GOD TELLS THE FUTURE…Daniel 11
…Only God can tell the future. There are __many__ who claim to be able
to foretell, however all of them are merely guesses as to what will take place
tomorrow. If you guess enough and are vague in your predictions you may be
right a few times. In the end, it is merely a __guessing__ game. God
did not make man with the ability to __see__ tomorrow.
…God on the other hand is omniscient, knowing all things because He has a __plan__
that includes everything. Hear what the Lord said, “I am God, and there is no
other. I am God, and there is none like me. I make __known__ the end
from the beginning, from ancient times, what is __still__ to come. I
say: my purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please. What I have
said, that will I bring about, what I have planned, that will I do.”
(Isaiah 46:9-11)
…Daniel 11 is a most unusual passage of Scripture. No where else in all the
Bible is there a passage with so many numerous predictions. One man counted __130__
prophetic predictions in this one chapter. It reminds us that only the Lord
could write such a thing. God knows the future and here He tells us about it.
TWO PARTS OF A
PROPHECY MAGNIFYING THE GREATNESS OF OUR GOD WHO KNOWS ALL THINGS…EVEN
THE
__SMALLEST__
DETAILS!!!!
I. THE FIRST PORTION OF THIS PROPHECY HAS ALREADY BEEN
__FULFILLED__.
(VV2-35) This covers the time from Daniel to the Maccabees. (535-164BC)
A.
The history of the Persians. (v2) Four kings of the Persian nation are
mentioned, with the 4th being the greatest. The 4th is Xerxes, the
king whom Queen
__Esther__
married.
B.
The history of the
__Greeks__
is given. (vv3-35)
1.
Alexander the Great is mentioned. (v3) When he died, his wives and children
were killed and his four generals divided up his empire. (v4)
2.
Only the kingdoms of the north(Syria) and the south(Egypt) are mentioned, for
they battled time and again in the land of Israel. What
__detail__
here…for ex.:
…in vv 6-9, God tells about a daughter of the King of the South who makes an
alliance with the King of the North, but is unable to retain her place…”
…This woman is __Bernice__. She was the daughter of Ptolemy II and she
married Antiochus Theos of Syria. To do so, Antiochus had to divorce his wife,
Laodice. She has Bernice __poisoned__, and her husband killed and put
her son on the throne. Bernice’s brother, Ptolemy III avenges her, killing
Laodice…
3.
The last Greek king and general mentioned is the infamous Antiochus IV Epiphines.
More is said of him than all the other Greeks combined. (vv21-35)
…he was exceedingly __wicked__ and contemptible. He is mentioned in
Daniel 8.
…because the Romans stopped him from invading Egypt, he vented his anger on the
__Jews__, killing many, stopped the temple sacrifices, put an idol of
Zeus on the Jewish altar and sacrificed a __pig__ on it. This is the
“abomination of desolation.” He attempted to destroy Judaism and replace it
with the Greek culture and worship. (166BC) (v31ff) The Maccabees (v32)
resisted him.
…These events all came about just as God said. Therefore:
-
Since
the predictions of this and other biblical books are make in the name of the
Bible’s God, then this
__God__
and not another is the one true God!
-
The
fulfillment of prophecies shows that the
__Bible__
in which they are written is God’s Book.
-
The
fulfillment of prophecy shows that the God who disclosed these events and then
brought them to pass is also
__able__
to keep and
__will__
keep His promises to His people. (us)
II. THE SECOND PORTION OF THIS PROPHECY WILL BE FULFILLED BY THE
ANTICHRIST IN THE
__LAST__
DAYS OF LIFE AS WE KNOW IT. (VV36-49)
A.
This king, v36, is not Antiochus, nor is the Roman Empire, for the things
mentioned have
__never__
be fulfilled. This is
__Antichrist__,
who will attempt to destroy all the Jews in the last 7 years of history. (v40)
This is the 70th week. This is the Tribulation Period. (Matthew 24)
B.
These verses are a prophecy of the __career__ of Antichrist and of the __final__
battle of Armageddon. (Ez 38/ Rev 16, 19) Taken together, they refer to a
great world war immediately prior to the Lord’s return. (Rev 19) Antichrist
will demand that the whole world __worship__ him as the Christ. He is in
Jerusalem and empowered by Satan himself.
LESSONS FOR OUR LIVES:
1. Stand in
total amazement of God.
2. Take
heart, God has a plan. He is right on schedule just as He said it would
come about.
3. If you
don't know Christ the Lord as your savior, realize you are a sinner and lost and
come to understand who Christ is believe upon Him and receive Him as your
Savior.
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