DANIEL’S Vision of the Ram and He-Goat continues. Dan. 8:9-14, 22-25
“The empire was in full strength at Alexander’s death by fever at Babylon and seemed then least likely to fall. Yet it was then “broken.” His natural brother, Philip Aridœus, and his two sons, Alexander Ægus and Hercules, in fifteen months, were murdered. for it came up four notable ones, toward the four winds of heaven—Seleucus, in the east, obtained Syria, Babylonia, Media. &c. Cassander, in the west, Macedon, Thessaly, Greece. Ptolemy, in the south, Egypt, Cyprus, &c. Lysimachus, in the north, Thrace, Cappadocia, and the north parts of Asia Minor.”
- Dan. 8:9-12, 22-25. ‘out of one of them came forth a little horn’—”not to be confounded with the little horn of the fourth kingdom in ch. 7:8. The little horn in ch. 7. comes as an eleventh horn after ten preceding horns. In ch. 8. it is not an independent fifth horn, after the four previous ones, but arises out of one of the four existing horns. This horn is explained (v. 23) to be “a king of fierce countenance,” &c. Antiochus Epiphanes is meant. Greece, with all its refinement, produces the first—i.e., the Old Testament Antichrist. Antiochus had an extraordinary love of art, which expressed itself in grand temples. He wished to substitute Zeus Olympius for Jehovah at Jerusalem. Thus, first, heathen civilization from below and revealed religion from above came into collision. Identifying himself with Jupiter, his aim was to make his own worship universal (cf. v. 25 with ch. 11:36): so mad was he in this that he was called Epimanes (maniac) instead of Epiphanes (illustrious). None of the previous world-rulers, Nebuchadnezzar (ch. 4:31–34), Darius (ch. 6:27, 28), Cyrus (Ezra 1:2–4), Artaxerxes LoNgimanus (Ezra 7:12), had systematically opposed the Jews’ religious worship.” Fauseet A. R. “Antiochus IV (175-163 b.c.), ruler of the Seleucid dynasty, who conquered surrounding areas to the south and to the east but especially dominated the beautiful land of Israel. He brutally trampled and persecuted the Jewish people from 170-164 b.c. Antiochus blasphemously presented himself as the Prince of the host, God Himself (called the Prince of princes in 8:25), stopping daily sacrifice and defiling the holy temple (His sanctuary) in Jerusalem (167 b.c.). He will be successful, but only temporarily.” HCSB “Antiochus is a remarkable type of the Beast, the terrible “little horn” of the last days. Verses 24, 25 go beyond Antiochus and evidently refer to the “little horn” of Daniel 7. Both Antiochus and the Beast, but the Beast pre-eminently, are in view in verses 24, 25. That the “little horn” of Dan. 7. cannot be the little horn of Dan. 8:9–13, 23, is evident. The former comes up among the ten horns into which the fourth empire (Roman) is to be divided; the little horn of Dan. 8. comes out of one of the four kingdoms into which the third (Grecian) empire was divided (v. 23), and in “the latter time” of the four kingdoms (vs. 22, 23). This was historically true of Antiochus Epiphanes. They are alike in hatred of the Jews and of God, and in profaning the temple. Cf. 7:25 (the Beast) with 8:10–12 (Antiochus).” Scofield. 8 :13-14” An angel announced that Antiochus’s defilement of Israel would last only 2,300 evenings and mornings, until the temple was rededicated by Judas Maccabeus in 164 b.c. This event is still celebrated by Jewish people today during the festival of Chanukah (Eng “Dedication,” see Jn 10:22-23).
8:15-16” HCSB. continues
