Daniel 8: Another Vision
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.
The language for the preceding chapters is Aramaic, but here it is Hebrew. Daniel had another personal vision after the first one. He was in bondage in Babylon but He was transported in vision to “Shushan, the citadel, which is in the province of Elam…” Shushan- “Though then comparatively insignificant, it was destined to be the capital of Persia after Cyrus‘ time.” (Jamieson, Fausset & Brown) The citadel (habbira), “The Hebrew word for habbira is variously translated as ‘the capital, ‘the fortress,’ ‘the citadel,’ or ‘the acropolis.’ The same term is also found the Nehemiah 1:1 and Esther 1:2. In first Chronicles 29:1, 9, this word is used to describe the Jerusalem Temple.” (Zdravko Stefanovic) “Daniel was not present there personally, but in vision.” (Jamieson, Fausset & Brown) “Daniel’s contemporary Ezekiel was sometimes transported in the spirit to a distant place (Ezek. 8:3; 11:24; 40:2).” (Daniel: Wisdom the Wise by Zdravko Stefanovic) He sees in vision and dream what will happens to Judah, the Holy City, the temple of the Jews, as well as the end-time Church of God.
The key word in chapter 7 “is ‘dominion,' which focuses on the importance of power and views the conflict between God and the opposing powers of the earth from a political perspective. Its message was intended for an universal audience – people throughout the whole empire. [In contrast] Chapter 8, written in biblical Hebrew, the language of the chosen people, focuses more on the religious aspect of the same conflict. It uses the imagery of clean, sacrificial animals, thus pointing to the sanctuary, which is its central concept. This message was clearly shaped for a particular audience. [This shift to the Hebrew is a phenomenon called 'nativism,' explained by some scholars as 'a type of behavior under intense stress' (Redditt, 134)]
In chapter 8, the wild beasts that represented the earthly powers in the previous chapter are replaced by domestic, clean, sacrificial animals. The Ancient of Days and the humanlike Person to whom he grants authority and power are replaced by the institution of the temple and its continual services. Likewise, chapter 7’s portrayal of God's judgment was intended for the whole world. In chapter 8, this message is recast for the covenant people and placed in the context of God sanctuary. Daniel 7 and 8 serve as good examples of the contextualized character of biblical revelations – the essence of the message in these two chapters is the same; but it is prepared for two audiences: one universal and the other particular. The change of the language and symbols illustrates the principle that biblical messages were not given in a vacuum. Rather, God meets the people where they are." (Daniel: Wisdom the Wise by Zdravko Stefanovic)
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.
"The ‘ram’ that Daniel saw standing before the canal represented Medo-Persia (Daniel 8:20). It corresponds to the lopsided bear in the chapter 7 vision (Daniel 7:5). The two horns, representing power, symbolized Media and Persia, the two kingdoms that formed an alliance to create Medo-Persia. The longer horn stood for Persia, which had become more powerful in the alliance and had risen to displace Media in leadership after the two nations merged…[Spiritually] The ram was an especially important symbol for the Persians. The guardian spirit of the Persian Empire was portrayed as a ram. When the Persian king went into battle, he carried the head of a ram…” (Dr. Thomas Constable) What is at stake when a government, especially a foreign one controls religion is the spread of superstition and falsehood.
I saw the ram pushing westward, northward, and southward… Since the ram most likely came from the east (cf. Isaiah 41:2), it charged in the remaining three directions.… The direction of the east or ‘the rising of the sun’ is often use positively in the Bible (Gen. 2:8; Ezek. 43:2; Dan. 1:41, 44; Matt. 2:1; Rev. 16:12).” (Daniel: Wisdom the Wise by Zdravko Stefanovic) Messiah— “the Sun of Righteousness” was to come from the east with healing in His wings. (Malachi 4:2), and Cyrus was a type of Messiah for Israel, as he helped to deliver them and set in motion momentum to restore the old order of things for Israel. Yet though a deliverer for Israel, he was merely a pawn in God's hand to chastise Israel. Cyrus "did according to his will and became great..." (Daniel 8:4)
“’He did as he pleased.’ This is been called ‘a stock phrase’ that paints ‘a picture of the arbitrary whim of a political power’ from the perspective of the subordinated populations, especially during Judah’s exile (Neh. 9:24, 37; Esther 1:8; 9:5; Dan. 11:3; cf. vv. 16, 36)... ’Became great.’ The causative form of the Hebrew verb gadal, ‘to be great,’ means ‘to magnify oneself’ – in the sense of arrogance rather than of physical growth (cf. Lam.1:9). The same word is found in Daniel 8:8, 11, 25; 11:36, 37, 39.” (Daniel: Wisdom the Wise by Zdravko Stefanovic)
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.
