|
Daniel and Revelation A Foundation for Understanding Prophecy No prophecy of
the scripture is of any private interpretation.—2 Peter The Book of Daniel presents many symbolic and narrative visions of prophecy, which set the stage for several of the visions in Revelation.1: Notable among Daniel’s visions are the smiting of Nebuchadnezzar’s image (chapter 2), the four beasts (chapter 7), and the ram and the he-goat (chapter 8). The interpretations given are further corroborated by many artifacts of antiquity and archaeology. In Daniel 8 a two-horned ram
from the east is identified with the kingdom of the Medes and Persians, while
the he-goat and its great horn signify the The
Persian Ram
The Macedonian Goat
Alexander’s total victory over the
Goat Conquers Ram
After the death of Alexander and his family, his generals
each took a part of the empire: Cassander ( Daniel 7 describes four successive beasts which collectively
have (1+1+4+1=) 7 heads, beginning with the office of the king of In sequence, the successive heads, or imperial capitals, were: 1. In Revelation 12 we see these seven heads on the dragon, and
with diadems on the heads. The dragon became the Roman imperial ensign near
300 A.D. It had the head of a
wolf (the symbol of
Roman Imperial Ensign of the Dragon About that time the Roman emperors began wearing the diadem, instead of solely the laurel wreath of victory.
Emperor Nerva
Emperor Valens The nineteenth-century school of higher criticism had insisted therefore that John’s writings could not have been penned before the late third century A.D. Revelation manuscripts of the third century are now at hand (p47, p116), as are manuscripts of the gospel of John from the second century (p52, p90). Thus, a first century A.D. dating for all twenty-seven books of the New Testament is now quite generally agreed upon, even by unbelievers and by theologians with limited faith. That the great power of the
A stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image on the feet that were of iron and clay. and break them in pieces . . . A kingdom which . . . shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. -- Daniel 2:34,44 A stone [ In Revelation 13, the beast is traceable back through the
leopard, bear, and lion of Daniel’s beasts, and it therefore represents the
indescribable beast of the In these illustrations a * after a name denotes an East Roman emperor; ‡# is associated with a tribal king. All have diadems.
Theodosius* 534-536 A.D. [Ostrogoths]
Queen Antharis# 584-591 A,D, [Lombards]
Odovacer* 476-493 A.D. [Heruli]
Hermenegild# 589-594 A.D. [Visigoths]
Richiarius* 448-456 A.D [Suevi]
Thrasamund# 496-523 A.D. [Vandals]
Gonthram# 561-592 A.D. [Burgundians]
Theoderbert I# 534-548 A.D. [Alemans]
Offa# 755-794 A.D. [Anglo-Sazons] “The great dragon was cast down, the old serpent, he that is
called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world; he was cast down
to the earth” (Revelation 12:9, ASV). Constantine and his son display their interpretation
of the fall of heathen
Constantius The seven heads and ten horns appear one last time, in Revelation 17. Seven mountains are mentioned in verse 9, “The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.” Identification of the seven mountains is also given on Roman coinage:
Vespasian 69-79 A.D.
A papal Roman medal shows Rome holding out her cup as a teacher of nations, calling to mind Scriptures such as “Babylon hath been a golden cup in Jehovah’s hand, that made all the earth drunken” (Jeremiah 51:7, ASV), and “the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and gilded with gold and precious stone and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations” (Revelation 17:4).
A Papal medal struck at Roman power came to a temporary end for about sixty-three
years, 476-539 A.D., during
which time it “is not” (Revelation 17:8,11). Papal civil power rose after the
Arian Ostrogoths lifted the siege of Rome and the East Roman general,
Belisarius, left Rome to pursue them (at the summer solstice of 538). By the
time Belisarius was recalled to Conclusions and Deductions The symbols of Daniel and Revelation are consistent. Daniel’s interpretations apply also to Revelation. The seven heads are seven successive world-class empires
which sequentially bear rule over most of the Lord’s people as well as the
world. The sixth head was In the Reformation and the French Revolution some of the
horns began turning against the Hence it would appear the prophecies of chapters 12, 13, and 17 were seen by those who lived during the papal reign and the Protestant era; so it is chapters 14 and 18 that remain to be fulfilled toward the end of the Gospel age. What Might We Expect in Coming Years? Events of
the last day are seen in Revelation chapters 14 and 18, but there is no
mention of Christ’s second advent in chapters 12, 13, or 17. The ten horns
were first identifiable during the time of the seventh, or Further, some will note that Nebuchadnezzar’s image, once
smitten, does not come back together again. Moreover, the lawless one is
slain “by the brightness of his presence,” as a snowman melts in the sunlight
(2 Thessalonians 2:8). Therefore one might not look for another
world-dominant government before Gog of Magog opposes Reliable expectations for the next several decades are more likely to be found by considering that the last day is divided into seven parts (Joshua 6:15,16), and thence by studying the seven last plagues of Exodus and Revelation.4: And as Israel continues to return to their land, in accord with Ezekiel 37, one may watch how rapidly the eastern and western blocks of Ezekiel 38 are each coalescing. However strong or weak our prophetic eyesight may be, we can
be assured 1. Revelation draws from nearly every book of the Bible (except perhaps Ezra, Habakkuk, Haggai, Philemon, and 3 John) to elucidate the Bible for the practicing Christian. Using I. N. John, “The Reference Passage Bible;” Lincoln, Nebraska: Alpha, 1913 (plus a cross-reference of Obadiah 21 from Revelation 14:1, and uncounted more of seven messengers with seven trumpets in Joshua 6), there are more than 1,400 cross-references from Revelation. While two-thirds of the 885 New Testament cross-references are to other parts of Revelation, the other most-frequently-referenced are Matthew (43), John (32), and Romans (25). However, in proportion to length of text, 2 Thessalonians, Jude, and then Philippians, are referenced most. Of the 532 or more Old Testament references, Isaiah (109), Psalms (71), and Daniel (68) receive the most. But in proportion to text length, Daniel, Zechariah, and then Joel, have the most. (It is of interest that Daniel, Zechariah, and Revelation are the three books which interpret many of their own symbols. 2. These drawings, and most of the other artifacts below, are from Edward Elliott, Horae Apocalypticae, 4 volumes; London: Seeley (5 editions, 1844-1862). Many more of these types of diademed coin may be seen in Wealth of the Roman World, Gold and Silver A.D. 300-700, ed. J.P.C. Kent and K.S. Painter; London: British Museum Publ., 1977. 3. A crown worn as a sign of royalty is called a
diadem. A diadem signified that the coinage was to be recognized for trade
throughout the former 4. The last three plagues of Exodus are: an east wind brings locusts devouring the remainder of Egypt’s crops, followed by a west wind which drives all the locusts out again; three days of intense darkness which stills activity; and the deliverance of Israel’s firstborn (heirs), accompanied by the sudden death of Egypt’s firstborn. An East-West struggle has continued since World War II. Perhaps the next major world event will be a depression. The last event before Christ’s kingdom will be the battle of Armageddon. |
