SESSION 9:
The Ram, the Goat, and the Horn
(Daniel 8:1-27) Introduction
Daniel had a reputation for being able to understand and interpret all kinds of visions and dreams (1:17; 5:11-12). He had already demonstrated his God-given skill in interpreting the two visions of Nebuchadnezzar. Yet, the vision he receives in chapter 8 leaves him physically ill. He simply cannot grasp its meaning:
Then I, Daniel, was exhausted and sick for days. Then I got up again and carried on the king’s business; but I was astounded at the vision, and there was none to explain it (Daniel 8:27).
When a divinely gifted interpreter of dreams and visions cannot understand it, even with Gabriel the angel explaining this prophecy to him, what am I as a preacher to do with this text?
May the Spirit of God enlighten our hearts and minds to our passage, as we come recalling the words of the apostle Paul:
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
The Structure of the Text
(1) Revelation of Daniel’s Vision Verses 1-14
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Introduction Verses 1-2
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The Ram and the Goat Verses 3-8
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The “Little Horn” Verses 9-14
(2) Interpretation of Daniel’s Vision Verses 15-27
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Introducing Gabriel Verses 15-19
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Meaning of the Ram and Goat Verses 20-21
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Meaning of the “Little Horn” Verses 22-26
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Daniel’s Response Verse 27
The book changes from Aramaic (2:4-7:28) back to Hebrew.
From here on, the focus is back on Israel rather than on the gentile nations.
Rabi’s consider Hebrew the ‘Holy Tongue’, and feel it is the language of Divine prophecy. They say the Aramaic portion of Daniel is mostly quotations of the Aramaic Kings and Daniel communicating to them in Aramaic, and this is why they are written in the Gentile tongue.
Time Line Review
Timeline To 609 to 117
609bc Necho, king of Egypt was overlord of Jerusalem/Palastine
II Kings 23:31-34
Josiahs son, King Johoahaz was taken to Egypt and Eliakim, whose name was changed to King Jehoiakim.
Arch. Cuniform text unearthed in Mesopotamia concur with this historical fact. (in British Museum).
606 to
605bc King Nabopolassar sent the crown prince, Nebachadnezzar to Egypt - he conquered Necho and Carchemish and chased him to Palastine/Jerusalem, where he took some prisoners from noble families. Daniel was amoung these taken.
Jer. 25:1,27:19-20, 46:17-22, 52:12-30, II Kings 24:1-7, II Chron. 36:6,7, Daniel 1
1. Head: Babylon
Neb. then received news that Nabopolassar had died, and rushed back to Babylon where he became King. (605 bc)
‘Dan. In Critics Den’ pg. 17, appendix 154 - 155
This happened the 3rd year of Jehoiakim counting in Babylonian style, and the 4th year using the Mishna style.
Timeline Continued
597bc Johakim revolts and dies by natural causes.
II Kings 24:8-15
Ezek. 1:2
Johoachin takes over as King at the age of 18. He reigns for 3 months and is taken to Babylon, along with Ezekiel and others.
585bc Jeremiah flees to Egypt.
Jer. 52:34
Arch. ‘Bible as History’ page 285 Proof that these events occured as Daniel recorded!
The first of the four world-empires, then, was the Neo-Babylonian Empire of the Chaldeans that Nebuchadnezzar, whose reign began in 605 B.C., was to rule over for about forty more years--till 562 B.C. But his empire did not last more than twenty-one years after his death. His son Evil-Merodach (Amel-Marduk in Akkad.) reigned two years only ( 562-560, according to another reckoning). Neriglissar (or Nergal- shar- usur) reigned four years (560-556) and Labashi-Marduk only one (556).
Nabonidus engineered a coup d'etat in 556 (according to the Babylonian Chronical) and ruled till he gave kingship to his son, Belshazzar, in 552/531 who ruled until Babylon fell to the Medes (Darius, aka Gobrias the guttium) and the Persians (Cyrus the Great) in 539.
2. fell to the Medes and Persians,
a joint empire in which first the Medes and then the Persians took precedence.
The silver empire was to be Medo-Persia, which began with Gobrius (Darius)
Darius (Gobrius) takes Babylon - acting king from 10-11-539bc for approx. 6 months
Cyrus assumes the Throne 538 bc Ezra 1:1-4
All predicted in Is. 44:28-45:4
and Cyrus the Great, who conquered Babylon in 539/38
In Cyrus first year, he released the captives: 538 Captivity period continued and the events recorded in the Book of Daniel transpired.
538,37 Jews freed ( 1st year of Cyrus) and allowed to return to Jerusalem - the 70 year captivity is over.
His older son, Cambyses, had the throne from 530 /29 and conquered Egypt, but died in 523 or 522. After a brief reign by an upstart claiming to be Cyrus's younger son, Darius, son of Hystaspes deposed and assassinated him and established a new dynasty in 522. Darius brought the Persian Empire to its zenith of power but left unsettled the question of the Greeks in his western border. Xerxes took the throne in 486 when Darius died. Xerxes (486-464) his son, in his abortive invasion of 480-479, failed to conquer the Greeks. Nor did his successor Artaxerxes I (464-424/23) do this but rather contented himself with intrigue by setting the Greek city-states against one another. Later Persian emperors--Darius II (423-404); Artaxerxes II (404-359); Artaxerxes III (359-338); Arses (338-336/35); and Darius III (336/35-331)--declined still further in power. This silver empire was supreme in the Near and Middle East for about two centuries.
