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Daniel Chapter
Seven
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO DANIEL 7
This
chapter contains Daniel's vision of the four beasts, The time, place, manner,
writing, and declaration of the vision, Daniel 7:1, the
rise of the beasts, and the description of them, Daniel 7:2, the
judgment of God upon them, especially the last, and the delivery of universal
monarchy to his Son, Daniel 7:9, the
interpretation of the vision at the request of Daniel, being greatly affected
with it, Daniel 7:15, a
particular inquiry of his about the fourth beast, concerning which a full
account is given, Daniel 7:19, all
which caused in him many thoughts of heart, and reflections of mind, Daniel 7:28.
Daniel 7:1 In the first
year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head while
on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, telling the main facts.[a]
YLT 1In the first year of
Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel hath seen a dream, and the visions of his
head on his bed, then the dream he hath written, the chief of the things he
hath said.
In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon,.... Daniel
having finished the historical part of his book, and committed to writing what
was necessary concerning himself and his three companions, and concerning
Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, and Darius the Mede, proceeds to the prophetic part,
and goes back to the first year of Belshazzar's reign, seventeen years before
his death, and the fall of the Babylonish monarchy last mentioned; for so long
Belshazzar reigned, according to JosephusF21Antiqu. Jud. l. 10. c.
11. sect. 4. ; and with which agrees the canon of Ptolemy, who ascribes so many
years to the reign of Nabonadius, the same, with Belshazzar: he began to reign,
according to Bishop UsherF23Annales Vet. Test. A. M. 3449. , Dean
PrideauxF24Connexion, &c. part. 1. p. 114. , and Mr, WhistonF25Chronological
Tables, cent. 10. , in the year of the world 3449 A.M., and 555 B.C.; and in
the first year of his reign Daniel had the dream of the four monarchies, as
follows:
Daniel had a dream: as Nebuchadnezzar before had, concerning
the same things, the four monarchies of the world, and the kingdom of Christ,
only represented in a different manner: or, "saw a dream"F26חלם חזה "somnium
vidit". V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator,
&c. ; in his dream he had a vision, and objects were presented to his fancy
as if he really saw them, as follows:
and visions of his head came upon his bed; as he lay
upon his bed, and deep sleep was fallen on him, things in a visionary way were
exhibited to him very wonderful and surprising, and which made strong
impressions upon him:
then he wrote the dream: awaking out of his
sleep, and perfectly remembering the dream he had dreamed, and recollecting the
several things he had seen in it; that they might not be lost, but transmitted
to posterity for their use and benefit, he immediately committed them to
writing:
and told the sum of the matters; the whole of what he had
dreamt and seen; or however the sum and substance of it, the more principal
parts of it, the most interesting things in it, and of the greatest importance:
when it was daylight, and he rose from his bed, and went out of his chamber, he
called his friends together, and told them by word of mouth what he had seen in
his dream the night past; or read what he had written of it, which was as
follows:
Daniel 7:2 2 Daniel
spoke, saying, “I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of
heaven were stirring up the Great Sea.
YLT 2Answered hath Daniel and
said, `I was seeing in my vision by night, and lo, the four winds of the heavens
are coming forth to the great sea;
Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night,.... He
declared he had had a vision by night, and this was the substance of it:
and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great
sea: the east, west, north, and south winds, broke out from each of
their quarters, and rushed in upon the great sea; either the Mediterranean, so
called in comparison of the sea of Sodom, and the sea of Tiberias in Judea; or
upon the waters of the main ocean, and raised up its waves, and seemed as it
were to be striving and fighting with them, and put them into a strange
agitation; by which may be meant the whole world, and the kingdoms and nations
of it, because of its largeness, inconstancy, instability, and disquietude; see
Revelation 17:15,
and by the "four winds" some understand the angels, either good or
bad, concerned in the affairs of Providence on earth, either by divine order or
permission; or rather the kings of the earth raising commotions in it, striving
and fighting with one another, either to defend or enlarge their dominions; and
which have been the means in Providence of the rising up of some great state or
monarchy, as after appears.
Daniel 7:3 3 And
four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other.
YLT 3and four great beasts are
coming up from the sea, diverse one from another.
And four great beasts came up from the sea,.... Which are
afterwards interpreted of four kings or kingdoms, Daniel 7:17, which
rose up in the world, not at once, but successively, and out of the sea or
world, through the commotions and agitations of it; and these are the four
monarchies, Babylonian, Persian, Grecian, and Roman; compared to
"beasts", because of the rapine and violence, cruelty, oppression,
and tyranny, by which they were obtained, set up, supported, and maintained;
and to "great ones", being not like single separate kingdoms, as the
kingdom of Israel, and the like, but consisting of many kingdoms and nations,
and so like beasts of an enormous size:
diverse one from another; in their situation,
language, manner, strength, and power; hence expressed by divers sorts of
beasts, as the lion, bear, leopard, &c.; as in Nebuchadnezzar's dream by
different metals, gold, silver, brass, and iron.
Daniel 7:4 4 The
first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings. I watched till its wings
were plucked off; and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two
feet like a man, and a man’s heart was given to it.
YLT 4The first [is] like a lion,
and it hath an eagle's wings. I was seeing till that its wings have been
plucked, and it hath been lifted up from the earth, and on feet as a man it
hath been caused to stand, and a heart of man is given to it.
The first was like a lion,.... That which rose up
first, the kingdom of the Babylonians, as the Syriac version expresses it; or
the Assyrian monarchy, founded by Nimrod, increased by the Assyrians, and
brought to its height under Nebuchadnezzar by the Babylonians and Chaldeans;
this is said to be like a "lion" for its strength and power, for its
greatness, dignity, and majesty; the same with the head of gold in
Nebuchadnezzar's dream; see Jeremiah 4:7,
and had eagles' wings; denoting the celerity
and swiftness with which Nebuchadnezzar ran, or rather flew, over several
kingdoms and countries, and added them to his empire; see Jeremiah 4:13,
and I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked; it was
retarded and stopped in its conquests; it could fly no further, nor make any
new acquisitions; yea, it was deplumed and stripped of some of its dominions,
the Medes and Persians falling off, and making war with it:
and it was lifted up from the earth; or, "with which it
was lifted up from, the earth"F1ונטילת
מן ארעא "quibus
efferebatur e terra", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; "per quas
efferebatur supra terram", Grotius. ; with which wings it raised itself
up, and lifted itself above other kingdoms and nations; but now were plucked,
and could not soar aloft as formerly; its glory and majesty, power and
strength, were lessened, whole provinces revolting, as in the times of
Evilmerodach, Neriglissar, and Belshazzar:
and made stand upon the feet as a man; it did not
fly like an eagle as before, and overrun countries, and waste them; or go upon
all four, as a beast; but stood on its feet, its two hinder legs, like a man;
signifying that it abated, in the reigns of the above princes, of its strength
and fierceness, and became more mild and tractable, and was reduced within
bounds like other kingdoms:
and a man's heart was given to it; instead of a lion like
heart, that was bold and intrepid, and feared nothing, it became weak and
fearful, and timorous like the heart of man, especially in Belshazzar's time;
not only when he saw the handwriting on the wall, to which Jacchiades refers
this; but when he was so fearful of Cyrus that he shut himself up in Babylon,
and durst not stir out to give him battle, as XenophonF2Cyropaedia,
l. 5. c. 10. relates; and when the city was taken, the Babylonians were obliged
to deliver up their arms, employ themselves in tilling their fields, and to pay
tribute to the Persians, and always salute them as their lords and masters, as
the same historianF3Cyropaedia, l. 7. c. 24. says; see Jeremiah 51:30.
