Gabriel Brings an Answer, but to what? Daniel chapter 9 part two.

I can't believe I did that! What you might ask? I glanced over Daniel nine and found myself wanting to ignore about half of it. Why? Because at first look it seems like it is merely one man's conversation with God. Daniel does not seem to say anything in particular, and he states the obvious, Israel, the nation and people have sinned.

Mind you these aspects are not the major topic here and maybe I didn't need to bring any of that up, but as I prepared these notes so that I could lead appropriately, I was reminded by the Holy Spirit that there is nothing insignificant in God's word. I felt prompted after that to pay close attention to what Daniel was saying.

I found some amazing insights into the man Daniel, and some correlations between what he said and what we do in recovery. For example: in recovery, we take ownership of the wrongs we have done to others. In the case of Israel, their sins were many, but ignoring God's commands is a huge mistake. I thought about this last statement for a moment thinking that what they did was in the past, but I was reminded that their blatant ignorance continues still today.

If you choose to pursue what I have written then I implore you to allow the Holy Spirit to instruct you, and consider my words to be merely a guide.

God bless you on this journey of faith you are on.

Oz

Gabriel brings an answer.

Dan 9:20

“while I was still speaking in prayer,”

Daniel had just spent an extended period of time accepting responsibility, and repenting for his nation, and yet watch what Gabriel says.

“the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision previously, came to me in my extreme weariness about the time of the evening offering.”

While I cannot be positive, for Daniel speaks of visions that he saw in: Daniel chapter two; seven; eight, and now nine. Chapter eight gives us some definition that we did not get when Daniel explains the statue Nebuchadnezzar saw. While the theologians around you espouse that Rome is the fourth empire, Daniel never said, nor saw that; what he did see though was the Grecian empire, and it is remnants of the Grecian empire being played out before us in chapter 11. So, maybe the vision he refers to is the one from Daniel chapter eight.

Daniel 9:22

"He gave me instruction and talked with me and said, "O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you insight with understanding."

Skill is the Hebrew word sakal and means to be intelligent. If there was a man of intelligence it was Daniel. Clearly, he did not know everything and the future was a part of that.

Understanding is the word bı̂ynâh meaning understanding, comprehension, and discernment. However, it comes from a root word bı̂yn and means to separate mentally (or distinguish).

The Webster's dictionary conveys the idea of comprehension; apprehending the idea, or being informed.

Whether Daniel could comprehend what he heard was another story altogether. To give you an example: In Daniel 11, The angel Gabriel gives Daniel a very precise history that covered an intense period of several hundred years and reaches over 2500 years into the future. When you apply some logic to the information Daniel received, a man potentially in his eighties, he will most likely never live to see any of it, and what he received was such detailed information that the critics of biblical prophecy tend to think that chapter 11 was written after the events happened. We know that is not the case. His mission then was to pass this understanding along to us. Assuming then that you have read Daniel or some of the other prophetic books, did you understand any of it? I know that for years I did not until I came across Joel Richardson's book, The Islamic Antichrist. After that, it all began to make sense.

Daniel 9:23

"At the beginnng of your supplications the command was issued, and I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed; so give heed to the message and gain understanding of the vision.”

• “ At the beginning of your supplications, the command was issued”

Lesson one: Never give up.

• “ I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed;”

God is not playing favorites, for you also are highly esteemed.

• “ so give heed to the message and gain understanding of the vision”

I cannot be positive if the vision Gabriel speaks of is referring to chapter eight, for Daniel speaks of visions that he saw in: chapter two; seven; eight, and now nine. Chapter eight however, gives us some definition that we did not get when Daniel explained the statue Nebuchadnezzar saw. While the theologians around you espouse that Rome is the fourth empire; attempting to explain the vagueness of the legs of Iron, Daniel never said, nor saw that; what he did see though was the Grecian empire, and it is those same remanants of the Grecian empire being played out before us as we read Daniel chapter 11. So, maybe the vision he refers too is the one from Daniel chapter eight.

The Seventy Weeks – What Gabriel had to say.

Daniel 9:24

What did the angel Gabriel say?

“Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression,”

Seventy weeks? Everyone seems to get hung up on this. A greater understanding will come when you concede to the fact that this book you are trying to understand is a Jewish book. It is written in terminology that had intense meaning to God's people, the Jews. Consider the number of things that God did that seven attached to them: creation; completion; the Sabbath coming on the seventh day, and the time of Jubilee. Seven is key. 70 years x 7 = 490 years. What did this have to do with Daniel's prayer?

What then did Gabriel mean when he said transgression?

peša‛: A masculine noun meaning transgression, rebellion.

What is the problem here?

Rebellion is an integral part of who we are since SIN.

Did Jesus death cause transgression to cease? NO! However, we were relieved from the penalty of that transgression when we accepted Jesus as the final sacrifice.

• “to make an end of sin,”

  Releasing Israel from captivity did not accomplish this; it only happened on the cross.

  So, is Gabriel talking about a cessation of sins or an end of their impact and outcome?

• “to make atonement for iniquity,”
  

  Atonement is the Hebrew word kaphar and means to cover over or pacify.

• “ to bring in everlasting righteousness”
  
  

  Once again, this can go two ways.

  1. One is to perceive that Christ's death and resurrection did just that, bringing about an everlasting righteousness in those who follow Him.
  2. The other is to see this as a future event that initiates with the Millennial reign.

• “to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place.”

This is the one thing that I cannot wholeheartedly attribute to Christ's death and resurrection. And yet, there is this:

Hebrews 9:11-12 MKJV But when Christ had become a high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building 12) nor by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered once for all into the Holies, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

According to Hebrews Jesus did anoint the most holy place?

While that seems to be the case, is the final prophecy sealed and closed? Now one might think that eternal redemption should have sealed up the vision.

The word Seal is the Hebrew word châtham and means to close up.

But isn't closure an aspect of the Great White Throne judgment we see in the book of the Revelation?

Did you notice that this puts an end to prophecy?

Remember that we now see in part, but the day is coming when we shall see face to face. 1 Corinthians 13:12 NASB

What is it that seals, with finality, the end of time?

The one thing that initiates the end of time is:

Zechariah 14:3-4 NASB Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle. 4) In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south.

Daniel 9:25

".. from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks;...

483 years, and yet the message from Gabriel said there were to be 490 years.

When was the decree issued?

Ezra 1:1-2 NASB Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying: 2) "Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, 'The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

Cyrus reigned from 550-530BC. It appears that Ezra might have come into captivity at this point as well.

Daniel 9:26

“ after the sixty-two weeks, the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing”

The blunt way of understanding this is that the Messiah will be killed. 434 years after the decree to build the temple.

As a side note, here Daniel calls him the Messiah and yet Israel will not accept Him.

“the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary.”

This is the primary statement that motivates “scholars” to look to Rome as the source of the beast in Revelation. The Assyrians are the Persians, and the lasting enemy of Israel. They are descendants of Ishmael.

Note: it does not say that the prince will destroy the city, it says his people.

Daniel 9:27

“And he will make a firm covenant with the many”

This does not say Israel or the Jews. We cannot, however, discount the possibility of a peace treaty with Israel, but, if this person is a Muslim, then his covenant will most likely be with Muslims, and against Israel.

“for one week”

This is a seven-year peace treaty. Do not anticipate it lasting for that long.

“in the middle of the week, he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering”

How long is this period? 1260 days, three-and-one half years, and in some referrences 42 months.

We now have several problems to contend with:

• • This says nothing about the treaty.

  • Stopping the sacrifice means that he is stopping the “work” within the temple.

  • How would an outsider be able to do this without violence?

“and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate,"

We now have another player coming on the scene. Islam calls this man Isa Ben Maryiam – Jesus, the son of Mary (Not God.)

“even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate.”

What is complete destruction imply?

Being thrown into the lake of fire, the ultimate and eternal separation from God.

Daniel chapter 9, the seventy weeks of years.

In everything I do, I feel I am learning a new lesson. Because one of the groups of men I sit with, subjects ourselves to a false teacher each week (not everyone that sits through the Monday morning Bible Study feels this way,) several of us recognize the painful tedium we subject ourselves to. We all find ourselves asking why we attend and the answer is universally the same for all who see what is going on there. We need fellowship with other faithful men. From my point of view, there are four or five men who have a solid understanding of God's Word, His nature, and His character (These aspects have become utmost in my thinking lately.)

