Fixing
our eyes on Jesus in the midst of the pandemic is the best remedy to the scary
statistics, the ‘doomsday’ reports and conspiracy theories. I’m reminded of
when Jesus in Luke 5 told a 'paralyzed man' that his sins were forgiven. This isn't what the man expected, but it was what he really needed. Jesus claimed to have the authority meet this need and then told the paralyzed man to get up. The man did get up confirming that the ‘son of man’ did in fact have the authority on earth to forgive sins. But who is this ‘son of man'? This can
simply be a way of addressing a man (Num.23:19). The Lord referred to the prophet
Ezekiel as ‘son of man’ on numerous occasions (Ezek.2:1). Was Jesus referring to
himself as a man or was he referring to a unique figure whom Daniel saw coming
on the clouds of heaven (Daniel 7:1-18)?
In Daniel 7 we find Daniel's vision a fourfold progression of kingdoms that is followed by the coming of an
eternal kingdom. These images enable us to see, feel, and hear the horror of
these beastly kingdoms, but we shouldn’t overanalyze the details and miss the
‘big picture’. These hybrid beasts rise from the chaotic sea which
was stirred by the ‘winds of heaven’. They signify corrupt human
power and are a perversion of God’s natural order (7:2-3, 17, Isaiah 17:12,
57:20).
Isaiah 17:12 “Oh,
the raging of many nations— they rage like the raging sea!”
So the
images in Daniel's vision depict these violent human kingdoms. First
beast is a lion with eagle’s wings has its wings torn off, and
then it stands and is given the heart of a man. This image appears to be
Babylon which is compared to both a lion and an eagle (Jer. 4:7, 49:19; Ezek.17:3, 11-12). The second beast, a bear
that is raised on one side, has three ribs in its mouth and is told to arise
and eat its fill of flesh. The imagery portrays the savage power of empire
building and is likely the Medo-Persian Empire (Daniel 5:28). The
third beast, a leopard with four wings and four heads, represents
the rapid expansion of the Greek empire. The Greeks ruler, Alexander
the Great, conquered the known world by the time he was 26 years old. We are
told that he was given authority to rule by God (7:6). A fourth
beast, dreadful and terrible, is exceedingly strong and it devours
the whole earth (7:23). It crushes its victims with its ‘iron teeth’; and
trampled underfoot whatever was left. Ten horns arise from this beast, followed
by a domineering little horn has eyes like a man and an arrogant boastful mouth
(7:8). There’s no reference to God in this image; that is until the ‘Ancient of
Days’ is seated and the ‘son of man’ comes on the clouds. Then the beast is
slain and thrown into a blazing furnace (7:9-11).
In contrast
to these violent beastly kingdoms is the image of a wise elderly man dressed in white garments
that represents the ‘Ancient of Days’. He is seated on his throne that is
ablaze with fire flowing from it and ten thousand times ten thousand attend
him. He puts an end to corrupt human power, and sets everything
right.
Daniel 7:13-14 “In my vision at night I looked,
and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of
heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was
given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of
every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will
not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
In contrast
with these beastlike earthly rulers, we see the one who was like a ‘son of
man’. He comes on the clouds of heaven which is imagery of God coming in
judgment (Ps 68:4, Isa.19:1).
Psalm 68:4 Sing to God, sing praise to his name, extol him who rides on the
clouds— his name is the Lord— and rejoice before him.
These beastlike kings are contrary to the divine order. They are contrasted with the ‘son of man’ who is given authority, glory, and sovereign power. Who is this enthroned ‘son of man’ who is given universal dominion and is the object of worship? This is who Jesus claimed to be (See Mark 14:62). The ‘son of man’
was the primary title that Jesus used of himself . Also remember that before Jesus ascended into
the clouds, he said, “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me (Mt 28:18)”.
In
summary, Daniel sees four temporal beastly kingdoms that are overcome by the
‘son of man’ and are replaced by God’s kingdom. The churning of the sea by the
winds of heaven (7:2) and the descriptions of the beasts reveals that ‘God is Sovereign’ over the events of history. For example: the lion-like
creature whose wings were torn off was lifted from the ground
and the heart of a man was given to it (7:4; possibly
Nebuchadnezzar); the bear-like creature was told, ‘Get up and eat
your fill of flesh’ (7:5); and the leopard-like creature was given authority
to rule (7:6). The inhumanity (bestial figures) and short-term nature of these
kingdoms is contrasted with the righteousness of the ‘son of man’ and of God’s
everlasting kingdom. The
visions depict the intense brutality of these kingdoms, but even more so they
impress upon us that behind the scenes of history are the ‘mysterious purposes of God’ and the ‘might and majesty’ of His Christ, our Lord Jesus!
Whenever a friend and I got overly anxious and felt like
everything was ‘out of control’ we would say to one another, “what’s the matter
has Christ gotten down off his throne?” It was a funny way for us to encourage one another to trust that Jesus is reigning at God’s right hand and
that God is working everything together for our good (Romans 8:28, 34, Hebrews
1:3, 8:1, 10:12, 12:2)! AMEN?
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