Daniel s Vision of A Ram and A Goat Message 11 in Daniel Sermon Series Daniel 8:1-27 (NKJV)

Transcription

1 Message for THE LORD S DAY MORNING, July 29, 2012 MESSAGE 11 in Daniel Sermon Series ( Back To The Future ) Christian Hope Church of Christ, Plymouth, North Carolina by Reggie A. Braziel, Minister Daniel s Vision of A Ram and A Goat Message 11 in Daniel Sermon Series Daniel 8:1-27 (NKJV) As we continue with our series of messages from the Book of Daniel I would ask you to please open your Bibles to Daniel chapter eight. This eighth chapter contains the second vision that was given to Daniel. An important change of focus is indicated in the original language of Daniel s book. -Daniel 1:1 - Daniel 2:3 was written in Hebrew, the language of the Jewish captives who had been carried to Babylon. -Daniel 2:4 -the end of Daniel 7 was written in Aramaic, the common language of the Babylonians of that day. This tells us that the message of chapters 2-7 is intended to be heard by not only the people of Israel, but also by those of us living in Gentile nations. -Now in chapter 8 through the end of the Book of Daniel, Daniel returns to writing in the Hebrew language, indicating that the focus of these final chapters is on Israel, as God reveals to the captive Jewish people what their future will be. Before we get into today s message, let s ask God s blessings on our study of His Word this morning. P R A Y E R ********************************************************************

2 As we go now to our scripture text, I would have you to notice first of all. I. The CIRCUMSTANCE of Daniel s Second Vision (vs. 1,2) Daniel 8:1 (NKJV) 1 In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me to me, Daniel after the one that appeared to me the first time. 2 I saw in the vision, and it so happened while I was looking, that I was in Shushan, the citadel, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision that I was by the River Ulai. 1. In these opening verses of Daniel 8, Daniel tells us two things in regards to this vision. (A) First, Daniel tells us WHEN he received the vision. You probably noticed Daniel introduces this second vision the same way he introduced his first vision in Daniel 7. Daniel s first vision, the one of The Four Beasts occurred in the first year of Belshazzar s reign as king of Babylon in 553 B.C. This second vision in Daniel 8 occurred TWO years later, in the third year of Belshazzar s reign, which would be in 551 B.C. (B) Secondly, Daniel tells us WHERE he received the vision. We see this in verse 2. Now it is important to understand Daniel was still in Babylon when he received this vision, but in the vision itself Daniel sees himself in a place called Sushan. Sushan, also known as Susa, was located about 250 miles east of Babylon and 120 miles north of the Persian gulf. It is very interesting that at the time Daniel had this vision, Sushan was nothing. But remember Daniel is seeing the future. In time Sushan would become the capitol city of the Mede-Persian Empire.

3 You notice Daniel says in his vision he was by the River Ulai. This too is interesting. In Daniel s time Ulai was nothing more than a 900 foot wide canal. But as Daniel looks into the future this canal has become a mighty river upon which one day Alexander the Great and his troops would sail. So this vision we are about to look at was given to Daniel two years after the vision of The Four Beasts. And in this vision Daniel sees himself 250 miles away from where he was physically. Now as we move on to verses 3-14 we see.. II. The CONTENT of Daniel s Second Vision (vs. 3-14) First of all.. (A) Daniel sees the ANIMALS. (vs. 3-5) Daniel 8:3-5 (NKJV) 3 Then I lifted my eyes and saw, and there, standing beside the river, was a ram which had two horns, and the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher one came up last. 4 I saw the ram pushing westward, northward, and southward, so that no animal could withstand him; nor was there any that could deliver from his hand, but he did according to his will and became great. 5 And as I was considering, suddenly a male goat came from the west, across the surface of the whole earth, without touching the ground; and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes. By this point in our study of Daniel I m sure you have learned that when you read about an animal it isn t referring to a literal animal, but rather the animal represents a particular nation or kingdom.

