Hello Friends!
Welcome Back! Let’s continue our study of “Daniel’s Devotion” from God’s Word…
Daniel’s
Devotion (Part 9)
The passages in the 11th chapter of
Daniel's prophecy have been referred to as a “double fulfillment prophecy” – a
prophecy with a near time fulfillment
and a future time fulfillment. Let’s
take a look at them and see if we can make some sense of them.
First, the "King of
the North" is defined as modern-day Syria.
The "King of the South" also defined by Daniel is modern-day Egypt:
And
when he has arisen, his kingdom shall be broken up and divided toward the four
winds of heaven, but not among his posterity nor according to his dominion with
which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be uprooted, even for others besides
these. Also the king of the South shall become strong, as well as one of his princes; and he shall gain
power over him and have dominion. His dominion shall be a great dominion. And at the end of some years they shall join forces,
for the daughter of the king of the South shall go to the king of the North to
make an agreement; but she shall not retain the power of her authority, and
neither he nor his authority shall stand; but she shall be given up, with those
who brought her, and with him who begot her, and with him who strengthened her
in those times. But from a
branch of her roots one shall
arise in his place, who shall come with an army, enter the fortress of the king
of the North, and deal with them and prevail – Daniel 11:4-7
Daniel also refers to the
Grecian leader – Antiochas Epiphanes – who came to power 360 years after Daniel wrote these words! As it
relates to the prophecy, the near time
fulfillment of the prophecy would take place around 168-165 BC. Daniel
“pre-wrote” history revealing that Antiochas would come to power and take
control of Jerusalem with his mighty military force. Antiochas and his men
would desecrate the Temple by slaughtering a "pig" – a non-kosher
animal – on the "sacred altar" of the Jewish Temple. We know that
Antiochas committed this blasphemous act on the Jewish date of Kislev 25, which corresponds to our
calendar date of December 25th – an actual pagan date coinciding
with our traditional Christmas celebrations… This act of disgrace was performed
in 168 BC.
Though it does not mention
Antiochas Epiphanes by name, it describes this Grecian leader and all that he
does in relationship to the Jews, Jerusalem and the Temple. Daniel details this
incident as the "abomination of desolation":
And forces shall be mustered by
him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away
the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation – Daniel 11:31
Next Daniel reveals that
"the people who know their God shall be
strong and carry out “great exploits":
Those
who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the
people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits – Daniel 11:32
Daniel's prophecy about
these people is describing a Jewish family known as the Macabees. A father and
his sons, who would rise up against Antiochas and ultimately run the
"madman" and his military force out of Jerusalem and the Temple. The
Macabees did that on Kislev 25 – December 25th – 165 BC, exactly three years to the day after
Antiochas Epiphanes desecrated the Temple.
After restoring the Temple
and re-consecrating the Jewish worship center, the Macabees found a
"flask" of virgin olive oil, enough to light the seven-branched
menorah for one day. However, it stayed lighted for eight days, thus the Jewish
Holy Day of "Chanukah" – the "feast of dedication" – also
known as the "feast of lights".
It is important to note
that Jesus Christ also celebrated Chanukah as recorded by the Apostle John:
Now it
was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked
in the temple, in Solomon’s porch – John
10:22-23
To this point in our
reading for today we have been discussing "history" – the complete fulfillment of Daniel's prophecy
which occurred in 168-165 BC:
And in
his place shall arise a vile person, to whom they will not give the honor of
royalty; but he shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue.
With the force of a flood they shall be swept away from before him and be
broken, and also the prince of the covenant. And after the league is made with him he shall act
deceitfully, for he shall come up and become strong with a small number of people. He shall enter
peaceably, even into the richest places of the province; and he shall do what his fathers have not done, nor
his forefathers: he shall disperse among them the plunder, spoil, and riches;
and he shall devise his plans against the strongholds, but only for a time. He shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the
South with a great army. And the king of the South shall be stirred up to
battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand, for they
shall devise plans against him. Yes, those who eat of the portion of his
delicacies shall destroy him; his army shall be swept away, and many shall fall
down slain. Both these kings’ hearts shall
be bent on evil, and they shall speak lies at the same table; but it shall
not prosper, for the end will
still be at the appointed time.
While returning to his land with great riches, his heart shall be moved against the holy covenant; so
he shall do damage and return
to his own land. At the appointed time he shall return and go toward the south;
but it shall not be like the former or the latter. For ships from Cyprus shall
come against him; therefore he shall be grieved, and return in rage against the
holy covenant, and do damage. So
he shall return and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant. And forces shall be mustered by him, and they
shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation.
Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but
the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits – Daniel
11:21-32
Daniel also reveals how
the alignment of Arab and Islamic nations, led by Russia, will
begin to make their way into Israel to destroy the Jewish state.
At the
time of the end the king of the South shall attack him; and the king of the
North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and
with many ships; and he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through – Daniel 11:40
Almost in concert, the two
nations of Egypt and Syria will come "against
him" – the “him”
denoted here is the “Antichrist” himself. Why would the text say that
Syria and Egypt are going to attack the “Antichrist?” The answer is that before both Arab
nations move against Israel, the “Antichrist” will have "confirmed" a peace agreement “covenant with many” between Israel and her enemies.
Therefore, to attack Israel is like attacking the “Antichrist” who has just guaranteed Israel's
peace.
Then the Antichrist will
rush back to Israel, go to the north and destroy Syria, then go south to take
care of Egypt:
He
shall also enter the Glorious Land, and many countries shall be overthrown; but these shall escape from his
hand: Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon. He shall stretch out his
hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. He shall
have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious
things of Egypt; also the Libyans and Ethiopians shall follow at his heels – Daniel 11:41-43
At that time, all of the
other nations aligned against Israel will attack as noted by the Prophet
Ezekiel in chapter 38 of the Old Testament book titled in his name. This
scenario described in prophecy seems to be coming near to being fulfilled both
politically and militarily according to the daily reports that are coming out
of the Middle East, not to mention the ongoing violence that is happening in
both Syria and Egypt and the radical elements found in these two countries.
However, there is another
event which will be known as the "abomination of
desolation" that will happen in
the future – during the Tribulation
Period in which Daniel detailed earlier in our study. This is the prophecy that
reveals the Temple in Jerusalem being desecrated at the mid-way point of the
Tribulation:
Then he
shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of the week he shall bring
an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one
who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which
is determined, is poured out on the desolate – Daniel
9:27
Jesus Christ also
confirmed this prophecy in his Olivet Discourse described by in the Gospel of
Matthew:
Therefore
when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet,
standing in the holy place
(whoever reads, let him understand) – Matthew
24:15
The prophecy of Daniel and
the confirmation of this prophecy in the book of Matthew require a Jewish
Temple to be built, on the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem for the fulfillment of
the prophecy to occur. Of course, right now, there is not a Temple in Jerusalem
but the Jews have all preparations for that Temple in place. They will erect
the Temple right after the Rapture of the true Church – the Bride of Jesus
Christ – which could happen at any moment. So,
keep looking up!
Thank you for reading! Don’t miss next week’s continued investigation
of Daniel’s
Devotion…
May the Lord Jesus Christ continue to bless you with His perfect
love, mercy and grace!
Keep looking up and sharing the Gospel while there is still time… Hallelujah
and Maranatha – come quickly Lord Jesus!
Blessings!
Shane <><
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