One of the brothers avidly follows another of our false teachers as he carries his twisted gospel to the hamburger stand I used to frequent. I have challenged his reasons and he always leans upon the same thing, that brother is a good friend of mine and we have been through much together.

I get it. There is no denying the value of someone, no matter the twistedness of their theology, who will always have your back in prayer. That aspect is one thing these men have in common, they know how to pray.

While it may seem that the lesson I need to learn is how to separate myself from false teachers, it is really more focused on trusting the Holy Spirit's leading and not asking the opinions of the others. In doing just that I bypassed some essential, reinforcing, and critical aspects of end times prophecy by choosing to jump from Daniel chapter 2 to Daniel chapter 9. In my defense, I only thought I would have a couple of weeks at best, and, I really thought for a moment I could fly through the depth of what is contained in Daniel 2 and 9. I could not, nor does it do the information there any justice.

One more thing. I have come to realize that there is nothing of insignificance in scripture and to fly rapidly past a simple word like strongholds, is to do yourself and your audience an injustice.

All passages are from the NASB unless otherwise specified.

Daniel Chapter 9 – Daniel's third vision:

The seventy weeks of years.

Daniel 9:1

In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of Median descent, who was made king over the kingdom of the Chaldeans--

[ Timeline from Nebuchadnezzar to Darius

Make this clear in your thinking: Daniel, having not only survived but excelled under five Kings/rulers/Emporers, is now facing his sixth ruling authority while still in Babylonian captivity.

If we followed this timeline closely what do we see? Daniel dead before Darius shows up. Is that what scripture tells us? No. But we can also see something else, two other names not spelled out in Daniel. Amel-Marduk who reigned from 556- 539BC; that Belshazzar had an alternative name of Nabonidus; that Cambyses reigned briefly after Cyrus from 530 – 522BC, ending with, for the purposes of our story, Darius 1 who reigned from 522 – 486BC.

Daniel 9:2

"in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which was revealed as the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years"

What can we ascertain from this?

• • That Daniel was, either, able to carry the scroll of Jeremiah into captivity with him,
  • Or, Daniel was able to attain a copy.
  • Daniel has perceived according to prophecy that the desolations of Jerusalem are over.
    What does the Hebrew give us as the definition of desolations?
    
    

    The Word Study Dictionary, ḥorbāh or cḥorbāh: A feminine noun meaning ruin. The word almost always refers to an area ruined by the judgment of God.

    
    Strong's tells us: properly drought, that is, (by implication) a desolation: - decayed place, desolate (place, -tion), destruction, (laid) waste (place).

While desolations may have been declared upon Jerusalem, this judgment was upon God's people as well. Daniel, reading from the Prophet Jeremiah, realized that the time of their captivity had, because of timing, come to an end. Someone needed to let the authorities know.

Jeremiah 25:11-13 'This whole land will be a desolation and a horror, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 12- 'Then it will be when seventy years are completed I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation,' declares the LORD, 'for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans; and I will make it an everlasting desolation. 13- 'I will bring upon that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, all that is written in this book which Jeremiah has prophesied against all the nations.

Jeremiah 29:10 "For thus says the LORD, 'When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place.

What can I ascertain from verse two, or another way of asking this question would be to say, “what has Daniel come to understand?”

• • • That Daniel was not completely aware of the timing.
    • That the 70 years of captivity have been completed.
    • That the whole land of Israel is in desolation.
    • While Israel's desolation may be temporary, Babylon, that nation, and the land of the Chaldeans will have an everlasting desolation.

Daniel 9:3-19

The NASB entitles this section: Daniel's Prayer for His People; and yet that is not all Daniel prays for.

Daniel opens his time of prayer with a preparation.

3) “So I gave my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.”

Are we required by the law to take an appropriate attitude before God? Why then “pay attention?” Because we are not in control, He is.

I once heard someone say, always open your prayer with praise.

4) “I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed and said, "Alas, O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments,”

Daniel acknowledges God for who He is. He is great, awesome, and most important of all: He is the one ho keeps His covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments

Verse 5 shows Daniel confessing for the nation.

