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| 1 In 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. |
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| 2 Answered 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; |
My vision – Containing a great political chart of the world's history. R662:1*
Such visions are sometimes counterfeited by Satan and made to seem ordinary by cataleptic sleeps and hypnotic trances. R2033:2
Four winds – The great time of trouble, also pictured as a tidal wave, a whirlwind and a great fire. R5863:6; D528
Of the heaven – The higher, or ruling, powers. R318:3
Upon the great sea – The restless masses of mankind. A318
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| 3 and four great beasts are coming up from the sea, diverse one from another. |
Four great beasts – Representing the Gentile governments as ferocious, destructive, beastly and selfish, from the standpoint of the Lord and his people. A261; R166:2; PD50/61
Beastly because the base of action for every carnal man is pure self-interest. R1189:3
Indeed beastly. How perfectly they represent, in their evil and death-dealing power, their master, the devil. R419:6
The sea – The masses of mankind, not under religious restraint. R318:3; A318
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| 4 The 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. |
First was like a lion – Babylon. R318:3; A257; OV270:6
The earth – The people, under or obedient to the ruling powers. R318:3
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| 5 And 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. |
Second, like to a bear – Medo-Persia. R318:3; A257; OV270:6
Three ribs Three kingdoms it subdued. HG48:4
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| 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. |
Like a leopard – Greece. R318:3; A257,; OV270:6
Four wings – Representing the rapidity of the movements under Alexander the Great. HG48:4
Alexander's kingdom was divided by his four generals-- Seleucus, Philopater, Antiochus Epiphanes and Ptolemaus Philomater--and broken into fragments. C27, C28
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| 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. |
A fourth beast – The Roman empire. A257; C76; OV270:6
No descriptive name given, because it was so ferocious and hideous that none of the beasts of the earth could be compared with it. A258
The same as the dragon of Rev 13:1, 2. R318:3, R420:1
Stamped the residue – Nothing could withstand its power. OV83:6
It had ten horns – The ten divisions of the Roman empire. A258
Kingdoms. R318:5, R3359:4*
Babylon is represented as being divided into ten different wards, each of which represents one of the kingdoms of Christendom, and which corresponds to the ten horns of the symbolic beast. Compare Rev. 11: & Dan. 7:7. SM405:4
Corresponding to the ten toes of the image of Dan. 2. PD50/61; OV83:7; HG20:4; R3359:4*
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| 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. |
There came up – In 539 AD. C76, C95
Another little horn – The Abomination of Desolation, the Papacy (Matt. 24:15); that Wicked One (2 Thess. 2:8); the Man of Sin (2 Thess. 2:3); the Mystery of Iniquity (2 Thess. 2:7); the Antichrist (1 John 2:18); the Son of Perdition (2 Thess. 2:3); the Beast (Rev. 13:1). A258; B271; 272; 277; C64; 76; 95
Papacy, the Leopard Beast of Rev. 13, containing certain qualities resembling the first three beasts combining certain leading characteristics of the preceding empires, uniting them in the power of the last. R318:3
Representing ecclesiastical power enthroned amid political power. PD50/61
Before whom – In 476, 489 and 539 AD, respectively. C76, C77, C95
There were three – The Western empire, the Heruli and the Ostrogoths. (The Western empire was an exarchate of the Eastern empire.) A258; C76, C77
Lombardy, Romania and Ravenna--since then the church element has worn the three-crowned hat. HG65:3
Of the first horns – Powers. C76
Plucked up – The Western empire by the Heruli, the Heruli by the Ostrogoths and the Ostrogoths by Justinian on behalf of the Papacy, which actually held the city and suburbs of Rome continuously from AD 539. C76-C79
Were eyes – Representing intelligence and a farsighted policy. A258; B305
And a mouth – Representing Papal utterances and claims. A258; R1732:5
Claiming to be the vicar of Christ. He assumed to speak as the mouthpiece of God. R388:3*
The power of the Papacy has been that of its mouth, guided by its knowledge. B305
"And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things ... and he opened his mouth in blasphemy." (Rev. 13:5, 6) "And he shall speak gre B305
Speaking great things – But not saying whether they are great truths or great untruths. In Revelation also, Papacy is described and its language quoted without adverse criticism. R1732:5
Illustrated by the boastful words of Pope Martin V. HG269:6
Making boastful claims. It should not surprise us that God should ordain, as part of its reward, that it should eat its own words. R509:6
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| 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. |
Till the thrones – Governments, rulerships. A92
Were cast down – The thrones of earth will be cast down and the dominion transferred to the great Prophet and Judge. R893:2, R2609:1
Head like the pure wool – Suggestive and symbolic of venerableness, of knowledge, experience, wisdom. R2826:4
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| 10 A 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 – Symbolic of severe judgments--a time of trouble. C302; R668:5
During the time when rich men weep and howl (Jas. 5:1-3; Zeph. 1:18); when the nations are angry (Rev. 11:18); when the stone smites the feet of the image (Dan. 2:34); when the kings of the earth make war with the lamb (Rev. 19:11-21). R668:5 [R853:78 - site Editor]
Thousand thousands – Not only of his saints, but of numerous other agents and agencies. C302
Times ten thousand – All mankind. C302
Judgment was set – It has already begun upon the institutions of nominal Christendom and will spread to all the nations, living and dead. C302
And the books – Of the divine revelation. C302
Were opened – Made plain as never before. C302
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| 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 – After the decree against the Papacy; after its judgment had begun; after its dominion was gone and it was powerless longer to crush the Truth and power of the holy people. C68; A260; HG93:6
Of the great words – "There was given unto him a mouth speaking great things." (Rev. 13:5) B305
Illustrated by the claim of infallibility, made in 1870. A259
Which the horn – Papacy. C64, C76, C95
I beheld even – That it got no power over the holy saints, but it did have another effect. C68
Till the beast – The remnants of governments in the old Roman empire, represented by its horns. C68; A259
Was slain – By the rising of the masses. A259
As a result of the misleading influence of Papacy's continued bombastic utterances, even after its dominion is gone. C68
Signifies the overturn of the civil and religious systems of our day. OV83:8
His body destroyed – Their organizations as governments. OV83:8
Although the nations shall never rise up again, yet the people who compose the nations shall come forth from the grave to be blessed by God's kings and priests. R2338:5
The burning flame – To general anarchy. C68
Utter destruction. R2338:5; A260
The fourth beast will lose dominion and life at once. A260
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| 12 and 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. |
Rest of the beasts – Babylon, Persia and Greece. A260
Their dominion – Universal dominion of earth. A260
Their lives were prolonged – Sir Isaac Newton observed: "All the four beasts are still alive, though the dominion of the first three be taken away." HG74:2
A season and time – Their lives as nations did not cease immediately. A260
Not so with the Roman empire, the fourth and last. A260
It will lose dominion and life at once, with all the others. A260
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| 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. |
The Son of man – Greek: the Son of the man (Adam). E150, E153
The seed of Adam, through Eve. E152
Does not imply that the life of this Son would come either through Adam, Abraham, David or Mary. E152
Messiah. E150; SM595:2; R3788:1
The Scriptures identify the Son of Man with the Lord of Glory and with the 'man Christ Jesus, and with the pre-human Logos. E150
The Jews understood the term as synonymous with Messiah. R943:6*, R3788:1
Not in the sense of being a man, but because he was the son of the man David with whom Jehovah made an everlasting covenant, perpetuating the throne to him and his seed forever. R944:1*
With the clouds – Clouds of trouble. R1796:6
The kingdoms become his when he comes "with the clouds" and not his coming as the "man of sorrows." HG79:6
Ancient of days – Jehovah. A261
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| 14 And 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. |
There was given him – "Whose right it is." (Ezek. 21:27) R2609:1; D12
At the end of the Times of the Gentiles. OV115:3; A270
The Christ, Head and Body, complete. A260
By Jehovah, the great King. A261, A308
Dominion – The present dominion of earth will be transferred to the great Prophet, Priest, King and Judge. R2609:1, R893:2
A kingdom – When he appears in power and great glory. R2361:1, R4715:1
The Kingdom of God for which we pray, "Thy Kingdom come." (Matt. 6:10) R1776:5; D429
Should serve him – At present they do not; they must be brought by chastisement to submission. R268:5, R592:3, R409:3
His dominion – He shall take dominion, associating with him his faithful followers. R799:1
The winepress of the wrath of God must first be trodden. R3359:6*
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| 15 'Pierced hath been my spirit I, Daniel in the midst of the sheath, and the visions of my head trouble me; |
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| 16 I 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: |
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| 17 'These great beasts, that [are] four, [are] four kings, they rise up from the earth; |
Out of the earth – At best they are but kingdoms of this world. A270
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| 18 and 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. |
The saints – The Little Flock, the Royal Priesthood. R1855:3, R2490:2
Under the new rule there will be new rulers. R268:5
Shall take – Forcibly. D518
Not by poor human efforts. R658:5, R414:5
To "smite in pieces as a potter's vessel," (Psa. 2:9) intimating that, in some sense, the Lord will take possession of them before they are completely overthrown. R5631:6
The kingdom – Dominion. R268:5, R409:3
The fifth universal empire, the Kingdom of God. R307:5, R1776:5, R2145:1
Under which "all the families of the earth shall be blessed." (Gen. 12:3; Gen. 28:14) R1195:4
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| 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; |
Know the truth – The nature and length of the dominion. C67
The fourth beast – The Roman empire. A257; C76; PD50/61
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| 20 and 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 other – The Papacy. C76, C95
Which came up – In 539 AD. C76
And before whom – In 476, 489 and 539 AD, respectively. C76
Three fell – The Western empire, the Heruli and the Ostrogoths. A258; C76
Mouth that spake – Papal system making boastful claims. R509:6
See also comments on Dan. 7:8.
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| 21 'I was seeing, and this horn is making war with the saints, and hath prevailed over them, |
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| 22 till 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. |
Judgment – The judgment against the "thrones" of the present time follows speedily upon the introduction of the Millennial reign. R893:2, R2609:1
The saints – The Little Flock, the Royal Priesthood. R1855:3, R2490:2
The kingdom – A strong government, in order to control the avarice and discontent and to cause the bounties of divine providence to minister blessings to every creature. R2145:1
"They shall reign with Christ a thousand years." (Rev. 20:6) R654:6
To bless all the families of the earth; the resurrected dead as well as those nations then living. R1195:4
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| 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. |
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| 24 And 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; |
Another shall rise – The beginning of this temporal power of the popes was gradual, from AD 539, but it was fully established in AD 800 when Charlemagne, king of France, was crowned by Pope Leo III. R1093:6
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| 25 and 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 – The Papacy, the Man of Sin. C64; R665:5
Speak great words – "There was given him a mouth speaking great things." (Rev. 13:5) B305
Against the most High – Every tide of the true Christ and every prophecy describing his future glorious Kingdom, have been applied by the popes to themselves and their Antichrist reign. R1093:6; B307
And shall wear out – By the Confessional, the Inquisition and by persecutions, such as were inflicted upon the Waldenses, Albigenses, Wycliffites and Huguenots. B328, B329, B334-341
To change times – By establishing the Church in power before the Lord's time. B310; R5911:3
And laws – The divine laws, by modifying them to suit his own schemes. B310; R5911:3
Into his hand – Like Elijah's three and a half years of hiding in the wilderness from Queen Jezebel, these correspond to the 1260 years of the true Church in the wilderness condition where she had fled from the antitypical Jezebel. R5857:4
Dividing of time – In the Bible a "time" is used in the sense of a year. A symbolic year as used in prophecy is reckoned on the basis of a lunar year--12 months of 30 days each, or 360 days--each day representing a year. B89; CR140:2
Three and a half times or years (360 x 3 ½ equals 1260 days; symbolic time, 1260 literal years), from 539 to 1799 AD, the period of Papacy's power. C64, C68; R5857:4
There is abundant proof that this is the way God intended us to calculate symbolic time. (See Rev. 11:2, 3, 9, 12; 12:6, 14) R389:3*
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| 26 'And the Judge is seated, and its dominion they cause to pass away, to cut off, and to destroy unto the end; |
Away his dominion – Papacy's dominion, and ecclesiastical domination in general. D37
To consume – Gradually from 1799 AD onward. D37; A259
This was the point and edge of all the preaching of the Reformation. R307:3
Unto the end – Showing that the judgment was to sit on that power and take away its dominion before the end. HG21:1
Final complete destruction. C50, C95; D37
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| 27 and 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. |
Kingdom – This Messianic Kingdom is to be established to bring mankind back into harmony with the divine arrangement. R5181:2
The golden age of prophecy. R2361:1
For which our Redeemer taught us to watch and pray. R1776:5, R1855:2
The fifth universal empire. R307:5
It is the Kingdom of God--the Kingdom of Allah! CR113:3
It is in that Kingdom only that the saints have their citizenship; it alone they recognize. R318:6
The Church with her Lord is to constitute that Kingdom, and it cannot be established until the gathering of the elect from the world has been accomplished. CR21:5
Dominion – This dominion Jehovah will wrest by force from the "prince of this world," Satan, and will give it to his Son, whose Bride will share her Bridegroom's Kingdom. R5574:1
But they will not need the dominion, having attained the divine nature. Therefore the Kingdom of earth will be eternally the portion of perfected mankind. CR426:5
Under the whole heaven – Under a heavenly or spiritual ruler. SM502:1
Worldwide. R5181:2
Upon the completion of the election of the saints. R4812:2
Full liberty to do right will be firmly and forever established by earth's new King. R683:6
Shall be given – Some of the kingdoms represented in the Gentile image will be remaining at that time. R5631:5
Transfer will be accomplished in a great time of trouble which is to end the present world. R5574:1
Is Christ to have dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all nations should serve him? The same is given to the saints. R30:6*
When he gives the saints, with Christ their Lord, the heathen for an inheritance. (Psa. 2:8) R414:5, R658:5
People of the saints – The Kingdom class will consist only of our Lord and his "elect" of this Gospel age. D618; A261
God's faithful ones who suffer now, subject to the powers that be. R5574:1, R507:2
"The upright (saints) shall have dominion over them in the morning." (Psa. 49:14, 15) R2600:2
Who are to "dash them (beastly kingdoms) in pieces like a potter's vessel." (Psa. 2:8, 9) R5631:5
"To execute upon them the judgment written; this honor have all his saints." (Psa. 149:9) A261
Not by going into earthly politics. R2145:1
Whose kingdom – The first step in the setting up of this Kingdom was the raising of the sleeping saints of the Gospel age. R5631:6
Everlasting – The Kingdom of earth will be eternally the portion of perfected mankind. CR426:5
Because being of God's appointment; not by poor human efforts. R318:6, R414:5, R658:5
And all dominions – Christ's Kingdom is ultimately to be something more than a work of grace in the hearts of believers. A282
Shall serve and obey – Become subject to Christ. D12
First they must be brought to submission by chastisement. R592:3
His reign will be "the desire of all nations." (Hag. 2:7) R5204:4
As New Creatures prove their love for the Lord by suffering with him now; so the "earthly" must show their love and obedience to the same Lord when he is reigning with his saints. R1149:5*
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| 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. |
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