Daniel 7:5 5 “And
suddenly another beast, a second, like a bear. It was raised up on one side,
and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And they said thus to
it: ‘Arise, devour much flesh!’
YLT 5And lo, another beast, a
second, like to a bear, and to the same authority it hath been raised, and
three ribs [are] in its mouth, between its teeth, and thus they are saying to
it, Rise, consume much flesh.
And, behold, another beast, a second, like to a bear,.... Another
monarchy, and which succeeded the former, and rose up upon the ruins of it, the
Medo-Persian monarchy; and so the Syriac version prefixes to this verse, by way
of explanation,
"the
kingdom of the Medes'
like
to a bear, less generous and strong than the lion; more rough and uncivil, but
equally cruel and voracious; which describes the Medes and Persians as a fierce
and cruel people, and less polished, and more uncivilized, than the Chaldeans;
and answers to the silver breasts and arms in Nebuchadnezzar's dream; see Isaiah 13:17,
and it raised up itself on one side; either of the lion, the
first beast it destroyed; or rather on one side of itself, on the side of
Persia; from whence Cyrus came, who was the principal instrument of raising
this empire to the pitch it was brought unto. Some render it, "and it
raised up one government"F4ולשטר חר הקימת "quae dominatum
unum erexit", Junius & Tremellius, Polanus; "et dominatum
quendana erexit", Piscator. ; one empire out of many nations and kingdoms
it subdued:
and it had three ribs in the mouth of it, between the teeth of it; that is, three
ribs covered with flesh, which, it was devouring; the bear being very
voracious, and a great flesh eater: these, according to some, signify three
kings that followed Darius the Mede; Cyrus, Ahasuerus, and Darius; so Jarchi
and Jacchiades; and, according to Jerom, three kingdoms, the Babylonian,
Median, and Persian: but neither of these kings nor kingdoms can be said to be
in its mouth, and between its teeth, as ground and devoured by it, unless the
Babylonian; wherefore it is better interpreted by others, as Theodoret, the
three parts of the world it conquered, westward, northward, and southward, Daniel 8:4, though
it is best of all, with Sir Isaac Newton and Bishop Chandler, to understand by
them Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt; which countries were ground and oppressed by
the Medes and Persians, as the ribs of any creature are ground in the mouth of
a bear:
and they said thus unto it, arise, devour much flesh; which Jerom
refers to Haman's orders to destroy the Jews in the times of Ahasuerus; but it
is much better applied by others to Cyaxares or Darius sending for Cyrus to
take upon him the command of his army; and to the Hyrcanians, Gobryas, and
others, inviting him to avenge them on the Babylonians, promising to join and
assist him, as XenophonF5Cyropaedia l. 1. c. 22. l. 4. c. 4, 24.
relates: or rather this is to be interpreted of the divine will, and of the
conduct of Providence by means of angels stirring up the spirit of Cyrus, and
of the Medes and Persians, to attack and subdue many nations, and particularly
the Babylonians, and fill themselves with their wealth and substance; hence
they are styled the Lord's sanctified, whom he ordered and called to such
service; see Isaiah 13:3.
Daniel 7:6 6 “After
this I looked, and there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back
four wings of a bird. The beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to
it.
YLT 6`After this I was seeing,
and lo, another like a leopard, and it hath four wings of a fowl on its back,
and four heads hath the beast, and dominion is given to it.
After this I beheld, and, lo another, like a leopard,.... Another
beast, another monarchy, a third monarchy succeeding the Persian monarchy, and
which rose up on the ruins of that; Darius king of the Persians being beaten by
Alexander king of Macedon, who was the instrument of setting up the Grecian monarchy
here intended; compared to a leopard, a smaller creature than a lion;
signifying that this monarchy arose from a small beginning; and a crafty one,
Alexander having many wise counsellors of his father's about him, though he
himself was rash and hasty; and a spotted one, denoting the various virtues and
vices of Alexander, and his inconstancy in them; sometimes exercising the one,
and sometimes the other; or rather the different nations, and the manners of
them, he conquered, of which this empire consisted; not to say anything of the
cruelty and swiftness of this creature, which are both to be observed in this
conqueror:
which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; denoting the
swiftness of Alexander in his conquests; who in a few years made himself master
of the whole world, at least as he thought, whose empire was greater than that
of Nebuchadnezzar and the Chaldeans, to whom only two wings of an eagle are
given, Daniel 7:4. Says
Jerom,
"nothing
was more swift than the conquest of Alexander, from Illyricum and the Adriatic
sea, unto the Indian ocean, and the river Ganges; he rather ran through the
world by victories than by battles, and in six years subdued part of Europe,
all Asia even unto India,'
to
which may be added all Egypt, Syria, and Palestine. Arimazes being master of a
rock in Sogdiana, which was thought inaccessible and impregnable, Alexander
sent a messenger to him to demand the delivery of it to him; but, among other
things he proudly said, he asked the messenger, with a sneer, if Alexander
could fly; which, when the messenger reported, nettled him much, that he should
be insulted because he had not wings; and vowed that the next night he would
make him believe that the Macedonians did fly; and accordingly they found ways
and means to get to the top of it, which, when the governor saw, he declared
that Alexander's soldiers had wingsF6Curt. Hist. l. 7. c. 11. :
the beast also had four heads; which signify the four
kingdoms into which the Grecian empire was divided after Alexander's death,
under four of his generals, who were heads or governors of them: Macedonia
under Antipater, or, as others, Cassander; Egypt under Ptolemy; Syria under Seleucus;
and Asia under Antigonus, or, as others, Lysimachus:
and dominion was given to it; the dominion of the
whole world, or, however, a very large dominion; and this was given of God, and
according to his will, and the ordering of his providence; for to nothing else
can it be ascribed, that with thirty thousand men Alexander should beat an army
of six hundred thousand; and with such a handful of men subdue so many kingdoms
and nations, and that in the space of a few years.
Daniel 7:7 7 “After
this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and
terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring,
breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was
different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.
YLT 7`After this I was seeing in
the visions of the night, and lo, a fourth beast, terrible and fearful, and
exceedingly strong; and it hath iron teeth very great, it hath consumed, yea,
it doth break small, and the remnant with its feet it hath trampled; and it
[is] diverse from all the beasts that [are] before it; and it hath ten horns.
After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast,.... Not in
another night, as Jarchi; but in the same night, and in the same visions of it;
only after he had seen the other three successively, then last of all he saw
this fourth beast; and more being said of this than of the rest, shows that
this was the principal thing in the vision to be observed, as being to endure
until, and having a close connection with, the kingdom of the Messiah; which,
arising, shall destroy it, and take place of it: this is not the Turkish
empire, as Aben Ezra, and others: nor the kingdom of the Seleucidae, as
Grotius, and others; to which neither the characters, nor the duration of it,
agree; but the Roman empire, which succeeded the Grecian, so GorionidesF7(Curt.
