Daniel 8

Daniel 8

Charts from recommended resource Jensen's Survey of the OT - used by permission Daniel 8:1 IN THE THIRD YEAR OF THE REIGN OF BELSHAZZAR THE KING A VISION APPEARED TO ME, DANIEL, SUBSEQUENT TO THE ONE WHICH APPEARED TO ME PREVIOUSLY: BGT Daniel 8:1 ἔτους τρίτου βασιλεύοντος Βαλτασαρ ὅρασις ἣν εἶδον ἐγὼ Δανιηλ μετὰ τὸ ἰδεῖν με τὴν πρώτην --- Daniel (TH) 8:1 ἐν ἔτει τρίτῳ τῆς βασιλείας Βαλτασαρ τοῦ βασιλέως ὅρασις ὤφθη πρός με ἐγὼ Δανιηλ μετὰ τὴν ὀφθεῖσάν μοι τὴν ἀρχήν LXE Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of king Baltasar a vision appeared to me, even to me Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first. KJV Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first. NET Daniel 8:1 In the third year of King Belshazzar's reign, a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had appeared to me previously. CSB Daniel 8:1 In the third year of King Belshazzar's reign, a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had appeared to me earlier. ESV Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first. NIV Daniel 8:1 In the third year of King Belshazzar's reign, I, Daniel, had a vision, after the one that had already appeared to me. NLT Daniel 8:1 During the third year of King Belshazzar's reign, I, Daniel, saw another vision, following the one that had already appeared to me. NRS Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had appeared to me at first. NJB Daniel 8:1 In the third year of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after the one that had originally appeared to me. NAB Daniel 8:1 After this first vision, I, Daniel, had another, in the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar. YLT Daniel 8:1 'In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king, a vision hath appeared unto me -- I Daniel -- after that which had appeared unto me at the beginning. GWN Daniel 8:1 In Belshazzar's third year as king, I, Daniel, saw a vision. This vision came after the one I saw earlier. BBE Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the rule of Belshazzar the king, a vision was seen by me, Daniel, after the one I saw at first. RSV Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first. NKJ Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me-- to me, Daniel-- after the one that appeared to me the first time. ASV Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, even unto me, Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first. DBY Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king, a vision appeared unto me, even to me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first. BHT Daniel 8:1 Bišnat šälôš lümalkût Bël´šaccar hammeºlek Häzôn nir´â ´ëlay ´ánî däniyyë´l ´aHárê hannir´â ´ëlay BaTTüHillâ NIRV Daniel 8:1 It was the third year of King Belshazzar's rule. After the vision that had already appeared to me, I had another one. RWB Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, even to me Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first. Third year: Da 7:1 Me, Daniel - Da 8:15 7:15,28 9:2 10:2,7 11:4 I Daniel - phrase occurs in Da 8:15 8:27 9:2 10:2 10:7 12:5 Daniel 8 Resources - multiple sermons and commentaries Daniel introduces a new section switching from Aramaic at the end of Da 7:28 (Da 2:4b to Da 7:28 = Aramaic) to Hebrew in Da 8:1 through the end of the book (Da 8:1-12:13). While one cannot be dogmatic, it seems reasonable that since this last section focuses primarily on what will happen to Israel in the end-times that the language be Hebrew. NET Note - The third year of King Belshazzar’s reign would have been ca. 551 B.C. Daniel would have been approximately 69 years old at the time of this vision. Previously = Heb “in the beginning.” This refers to the vision described in chapter seven. Donald Campbell - The earlier chapters (Da 2:4-7:28) are in Aramaic, the language of the Gentile world of the day, because the material emphasizes the destinies of the Gentile nations-their rise, progress, decline, and collapse. Beginning with Daniel 8 and continuing through the remainder of the book, the emphasis is on the destiny of the people of Israel. The