4 The Ram with the two horns, one higher than the other, represents the MEDE-PERSIAN empire. This is the third way we have seen the Mede-Persian empire pictured in the Book of Daniel. Remember in Nebuchadnezzar s dream in Daniel 2, the Mede-Persian empire was represented by the chest and arms of silver on the giant image. And in Daniel s vision of the four beasts in Daniel 7, the Mede- Persian empire was symbolized by the bear that was raised up on one side with three ribs in its mouth. Now in Daniel 8, the Mede-Persian empire is symbolized by a RAM. Of course the higher horn of the two symbolizes the PERSIANS which were more powerful than the Medes. Notice THE RAM pushed westward, northward, and southward, but not eastward. This lines up with the historical accounts of the direction the Mede-Persian empire grew. She pushed WESTWARD and conquered such lands as Babylon, Mesopotamia, Syria and Asia Minor. She pushed NORTHWARD and conquered such nations as Armenia, Iberia and the nations bordering the Caspian Sea. And she pushed SOUTHWARD and conquered such lands as Israel, Ethiopia, Egypt and Libya. But she conquered no lands to her east. But just as Daniel was contemplating the Ram, another animal appears in his vision. The other animal is THE GOAT. The goat represents the GREEK empire. This is the third different symbol we have seen for the Greek empire in the Book of Daniel. Remember Nebuchadnezzar s dream in Daniel 2 the Greek empire had been symbolized by the belly and thighs of bronze. And in Daniel s vision of the four beasts in Daniel 7 the Greek empire was symbolized by the leopard with four heads and four wings on its back. Now in Daniel 8, the Greek empire is symbolized by this GOAT. The Greeks were known throughout ancient history as the GOAT people. (not a particularly flattering title is it?) Many of the coins of ancient Greece bore the symbol of a goat. Bronze figures of goats were placed in and around Greek government buildings and palaces.

5 Pay particular attention to two details regarding this goat in the latter part of VERSE 5: One, that the goat came from the west across the whole earth without touching the ground; and two, that it had a very noticeable horn between its eyes. I will tell you more about these features in a little bit. So in his vision, Daniel sees A RAM with one horn higher than the other, symbolizing the Mede-Persian empire. And he sees A GOAT with a notable horn right between its eyes, symbolizing the Greek empire. Moving on to verses 6 and 7. (B) Daniel sees the ATTACK (vs. 6-7) Daniel 8:6,7 (NKJV) 6 Then he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing beside the river, and ran at him with furious power. 7 And I saw him confronting the ram; he was moved with rage against him, attacked the ram, and broke his two horns. There was no power in the ram to withstand him, but he cast him down to the ground and trampled him; and there was no one that could deliver the ram from his hand. I m sure you have seen those nature shows on TV where two animals viciously butt heads with each other. Gives me a headache just thinking about it. In Daniel s vision the GOAT attacks the RAM.Greece attacks Mede-Persia. And the fact the goat came from the west clear across the earth without touching the ground tells us the GOAT, THE GREEK ARMY was overwhelmingly more powerful than THE RAM, THE MEDE-PERSIAN ARMY and won a decisive victory. Now what about that notable horn between the goat s eyes? That notable horn was ALEXANDER the GREAT, the commander of the Greek Army and the first king of the Greek empire. (verse 21)

6 As a side note, let me say this about the Mede-Persians before we move on. Perhaps the most important thing the Mede-Persians did from a prophetic standpoint is they allowed the Jewish people who had been taken into Babylonian captivity to return to their native land of Israel. Only about 102,000 Jews chose to go home, while the rest dispersed throughout the other nations of the world. So in this vision, DANIEL SEES THE ANIMALS. (Ram & Goat) Then he sees THE ATTACK. (Goat attacking and defeating the Ram.) Thirdly. (C) Daniel sees the ABOMINATION (vs. 8-14) Daniel 8:8-14 (NKJV) 8 Therefore the male goat grew very great; but when he became strong, the large horn was broken, and in place of it four notable ones came up toward the four winds of heaven. 9 And out of one of them came a little horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Glorious Land. 10 And it grew up to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and some of the stars to the ground, and trampled them. 11 He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down. 12 Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground. He did all this and prospered. 13 Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was speaking, How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled underfoot? 14 And he said to me, For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.

