Daniel 7:7,8 - It crushed and devoured its victims

7:7

We now get the fourth beast, and this beast is even more terrifying than the rest. It had iron teeth that crushes its victims. One of the lessons we are meant to learn from these visions, and the similar ones in Revelation, is that there will be seemingly terrible powers that have authority in the world, but we are not to fear them. For Christ is Lord, not any of the beasts. It is Christ who has all power and authority, not any of the beasts. Sometimes we need to look at what we consider to be our enemy and declare to it “you do not have all power and authority, and the one who does have all power and authority loves me”. This beast was worse than the rest, and its influence was even greater, for it has ten horns, signifying the apparent completeness of its domain.

7:8

But we are not finished yet, for a little horn came forth, and this horn displaced three of the other horns. This horn also had “eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth that spoke boastfully”. This Indicates that this power would be exercised through a man. If we look at history we see many times when terrible powers arise. There can be terrible social forces that arise as well. There is a fairy tale version of Christianity that essentially wishes that all the bad things in the world would just go away. This can affect all types of Christians, including social gospel types, and charismatic types. The truth presented in the Bible is far different, and is utterly realistic. It is not afraid to face up to the reality of what the world is like.

Revelation 13:4,5 - Who is like the beast?

13:4

So why did the people worship the dragon? Now note that they are not directly worshipping the dragon, but the beast. However, it is the dragon who has given the beast power and authority. So while the world is not aware of it, it is the dragon that they are worshipping. They thought the beast was unique and worthy of worship, and that no one could wage war against him. We see a world that is utterly deceived. Now in John’s day people would think that the Roman Empire was all powerful and no one could challenge it. Today there can be various powers that arise, or ideas that arise, that seem unchallengeable. We should not be fooled.

13:5

Earlier we read that the two witnesses would prophesy for 42 months, here the beast exercises his authority for the same period. The two periods could be coincident or sequential. The first thing to note is that his period of authority is limited. Secondly, it is given to him. He does not have power of his own right. Now in 13:4 we read that it was the dragon who gave the beast authority, it is also true that all this is happening under God’s sovereignty.

Daniel 7:4-6 - The first was like a lion

7:4,5

The first beast was a combination of a lion and an eagle. These signify majesty and power. Jeremiah used these in describing Nebuchadnezzar (Jer 49:19-22). The beast then had its wings plucked off, and it stood up like a man, and was given the mind of a man. 

The second beast was like a bear. The second beast is much coarser than the first one. The first one had majesty and some sophistication. The second one is just violent, as demonstrated by the three ribs in its mouth. “Get up and eat your fill of flesh!”. It was not a mistake that it was so violent and devouring, this was the way it was meant to be.

7:6

The third beast looked like a leopard. It had four wings on its back. It also had four heads and was given authority to rule. So this was given authority, it was dependent upon someone else for its power. The four heads imply the global sphere of its influence. So far we have three different types of kingdoms,  Daniel had lived through several different kings, he had seen different forms of kingdoms.

Revelation 13:1b-3 - The fatal wound had been healed

13:1b,2

We then get a description of the beast, and this is quite clearly figurative. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns upon the horns, with each one having a blasphemous name. Trying to picture this beast is quite difficult! However, the primary point is the range of its power, and the nature of its power. The power is widespread and far reaching.  And the power is blasphemous, completely opposed to God.  The beast had aspects of a leopard, a bear and a lion. It is worthwhile looking back at Daniel 7 where he saw four great beasts, three of which were like a lion, a bear and a leopard. In Daniel these were separate beasts, here in Revelation they are all encompassed in one great beast. The beast was given power and authority by the dragon. Paul’s words in Ephesians 6 about our battle bening not against flesh and blood, but principalities and powers are apposite here. The beast would take the form of human power, but the source of the power is the devil.

13:3

We will find in this chapter that the beast seeks to counterfeit Christ. There is a parallel here with Rev 5:6 where it talks the “I saw a lamb, looking as if it had been slain”, here we have the beast who “seem to have had a fatal wound”. However, the wound had been healed, and the whole world was will ed with wonder and followed the beast. This gives us another severe warning from the Bible that following the world is a dangerous and foolish thing to do.

Daniel 7:1-3 - Four great beasts

7:1

The book now takes a significant turn. Instead of narrative, we have a series of four apocalyptic visions. There are connections with the visions in Revelation, but also significant differences as well. The first year of Belshazzar’s reign was 551/2 BC, so Daniel had been in captivity for some fifty years. We are still in Aramaic at this point, indicating continuity with the earlier part of the book. The “and” in “Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind ...” is an example of the “and” in 6:28 “the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus”. I.e indicating two ways of saying the same thing, rather than two separate things. Daniel “wrote down the substance of his dream”, indicating that there may have been other parts to it that he does not relate to us.