Hist.) l. 3. c. 15. p. 221. :
dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; exceeding
powerful, as the Roman empire was, and terrible to all the kingdoms of the
earth; its armies, wherever they came, struck terror among the nations, and
threw them into a panic, killing, wasting, robbing all they met withF8Raptores
Orbis, &c. Taciti Vita Agricolae, c. 30. ; and especially it was terrible
to Christians, by their persecutions of them, as both Rome Pagan and Rome Papal
have been. Rome has its name from strength with the Greeks, and from height
with the Hebrews, as JeromF9Adv. Jovinian. l. 2. fol. 32. L.
observes:
it had great iron teeth; which may design its
generals and emperors, such as Scipio, Pompey, Julius Caesar, and others; which
crushed and devoured all that came in their way: this monarchy answers to the
legs and feet of iron in Nebuchadnezzar's dream:
it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the
feet of it; it devoured nations, broke kingdoms in pieces, and brought them
in subjection to them; reducing them to the greatest servitude, and obliging
them to pay heavy taxes and tribute:
it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it: in its
original, language, laws, customs, and forms of government; it was such a
monster, that no name could be given it; there was no one beast in nature to
which it could be compared; it had all the ill properties of the other beasts,
for craft, cruelty oppression, and tyranny; and therefore John describes this
same beast as being like a leopard, having the feet of a bear and the mouth of
a lion. Revelation 13:2,
and it had ten horns; which are explained of
ten kings or kingdoms, Daniel 7:24, the
same with the ten toes in Nebuchadnezzar's dream and with the ten kings that
received power as kings with the beast or ten kingdoms, into which the Roman
empire was divided about the time of the rise of antichrist,see Gill on cd11ul Rev_17:12.
Daniel 7:8 8 I
was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up
among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots.
And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth
speaking pompous words.
YLT 8`I was considering about
the horns, and lo, another horn, a little one, hath come up between them, and
three of the first horns have been eradicated from before it, and lo, eyes as
the eyes of man [are] in this horn, and a mouth speaking great things.
I considered the horns,.... The ten horns of the
fourth beast; these the prophet particularly looked at, took special notice of
them, carefully observed them, their number, form, and situation, and pondered
in his mind what should be the meaning of them:
and, behold; while he was attentive to these, and thinking within himself
what they should be, something still more wonderful presented:
there came up among them another little horn; not Titus
Vespasian, as Jarchi; nor the Turkish empire, as Saadiah; nor Antiochus
Epiphanes, as many Christian interpreters; for not a single person or king is
meant by a horn, but a kingdom or state, and a succession of governors; as by
the other ten horns are meant ten kings or kingdoms; besides, this little horn
is a part of the fourth, and not the third beast, to which Antiochus belonged;
and was to rise up, not in the third or Grecian monarchy, as he did, but in the
fourth and Roman monarchy; and was to continue until the spiritual coming of
Christ; or, until his kingdom in a spiritual sense takers place; which is not
true of him: and since no other has appeared in the Roman empire, to whom the
characters of this horn agree, but antichrist or the pope of Rome, he may be
well thought to be intended. IrenaeusF11Advers. Haeress, l. 5. c.
25. , an ancient Christian writer, who lived in the second century, interprets
it of antichrist; of whom having said many things, has these words:
"Daniel
having respect to the end of the last kingdom; that is the last ten kings among
whom their kingdom should be divided, upon whom the son of perdition shall
come; he says that ten horns shall be upon the beast, and another little horn
should rise up in the midst of them; and three horns of the first be rooted out
before him; and, "behold", saith he, "in this horn were eyes as
the eyes of man", &c.; of whom again the Apostle Paul, in 2 Thessalonians 2:8
declaring together the cause of his coming, thus says, "and then shall
that wicked one be revealed &c."'
and
in a following chapterF12Ibid. c. 26. the same writer observes,
"John
the disciple of the Lord in the Revelation hath yet more manifestly signified
of the last time, and of those ten kings in it, among whom the empire that now
reigns (the Roman empire) shall be divided; declaring what shall be the ten
horns, which were seen by Daniel; saying, "the ten horns which thou sawest
are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet, &c."; therefore
it is manifest, that of these he that is to come shall slay three, and the rest
shall be subject to him, and he shall be the eighth among them;'
and
Jerom on the place says, that this is the sense of
"all
ecclesiastical writers, that when the Roman empire is destroyed, there shall be
ten kings who shall divide it among them; and an eleventh shall arise, a little
king, who shall conquer three of the ten kings; and having slain them, the
other seven shall submit their necks to the conqueror:'
who
he further observes is not a devil or demon, but a man, the man of sin, and son
of perdition; so as that he dare to sit in the temple of God, making himself as
if he was God: now to the Roman antichrist everything here said answers: he is
a "horn", possessed of power, strength, authority, and dominion, of
which the horn is an emblem; a "little" one, which rose from small
beginnings, and came to his ecclesiastic power, from a common pastor or bishop,
to be a metropolitan of Italy, and then universal bishop; and to his secular
power, which at first was very small, and since increased; and yet in
comparison of other horns or kingdoms, but little; though, being allowed to
exercise a power within others, is, or at least has been, very formidable: this
"came up among" the other horns; when the northern barbarous nations
broke into the empire and set up ten kingdoms in it, this little horn sprung up
among them; and while they were forming kingdoms for themselves, he was contriving
one for himself; they rose at the same time and reigned together; see Revelation 17:12,
before whom, there were three of the first horns plucked up by the
roots; before whom three kings or kingdoms fell, and were subdued as in
Daniel 7:20 which,
according to Mr. MedeF13Works, B. 4. p. 779. , were the kingdoms of
the Greeks, of the Longobards, and of the Franks; but, according to Sir Isaac
NewtonF14Observations on Daniel, p. 75-78, 80, 88. , they were the
exarchate of Ravenna, the kingdom of the Lombards, and the senate and dukedom
of Rome; or, according to the present bishop of ClogherF15Inquiry
into the Time of the Messiah's coming, p. 28. , the Campagnia of Rome, the
exarchate of Ravenna, and the region of Pentapolis, which were plucked up by
Pipin and Charlemagne, kings of France, and given to the pope; and were
confirmed to him by their successor Lewis the pious, and is what is called the
patrimony of St. Peter; in memory of which a piece of Mosaic work was made and
put up in the pope's palace, representing St. Peter with three keys in his lap;
signifying the three keys of the three parts of his patrimony; and to show his
sovereignty over them, the pope to this day wears a triple crown:
and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man; in some
monstrous births there have been eyes in the knees, and in the belly above the
navelF16Vid. Schott. Phyica Curiosa, l. 5. c. 25. p. 711, 712. ; but
never was there known such a monster as this, to have a horn, and eyes in the
horn; horns some monsters have but not eyes in them: these may design the
pretended sanctity and religion of the pope of Rome or antichrist, who, though
a beast, would be thought to be a man, a religious creature; or his pretended
modesty, humanity, and courtesy, when he is all the reverse; or rather his
insight into the Scriptures he makes pretension to, setting himself up as an
infallible judge of them, and of all controversies: though they seem better to
design what he really has than what he pretends to; and may denote his
penetration and sagacity, his craft and cunning, and sharp looking out to get
power and dominion, temporal and spiritual; and his watchfulness to keep it,
that it is not encroached upon, and took away from him; and also all means and
instruments by which he inspects his own and others' affairs; particularly the
order of the Jesuits, which are his eyes everywhere, spies in all kingdoms and
courts, and get intelligence of what is done in the councils and cabinets of
princes: how many eyes this horn had is not said; nor is it easy to say how
many the pope of Rome has; he has as many as Argus, and more too, and these
sharp and piercing:
and a mouth speaking great things as that he is Christ's
vicar on earth, Peter's successor, head of the church, and universal bishop;
that he is infallible, and cannot err; that he has all power in heaven, earth,
and hell; that he can forgive sin, grant indulgences, make new laws, and bind
the consciences of men; dispense with the laws of God and men; dispose of
kingdoms, and remove and set up kings at pleasure, with many others of the like
kind; see Revelation 13:5.
Daniel 7:9 9 “I
watched till thrones were put in place, And the Ancient of Days was seated; His
garment was white as snow, And the hair of His head was like pure
wool. His throne was a fiery flame, Its wheels a burning fire;
YLT 9`I was seeing till that
thrones have been thrown down, and the Ancient of Days is seated, His garment
as snow [is] white, and the hair of his head [is] as pure wool, His throne
flames of fire, its wheels burning fire.