7 Let me draw your attention to the first part of verse Therefore the male goat grew very great; but when he became strong, the large horn was broken, We must keep in mind everything Daniel is seeing in this vision is in the future. Daniel would already be dead before these prophetic events were fulfilled. In his vision, Daniel sees that after defeating the Mede- Persians, the Greeks would go on to conquer many other nations and grow stronger and stronger and eventually become the third Gentile empire. (Babylonians-the first empire; Mede-Persians-the second empire; and the GREEK EMPIRE would be the next great power.) But in his vision, Daniel sees the large horn was broken. What Daniel is seeing here is the death of Alexander the Great. We learned earlier in our study that Alexander the Great died in the prime of his life at the young age of thirty three. His death is still a mystery. What would happen to the Greek Empire after Alexander s death? In the latter part of VERSE 8, Daniel sees four other notable horns come up in place of the large horn. These four notable horns were Alexander s military generals who divided the Greek empire up into four territories, with each of them ruling over a territory. Gabriel explains this in his interpretation of this vision in VERSE 22. General Cassander would take the western territory. General Lysimachus would take the eastern territory. General Ptolemy would take the southern territory. And General Seleucus would take the northern territory. (now remember the names of those four generals, there will be a quiz later! Just kidding!) But I do want you to notice that last General in particular, General Seleucus. VERSE 9 says 9 And out of one of them came a little horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Glorious Land.

8 We have seen that term little horn before haven t we? In Daniel s first vision of the four beast he saw a little horn on that fourth beast with ten horns and iron teeth. Who is this little horn in Daniel s second vision? History tells us there was an extremely evil ruler who rose up from the Seleucids (remember General Seleucus?) This evil ruler s name was Antiochus Epiphanes. He was born 175 years before Christ. This man factors into the dual fulfillment of this prophetic vision. Now what do I mean by dual fulfillment? In this 8 th chapter of Daniel we are given two portraits of the Antichrist, The first is a historical portrait, the second is a prophetic portrait. Let me explain. In VERSES 9-14 we are given the historical portrait of the Antichrist. In other words, there has already been a man who bore many of the characteristics of the Antichrist. Who was this historical figure? It was Antiochus Epiphanes, the little horn in VERSE 9. In fact, Antiochus Epiphanes is commonly called, The Antichrist of The Old Testament. Let me just share with you some of the things history records about this evil man named Antiochus Epiphanes. -The name Antiochus Epiphanes meant God manifested. -Antiochus was anti-semitic (anti-jewish) to the core. This is evidenced in VERSE 9 by the fact he targeted the Glorious Land. (the Promised Land) -History tells us Antiochus slaughtered 40,000 Jews in three days, and killed another 40,000 a short time later. He also sold 40,000 Jews as slaves. -After breaking the Jewish people down physically, he targeted their religion. He replaced the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles with The Feast of Bacchnalia worshiping Bachus, the Greek god of pleasure and wine. -Antiochus ordered one of his military generals to strip the Jewish priests naked and use them as objects in an obscene game in the Temple Courtyard, for all the Jewish people to see.

9 -Antiochus forbid the Jewish people to keep their ancient practice of circumcising their male babies eight days after their birth. History tells us on one occasion Antiochus learned of two mothers who defied his order by circumcising their sons. When Antiochus learned of this, he took the babies and killed them and hung their little bodies around the necks of the mothers. The mothers were then marched to the top of the wall of Jerusalem and pushed off, falling to their deaths. -As we well know even today, the Jews consider pigs to be unclean animals. One day Antiochus Epiphanes went to the temple and cut the throat of a pig in the presence of those who were gathered at the Temple. He then placed the pig upon the holy altar of sacrifice..then took the blood of the pig and splattered it all over the Temple walls and floors. -After attacking the Jews physically, and attacking their religion, Antiochus then targeted GOD HIMSELF. VERSE 11 says, He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host. How long did God permit this to go on? Verse 14 tells us it went on for two thousand three hundred days. Antiochus reign of terror began in 171 B.C. and ended on December 25, 165 B.C. This now brings us to the third thing we want to consider and that is: III. The CELESTIAL Interpretation of Daniel s Vision (vs ) By looking at the PAST we can get a glimpse of the FUTURE. After giving Daniel this close-up view of this little horn that would greatly afflict the Jewish people, the angel Gabriel now adjust the lense on the telescope to give Daniel a glimpse of another little horn that would arise at the end of time; one who would even be more evil and sinister than Antiochus Ephiphanes. Of course, I am referring to the Antichrist. Let s read verses Daniel 8:23-25 (NKJV) 23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their fullness, a king shall arise, having fierce features, who understands sinister schemes.