7:2,3

There are connections between this vision and the dream of Nebuchadnezzar in chapter 2. The rest of the book is now almost entirely related by Daniel, giving the four visions that he received. Four is a number that crops up a lot in prophecy and apocalyptic stuff. It signifies completeness. So the vision that Daniel sees is giving a complete overview of history. Not in the sense that it gives every detail, but that it pulls out the major themes. The four winds of heaven churned up the sea, and four great beasts (meant to signify terrifying beasts) came out of the sea. As in Revelation we have the message that although terrible things happen, specifically terrible regimes, it is ultimately God who brings them about. God has not lost control, He is in control.

Revelation 13:1 - A beast coming out of the sea

13:1

This is a chapter that lends itself to endless speculation, not much of it fruitful. We do well to remember that the primary purpose of Revelation is first to glorify the Name of Jesus, and secondly to provide support for persecuted Christians, to enable us to live as faithful servants of Christ in a hostile world.

So the chapter starts with the dragon standing on the shore of the sea, and a beast coming out of the sea. Now some of the speculations focus on identifying the beast as Nero, so let’s take a brief look at Nero (most of this information, and later on 666, comes from the Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible). 

Nero was the first emperor to declare official state persecution on Christians. This included burning Christians alive to provide light in the imperial gardens. More widespread persecution then followed.

Nero died in June 68 AD, this was followed by months of civil war. There was a belief that Nero was still alive, and there were various imposters claiming to be Nero. These posed something of a threat to the Roman empire.

Some early Christians expected that Nero would return, and referred to him as the “great beast”. Nero was seen as a type of the beast.

So Nero, and the Roman Empire, embody some characteristics of the beast and the reign of evil, as have many subsequent regimes, but to say that they embody the full realisation of evil described in Revelation is nonsense. Moses and David were types of Christ, but they were quite clearly not Christ.

Daniel 6:23-28 - He is the living God

6:23,24

The king was delighted and gave orders to have Daniel set free. There was not even a scratch on Daniel. Then Daniel’s accusers, along with their wives and children, were thrown into the lion’s den in Daniel’s place, and they were all eaten up! We might think it unfair that the wives and children suffered too. There are two things to say, and the second is the most important. Firstly, these were cruel times, as much of history is. There is a lot of talk about the evils of colonisation. Many wrong things were done, but a lot of the time it is implied that the existing cultures were all very nice. In the vast majority of cases they were not! All human civilisations commit evil deeds. The second thing is that what we do affects others. No man is an island! How I live my life has an impact on others. So we should be careful about how we live our lives.

6:25-28

King Darius’s response spread to all the nations in the empire.  The actual words imply it was to “all the nations and people of every language in all the earth”. Obviously his own sphere of influence did not quite spread that far! Anyway, he instructed all the people to fear and revere the God of Daniel. He then made a declaration about God. The statement is a far stronger and more theologically accurate statement than that made by too many church leaders today! It closes with “reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus”. Those who argue that Darius and Cyrus are one and the same say that the word “and” can be translated as “that is”.

Revelation 12:14-17 - The earth helped the woman

12:14

The church exists in difficult times, but is provided with help from heaven. (Ps 121:1,2). She would exist in the wilderness for “time, times and half a time”. I.e for 42 months, which might have reference to the stages Israel spent in the wilderness (Num 33:5ff). “Out of the snakes reach”. We are protected from the devil. Now as the whole of Revelation, not to mention the rest of the New Testament, this does not mean freedom from suffering.

12:15,16

The snake spewed water out of his mouth, the aim being to overtake and sweep away the church. However, the “earth helped” by “opening its mouth”, and so the water was swallowed up. The earth is the Lord’s, so we have spiritual forces on our side, and the Lord will use nature to protect us as well. We are in a serious battle, but it is one we can win because of the help of the Lord.

12:17

Having failed in this, the dragon was enraged and went off to wage war against the rest of the church. Remember the dragon does not have a winning record! So who is he waging war against? “Those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus”. So we see that all this is written with the intention of encouraging and equipping the saints to persevere in the battle, and to win the battle.

Daniel 6:15-22 - Threw him into the lion's den

6:15,16

The plotters then reminded Darius again of his decree. Darius could find no way to get out of his decree, and so Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den. The king wished him well, saying “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you”. Now these could be seen as mere empty words, or said rather fatalistically. There is also a possibility that having seen Daniel’s good character, the king was rather hoping that God might rescue Daniel. While considering it something of an outside possibility, he knew it was a possibility.

