The fall of Persia, Greece and Rome before the Lord
Some things are less obvious in prophecy. This morning’s chapters have caused much discussion among theologians, but there are still some obvious truths that can be applied. Be blessed friends.
Daniel 10: Daniel's Terrifying Vision of a Man
1 In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a word was revealed to Daniel, who was named Belteshazzar. And the word was true, and it was a great conflict. And he understood the word and had understanding of the vision.
2 In those days I, Daniel, was mourning for three weeks.
3 I ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, for the full three weeks.
4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was standing on the bank of the great river (that is, the Tigris)
5 I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, a man clothed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist.
6 His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude.
7 And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision, but a great trembling fell upon them, and they fled to hide themselves.
8 So I was left alone and saw this great vision, and no strength was left in me. My radiant appearance was fearfully changed, and I retained no strength.
9 Then I heard the sound of his words, and as I heard the sound of his words, I fell on my face in deep sleep with my face to the ground.
10 And behold, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees.
11 And he said to me, "O Daniel, man greatly loved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for now I have been sent to you." And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling.
12 Then he said to me, "Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words.
13 The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia,
14 and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people in the latter days. For the vision is for days yet to come."
15 When he had spoken to me according to these words, I turned my face toward the ground and was mute.
16 And behold, one in the likeness of the children of man touched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who stood before me, "O my lord, by reason of the vision pains have come upon me, and I retain no strength.
17 How can my lord's servant talk with my lord? For now no strength remains in me, and no breath is left in me."
18 Again one having the appearance of a man touched me and strengthened me.
19 And he said, "O man greatly loved, fear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage." And as he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, "Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me."
20 Then he said, "Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the prince of Persia; and when I go out, behold, the prince of Greece will come.
21 But I will tell you what is inscribed in the book of truth: there is none who contends by my side against these except Michael, your prince.
Daniel 11: The Kings of the South and the North
1 "And as for me, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him.
2 "And now I will show you the truth. Behold, three more kings shall arise in Persia, and a fourth shall be far richer than all of them. And when he has become strong through his riches, he shall stir up all against the kingdom of Greece.
3 Then a mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion and do as he wills.
4 And as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom shall be broken and divided toward the four winds of heaven, but not to his posterity, nor according to the authority with which he ruled, for his kingdom shall be plucked up and go to others besides these.
5 "Then the king of the south shall be strong, but one of his princes shall be stronger than he and shall rule, and his authority shall be a great authority.
6 After some years they shall make an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement. But she shall not retain the strength of her arm, and he and his arm shall not endure, but she shall be given up, and her attendants, he who fathered her, and he who supported her in those times.
7 "And from a branch from her roots one shall arise in his place. He shall come against the army and enter the fortress of the king of the north, and he shall deal with them and shall prevail.
8 He shall also carry off to Egypt their gods with their metal images and their precious vessels of silver and gold, and for some years he shall refrain from attacking the king of the north.
9 Then the latter shall come into the realm of the king of the south but shall return to his own land.
10 "His sons shall wage war and assemble a multitude of great forces, which shall keep coming and overflow and pass through, and again shall carry the war as far as his fortress.
11 Then the king of the south, moved with rage, shall come out and fight against the king of the north. And he shall raise a great multitude, but it shall be given into his hand.
12 And when the multitude is taken away, his heart shall be exalted, and he shall cast down tens of thousands, but he shall not prevail.
13 For the king of the north shall again raise a multitude, greater than the first. And after some years he shall come on with a great army and abundant supplies.
14 "In those times many shall rise against the king of the south, and the violent among your own people shall lift themselves up in order to fulfill the vision, but they shall fail.
15 Then the king of the north shall come and throw up siege-works and take a well-fortified city. And the forces of the south shall not stand, or even his best troops, for there shall be no strength to stand.
16 But he who comes against him shall do as he wills, and none shall stand before him. And he shall stand in the glorious land, with destruction in his hand.
17 He shall set his face to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and he shall bring terms of an agreement and perform them. He shall give him the daughter of women to destroy the kingdom, but it shall not stand or be to his advantage.
18 Afterward he shall turn his face to the coastlands and shall capture many of them, but a commander shall put an end to his insolence. Indeed, he shall turn his insolence back upon him.
19 Then he shall turn his face back toward the fortresses of his own land, but he shall stumble and fall, and shall not be found.
20 "Then shall arise in his place one who shall send an exactor of tribute for the glory of the kingdom. But within a few days he shall be broken, neither in anger nor in battle.
21 In his place shall arise a contemptible person to whom royal majesty has not been given. He shall come in without warning and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
22 Armies shall be utterly swept away before him and broken, even the prince of the covenant.
23 And from the time that an alliance is made with him he shall act deceitfully, and he shall become strong with a small people.
24 Without warning he shall come into the richest parts of the province, and he shall do what neither his fathers nor his fathers' fathers have done, scattering among them plunder, spoil, and goods. He shall devise plans against strongholds, but only for a time.
