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A Biblical Exposition of the Apocalyptic Prophecies of Daniel 


by Ted Noel


Contents


 


Introduction


The books of Daniel and Revelation have inspired more people to more flights of fancy than any others in the Bible. Certainly they contain a cast of characters destined to bring out strange thoughts. Where in the real world would we find four-headed four-winged leopards, talking horns, and whore so large as to be seated on seven mountains!


Yet God saw fit to reveal these things to his servants, the prophets. And His inspiration led to their inclusion in our Bible. That fact should direct our attention to them. For if God sent them to us, then He meant for us to understand them.


The very nature of the books requires us to look at them in a different way than the Gospels or Paul's epistles. Those books speak to us in language that directly carries the good news of salvation. The books of Daniel and Revelation, however, are of a very different character.


These are the most hopeful of all books of the Bible, bringing to us, in vivid pictures, the ultimate victory of God over Satan. They brilliantly paint the picture that shows that, while we are players in the Great Controversy between God and Satan, it is not a great contest. The victory is assured. For that we should shout, Hallelujah!


At the same time, much of the message is hidden from the view of those who would only give it a casual glance. This difficulty comes from the fact that these books are apocalyptic. Apocalyptic is very different from ordinary literature. It speaks of spiritual warfare and end times. Because we are very poor spiritual creatures, we have to be given pictures which we can understand. God has painted the battle and His future victory in symbolic language. We are unable to fully grasp the truth, and He has given us a primer to help us along.


This necessarily leads to some imprecision. Heavenly things do not translate fully to earthly language. And human languages do not translate perfectly into one another. So we will need to first investigate the nature of what we are trying to understand. When that is clarified, we will be able to proceed into the details of the books.


In this study, I must emphasize that these are my thoughts, presented through my writing, developed at my stage of understanding. I believe them to be correct. However, as my knowledge increases, there may be changes to my understanding. This has happened many times. And it will almost certainly happen again. I follow the testimony of John Huss, a martyr of the Reformation. "Whenever I discern a sounder opinion in any matter whatsoever, I gladly and humbly abandon the earlier one. For I know that those things I have learned are but the least in comparison with what I do not know."


There are several general schools of interpretation of prophecy. It is easy to read the beginning of a study of Daniel, and say, "I don't agree with that", and stop reading. This is unfortunate. The largest differences between schools of thought revolves around Daniel 9:24-27. These differences are carried forward, and allowed to reinterpret the plain language of the earlier visions.


If the reader can allow his mind to remain open, the Holy Spirit can lead. When Daniel 9 is finally reached in this sequential study, the reader can then honestly judge whether this exposition is worthy.


I pray that the Holy Spirit will bless you in this study as he has blessed me.


Ted Noel
August 1997


 


Introduction to the First Edition


As my Christian experience grows, I have felt inspired that I should study the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation pertaining to the grand sweep of history. I do not know what purpose God has for me in this study, but as I study, I find myself unable to read anything else. I get excited as I see the grand unity of the visions given to Daniel. This alone tells me that I am following in God's plan for me. Nothing else could cause such untempered joy.


This is being written in stages as I study. I am not a cleric. I have not taken classes in theology. But I am able to read the Bible and study it. I am also able to read and understand the discussions of those with specialized knowledge, and to separate truth from psychobabble. I have not studied Greek or Hebrew, but I have studied French, Spanish, and German sufficiently to understand certain nuances which are absent in English. Even without this specialized training, all of us now have access to the knowledge of those with that training by way of computerized study aids. I have used both Logos' Bible Software and BibleSoft's PC Study Bible, with all their associated references and commentaries.


I have also had the opportunity to travel, and be exposed to other cultures and languages (in particular Arabic), to know that each language contains within it the culture of the people who speak it. This means that something will always be lost in translation, and that a true understanding of what has been said may require me to "walk a mile in the writer's moccasins." I also recognize that some translations will be the source of controversy. Even so, no corrupt translation or paraphrase has yet been able to hide the glory of God from the readers of His word.


I do not know what purpose is to be served by writing this study. It may be only for my own benefit. If that is the case, then I will be better versed in the subject. If it helps another to understand, then the Lord be praised.


Many times the discussion will include various Hebrew or Greek words. These will be written using English phonetic characters. Each Hebrew or Greek word will be followed by its Strong's number in parentheses.


There are many lessons that can be drawn from the text surrounding each prophecy. I do not plan to substantially explore any of those lessons. My purpose is to show the grand sweep of God's plan for salvation, as painted for us by his prophets. Likewise, I will not spend any significant amount of time on God's motivations for any event, revelation, or manner of revelation. This is not my purpose.


I apologize for the lack of detailed footnoting. A wealth of information is available from numerous sources. I will simply refer readers to some of the principal sources I have used. Also, I am using the New American Standard Bible (NASB) unless otherwise noted. Scriptural quotations include italics to indicate words supplied by the translators to improve readability.


"In biblical faith, the understanding of history is not cyclical. Rather, history moves forward to a goal, indeed, a final goal. The Creator of the world is all-powerful. He is not a cosmic clock maker who made the universe to tick on its own. The living Creator is also the Lord over history. History is meaningful because it is ultimately under the control of God."


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