6:17,18

So a stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den, and was sealed by the king’s own signet ring. We can see some similarities with the tomb of Jesus having a stone rolled over it. The king returned home, but did not sleep or rest because he was concerned for Daniel, and maybe also felt guilt at his own actions. As stated, there are similarities between this situation and that of Pilate and Jesus, though Darius does seem to be of better character, and to have genuine concern for Daniel.

6:19-22

The king got up first thing in the morning and rushed to the lion’s den, hoping against hope that Daniel was still alive. He obviously had some faith that God might have rescued Daniel. So he called out to Daniel, and Daniel did reply! God had rescued Daniel. God sent an angel to shut the mouths of the lions. Daniel had acted faithfully before God, and he had also honoured the king. Daniel is an example of how to live a life that is faithful to Christ, and respects human authority in the proper way. We should also note that this did not mean a life free from danger!

Revelation 12:12,13 - Therefore, rejoice you heavens

12:12

So the heavens are to rejoice, also “you who dwell in them”. Now does this include us? We are torn, because we definitely do live down here on earth, and so suffer the consequences of Satan being down here, “filled with fury”. But we are also seated with Christ in heavenly places (Eph 2:6), and the heavenly places are a place of spiritual conflict. But in the place of spiritual conflict we have won, we share in Christ’s victory. So we have a classic case of “now but not yet”. We need to understand this if we are to fight the battle aright down here.

12:13

What does the dragon do now? He cannot touch “the male child”, because Christ has ascended to heaven. Instead he vents his fury against the church, he “pursued the woman”. And God’s plans will be fulfilled through the Spirit filled church. The whole of Revelation teaches a consistent message. It is not one of make-believe, not of saying we will not suffer trouble. Yet victory is assured, and we are involved in that victory. As Jesus says in John 16:33, “in this world you will have trouble, but take heart, for I have overcome the world”.

Daniel 6:11-14 - The decree stands

6:11-13

The conspirators found Daniel praying to God for help. This gave them the ammunition that they needed, so they went to the king, reminding him of the decree he had issued, especially the bit about throwing people into the lion’s den.  The king, of course, eagerly agreed that the decree stands, for it was his decree! And nothing could be done to repeal it. At this point they then tell the king that Daniel had broken the decree. Indeed, they claimed more than this. They said “he pays not attention to you”, implying that Daniel had a habit of not paying any attention to the king.

6:14

The king was greatly distressed. When we make decisions based on pride we will usually regret it, for these decisions will often have consequences that we do not foresee. Instead we must always trust in God and seek to follow His ways. This approach is a lot safer, and often the unforeseen consequences will be very good. The king “made every effort to rescue Daniel”, though we are given no details on what these efforts were. In some ways the king is a bit like Pilate who also made efforts to have Jesus released, recognising the true motives of the accusers. 

Revelation 12:10,11 - Now have come salvation and power

12:10

“Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Messiah”. We should remember the context within this verse is given. There has been a war in heaven, Satan lost. Satan has been cast down to the earth and he is leading the whole earth astray. We are then going to read about him accusing the brethren. We feel the battle, but the cry from heaven is that the kingdom of God has come. The authority of the Messiah has come. Satan is described as the accuser of the brethren, he has been hurled down. So again we have the picture of a serious battle, one that is tough for believers, but the enemy is a defeated enemy.

12:11

“They triumphed over him”. Who triumphed over the dragon? We do. How? By the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony. We have been cleansed by the blood of the lamb, healed by it. But things do not tend there, we are to proclaim the gospel. Then we get the end of the verse “they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death”. This is no superficial victory, it is not a “name it and claim it” silliness. It is a deadly serious battle, but one that we win. We need to hold on to both aspects. The serious and costly nature of the battle, and the assuredness of ultimate victory.

Daniel 6:6-10 - Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed

6:6-9

The jealous ones played on the king’s pride to devise their plan. So when they approached the king they said “May King Darius live forever!”, buttering him up!  Their plan was that for thirty days no one should pray to “any god or human being”, and if someone did then they were to be thrown into the lion’s den. Emperors have a habit of being treated like gods, pride is a great danger for anyone with power. It was quite common for rulers to have “pet” lions. They were very handy for using to get rid of miscreants. The plotters then urged the king to put the edict in writing so it could not be changed. King Darius went along with their wishes.

