Imatges de pàgina
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devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

Thus he said, The fourth beast resembleth the fourth of these great imperial governments, which shall be worse to God's people than all the rest: this shall be the usurped kingdom of the posterity of Seleucus Nicanor, which, upon the extinction of the line of Alexander the Great, shall set up a new kingdom in Ba, bylon; and tyrannize most cruelly over the Church of God, the people of the Jews, and waste and destroy it to his utmost.

VII. 24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall arise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

And the ten horns are ten several kings, which shall arise and succeed, out of this stock, in this government; and the last of the ten, which shall be more cruel than his fellows, shall be that bloody king, Antiochus Epiphanes, who shall defeat and displace three kings, to make room for himself.

VII. 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.

And he shall blasphemously and impiously oppose himself against the religion of the Most High God; and shall endeavour, all be can, to root out the Jewish people, and shall go about to change or abrogate their solemnities and their laws; and they shall, in the just proceedings of God, be given up into his hand, for the space of three years, and somewhat more.

VII. 26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

But the powerful and righteous Judge of the World, who noteth all his wicked courses, shall soon call him to account, for all his cursed impiety and intolerable cruelty, and shall bring his kingdom to utter ruin.

VII. 27 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.

And after this, the Son of God being exhibited upon earth, his Church shall be enlarged, so as all the kingdoms and dominions upon earth shall submit themselves to the regiment of their God and Saviour.

VII. 28 Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.

Hitherto, I have related the speech, which the angel had with me, concerning these great affairs of the Church and the World; as for me, Daniel, my thoughts were much perplexed with the consideration of these wonderful visions, and my very countenance could not but bewray much trouble in my heart; but I did carefully lay up and meditate on all these dreadful representations.

DANIEL.

535

VIII. 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.

There was a second vision represented unto me; wherein, methought, I was at Shushan, in the royal palace, within the borders. of Persia; and was sitting by the river Ulai, which runneth by the said palace and city.

VIII. 3 Then I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there stood before the river a ram which had two horns: and the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last.

Then I lifted up mine eyes, and I saw certain other resemblances of those same three Kingdoms and Monarchies, which shall follow upon the expiration of this of Babylon, which is now near to an end: the first whereof was represented to me, under the type of a ram with two horns, in signification of the two kingdoms united of Media and Persia; and these two sovereignties were very high and great, but the Median government was in time before that of Persia, and the higher in power was the later in

time.

VIII. 4 I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and became great.

I saw this Persian Monarchy assailing all the nations round about, both towards the west, and the north, and the south; neither could any kingdom stand before it, or be free from the power and subjugation thereof; by the spoils and ruins of all which, this kingdom became great.

VIII. 5 And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.

And as I was considering, behold, a rough goat, figuring the Grecian or Macedonian Empire, came from the west, and invaded all the kingdoms of the earth; and he came on, so swiftly, as if he had not touched the ground in his passage: and this empire was famoused and enlarged by an eminent king, which was Alexander the Great, who is set forth by that notable horn, which arose between the eyes of this Grecian goat.

VIII. 6 And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power.

And this Macedonian monarch came to the Persian Ram, which had those two great titles and kingdoms, and set upon him in the fury of his great and unresistible power.

VIII. 7 And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him. And I saw him assault the Persian Monarchy, being moved with choler and rage, and smite it, and break off his two great domi

nions of Media and Persia: and there was no power in the Persian to stand before him.

VIII. 8 Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven.

Therefore the Macedonian Monarchy waxed very great and strong : and, when it was at the strongest, Ålexander the Great, who was the remarkable horn betwixt the eyes of that goat, in his return from his eastern conquest, died; and, in his stead, came up four governors, which were the chief commanders under him, and divided his kingdoms amongst them; even in all the coasts of the world: Cassander possessed himself of Macedonia; Seleucus, of Syria; Antigonus, of Asia the less; and Ptolemy of Egypt.

VIII. 9 And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land.

And, shortly after, the government coming into two hands, Seleucus of Syria and Ptolemy of Egypt, out of the one of them, namely Seleucus, there came forth, at last, a king, which seemed but of small power at his first beginnings; even Antiochus Epiphanes, who became afterwards exceeding great, extending his dominions both to the southward, and to the east, and to the choice and pleasant land of Judea.