I beheld till the thrones were cast down,.... On which
the governors of the above monarchies sat; and those of the ten kings,
signified by the ten horns; and also that of the little horn. The prophet kept
looking on the objects before him, till he in his dream, and the visions of the
night, saw all those empires and kingdoms demolished, and all rule, power, and
authority, put down, and way made for the glorious kingdom of the Messiah, and
his saints with him; to this sense Aben Ezra, Saadiah, and Jacchiades,
interpret the word used; but the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Arabic
versions, render it, "until the thrones were set up"F17כרסון רמיו "subsellia posita
sunt", Tigurine version; "solia posita sunt", Piscator,
Cocceius; "throni elati sunt", Pagninus, Montanus. ; for the judges
to sit upon to try, judge, and condemn the four beasts or monarchies; in order
to make way for the kingdom of the Son of man to take place in the spirituality
and glory of it: here are more thrones than one; see Revelation 20:4,
one for the Ancient of days, and another for him who was like to the Son of
man, brought near before him; and so the JewsF18T. Bab. Chagiga,
fol. 14. 1. & Gloss in ib. say, here were two thrones pitched and prepared,
one for the Ancient of days, and another for David, that is, the Messiah, or
Son of David; and so Jarchi paraphrases the words,
"the
thrones were pitched and prepared to sit upon in judgment:'
and
this sense is confirmed by the use of the word in Ezra 7:24 and in
the Targum on 2 Kings 18:14 and
to this agrees best the following clause:
and the Ancient of days did sit; on one of the thrones
pitched, as chief Judge: this is to be understood of God the Father, as
distinct from the Messiah, the Son of God, said to be like the Son of man
brought unto him, Daniel 7:13 and is
so called, not only because he is from everlasting, and without beginning of
days; but chiefly because he is permanent, and endures for ever; his years fail
not, and of his days there will be no end; and he will be when these empires,
signified by the four beasts, will be no more; and very fit to be Judge of
them, because of his consummate wisdom and prudence, signified also by this
phrase; and the divine Father of Christ is still more proper, because it is in
Christ's cause the judgment will proceed; and this in order to introduce him openly
into his dominions in the world:
whose garment was white as snow; denoting the purity of
his nature, the brightness of his majesty, and his uncorruptness in judgment:
and the hair of his head like the pure wool; signifying
his venerableness, gravity, wisdom, and ripeness of judgment; being wonderful
in counsel, and excellent in working:
his throne was like the fiery flame; expressive of him, as
awful and formidable, as a consuming fire; and of his piercing judgment, and
the severity of it:
and his wheels as burning fire; the wheels of his
throne; alluding to such seats and thrones as were made to turn about, and to
be moved from place to place; denoting the power and providence of God
everywhere; the clear view he has of all things, in all places; and his
swiftness in the execution of his judgments.
Daniel 7:10 10 A
fiery stream issued And came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands
ministered to Him; Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court[b] was
seated, And the books were opened.
YLT 10A flood of fire is
proceeding and coming forth from before Him, a thousand thousands do serve Him,
and a myriad of myriads before Him do rise up, the Judge is seated, and the
books have been opened.
A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him,.... Or,
"a river of fire"F19נהר די־נור "fluvius ignis", Montanus, Junius &
Tremellius, Piscator, Cocceius, Michaelis. ; which denotes the copious
judgments of God, the abundance of them; the full flow of his wrath, and the
fierceness of it; and also its rapidity, which cannot be resisted and stopped:
thousand thousands ministered unto him; attended upon
him, waiting his orders, and ready to execute them; an innumerable company of
angels, Psalm 103:20,
and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; to be judged
by him; the numerous inhabitants of the several monarchies, with their kings;
particularly all the antichristian states, and the worshippers of the beast,
whom the whole world went after, Revelation 13:3,
the judgment was set; that is, the court was
set; the Judge was upon the bench, and all his assessors and apparitors about
him, and that ministered to him:
and the books were opened; both to take the trial
in writing, and to produce evidence against the criminals; the book of God's
purposes and decrees concerning these beasts; the book of prophecies relating
to them; the book of God's remembrance, and of their own consciences, with
respect to the evils committed by them; and the book of records, statutes, and
laws made in such cases; even the book of the Scriptures, which contains the
revelation of the will of God. In some things there is a likeness between this
and the last and future judgment, and in other things a disagreement; the Judge
in both is a divine Person, the eternal God, omniscient, omnipotent, holy,
just, and true, which is absolutely necessary for carrying on such a process;
none but God over all is equal to such a work: in the last judgment, as in
this, there will be thrones; the throne of God and of the Lamb, particularly a
great white throne, a symbol of purity, justice, and equity, on which the Judge
himself will sit, and execute judgment, from whose presence the earth and
heaven will flee away; and besides, there will be other thrones for the martyrs
of Jesus, and true professors of his name, to sit upon as spectators,
witnesses, and approvers of the solemn procedure, and shall reign with Christ a
thousand years: likewise the number of the persons judged, as here, will be
very great, even innumerable; all, both small and great, as to age or dignity,
will stand before the Judge, to be judged by him, and receive their sentence
from him; and there will be books for that purpose, as here, even the same, and
particularly the book of life, in which, if a man's name is not written, he
will be cast into the lake of fire; see Revelation 20:4,
but in other things they differ; here the Judge is God the Father, the first
Person in the Trinity, called the Ancient of days, distinguished from Christ,
said to be like the Son of man; whereas the last and future judgment will be
committed to the Son of God, the second Person, who is ordained Judge of quick
and dead; and who will come a second time to judge the world in righteousness;
and, though the description of the Ancient of days will agree well enough with
him, he having the same glorious perfections his Father has, which qualify him
for a Judge; see Revelation 1:14,
yet it is certain not he, but his divine Father, is intended: nor in the
account of the future judgment is there any mention of "a fiery
stream" issuing forth before him, as here, for the burning of the body of
the beast; unless the lake of fire may be thought to answer to it, into which
will be cast all such who have no part in the Lamb, nor a name in his book of
life: however, the accounts of both are very awful and striking; and this may
be considered as a type, example, presage, and pledge, of the future judgment;
this will be at the beginning of the spiritual reign of Christ, when antichrist
will be destroyed with the breath of his mouth, and the brightness of his
coming; the judgment of the saints will be at the beginning of his personal
reign, even of the quick and dead, those that will be found alive, and those
that will be raised from the dead, at his appearing and kingdom; and the
judgment of the wicked will be at the close of it, or at the end of the
Millennium; see Revelation 20:5.
Daniel 7:11 11 “I
watched then because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was
speaking; I watched till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given
to the burning flame.
YLT 11`I was seeing, then,
because of the voice of the great words that the horn is speaking, I was seeing
till that the beast is slain, and his body hath been destroyed, and given to
the burning fire;
I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the
horn spake,.... Or, "from the voice"F20מן קל "a voce",
Montanus, Cocceius; "ex quo coepit vox", Vatablus, Junius &
Tremellius; "ex quo audita fuit vox", Piscator. ; from the time it
was heard, the prophet continued looking to see what would be the issue of all
this; especially from the time he heard the little horn speak such blasphemous
things against God, and Christ, and his people, which were so intolerable, that
he concluded some notice would be taken of them in a way of correction and
punishment; and the rather, when he saw the Judge appear with so much majesty
and grandeur, and all things prepared for a judicial process:
I beheld even till the beast was slain; the fourth
beast, the Roman monarchy, to which a period will be put, and be utterly
abolished in every form and shape, and with it the little horn or Papacy; when
the beast on which the whore of Rome sits and rules, and by whom she is
supported, will go into perdition; and she herself shall be made desolate and
naked, her flesh eaten, and she burned with fire by the ten horns, or kings,
that shall rise up against her, being filled with hatred to her, Revelation 17:3,
and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame; when Rome
with all its power and wealth shall cease, and be no more, the whole body of
the antichristian states shall perish; the city of Rome shall be burnt with
fire; the beast and false prophet shall be taken and cast into a lake of fire,
burning with brimstone, Revelation 18:8.