6:10

Daniel learnt of the decree. He responded very calmly, and continued with his daily practice of praying to God three times a day. He prayed and thanked God just as he had always done. He did not intend to change his ways because of a mere edict of the king. Worshipping God came before the laws of men. Daniel also did this in public, and at a window that faced Jerusalem. This was a literal interpretation of 1 Ki 8:41-43 speaking or praying towards the temple. Now the temple was in ruins so this was an act of faith on Daniel’s part, that he believed God would one day restore the temple. Now some might criticise Daniel for being overly literalistic, or asking why he didn’t pray in private instead of so visibly. When anyone takes a stand for God in the face of opposition one can always find a reason to criticise. We are better off supporting those who out of faith stand up for Christ.

Revelation 12:7-9 - The dragon was not strong enough

12:7

Daniel 10:13 tells of the angel Michael being “detained by the prince of Persia”. In Dan 12:1 it says “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people – everyone whose name is found written in the book – will be delivered.” So we are reminded here that what is happening is part of a great spiritual battle (Eph 6:12 again), and Dan 12:1 is a reminder that there will be a time of great distress, but also of angelic protection.

12:8,9

The dragon was not strong enough. The previous verse has stressed that this battle was real. We are in a real battle, but the dragon was not strong enough. We need to remember that. So the dragon lost his place in heaven. So Satan was hurled down to earth, along with his angels. He is the one who leads the whole world astray. We can see the world being led astray, we see it in our own societies. We need to remember that this enemy is a defeated enemy. He is not strong enough, as James 4:7 says “resist the devil and he will flee”. And again in 1 John 4:4 “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”.

Daniel 6:1-5 - They could find no corruption in him

6:1,2

This is undoubtedly the most famous incident in the book, Daniel in the lion’s den. By this time Daniel has seen much, experienced much, and is getting on in years. There is considerable debate over exactly who Darius was, with some identifying him with Cyrus. I am not going to delve into this as it doesn’t really interest me. The kingdom was large and needed proper governance, so Darius appointed 120 satraps to rule. These had three chief ministers over them, one of whom was Daniel. So Daniel was in a position of considerable influence, and this in an ungodly kingdom. Sometimes God will promote Christians into high positions in the world.

6:3-5

As well as having a high position, Daniel was very good at it. He fully deserved his position. In fact, Daniel was so good at his job that Darius set him over the whole kingdom. Now this aroused jealousy among the other leaders, so they tried to find a way to trap Daniel and find grounds for his dismissal (or worse). However, Daniel was a man of integrity, and they could find no corruption in him. We should all take Daniel as an example. This left them with one last option. They would find something in Daniel’s devotion to God to use an excuse to get rid of him. We do see the same thing happening today (though without the lions).

Revelation 12:5,6 - Will rule all the nations with an iron sceptre

12:5

“Who will rule all the nations  with an iron sceptre” comes from Psalm 2:9, and is clearly a reference to Jesus. The male child was snatched up to God. Now we do need to remember that this is a vision, so we are not going to get a nice neat historical record! Jesus ascended to heaven, and to the throne of God. We can think of “gentle Jesus meek and mild”, and the gentleness of Jesus is clearly important. But He is also the one who will rule with an iron sceptre. We need a complete view of Jesus. So how can it be talking of Jesus coming out of the church (or, rather true Israel)? Well Jesus came out of Israel, He was descended from David, and was born of Mary.

12:6

So Jesus is on the throne, but what about the church? The woman fled to the wilderness, a place prepared for her by God. The time of 1260 days matches the time that the two witnesses were operating. The church is protected during the time of her witness. When Israel came out of Egypt she was led through the wilderness for forty years, and God provided for her during that period.

Daniel 5:25-30 - You have been found wanting

5:25-28

We now get the inscription, “Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin”. “Mene” can mean numbered or mina (a unit of money). “Tekel” can mean weighed or shekel. “Peres” can mean divided or Persia or a half mina or a half shekel.  Daniel interprets the significance of each of these. Mene means that God has numbered Belshazzar’s days. Tekel means he has been weighed in the scales and found wanting. Peres means his kingdom will be divided and given to the Medes and Persians. 

5:29,30

Despite the highly unfavourable interpretation Daniel was given the promised rewards, so he was clothed in purple and a gold chain put around his neck. He was also declared to be the third highest ruler in the land. Whether any of this was worth anything is debatable, for that very night Belshazzar was slain, and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom. However, Dan 6:1,2 does imply that this was actually useful for Daniel. There is much debate about who Darius was, for there is virtually no other historical information on him. We should bare in mind that with ancient history there is often very little information, and to automatically discount the Biblical narrative on the grounds that there is no corroborating data is not justified.

