Here is what I believe to be the true interpretation of the visions of Daniel, which is generally well established, though I may have some items here that you may not have heard before. I offer this in response to the file uploaded by VCR1, which presented a rather strange interpretation.
The Parallel visions of Daniel 2, 7 and 8.
In Daniel there are three great visions, each of which is a look at the entire future of the world and the major universal kingdoms that would rule until the end of time. Each vision uses different symbols to tell the same story. They are found in Dan 2, 7 and 8. What follows is an outline of those visions. As I have it set up here, match the A, B, C, etc. for each chapter to get identical kingdoms. All three visions must be studied to get the full picture of History.
Daniel 2
A. Babylon is the head of Gold - defined in Dan 2:38.
B. Medo-Persia is the chest of Silver.
Verse 38 establishes the principle of sucessive kingdoms.
C. Greece is the thighs of Brass.
D. Rome (ancient pagan) is the legs of Iron.
E. Divided Europe is the feet and 10 toes of Iron and Clay. We are in this period today. Note Dan 2:43 says they will never join together. Today there is a move to unite Europe. The Bible predicts here that it will not succeed. Europe will never become a single united political entity as it was under Rome, for example.
The EU (Economic Union) is only a trade agreement, the individual countries still have political sovereignty.
F. The Kingdom of God is the stone that becomes a mountain.
Daniel 7
A. Babylon is the lion.
The winged lion is a symbol of Babylon. If you check most history books you will find pictures of statures of winged lions that stood at the doors of ancient Babylon.
B. Medo-Persia is the bear.
It is raised on one side because one side is stronger, the Medes were a greater power than the Persians.
History books will confirm this.
C. Greece is the leopard with four heads.
When Alexander the Great dies, his kingdom is divided up by his four generals. This also can be verified in history books.
D. Rome (ancient pagan) is the diverse beast with ten horns.
The ten horns represent the divided kingdoms that follow the fall of the Roman empire.
E. The Roman Catholic Papacy is the little horn that arises among the ten kingdoms that follow ancient Rome. Catholic means UNIVERSAL, so it is a universal religious power by it's own title. This is why the fourth beast is diverse - Pagan Rome evolved into religious Rome. Also, where previous kingdoms were defeated, Rome evolved from from a pagan power to a Christian religious power. The Popes are the successors to the Roman emperors and ruled over the divided kingdoms, actually deposing some kings. The three horns plucked up in verse 8 were the Heruli, Vandals, and Ostrogoths, defeated by the Roman Emperor
at the request of the Papacy. Note particularly verse 25 that describes things the Papacy would do.
Dan 7:25 - the Papacy
1. And he (the little horn) shall speak great words against the most High,
- He claims to be God on earth
- He claims to forgive sins
- He claims to create God at an unbloody Mass
- He claims the power to change the laws of God
2. and shall wear out the saints of the most High,
- The persecution of Christians during the Inquisition, see #4.
3. and think to change times and laws: (of the most High)
- He changed the day of rest from Saturday (the Sabbath) to Sunday, a pagan day of worship. In this one act both the times and laws (the fourth Commandment) of God was changed (he thinks he has been successful at this, it is his mark.)
4. and they (the saints) shall be given into his hand (the little horn) until a time and times and the
dividing of time. The 3 1/2 times represents 1260 years of persecution from 538 A.D. to 1798 A.D., the period of Papal supremacy. In 538 A.D. The Papacy was declared the head of all churches by the emperor Justinian and in 1798 A.D. Pope Pius IV was imprisoned by Napolean, closing down the Catholic church, some thought forever. During the 1260 years people died for owning a Bible or speaking it in the venacular. It was the zenith of Papal political power.
F. Ancient of Days is Jesus, the Kingdom of the Saints.
Daniel 8
A. Babylon (not mentioned, it had already fallen to Cyrus the Great at the time Dan 8 was written).
B. Medo-Persia is the Ram with two horns - defined in
Dan 8:20 One horn is higher because the Medes were stronger than the Persians.
C. Greece is the goat - defined in Dan 8:21
Alexander the Great is the great horn that was broken.
The four notatble ones are his four generals that rule after him.
D. Rome (ancient Pagan is not specifically mentioned).
E. Rome (Papal) is the little horn. - verse 9 and 23.
He comes from the four winds (seemingly out of nowhere), not from one of the four notable ones from Greece (the four successors of Alexander).
F. The second coming of Jesus breaks the little horn without hand. - Dan 8:25
The relationships here are unmistakeable and match history precisely.
On Dan 7:12 -
The other beasts this verse refers to are very easy to explain. Note Dan 7:21- I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;
Now look at Rev 13:7 - And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. Notice the link established here - The little horn of Dan 7 is the beast from the sea of Rev 13 - notice it has 10 horns in Rev 13:1.
These same ten horns are found Rev 17:12 - And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
Notice what the 10 horns do -
Rev 17:16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
So the other beasts of Dan 7:12 are the 10 kings (horns) that will destroy the little horn (the Papacy), which happens in verse 11, leaving the dominion (power) of the ten kings (horns) in ruins, yet they will continue to exists for a while.
Any attempt to push the entire vision of Dan 7 into the future has no basis in truth. The visions of Dan 2, 7 and 8 are closely interlinked with each other and also with Revelation as I have shown, and describe the complete history of the earth from the time of Daniel to the second coming of Jesus.