“’As I was considering,’ said the prophet. Here is an example for every lover of truth and all who have any regard for spiritual things. When Moses saw the burning bush, he said, ‘I will now turn aside, and see this great sight.’ How few are willing at the present time to turn aside from their pursuit of business or pleasure to consider the important themes which God seeks to bring to their attention. The symbol here introduced is explained to Daniel by the angel. ‘The rough goat is the king [or kingdom] of Grecia.’ Verse 21.” (Daniel and Revelation by Uriah Smith) Spiritually, the Greeks also followed superstition. “Bishop Newton very properly observes that, two hundred years before the time of Daniel, they were called Aegeadae, the goats' people; the origin of which name is said to be as follows: Caranus, their first king, going with a multitude of Greeks to seek a new habitation in Macedonia, was advised by an oracle to take the goats for his guides; and afterwards, seeing a herd of goats flying from a violent storm, he followed them to Edessa, and there fixed the seat of his empire, and made the goats his ensigns or standards; and called the place Aege or Aegea, the goats' town; and the people Aegeadae, the goats' people; names which are derived from αιξ, αιγος, a goat. The city Aege or Aegea, was the usual burying-place of the Macedonian kings; and, in reference to this origin, Alexander called his son by Roxana, Alexander Aegus, Alexander the goat. All this shows the very great propriety of the symbol here used.” (Adam Clarke)
The goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth. “That is, Greece lay west of Persia and attacked from that direction. The Greek army swept everything on the face of the earth before it. ”(Uriah Smith) And touched not the ground; “therefore called a leopard with [four] wings [Daniel 7], for he [the Grecian king-- Alexander the Great] conquered with incredible swiftness in a short time, for in six years’ space he overcame the Medes and Persians, Babylon, Egypt, and all the countries round far and near; as if he had but travelled over them, he so came, saw, and overcame them.” (Matthew Poole), preparing to spread its pagan thoughts. He travelled “without touching the ground…”— “Aelianus reports, that he marched, clad in armour, thrice four hundred, that is, twelve hundred furlongs, upon a stretch; and, before his army could take any rest, fought his enemies, and conquered them. Some render the words, ‘whom no man touched in the earth’; that is, none could oppose, resist, and stop him; he bore down and carried all before him; there was no coming at him, so as to touch him, or hurt him; he was so swift in his motions, and so powerful in his army.” (John Gill) “and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes”— The notable horn between his eyes was “Alexander the Great, the son of Philip king of Macedonia...” (Matthew Henry), who was "strong, as the monoceros or unicorn, Numbers 23:22. Between his eyes, noting his power and policy; also his wise council, captains, and conduct, as Parmenio, Clitus, Philotes, etc.” (Matthew Poole)
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.
