Daniel Chapter 7 Vs. 28

Daniel's Vision Interpreted

Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart. Dan. 7:28

my cogitations... Aramaic, ra‛yown, thought, mental conception.

much troubled me... Baffled me, indicating that Daniel did not fully comprehend the extent of his vision.

for me Daniel... The details of this vision, or dream, of Daniel's would trouble anyone. He saw the rise and fall of the antichrist. As above cogitations means thoughts. Deep thought does change our facial expression.

kept the matter... He remembered it in his heart. More dreams and visions will make even these more understandable.

The response of Daniel

This prophetic panorama of the times of the Gentiles was so awesome to Daniel that he was deeply moved. He did not share the vision with anyone at the time. But later when he wrote the prophecies that bear his name, he recorded what had been revealed to him in the vision.

One cannot escape the parallels between the truths revealed to Daniel on this occasion and what was revealed to Nebuchadnezzar early in his reign (Dan. 2:1-49). Both cover the span of the times of the Gentiles. Both dreams indicate that Israel and her land will be ruled over by four successive world empires. The first was Babylon, represented by the head of gold and the winged lion. The second was the Medo-Persian Empire, represented by the chest and arms of silver and the bear raised up on one side. The third was the Grecian Empire, represented by the belly and thighs of bronze and the four-headed winged leopard. The fourth was the Roman Empire, represented by the legs of iron with feet mixed with clay and by the mongrel beast. The iron-like strength of the fourth empire is seen in the iron legs (Dan. 2:40) and the beast’s iron teeth (Dan. 7:7). Sovereignty passed from Assyria to Babylon in 609 b.c., from Babylon to Persia in 539 b.c., from Persia to Greece in 330 b.c., and from Greece to Rome in the first century b.c.

Toward the end of the times of the Gentiles, worldwide authority will be exercised by one called “a little horn” who will seek to prevent Christ’s rule on the earth by destroying God’s covenant people. His short reign of seven years (see “one ‘seven’” in Dan. 9:27) will be terminated by the Second Advent of Christ. At His coming Christ will establish His millennial kingdom on earth in fulfillment of God’s covenant with Israel.

The amillenarian view that the “little horn” has already appeared sometime in the past (but since Christ’s First Advent) is wrong because: (a) no such ruler has attained worldwide status (Dan. 7:23), (b) no such ruler has subdued 3 of 10 kings who were ruling at once (Dan. 7:24), (c) no such ruler has persecuted Israel (Dan. 7:21) for three and one-half years (Dan. 7:25), and (d) no such ruler has been destroyed forever (Dan. 7:26) by Christ’s return. Nor could this “little horn” be the Roman Catholic papacy because: (a) the “little horn” is a king, not a pope, (b) the papacy’s power has not been limited to three and one-half years, (c) the papacy has not concentrated on persecuting the nation Israel, and (d) the papacy has not been destroyed by the return of Christ to the earth.