Revelation 12:3,4 - An enormous red dragon

12:3

So we have had the sign of the church and its important purpose. Now we get another sign, which also appeared in heaven. This time there is an “enormous red dragon”. This is the enemy of the church. This dragon has “seven heads, ten horns and seven crowns”. This represents the enemy having much strength and power. So we need to have the complete picture. We need to realise the great importance and purpose of the church, we also need to realise the great opposition there is. This opposition originates from spiritual forces (Eph 6:12), and takes many forces. There is myth that exists in the church that if we are just nice enough, and clear enough in our presentation of the gospel, then everyone will want to join us. Such a view is not Biblical.

12:4

The dragon caused much trouble. This is what the third of the stars represents. The “dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth”. Back in Matthew we see that there was an attempt to kill Jesus by Herod. With the church we can expect great opposition at the point of birth. The reason Satan opposes the church is because he knows that we are central to God’s purposes.

Daniel 5:18-24 You did not honour God

5:18-21

Daniel is very direct in what he says to the king. In the previous examples, especially the one in chapter 4, Daniel had been equally direct. Daniel begins by reminding Belshazzar of his father.  Nebuchadnezzar had had great power, but he became proud and arrogant, and so he lost his throne. He was driven away to live like a wild animal. This continued until the king came to his senses and acknowledged God.

5:22-24

Belshazzar, however, was not like his father. He had not humbled himself  “although you knew all this”. The things that Daniel had outlined in 5:18-21 were well known to Belshazzar, but he learnt nothing from them. Instead he had profaned the name of the Lord, the same Lord that his father had honoured. Daniel reminds him that God holds “in his hand his life and all his ways”. This is why the writing on the wall appeared.

Revelation 12:1,2 - A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven

12:1

The woman in this chapter represents the church. Notice that the vision is introduced by the words “a great sign appeared in heaven”. The church was generally small and weak (see some of the letters in chapters 2 and 3), yet the church was created by God, and Christ is the head. The church is enormously significant, and we need to realise that, especially when under pressure. The church is God’s chosen instrument, just as Israel was His chosen nation. Problems arise when we are not faithful to Christ and try to be like the world, as the Old Testament provides ample testimony. The twelve stars represent the tribes of Israel. The church is complete in Christ.

12:2

“She was pregnant ...” The imagery of pregnancy is often used in the prophets. “She cried out in pain as she was about to give birth.” There are two key things to note here. The first is that there is pain involved, but the second is that we are here for a great purpose. This is one of, possibly the main, the reasons I utterly reject pretribulation rapture nonsense. We are not meant to be taken out of the battle, rather we are meant to win the war. The church has a great purpose in Christ.

Daniel 5:13-17 - You may keep your gifts

5:13-16

Daniel was brought to the king. The king asked Daniel if he was indeed Daniel. This seems rather strange, surely he knew this. Maybe it demonstrates the lack of intelligence of the king, who was not the brightest. The king then uses a lot of flannel, saying he has heard great things about Daniel’s abilities, and making him the same offer as he had made to the wise men.

5:17

The king needn’t have bothered with all the flattery and rewards, for Daniel was not interested in these. One of the signs of being a godly man or woman is not being swayed by human praise or flattery, nor the offer of temporal rewards. Of course, we see this most clearly in the life of Jesus, but it should also be a characteristic of ours as well. Being sinful men and women we will not achieve it to the same degree as Jesus in this life, but the more closely we walk with God the nearer we should come to achieving it. For if we know we are loved by God why would human praise or earthly reward influence our actions?

Revelation 11:18,19 - God's temple in heaven was opened

11:18

“The nations were angry”. The nations are angry against God, and God’s wrath will come. The dead will be judged, and the prophets rewarded. A fundamental point is that there is a day of judgement. All will eventually pay for their sins. People may pay something in this life, but even if they get away with it, there will come a day of reckoning. The corollary of this is that those, like the prophets, who suffered for their service to God will receive a reward. This is fundamental to life functioning properly now. Those who know there is an inescapable day of reckoning are less likely to commit heinous crimes (though, of course, it does not rule them out completely, just makes them less likely). Also, knowing there is a day of reward gives strength to battle through difficult times. Those who “revere the Lord” will be rewarded, “great and small”. Any status we may or may not have in this life makes no difference in the long run. “And for destroying those who destroy the earth”. 

11:19

“God’s temple in heaven was opened” and the ark of the covenant could be seen in it. It is not clear that this signifies. Jer 3:16 foretells of a time when the ark is no longer regarded to be of any importance. The most probable explanation is that it represents God’s faithfulness. There are then great flashes of lightning and thunder, along with an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.