Daniel 7:12 12 As
for the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away, yet their lives
were prolonged for a season and a time.
YLT 12and the rest of the beasts
have caused their dominion to pass away, and a prolongation in life is given to
them, till a season and a time.
As concerning the rest of the beasts..... The other
three which represent the Babylonian, Persian and Grecian monarchies:
they had their dominion taken away; not at this time when
the fourth beast, or Roman empire, is destroyed, but long ago; and not
together, but successively; the dominion was taken away from the Babylonians,
and given to the Persians; and then their dominion was taken away, and given to
the Grecians; and after that the dominion of the Grecians was taken away from
them, and given to the Romans: the prophet having observed what became of the
fourth beast, he was most intent upon, just in a few words takes notice of the
fate of the other three, before this:
yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time: these
monarchies did not at once become extinct, as the fourth beast or monarchy
will, but by degrees; and the kingdoms of which they consisted are still in
being, though in another form of government, and in different hands; whereas,
when the fourth monarchy is destroyed, all rule and authority will be put down,
and the kingdom be given to Christ and his saints, as follow:
Daniel 7:13 13 “I
was watching in the night visions, And behold, One like the Son of Man, Coming
with the clouds of heaven!He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him
near before Him.
YLT 13`I was seeing in the
visions of the night, and lo, with the clouds of the heavens as a son of man
was [one] coming, and unto the Ancient of Days he hath come, and before Him
they have brought him near.
I saw in the night visions,.... Very probably the
same night in which he had the dream and vision of the four beasts; but this
that follows, being a new object presented, is introduced and prefaced after
this manner; as well as, being something wonderful and worthy of attention, has
a "behold" prefixed to it:
and, behold one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven; not Judas
Maccabaeus, as Porphyry; nor the Roman people, as Grotius; nor the people of
Israel, as Aben Ezra; nor the people of the saints of the most High, as
Cocceius; but the Messiah, as most Christian interpreters, and even the Jews
themselves, both ancient and modern, allow. In the ancient book of ZoharF21In
Gen. fol. 85. 4. Ed. Sultzbac. it is said,
"in
the times of the Messiah, Israel shall be one people, to the Lord, and he shall
make them one nation in the earth, and they shall rule above and below; as it
is written, "behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of
heaven"; this is the King Messiah of whom it is written, "and in the
days of these kings shall the God of heaven, set up a kingdom which shall never
be destroyed", &c. Daniel 2:44 '
So
in the TalmudF23T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 98. 1. this prophecy is thus
reconciled with another, concerning the Messiah, in Zechariah 9:9, to
what R. Alexander said, R. Joshua ben Levi objects what is written,
and, behold, one like to the Son of man came with the clouds of
heaven; and it is written, "poor, and riding upon an ass":
which is thus adjusted,
"if
they (the Israelites) are worthy, he (the Messiah) comes with the clouds of
heaven; but if they are not worthy, he comes poor, and riding on an ass;'
and
so it is interpreted in their ancient MidrashesF24Bemidbar Rabba,
sect. 13. fol. 209. 4. Midrash Tillium apud Galatin. de Arcan. Cathol. ver. l.
10. c. 1. , or expositions, as well us in more modern ones: Jarchi on the text
says,
"he
is the Messiah;'
and
so R. Saadiah Gaon and Jacchiades, this is Messiah our righteousness; and Aben
Ezra observes, that this is the sense R. Jeshua gives, "that one like to
the Son of man" is the Messiah; and he adds, it is right, only along with
him must be joined the holy people, who are the Israelites: and, with the Jews,
Anani, which signifies "clouds", is the name of the Messiah, founded
upon this text, in the Targum of 1 Chronicles 3:24,
where mention is made of the name of a person, Anani, it is added,
"who
is the Messiah that is to be revealed;'
so
in an ancient book called TanchumaF25Apud Yalkut Simeoni, par. 2.
fol. 85. 2. , speaking of Zerubbabel, it is asked, from whence did he spring?
it is answered from David, as it is said, 1 Chronicles 3:10
"and Solomon's son was Rehoboam", &c.; and so all in the line are
mentioned unto Anani, Daniel 7:24 and
then it is asked, who is this Anani? this is the Messiah, as it is said, Daniel 7:13,
and I saw in the visions of the night, and, behold, one like to
the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven. He is said to be
"as", or "like the Son of man", in agreement with the style
of these visions, Daniel 7:4, or
because as yet he was not really incarnate, only appeared in a human form; or
this as is not a note of similitude, but of truth and reality, as in John 1:14 or
because he was more than a man: and his coming with the clouds of heaven
denotes the majesty, visibility, and swiftness, with which he came to take open
possession of his kingdom and glory. Saadiah interprets them of the angels of
heaven, with which he will be attended:
and came to the Ancient of days; his divine Father, from
whom, as man and Mediator, he receives his mediatorial kingdom, is invested
with it, and insisted it, to it; see Revelation 5:7 this
is not to be understood of his first coming in the flesh, which was from his
Father, and not to him; nor of his ascension to heaven, exaltation and session
at the right hand of God, when he indeed received the kingdom from the Father,
and was made and declared Lord and Christ; but this seems to respect what shall
be upon the destruction of the fourth beast, when Christ shall receive and take
to himself his great power, and reign, and more visibly appear by his Father's
designation and appointment, and his open glory, to be King and Lord over all:
and they brought him near before him; not Elijah
the prophet, as Jacchindes; rather the angels, as others; or the saints by
their prayers, who hasten to, and hasten thereby, the coming and kingdom of
Christ in a more spiritual and glorious manner; or it may be rendered
impersonally, "he was brought near before him,' as by the Septuagint,
Syriac, and Arabic versions.
Daniel 7:14 14 Then
to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, That all peoples, nations,
and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
Which shall not pass away, And His kingdom the one Which shall not be
destroyed.
YLT 14And to him is given
dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, and all peoples, nations, and languages do
serve him, his dominion [is] a dominion age-during, that passeth not away, and
his kingdom that which is not destroyed.
And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom,.... That is,
a large, powerful, and glorious kingdom; not but that he had a kingdom before,
but now it will be more extensive, and appear in greater glory: this will be
fulfilled when the kingdoms of this world shall become his, and all nations
shall serve and worship him, Revelation 11:15,
as follows:
that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him; embrace his
Gospel, submit to his ordinances serve and worship him in every religious duty;
every people, of all nations, and of every language under heaven; which will be
the case when the everlasting Gospel will be preached to them all with success,
Revelation 14:6,
his dominion is an everlasting dominion; it shall
never have an end, as the rest of the monarchies, signified by the four beasts,
have had, or will have; see Psalm 14:6,
which shall not pass away; or be removed from one
to another, like the above monarchies:
and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed; or
"corrupted"F26תתחבל "corrumpetur",
Pagninus, Montanus; "corrumpitur", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator,
Coccceus. abolished and brought to nothing, as the said monarchies were one by
another; and, at last, all of them by the stone cut out of the mountain; see Daniel 2:44.
Daniel 7:15 15 “I,
Daniel, was grieved in my spirit within my body, and the visions of my
head troubled me.
