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. 

Romans Chapter 5 Vs. 6

 

Peace with God Through Faith

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. Rom 5:6

were yet without... Fourfold description of the former state:

1. Without strength—weak, dying, helpless to resist sin and do good, and powerless to deliver from misery (Rom. 5:6)

2. Ungodly—sinful, depraved, ruled by Satan and enslaved (Rom. 5:6)

3. Sinners—bent on finding happiness but always missing the mark (Rom. 5:8)

4. Enemies—haters of God and holiness and openly at war with both (Rom. 5:10)

in due time... Due time of fullness of time (Gal. 4:4). Meaning at the time that God had chosen.

for the ungodly... Instead, or in place of the ungodly.

(ungodly) Jews divided people into four classes:

1. The just who said: What is mine is mine; what is thine is thine.

2. The accommodating who said: What is mine is thine; what is thine is mine.

3. The pious who said: What is mine is thine; what is thine let it be thine.

4. The ungodly who said: What is mine is mine; what is thine shall be mine.

The mystery of it all is how He loved us enough to die for us while we were evil in every way.

Unregenerate sinners are spiritually dead and incapable of doing anything to help themselves.

Jesus died for those who deserved to go to hell, because they had sinned. “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one” (Rom.3:10). Everyone needs a Savior. God loves a sinner and has made way for him or her: the way is Jesus Christ our Lord. He gave each of us a free will so we must be willing to be saved, then Jesus does the rest.

Having mentioned the pouring out of God’s love, Paul now described the character of God’s love, which explains why its pouring out assures believers of hope. God demonstrated His love by the death of His Son, Jesus Christ. This demonstration was first, at just the right time (cf. Gal. 4:4). Second, it was when we were still powerless (asthenōn, “without strength, feeble”; cf. John 5:5). Third, it was for (hyper) the ungodly (asebōn, “impious”; cf. Rom. 4:5). Clearly Christ’s death was a substitutionary death, a death in place of others. The Greek preposition hyper often means “on behalf of,” but occasionally it means “in place of,” its meaning here. This is clear from the statement in Rom. 5:7, which also has hyper.

Daniel Chapter 7 Vs. 27

 Daniel's Vision Interpreted

And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him. Dan. 7:27

the whole heaven... This is to be taken literally, not figuratively, as in the references to the extent of the world empires of Dan. 2:38, 2:39, 2:40; 7:23; Rev. 13:8, 13:16. There is no limitation to the extent of the coming kingdom of God, as there was with the human kingdoms in the times of the Gentiles.

to the people... Three times in this chapter it is stated that the saints of God will take over the kingdoms of the world following the kingdom of Antichrist (Dan. 7:18, 7:22, 7:27). Also, three times it is stated that the kingdom will be eternal (Dan. 7:13-14, 7:18, 7:27).

all dominions shall... All earthly kingdoms will eventually be under God as before rebellion started by Lucifer and later by Adam (1Cor. 15:24-28; Eph. 1:10; Rev. 21-22).

The kingdom... “given to”, “the saints. God’s kingdom in both earthly (Rev. 20:4), and heavenly phases (Rev. 21:27; 22:3-4 and 14).

Heb. 12:28 “Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:”

Rev. 20:6 “Blessed and holy [is] he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.”

This kingdom will not be overthrown and superseded by another. It will continue in the Millennium and on forever (cf. Dan. 4:34; 6:26; 7:14). All peoples and kings will worship and obey Him.

Romans Chapter 5 Vs. 5

 

Peace with God Through Faith

And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. Rom 5:5

because the love... Four reasons why we can glory in tribulations:

1. Our justification and peace (Rom. 5:1)

2. The grace of God in Christ (Rom. 5:2)

3. The love of God in our hearts (Rom. 5:5)

4. The power of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5)

This Holy Ghost spoken of here comes and dwells within us as soon as we accept Christ as our Savior. It is the Holy Ghost in us that loves others unselfishly.

God has implanted within our hearts evidence that we belong to Him in that we love the One who first loved us.

We are not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ unto salvation. If we are ashamed of Jesus or the Holy Ghost here, He will be ashamed of us in heaven. We must not be ashamed but boldly tell of our Lord and Savior and His blessed Holy Spirit.

A believer’s hope, since it is centered in God and His promises, does not disappoint him. “Disappoint” means “put to shame because of disappointment” in unfulfilled promises. This affirmation concerning hope in God is a reflection of Psm. 25:3, 25:20-21 (cf. Psm. 22:5; Rom. 9:33; 1Pet. 2:6). The reason this hope (resulting finally from affliction) does not disappoint is that God has poured out His love into our hearts. God’s love, so abundant in believer’s hearts (cf. 1Jhn. 4:8, 4:16), encourages them on in their hope. And this love is poured out by (better, “through,” dia with the genitive) the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us. The Holy Spirit is the divine Agent who expresses to a believer the love of God, that is, God’s love for him. The reality of God’s love in a believer’s heart gives the assurance, even the guarantee, that the believer’s hope in God and His promise of glory is not misplaced and will not fail. This ministry of the Holy Spirit is related to His presence in believers as the seal of God (Eph. 4:30) and as the earnest or down payment of their inheritance in glory (2Cor. 1:21-22; Eph. 1:13-14). Later Paul wrote that the Holy Spirit Himself has been poured out in believers (Tit. 3:6). Each believer has the Spirit of Christ (Rom. 8:9) in the sense that He is indwelt by the Holy Spirit (cf. 1Jhn. 3:24; 4:13).

