Bible Readings for the Home Circle Part 61

14. In what literal language is this persecution of the people of G.o.d further described?

"And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people." Verse 24.

15. How was this little horn to exalt itself against Christ and His mediatorial work?

"Yea, it magnified itself, even to the Prince of the host, and _it took away from Him the continual burnt offering_, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down." Verse 11, R. V.

16. In the interpretation of the vision, how is this self-exaltation set forth?

"And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and _he shall magnify himself in his heart_, and by peace shall destroy many: _he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes_; but he shall be broken without hand." Verse 25.

17. What similar language is used by the apostle Paul in describing the "mystery of iniquity," or "man of sin"?

"That day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; _who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called G.o.d, or that is wors.h.i.+ped; so that he as G.o.d sitteth in the temple of G.o.d, showing himself that he is G.o.d_." 2 Thess. 2:3, 4.

NOTE.-The last two scriptures evidently describe one and the same power,-a power which, while religious and professedly Christian, is anti-christian in spirit, and the very "man of sin" himself.

Possessed with the selfish ambition of Lucifer (Isa. 14:12-14; Eze. 28:17), he a.s.sumes to occupy the very seat and place of Deity in the temple of G.o.d. Professing to be Christ's vicar, or personal representative on earth, he magnifies himself against Christ, and "stands up," or reigns, in the place of, and "against," the Prince of princes.

18. What was given into the hands of the power represented by the little horn?

"And _the host_ was given over to it together with _the continual burnt offering_ through transgression." Dan. 8:12, first clause, R. V.

19. What did this power do to the truth?

"And _it cast down truth to the ground_, and it did its pleasure and prospered." Same verse, last clause, R. V.

NOTES.-The interpretation already given to this vision shows plainly that the power represented by the little horn is the successor of Medo-Persia and Grecia. In the vision of the seventh chapter of Daniel, which is closely related to this vision, the fourth beast represented the fourth kingdom, or Rome, in its entirety, special attention, however, being given to the "little horn" phase of its history. As shown by the work attributed to it, this little horn, which arose among the ten kingdoms into which Rome was divided, was to be a religio-political power, which was to change the times and law of G.o.d, and persecute the people of G.o.d. In the vision of the eighth chapter the ecclesiastical features of this fourth world power are especially noticed and emphasized, and hence the only symbol there used to represent it is the "little horn" which waxed "exceeding great."

The religion of all the four great monarchies mentioned in these prophecies was paganism; but the paganism of ancient Babylon was reproduced in pagan Rome, and then adapted and adopted by papal Rome. The little horn of the eighth chapter represents Rome, both pagan and papal, in its ecclesiastical aspect, with its union of paganism, and later of apostate Christianity, with the secular power; with its antichristian persecutions of the saints of G.o.d; with its perversion of the priesthood of Christ; and with its a.s.sertion of both temporal and spiritual power over all the world.

It is evident that pagan Rome is introduced into this prophecy chiefly as a means of locating the place and work of papal Rome, and the ecclesiastical features of pagan Rome as typical of the same features accentuated in papal Rome, and that the emphasis is to be placed upon the fulfilment of the prophecy in the work of papal Rome. A careful comparison of Dan. 7:21, 25, with Dan.

8:10-12, R. V., and 2 Thess. 2:3, 4, will amply justify this conclusion.

"The Romans could not forget-never did forget-that they had once been masters and rulers of the world. Even after they had become wholly unfit to rule themselves, let alone the ruling of others, they still retained the temper and used the language of masters.... In the absence of an emperor in the West the popes rapidly gained influence and power, and soon built up an ecclesiastical empire that in some respects took the place of the old empire and carried on its civilizing work."-_Myers's __"__Rome; Its Rise and Fall,__"__ Boston, 1900, pages 398, 399, 442, 443._

The host and the stars of Dan. 8:10 are the same as the saints of the Most High of Dan. 7:25; and the Prince of the host of Dan.

8:11 is the Prince of princes, or Christ. When the same being appeared to Joshua (Joshua 5:13-15, margin), He applies the same expression to Himself.

In Dan. 8:11-13, in the Revised Version, the words "burnt offering" have been supplied by the translators after the word "continual," but this rendering seems to place too restricted a meaning upon the word "continual." The fact that no word is connected with "continual" in the original text, although in the typical service of the sanctuary it is used with "burnt offering"

(Ex. 29:42), with "incense" (Ex. 30:8, here rendered perpetual), and with "s...o...b..ead" (Num. 4:7), indicates that that which is continual represents the _continual service or mediation of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary_, in which all that was continual in the typical service found its ant.i.type and fulfilment. See Heb. 6:19, 20; 7:1-3, 14-16, 23-25. The action which made the Pope the vicar of G.o.d and the high priest of the apostasy, really took away from Christ, as far as human intent and power were concerned, his place and work as the only mediator between G.o.d and man (1 Tim. 2:5), and this took away from Him, as far as man could take it away, the continual mediation, according to the prediction in this prophecy.