25 And he shall stir up his power and his heart against the king of the south with a great army. And the king of the south shall wage war with an exceedingly great and mighty army, but he shall not stand, for plots shall be devised against him.
26 Even those who eat his food shall break him. His army shall be swept away, and many shall fall down slain.
27 And as for the two kings, their hearts shall be bent on doing evil. They shall speak lies at the same table, but to no avail, for the end is yet to be at the time appointed.
28 And he shall return to his land with great wealth, but his heart shall be set against the holy covenant. And he shall work his will and return to his own land.
29 "At the time appointed he shall return and come into the south, but it shall not be this time as it was before.
30 For ships of Kittim shall come against him, and he shall be afraid and withdraw, and shall turn back and be enraged and take action against the holy covenant. He shall turn back and pay attention to those who forsake the holy covenant.
31 Forces from him shall appear and profane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering. And they shall set up the abomination that makes desolate.
32 He shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action.
33 And the wise among the people shall make many understand, though for some days they shall stumble by sword and flame, by captivity and plunder.
34 When they stumble, they shall receive a little help. And many shall join themselves to them with flattery,
35 and some of the wise shall stumble, so that they may be refined, purified, and made white, until the time of the end, for it still awaits the appointed time.
36 "And the king shall do as he wills. He shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak astonishing things against the God of gods. He shall prosper till the indignation is accomplished; for what is decreed shall be done.
37 He shall pay no attention to the gods of his fathers, or to the one beloved by women. He shall not pay attention to any other god, for he shall magnify himself above all.
38 He shall honour the god of fortresses instead of these. A god whom his fathers did not know he shall honour with gold and silver, with precious stones and costly gifts.
39 He shall deal with the strongest fortresses with the help of a foreign god. Those who acknowledge him he shall load with honour. He shall make them rulers over many and shall divide the land for a price.
40 "At the time of the end, the king of the south shall attack him, but the king of the north shall rush upon him like a whirlwind, with chariots and horsemen, and with many ships. And he shall come into countries and shall overflow and pass through.
41 He shall come into the glorious land. And tens of thousands shall fall, but these shall be delivered out of his hand: Edom and Moab and the main part of the Ammonites.
42 He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape.
43 He shall become ruler of the treasures of gold and of silver, and all the precious things of Egypt, and the Libyans and the Cushites shall follow in his train.
44 But news from the east and the north shall alarm him, and he shall go out with great fury to destroy and devote many to destruction.
45 And he shall pitch his palatial tents between the sea and the glorious holy mountain. Yet he shall come to his end, with none to help him.
Daniel 12: The Time of the End
1 "At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book.
2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
4 But you, Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book, until the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase."
5 Then I, Daniel, looked, and behold, two others stood, one on this bank of the stream and one on that bank of the stream.
6 And someone said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, "How long shall it be till the end of these wonders?"
7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream; he raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven and swore by him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and half a time, and that when the shattering of the power of the holy people comes to an end all these things would be finished.
8 I heard, but I did not understand. Then I said, "O my lord, what shall be the outcome of these things?"
9 He said, "Go your way, Daniel, for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end.
10 Many shall purify themselves and make themselves white and be refined, but the wicked shall act wickedly. And none of the wicked shall understand, but those who are wise shall understand.
11 And from the time that the regular burnt offering is taken away and the abomination that makes desolate is set up, there shall be 1,290 days.
12 Blessed is he who waits and arrives at the 1,335 days.
13 But go your way till the end. And you shall rest and shall stand in your allotted place at the end of the days."
Things to think about…
1. Daniel 10 speaks about angelic protectors and their roles within the establishment and pulling down of kingdoms. In this case it is the future establishment of Greece and the pulling down of Persia. Michael is used at this time. We know he has a role in defeating Satan at the end of this earthly dispensation. Daniel has an experience similar to the apostle Paul where he sees and hears the Lord, but his companions do not see and hear the same thing. The Lord reveals things to his servants, but not to everyone. Daniel was privileged to see the future of world superpowers. We are privileged to have Christ reveal to us truths about the generation we live in. What has the Lord revealed to you about what he has installed for you, your family, our church and this city?
2. Daniel 11 is long and detailed and without a thorough understanding of history a lot of this chapter is locked for the modern reader. The upshot of it all is that Alexander the Great (the Greek) will arise and defeat the Persians. Alexander defeats Darius III. After this Alexander he will be cut off at 32 and he does not have a son to rule after him. His kingdom is divided among his four generals, Dan 11:3, 4. The Ptolemies arise, they will set up an abomination that desolates in the character of Antiochus Epiphanes who slaughtered and offered a pig on the altar in Jerusalem. Many priests and Jews died.
3. There is a brief period where the Judas Maccabee a Jew rules over Jerusalem and the greater area of Judah and Israel. This is the Macabean period. Judas teaches and leads some back to the law and there is help for a time, although it be in a time of refining, Dan 11:32b-35. This kingdom lasts from 168BC-104BC.
