DANIEL: THRIVING IN A GODLESS CULTURE

XVII: God's Encouraging Details Of Israel's Purging

(Daniel 12:1-13)

I. Introduction

A. We believers living in a spiritually decaying, godless culture, need to live affirmatively in victory over sin.

B. Daniel as a young man was taken captive by godless Babylonians, and he lived through Persia's conquest of Babylon, righteously and wisely serving the Lord in a godless culture as a great example for us.

C. One of the great encouragements we can glean from Daniel's life experiences was the revelation God gave him on His use of the future Great Tribulation persecution to purge Israel in Daniel 12:1-13 (as follows):

II. God's Encouraging Details Of Israel's Purging, Daniel 12:1-13.

A. The Daniel 7-12 visions predict trials God's people would face after Daniel's era under godless empires until the arrival of Christ’s Kingdom. Daniel 12:1-13 predicted the details of God's gracious use of the coming Great Tribulation and the Antichrist's persecution of Israel to purify the nation in preparation for the Kingdom.

B. We view that insight given by God's powerful angel to Daniel for our edification, Daniel 12:1-13:

1. The angel revealed that regardless of the Great Tribulation's unprecedented time of trouble for Israel, the archangel Michael (Jude 9) would intervene to deliver the nation from annihilation by Satan's work through Antichrist, Ibid.; Daniel 12:1. Satan will try but fail to destroy Israel in a futile effort to prevent the return and reign of Christ over the nation Israel in fulfillment of Bible prophecy, Ibid.; Luke 1:31-33.

2. Also, regardless of the great loss of human life in the Great Tribulation, God's angel revealed that deceased believers will be resurrected, and, in the very end, unbelievers will be raised to shame and everlasting contempt, Dan. 12:2; Rev. 20:11-15; Ibid. Believers who wisely discern Antichrist's deception and lead others to the truth in the Great Tribulation will shine with the glory of God forever and ever, Daniel 12:3.

3. Meanwhile, the powerful angel instructed Daniel to seal the book of this vision even to the end time, for many would peruse back and forth in this book [and likely other Bible books] so that knowledge would increase, Daniel 12:4. [The ESV verb "shall run to and fro" of Daniel 12:4b uses the verb shut, "go or rove about" in the intensive Po'el stem to mean "go eagerly, quickly, to and fro" (B. D. B., A Heb. and Eng. Lex. of the O. T., p. 1001-1002). In the context where knowledge increases in reference to the scroll Daniel was to seal until the end, this verb implies that many will peruse back and forth in the scroll, and possibly in other scrolls, piecing together gems of truth applicable to their time, their knowledge of the truth thus expanding. Perhaps they will also be perusing through other Bible books for more insight!]

4. The powerful angel then informed Daniel about the time period when all of these great events recorded in Daniel 11:36-12:4 would be finished, and he indicated that it would be a time, times and a half time, what we interpret as 3 ½ years to the Antichrist's scattering of the power of the Hebrew people, Dan. 12:5-7.

5. Daniel asked for more clarification on this timetable (Daniel 12:8), and the angel replied that Daniel was to go his way, that the words of this prophesy applied to those facing the end time, Daniel 12:9. In that era, many would be purified in great trials, but the wicked would continue to do evil and not understand the events of the era where the wise would understand and come to be rewarded by the Lord, Daniel 12:10.

6. Finally, the powerful angel added that from the time that Antichrist desecrates the Jerusalem temple there would be 1,290 days, 30 days beyond the actual 3 ½ years of 1260 days [of the last half of the Daniel 9:27 prophetic week of seven Hebrew years]. These extra 30 days are apparently needed for Christ's judgments to occur following His Second Coming, Daniel 12:11; Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Daniel 12:11.

7. However, there would be a total of 1,335 days from the mid-point of the Great Tribulation to the blessing of the Messianic Kingdom, that after Christ's 30 days of judgment would be 45 days before the start of His Messianic reign, which blessing the godly have long sought, Daniel 12:12; Ibid., ftn. to Daniel 12:12.

8. The angel ended his revelation by telling Daniel that he would rest in death followed by his resurrection to stand in his allotted inheritance in Israel at the end of the 1,335 days when he entered the Kingdom, Daniel 12:13. This news would thrill a godly Daniel who had spent most of his life in captivity in Babylon!

Lesson: God told Daniel of His use of the Great Tribulation to purify His people in preparation for the Kingdom.

Application: (1) May we realize that troublesome times that we face under current wicked rulers are meant to purify God's people and to increase our knowledge and application of His Word. (2) May we then grow in holiness and in the knowledge of God as we avidly peruse to and fro in Scripture, growing in our relationship with Him!