The prophecies of Daniel are c.u.mulative and widening in their view, each carrying matters farther than the preceding one, and bringing out more explicitly and more in detail important features down the stream of time. In Daniel 2, under the fourth universal kingdom, the Papacy is not represented under any direct symbol or figure at all,-simply Rome in its united and divided state; in Daniel 7 Rome is symbolized by the "little horn" coming up among the ten horns representing the divided state of Rome; while in Daniel 8 the only figure used to represent the fourth world power is the "little horn" which waxed "exceeding great."

In each of these last two chapters the little horn is introduced to tell especially of the workings of the same terrible power-Rome papal. Both chapters deal with the same great apostasy. In the seventh chapter, the little horn takes away _the law of G.o.d_. In the eighth chapter, it takes away _the gospel_. Had it taken away only the law, this would have vitiated the gospel; for, with the law of G.o.d gone, even the _true_ gospel could not save, because the law is needed to convict and give a knowledge of sin. And had the Papacy taken away only the gospel, and left the law, salvation through such a system would still have been impossible, for there is no salvation for sinners through even the law of G.o.d itself apart from Christ and the gospel. But to make apostasy doubly sure, this power changes, vitiates, and takes away both the _law_ and the _gospel._

In changing the Sabbath, the Papacy struck directly at the very heart and seal of the law of G.o.d, just as in subst.i.tuting its own mediatorial system for that of Christ's it struck directly at the heavenly sanctuary and its service, which, in his epistle to the Hebrews, Paul shows to be the very heart and essence of the gospel.

20. What question was asked in the hearing of the prophet?

"Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, _How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice_, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden underfoot?" Dan. 8:13.

21. What answer was addressed to Daniel?

"And he said unto me, _Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed_." Verse 14.

NOTE.-In verse 13, R. V., the vision is clearly defined. It is "the vision concerning the continual burnt offering [or continual mediation], and the transgression that maketh desolate," which results in giving both the sanctuary and the people of G.o.d to be trodden underfoot. The time when the vision was to have its special application is stated in verse 17 to be "at the time of the end," or in the last days. This is additional proof that this prophecy was to find its complete fulfilment in papal Rome only, as pagan Rome pa.s.sed away many centuries ago. The sanctuary and the twenty-three-hundred-day period here referred to are considered at length in succeeding readings. See pages 230, 238.

22. What prophetic period begins at the time when the continual mediation of Christ was taken away by the Papacy?

"And from the time that the continual burnt offering shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be _a thousand two hundred and ninety days_." Dan. 12:11, R. V.

NOTES.-Inasmuch as the taking away of the continual mediation of Christ is made the beginning of a prophetic period, there must be some definite act at some definite time which, in form and intent, takes from Christ His priestly work in the heavenly sanctuary.

This act was the official decree of an ecclesiastical council held at Rome in 503 A.D., by which it was declared "that the Pope was judge as G.o.d's vicar, and could himself be judged by no one." See Hardouin's "Councils," Vol. II, page 983; Labbe and Cossart's "Councils," Vol. IV, col. 1364; and Bower's "History of the Popes"

(three-volume edition), Vol. I, pages 304, 305. The work of Clovis, king of the Franks, who earned for himself the t.i.tle of "the eldest son of the church" by his campaigns to subdue the kingdoms hostile to the Papacy, contributed much toward putting into practical effect this claim of the Papacy, which finally resulted in establis.h.i.+ng the Pope as the head of the Roman priesthood which has usurped the priestly work of Christ, and has established another system of mediation in its place. This work of Clovis came to its climax in the period 503-508, and this period therefore becomes the natural one from which to date the 1290 years of Dan. 12:11, which would accordingly end in the period 1793-98, at the same time as the 1260 years of Dan. 7:25. See notes on page 223.

"With Rome would have fallen her bishop, had he not, as if by antic.i.p.ation of the crisis, reserved till this hour the master-stroke of his policy. He now boldly cast himself upon an element of much greater strength than that of which the political convulsions of the time had deprived him; namely, that the bishop of Rome is the successor of Peter, the prince of the apostles, and, in virtue of being so, is Christ's vicar on earth. In making this claim, the Roman pontiffs vaulted at once over the throne of kings to the seat of G.o.ds: Rome became once more the mistress of the world, and her popes the rulers of the earth."-_"__The Papacy__"__ by J. A. Wylie, page 34._

23. What a.s.surance was given to Daniel concerning the period of time mentioned in verse 14?

"And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told _is true_; wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days." Dan.

8:26.

NOTES.-By the expression "the vision of the evening and the morning" reference is made to the vision concerning the twenty-three hundred days, as may be seen by referring to the marginal readings of Dan. 8:14.

The interpretation of the vision of chapter 8 closes without making any explanation of the long period of time which was mentioned to Daniel in the answer to the question, "How long shall be the vision?" This important feature was left to be interpreted later. See next reading.

A Great Prophetic Period. (The 2300 Days of Daniel 8.) Or The Time Of Restoration And Of Judgment

[Ill.u.s.tration.]

Artaxerxes Restoring The Vessels Of The Temple. "Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." Dan. 8:14.

1. Immediately after the vision of Daniel 8, what did Daniel learn from his study of the prophecy of Jeremiah?

"In the first year of Darius ... _I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem_."