Then Alexander the Great came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing beside the river, “the king of Media and Persia, and joined battle presently and furiously, Jehu like [2 Kings 9-10]..." (Matthew Poole) against them. There seems to be extra rage in this battle, due to the greatness and arrogance of the two powers. “On the eve of this battle, then Darius sent ten of his chief relatives to sue for peace. When they had presented their conditions to Alexander, he is said to have replied, ‘Heaven cannot support two suns, not the earth two masters.’ [One Thousand Sayings of History by Walter Fogg]… A concise account of the overthrow of the Persian Empire by Alexander is given in verses 6 and 7. The battles between the Greeks and the Persians are said to have been exceedingly fierce. Some of the scenes recorded in history vividly bring to mind the figure used in the prophecy--a ram standing before the river, and the goat running toward him ‘the fury of his power.’ Alexander first vanquished the generals of Darius at the River Granicus in Phrygia. He next attacked and routed Darius at the passes of Issus in Cilicia, and afterward defeated him on the plains of Arbela in Syria. This latter battle occurred in 331 B.C., and marked the fall of the Persian Empire. By this event Alexander became master of the whole country. Concerning verse 6—‘He [the goat] came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before the river [at the sanctuary], and ran unto him in the fury of his power’—Thomas Newton says: ‘One can hardly read these words without having some image of Darius's army standing and guarding the River Granicus, and of Alexander on the other side with his forces plunging in, swimming across the stream, and rushing on the enemy with all the fire and fury that can be imagined.’ The language of verse 7 sets forth the completeness of the subjection of Medo-Persia to Alexander. The two horns were broken, and the ram was cast to the ground and stamped upon. Persia was subdued, the country ravaged, its armies cut to pieces and scattered, and its cities plundered. The royal city of Persepolis, the capital of the Persian Empire--even its ruins one of the wonders of the world to the present day--was sacked and burned. Thus the ram had no power to stand before the goat, and there was none that could deliver him out of his hand.'" (Daniel and Revelation by Uriah Smith)
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.
Alexander grew very great; "he not only conquered the Persian empire, but also the Indies, yea, the whole world, as he imagined; and indeed he did bring into subjection to him the greatest part of the then known world; and he was very great in his own esteem, at least reckoned himself lord of the world, called himself the son of Jupiter Ammon, and affected to be worshipped as a god…” (John Gill) But when he became strong, the large horn was broken, ... "Surfeiting and drunkenness cast him into a fever, whereof he died in the flower of his youth and height of his enjoyments - such is the instability of earthly monarchs’ worldly glory: ‘Magna repente raunt, summa cadunt subito.’ Being not unlike those flores horae, flowers of the hour, very pleasant for the time, but dead and withdrawn in a trice.” (John Trapp) by Yahweh of host.
“Verily every man at his best estate is altogether vanity. Selah. When Alexander the Great was greatest, in his youth, not thirty three years old;... ; when he was swollen with victories and successes; then was he broken, and that to pieces, for he, his mother, son, brother, and all his kindred were destroyed. So weak are the greatest to bear prosperity long! For this wonder of men, by pride, luxury, and passion, prepared himself for ruin; he that wept because he had not another world to conquer, and wanted breathing room in this, how soon was he tumbled into a grave of six feet!” (Matthew Poole) And in place of it four notable ones came up... four generals- "Cassander, who had Greece and the neighboring countries; Lysimachus, who had Asia Minor; Selecus, who had Syria and Babylon, and from whom came the line of kings known as the ‘Seleucidae,’ so famous in history; and Ptolemy, son of Lagus, who had Egypt, and from whom sprang the ‘Lagidae.’” (Daniel and Revelation by Uriah Smith)
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.
Most Bible Scholars point to the line of Syrian monarchy- to Antiochus [IV] Epiphanes, as the horn from which a notable horn grew. He was one from one of the generals who succeeded Alexander the Great's . “From the time that Seleucus made himself king over the Syrian portion of Alexander's empire, thus constituting the Syrian horn of the goat, until that country was conquered by the Romans, twenty-six kings ruled in succession over that territory. The eighth of these was Antiochus [IV] Epiphanes.” (Daniel and Revelation by Uriah Smith) His oppression of the Jews “caused the Maccabean rising…” (Peter Pett) BUT the protestant reformer overwhelming looked at the Papal system as the seat of the the antichrist, this little horn.
So, in response “the Roman system did not remain powerless. As soon as it had opportunity, the Catholic Church launched an elaborate scheme to counter the Reformation’s effects. Now known as the Counter Reformation, the plan was spearheaded by the Jesuit order… The doctrines of preterism and futurism, published in 1585 by Jesuit priests Alcasar and Ribera, countered the Reformation truths. Preterism stated that the Antichrist was the Greek king Antiochus Epiphanus IV, and not the papal system. Futurism pushed the Antichrist into a future time of tribulation just before Christ’s Second Coming. Futurism is tied in with dispensationalism, which includes the belief that during the end-time tribulations God’s people won’t be present on Earth but will be silently and secretly whisked away.” (The Counter Reformation by Walter J. Veith, PhD) These are some of the lies of Satan which keeps the book of Revelation as a master that can't be solved.
