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Daniel 7 (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.”

 

REFLECTION:

1. Daniel received a vision in the first year of Belshazzar, which was about 553 BC. He realized that the message of this vision was foretelling the future, so he wrote down the content of the dream (1) and became the revelation of the time and the present.
2. After Daniel saw the vision, his reaction was like Nebuchadnezzar, panic and sorrow. He cared about the ultimate meaning of the vision, especially the ferocious fourth beast. Although he knew that the beast had a small horn and would defeat the saints, and God will stop it at the right time; however, Daniel was not satisfied with this, and he still found a messenger to explain to him and to learn more. It can be seen that Daniel has the dedication to pursue spiritual things.
3. The four beasts represent four countries, the same as the four parts of the image in Chapter 2. Because the people of Israel often turned their backs on God, He raised up Gentile kings to rule them in different times, so that they could seek the Lord of salvation in their sufferings. The shapes of the four beasts are different: the first beast represents Babylon; the second beast represents Medes-Persia; the third beast represents Greece; the fourth beast can represent Rome. The fourth beast is a representative of fierce, powerful, and destructive power. It has ten horns, and a small horn grows later, but its power is greater than other horns; many scholars believe that the small horn is a type of the Antichrist.
4. The description of the fourth beast is more detailed than 7:7-8. It mentions that the saint’s shall be given into his hand for “a time, times, and half a time.” This is a symbolic number, not necessarily means a year, a month, a ten-day or a day, ultimately this is the time set by the Most High. We only know that the second period is twice the time of the first period, but the third period is shorter than the second period, only half of the first period. It is obvious that God shortened the suffering time of the saints here. He wants to destroy and exterminate the horns, but He wants to give the kingdom and authority to the His holy people, and they want to obey and serve Him.

 

PRAYER:

Pray for God to increase your faith and hold on to the hope of eternal life. No matter how the world’s political power changes or how severe the persecution of the Antichrist is, your will to follow the Lord will not be shaken. Pray for God to give you a desire to know the Lord, a deeper understanding of God’s Word, and let the Holy Spirit remind you to be a victorious Christian.