Daniel s Vision of The Four Beasts (Part II: The Interpretation) Daniel 7:15-28 (NKJV)

Transcription

1 Message for THE LORD S DAY MORNING, July 22, 2012 Message 10 (PART TWO of message on Daniel s Vision of The Four Beasts in Daniel 7) Christian Hope Church of Christ, Plymouth, North Carolina by Reggie A. Braziel, Minister Daniel s Vision of The Four Beasts (Part II: The Interpretation) Daniel 7:15-28 (NKJV) Last Lord s day in PART ONE of our message from Daniel chapter 7, we looked at The Vision of Four Beasts that was given to Daniel during the first year of Belshazzar s reign as King of Babylon. In that vision Daniel saw four beasts coming up out of the Great Sea. -The first beast was like a LION. This beast symbolized the Babylonian empire. -The second beast was like a BEAR. This beast symbolized the Mede-Persian Empire. -The third beast was like a LEOPARD. This beast symbolized the Greek empire. -And the fourth beast was unlike anything Daniel had ever seen before. It was a TEN-HORNED BEAST with iron teeth. This beast symbolized the Roman empire. But remember that little horn that grew up amidst the other ten horns on that fourth beast? Remember that little horn had eyes like a man and spoke pompous words? We learned last week that the little horn symbolizes a kingdom that is yet to exist.a kingdom that will arise during the Great Tribulation.THE KINGDOM OF THE ANTICHRIST. That fourth beast and its little horn becomes to focus of Daniel s attention today in PART TWO of this message. Follow along with me as we read Daniel 7:15-28.

2 Daniel 7:15-28 (NKJV) head 15 I, Daniel, was grieved in my spirit within my body, and the visions of my troubled me. 16 I came near to one of those who stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things: 17 Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth. 18 But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever. 19 Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet; 20 and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows. 21 I was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom. 23 Thus he said: The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, Which shall be different from all other kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom. And another shall rise after them; he shall be different from the first ones, And shall subdue three kings. 25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time. 26 But the court shall be seated, and they shall take away his dominion, To consume and destroy it forever.

3 27 Then the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him. 28 This is the end of the account. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly troubled me, and my countenance changed; but I kept the matter in my heart. Let s pause here for a moment of prayer. *************************************************************************************** In the verses we just read we see the interpretation of Daniel s vision given in two stages. First of all in VERSES we see I. A General Interpretation of Daniel s Vision (vs.15-18) 1. In verse 15 Daniel describes for us for the first time his reaction after receiving this vision. 15 I, Daniel, was grieved in my spirit within my body, and the visions of my head troubled me. 2. That term grieved in my spirit literally means my spirit has been pierced. This vision had left Daniel stunned, distressed. bewildered! 3. Now up to this point in our study, Daniel was the one who was called upon to interpret strange, troubling dreams. He interpreted Nebuchadnezzar s troubling dreams in Daniel 2 and Daniel 4. And he interpreted the handwriting on the wall in Daniel But now Daniel cannot interpret the this vision he has had. To whom can Daniel turn to find the meaning of his vision? Look at verse I came near to one of those who stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things: 5. Who were those who stood by? They were ANGELS. Some Bible scholars believe the one Daniel turned to

4 for the interpretation was the angel GABRIEL. This idea is supported by the fact the angel Gabriel is the one who interprets Daniels next vision in Daniel The interpretation the angel gives to Daniel in verses 17,18 is very concise and to the point. Basically what the angel said was this: The four beasts in your vision are four Gentile kings or kingdoms that will arise over the course of time, but at the end of history, the kingdom of the Lord shall rise and reign forever and ever. 7. Why such a brief interpretation? We don t know for sure, but it is possibly because Daniel would have quickly realized the connection between his vision and the dream Nebuchadnezzar had many years earlier which Daniel had interpreted. 8. But now in VERSES Daniel inquires more about the fourth beast, especially that little horn in particular. You notice Daniel recounts every single detail he saw in his vision regarding this fourth beast. It was different than the others. It was exceedingly dreadful. It had teeth of iron. It had nails of bronze. It crushed and trampled its enemies with its feet. It had ten horns, and another little horn that uprooted three other horns And the little horn had eyes and spoke pompous words and was greater in appearance than the others. He warred against the saints and succeeded for a time until he was defeated by the Ancient of Days. Please angel, please tell me more about this fourth beast and the little horn.

