than the lion, slow and ponderous

  • Zerxes came with 2 ½ million against the Greeks. Raised up on one side = Persia. The 3 ribs in its mouth are the 3 major battles that made the kingdom (Eqypt, Babylon and Lydia) yet they conquered many more than this

The ruthlessness of the Persians:

Isaiah 13: 17 Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it.

18 Their bows also shall dash the young men to pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye shall not spare children.

6. Leopard or panther: swift/quick

four powers out of the Grecian Empire:

Asia Minor; Syria; Egypt; Macedonian

7. Indescribable: exceedingly strong; iron teeth

  • horn: a symbol of authority and power
  • verse 24 the 10 = 10 kings
  • little horn: begins little

8. I was considering: looking in amazing

a little horn

11th horn

3 of the first horns plucked up by the roots

eyes like a man

mouth speaking pompous words

9. "Ancient of Days" occurs three times

10. A thousand thousands = 1 million

  • ten thousand times ten thousand = 100 million
  • Rev. 5 John sees the throne of God in a similar picture verse 11 those worshipping are "100 million plus millions"

Can you picture the throne of God with millions of angelic beings

11. Rev. 20 Great white throne judgment

The Books

Rev. 5 John sees a scroll sealed with 7 seals with writing on the inside and outside of it... Jesus is worthy to take the scroll – the title dead to the earth. In chapter 10 the scroll (a little book) is opened...

Isaiah 65: 6 Behold, it is written before me: I will not keep silence, but will recompense, even recompense into their bosom,
7 Your iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together, saith the LORD, which have burned incense upon the mountains, and blasphemed me upon the hills: therefore will I measure their former work into their bosom.

Malachi 3:16 Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.
17 And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.

Revelation 20: 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

Return of Christ is seen 5 times in the Book of Daniel

Throne of God

Rev. 4: 2 And immediately I was in the spirit; and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.

3 And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.

4 And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.

5 And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.

6 And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind.

7 And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.

8 And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God

Isaiah 6

Ezekiel 1 & 10

Eagle

Ox Lion (Judah)

 

 

Man

  • Ephesians 1:10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
  • I Corinthians 15: 27 For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him.
    And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.
  • Phil. 2:10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
    And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Zech. 13, 14 Jerusalem does fall

11. I watched until the beast was slain

Parallel in Revelation 13

The purpose of Jesus coming was to redeem the earth and Man back to God. God commissioned Adam to take care of the earth and groom it but Adam followed Satan and turned from God.

Rom. 6: 16 Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey--whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?

World came under Satan’s control. e.g. Satan’s temptation: Matt. 4: 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me."

The world is in rebellion against God’s law... the dragon will give to the anti-christ (Rev. 13:2) all that he promised Jesus.

Another Parallel in Revelation 17