Daniel - Part 2

In comparing the dreams of Nebuchadnezzar and Daniel concerning the same subject, the end times, it becomes obvious that the reference is to the kingdoms succeeding Babylon. The kingdom of Medo-Persia is depicted by both the ram with two horns and the breast and two arms of silver of the image. The kingdom of Greece is depicted by both the goat and the belly and thighs of brass.

Beginning in verse 9 we are told of another horn that emerges from one of these four horns. At this point a transition begins to take place regarding events at the end of the Greek empire and the events of “end times” preceding God’s establishment of His eternal kingdom. There appears to be direct reference to a king that emerges from Syria known in history as Antiochus Epiphanes. He oppresses the people of Israel and desecrates the temple by sacrificing a pig on the altar. His kingdom was eventually conquered by the Romans.

I agree with many teachers that Antiochus Epiphanes is a type of the Antichrist to come. They both begin their rise to power by peaceful means. They both end up trying to destroy Israel and desecrating the temple. They both blaspheme God.

The rest of this dream goes on to describe the Antichrist as a man who will be mighty and even perform miracles through the empowerment of another.

Now I want to go back to another dream that Daniel had two years prior to the one of the ram and goat. I referenced the second dream first since it named the kingdoms that would succeed Babylon as depicted in the image.

In this dream Daniel sees the four winds causing great disturbance in the “great sea.” This is probably a reference to the Mediterranean since these kingdoms all bordered it, and it would have been most important to commerce in these kingdoms. He then sees four great beasts come out of the sea that are quite different from one another. The first beast is compared to a lion with eagle’s wings, the second beast is compared to a bear, and the third to a leopard with four wings and four heads. The fourth beast has no known comparison; it is described as having iron teeth and ten horns. Daniel then sees another horn come up in the place of three of those horns. The next thing Daniel sees is similar to a courtroom setting presided over by “the Ancient of days.” Judgment is passed upon this last horn to emerge, and his body is destroyed by fire. The rest of the beasts are allowed to live a bit longer although without ruling authority. Next, Daniel sees one “like the Son of man” come before the judge (the Ancient of days) and He is given authority over an everlasting kingdom. This vision was very troubling to Daniel, and he asked for an explanation of the dream.

I assume it is an angel that gives the explanation to Daniel. He is told that the four beasts represent four kings that will arise from the earth, but that their kingdom will eventually be taken over by the saints of the most High (God) when He establishes His eternal kingdom. The number of kingdoms in these dreams has consistently made reference to four. I believe these correspond to the four main Gentile kingdoms that have ruled and will rule over the recognized nation of Israel. Though other Gentile dynasties have ruled in the land, it was during the time of the diaspora when there was no recognized nation of Israel. Babylon would be the lion with eagle’s wings, Medo-Persia the bear, and Greece the leopard with four wings and four heads. Each of these kingdoms basically replaced the preceding one while expanding the territory it embraced.