YLT 15`Pierced hath been my
spirit -- I, Daniel -- in the midst of the sheath, and the visions of my head
trouble me;
I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body,.... Or
"sheath"F1בגו נדנה "in medio vaginae", Montanus; "intra
vaginam", Munster, Vatablus. ; the soul being in the body as a sword in
its scabbard; where it was "cut"F2אתכרית
"transfixus est", Junius & Tremellius, Polanus; "succisus, vel
excisus est", Munster. and pierced, as the word signifies; and was
wounded, distressed, and grieved at the vision seen; not at the sight of the
Son of man, and the glorious and everlasting kingdom given to him; but of the
four beasts, and especially the last, and more particularly the little horn,
and the look, and words, and actions of that, as well as the awful scene of
judgment presented to his view:
and the visions of my head troubled me; the things he
saw, which appeared to his fancy as real things, gave him a great deal of
uneasiness, and chiefly because he did not understand the meaning of them; it
was not so much the things themselves, as ignorance of them, that cut him to
the heart, and grieved and troubled him; for what is more so to an inquisitive
mind, that has got a hint of something great and useful to be known, but cannot
as yet come to the knowledge of it?
Daniel 7:16 16 I
came near to one of those who stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So
he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things:
YLT 16I have drawn near unto one
of those standing, and the certainty I seek from him of all this; and he hath
said to me, yea, the interpretation of the things he hath caused me to know:
I came near unto one of them that stood by,.... To one of
the angels that attended, either the throne of judgment, or, the Son of man in
his approach to his divine Father:
and asked him the truth of all this; the substance of these
visions; what these images, presented to his view, were shadows and
representations of; so type and truth, shadow and substance, are opposed to
each other. The real meaning of all this was what he asked; nor need any be
ashamed to ask of whomsoever they can hope to get knowledge of truth, and
especially of superiors, of the angels of the churches, or pastors of them:
so he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things; he
interpreted everything in the vision to him, and gave him the true meaning and
real design of the whole, as follows: this was asked and told, not when Daniel
was awake, and was considering of what he had dreamed; but in his dream, in his
vision by night; this was all transacted in a visionary way, both the things
and the interpretation of them.
Daniel 7:17 17 ‘Those
great beasts, which are four, are four kings[c] which
arise out of the earth.
YLT 17`These great beasts, that
[are] four, [are] four kings, they rise up from the earth;
These great beasts, which are four, are four kings,.... Or
kingdoms, as the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and Arabic versions; and so Jarchi,
Aben Ezra, and Saadiah; so the fourth beast is called the fourth kingdom, Daniel 7:23 or a
succession of kings in four kingdoms or monarchies, comparable to beasts for
their strength, cruelty, and tyranny: these are the words of him that stood by,
of one of the angels Daniel applied to, to know the meaning of his dream; and
might be better rendered, "as to theseF3"Quod
attinet", Michaelis. great beasts, which are four"; for their quality
beasts, for their quantity great, and for number four. The meaning is,
four kings shall arise out of the earth; or kingdoms;
which have an earthly original and foundation; are supported by earthly and
worldly means, and with earthly and worldly views; and are different from the
kingdom of Christ and his saints, which is not of the world, though it may be
in it: this explains what is meant by the great sea, from whence these beasts
are said to come up, Daniel 7:3, nor is
it any material objection that the first of these kingdoms, the Babylonian, was
risen already, and almost at an end; since the denomination is taken from the
larger number; three of them were to arise, and the first was of the same
original with them; thus it is said, Daniel 11:2, that
three kings of Persia should stand up, and yet Cyrus, who was one of them,
reigned already.
Daniel 7:18 18 But
the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom
forever, even forever and ever.’
YLT 18and receive the kingdom do
the saints of the Most High, and they strengthen the kingdom unto the age, even
unto the age of the ages.
But the saints of the most High,.... Or, "of the
most high Ones"F4קדישי עליונין "sanctorum altissimorum", Pagninus,
Montanus; "sanctorum excelsorum", Junius & Tremellius. , Father,
Son, and Spirit, separated by God the Father in election, and in that sense his
servants, or sanctified ones, Judges 1:1, and
redeemed by the Son, and sanctified with his blood, or their sins atoned by it,
and to whom he is made sanctification, and so his saints, Hebrews 13:12 and
sanctified by the Spirit, who in conversion implants principles of grace and
holiness in them, 1 Corinthians 6:11,
or, "the saints of high"F5"Sancti exceisoram, sel
locorum", Piscator. , places or things; who are born from above, and are
called with a high and heavenly calling, towards which they are pressing,
reckoning themselves strangers here below:
these shall take the kingdom; or "receive"F6יקבלון "accipient", Munster, Piscator, Tigurine
version. it, as a free gift from God; and not by force, and rapine, and
violence, as the beasts did:
and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever; after the
four monarchies are destroyed, a fifth kingdom shall be set up; and this will
be given to, and put into the possession of, the saints; they shall have the
rule and government in the world, even in the whole world, as well as reign
with Christ spiritually; which manner of rule shall last long; and then after
the first resurrection they shall reign with him a thousand years on earth, and
afterwards in heaven to all eternity. There is another rendering and sense of
the words given, "and they (the beasts) shall receive the kingdom of the
saints of the most High"F7"Suscipient regnum
sanctorum", Pagninus, Montanus; "sortientur, vel obtienebunt
regnum", Calvin; so Polanus, Sanctius. , &c.; and so Saadiah
interprets them,
"and
these kingdoms shall receive the kingdom of Israel, who are the saints of the
most High, until the world to come, until the Messiah reigns;'
and
this way go many others, who understand the words of those several monarchies
possessing the land of Judea, and ruling over it; and of the continuance of it
in the hands of Papists or Turks for a long, time, even until the glorious
kingdom of Christ takes place; but this does not agree with the accentuation of
the words, their form of construction, their connection, and strong manner of
expression, "for ever and ever"; and especially if compared with Daniel 7:22.
Daniel 7:19 19 “Then
I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all
the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails
of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue
with its feet;
YLT 19`Then I wished for
certainty concerning the fourth beast, that was diverse from them all, fearful
exceedingly; its teeth of iron, and its nails of brass, it hath devoured, it
doth break small, and the remnant with its feet it hath trampled;
Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast;.... What it
represented, what kingdom or monarchy was meant by it; for, by the above answer
of the angel, he understood the four beasts signified four kings or kingdoms;
the three first he pretty well understood; at least he was not so solicitous
about them as about the fourth; and this he was desirous of having a very
particular and exact account of; it threatening, by its appearance, a great
deal of trouble to the world, and especially to the church of God:
which was diverse from all the others; or,
"from all them", or "those"F8מן
כלהין "a cunctis ipse", Pagninus, Montanus;
"ab omnibus illis", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. , the other
three beasts:
exceeding dreadful; to other kingdoms and nations:
whose teeth were of iron; of these parts of its
description, see on Daniel 7:7,
and his nails of brass; this is a new
circumstance, not before mentioned, and here added with great propriety:
"nails" belonging to a beast of prey, and these said to be of
"brass", to denote its strength, cruelty, and voraciousness in
tearing its prey, to pieces; and, moreover, to show that this kingdom has
somewhat of the nature of the third or Grecian monarchy, said to be of brass in
Nebuchadnezzar's dream; some out of that kingdom being taken into the Roman
militia, as, Theodoret observes; and soldiers are to a king what nails are to a
beast:
which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his
feet; some kingdoms and provinces were destroyed by it, and the rest
were made subject to it; see Daniel 7:7.
Daniel 7:20 20 and
the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which
came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth
which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his
fellows.
YLT 20and concerning the ten
horns that [are] in its heads, and of the other that came up, and before which
three have fallen, even of that horn that hath eyes, and a mouth speaking great
things, and whose appearance [is] great above its companions.