Daniel 5:7-12 - Call for Daniel!

5:7-9

Following in his father’s footsteps, Belshazzar summoned the usual crew of “wise men”, asking them to interpret the writing on the wall.  Anyone who could interpret it would be rewarded with a purple robe and a gold chain, and made the third highest ruler in the land. The “wise men” maintained their lack of success rate, utterly failing to read the writing on the wall.  The king became even more fearful, and his nobles were baffled, wondering what was going on.

5:10-12

“The queen” is probably the queen mother. Anyway, she had heard the commotion and decided to intervene. Being the queen mother, she knew of Daniel and how he had successfully helped out Nebuchadnezzar when the “wise men” demonstrated the usual lack of wisdom. So she told the king to call for Daniel, confident that he would be able to resolve the matter.

Revelation 11:15-17 - The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord

11:15

The seventh trumpet is sounded, and this is greeted with a loud noise from heaven. Then there is the great declaration “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord, and of His Messiah, and He will reign forever and ever”. To John and the church of the time it may have looked as if all was lost, it would certainly be easy to succumb to such feelings. But that is not true, it is the Lord who reigns, and He will do so forever and ever. The Lord’s plan will overturn the kingdom of this world, and the Lord will reign. All of us need to remember that.

11:16,17

The twenty four elders, who we met some time ago, fall down on their face and worship God. One of the things that Revelation does is focus our minds on what is happening in heaven, we then get a totally different perspective on things than if we have a purely earthbound view. They praise God because He has used His great power and has begun to reign. There are two key lessons to take from this. The first is that God uses His great power. We might look at the world today and despair, but we only do that if we forget that God will use His great power. The second is that He has begun to reign on the earth. At the cross everything changed. We are in the victory phase now. A parallel with the D-Day landings has often been drawn, and this is useful. After D-Day victory was certain, but there were many battles and difficulties to be encountered before the war ended. So it is with the cross. We have much to endure and much to do, but the outcome is certain.

Isaiah 59 - A short sermon

This is a sermon on Isaiah 59 that I preached at GCI on Sunday 18th July 2021.

You can find the audio only here.

You can find a video of the whole online service here.

Or you find a recorded version of the message that I created a couple of weeks ago.

Daniel 5:1-6 - The fingers of a human hand appeared

5:1-4

We now jump to near the very end of the Babylonian empire. The armies of Cyrus were gathering and very soon they would conquer Babylon. Belshazzar, the son of Nebuchadnezzar, was a pretty useless king. At the start of this chapter we have him giving a great banquet and profaning the things of God. There was lots of wine flowing around the banquet. In earlier days Nebuchadnezzar had had many gold and silver goblets brought in from the temple in Jerusalem. The text emphasises that these were “taken from the temple of God”, but Belshazzar, his nobles, wives and concubines drank from them, and as they did so they praised to “gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone”. They were utterly profaning the name of the Lord. When people become proud and boastful we can be sure that a fall is not far away. All this show was pure bravado, as the armies of Cyrus were close at hand.

5:5,6

Then a hand appeared and wrote on the wall. It seems that King Belshazzar was the only one who saw the hand.  He watched it as it wrote and was in a state of shock. From the following verses it is clear that he did not know what it had written. However, the king must have known how fragile his kingdom was. The banquet was an act of bravado, pretending that he was in control and feared nothing. So when something like this happened he knew, or feared, that he had been found out.

Revelation 11:12-14 - The second woe has passed, the third is coming soon

11:12

The witnesses were then called up to heaven and their enemies looked on. It says they went up to heaven “in a cloud”, this reminds us of the ascension of Jesus (Acts 1:9). So in all this you can see a parallel with the life of Jesus. He bore witness, powerfully. He was violently opposed and killed. His enemies thought they had won, but Jesus then rose again and ascended to heaven. 

11:13,14

There was then an earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed, and seven thousand people died. So we have a serious, but not absolutely catastrophic event (though it was catastrophic for the seven thousand). It was a warning, and it seems that the survivors heeded the warning, at least to some extent. For they gave glory to God. This means they attributed the actions to God. This was the end of the second woe, with the third about to follow.