“we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly and rebelled, even turning aside from Your commandments and ordinances.”

In verse 6 he admits:

“we have not listened to Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings, our princes, our fathers and all the people of the land.”

Since apostasy, the act of turning our backs on God is a significant marker of the end times, what does this idea of “we have not listened” have to say to us?

As a side note: I sit with religious men who make bold statements contrary to the Word of God and will not listen when corrected by that same Word.

Verses 7,8 demonstrate that it is more than just the land, the temple and the city that is punished; it is people as well.

7) ".. the men of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those who are nearby and those who are far away in all the countries to which You have driven them, ..”8) "Open shame belongs to us, O Lord, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You."

This judgment is directly applicable to Jewish people of that day, everywhere. But who wants to carry around open shame?

Here we sit some two thousand five hundred years later and yet once again there is a wrath/judgment coming upon God's people. Why? Because, still, they will not listen.

Daniel 9:9-10

"To the Lord, our God belongs compassion and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against Him; 10) nor have we obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in His teachings which He set before us through His servants the prophets."

Isaiah 43:25-26 "I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake, And I will not remember your sins. 26) "Put Me in remembrance, let us argue our case together; State your cause, that you may be proved right."

In remembrance of what? Who God is and what He has done.

Why? Not because he forgets, but because we do.

Consider what this says: “To the Lord, our God belong compassion and forgiveness,” while He may show compassion and forgiveness, there is a debt to pay. In our case, Jesus paid the price for our debts. Did this exclude Israel? Not at all, but it is clear, even today, that ma many choose to reject Jesus as the Messiah.

Daniel 9:11-14

What does Daniel say here, in his prayer to God?

•  "Indeed all Israel has transgressed Your law and turned aside, not obeying Your voice;
•  so the curse has been poured out on us,
•  along with the oath which is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, 

Spend some time in the book of Deuteronomy and there you will find the Blessings and the Curses. Chapter 28 is where it says, "if you will do these things then all these blessings will come upon you." But, like any two-edged sword, there are curses for not following God's commands.

In finding the character of God, you will find that He is rather straightforward; this is affirmed in chapter 30.

Deuteronomy 30:19 "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants,

In general, is that what Israel did, choose life? No, therefore Daniel had this to say, “As it is written in the law of Moses, all this calamity has come on us;”

Did knowledge of Deuteronomy's blessings and curses change the heart of Israel?

I doubt it, but we know that there were four men who stood on God's side.

•  Sadly we have this evidence: “yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our iniquity and giving attention to Your truth.”

Does, or has, God, relented from his wrath and anger?

The answer is yes, and Nineveh is one of those examples. Jeremiah 42:10, an example of God relenting from His wrath, was spoken concerning Israel and their pending captivity.

Jeremiah 42:10 'If you will indeed stay in this land, then I will build you up and not tear you down, and I will plant you and not uproot you; for I will relent concerning the calamity that I have inflicted on you."

What land is God referring to? Babylon.

At the same time, we have examples where God is done overlooking transgressions.

Ezekiel 24:14 "I, the LORD, have spoken; it is coming and I will act. I will not relent, and I will not pity and I will not be sorry; according to your ways and according to your deeds I will judge you," declares the Lord GOD.'"

Daniel 9:15

"And now, O Lord our God, who have brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand and have made a name for Yourself, as it is this day--we have sinned, we have been wicked.”

This is not so dissimilar from one of Moses' prayers.

Daniel 9:16

If I were to foolishly ask, when does Daniel begin to pray, It would be about verse 15. However, the entire interaction is a prayer.

• • “ Lord, in accordance with all Your righteous acts”
  • “let now Your anger and Your wrath turn away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain.”
• 
  
  What kind of knowledge is Daniel sitting on?
  
  

  The knowledge that the 70 years is completed, and that God has little reason to keep Israel in captivity.

  
  

  With that understanding, Daniel still remains submissive to the God of Israel.

• 
  
• “for because of our sins and the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem, and Your people have become a reproach to all those around us.”
  