10 24 His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power; he shall destroy fearfully, and shall prosper and thrive; he shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people. 25 Through his cunning, he shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule; and he shall exalt himself in his heart. He shall destroy many in their prosperity. He shall even rise against the Prince of princes; But he shall be broken without human means. Let s briefly look at this evil ruler of the future called the Antichrist. -He will be a man of fierce features Many commentators believe the Antichrist will be a very handsome man, very striking in his appearance, and yet in his eyes there will be a cold, steely look of a mass murderer. -He will understand sinister schemes Likely refers to the fact the Antichrist will set up a false peace treaty with Israel to lure them into his snare. -His power will be mighty, but not by his own power The Antichrist will receive his power from Satan himself. He will be the incarnation of the devil. -He shall prosper and thrive For a time the Antichrist will appear to have succeeded in his complete takeover of the world by establishing a one-world government, a one-world economic system, and a one-world religion that affects the life of every man, woman and child on earth. -He shall cause deceit to prosper. According to II Thessalonians 2:9,10 the Antichrist will dupe the entire world with all sorts of fake miracles and signs. People will be so convinced he is the true Savior of the world they will follow him like he s the Pied Piper. -He shall exalt himself in his heart. The Antichrist will sit up a throne inside the Temple of Jerusalem and exalt himself as the god of the world. -He shall destroy many in their prosperity. By establishing the one-world economic system which forbids anyone to buy or sell without the mark of the beast on their right hand or forehead, the Antichrist will literally have the world in the palm of his hand. -He shall even rise against the Prince of princes. Just as Antiochus Epiphanes before him, the Antichrist will focus his attacks upon the Jewish people. Why? Because the Jewish people are God s people. Antiochus Epiphanes hated God with a passion; the Antichrist will hate God even more. But now pay close attention to the very last statement in verse 25.. But he shall be broken without human means.

11 It is very intresting that Antiochus Epiphanes in the past, nor the Antichrist in the future, would meet their end at the hands of men. Both would meet with divine deaths. In his commentary on Daniel A.R. Fausset notes, by God s special visitation. Antiochus Epiphanes was afflicted by a horrible death by worms and ulcers, when on his way to Judea, intending to take vengeance for the defeat of his armies by the Maccabees. And we have already learned in our pevious studies that according to Revelation 19:20,21 that the LORD HIMSELF will cast the Antichrist and his False Prophet into the lake of fire called hell. In essence, it is as though God has said, Leave these two men to Me! ******************************************************************************** CONCLUSION In verse 26 Daniel was instructed to seal up the scroll upon which he had recorded this vision, For it refers to many days in the future. Brothers and sisters, I believe the world will soon see the days Daniel was talking about. How did Daniel react to this vision of The Ram and The Goat? Daniel 8:27 (NKJV) And I, Daniel, fainted and was sick for days; afterward I arose and went about the king s business. I was astonished by the vision, but no one understood it. Having just seen in this vision the horrible suffering God s people would go through in the future leaves Daniel feeling sick and faint. Brothers and sisters, this morning we have been given a glimpse of what lies in store for any of our loved ones, friends and acquaintances who are left in this world after the LORD has come to get His Church. Those we know will be left here to face the most horrible, most evil days this world has ever known. They will suffer greatly as God unleashes His SEAL, BOWL and TRUMPET JUDGMENTS upon the world. And they will suffer greatly at the ruthless hands of the evil world dictator called the Antichrist.You and I must do what Daniel did! We must wake up and be about the King s business of reaching our lost loved ones and friends before its too late.