DANIEL SIMPLIFIED

 

CHAPTER 7.1.INTRODUCTION

Gleanings from the Book of Daniel:

A Weekly Verse-by-Verse Bible Study Series

 

DANIEL

 

Chapter Seven

PART 2 – Prophecy Section (7-12)

Introductory Matters

The Vision of the Four Beasts

 

Preface

The first 6 chapters of Daniel present the reader with a basic historical background of the Babylonian Captivity. The focus is on God’s sovereignty and intervention in the lives and experiences of a young Daniel and his three friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego at the court of King Nebuchadnezzar. Dreams of Nebuchadnezzar, from a Babylonian perspective, are indicative of man’s elevation through the great empires of the world, characterized by bright shiny precious metals.

 

Chapters 7 through 12, from the viewpoint of the Jewish people, present the reader with the most comprehensive prophecy of the future – Daniel’s vision of future world history to the end of the world. God never looks at the outward appearance of man, but at the innermost part, desperately depraved and wicked.

 

Authorship

Some critical scholars have a hard time ascribing Daniel as its author. But, to assign the composition to other hands, at a later date (the time of the Maccabees, 165 B.C.) is utterly to invalidate the entire book. And also, Jesus cites Daniel when speaking about the Antichrist (cf. Matthew 24:15). Hence, there is no scientific basis for departing from the sixth-century B.C. authorship by Daniel.

 

Date

Verse 1 pinpoints the time Daniel penned the book: In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon (while he was co-regent with his father, Nabonidus). This date would be 553 B.C. Recall, Belshazzar’s death occurred in 538 B.C. when the Empire fell to the Medes and Persians.

 

So, Daniel most likely wrote while he was in obscurity (see Daniel 5:7-16 for the narrative), and certainly before the lion’s den experience. Understand, Daniel, while in communion with God, was His revelator of future events concerning not only the Jewish powers but also the Gentile Kingdoms of the world from God's perspective as well. Since commentators differ for his age in captivity, thus, he was somewhere between 68 to 84 years old when the Book of Daniel was written.

 

Purpose

The book of Daniel sets the chronological framework for Messianic prophecy from the time of Daniel, i.e., the Times of the Gentiles to Christ’s First and Second Comings. It too encapsulates God’s plan for the future of Israel, the church, and how they fit into the future everlasting Kingdom on earth.

 

God’s covenantal promise to Abraham will finally be realized, however, for Israel to be saved (Romans 9:6-8; 11:26), they too must accept Jesus Christ as their Messiah to become the spiritual elect heir (remnant) and the seed of that promise – the Abrahamic Covenant (cf. Genesis 12:1-3).

 

Themes of Daniel 7-12

Themes comprise the coming of the King to establish His eternal Kingdom (7:13-14a, 33), visions of four beasts, and the Seventy Weeks of Daniel (cf. Daniel 9:24-27).

 

Apocalyptical Interpretation

All Scripture is to be taken literally unless there is a good reason for certain passages to be figurative.

 

Structure

The entire book of Daniel is not written in chronological order. There is a literary device employed in Daniel known as chiastic structure. This device emphasizes parallel ideas. It is a sequence or series of ideas presented and then represented (repeated) in reverse or opposite order.

 

An example of chiastic structure found in Daniel is as follows:

Chapter 3 – A vision of four kingdoms and their end (from Nebuchadnezzar’s point of view)

Chapter 4 – Judgments foretold and then experienced

Chapter 5 – Judgments foretold and then experienced

Chapter 7 – A vision of four kingdoms and their end (from God’s point of view)

 

Hence, Chapter 7 parallels Chapter 2.

 

The best example of chiastic structure in the New Testament is found in Mark’s Gospel regarding the Sabbath:

Mark 2:27 - And He said unto them, The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.

 

Comparisons

Chapters 2 and 7 are compared:

A. Both have symbols representing kingdoms followed by the Messiah

B. Both show progressive inferiority in the four kingdoms

C. Both show a duality (having two parts) in the second kingdom

D. Both show a ten-fold division of the fourth kingdom

 

A. The first 6 chapters are primarily focused on the dreams of others

B. The last 6 chapters are primarily focused on the dreams of Daniel

 

A.  In the first 6 chapters, Daniel refers to himself in the third person

B. In the second 6 chapters, Daniel refers to himself in the first person

 

A. Chapter 2 shows kingdoms in the shape of a man through polished metals

B. Chapter 7 shows kingdoms by depicting wild beasts

 

A. Chapter 2 is delineated from the human perspective

B. Chapter 7 is delineated from the divine perspective

 

A. Chapter 2 is about how man sees himself

B. Chapter 7 is about how God sees man

 

Chapter 7 Outline

1. The Introduction (v. 1)

2. The Intervention from God (Vv. 2-7)

3. The Innovation of the Little Horn (v. 8)

4. The Intercession of the Ancient of Days (Vv. 9-14)

5. The Inquiry of Daniel (Vv. 15-16)

6.  The Interpretation of the Vision (v. 17)

7. The Insurance from God (v. 18)

8. The Inquisition of Daniel (Vv. 19-22)

9. The Information revealed to Daniel (Vv. 23-28)

 

 

1. The Introduction

(Verse 1)

 

In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters.