4. Rome eventually arises and becomes the ruler of treasures of gold and silver and all the precious things of Egypt etc Dan 11:43-45. An excellent commentary on the facts of this chapter and the future display and character of the anti-Christ is given here - https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/daniel-11/ . The insight of Dan 11:45 is profound, “And he shall pitch his palatial tents between the sea and the glorious holy mountain.” This could refer to Caesarea Marittima where Herod the Great built a massive port, the ruins of which are still present today. The glorious mountain referred to could be Mt Carmel upon which Elijah did his exploits. The sea referred to here would be the Mediterranean Sea. But more likely it refers to the Herodium, the palatial complex Herod built between the Dead Sea and Jerusalem – the glorious mountain (Mt Zion). This where John the Baptist was beheaded by Herod’s grandson and where Herod the Great was buried. His tomb was discovered in 2007.
5. The final part of Dan 10:45 says “Yet he shall come to his end, with none to help him “. Herod died in Jericho from a painful and putrefying illness. He even attempted suicide but failed. He was a hated ruler. None mourned or helped when he died. He was the one that killed the boys under 2 years of age in Bethlehem to try to extinguish Jesus because the Magi had said He was a king, Mt 2:16-18, Jer 31:15. What does all this mean for us? That God is the Ruler and Ordainer of everything that happens in history including the conclusion of this earth’s rule and rulers. Rejoice, Jesus has overcome.
6. Daniel 12 speaks of the start and middle of the tribulation period that will happen to the Jewish people when the anti-Christ is revealed at the end of the age. While Antiochus Epiphanes the Greek who lived 215BC to 164BC offered pigs blood and was an abominable sacrifice, we know that the reference here in Dan 12:11 refers to a time future from where we sit because Jesus mentions it happening in the future from His standpoint in Mt 24:15. Titus did not sacrifice in the temple in AD70 when the temple was destroyed. It hasn’t happened since because the next temple is yet to be built. No doubt this will happen not too many years from now. It is in “this generation” that many Jews will come to faith in Christ and whose names are written in the book of life, Dan 12:1. It speaks of the resurrection of the dead, some to life, some to death – forever, Dan 12:3. The first resurrection to life is before the 1000 year reign of Christ on the earth, Rev 20:4. The resurrection of those whose names are not written in the book of life come after the 1000 years as explained in Rev 20:6, 11-15. Daniel and the Apostle John tell us this is the resurrection of the dead, a frightful condition that never ceases.
7. The 31/2 years described here – the 1290 days in Dan 12:11 are the second half of the of the 7-year tribulation period. This is a horrific time for the Jews, many will lose their lives. It only ceases for the sake of the elect to be numbered in those days. A blessing for those who will wait until the 1335 days, or month and a half after that time. While we may not know the exact time or hour, we will know the season when our Lord returns as he has told us.
Vision Point for cell groups
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Title was “The seven seals” – Reading Revelation 6.
1. Andrew Otte on Sunday preached on the seven seals. Christ was the only one worthy of breaking the seals and opening the scrolls. How was this achieved?
2. Some horrible things are about to come on the earth through the seven seals, 7 trumpets and 7 bowls. All these seem to relate to the same period of end time history. Jesus spoke about this in Matt 24. Do you have any comments about any of this? What are your thoughts on what it will look like?
3. It seems more people are taking about these things even among unbelievers. Have you used this to discuss the return of Jesus?
4. Pray for the church and the endeavours we have to establish ministries that tell people about Jesus. Pray for Carols and Christmas.
Prayer Points
1. Pray for pledges for finances for the youth and young adults pastor role.
2. Carols service 18th December – Family fun Day afternoon/evening 3pm-7pm.
3. Christmas Day Service 25th Dec – on a Sunday this year – service will start at 9:00am.
4. Pray for the leadership of our country.
5. Pray for the people of Iran and Ukraine.
6. The right choice for a full time Youth and Young Adults Pastor to start Jan 2023 and the finances to support them.
7. Health of Ross Goltz. Operation on his voice box this Wednesday.
8. More young families and youth into the church.
9. Ministry leaders within the church.
10. Our One for Israel ministry.
11. Pray for other building projects – café roof, the repair of the house roof.
12. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.
Praise Points
1. Wonderful sense of God’s encouragement around the church on Sunday regarding the youth young adults role. Thankyou to everyone who supports the church and this ministry.
2. Ross Goltz had a successful voice box operation, pray for continued recovery.
3. Worship on Sunday – thankyou worship team. Thankyou for those who welcomed at the door.
4. All those who faithfully serve in ministries, Worship, Sound/Technical/Kids Church/ Cell Groups/Admin - Bulletins/Finances/Property/Welcoming/Spiritual Leadership/Cafe
5. Joy, peace and grace we see at CBC. Thankyou Lord
Announcements
1. Pledges being taken until 11Dec to assess level of support for Youth Ministry Leader.
2. Family fun day/Carols night 3-7pm 18th Dec – Book it in. Invite people flyers
3. Christmas Day service – 9am Dec 25th.
4. Remember to check your duty rosters.
5. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
6. Tune in again this week on our youtube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel Chuwar Baptist YouTube channel.
