Daniel 7

In Short

Daniel 7 focuses on the last phase of the era of empires, the USA, that wages war on 'the saints of the most High'. The most brutal and violent attack would come during the Endtime, the last 3.5 years of history that we see fast approaching on the horizon. The saints of the most High are those that stand in the most direct relation to the patriarchs of old Israel, the Palestinian people, that never left the holy land and were much less assimilated with other peoples than those that did leave, the European Jews. These European Jews were used as pawns by the empire to gain total control in the Middle East, the reason why the empire is backing their 'Jewish state' notwithstanding criticism throughout the world of its lawless behavior. One could say that the war of the empire on the 'saints of the most High' started with the Nakba in 1948. This war went into high gear with the start of the present Netanyahu regime. The 'covenant' was made heavy 'for many', during one 'week' (7 years). If so, the last 7 years before Jesus' return started on December 29, 2022 and Jesus' return would be at the end of 2029. At Jesus' return the US-empire will be destroyed, together with its Middle Eastern proxy. As the saints of the most High, the Palestinians will rule the world together with the Son of man.

 

Four empires

The first prophetic chapter that shows us the people of Israel is Daniel 7. This chapter pictures four consecutive empires as four beasts coming out of the sea: The Babylonian empire as a winged lion, the Mede-Persian empire as a bear, the Greek empire as a winged leopard with four heads and the Roman empire as a dreadful beast which would destroy everything that it encountered. All of this is presented to Daniel in a dream in which he sees ten horns on the fourth dreadful beast that represents the Roman empire. Among the ten horns Daniel sees an eleventh horn arising before whom three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots. In that horn he saw eyes like the eyes of man and a mouth that was speaking great things.

 

This eleventh horn is the last phase of the empires. For Daniel sees the following taking place: 'I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.' (Daniel 7:11,12).

 

While the fourth beast is slain and the dominions of the others taken, Daniel sees 'a Son of man' coming with the clouds of heaven who will be given an everlasting kingdom that would encompass the earth and extend to all nations. (Daniel 7:13,14)

 

It is Jesus who told the Sanhedrin that they would see Him - the Son of man, as He always called Himself, sit at the right hand of the Power and come with the clouds of heaven (Mathew 26:64). So Jesus applied this prophecy to Himself. However, during the reign of the Roman empire He did not yet receive his everlasting worldwide kingdom. From our daily experience it is clear that Jesus does not exercise 'all power in heaven and on earth' that is given to Him. That moment is still future.

 

The little horn

Here the interpretation of the ten horns and the eleventh horn becomes important. In the centuries that followed the first coming of Jesus, the Roman empire fell apart and out of much strife among the peoples of Europe, ten rather distinct nations arose in the 18th century - the ten horns of the fourth beast. In that same period of enlightenment a totally new nation arose from the peoples of Europe, at the newly discovered continent called America - the 11th horn. It was established in 1776. In a few decades this nation became very powerful, so much that it started to contest the European nations from which it had sprung. It claimed the complete Western hemisphere as its dominion (Monroe doctrine of 1823). After surviving a vicious civil war, which almost split the new nation into two, it started to attack the mighty European colonial and industrial powers. The three foremost of them were completely subordinated after WWII, Spain (1898), Germany (1918) and Great Britain (1945). Since then the little horn had grown into the beast as a whole, exercising diplomatic, economic and military power worldwide. That the beast of the Endtime, that started as 'little horn', a territory of 13 colonies in the East of North America, would grow into the worldwide last empire, coming out of the former empires, is stated in Revelation 17. We live in the last days of 'the little horn', it having eyes of a man and speaking boastful words - the 'big brother' with its al seeing eye and its great mouth, ordering the rest of the world to comply with the rules that it doesn't adhere to itself.

 

The Saints of the Most High

The first mentioning of the people of Israel is found in verse 18, as 'the saints of the most High, where we find an explanation of Daniel's dream by one of the figures that he sees in his dream:

'These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth. But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.''  (Dan.7:17,18)

 

After all empires will be gone, the saints of the most High, the faithful people of Israel, which today are represented by the Palestinians, will take over 'the kingdom', which won't be a new empire but which will be 'the kingdom of God', which will be given to 'the Son of man', Jesus, at his return.

 

The War against the Saints

When Daniel inquires further after the details of his dream concerning the fourth beast, with its ten horns and especially the eleventh horn, that rose among the ten, he adds a new detail, concerning the 'saints of the most High':

 

^'I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them' (Daniel 7:21)

 

Here we see that the USA, as the last stage of world empire, would wage war against God's people and that is exactly what we see since the USA from 1948 onward started to promote Zionism, by backing Zionist with military, financial and diplomatic support. And with each rise in support for Zionism, the war against the Palestinian people became more gruesome, even growing into a downright genocide since 2023.

 

However the happy ending is directly stated by Daniel in the verse that follows: 'Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.' (Daniel 7:22)

 

This phase of genocide, according to Daniel 9:27, would take 7 years, as we shall discuss below. The last half of these 7 years will become very dark, not just for the Palestinians but for the whole world. These 3.5 years are mentioned at the end of Daniel's vision in verse 25:

 

'And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.' (Dan.7:25)

 

Actions of the little horn

The 'he' in this verse is the eleventh horn, that rose among the ten that came forth from the Roman empire. It is the USA, that once started as a colony of 13 states, in the form of a 'horn', that became a world superpower and whose mouthpiece is its president. In the Endtime, the actions of this superpower would be about three things. (1) The mouth of 'the eleventh' horn would be opened against the most High God Himself. This aligns with de 'abomination of desolation', which will amount to the president of the mighty USA being honored like God in one of the mosques of the Haram Al Sharif, bringing the wrath of the Muslims in Iran over the land of Israel in the form of utter desolation. Therefore Daniel 9:27 speaks of 'the abomination that causes desolation'. (2) This 'eleventh horn' woud wear out the saints of the most High, the already mentioned 'war' against the Palestinians. (3) He would think to change times and laws. Changing times, that is to turn against the natural course of things, the empire losing strength and making place for a new power structure on earth. Instead, the last empire thinks it can hold on to power forever by waging war against every opponent. Changing laws: the rule of law would no longer be applicable to the empire. The empire will put itself above every law that it forced upon the rest of the world.

 

Looking at the behavior of the US empire, we can clearly discern the points (2) and (3). Only characteristic (1) is yet unfulfilled. It will be fulfilled in the abomination of desolation which will mark the start of the third world war.

 

The saints of the most high will be 'given into his hand' until a time, times and half a time. This is the first instance that the duration of the Endtime is mentioned, 3.5 years. Until these 3.5 years have passed, the saints of the most high will be subjected to the persecution of the empire and suffer greatly. Therefore, the Endtime is also called 'Jacob's trouble'  (Jeremiah 30:7), for the Palestinians are the most direct in line with the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. That is why they are being persecuted by the empire.

 

But Daniel 7 ends thus: ' But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.' (Dan.7:26,27)