  

  Daniel gets it; the reasons why Israel is captive in Babylon. Did he get it as a young man, probably about to get married? Maybe not, but he literally kept his head by being submissive to his Babylonian captors, as the prophet Jeremiah had told them.

Daniel 9:17-19

What direction did this portion of his prayer take?

• • • “So now, our God, listen to the prayer of Your servant “
    • “incline Your ear and hear! Open Your eyes and see our desolations and the city which is called by Your name”
      
      

      Again, Moses implored the Lord to have mercy upon His people, called by your name, and asked, what will the nations think, that God could not save them.

    • “O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive!”
      
      

      Forgiving is a part of God's nature and character.

    • “do not delay, because Your city and Your people are called by Your name."
      
      

      Perhaps this is a human emotion that we are attaching to God, but everyone has pride.

For the moment we will end this, keeping this study in brief sections.  The next section/chapter will be:

Gabriel Brings an Answer, but to what? 

Nebuchadnezzar's dream. Daniel chapter 2

As the self-appointed pastor of the hamburger stand was losing his voice I was asked to step up and lead the Bible study. My friends and I had been through two years of tedium as the leader of the Monday morning Bible study guided us through his convoluted ideas about the Revelation and the Millenial reign; so when I asked them what they would like to have me cover, they strangely jumped at the idea of Daniel's interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's statue.

What I am giving you are the notes that I put together in order to lead a Bible study on Daniel chapter two. I will tell you that we had a great time.

What I am giving you are the notes that I put together in order to lead a Bible study on Daniel chapter two but especially Nebuchadnezzar's statue. I will tell you that we had a great time.

Forgive the artwork but it made the point.

Nebuchadnezzar's statue. 

The head of fine gold; the first Kingdom
Daniel 2:38 You O' King are that head of Gold.



Breast and arms of silver; the second kingdom
Daniel 2:39 After you there will arise another kingdom inferior to you, (Medo-Persian)

Belly and thighs of brass; the third kingdom
Daniel 2:39 and still a third kingdom of bronze [Greece under Alexander the Great] which shall bear rule over all the earth.

Legs of iron; the fourth kingdom
Daniel 2:40 An unnamed kingdom, but becomes more clear when you pursue Daniel chapter 7.

Daniel 7:24-25 KJV And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and, he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. 25) And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

This descriptive personifies the false prophet. The ten kings and their kingdom comprise the Feet of iron and clay

I use the NASB. If I use another translation I will indicate so.

Daniel 2:31-38

• "The head of that statue was made of fine gold,
• its breast and its arms of silver,
• its belly and its thighs of bronze,
• its legs of iron,
• its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.

Daniel 2:38 AMPC+ “...

• You [king of Babylon] are the head of gold.”

The direct inference is to Nebuchadnezzar.

The statue does not represent five kingdoms. I believe that it is apparent that this is not the case because the feet, though mixed, are still an aspect of the legs.

Daniel 2:39

• “After you (Nebuchadnezzar) there will arise another kingdom inferior to you,”

The Amplified Bible was kind enough to define this as the Medo-Persian empire.

• “then another third kingdom of bronze, which will rule over all the earth.”

Again this is spelled out in the Amplified Bible as the Grecian empire under Alexander.

This should evoke some questions.

Who came immediately after Nebuchadnezzar's reign?It was not Belshazzar, and he was not Nebuchadnezzar's his son.

Take the time to read Daniel chapter 4. It speaks of Nebuchadnezzar's seven-year loss of sanity and restoration. All this was meant to demonstrate that there was none other than God. Restored, It seems Nebuchadnezzar then quietly slips off into death. Chapter five then opens with Belshazzar, whom we assume to be the king's son, sitting on the throne. Chapter five verses 21-23 speak of God's admiration of Nebuchadnezzar, and then this, "Yet you, his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this, but you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven;”

Timeline from Nebuchadnezzar to Darius - Bible Timelines, Copyright © 2006 - Rick Swartzentrover

Overnight Belshazzar is stripped of power and killed; the kingdom was taken over by Cyrus, the Persian. 

Alright, let's get something straight here, there are others involved. 