VIII. 10 And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.

And this king grew mighty and insolent; daring to war against the God of Heaven, and his Saints on earth: and against some of them he prevailed accordingly; casting to the ground and trampling upon those, that were most noted for piety and holiness.

VIII. 11 Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.

Yea, he presumed to exalt himself so far, as to offer defiance to the God of Heaven; and by him, the daily sacrifice, which God hath enjoined to his people, and all the public service required by God's law, was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary defiled

and broken down.

VIII. 12 And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.

And a whole army of apostates were given over, by reason of their great sins and transgressions, to take part with him against the holy worship of God; and they spitefully opposed the truth of God, and prevailed in their impious practices.

VIII. 13 Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vi sion concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desola tion, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?

Then I heard one angel speaking; even an angel speaking to Christ, the Eternal Son of God, who hath all secrets exactly numbered; and saying to him, How long shall be the continuance of the matter, contained in this vision? How long shall the daily sacrifice be abolished and interdicted? How long shall be the time of this desolation, which our transgressions have caused? How long shall it be, that the sanctuary and the people of God shall be trodden under foot?

VIII. 14 And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.

And he said unto me, in whose behalf this question was moved by the angel, It shall be for the space of two thousand and three hundred natural days, or, six years, three months, and eighteen days; at the end whereof, the sanctuary shall be cleansed, and God's worship restored.

VIII. 16 And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.

And I heard the voice of Him, who was the Word of his Father, speaking in the tone of a man, betwixt the banks of Ulai; which called, and said, Gabriel, it is the pleasure of Him, who is the God of Spirits, that thou make this man to understand the vision. VIII. 17 Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end shall be the vision.

Understand, O son of man: for at the expiration of the time determined, shall this vision be accomplished.

VIII. 20 The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia. See verse 2 of this chapter. The interpretation of the rest of this chapter is in the preceding

verses.

VIII. 23 And in the latter times of their kingdom, when the transgressions are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.

And towards the latter end of the kingdom of the Seleucida, when the transgressions of the world and of my people are come to their full height, there shall arise a king of a fierce countenance and disposition, and one that is of a great wit and deep understanding; even Antiochus Epiphanes.

VIII. 24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully.

And his power shall be great; yet shall not he do so great things by his power, as by his craft and subtlety: by both, he shall destroy wonderfully.'

VIII. 25 And by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without

hand.

By fair and colourable treaties, and pretences of peace, he shall destroy many: he shall exalt himself against God himself, but he shall speed accordingly; for he shall be brought to a most misera.

ble death, by the immediate hand of God, plaguing him for all his wickednesses.

VIII. 26 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.

And the vision, which concerned the continuance of this calamity, for the space of so many natural days as are therein expressed, namely 2300, is true: wherefore, make thou full account of the performance of all this vision; and keep it close to thyself; for it will be long, ere all things contained in these several visions shall be accordingly accomplished, even no less than the space of three hundred years.

VIII. 27 And I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it.

I was secretly astonished in myself, at the consideration of this vision; but I kept it to myself, according to the command of God by his angel, and did not reveal it unto any man,

IX. 2 I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he should accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. 1, Daniel, understood by the relation of those histories, which were written of those affairs and times, that the number of years, which God had, in his word to Jeremiah the prophet, predefined, for the continuance of the captivity of the Jews and the desolation of Jerusalem, viz. seventy years, were now near to their expiration.

IX. 14 Therefore hath the LORD watched upon the evil, and brought it upon us.

Therefore the Lord hath let slip no opportunity, nor no means, that might inflict just punishment upon us.

IX. 21 Yea, while I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. While I was uttering my prayer unto God, the angel Gabriel, whom I had seen before in my late vision, being sent immediately from God, came to me, and cheered me up, about the time of the evening sacrifice.

IX. 24 Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.

Within the space of four hundred and ninety years, which are seventy weeks of years, or seventy times seven, the people of God shall have a double blessing happily conferred upon them; that is, a free and gracious remission of sin, and everlasting righteousness, by the exhibition, and by the death and passion, of Christ the Saviour; who shall fulfil all those prophecies, which have been before of him, and shall preach to the world that saving Gospel,

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