DANIEL SIMPLIFIED
CHAPTER
8.1.Introduction
Gleanings
from the Book of Daniel:
A
Weekly Verse-by-Verse Bible Study Series
DANIEL
Chapter
Eight
The Ram, He-goat, and Little Horn
Outline of Daniel Chapter 8
1. The Revelation of the Vision (Vv. 1-2)
2. The Presentation of the Vision (Vv.
3-14)
a. A Ram (Vv. 3-4)
b. A He-goat (Vv. 5-8)
c. A Little Horn (Vv. 9-12)
3. The Investigation of the Vision (Vv.
13-14)
4. The Interpretation of the Vision (Vv.
15-25)
a. A Description of the Ram (v. 20)
b. A Description of the He-goat (v. 21a)
c. A Description of the Little Horn (Vv.
21b-25)
5. The Confirmation of the Vision (v. 26)
6. The Culmination of the Vision (v. 27)
Introduction
The last Aramaic sentence in the book
of Daniel ended with Daniel’s cogitations (thoughts, mental conceptions)
regarding the Times of the Gentiles (7:28).
Daniel thereafter moves to prophetic future events relative to the nation Israel
in Chapter 8, and accordingly, it is written in Hebrew and more specific.
Events in the book of Daniel are not in
chronological order. Chapters 7 and 8 should precede Chapter 5 when Babylon was
conquered by the Medes and Persians. Chapters seven and eight were recorded
when Daniel was between 67 to 70 years of age while living in obscurity (see
Daniel 5:11-16). However, Daniel was not living in obscurity as far as God was
concerned.
You recall Daniel’s first vision in
Chapter 7 was that of four animals representing four kings and kingdoms:
1. A lion with eagle’s wings – the Babylonian
Empire (v. 4)
2. A bear raised on one side – the
Medo-Persian Empire (v. 5a)
3. A leopard with four wings – the Grecian
Empire (v.6)
4. A terrible beast with ten horns – the
Roman Empire (v. 7)
Daniels's second vision in Chapter 8 consists
of two diverse animals, as we shall observe…
Comparisons
A. The
Times of the Gentiles (cf. Luke 21:24) spans the period of
Nebuchadnezzar’s rule until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ (cf. Matthew
16:27; 24:36; Revelation 1:7; 19:11-16)
B. The
Fullness of the Gentiles (cf. Romans 11:25) is the period from
Pentecost until the rapture of the church (cf. Revelation 4:1)
A. Daniel
Chapter 7 presents the general history of the Gentiles, i.e.,
Gentile rule extending from the Babylonian captivity to Christ’s Second Advent
B. Daniel
Chapter 8 concerns, in part, the Medo-Persian, Greek, and Roman
empires, i.e., the second, third, and especially the fourth through the
Tribulation
A. The
vision in Daniel 7 is revealed from man’s point of view
B. The
vision in Daniel 8 is revealed from God’s perspective
A. Daniel’s
first vision, Chapter 7, was in the first year of Belshazzar’s reign - 553 B.C.
B. Daniel’s
second vision, Chapter 8, was in the third year of Belshazzar’s reign – 551
B.C.
1.
The Revelation of the Vision (Vv. 1-2)
(Verse 1)
In the third year of the reign of king
Belshazzar, a vision appeared unto me, even
unto me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first.
The
Historical Setting
Daniel received a second vision two
years after his first, both during Belshazzar’s monarchy in Babylon. It was
written 12 years before the fall of Babylon around 551 B.C.
A vision appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel
God chose and gave
Daniel as His vehicle of revelation. He was surprised that God would use him, for
he was just an ordinary man. Scripture records the astonishment and humility of
others: as well:
1. After the burning bush
experience when God chose Moses to lead His people out of Egypt:
Exodus 3:11 - And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go
unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
Exodus 4:10 - And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy
servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.
2. After John heard the
voice of Christ and later when he was shown the River of Life, he became
overwhelmed:
Revelation 1:9 – I John, who also am your brother, and companion in
tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle
that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus
Christ.
Revelation 22:8-9 - And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen,
I fell down to worship
before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things. Then saith he (the angel) unto me,
See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant,
and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which
keep the sayings of this Book: worship God.
After that which appeared unto me at the first
The phrase is simply
identifying the preceding chapter, in other words, the vision revealed earlier
to Daniel. Similar language is used later in the book:
Daniel 9:21 - Yea, whiles I was speaking
in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the
beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of
the evening oblation.
(Verse 2)
And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass,
when I saw, that I was at
Shushan in the
palace, which is in
the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai.
The Geographical
Setting
Shushan
Not only did Daniel
have a second vision in Babylon, but it also came to pass. He envisioned
himself being transported to the birthplace of the Medo-Persian Empire,
Shushan. In the providence of Elam by the river of Ulai.
Shushan (KJV) or Susa was
an ancient city destroyed by the Assyrians in 645 B.C. and rebuilt by Darius I
(522-473 B.C.). It was situated in a desert area 230 miles east of Babylon and
120 miles north of the Persian Gulf. History notes the Medes and the Persians
affirmed it as a royal city. With a fortified palace, it became one of the
capitals of the Persian Empire during the time of King Darius the Great. Later on,
the city was used for the winter residence of Persian kings.
God specifically takes
the time to record in detail a city of no importance to a city in which both
Nehemiah and Esther served:
1. In Shushan, Nehemiah
was in the royal palace when commissioned to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem:
Nehemiah 1:1 - The words of Nehemiah the son of
Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as
I was in Shushan the
palace.
2. In Shushan, Esther sat
on her throne as queen in the royal palace built by Darius:
Esther 1:2 - That in those days, when the king Ahasuerus sat
on the throne of his kingdom, which was in
Shushan the palace.
Esther 2:17 - And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained
grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the
royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Elam
Elam, in the hillsides
of modern-day Iran at the beginning of the Tigris River, was an independent
providence in western Asia outside the Babylon Empire. Later, Elam became known
as Susiana derived from its capital Susa.
The Elamites were
descendants of Noah’s son Shem. Elam’s area was originally occupied by the
Cushite race and its earliest king was Chedorlaomer.
Genesis 10:22 - The sons of Shem were Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram (NKJV).
Genesis 14:1 - And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel king of
Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of
nations.
The River Ulai
Archaeology has
discovered an artificial canal running through the city of Shushan. It was
built to transport water between two rivers, the Choaspes and Coprates. The
canal is an engineering marvel having a 900-foot-wide channel.
The canal is also
mentioned in Assyrian literature. And, in modern times, Ulai is known as the
Kerkhah River.
With the backdrop of
Daniel's vision, he will next delineate the description of two animals, the ram
and the he-goat in further study.
QUESTIONS:
1. What is unique about Chapter 8?
2. When does the Times of the Gentiles
occur?
3. When did Daniel receive his second
vision?
4. Where was Daniel when he received the
vision?
5. To what city was Daniel transported?
6. In what territory was the city located?
7. What is significant about the River
Ulai?
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