And of the ten horns,.... That is, Daniel
desired to know the truth of the ten horns, or the meaning of them what they
signified, and who they pointed at, of which in Daniel 7:7, here it
is added,
that were in his head; observing the situation
of them; thought the horns of a beast could hardly be thought to be elsewhere:
and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; particularly
he was very desirous to know the meaning of a single horn, which rose up among
the rest, and before which three of the other horns fell, being plucked up by
the roots:
even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great
things: See Gill on Daniel 7:8,
whose look was more stout than his fellows; than the
other beasts, or rather than the other horns; either than his fellow bishops,
claiming an authority over them, as being universal bishop; or than the kings
and princes of the earth, setting up himself above all that is called god,
emperors and kings; taking to himself all power in heaven and in earth; a power
to depose kings, and absolve their subjects from allegiance to them, and even
over the consciences of men; so that his look is more bold and impudent than
others, as well as more fierce and terrible, threatening kings and kingdoms
with his bulls, anathemas, and interdicts: or, "whose appearance is
greater than his fellows"F9וחזוה רב מן חברתה
"cujus aspectus", Munster; "et aspectus ejus major sociis
suis", Pagninus. ; in pomp and splendour, making a greater show and figure
than the kings of the earth, and claiming a superiority over them.
Daniel 7:21 21 “I
was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and
prevailing against them,
YLT 21`I was seeing, and this
horn is making war with the saints, and hath prevailed over them,
I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints,.... The same
little horn before described; not Antiochus Epiphanes, who made war with the
Jews, as many think; or the Roman Caesars, that persecuted the church of
Christ, as others; nor Titus Vespasian, who fought against Israel, as Saadiah;
but antichrist, or the pope of Rome; and this refers to the wars of the popes
with the Waldenses, which began in the year 1160, and continued long, and with
the two witnesses at the close of their testimony, Revelation 11:7,
this Daniel had a view of in vision; not while he was inquiring of the angel,
but before, though not mentioned till now; and was a reason he was so very
inquisitive about this little horn, because of its war with the saints, and its
success, as follows:
and prevailed against them: as the popes and their
abettors did against the Waldenses and Albigenses, whom they slew in great
numbers, and got the victory over; as the beast also, the same with this little
horn, will overcome the witnesses, and slay them, Revelation 11:7.
Daniel 7:22 22 until
the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints
of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom.
YLT 22till that the Ancient of
Days hath come, and judgment is given to the saints of the Most High, and the
time hath come, and the saints have strengthened the kingdom.
Until the Ancient of days came,.... Not locally, by
change of place, he being the omnipresent God; but in a providential way, to
check and put a stop to the power and prevalency of the little horn over the
saints; for this is the terminus or end of that; which puts a period to it; for
when the Ancient of days comes in the exertion of his power and providence, he
will come and sit as a Judge upon this little horn or antichrist, and judge,
and condemn, and punish it; see Daniel 7:9,
and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; their
characters vindicated from all calumny and false aspersions; their adversaries
condemned and punished; and power, dominion, and authority, given to them with
Christ; see Daniel 7:27,
and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom; See Gill on Daniel 7:18; till
which time the little horn or antichrist will reign and rage, and prevail over
the saints, but no longer.
Daniel 7:23 23 “Thus
he said: ‘The fourth beast shall be A fourth kingdom on earth, Which shall be
different from all other kingdoms, And shall devour the whole earth, Trample
it and break it in pieces.
YLT 23`Thus he said: The fourth
beast is the fourth kingdom in the earth, that is diverse from all kingdoms,
and it consumeth all the earth, and treadeth it down, and breaketh it small.
Thus he said,.... The person that stood by, the angel, of
whom Daniel made his inquiries, and who answered him, as follows:
the fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom on earth; which shows
that the angel, by four kings, Daniel 7:17, meant
four kingdoms, that should successively arise in the earth, and out of it, one
after another; and this kingdom is not the kingdom of the Seleucidae, nor the
Turkish, but the Roman empire; for this is to continue until the kingdom of
Christ takes place; see Daniel 7:7,
which shall be diverse from all kingdoms; from the
kingdoms and monarchies that were before it; particularly as a kingdom, in its
form of government, both when Pagan and when Papal; see Daniel 7:7,
and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and
break it in pieces: not the whole land of Judea only, as some read and interpret it;
but the whole world, which the Romans became masters of; and the phrases used
denote the destruction and desolation they made, wherever they carried their
arms, and the cruelty and tyranny they exercised, and the vast profusion of
blood made by them, both among the Heathens they subdued, and the Christians
they persecuted.
Daniel 7:24 24 The
ten horns are ten kings Who shall arise from this kingdom. And
another shall rise after them; He shall be different from the first ones, And
shall subdue three kings.
YLT 24And the ten horns out of
the kingdom [are] ten kings, they rise, and another doth rise after them, and
it is diverse from the former, and three kings it humbleth;
And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall
arise,..... Or ten kingdoms which sprung out of the Roman empire, or
into which it was broken and divided upon the dissolution of it, about A.D.
476; which, according to Mr. MedeF11Works, B. 3. c. 14. p. 661. ,
were thus divided, A.D. 456,
1.
Britons; 2. Saxons; 3. Franks; 4. Burgundians; 5 Visigoths; 6. Suevians and
Alanes; 7. Vandals; 8. Almanes; 9. Ostrogoths; 10. Greeks.
The
list Bishop LloydF12Apud Lowth in loc. has given of them is,
1.
Hunns, who erected their kingdom in that part of Pannonia and Dacia, which was
from them called Hungary, about A.D. 356. 2. Ostrogoths, who settled themselves
in the countries that reach from Rhetia to Maesia, even to Thrace, about 377;
and afterwards came into Italy under Alaricus, in 410. 3. Visigoths, who
settled in the south parts of France, and in Catalonia, about 378. 4. Franks,
who seized upon part of Germany and Gaul, A.D. 410. 5. Vandals, who settled in
Spain; afterwards set up their kingdom in Africa, A.D. 407; their king
Gensericus sacked Rome, 455. 6. Suevians and Alans, who seized the western
parts of Spain, A.D. 407; and invaded Italy, 457. 7. Burgundians, who came out
of Germany, into that part of Gaul called from them Burgundy, 407. 8. Herules,
Rugians, and Thoringians, who settled in Italy under Odoacer, about A.D. 476.
9. Saxons, who made themselves masters of Great Britain about the same time,
476. 10. Longobards, called likewise Gopidae, who settled in Germany, about
Magdeburg, A.D. 383; and afterwards succeeded the Heruli and Thuringi in
Hungary, about the year 826. Sir Isaac NewtonF13Observations on
Daniel, c. 6. p. 47. reckons the ten kingdoms in the following order:
1.
the kingdom of the Vandals and Alans in Spain and Africa; 2. of the Suevians in
Spain; 3. of the Visigoths; 4. of the Alans in Gallia; 5. of the Burgundians;
6. of the Franks; 7. of the Britons; 8. of the Hunns; 9. of the Lombards; 10.
of Ravenna; who gives an account of the various kings of these kingdoms; and
these, as the same learned writer saysF14Ibid. p. 73. , whatever was
their number afterwards, they are still called the ten kings from their first
number; and though they have not always been in the same form and order, yet
they have been generally about, if not exactly, the same number; as they are
now near the same; and may be thus reckoned, as the kingdoms of France, Spain,
Portugal, Germany, Great Britain, Sardinia, Denmark, the two Sicilies,
Swedeland, Prussia, and Poland; of which see more See Gill on Revelation 17:12.
