Daniel has a dream and a vision given by god about the gentile nations of the world and gods dealing with them. The phrase you are referring to, the ancient of days, only occurs three times in the entire bible. A careful study of the text helps reveal the identity of this supernatural being. This passage from daniel tells about, and actually describes, the ancient of days. I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool. Ancient of days is used either to emphasize the contrast between the true god and the idols, the new gods judges, v.
The ancient of days god doesnt get any lines in the book of daniel, but hes the hidden master, pulling all the strings, controlling every event in the story as it moves along. The book of daniel is a 2ndcentury bc biblical apocalypse combining a prophecy of history with an eschatology a portrayal of end times cosmic in scope and political in focus. Satan had tried to keep daniel from understanding the visions he had received and thus prevent gods truth from being revealed. The ancient of days is a design by william blake, originally published as the frontispiece to the 1794 work europe a prophecy. Daniels visions interpreted 21 as i watched, this horn was waging war against the saints and prevailing against them, 22 until the ancient of days arrived and pronounced judgment in favor of the saints of the most high, and the time came for them to possess the kingdom. Nine of the 12 chapters relate revelation through dreams and visions. An obscure 300year old interpretation of the book of daniel presents a precise calculation which indicates the prophet spoke of this year as bringing the end of days. Discover the meaning of this biblical phrase and its influence in culture and art.
One rabbi agrees, believing that daniels ancient, hidden secrets are being revealed now as never before. All these occurrences show up in the book of daniel, the seventh chapter, in verses 9, and 22. The book of daniel begins with king nebuchadnezzar, the ruler of babylon, ransacking jerusalem. Ancient of days sermon by shelly griffin, daniel 7. Until the ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most high. And, of course, i ended up marrying a man named daniel. Read more hearing this, the king was deeply troubled, and he tried to think of a way to save daniel. Ancient of days holman bible dictionary bible dictionary. The most common designation this obviously divine character is god himself. His vesture was like white snowand the hair of his head like pure wool. There are ancient history books that are mentioned and recommended by the bible.
There an ancient, or venerable, person sits on a flaming throne with wheels of fire, his hair and clothing white as snow. Daniel was gods mouthpiece to the gentile and jewish world, declaring gods current and future plans. Ancient of days, or head of days, is a name for god in thebook of daniel. His outstretched hand holds a compass over the darker void below. Ancient of days is a name for god in the book of daniel. The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on the earth, different from all the.
In my last semester of uni, the christian group i was part of preached through daniel. Disliking the anthropomorphic picture of god in daniel 7. The book of daniel is followed by the prophet hosea, the first of the prophets in the book of the twelve. Vision of the ancient of days i watched till thrones were put in place, and the ancient of days was seated. The ancient hebrew prophet daniel lived in the fifth century. The king james version of the bible rendered both attik yomin in daniel 7. It draws its name from one of gods titles in the book of daniel and shows urizen crouching in a circular design with a cloudlike background. Daniel bridges the entire 70 years of the babylonian captivity from 605 to 536 b. This final chapter of the book of daniel focuses on the end timethe time just before and after jesus christ returns to earth. His garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head was like pure wool.
God is a triune god, meaning three persons in one, and at different times ancient of days refers to jesus christ and at other times, to god the father. There is some debate among scholars regarding whether the title ancient of days refers to god the father or god the son in these passages. These kingdoms are finally overthrown when the ancient of days sits in judgment over them on his glorious throne and gives dominion and an eternal kingdom to one like a son of man whom all peoples are to. In the bible the ancient of days is mentioned in only the book of daniel. And i saw one like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. Daniel has visions of the future, and todays scripture is from one of those visions. Daniel 7, a hotbed for eschatological theorizing, continues to baffle commentators, past and present. The identity of the ancient of days is an interesting question. This volume contains the entire 91 chapters plus a detailed analysis of the supposed discrepancies, crossreferenced historical accounts, and detailed charts for ease of use. According to the international standard bible encyclopedia, the expression is used in reference to god in daniel 7.
Verse can only refer to the father because, of course, the son of man who camebefore him is christ. Daniels vision of the ancient of days 12 as for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was removed, but they were granted an extension of life for a season and a time. The book of daniel is one of my favourites, and it seems to pop up in significant places. This prophecy aligns with jesus speaking in matthew 24, and the book. This book of daniel highlights and aligns the prophecy of daniel to the historical facts and dates up to and beyond our present day, this proving the fulfilment of these prophecies. One of my favorite names for god is ancient of days. Discover the meaning of this biblical phrase and its influence in.
What he saw no doubt filled him and should fill us too with awe. Jesus claim to be the ancient of days, hence a divine being resulted in his conviction of a crime worthy of crucifixion. Check out this weeks message takeaway as pastor doug wraps up our series through the book of daniel. Thus, there is no contradiction in the writings of st. The title ancient of days is from the old testament prophetic book of daniel. The ancient book of jasher is the only one of the that still exists. Finally, the book of revelation gives clues as to the true identify of the ancient of days. The ancient of days is a figure in one of daniels visions that.
The book of daniel contains two types of literature. His throne was ablaze with flames,its wheels were a. And the prophecies they reveal and ancient book of daniel as well as ancient prophecies revealed. If you are a serious student of the prophesies of the bible, you might also want to read his book ancient messianic festivals.
Ancient book of daniel kindle edition by ken johnson. Though hes the secret wizard of oz behind the scenes, clicking the switches, god seems to hang back a little in this book. Clearly, the book of daniel contains two very different threads. One who had a head of days, and with him was another being whose countenance had the appearance of a man. The phrase ancient of days is unique to the book of daniel.
The ancient reference in verse is most interesting. In fact, ibn ezra singled out the archangel michael as the ancient of days. The narratives show us that jehovah god blesses those who maintain integrity to him. He approached the ancient of days and was led into his presence. The ancient of days existed prior to these days of creation, existing literally as the ancient of days. The ancient of days reigns daniel 7 john macarthur. There can be little doubt that chapter seven referring to the ancient of days was of great significance to blake since many of blakes motifs appear there. John, and no contradictions between the liturgical hymns of the meeting of the lord or the nativity that speak of the ancient of days becoming a child and the patristic consensus on daniel 7 which sees the ancient of days there as being clearly the father. Ancient of days is a name for god found numerous times in the book of daniel. The prophet daniel is one of four major prophets in hebrew scripture, along with isaiah, jeremiah, and ezekiel. He ends up taking back the cream of the crop, the most elite and noble israelites, to serve at his court in babylon. Daniel 7 describes a succession of kingdoms appearing as various beasts. Ancient secret of daniels 70 weeks predicts end of days. The phrase ancient of days occurs three times in the bible, and all three references are found in chapter 7 of daniel verses 9, 22.
Notice how daniel described what he was privileged to see in vision. The first 6 chapters of the book have been a narrativetelling us the story of daniels life. Who is the ancient of days referred to in daniel 7. It was the venerable appearance of old age that was uppermost. Consider the following and you will notice that this title positively refers to both the father and. The ancient of days is a figure in one of daniels visions that unquestionably represents god.
The title ancient of days first appears in daniel 7. Daniel who through the book received revelations from god. Its a very timeworn name, which first appears in the book of daniel, chapter7. The solution to the identity of the ancient of days is in my opinion, one that is without controversy. In more mundane language, it is an account of the activities and visions of daniel, a noble jew exiled at babylon, its message being that just as the god of israel saved daniel and his friends from their enemies, so. God is referenced as the ancient of days three times in the book of daniel, chapter seven. Icons of the ancient of days saint jonah orthodox church. The ancient of days a journey through daniel over the.
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