plight and fortunes of Israel are now traced through the period already discussed from a Gentile perspective. Now we are to study human history as it relates to Israel, and the original language of the text is appropriately Hebrew. (Borrow Daniel, decoder of dreams - well written, practical, recommended) Daniel Whitcomb adds that "The introduction to the book of Daniel (Da 1:1-2:4) and the final chapters of the book beginning at this verse (Da 8:1-12:13) were written in Hebrew with the people of Israel primarily in perspective. Daniel 2:4-7:28 was written in Aramaic, the common commercial language of the Fertile Crescent, to reach an ever wider audience for the sake of witness to the true God of Israel (see comments at 2:4). It is fascinating that the Aramaic section begins and ends with the two perspectives of the four great Gentile kingdoms (Daniel 2 and Daniel 7). Similarly, the book Jeremiah was written mainly to Israel, but the one verse in the book that aims at the wider audience is written in Aramaic and contains a powerful challenge to the false gods of the Gentile world: "Thus you shall say to them, 'The gods that did not make the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens' " (Jer. 10:11). (Bolding added) John Walvoord makes the point that "although many expositors divide the book of Daniel into two halves (1–6 and 7–12), there are also good reasons for dividing Daniel into three sections (Da 1, Da 2–7, Da 8–12). The first of Daniel’s own visions recorded in Daniel 7 is a broad summary of the times of the Gentiles, with emphasis on the climactic events culminating in the second coming of Christ to the earth. Beginning in Daniel 8, Daniel’s second vision concerns the empires of Persia and Greece as they relate to Israel. Under Persian government, Israelites went back to rebuild their land and their city, Jerusalem. Under Grecian domination, in particular under Antiochus Epiphanes, the city and the temple were again desolated. Daniel 9 presents Israel’s history from the time of Ezra and Nehemiah to the inauguration of the kingdom from heaven at the second coming of Christ immediately preceded by the time of great trouble for Israel. Daniel 10–11 reveal the events relating the Persian and Greek Empires to Israel, with emphasis on the Gentile oppression of Israel. The final section, Da 11:36—12:13, deals with the end of the age, the period of the revived Roman Empire, and the deliverance of Israel. It is fitting that the last five chapters of Daniel should be written in Hebrew, the language of Israel. (Daniel 8 The Vision Of The Ram And The Goat) Appeared to me, Daniel - Daniel is clearly claiming that he is the writer of this book. He is speaking in the first all through chapter 8 (The first person singular pronoun "I" is used in Da 8:2, 8:3, 8:4, 8:5, 8:6, 8:7, 8:13, 8:15, 8:16, 8:17, 8:18, 8:19 8:27) Outline of Daniel 8 - The Vision of the Ram, the Goat and the Rather Small Horn Daniel 8:1,2 - The Time and Place of the Vision Daniel 8:3-14 The Contents of the Vision Daniel 8:15-26 The Interpretation of the Vision Daniel 8:27 The Impact of the Vision Daniel now is inspired to switch from writing in Aramaic (Da 2:4b through Da 7:28) back to Hebrew, the language in which he had written in Da 1:1 through Da 2:4a. While one cannot be dogmatic as to why the switch occurs at this juncture, close observation of the subject matter in these last 4 chapters indicates a clear focus on the land of Israel and the fate of the Jews, in both the near future (from Daniel's perspective) and the distant future, yea, even to "the end of the age" (Daniel 12:13, cp repetition of the phrase "the end" in the NAS = Da 8:17, 19, Da 9:26, Da 11:27, Da 11:35, Da 11:40, Da 12:4, Da 12:6, Da 12:9) Subsequent to the one which appeared to me previously - Daniel is alluding to his first vision described in Daniel 7 (Da 7:1 "Daniel saw a dream and visions in his mind"). Campbell - In the first (Daniel 7), Daniel saw four world empires to which his people would be subject for long centuries -- Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome. He now receives more knowledge concerning