Daniel 4:31-37 - Praise and exalt the God of heaven

4:31-35

“Even as the words were on his lips..” This is a bit like Peter after he denied Christ. As soon as Nebuchadnezzar had uttered his prideful boasts he heard a voice from heaven declaring that his authority had been taken away from him, and the words of Daniel’s interpretation of the dream are repeated to the king. The humiliation will finish when the king finally acknowledges who God is. So the king was indeed driven away from the people and lived like an animal. His physical appearance became so distorted because he no longer looked after himself. “At the end of that time”. Finally the king came to his senses and acknowledged who God is and worshipped Him. He declared the greatness of the Lord.

4:36,37

After the king had humbled himself and exalted the Lord his sanity was restored, along with his honour and splendour. Once again he was someone who was held in high esteem by his advisors and nobles. “Those who walk in pride He is able to humble”.  Note that the king having power and honour was not the problem. Likewise men having wealth is not the problem, success is not the problem. The problem arises when we are deceived into thinking it is a reflection of our glory. We need to recognise that it is a reflection of the glory of the Lord.

Revelation 11:9-11 - Terror struck those who saw them

11:9,10

The three and a half days ties in with three and half years. Remember that the great multitude came from “every people, tribe, language and tongue”, so do the people who gazed upon the bodies of the dead witnesses. And they gloated over the death of them, celebrating by sending each other presents. It is like Christmas! So there is a great divide. There is a divide between those who worship God and those who hate Him. There is also a great divide between those who once hated Him, but then repented and believed. Can this gloating happen? The answer is yes, for we see hints of it around the world. In countries where people are rejected if they renounce Islam or Hinduism and follow Christ ths sort of thing can happen. In the West we are getting close to it. Witness the “celebrations'' when laws are passed to make it easier to abort human life.

11:11

“After three and a half days the breath of life from God entered them”. The witnesses, the church, were not dead forever. They stood on their feet, and the world was terrified. We can see a pattern here of how things should go with the church. The church bears witness. The world reacts against it and oppresses the church, with varying degrees of ferocity. It looks like the church is dead, but it isn't, and it rises again. If we take the symbolic line, as I tend to do, this is giving the hearers some understanding of how things go. If we are in the stage where the church is a powerful witness, we must know that a time may come when there is severe opposition. If we are in the midst of the severe opposition stage, even the “defeated” stage, we need to know that the church will rise again.

Daniel 4:20-30 - Renounce your sins

4:20-27

Daniel now outlines the meaning of the dream, and it essentially means the king is going to lose his mind and act like an animal. This was not the sort of message that one would like to give to a king, it could well mean that the king would kill you! The magnificent tree represented the king himself. The great power of the king was the good news! Then comes the bad news. The king will be driven away from the people and will live like a wild animal. He would even eat grass like the ox! This state of affairs would continue until the king acknowledged that the Lord is sovereign over all the nations. So God is dealing with the pride of the king. However, it was not all bad news. The kingdom would be restored to the king once he did acknowledge who the Lord is.  Daniel then gives advice to the king: “renounce your sins”. Daniel genuinely spoke “truth to power”. 

4:28-30

All the things foretold in the dream came to pass. One might have thought that he could have heeded the warning and so changed his ways and avoided the humiliation, but human nature is not like that. Sin is a very powerful driving force. Even knowing the consequences, we will still follow its deceptive paths.  So here we read of the king boasting about the greatness of Babylon and how it was he who built it, and all for his power and glory. Pride is a very powerful force.

Revelation 11:7,8 - Their bodies will lie in the public square

11:7

Just in case you thought that the previous verse meant that we could zap all our enemies like a superhero, any such notion is quickly disabused. For now the beast comes up from the Abyss, attacks, overpowers and kills the witnesses! Dan 7:21 talks about the horn waging war against God’s holy people and defeating them. The Bible teaches that God’s people do have power, but also teaches that we will suffer, sometimes terribly. We need to take a multi-dimensional view, taking account of all the teaching of Scripture. 

11:8

The bodies of the dead witnesses will be left to lie in the public square. In the Middle East great store was set on burying the dead quickly. No doubt this was partly because of health reasons, with the heat leading to quick decay. However, this was also incorporated into religious teaching as well. The great city has sometimes been identified with Jerusalem for the obvious reason that that is where Jesus was crucified. However, it also says that figuratively it was called “Sodom and Egypt”. So there should perhaps be a more general interpretation, and it is essentially referring to the world. Now this includes Jerusalem. The way I see the Bible is that Israel is a microcosm of the world. So what happens with Israel and how it is portrayed is how the whole world goes. So Israel is hopelessly sinful and rebellious, the whole world is hopelessly sinful and rebellious. God saves Israel, He will save people from the whole world (not universalism!).