And another shall rise after thee: not Titus Vespeasian, as
Jarchi and Saadiah; nor the nation of Gog and Magog, as Jacchiades: but the
pope of Rome, or antichrist; who came to his power as universal bishop, and as
a horn or temporal prince, after the above kingdoms arose; not after they were
at an end, but after they were constituted and established, as it was proper
they should first be; since they were to give their strength, power, and
kingdom, to the antichristian beast, by which it became a horn or temporal
prince, Revelation 17:13.
The Septuagint render it, "behind them"; which Mr. MedeF15Works,
B. 4. ep. 24. p. 778. interprets of his springing up unawares, imperceptibly,
unnoticed, and unobserved by them, till he overtopped them.
And he shall be diverse from the first; from the
first ten horns, kings or kingdoms; having, besides a secular power and
temporal authority, an ecclesiastical and spiritual one; a power not only over
the bodies and estates of men, but over their souls and consciences; and even
over the other horns and kingdoms, which they had not over one another; and so
was different from them all:
and he shall subdue three kings; designed by the three
horns plucked up by the roots, and which fell before him; of which See Gill on Daniel 7:8.
Daniel 7:25 25 He
shall speak pompous words against the Most High, Shall persecute[d] the saints
of the Most High, And shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints
shall be given into his hand For a time and times and half a time.
YLT 25and words as an adversary
of the Most High it doth speak, and the saints of the Most High it doth wear
out, and it hopeth to change seasons and law; and they are given into its hand,
till a time, and times, and a division of a time.
And he shall speak great words against the most High,.... Or,
"at the side of the most High"F16לצד
עליא "ad regionem, sive latus
Altissimi", Calvin; "juxta Altissimum". Cocceius; "ex parte
Altissimi", Munster. ; setting himself up as a rival, and upon an equality
with him; taking the names and characters of holiness, infallibility, yea, of
deity itself, unto him; claiming a power to forgive sin, which is peculiar to
God; and preferring his own laws, doctrines, and traditions, to the word of
God:
and shall wear out the saints of the most High; by his wars
with them, and murders and massacres of them; by taking away their lives and
their substance; so lessening their numbers, and weakening their strength and
power, wear them out, as a garment is wore out, as the wordF17יבלא παλαιωσει
Sept.; "deteret", Junius & Trmellius, Piscator;
"abolebit", Montanus; "absumet" Munster;
"consumet", Vatablus. signifies; utterly consume and destroy them, at
least in his own apprehensions; which will be the case when the witnesses will
be slain, Revelation 11:8,
and especially will wear out their patience, or however thoroughly exercise it.
The wordF18"ingrato et duriore modo tractavit, affixit",
Giggeius apud Golium, col. 325. Erpenius apud Castel. col. 363. So Michaelis on
the place observes. , in the Arabic language, signifies "to afflict and
handle roughly"; and such usage the saints have met with, more or less, in
all ages, from the man of sin.
And think to change times and laws: to alter the forms and
constitutions of kingdoms, and the customs and usages of them; yea, to set up
and pull down kings at pleasure; see Daniel 2:21, or to
change the use of times and seasons, by setting apart days as holy for
canonized saints; and appointing such days in a week, and such a season in the
year, for abstinence from meats; and even to change the laws of God and man, by
dispensing with both, and making new ones of his own:
and they shall be given into his hand; either the
saints he makes war with, and wears out, who shall be overcome by him; or the
times and laws, which he shall not only have it in his mind and purpose to
change, but shall have it in his power to do it, and shall do it:
until a time, and times, and the dividing of time; by "a
time" is meant a year, the longest part of time; by "times", two
years; and "the dividing of time", half a year; in all three years
and a half, which is the same with 1260 days, or forty two months, the time of
the witnesses prophesying in sackcloth, and of the reign of antichrist; so long
shall he continue, exercising his power and authority, his wrath and rage, and
blasphemy, and no longer; see Revelation 11:2.
Daniel 7:26 26 ‘But
the court shall be seated, And they shall take away his dominion, To consume
and destroy it forever.
YLT 26`And the Judge is seated,
and its dominion they cause to pass away, to cut off, and to destroy -- unto
the end;
But the judgment shall sit,.... As in Daniel 7:10, the
court shall sit, the Judge shall take the bench, and all things be prepared for
the arraignment, trial, condemnation, and punishment, of the little horn or
antichrist, when the above time is up; God the Father, the Ancient of days, and
Christ, said to be like the Son of man, brought near to him, shall sit as
Judges, attended by the holy angels:
and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy
it unto the end; either the angels, or rather the saints of the most High; particularly
the Christian princes, into whose hearts God will put it to hate the whore, eat
her flesh, and burn her with fire; so that there shall be an utter end of
antichrist; he shall be stripped of all his power and authority; his destruction
will be inevitable and irrecoverable; he shall never come out of it; it shall
continue to the end of the world, to the end of time.
Daniel 7:27 27 Then
the kingdom and dominion, And the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole
heaven, Shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom is
an everlasting kingdom, And all dominions shall serve and obey Him.’
YLT 27and the kingdom, and the
dominion, even the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heavens, is given
to the people -- the saints of the Most High, His kingdom [is] a kingdom
age-during, and all dominions do serve and obey Him.
And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom
under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most
High,.... Not only the dominion that shall be taken away from the
little horn or antichrist, and from all the antichristian states, but the
dominion of all others throughout all the earth, and under the whole heaven,
shall be given to the people of God, and the true professors of faith in
Christ. The kingdoms of this world will become Christ's, and Christian princes
will be kings of them everywhere; and not only the royal power and authority
will be vested with them, but all the grandeur and state belonging to them will
be theirs; as well as all the saints in general shall reign in a spiritual
manner with Christ, enjoying all ordinances, and all religious liberties, as
well as civil, and be free from all persecutions.
Whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall
serve and obey him; the people of the saints of the most High, all shall be subject
to them, all dominions, and the governors of them; or Christ the head of them,
under and with whom they reign. So SaadiahF19And R. Isaac in Chizzuk
Emunah, par. 1. p. 44. applies it to the Messiah. paraphrases it, "the
kingdom of the King Messiah is an everlasting kingdom, and his government is to
generation and generation, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.' This
spiritual reign of Christ, which will take place in a more glorious manner at
the destruction of antichrist, will continue until the Millennium, or the
personal reign of Christ, begins; and after that will be the ultimate glory, in
which Christ and his people will reign to all eternity.
Daniel 7:28 28 “This
is the end of the account.[e] As for me,
Daniel, my thoughts greatly troubled me, and my countenance changed; but I kept
the matter in my heart.”
YLT 28`Hitherto [is] the end of
the matter. I, Daniel, greatly do my thoughts trouble me, and my countenance is
changed on me, and the matter in my heart I have kept.
Hitherto is the end of the matter,.... Of the angel's
words, and of the interpretation of those things Daniel was desirous of being
informed about, and of the whole dream and vision Daniel had; and indeed this
is the end and issue of all events in Providence, the kingdom and glory of
Christ with his people:
as for me Daniel: with respect to his frame of mind, and the
state of his body, when he awaked from this dream, and reflected upon it, and
especially upon that part of it which affected the people of God:
my cogitations much troubled me; when he thought of these
powerful monarchies, their strength and cruelty, and what the people of God
would suffer under them, and especially under the fourth beast or monarchy, and
ignore particularly under the little horn or antichrist:
and my countenance changed in me: turned pale: he looked
sorrowful and dejected, because of the afflictions of God's people; though the
issue of them, one would have thought, would have inspired him with joy and
pleasure:
but I kept the matter in my heart; laid it up in his memory;
pondered it in his mind; meditated upon it; and well weighed the several things
observed to him; that he might be thoroughly master of them, and make them
known to others, and leave them in writing for the benefit of the church of God
in future ages.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)