They could not conquer the Greeks, who were the 3rd major world power.
Their supremacy was ended by Alexander the Great, who founded
3. the Greek Empire.
As for the third empire (represented by bronze), it was even less desirable from Nebuchadnezzar's standpoint; though Greece was to "rule over the whole earth," its political tradition was more republican than its predecessor. The bronze empire was the Greco-Macedonian Empire established by Alexander the Great, who began his invasion of Persia in 334, crushed its last resistance in 331, and established a realm extending from the border of Yugoslavia to beyond the Indus Valley in India--the largest empire of ancient times.
After his death in 323, Alexander's territory soon split up into four smaller realms, ruled over by his former generals
Antipater in Macedon-Greece,
Lysimachus in-Asia Minor,
Seleucus in Asia, and
Ptolemy in Egypt, Cyria, and Palestine.
This situation crystallized after the Battle of Ipsus in 301, when the final attempt to maintain a unified empire was crushed through the defeat of the imperial regent Antigonus.
The eastern sections of the Seleucid realm revolted from the central authority at Antioch and were gradually absorbed by the Parthians as far westward as Mesopotamia.
But the remainder of the former Greek Empire was annexed by Rome after Antiochus the Great was defeated at Magnesia in 190 B.C. Macedon was annexed by Rome in 168, Greece was permanently subdued in 146, the Seleucid domains west of the Tigris were annexed by Pompey the Great in 63 B.C., and Egypt was reduced to a Roman province after the Battle of Actium in 31 B.C.
Thus the bronze kingdom lasted for about 260 or 300 years before it was supplanted by the fourth kingdom prefigured in Nebuchadnezzar's dream-image.
4. Rome Iron to Iron mixed with clay.
This was unquestionably the strongest and most durable of the four empires.
Iron connotes toughness and ruthlessness and describes the Roman Empire that reached its widest extent under the reign of Trajan (98-117 A.D.), who occupied Rumania and much of Assyria for at least a few brief years.
Rome took complete power after the Battle of Actium in 31BC., and has never been replaced by another world power.
REV 13,17
13:1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads; and on its horns were ten diadems, and on its heads were blasphemous names.
17:15 And he said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the whore is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages.
The four great beasts represent the _FOUR GREAT________ world empires that have risen from Nebuchadnezzar to the Antichrist.
REV. 13:13:1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads; and on its horns were ten diadems, and on its heads were blasphemous names.
2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And the dragon gave it his power and his throne and great authority.
REV.17:9 “This calls for a mind that has wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; also, they are seven kings,
10 of whom five have fallen, one is living, and the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain only a little while.
11 As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction.
12 And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast.
13 These are united in yielding their power and authority to the beast;
14 they will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”
HISTORY IS CLEAR: HOFFMAN (A GERMAN HISTORIAN)states that CHARLEMAGNE WAS DESCENDED FROM A ROMAN HOUSE, GERMAN EMPOROR OTHO II AND RUSSIAN GRAND -PRINCE VLADIMIR MARRIED WITH DAUGHTERS OF THE EAST ROMAN EMPEROR. - GERMANY, RUSSIA, AND MOST EUROPEAN NATIONS CAME FROM AND STILL ARE THE ROMAN EMPIRE.
READ McGEE - PG. 572
4 generals: Ptolemy -Egypt, Seleucas - Assyria & Babylon, Antigona - Persia & Asia Minor, and Phillip (Alexanders Brother) Macedonia.
It is interesting to note that we agree with our Rabbi friends: however, they say Rome now lives in two world religious systems: these dualistic world powers represent Christianity and Islam!
The Rabanic sources also go on to name the 10 kingdoms the Roman Empire disintigrated into as follows:
1. Constantinople (the Byzantine Empire)
2. Armenia
3. Hungary
4. Germany
5. Bulgaria
6. Canaan (western Slavick countries - Bohemia, Moravia, Slovakia)
7. France
8. Spain
9. Russia
10. Ishmail (the Arabic nations)
(Other Rabbi’s feel the Ten Kings were 10 Roman Emporers, concluding with Titus who then destroyed the Temple in 70ad.)
The _ROMAN_______ empire was never conquered. “Pax Romana” (Rome established peace in the world through conquering it) is still taught in History class.
ROMAN INFLUENCE STILL GOVERNS CIVILIZATION, AND WILL EMERGE AGAIN AS WE CAN SEE IN THE EUROPEAN COMUNITY!
The __ONE WORLD _____ government the __ANTICHRIST__ sets up is part of the Roman Empire, so the next great world empire will be the last - it will be__KINGDOM OF GOD___ , where you and I will reign with Christ!
Daniel had a purpose for including this information in his introduction. He wants his readers to know that the prophecy of chapter 8 must be understood in the context of the reign of Belshazzar, and particularly in light of the events described in chapter 5. Further, the prophecy of chapter 8 should be understood in relationship to the prophecy of chapter 7. Even though the prophecy of chapter 7 is written in Aramaic and chapter 8 in Hebrew, these two prophecies cannot be understood in isolation; they must be understood in relationship to each other.
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