Daniel – Page 2 – Be Still…

Daniel 9:1-19 – Daniel’s Prayer

Read Daniel 9:1-19

Daniel’s prayer may have been a cry out on behalf of his people, but it could be a prayer for us, too. Daniel prayed this prayer in the first year of King Darius’ rule, could this have actually been King Cyrus? Historically, King Cyrus follows King Belshazzar.

Another observation that has been made about this prayer is how it beautifully knits together many different prayer fragments found elsewhere in Scripture. We’ve probably seen a similar thing and not even known. Continue reading “Daniel 9:1-19 – Daniel’s Prayer”

Daniel 8:15-27 – Hey Gabriel!

Read Daniel 8:15-27

I think I would have fainted, too, in the presence of the angel, Gabriel. It’s probably the appropriate human response to a visible appearance of God or his messenger. I understand this may be Gabriel’s first appearance in the Old Testament. You may recall Gabriel announced the births of John the Baptist and the Messiah in Luke’s gospel account.

Gabriel tells Daniel, “you must understand that the events you have seen in your vision relate to the time of the end.” It’s helpful to remember this reference to “time of the end” encompasses the years between the end of the exile and Jesus’ second coming. That’s a lot of years! Gabriel makes it sound like these events won’t be happening any time soon. Daniel doesn’t need to fear for he will not likely be alive. Continue reading “Daniel 8:15-27 – Hey Gabriel!”

Daniel 8:1-14 – What Bullies!

Read Daniel 8:1-14

A couple years later, Daniel has another vision. This one is all about a ram and a goat and lots of horns. Daniel also gives us a location for where he witnesses these animal skirmishes. Daniel reports, “In this vision I was at the fortress of Susa, in the province of Elam, standing beside the Ulai River.”

The city of Susa is not unfamiliar to us. You may recall it’s where Esther became the new Queen of Persia. It’s where Nehemiah served as cupbearer to the king before receiving permission to return to the land of Judah to rebuild the city of Jerusalem. Continue reading “Daniel 8:1-14 – What Bullies!”

Daniel 7:15-28 – God’s Intentions

Read Daniel 7:15-28

Daniel gets to interact with his vision. I suppose we do the same in our dreams, too. But Daniel’s dream was an apocalyptic prophecy that scared him to his core. That was a lot of information to see and process. We’ve all had dreams that disturb us, but Daniel’s takes the cake!

The explanation Daniel was given leaves us with more questions. Who are these rulers? When will this all come to pass? It’s not a pretty sight, however, the ending is victorious for God’s holy people. There is hope to cling to for the oppressed. Continue reading “Daniel 7:15-28 – God’s Intentions”

Daniel 7:1-14 – First Apocalyptic Vision

Read Daniel 7:1-14

And, just like that, we have entered the second half of the book of Daniel. We’ll now encounter several apocalyptic visions Daniel had about the future of God’s people. Because of the chapters that preceded this, we can picture Daniel living his life in Babylon. We can understand a little of the environment he found himself in after being taken into exile. The shift is now from Daniel’s back story and public displays of God’s power to more private encounters.

This first vision is a bit troubling with images of beasts amidst strong storms. Can’t you just picture it? Yet there is something very calming about the appearance of the “son of man.” Perhaps it was because of the familiarity. We as Christ-followers may well recognize Jesus in this passage. Continue reading “Daniel 7:1-14 – First Apocalyptic Vision”