5 Beginning with VERSE 23 to the end of chapter 7, the angel now gives Daniel. II. A Detailed Interpretation of Daniel s Vision (vs.23-28) 1. With all the precision of a surgeon, the angel begins to dissect every detail regarding the fourth beast. These details can be arranged under three key facts. FACT #1: The Fourth Beast will DEVOUR the earth. (vs. 23,24) 23 Thus he said: The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, Which shall be different from all other kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom. And another shall rise after them; he shall be different from the first ones, and shall subdue three kings. You notice there in verse 23 the angel told Daniel the fourth beast shall be different from all other kingdoms. How will this fourth beast be different from the others? Last LORD S day we noted the fourth kingdom would be different than the other three in that it would be far more CRUEL and DESTRUCTIVE than the other three kingdoms. The angel notes this in the latter part of VERSE 23 when he says, It shall devour the whole earth, trample it and break it in pieces. But there is another way in which the fourth beast would be different than the other three. The first three kingdoms had a well-defined beginning and end. The Babylonian Empire rose in 606 B.C. and fell in 536 B.C. The Mede-Persian Empire rose in 536 B.C. and fell in 330 B.C. The Greek Empire rose in 330 B.C. and fell in 146 B.C. But what about the fourth beast, the fourth kingdom, THE ROMAN EMPIRE? The Roman Empire rose in 146 B.C. but there was never really a well-defined fall of the Roman Empire. Unlike the previous three kingdoms, the Roman Empire was never defeated, conquered or over-taken by an enemy. Instead, the ROMAN EMPIRE went through a long, slow process of DECLINE that lasted over 400 YEARS. Rome s greatest enemy was Rome itself. Political corruption, gross immorality, rampant homosexuality, over-taxation of her citizens, the slaughtering of newborn children, a weakened military, and neglect of her

6 infrastructural bridges and highways, ALL CONTRIBUTED TO THE SLOW DEMISE OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE FROM WITHIN. What once was the ROMAN EMPIRE gradually transformed itself into what we now know as the EUROPEAN COUNTRIES. Now that is important to understanding what the angel said in VERSE 24. The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom.. There has never been a time when a TEN NATION CONFEDERACY has ruled the world simultaneously, which tells us this has to refer to a kingdom that will arise sometime in the future. Many Bible scholars are in agreement upon the meaning of this. They believe at the end of time during the Great Tribulation, the world will see the RE-EMERGENCE OF A NEW FORM OF THE OLD ROMAN EMPIRE FROM THE NATIONS OF EUROPE WHICH WILL BE EVEN MORE VICIOUS IN NATURE THAN THE ANCIENT ROMAN EMPIRE. Listen to how the apostle JOHN describes the re-emergence of the Roman Empire in REVELATION 17:8... The beast you saw WAS, AND IS NOT, AND WILL ASCEND OUT OF THE BOTTOMLESS PIT AND GO INTO PERDITION. In that brief statement JOHN is revealing the PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE of this fourth beast. It WAS HERE, then it WAS NOT here, but it WILL BE HERE AGAIN some time in the future. How near are we to seeing this become a reality? Only the LORD HIMSELF knows the answer to that. In vs. 25 the angel reveals a second fact about the fourth beast.. FACT #2: The fourth beast will DEFY the Most High God (v.25) Before we read this verse, you will notice the angel shifts the focus from the fourth beast in general to the little

7 horn, the Antichrist, who will rule over this final evil empire. 25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time. History certainly doesn t lack for evil rulers: NERO.ANTIOCHUS EPIPHANES JOSEPH STALIN ADOLPH HITLER..and SADDAM HUSSEIN just to name a few. But the little horn, the Antichrist will literally be the embodiment of Satan himself. In this 25 th verse the angel reveals THREE BOLD ACTIONS the Antichrist will take once in power. (A) The first bold action of the Antichrist will be to DEFY THE POWER OF GOD. v.25a He shall speak pompous words against the Most High. ILLUSTRATION: On March 4, 1966, John Lennon of the British rock group, THE BEATLES, shocked the world when he spoke these pompous words: Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn t argue with that; I m right and I will be proved right. WE RE MORE POPULAR THAN JESUS. The Antichrist will speak pompous,. arrogant. blasphemous words against the Most High God. He will boast I am GREATER than GOD..I am MORE IMPORTANT than GOD..I AM GOD! In fact we will learn later in our study this pompous little horn will take his seat in the Temple in Jerusalem and display himself as the god of the world. (B) The second bold action of the Antichrist is that he will seek to DESTROY THE PEOPLE OF GOD. v.25b,d He shall persecute the saints of the Most High.. then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time. You and I are called saints in the New Testament. Are we the ones who will be persecuted by the Antichrist? NO! The LORD will have already come to take His Church