• Armel Marduk, who reigned for 17 years came immediately after Nebuchadnezzar
• Nabonidus Belshazzar reigned for 17 years. The confusion we encounter comes from his reference to Nebuchadnezzar as a father. We come to understand that it was a term of respect for an elder, but Belshazzar was not his son. According to history, we learn that Belshazzar served as co-regent while Nebuchadnezzar was in another palace. By the time Cyrus and his troops were marching into Babylon Belshazzar, fully aware of the ominous news, decided to throw a huge party. And, just to make it over the top, while the party is going on, he orders the golden vessels taken from Israel to be brought in so that he and his guests could drink out of them. This was sure to make him look good.

What then is going on in Daniel 5:30-31 NASB

"That same night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was slain. 31- So Darius the Mede received the kingdom at about the age of sixty-two."

It appears that God just made an eighteen-year leap in time, with no open explanation. 

• Cambyses reigns after Cyrus for 9 years.

Daniel 6:28 is one of the pieces of evidence that ties Daniel to the reigns of Cyrus and Darius. However, it makes no mention of Armel Marduk or Cambyses.

Daniel 6:28 NASB So this Daniel enjoyed success in the reign of Cyrus the Persian and in the reign of Darius the Mede.

For some reason God does not separate Darius and Cyrus, calling them merely Medes and Persians.

Daniel 2:40.

• (NET) Then there will be a fourth kingdom, one strong like iron. Just like iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything, and as iron breaks in pieces all of these metals, so it will break in pieces and crush the others.
  Unfortunately, the Amplified, like many commentators, attributes this to the Roman empire.

Allow me to point out some of the reasons why the fourth empire is not the Roman empire.

Daniel 7:23-26

"The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth,"

Is there a distinction between the letter "a" and the word "the"?  Apparently, for in using an "a" God leaves the room for variability. In this case, four generals who served under Alexander who was eventually reduced to two.  How do we know that? Daniel chapter 11, a rather exacting history, spells out how the four will take power and eventually end with the reigns of Seleucid in the North (These were the Assyrian nations, also known as Syria, and included Asia Minor, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and South to the southern borders of what is now Israel)  and Ptolemy in South (Egypt and the Northern African Nations.)

These two kingdoms, though Grecian at the core, ruled independently. Cooperation was secured through marriage, espionage, murder, and intrigue; it was a way of life.

Chronologically, this was not the Roman empire.

Bible Timelines indicates the region involved in Nebuchadnezzar's rule was under the Persian Empire from 550-358BC.

The Grecian Empire lasted, through the Reigns of Seleucid and Pompey until 64BC and 43BC in Egypt.

In order to make this chronological, we have to bypass 28 Kings and 507 years.

Why does God ignore 28 kings? That is unknown to us. The best approach is to understand that God controls the clock and the timing of His prophetic actions.

Let's pause at Daniel 7:24 for a moment.

'As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will subdue three kings.

• Out of this kingdom (the fourth kingdom)

  We make the assumption that the kingdoms will hold to the core, and the scripture does not tell us that.

• ten kings will arise

  Again, we do not have the timing of when they arise, nor, do we have their “religious” affiliations.

• and another will rise after them,

  We are given a cryptic clue: “he will be different from the previous ones and will subdue three kings.”

  I believe we are seeing the overthrow of the three kings as we speak.

  Daniel's retelling of the dreams meaning does not end here. Look then at Daniel 7:25.

7:25 'He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.

Does this sound like anyone we know? The answer should be, yes.

Revelation 13:4-7 NASB they worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?" 5- There was given to him a mouth speaking arrogant words and blasphemies, and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him. 6-  And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7- It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him.

I desperately wanted to assign this beast to the false prophet, but I am not sure I can or should.

Revelation 13:11-14 NASB 11- Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb and he spoke as a dragon. 12- He exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. 13- He performs great signs so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men. 14- And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who *had the wound of the sword and has come to life.

If we are trying to make a logical connection to Rome, there is none with one exception Titus, the Emperor who ruled over Jerusalem during its destruction in 70 AD.

The so-called logical path here is Daniel 9:26 which tells us that, “the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary.”

Because we attribute the destruction of Jerusalem to Rome, we make the assumption that this future prince is an aspect of Rome.