the second and third of these empires, Persia and Greece. The reason for this is clear: In the latter period of Grecian domination of Israel, a ruler would arise who would unleash terrible hatred against the Jews. (Borrow Daniel, decoder of dreams - well written, practical, recommended) In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar - This was two years after Daniel's first vision in Daniel 7:1ff and as shown in the chart below chronologically Daniel 7 and Daniel 8 occur before Daniel 5 (the night of Belshazzar’s feast) which marks the end of the Belshazzar's reign and the end of the Kingdom of Babylon. You will read some commentaries that place Daniel 8 near the downfall of Babylon, but with the discovery of the Babylonian Chronicles (allowing more accurate dating of Belshazzar's reign), it is clear that the vision of Daniel 8 occurred at least 12 years prior to the night of Belshazzar's blasphemous party in Babylon. The third year is 551 BC and Daniel is a "mature" older saint (~69yo - my age as I write these notes - as an aside young readers remember that God wants to use you fully, every day of your life, so don't "retire" from Christianity when you grow older!) when he received vision #2 of 4 visions. To help keep one's perspective in this great prophetic section of Daniel, recall that Daniel 7-12 describes Daniel's four separate visions which are summarized in the chart below. Notice that the first and second visions are actually given to Daniel during the reign of Belshazzar, and thus chronologically fall between chapters 4 and 5 (are you confused now? See table below). Daniel 5 (Da 5:26-31-note) marks the fall of the Babylonian kingdom and the rise of the Medo-Persian kingdom, during which the prophet received his third (Da 9:1-note, Da 9:23-note) and fourth (Da 10:1-note) visions. The fourth and final vision begins in Daniel 10:1 and extends through the end of the book, Daniel 12:13-note. CHRONOLOGY OF DANIEL'S FOUR VISIONS FIRST VISION SECOND VISION THIRD VISION FOURTH VISION Daniel 4 Daniel 7 Daniel 8 Daniel 5 Daniel 9 Daniel 10 King: Nebuchadnezzar King: Belshazzar's First Year King: Belshazzar's Third Year Fall of Babylon Last Year of Belshazzar King Darius (Mede) 1st Year of Reign King Cyrus (Persian) 3rd Year of Reign ~553BC ~551BC 539BC 539BC ~534BC -- Daniel 7:1-note Daniel 8:1-note -- Da 9:1-note Da 9:23-note Daniel 10:1-note Daniel ~47-51yo Daniel ~67yo Daniel ~69yo Daniel ~81yo Daniel ~81yo Daniel ~86yo For more complete chart see Tony Garland's Book of Daniel - Chronological Structure of Daniel Or looked at from another vantage point… AFTER DANIEL 4 BUT BEFORE DANIEL 5 Vision #1 - Daniel 7:1 - First year of King Belshazzar (~553 BC) - Daniel ~ 67 yo Vision #2 - Daniel 8:1 - Third year of King Belshazzar (~551 BC) - Daniel ~ 69 yo AFTER THE FALL OF BABYLON 539BC Vision #3 - Daniel 9:2, 23 - First year of Darius the Mede (~539 BC) - Daniel ~ 81 yo Vision #4 - Daniel 10:1 - Third year of Cyrus the Persian (~534 BC) - Daniel ~ 86 yo Daniel 8:2 I LOOKED IN THE VISION, AND WHILE I WAS LOOKING I WAS IN THE CITADEL OF SUSA, WHICH IS IN THE PROVINCE OF ELAM; AND I LOOKED IN THE VISION AND I MYSELF WAS BESIDE THE ULAI CANAL: BGT Daniel 8:2 καὶ εἶδον ἐν τῷ ὁράματι τοῦ ἐνυπνίου μου ἐμοῦ ὄντος ἐν Σούσοις τῇ πόλει ἥτις ἐστὶν ἐν Ἐλυμαΐδι χώρᾳ ἔτι ὄντος μου πρὸς τῇ πύλῃ Αιλαμ --- Daniel (TH) 8:2 καὶ ἤμην ἐν Σούσοις τῇ βάρει ἥ ἐστιν ἐν χώρᾳ Αιλαμ καὶ εἶδον ἐν ὁράματι καὶ ἤμην ἐπὶ τοῦ Ουβαλ LXE Daniel 8:2 And I was in Susa the palace, which is in the land of Aelam, and I was on the bank of Ubal. KJV Daniel 8:2 And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai. NET Daniel 8:2 In this vision I saw myself in Susa the citadel, which is located in the province of Elam. In the vision I saw myself at the Ulai Canal. CSB Daniel 8:2 I saw the vision, and as I watched, I was in the fortress city of Susa, in the province of Elam. I saw in the vision that I was beside the Ulai Canal. ESV Daniel 8:2 And I saw in the vision; and when I saw, I was in Susa the citadel, which is in the province of Elam. And I saw in the vision, and I was at the Ulai canal. NIV Daniel 8:2 In my vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa in the province of Elam; in the vision I was beside the Ulai Canal. NLT Daniel 8:2 In this vision I was at the fortress of Susa, in the province of Elam, standing beside the Ulai River. NRS Daniel 8:2 In the vision I was looking and saw myself in Susa the capital, in the province of Elam, and I was by the river Ulai. NJB Daniel 8:2 I gazed at the vision, and as I gazed I found myself in Susa, the citadel in the province of Elam; gazing at the vision, I found myself at the Ulai Gate. NAB Daniel 8:2 In my vision I saw myself in the fortress of Susa in the province of Elam; I was beside the river Ulai. YLT Daniel 8:2 And I see in a vision, and it cometh to pass, in my seeing, and I am in Shushan the palace that is in Elam the province, and I see in a vision, and I have been by the stream Ulai. GWN Daniel 8:2 In my vision I saw myself in the fortress of Susa in the province of Elam. In my vision I saw myself at Ulai Gate. BBE Daniel 8:2 And I saw in the vision; and when I saw it, I was in the strong town Shushan, which is in the country of Elam; and in the vision I was by the water-door of the Ulai. RSV Daniel 8:2 And I saw in the vision; and when I saw, I was in Susa the capital, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision, and I was at the river Ulai. NKJ Daniel 8:2 I saw in the vision, and it so happened while I was looking, that I was in Shushan, the citadel, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision that I was by the River Ulai. ASV Daniel 8:2 And I saw in the vision; now it was so, that when I saw, I was in Shushan the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in the vision, and I was by the river Ulai. DBY Daniel 8:2 And I saw in the vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was in the fortress of Shushan, which is in the province of Elam. And I saw in the vision, and I was by the river Ulai. BHT Daniel 8:2 wä|´er´è BeHäzôn wayühî Bir´ötî wa´ánî Büšûšan haBBîrâ ´ášer Bü`êläm hammüdînâ wä´er´è Be|Häzôn wa´ánî häyîºtî `al-´ûbal ´ûläy NIRV Daniel 8:2 In my vision I saw myself in the city of Susa. It has high walls around it. It is in the land of Elam. In the vision I was beside the Ulai Waterway. I looked in: Da 8:3 7:2,15 Nu 12:6 Heb 1:1 Susa [Shushan]: Neh 1:1 Esther 1:2 2:8 3:15 7:6 8:15 9:11,15 Province: Ge 10:22 14:1 Isa 21:2 Jer 25:25 49:34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 Ezek 32:24 Ulai Canal: Da 8:16 Daniel 8 Resources - multiple sermons and commentaries KJV Daniel 8:2 And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai. NET Daniel 8:2 In this vision I saw myself in Susa the citadel, which is located in the province of Elam. In the vision I saw myself at the Ulai Canal. CSB Daniel 8:2 I saw the vision, and as I watched, I was in the fortress city of Susa, in the province of Elam. I saw in the vision that I was beside the Ulai Canal. ESV Daniel 8:2 And I saw in the vision; and when I saw, I was in Susa the capital, which is in the province of Elam. And I saw in the vision, and I was at the Ulai canal. Citadel of Susa (Shushan = means "lily") (Dictionary Descriptions) - Susa - Wikipedia Susa (Shushan) (See map below - Susa is ~250 miles east of Babylon in modern day Iran) - This place name is found in 19 verses in the OT - Neh 1:1; Esther 1:2, 5; 2:3, 5, 8; 3:15; 4:8, 16; 8:14-15; 9:6, 11-13, 18; Da 8:2. Susa eventually became one of the capitals of the Persian empire almost 100 years after Daniel's time, when the emperor Xerxes built his royal palace there. Susa is also the site of the main events of the book of Esther (Esther Verse by Verse Commentary on site). Finally, God's man Nehemiah lived in Susa as the king's cupbearer. Nehemiah (in about 445BC, over 100 years after Daniel's vision in Da 8:1) wrote "The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now it happened in the month Chislev, in the twentieth year, while I was in Susa the capitol (Heb = biyrah/bira = same word in Da 8:1 for "citadel"), (Neh 1:1) Citadel (01002) (biyrah/bira) - 16x - 1Chr 29:1, 19; Neh 1:1; 2:8; 7:2; Esther 1:2, 5; 2:3, 5, 8; 3:15; 8:14; 9:6, 11, 