The idea that Antiochus IV Epiphanes was this little horn was not new, but the Jesuit priest did the most convincing study with that conclusion. I do not doubt that Antiochus IV Epiphanes wrought much havoc on the people of God in his day, but Scripture skipped over him for a greater persecution in the time of Messiah. There will be a greater "abomination of desolation as spoken of by Daniel the prophet.” (Matthew 24:15) He was not even the greatest of the Syrian kings, not even making it into the Scriptures. Yet we do find his predecessors—Antiochus III, in Daniel 11.
SO THERE IS ANOTHER VIEW FOR YOU TO CONSIDER. And out of one of them came a little horn. (9a) “It is a rule in the many languages that use grammatical gender, that the pronouns (words standing for something) must agree with their antecedent nouns (the thing they stand for) in being similarly masculine, feminine, or neuter. e.g. in English we think of a ship (the noun) as feminine and must refer to a ship with the feminine pronoun 'she' and 'her.'... 'And out of one (f) of them (m)'...- Out of one of the four winds. In the phrase 'out of one of them,' the pronoun 'them' is masculine and goes with 'winds' which is masculine or feminine but it does not go with 'horns' which are feminine. This means that 'out of one of them (m)' must refer to the 'winds' and not the 'horns.' However 'one' (Heb. Achath) is feminine suggesting 'horns' as the antecendant. Achath could, of course refer back to 'winds' which occurs most frequently in the feminine. But it would be unusual for the writer to assign two different genders to the same noun in such close grammatical relationship.The fact remains that the genders certainly allow for the view that the little horn arose from the winds. See SDABC, Vol. 4, p 840-841]" (The Daily of Daniel 8, 11, and 12 by the Living Water missions School http://www.livingwatersmissionschool.com/the-daily-of-danie… )
“In Daniel 8, the two beasts represent empires, but the horns of the ram and of the goat represent kings. This distinction is important, because the horn power in this vision is not attached to a beast (a world empire). Further, the Bible says this horn power is a king. (Daniel 8:23) Daniel was told this king will exalt himself to be as great as the Prince of the host, Jesus Christ! (Daniel 8:11)” (Larry W. Wilson) Perhaps, Lucifer himself will sit on the kingdom of Papal Rome. And in many ways, as the successive popes speak blasphemous things, he already controls this kingdom.
The remainder of the prophesy relate's chiefly to spiritual warfare. “In this passage in Hebrew the pronouns for the little horn alternate back and forth from masculine (m) to feminine (f). It appears that as the little horn represents Rome in both its Pagan & Papal phases in verses 9-12, Daniel, through an inspired use of gender, distinguishes between those things done by Pagan Rome versus those by Papal Rome. In verses 9-12 he appears to use the masculine pronouns for Pagan Rome and the feminine for Papal Rome. The gender of the various words will be indicated by (f), or (m).” http://www.livingwatersmissionschool.com/the-daily-of-daniel-8-11--12.html
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.
Satan grew up to the host of heaven and devoured some of saints, causing them to stumble and fall. “Good Onias was ejected for a sum of money, to make room for wicked Jason, and Jason again was supplanted for a greater sum of money by a worse man, if possible, than himself,—his brother Menelaus; and the golden vessels of the temple were sold to pay for the sacrilegious purchase. At the same time the customs of the heathens were introduced, the youth were trained up and exercised after the manner of the Greeks; and the people, and even the priests, apostatized from the true religion.” (Thomas Coke) This was during the days of the end of the Jewish church.
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.
"The Romans took away the daily sacrifice..., and utterly destroyed the temple…[in 70AD] When the city of Jerusalem was besieged and taken by the Romans, the number of the captives amounted to 97,000, and of the slain to 1,100,000: and they carried their conquests and revenge so far, as to put an end to the government of the Jews, and entirely to take away their place [the sanctuary— the place for sacrirfice] and nation." (Thomas Coke)
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.”