The problem here is that both Tacitus, the Roman historian, and Josephus, documented that the destruction of the Temple was the act of Assyrian conscript troops, under the Roman flag, who refused to cease from their actions when ordered by Titus. It is also known that Titus was under pressure to keep peace and saw no good coming to his reign because of the actions of the Assyrians.

There is one other reason why our assumptions about Rome are wrong. It is because, we, in the Western church, seem to think that this Bible we are reading is a book in tune with the Western culture. Oh sure, God has seen fit to make it work for all who believe, but never forget that the Bibles we carry are Jewish books, centered around a Jewish Messiah, and are exclusively Middle Eastern-centric. Trying to bend things and events to fit our Western culture will only confuse you more than you are.

which shall be different from all other kingdoms

What was the goal and purpose of all other kingdoms? Divide and conquer. But what did the Roman empire do? Establish a nonreligious legal system; build aqueducts, and promote trade and economy through road building. Not exactly a divide and conquer concept.

Revelation 13:3-4 NASB I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast; 4- they worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?"

Note: While describing, almost to the letter, the beast of Revelation, this EMPIRE, sustains a mortal wound. Consider for a moment the allegory we are confronting. There are no beasts anywhere near this description, so the logical assumption should be that we are dealing with an entity or better yet multiple empires. Empires typically have solitary rulers (kings, monarchs, or emperors.) If they were ten in league with one another and one of the heads sustained a mortal wound, would the beast be killed? Not likely, as we would see someone else ready to take their place. Such is the case here. 

An example of such an event has already happened in the course of history, and it happened to the Ottoman Empire, an Islamic Caliphate, in the 1920's. The Caliphate was ransacking an area comparable to the Alexandrian Empire, and they seemed to rule the Mediterranean seas.They needed to be quelled and the British Empire effectively did just this by shutting down the Ottoman Empire.

How did the Islamic Empire come back to life? The Muslim Brotherhood never really died and raised its ugly head several times. The ultimate revival came with the Islamic revolution in 1979. In this, the Islamic Caliphate took control over Iran, once again.

• and shall devour the whole earth, tread it down, and break it in pieces and crush it.
  We like to use terms like, “the known world,” however, there was more to the world than just the Mediterranean, and yet, this was the primary sphere of influence of all these empires we consider. This so-called global concept applies to the Grecian empire, the Seleucid, and Ptolemaic empires as well.
  One Empire, (under various names – like Rashidun and Ottoman Caliphates,) attempted to control the entire world extending into the realm of WW1. It took a combined effort, but Britain played a huge role in shutting the Ottoman empire down in 1924.

I found myself asking, why do we have kingdoms?

I suppose a part of the answer lies in public safety, at least that is what they tell you. However, the truth is, those who have obtained power, by whatever means, fight desperately to maintain it, and that requires money and loyalty. Sadly, loyalty must often be bought or created through marriage or a truce. In reality, the desperate methods used to maintain power causes the commoner to suffer. If the Islamic Caliphate is the kingdom in question, do they operate on these terms? The answer is, not necessarily. While the people who are NOT Islamic suffer tremendously, if they pay the Jizya tax, they have a chance to live as others do. Typically, NON-Islamic people are deemed infidels and killed by various means. The preferred method is beheading.

Daniel 7:24

• And as for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise; and another shall arise after them, and he shall be different from the former ones, and he shall subdue and put down three kings.
  
  

  Revelation 13:1 NASB And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore. Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names.

  
  
  The obvious thing here is, that there were to be ten kings come out of this fourth kingdom. Again, with the Islamic empire, it is more difficult to ascertain a king. It is not, however, difficult to count the Imams; the leaders of the Caliphates. Currently, the President of Turkey, Princip Erdogan, is trying to establish himself as the leader of the final Caliphate.

Here is where the clues get intense and more specific.

Daniel 7:25

• And he shall speak words against the Most High [God] and shall wear out the saints of the Most High
  
  

  These words are almost identical to the descriptions of the Antichrist character we see in the Revelation.

• and think to change the time [of sacred feasts and holy days] and the law
  
  

  Here is where an understanding of Islamic goals comes in handy, for this is exactly what they intend to do. They wish to instill Sharia laws that supersede established law. This gives them the right to behead for blasphemy against Allah, a demonic entity.

