Daniel 10:1 - 12:13
Two histories seem to be included in the angel's visit to Daniel. One history is about spiritual warfare, the warfare of which we are aware, but do not yet see. In that spiritual battle, Satan's forces tried to stop Gabriel from coming to Daniel, but the angel Michael came to Gabriel's assistance. The second history presented to Daniel concerned his own world and coming kings and nations.
Since chapter 11:2-32 is an almost exact history of Alexander the Great and the families and national upheaval that followed his death, it is hard to dispute that part of Daniel's vision was fulfilled prior to Jesus' birth. On the other hand, Jesus affirmed Daniel 11:31 and 12:11 when He said, "So when you see standing in the holy place 'the abomination that causes desolation,' spoken of through the prophet Daniel…" (Matthew 24:15), so we are still left with the question of whether Daniel's apocalyptic vision has a further purpose in God's plan for the world. Verses 36-45 of chapter 11, for instance, are far harder to place in history. Why?
The answer to that question may be found in the first few verses of chapter 12, where the angel states that some of these things will occur not in the immediate future but at the end when "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." (12:2)
This was Daniel's final apocalyptic vision. The angel's words bring to mind a couple of things. He said that many will be resurrected to "everlasting contempt". Many of those around us will awake not to joy but to condemnation. While it is tempting to spend our time trying to interpret the visions and recognize the exact events that will come, it is far more important to share Jesus with as many as we can. God does not want any to be lost, so we serve Him best by witnessing His reality, love, and free salvation to others. Another point to consider is that the presence of even God's angels was so overpowering that Daniel could hardly breathe. Our God is a God of power as well as love. No matter what happens in our world as Jesus' return nears, we have nothing to fear. Neither Satan nor man can stop the all-powerful God from fulfilling His plan for the universe.
If you are interested in some of the history involved in Daniel's vision, the following is a pretty good site about the Seleucid dynasty that inherited part of the empire of Alexander the Great: http://www.livius.org/se-sg/seleucids/seleucids.html
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