12; Da 8:2. NAS = capitol(1), citadel(11), fortress(2), temple(2). Brown-Driver-Briggs Expanded Definition - בִּירָה noun feminine castle, palace (late & probably loan-word; compare Assyrian bîrtu, fortress Dl HA 22; Persian bâru = Sanskrit bura, bari, see Ry Nehemiah 2:8) — (1) of temple at Jerusalem 1Chr 29:1,19 הַבִּירָה; of fortress near temple Neh 2:8; Neh 7:2 Neh 1:1; Neh 2:8; Neh 7:2 — B aβιρά, βειρά — and later βaρις Jos Ant.xiv.11,4). (2) בְּשׁוּשַׁן הַבִּירָה Nehemiah 1:1; Esther 1:2,5; Esther 2:3,5,8; Esther 3:15; Esther 8:14; Esther 9:6,11,12; Daniel 8:2; in these passages it apparently means a fortress in the city bearing the same name (compare especially Esther 3:15; Esther 8:14,15; Esther 9:6,12,15,18). Susa + biyrah = 12x) - Neh 1:1 Esther 1:2, 1:5, 2:3, 2:5, 2:8, 3:15, 8:14, 9:6, 9:11, 9:12 Dan 8:2 NET Note - Susa (Heb. שׁוּשַׁן, shushan), located some 230 miles (380 km) east of Babylon, was a winter residence for Persian kings during the Achaemenid period. The language of v. 2 seems to suggest that Daniel may not have been physically present at Susa, but only saw himself there in the vision. However, the Hebrew is difficult, and some have concluded that the first four words of v. 2 in the Masoretic Text are a later addition (cf. Theodotion). Walvoord on Citadel of Susa - (It) was destined in the Persian Empire to become the capital rather than Babylon. This was unknown at the time that this vision was given to Daniel, although Susa had served as the capital of the Elamites in antiquity; and conservative scholars find a genuine prophetic prediction in this reference to Susa… In a word, Daniel finds himself projected in vision to a town little known at that time and unsuspected for future grandeur, but yet destined to be the important capital of Persia, the home of Esther, and the city from which Nehemiah came to Jerusalem. Beginning in 1884, the site of ancient Susa, then a large mound, has been explored and has divulged many archeological treasures. The code of Hammurabi was found there in 1901. The famous palace referred to by Daniel, Esther and Nehemiah was begun by Darius I and enlarged by later kings. Remains of its magnificence can still be seen near the modern village of Shush. This unusual setting described in detail by Daniel in the opening verses of the eighth chapter now becomes the stage on which a great drama is portrayed in symbol describing the conquests of the second and third empires. (Daniel 8 The Vision Of The Ram And The Goat) NET Note - The Hebrew word בִּירָה (birah, “castle, palace”) usually refers to a fortified structure within a city, but here it is in apposition to the city name Susa and therefore has a broader reference to the entire city (against this view, however, see BDB 108 s.v. 2). Cf. NAB “the fortress of Susa”; TEV “the walled city of Susa.” Related Resources on Susa: Ancient archeological site of Susa - YouTube Shushan Palace Book of Esther and Daniel. Bible Archaeology and the History of Israel Elam - A well-known tract, partly mountainous, whose western boundary, starting on the Northeast side of the Persian Gulf, practically followed the course of the lower Tigris. It was bounded on the North by Media, on the East by Persia and on the West by Babylonia. The great capital of the tract was Susa (Shushan). Elam consisted of a plain occupying a depression in the mountains of Iran or Persia. (Adapted from Dictionary Article) And I looked in the vision - Compare "dream and visions" in Da 7:1-note. This statement suggests (1) that Daniel was awake (contrast "dream" in Da 7:1) and (2) that Daniel was not actually in Susa but more likely was transported there in a vision much like the other exilic prophet Ezekiel was transported from Babylon to Jerusalem in his vision of the Temple (cp Ezek 8:3, 11:24, Ezekiel 40:1ff). Some commentators interpret Daniel as actually present physically in Susa but the majority favor his being in Babylon physically and transported in the vision to Susa. In short Daniel is transported supernaturally in both space (Babylon to Susa) and time (into the prophetic future regarding Medo-Persia and Greece). Henry