Daniel’s Revelation

J.A. Clark – theHumanStain.net

Post Date: 3-20-08

Little known fact - the Old Testament book of Daniel is just as cool as the prophetic book of
Revelation. In fact, if it wasn't for the Book of Daniel, John, the guy that took notes for the
book of Revelation, would not have a clue on some of the things going on right before his
eyes. But, since Jesus himself quoted from the book of Daniel, John got a little heads up.

I decided, for this post, to explain Daniel, Chapter 7. This chapter is brimming with
symbolism and even though the angel explains to Daniel what future nations will be
involved in the end-time, nothing is ever said about the specifics of the who and the what.
So pay attention, get the peanut butter out of your ears and learn about something that
WILL come to pass; not 'maybe' or 'possible' - I'm here to tell you, it WILL happen - after
all, its in the Bible.

Now, lets get after it. Chapter 7 of the Book of Daniel, time wise, falls between Chapter 4
and Chapter 5. Chapter 5 is when King Belshazzar got the ax (literally) at the hands of
Darius, ruler of the Medes/Persians. The reason why Chapter 7 falls out of order is when the
Jewish priests were putting together the current line-up of today's Bible, they decided to put
the chapters about history together and the chapters about prophecy together; thus the
confusing jump back and then forward. Not sure about the logic in that approach would be
but I'm not a Bible scholar so I'll leave that for the experts.

Back to the interpretation. Daniel Chapter 7 starts out with letting the reader know who the
current King is and that Daniel just had a vision given to him from the Almighty God and
he's fixin' to try and figure out what it meant. So as any good journalist does, he starts
writing the stuff down he remembers.

Our Lord God is so cool. He knows that the human mind works better with visualizing things
instead of just spouting off a bunch of events or facts that are going to happen. So that is
how God gave Daniel this vision; dramatic symbols that are easy to remember and write
down. Daniel 7:2 mentions that there was a stirring of the great sea from the four winds of
heaven. This is an interesting phrase as it directly correlates to Revelation 7:1. This passage
says 'After this I [John] saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding
back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth or sea or against any
tree.' Not only is it interesting in the fact that some of the same things are being mentioned
but its the same chapter and verse! The only difference being that in Revelation, John is
witnessing the angels holding back the 'winds' until God seals his 144,000 servants on the
forehead. So this puts Daniel Chapter 7 slightly after Revelation Chapter 7 in the prophetic
time-line.
Continuing after the stirring up of the great sea, Daniel witnesses four great beasts that
came up out of the sea. Here is where many Bible scholars say that these four beasts are
the same as the Nebuchadnezzar's image back in Chapter 2 of Daniel. Bzzzzz, wrong
answer. I'll get to that later on in this post and tell you why Daniel's beasts are not the same
as Nebuchadnezzar's image.

The first beast Daniel describes in Daniel 7:4 is a lion with eagle's wings. Then suddenly, the
eagles wings are 'plucked' off and the lion was made to stand 'like a man' and a mind of a
man was given to it.

For hundreds of years, Great Britain's symbol has been the lion. There are countless
magazine articles as well as Internet news stories how Great Britain is symbolized by the
lion, which by the way is on all of the Royal family crests of the last 700 years. I won't list
the hundreds of magazine articles as anyone can do a Google search for 'Great Britain
Symbol Lion' and get thousands of search results. There is one periodical that I would like to
mention, however. Webster's Third International Dictionary, under 'lion' states 'the symbol
of a country - Great Britain'. That, on its own, is very compelling. So, the lion is undoubtedly
Great Britain.

So what about the eagle's wings? Daniel says that he witnesses the plucking off of the
eagles wings from the lion. What prominent nation uses the eagle as its official emblem or
symbol? You got it - the U.S. of A. Daniel prophesied 2600 years ago that the United States
would declare its Independence from its mother country, Great Britain. That is awesome!

The second beast is a lopsided bear with some ribs sticking out of its mouth (Daniel 7:5).
Wow - what an image to witness! If you knew the national symbol of the U.S. was the
eagle, then you gotta know what nation has the symbol of the bear. Time magazine, on
many occasions, has placed bears on the cover to symbolize the Soviet Union/Russia. The
three ribs coming out of the bears mouth are the nations of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia;
three nations that Russia completely swallowed up when it expanded to the west. Daniel 7:5
states that 'the bear' was instructed to 'devour much flesh'. Russia has been one of the
most brutal and inhumane nations since its inception. Joseph Stalin alone, executed over 50
million of his own citizens during his reign. So the second beast, the lopsided bear, is no
doubt, Russia.

Daniel continues with the third beast coming out of the great sea was a leopard (Daniel
7:6). The third beasts' identity is just as stealthy as its name, however, once revealed, it is
logical. Another word for leopard is panther. They are the same creature; one has spots
(leopard) and the other doesn't (panther). The last three major wars of the 20th century
were the Franco-German war of 1870, World War I and World War II. These three wars were
all plotted, planned and initiated by the same nation; Germany. The leopard or panther
seems to pop up quite a bit within the German culture. A major television manufacturer's
name is 'Panther Electronics'. In the German military, two prominent naval vessels were
named the 'Panther'. Under Hitler, the main tank used in World War II was called the
'Panther'. The armored division of the Nazi war machine was called the 'Panzer Division'.
The latest 21st century German tank deployed in Bosnia is named the 'Leopard'. At first
glance, all these facts may look like circumstantial evidence. Ah, but wait, there's more
(sounds like a late night TV commercial trying to sell you the latest kitchen gadget)!