 

The Setting

Daniel is gifted by God with dreams and visions (cf. Daniel 1:17) and received a dream and visions while lying upon his bed. It occurred in the first year of King Belshazzar’s reign, near the close of the seventy-year captivity - He would be the last of the kings of Babylon.

 

For Daniel, this will be the first of four visions and/or dreams.  It was not some nightmare, but a clear perception of divine revelation received through the Holy Spirit.

 

Recapitulation

Dreams – Experiences while someone is sleeping

Visions – Experiences usually in a waking condition

 

Then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters

It was customary in antiquity for people to record predictions, no matter how they were communicated. Thus, Daniel wrote down the sum of the matters, meaning:

1. The significant content of his dream

2. The summary of the dream’s subject matter

3. The substance of what he envisioned in his dream

 

 

1. The Introduction (v. 1)

2. The Intervention from God (Vv. 2-7)

(Verse 2)

 

Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea.

 

In Daniel's dream, he is standing on the shore of the Great Sea (the sea represents the mass of humanity) near the birthplace of civilization. And, he describes turbulence by winds (stirring or churning up, breaking or rushing forth) from four directions upon the sea.

 

The four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea

Four Winds

The word for winds in the Bible may be rendered in several ways. They could be translated: as spirit, breath, life, anger, insubstantiality, a region of the sky, or simply wind.

 

The number four is associated with the four corners or directions of the earth, north, south, east, and west. And the wind is usually denoted with war, strife, or judgments of God. For instance:

Jeremiah 25:32- Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth.

 

Revelation 7:1-3 - And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.

 

Daniel visualizes the sea of humanity being tossed in turbulence by the winds of sin. It is descriptive of human society, history, and man’s chaotic condition throughout the centuries. God is seen hurling winds of judgment on ungodly nations from the four points of the compass.

 

The four winds of the heaven strove (break or burst forth) upon the great sea

Seas of Scripture

Symbolically, the sea or seas represent the mass of humanity or nations of the world. Four notorious seas include:

1. The Red Sea – About 150 miles wide and 1200 miles long. In approximately 1445 B.C. with over 3 million people, Moses led Israel out of the land of Egypt by a miraculous crossing (cf. Exodus 14:1-31).

 

2. The Dead Sea  (the Salt Sea, or lake of Sodom) – Once the area of the Cities of the Plain (cf. Genesis 13:12), a group of five cities ( Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Zoar), were located in the Valley of Siddim (cf. Genesis 14:3) and destroyed by God for the wickedness of Sodom and Gomorrah (cf. Genesis 19:24-29). It is the lowest saltwater lake in the world.

 

3. The Sea of Galilee - (mainly a large lake – the lowest freshwater lake in the world). It measures about 21 miles long by 8.1 miles wide. The sea or lake is addressed by a few different names. Some include:

a.  The lake of Chinnereth (cf. Numbers 34:11; Joshua 12:3; 13:27)

b.  The lake of Gennesareth (cf. Luke 5:1)

c.  The Sea of Tiberias (John 6:1; 21:1)

 

Many episodes centered on Jesus and His disciples occurred on and around the Sea of Galilee.

 

4. The Great Sea – Also known as the Mediterranean Sea. This Sea is the one taken most naturally since a majority of biblical history took place between Daniel and the time of Christ relevant to eschatology (the Doctrine of the End Times).

 

Winds of Turbulence and Sea of Humanity

So, in Revelation 13:1 the political leader (the wild beast of the sea - Antichrist) will come out of the sea of humanity (cf. 13:1-10). And, another beast (the wild beast of the earth – A spiritual leader, the False Prophet) comes from the land or earth surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, i.e., Palestine (cf. Revelation 13:11-18).

 

Now, listen to how Isaiah describes the sea of humanity and the winds of turbulence concerning the city of Damascus:

Isaiah 17:13-14 - Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters! The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind..

 

 

The following session continues God’s intervention through Daniel’s dream.

 

 

QUESTIONS:

1. What is the difference between both parts of Daniel?

2. Approximately when was Daniel written?

3. What is the purpose of Daniel?

4. What is another word for chiastic structure?

5. What do four winds symbolize?

6. What do seas represent in the Bible?

7. What is the Great Sea?

 

 

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