8 out of this world before the Antichrist comes to power. The saints the angel is speaking of are those who accept Christ during the Great Tribulation. Remember back in VERSE 21 we learned the little horn will literally MAKE WAR AGAINST THE SAINTS! The Antichrist s main agenda will be to DESTROY anyone on earth who dares to worship CHRIST rather than him. In Revelation 6:9-11, John indicates the slaughter of saints in those days will be greater than ever before in the history of the world. In other words, to be a follower of Jesus Christ during the Great Tribulation one will likely have to pay with his very life! How long will this go on? The latter part of this 25 th verse says, Then the saints shall be given into his hand (the Antichrist) for a time and times and half a time. Prophetically speaking A TIME = 1 year; TIMES = 2 years and HALF A TIME = 6 months. Let s do the math: A TIME (1 YEAR) plus TIMES (2 YEARS) equals 3 YEARS..plus HALF A TIME or 6 MONTHS and you get 3 ½ YEARS. For 3 ½ years the saints living during the Tribulation will be persecuted in every way imaginable and a great many of them will be executed as followers of JESUS CHRIST. THE ANTICHRIST WILL DEFY THE POWER OF GOD. THE ANTICHRIST WILL SEEK TO DESTROY THE PEOPLE OF GOD. (C) And the third bold action of the Antichrist will be to attempt to DISMANTLE THE LAWS OF GOD. v. 25c He shall intend to change times and law. Commentators aren t really certain as to the exact meaning of this. It could mean the Antichrist will attempt to change times of religious observances and religious traditions that have anything to do with the worship of God. SUNDAYS would

9 no longer be a day of worship of God. Special observances like CHRISTMAS and EASTER and THANKSGIVING would all be eliminated, because they are focused on worshiping GOD. Rather than SEVEN DAY WEEKS which were established by GOD HIMSELF in the beginning, perhaps the Antichrist would attempt to set up 6 DAY WEEKS, since SIX is the number of man and 666 is the number of the mark of the beast. (Revelation 13:18) So the angel has now revealed to Daniel two facts regarding the fourth beast. FACT #1: The fourth beast will DEVOUR the earth. FACT #2: The fourth beast will DEFY the Most High God. Now here s FACT #3: The fourth beast will be DESTROYED by the Most High. 26 But the court shall be seated, and they shall take away his dominion, To consume and destroy it forever. 27 Then the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him. The angel is reassuring Daniel that this dreadful beast and its evil ruler will not rule forever. In fact, when God s time for judging the Gentile world arrives, the Antichrist and his kingdom will be annihilated and destroyed forever. Listen carefully as the apostle John describes for us what GOD has planned for the Antichrist and his followers.

10 Revelation 19:20 (NKJV) Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. After telling Daniel that the LORD will destroy this dreadful, terrible fourth kingdom he saw in the vision, the angel gives Daniel a reassuring promise. And that is that a NEW KINGDOM, AN EVERLASTING KINGDOM, THE KINGDOM OF THE MOST HIGH would rise and reign forever. C O N C L U S I O N What was Daniel s reaction to everything he had experienced in this seventh chapter? Look at VERSE This is the end of the account. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly troubled me, and my countenance changed; but I kept the matter in my heart. At this point the interpretation of the vision ended. Daniel is greatly disturbed. Daniel has just seen the future. He has just witnessed where man s sinfulness will ultimately lead. He was so upset by what he had seen the color literally drained from his face. But though this vision troubled him greatly, Daniel didn t try to push it out of his mind and forget about it. He kept these matters in his heart and probably thought about them every day for the rest of his earthly life. Is there any good news in all this for you and me? Absolutely! -The good news is you and I are on the winning side! -The good news is we have cast our lot with the King of all kings and the Lord of all lords. As Christians we don t need to be looking for the coming of the Antichrist, we need to be looking for the coming of THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. And it is these words of our LORD I wish to leave you with this morning.. Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour!