Darius the Mede, Alexander the Great and Rome. Book of Daniel.

 

Belshazzar was the last king of the Babylonian Empire.  Daniel had the dream about the beasts, and the following vision, while serving in Belshazzar’s palace.  In this next vision, we see the same timeline given except this time Babylon is not mentioned.  In a matter of a few years Babylon was going to be conquered by Darius the Mede, one of the first rulers of the Medo-Persian Empire, so Babylon was already moving out of the picture.

Okay, on to the third vision. 

 …behold, a ram which had two horns…Now the two horns were long, but one was longer than the other, with the longer one coming up last.  I saw the ram butting westward, northward, and southward, and no other beasts could stand before him nor was there anyone to rescue from his power, but he did as he pleased and magnified himself.  While I was observing, behold, a male goat was coming from the west over the surface of the whole earth without touching the ground; and the goat had a conspicuous horn between his eyes.  He came up to the ram that had two horns…and rushed at him in his mighty wrath…and he struck the ram and shattered his two horns…So he hurled him to the ground and trampled on him…Then the male goat magnified himself exceedingly.  But as soon as he was mighty, the large horn was broken; and in its place there came up four conspicuous horns toward the four winds of heaven.   Daniel 8: 3-8

ANIMAL		KINGDOM		ATTRIBUTES
Ram		Persia		Two Horns = Media and Persia
				One Horn Longer = Persia stronger than Media
				Butting in Three Directions = three areas of conquest
							Medo-Persia
							Babylonian Empire
							New Territory
Goat		Greece		Not touching ground = speed
				Conspicuous Horn = Alexander the Great
				Four New Horns = empire divided among the generals

Here we read that Daniel saw a ram with two horns, one of which was longer than the other (Persia stronger than the Medes).  And this ram was butting in three directions which corresponds to the three ribs the bear had in its mouth in the previous dream (the three geographical areas of the ancient world to come under its control).  Then Daniel saw a male goat with a single horn coming from the west without touching the ground.  This is Alexander the Great (horn) who, in only three years, conquered the Persian Empire (so fast he was not touching the ground).  Then Daniel says he saw that as soon as the horn was mighty, it was broken and replaced by four other horns.  This would be the division of Alexander’s empire amongst his generals after his death.  A man standing next to Daniel in the vision explained the vision, actually naming Media, Persia and Greece, so we know without a doubt what the ram and goat part of the vision means.

 However, Greece is followed by a rather small horn rising up and becoming mighty and powerful, destroying holy people, opposing God and calling himself equal to God (Dan. 8:9-12, 23-25).  Obviously, we know this must be Rome because all the other timelines say so.  But it seems more like the mouthy, blasphemous horn we saw in Chapter 7’s dream than it does the Roman Empire.  Could it be a combination of the two?  Does this mean Rome unites with or supports this horn?  Again, we will address this in later chapters.

The dreams and visions we have just looked at in the Book of Daniel were written down in the sixth century BCE.  History has unfolded just as Daniel was shown, without one deviation from the prophecies.  If God knew ahead of time that a mishmash of city-states would unite under one leader and grow to be the Greek Empire, and if God knew that a backwater town in Italy would one day rule the world with a fist of iron, and if God knew that that backwater town in Italy would be the last World Empire ever to exist, then I have to believe that the final parts of those dreams and visions will come true also.  The Rock is coming, and Jesus will establish his everlasting kingdom on the earth.

 Behold, the former things have come to pass, now I declare new things; Before they spring forth, I proclaim them to you.  Is. 42: 9

Addendum

 Prophecy uses symbolic language to refer to literal things and people.  Here is a list of what we covered in this chapter.  Also, see Appendix 2 for a more detailed explanation of these symbols and their meanings.

SYMBOL			MEANING
Precious Metals			Kingdoms, Nations, Empires
Wind			Activity, Commotion, Strife
Seas, Water			Groups, Masses of People
Animals, Beasts			Kingdoms, Nations, Empires
Horns			King, Political Power, Individual

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alexander the Great and the Jews.

Photo by Gunnar Bach Pedersen

I have read some of the writings of Josephus Flavius. He lived from AD 37 – 100 AD. Some scholars have not accepted his account of history, but many do. I believe God moved upon him to write about God, Jesus, the Scriptures and the history of the Jews. 

He wrote in both Aramaic and Greek and was writing for the Gentiles who had no knowledge of the Scriptures and Jewish history.

In Part 1, The Antiquities of the Jews, I came upon a chapter that dealt with Alexander the Great and his treatment of the Jews. It was fascinating, and I think many of you would like to know how God spared his people from being killed by Alexander. I will now quote from the book only:

“Now Alexander, when he had taken Gaza, made haste to go up to Jerusalem: and Jaddua the high priest, when he heard that, was in an agony, and under terror, as not knowing how he should meet the Macedonians, since the king was displeased at his foregoing disobedience.

He therefore ordained that the people should make supplications, and should join with him in offering sacrifices to God, whom he besought to protect that nation, and to deliver them from the perils that were coming upon them. Whereupon God warned him in a dream, which came upon him after he had offered sacrifice, that he should take courage and adorn the city, and open the gates; that the rest appear in white garments, but that he and the priests should meet the king in the habits (clothing) proper to their order, without the dread of any ill consequences, which the providence of God would prevent.

Upon this, when he rose from his sleep, he greatly rejoiced and declared to all the warning he had received from God according to which dream he acted entirely, and so waited for the coming of the king.

And when he heard Alexander was not far from the city, he went out in procession, with the priests and the multitude of the citizens. The procession was venerable, and the manner of it different from that of the other nations…The Phonecians and the Chaldeans that followed Alexander thought they would have liberty to plunder the city, and torment the high priest to death, which is the reverse of what happened.

Alexander, when he saw the multitude at a distance, in white garments, while the priests stood clothed with fine linen, and the high priest in purple and scarlet clothing, with his mitre on his head having the golden plate on which the name of God was engraved, he approached them by himself and adored that name, and first saluted the high priest. The Jews also did all together, with one voice, salute Alexander, and encompass him about; whereupon the kings of Syria and the rest were surprised at what Alexander had done, and supposed him disordered in his mind.

However, Parmenlo alone went up to him and asked how it came to pass that when all others adored him, he should adore the high priest of the Jews? He replied, “I did not adore him, but that God who hath honored him with that high priesthood. For I saw this very person in a dream, in this very clothing, when I was at Dios, in Macedonia, when I was considering with myself how I might obtain the dominion of Asia.

He exhorted me to make no delay, but boldly pass over the sea thither, for he would conduct my army, and would give me the dominion over the Persians. So, having seen no other in that clothing and now seeing this person in it, and remembering that vision and the exhortation which I had in my dream, I believe that I bring this army under the divine conduct, and shall therewith conquer Darius, and destroy the power of the Persians, and that all things will succeed according to what is in my own mind.

And when he had said this to Parmenlo, and had given the priest his right hand, the priests ran along beside him as he came into the city. He went into the temple and made a sacrifice to God, according to the hight priest’s directions and magnificently treated both the high priest and the priests. And when the book of Daniel was showed him, wherein Daniel declared that one of the Greeks should destroy the empire of the Persians, he supposed that himself was the person intended. Then he was glad and dismissed the multitude…”

"I love the LORD, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. Psalm 116:1

"It is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings; He gives wisdom to wise men And knowledge to men of understanding." Daniel 2:21