The leopard in Daniel's vision has wings; four wings. In our language that translates to two
sets of wings. Many times, wings in Bible prophecy equates to something that is part of or
assists in accomplishing a task. In Daniel's vision it does both. History records that the
forces part of 'The Axis' were Germany, Italy and Japan. It's is probable Italy and Japan are
the leopard's wings as they not only were allies to Germany during World War II, they
backed Hitler with air support as well; the 'wings of the leopard', so to speak.
On several occasions throughout Bible prophecy, heads on a beast represent the rising of
different eras of a nation. It is evident that Daniel's vision is representative of four different
'ruling bodies' or nationalities. The four heads of the leopard reference the fall of the
German First Reich, Second Reich, Third Reich (Hitler) and the rising Fourth Reich of 21st
Century Germany.

The last beast in Daniel 7:7-8 is one that Daniel has never seen and describes it as
'terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth; it devoured and
broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet' and if that wasn't enough, it had
ten horns to begin with and then one little horn with eyes and the mouth of a man sprouted
up and pulled three other horns up by the roots. Youch - that's gotta hurt!

So what's with this ten horned monster with eyes on one of its horns? Well, Daniel had the
same question and he asks an angel in Daniel 7:16. So the angel tells Daniel (Daniel 7:24-
27) that the ten horns are ten kings that arise and then the little horn rises from within
these ten kings. The little horn (the Antichrist) gets a wild hair and whacks three of the
kings and takes complete control, changes the rules to suit his desires, gives God's servants
of the time a really, really hard time and then God takes over control, eliminates this yahoo
and gives power of these nations over to his servants.

The angel gives quite a bit of information but doesn't go into the detail of the exact identity
this final beast. Because this fourth beast or kingdom is what catapults the Antichrist into
power, the identification of this fourth beast must be viewed in a global light. Revelation
13:7-8 states that authority was given to the Antichrist for 'all who dwell on earth'. Many
prophecy scholars believe that this ruling body is the European Union. However, the
referenced 'all' in Revelation 13 implies that this includes more then just Europeans. You
gotta think bigger. The other thing to consider is that ALL Bible prophecy directly affects
Israel. The European Union, historically speaking, has had virtually no impact on the nation
of Israel. So the fourth beast is not the European Union.

There is only one political entity that has the global clout to claim absolute jurisdiction over
the entire world and has a considerable historical footprint placed in the nation of Israel and
the land of Palestine in general. The United Nations fits that footprint better then Cinderella
fit her lost slipper. Not sure if the U.N. is the fourth beast? Check out these facts:

• Through international treaty, the UN is dictating how children are to be educated.

Just look at what's happening in the California School System.
• The UN is forcibly intervening in international military conflicts. Iran and Iraq are
only two examples of many others.
• The UN is overseeing the worlds financial systems as well as legal matters of many
nations.

Don't be fooled. Despite the common perception of the U.N. being a benevolent
organization, it is the fourth beast in Daniel 7.

So, when does this beast come into power? Daniel 7:25 gives us that tidbit of information
by saying 'and they shall be given into his hand for a time, times and half a time'. This is
the Bible way of saying 3 1/2 years; a time is one year, times is two years and a half a time
is 6 months. So you add these up and its 3 1/2 years. This passage tells us how long but
not when. In order to find out when, we need to look in Daniel 7:27 where it says that the
Antichrist will sign a peace treaty with Israel. This peace treaty or Confirmation of the
Covenant is to be for seven years, however, this treaty is broken by the Antichrist half way
through the seven year treaty. This broken treaty is referred to in Daniel 9:27 as the
Abomination of Desolation which in fact is when the Antichrist enters the newly rebuilt
Temple on the Mount.

By the way, President Bush has stated on numerous occasions that there will be a Peace
Treaty in the Holy Land before the end of 2008. That's only a few short months away! Did
you get a chill down your spine? I know I do every time I think about it.

So the fourth beast will appear 3 1/2 years after the Confirmation of the Covenant.

Many Bible scholars believe that Daniel Chapter 7 has a direct correlation to Daniel's
interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream of Daniel Chapter 2. I got some news for ya. That
'taint right and here's why:

• Daniel 7:11-12 reads 'I looked then because of the sound of the great words that the
horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was killed and its body destroyed and
given over to be burned with fire. As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was
taken away but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.' This passage
clearly tells us that the other three beasts (nations) will be present at the end of the
tribulation period. The 'nations' in Daniel Chapter 2:37-43 (Babylon, Medes-Persia,
Grecian Empire, Roman Empire) are kaput, gonedie, eliminato, no longer exist,
therefore, Daniel Chapter 2 and Chapter 7 are not the same vision.
• In Daniel 7:15-16, Daniel himself is so perplexed on what he has just witnessed, he
asks an angel for the skinny on the situation. So if Daniel interpreted
Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Chapter 2, logic dictates he would recognize what is
happening in Chapter 7. Again, Chapter 2 and 7 are not the same thing.
• Furthermore, Revelation 13:2-3 confirms the rising of the one world political/religious
order with virtually the same characters as in Daniel Chapter 7. The only difference is
these beasts (nations) have merged into a single beast with all the characteristics of
Daniel Chapter 7 beasts; 'a leopard with feet like a bear and a mouth like a lion'.
Bible prophecy is so cool!

Although there is some real nasty hobgoblins and despair, all is not totally lost. in Daniel
Chapter 7, God gives a promise. Daniel 7:27 says 'And the kingdom and the dominion and
the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the
saints of the Most High; their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom and all dominions
shall serve and obey them.' This means that for those whose names are written in the Book
of Life, we get the world as our reward for faithful service. Holy socks, that is ultimate
awesome!

Are you one that will inherit the world? Are you ready for Jesus to take you away into
eternity? If you are not sure, check this out.

I'm here to tell you, I'm ready and I'm excited to know that I will witness the return of
Jesus Christ! Keep looking up - He is coming very, very soon.

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