Daniel 4:17-19 - Daniel was greatly perplexed

4:17

The king seems to know that the message came from the Most High, and he wanted the people to know about it. Too often we make judgements on people, making our assessment of how likely or unlikely they are to come to know Christ. We need to realise that our judgements in these matters are virtually worthless! God is God! He can encounter anyone He likes, and when anyone encounters the living God they are going to be changed. Nebuchadnezzar realises that God is sovereign over all the kingdoms of the earth, and it is He who decides who has power and who does not.

4:18

So the king has told Daniel his dream. Here he addresses Daniel by his Babylonian name, Belteshazzar. The various wise men had failed to interpret it, but he knows tha Daniel can, “because the spirit of the holy gods” was in him.

4:19

Daniel obviously had received some insight into the dream and he didn’t like what God had shown him. “His thoughts terrified him”. Living by faith and walking in step with the Spirit does not mean that we will never be terrified by our thoughts. Apparently the king noticed that Daniel was not happy, and so he reassured Daniel. Help and support can come from the most unlikely sources! Why should a pagan king be of help to a faithful man in seeking to do the will of God? But he was. Daniel was terrified because the consequences of the dream were not good for the king.

Revelation 11:4-6 - They have power to shut up the heavens

11:4,5

The olive trees are a reference to Zech 4. Zech 4:14 says ‘These are the two who are anointed to serve the Lord of all the earth.’ It does seem best to take them as being the church, otherwise it seems to be too limiting. “If anyone tries to harm them ...”. Frequently people do try to harm them, as was happening in John’s day, and happens today, but this is not without consequences. For if someone does try to harm them fire comes out of their mouths and devours their enemies”, and this is how those who try to harm them will die. Now this is not the picture of the church that we usually have, but there are important lessons for us. The first is that we must not compromise with the world, even though sadly much of the church seems so keen to do this. The second is that we must take these verses on board, but along with the rest of Scripture, and the rest of Revelation. Only then will we fulfill the proper role that God has for us. Finally, we must not give into fear. It is our enemies who will ultimately suffer.

11:6

This is not a picture of the “nice little Christian”! Rather it harks back to Elijah who seemed to be able to control the weather (1 Kings 17:1; James 5:17), and to Moses who sent various plagues on Egypt. God gives power to His servants. Now, of course, we do not want to go off the deep end here and become loony Christians. We must also remember that these words were given to John who was in exile, and to a church that was weak, in human terms, and that the book is largely symbolic.  But what we must do is remember that in the face of powerful oppression a faithful church is not weak. We do not fight with the weapons of the world, but with divine power (2 Cor 10:3-6).

Daniel 4:10-16 - Let him be drenched

4:10-15a

So the king tells Daniel his dream. He saw a tree of enormous height in middle of the land. It grew even larger and could be seen from everywhere. It was beautiful and fruitful and all the creatures and birds came to it for food. They were also sheltered by it. So all is looking good, but then a messenger from heaven came down and declared that the tree was to be cut down and its branches stripped, and its fruit scattered. The animals and birds that sheltered under it were to be scattered. However, a stump and its roots were to be left in the ground. 

4:15b-16

Then came the words “Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven ..” He was to love among the animals and the plants. His mind was to be changed from that of a man to that of an animal “till seven times (or years) pass by him”. This is a form of madness.

Revelation 11:1-3 - I will appoint two witnesses

11:1,2

This is the central chapter of Revelation. There are some who think it was a later addition to the book, but there isn’t much evidence for this, and it fits in well with the whole book. The chapter begins with John being told to go and measure the temple of God. Back in Zech 2:4 the man with a measuring rod is told the city will be a city without walls. There are numerous debates about the precise meaning of the chapter, partly hinging on whether one wants to identify the two witnesses as specific people, or as seeing it all as symbolic. The symbolic route makes the interpretation much less problematic. John is told not to measure the outer court, for “it has been given to the Gentiles”. “They will trample the holy city for 42 months”. The 42 months comes from Daniel with his “time, times and half a time” (three and a half years). Daniel and Revelation make it clear that there are times when God allows the world to have its way with His people and His city.

11:3

“I will appoint my two witnesses”. They would prophesy for 1260 days (three and a half years), dressed in sackcloth. Two is probably chosen because the Law demanded two witnesses to establish a case. There was Jewish tradition that Elijah and Enoch would return, because neither of them actually died. Moses and Elijah are another suggestion. Then there is the suggestion that they are symbolic. The people of God are to present a witness to the world. We are not here to comfort the world so much, as to present the word of God to the world. When we fail to do so, and especially when we choose to go along with the world’s ways, we are not fulfilling our God given task.