THE
RAM, GOAT, AND LITTLE HORN
(Daniel
8)
…The Jews have been
the object of __satanic__ inspired hatred through the centuries. We are
most familiar with Hitler and his attempt at the “final solution,” which was to
exterminate all Jews. Satan’s attempt to destroy the Jew before __Christ__
was his attempt to prevent “the seed of the woman” from coming. After the Lord
came, Satan’s efforts to eliminate the Jew have been in attempt to prevent the
Davidic Covenant from being fulfilled.
…Daniel
8, written in
__Hebrew__,
is the second vision given to Daniel. This is given primarily to the Jew so
that they might know what God had in the works for them as a people. Just as we
need to know that God is always on His throne, so they would need to know this,
as there would be much
__suffering__
ahead.
…The
Lord
__cares__
for His own. In this vision He warns Israel about the coming persecution, and
even tells of its duration.
TWO
PARTS OF DANIEL’S VISION UNFOLDING FOR US GOD’S FUTURE PLANS FOR ISRAEL.
…God
__warns__
His people about the coming terrible time of suffering.
I.
Daniel Is Given A Vision From The Lord About The Future Of
Israel.
(vv1-14)
-
The Ram
and the Goat are seen by Daniel. (vv1-8) The year is 551 BC, and Daniel sees
himself in Susa.
1.
The Ram.
(vv3-4) He has __two__
horns and charges west, north, and south.
…None
could stand against him. He did as he pleased.
2.
The Goat.
(vv5-8) This goat comes from the west and has a large horn between his eyes,
…He was
very
__fast__,
and overcame all his enemies.
…This
goat attacked the Ram furiously, and defeated it by shattering its two horns.
...The
goat became very great, yet, at the height of its power the large horn broke off
and 4 other horns grew in its place. (v8)
-
The
Little Horn is revealed to Daniel in his vision. (vv9-14)
1.
This one comes
out from __one__
of the 4 horns above. He starts small, but grows in power to the south and the
east. He comes into the “beautiful land.” This is
__Israel__.
(v9)
2.
This little
horn reeks havoc in Israel, making himself as great as the
__Lord__.
(v11)
…he will
pollute the
__temple__
and end the daily sacrifices.
…This
will last for
__2300__
days… (v14)
II.
Daniel Is Given The Interpretation of His Vision.(vv15-27)
-
God
tells the angel named Gabriel to tell Daniel the meaning. Gabriel is the
__first__
angel whose name is given in Scripture. The other two are Michael and
__Satan__.
Gabriel reappears years later…
-
The
vision pertains to
__future__
events…some hundreds of years, and some more. (v17)
-
The Ram
is Media-Persia. (20) Of the four empires, the Persians were the
__kindest__
to the Jew.
-
The goat
is __Greece__.
(21) The large horn is Alexander the Great. He defeats Persia in 331. The
four horns are the kings arising from Alexander’s empire after he suddenly died
at 32 years of age.
-
The little horn is from this
__Greek__
era, arising from one of the original 4 kings…Syria.
-
We know
from history this one is Antiochus Epiphanes, the 8th king of Syria.
(175-164BC)
-
He was
empowered by Satan to
__destroy__
the Jews. (v24) He killed the legitimate high priest, Onias, and put in
place a
__false__
line of priests. 171 BC
-
He had
erected an idol of
__Zeus__
in the temple area, and on December 25, 167 BC, he desecrated the alter by
having a
__pig__
sacrificed on it and its blood sprinkled around the altar.
-
He
killed many of the Jews. If you had a
__copy__
of the Jewish Scriptures you would die. All had to eat pork or die.
Circumcision was outlawed. The Sabbath was forbidden and changed.
-
He
really was
__opposing__
the Lord Jesus. (verse 25) “the Prince of princes”
-
Yet, he
would die, not by man, but God would do it. (164 BC) (25 b) On December 25,
164 BC, Judas Maccabeus rededicated the temple…this is the
__origin__
of the feast of Hanukkah.
-
Antiochus is a foreshadowing of
__another__
who would come at the very end and cause the Jews much suffering. As terrible
as Antiochus was, Antichrist will be
__worse__
in his persecution of the Jews.
LESSONS FOR OUR LIVES:
1. God sets all the
boundaries. If you are not saved you're lost and outside the boundary of
the redeemed. Confess your sins and receive Christ as your Savior.
2. God's Word is
true. You can trust it.
3. Prophecy teaches
us that the God of the Bible is the true God.
4. God will one day
soon regather the Jews.
5. Don't be
surprised when God's people are hated by the world.
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