Daniel Chapter 7 Vs. 26

 Daniel's Vision Interpreted

But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. Dan. 7:26

they shall take... Like all other ambitious world conquerors he will come short of conquest of the whole world (Dan. 8:24-25; 11:40-45; Rev. 19:11-21).

unto the end... To reveal the events that will end this age of grace is the primary purpose of this vision (Dan. 7:26-27; 8:24-26; 9:27; 11:40-45; Rev. 4:1-19:21).

The judgment is taken away from him by our King Jesus, and by His saints. He has been judged, and found guilty. God will remove the Antichrist’s rule and destroy him and his empire in eternal, conscious hell.

The promise to Israel

When the Judge, God the Father, convenes the court (cf. Dan. 7:10), that is, when He judges the little horn, his power will be removed and he will be destroyed (cf. Dan. 7:11; 2Thess. 2:8; Rev. 19:20). This will occur at the Second Advent of Christ.

Romans Chapter 5 Vs. 4

 

Peace with God Through Faith

And patience, experience; and experience, hope: Rom 5:4

And, patience, experience;... Greek: dokime. Translated "trial" (2Cor. 8:2); "experiment" (2Cor. 9:13); "proof" (2Cor. 2:9; 13:3; Phlp. 2:22); and "experience" (Rom. 5:4).

“Experience” means character, or a better translation would be proven character. The Greek word simply means “proof”. It was used of testing metals to determine their purity. Here the proof is Christian character. Christians can glory in tribulations because of what those troubles produce.

All Christians have the hope of the resurrection.

In Lam. 3:26 “[It is] good that [a man] should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.”

I have discovered that God allows these little trials to come along to see if we will rely on Him while we endure under pressure. If we fold in the trial, then we have to go through another similar trial until we learn to lean on him in our trials.

1 Thess. 4:13 “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.”

Only a believer who has faced distress can develop steadfastness. That in turn develops character (dokimēn [“proof”] has here the idea of “proven character”), which in turn results in hope. As believers suffer, they develop steadfastness; that quality deepens their character; and a deepened, tested character results in hope (i.e., confidence) that God will see them through.

Daniel Chapter 7 Vs. 25

 Daniel's Vision Interpreted

And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time. Dan. 7:25

he shall speak... See Dan. 7:8, 7:20 we just studied, Dan. 11:36; Rev. 13:5.

shall wear out... Aramaic: bela’, wear out or down, afflict.

think to change... Aramaic: cebar, purpose, hope. He will change times and laws and they will be given into his hands for the last three and a half years (known as the Great Tribulation) (Dan. 12:7; Rev. 13:5).

The antichrist has great power over all the peoples of the earth. The people of the earth will not recognize him as the antichrist, until he begins to blaspheme the Most High God. He will seem to have the answer for all the problems of life.

Notice, in this, the saints are under his jurisdiction for 3 and 1/2 years. That’s what the “time, times, and dividing or half a time means.

During the first part of his reign, the antichrist will pretend to be a great peacemaker. He will control the people through his power to purchase goods. It is interesting that a new international currency has now been made, and these common market nations will all use it. There will come a time when no currency will be necessary.

Rev. 13:16-17 “And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:” “And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.”

Read our study on the 13th chapter of Revelation to get more insight into this. This changing of time shows he wants to be as God. There have been men throughout ages that have wanted to be as God. Julius Caesar would have been one, Hitler would have been another. This is not speaking of a type of antichrist, but the antichrist. He is a personification of Satan himself.

Besides several facts already given about this coming king (see Dan. 7:21-22), three additional ones are now revealed: (1) He will oppose God’s authority. He will speak against the Most High (cf. Rev. 13:6). On “the Most High” see Dan. 3:26. (2) He will oppress His saints (i.e., Israel; cf. See Dan. 7:21). (3) He will introduce an entirely new era in which he will abandon all previous laws and institute his own system. As in Dan. 9:27, he will appear as Israel’s friend, but will become Israel’s persecutor (the saints will be handed over to him) and he will occupy Jerusalem as the capital of his empire (Dan. 11:45) for three and one-half years (Rev. 12:6; 13:5). A time, times, and half a time (cf. Dan. 12:7; Rev. 12:14) refer to the three and one-half years of the Great Tribulation, with “a time” meaning one year, “times” two years, and “half a time” six months. This equals the 1,260 days in Rev. 12:6 and the 42 months in Rev. 11:2; 13:5. (Cf. see “times” in Dan. 4:16.)