Daniel “heard one of the angels asking this question of Christ.” (Geneva Study Bible). "The sense then is, an angel comes to Christ for the sake of Daniel and of the whole Church, and seeks from him as from the supreme teacher and master, the meaning of the declarations which we have just heard.” (John Calvin) “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?” And he said to me, “For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.” Many apply the prophetic day for a year principle here and interpret as 2300 years. BUT I believe that the 2,300 days were just that, six years, and three and a half months. “The odd Hebrew word for days in Daniel 8:14 is not the usual Hebrew word, yom, for day. Instead, it is the Hebrew words, ‘ereb-boqer, meaning 'evenings-mornings' which are correctly translated in Daniel 8:26 (even in the KJV). When comparing the KJV, NASU, NIV, and RSV, only the King James Version incorrectly reads 'days.' It is important to know that ‘ereb (evening) and boqer (morning) occur 48 times in the KJV as 'evening and morning' and only once as 'days' -- in Daniel 8:14!" (Dr. Russell Earl Kelly)
"Daniel heard the time of this calamity limited and determined; but not the time when it should come... Christ died to cleanse his church; and he will so cleanse it as to present it blameless to himself." (Matthew Henry) The two cleansing of the earthly sanctuary of Jews by Jesus was or performed on Passover. Certainly the blood of atonement associated with Passover, certainly adds to this case. So, it makes perfect sense that the cleansing of the heavenly was on the Passover.
William Miller thought Jesus was coming in 1844, counting 2300 years from the going forth of the command to rebuild Jerusalem in 456BC. William Miller supposed that Jesus will cleanse the sanctuary of the earth at His Coming again in glory for the salvation of His people- Israel in that year. Another of William Miller’s mistakes was appointing 2300 years for the intended 2300 evenings and morning… and thus he was tempted to calculate something that we are not to try to figure out — the date of the Second Coming. Indeed: “The earth is called a sanctuary… It is also thus called because he will be worshipped in earth as in heaven… [which shall de cleansed] by fire. See 2 Peter iii. 7;…Titus ii;… Psalm xlvi. 6-10;… Isa. lxvi. 15, 16;… Nahum i. 5, 6;… Mal. iii. 17, 18; and iv. 1-3;… Matt. xiii. 41-43;… 2 Thess. i. 7-10;… 2 Peter iii. 10-13: 'But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.’” (Letter from William Miller-“THE CLEANSING OF THE SANCTUARY” 1842.]
“Even now where the gospel is preached in faith, and in the power of the Spirit, it burns its own way, irresistibly destroying falsehood, superstition, unbelief, sin, indifference, and hardness of heart. In it the Lord reigneth, and because of it let the earth rejoice.” (CH Spurgeon) In the time of the end, the Church is the focus. And the enemies of the Church, even a pope, Lucifer himself, will put an end to sacrifice— the teaching of the cross. Mary is now being consider a part of the godhead by some catholics. The popes only publicly speak what they think the masses will take, but there is a plethora of bad doctrine, not even remotely supported by Scripture. This is what is meant by putting an end to sacrifice. And in the name of higher criticism the enemies of God bring “into question the plainest Scripture teachings on history and origins. The writings of Moses were dismissed as myths, and faith was thrown out.” (The Counter Reformation by Walter J. Veith, PhD)
15 Then it happened, when I, Daniel, had seen the vision and was seeking the meaning, that suddenly there stood before me one having the appearance of a man. 16 And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of the Ulai, who called, and said, “Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.” 17 So he came near where I stood, and when he came I was afraid and fell on my face; but he said to me, “Understand, son of man, that the vision refers to the time of the end.” 18 Now, as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep with my face to the ground; but he touched me, and stood me upright. 19 And he said, "Look, I am making known to you what shall happen in the latter time of the indignation; for at the appointed time the end shall be.
20 “The ram which you saw, having the two horns—they are the kings of Media and Persia. 21 And the male goat is the kingdom of Greece. The large horn that is between its eyes is the first king. 22 As for the broken horn and the four that stood up in its place, four kingdoms shall arise out of that nation, but not with its power, 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. 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.
26 And the vision of the evenings and mornings which was told is true; therefore seal up the vision, for it refers to many days in the future. 27 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.”