Page 204 - Daniel

of a sentence because the last part of the sentence related to His second
advent. In a similar way, Daniel’s prophetic vision takes human history
up to the first coming of Christ when the Roman Empire was in sway,
and then leaps to the end of the age when, in fulfillment of prophecy,
the fourth empire will be revived and suffer its fatal judgment at the

hands of Christ at His second coming. This interpretation, though not
without its problems, allows an accurate and detailed interpretation of
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this prophecy. Even Leupold, who may be classified as a conservative
amillenarian, states,

Why does the sequence of historical kingdoms in this vision extend no
farther than the Roman whereas we know that many developments
came after the Roman Empire and have continued to come before the

judgment? We can venture only opinions under this head, opinions
that we believe are reasonable and conform with the situation as it is
outlined. One suggestion to be borne in mind is the fact that the
prophets, barring the conclusion of chapter 9 in Daniel, never see the
interval of time lying between the first and second coming of Christ. In
the matter of history, therefore, Daniel does not see beyond Christ’s
days in the flesh and perhaps the persecution as it came upon the

early church. 62

If Daniel 7 had concluded with verse 14, it is probable, with the help
of the book of Revelation and other scriptural passages, that a
reasonable explanation could be made of the text. In view of the
complexity and importance of the prophecy, the chapter continues to
give the reader a divinely inspired interpretation. It should be borne in

mind that while a symbol is obviously parabolic and figurative, its
interpretation should be taken literally. Accordingly, the explanation can
be taken as a factual exegesis of the truth involved in the vision.

THE INTERPRETATION OF THE FOUR BEASTS (7:15–18)

7:15–18 “As for me, Daniel, my spirit within me was anxious, and the
visions of my head alarmed me. I approached one of those who stood
there and asked him the truth concerning all this. So he told me and