  
  

  Another aspect of this change includes their own calendar. Anything we have will be done away with.

• and the saints shall be given into his hand for a time, two times, and half a time [three and one-half years]

This is a specific reference to the martyred of Revelation.

Revelation 13:7 NASB It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him.

Daniel 7:26

But the judgment shall be set [by the court of the Most High], and they shall take away his dominion to consume it [gradually] and to destroy it [suddenly] in the end.

• This is another reference to future judgment by Jesus.

Revelation 20:10-11 NASB 10- And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. 11- Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.

I wish it was more explicit but you should get the point.

If you intently study Daniel 2:41-43, you find that the Aramaic word for mixed is ‛araḇ. An Aramaic verb meaning to mix, to mingle, to join together. The implications are widespread, as one can mean unification, while others suggest non-cooperation beyond a point.

Daniel 2:41

• • “In that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron,

    Anyone, with any experience building, knows this is structurally unsound.

  • it will be a divided kingdom;

    Divided is Aramaic word pelag̱: An Aramaic verb meaning to split,

  • but it will have in it the toughness of iron,

    Toughness is the Aramaic word that also means strength.

  • inasmuch as you saw the iron mixed with common clay.

    Most everyone understands what iron is, a high carbon steel that has strength. However, when applied to people, it can mean inflexible and unyielding.

If this fourth kingdom we are talking about is Islam, the problem is that there are differing sects, none of which get along,. Add to this “mix” God's declarations concerning Ishmael:

Genesis 16:12 NASB "He will be a wild donkey of a man, His hand will be against everyone, And everyone's hand will be against him, And he will live to the east of all his brothers."

Daniel 2:42

• "As the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of pottery, so some of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will be brittle.

  Brittle means fragile. Keep in mind are talking belief systems; ideologies, and people.

The word arab also means intermingled. Intermingled with whom?

Daniel 2:43

And in that you saw the iron mixed with common clay, they will combine with one another in the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, even as iron does not combine with pottery.

As we have already witnessed that a form of Jihad is mass integration and intermingling. Raping the citizens produces children that they claim for their own as a Muslim. In this way, they reproduce rapidly.

As we migrated through the body of Nebuchadnezzar's dream statue, we end with four kingdoms, and none other is described to us.

The fourth kingdom, however, is different, but it is up to us figure out why.

Without breaking stride, we transition to the fourth kingdom, one that is split into two and progresses down to the feet, which are mixed with clay. This picture tells us that it becomes structurally unsound.

God considers all of those ruling under this empires title to all be aspects of the fourth kingdom. (We see this in Revelation 13, for the fourth, comes out of the ten.) During the days of these kings “the God of Heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed,” What is this? The Millennial reign.

Daniel 2:44

"In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever.

Luke 1:31-33 NASB "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32- "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33- and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end."

Revelation 11:15 NASB Then the seventh angel sounded; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever."

Yes, you are right, Daniel does not end there, but foregoing one more verse we are done. If you were like me and read about the statue that Nebuchadnezzar saw, then you were quite probably befuddled about some of the same things I was. An example: where do people get the idea that the fourth empire is the Roman empire, and, what about those feet? Having God lay out the first three empires for us is a good thing, but to be honest, you have to do your homework in order to find out that the fourth, loosely defined empire is the remnants of his Alexandrian Empire.

One more question. Why is any of this important to us?

As my pastor recently said, these end times things you speak of are really peripheral. The implication is that they mean nothing or at best little to our Christian lives. Is that true? The answer is NO, and the reason why, as I see it, is because we are currently living in the last days. Now why would I say such a thing, as clearly, there are events that must take place and haven't happened yet, such as the apostasy of the church - oops, that has happened; or a ten nation confederation attacking Israel, and quite soon. But staying attune with the global news gives you an understanding of how painfully close we are to seeing Israel attacked. An aspect of the end times, at least more precisely "the great tribulation" is the persecution of those who missed the snatching away of the church and are now having to prove their allegiance to God by giving their lives, primarily to the sword. Again, look around you. Is that happening all around us? The answer is YES.

We are there and He is coming soon to catch away those who are waiting for Him.