What Gabriel said is found below.
Dan 8:20 The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia.
Dan 8:21 And the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king.
Dan 8:22 Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.
Dan 8:23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.
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Thanks for quoting Daniel 8, BABeran. Unfourentely, like myself in the past, many people tried to use world history with Daniel 8 for literal interpretations. I have heard about Antiochus IV Epiphanes, Greece and Iran/Iraq etc. etc.
As I said, God is not interested in world history lessons as interpretation for His prophecies. Instead of giving a full commentary of Daniel 8 which is a whole study in itself, I will briefly summarize what Daniel 8 generally talks about.
In God's eyes, by comparing Scripture with Scripture, the vision is about Ram and HeGoat. They transcend time. The Ram with two horns being the kings of Media and Persia. It has two horns. Both horns are high, but the higher came up last. These horns spiritually represent the power of God's powerful congregations, the Old and the New. Remember the horn represents power? Both congregations had the power of the Gospel but it is the New Testament Congregation that came last (or came after the first) is higher because this congregation went forth to the whole world with Gospel.
The rough goat, the king of Grecia, represents Satan and his kingdom. While Satan rules the heathen world, He also rules through false prophets and Christs of the congregation with "dark sentences" of verse 23. Allow me to explain:
It is all about the
word, as it is the gospel, the hidden wisdom of God delineated in mysteries, proverbs, parables, riddles, etc. In fact, the word used is actually translated riddle 9 times. By Daniel chapter 8 declaring that this ruler that arises will have an understanding of dark sentences, God is portraying him as a pastor/preacher/minister of the gospel. Dark sentences or Dark Sayings [
chiydah] in scripture are a synonym for the mysteries of God's word, which in a sense is hidden or as a riddle not easily understood. By contrast:
Numbers 12:7-8
- "My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house.
- With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?"
That word translated "dark speech" is the same word translated dark sayings. In this context it means God will not speak to God in dark sayings, but very plainly!
God's Word is "normally" written
cryptically, with
deeper spiritual meanings, in
secrets,
hidden mysteries,
proverbs,
parables, etc. We can get some idea of its meaning by considering the context of the passages that employ the phrase:
Psalms 78:1-2
- "Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
- I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:"
Proverbs 1:5-6
- "A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:
- To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings."
Dark sayings are the same word translated dark sentences. It is equated to the "understanding of God's cryptic word."
Okay? Now in the context of Daniel 8, speaking about the latter time of the kingdom, which is obviously the end-time period prior to Second Coming, the Evil Ruler rising after his ministers take over God's New Testament congregation. It means he will be a minister of the gospel, having the understanding to use God's Word
craftily,
cunningly to
gain the advantage of the Church. That old serpent Satan, as the snake in the Garden, understands the law of God to a certain degree, but like his disciples is "subtle" to
twist it to his own advantage. That is to say, he is the "false Christ," the
seducer to use God's dark sayings of scripture to trick or deceive the people that they would forsake Christ while thinking they serve him (John 16:2). For example, this is what Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyers, Johnthan Prince, Todd White, etc. are doing to God's congregaiton with their lies. This is how Satan is "revealed" through them . Satan is the
master deceiver and the
father of lies, and his army of false prophets and christs come in that same subtle and subtil way, masquerading imperceptibly as those of love of God, who brings peace and who minister righteousness. As Satan coming into the Garden asking cleverly, "Hath God Said?" Another way to say Antichrist, literally, is to say PseudoChrist or Substitute Christ (FalseChrist). Jesus warned in Matthew 24, that there will be a RISE of false Christs and prophets within God's congregation, and He wasn't talking about the few mentally ill persons who actually claim they are Christ. For they don't deceive anyone. Those coming insomuch as they would
deceive the very elect if it were possible. Their doctrine will sounds so good that the Elect could almost couldn't tell the truth from a lie.
These are the False Christs
far more sinister and dangerous than some mentally ill individuals claiming to be the Messiah. Let's not forget, God's word doesn't warn us that Satan comes as a messenger of light for nothing! It's because he comes as a minister of the gospel, of dark sentences, shrewdly praising God with his mouth and subverting with a bible in his hand. All of this through his false prophets and christs you see in the church today! I am not kidding. As the Priests in Christ's day, understanding dark sentences, but with
no "Spiritual" discernment.
2nd Corinthians 11:13-15
- "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
- And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
- Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works."
Satan himself comes "appearing" as a Messenger of light and life, an ambassador of the gospel when he is really the Messenger/Angel of death and darkness! So it is no great thing if his ministers like, Joel Osteen, also come appearing as "ministers of righteousness." And that is exactly what Daniel chapter 8 means when speaking of this ruler that shall arise, understanding dark sayings, and "thus" causing great destruction and apostasy in God's congregation... in the latter-day of Satan's kingdom prior the end. In other words, when Satan comes out of the bottomless pit after God has finish building His New testament Congregation after secured all Elect He intends to seal ahs been sealed!
Daniel 8:23-25
- "And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, [chiydah] shall stand up.
- And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.
- And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand."
After the transgressors (false prophets and christs) come to the full in the congregation to deceive people, THEN Satan is loosed, BY GOD, to bring judgment upon His unfaithful Church. Satan destroys the holy people by silencing their truthful testimony (ie. when the beast kill the Two Witnesses) with his understanding of dark sayings, that he may deceive them thereby. That he may sit to rule as king in the Holy Temple of God
"as if" he were God (2nd Thessalonians 2). This is how Satan is revealed to us, Elect, through his ministers, if we have eyes to see who they are! His ministers are those serving him and yet coming with praises of God in their mouths. Those having their lips dripping with the juices of
spiritual fornication as ministers of Satan while espoused to Christ.
Just like the
Priests, Scribes and the Pharisees of the Old Testament Israel appearing righteous to the masses, with their prayers and studies, and traditions. They understood the scriptures front and back, looked for the Messiah, preached of the restoration, joyed in the inheritance of the Jews, but for all their "apparent" understanding of the word,
Christ says they were of their father the Devil. It is because they understood and used the dark sayings, not in the Spirit of Christ to the glory of God, but
in the spirit of Satan, and
to their own glory and advantage. Or again, as Satan knew Christ, and understood scripture, even serving up passages to Christ to try and deceive Him in the desert:
Luke 4:9-13
- "And he brought him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence:
- For it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee:
- And in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
- And Jesus answering said unto him, It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
- And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him for a season."
Here we have Satan, having knowledge and understanding of the scriptures like the average Jewish person of the day would never understand,
but using them deceitfully and out of context. And How does the Lord answer the great deceiver's scriptures? With an example to all of us of
how we are to answer them. He answers with "other scriptures"
qualifying the scripture that Satan offered, declaring
It is Written Again... In other words, Christ says there is more than simply that one "out of context" passage Satan quoted that needed to be considered and harmonized. This is why it is IMPORTANT to compare Scripture with Scripture. Not Scripture with World History! And this is how we overcome the great deceiver as well.
By trying/testing the Spirits by the word of God. That way we will never be deceived by sententious language or dark sayings twisted by Satan's ministers.
We'll know the gathering of nations in Ekiekel 38/39 and Revelation 20 has
NOTHING to do with Russian, nor the camp of the saints with the physical land of Israel in the middle east, nor the reign of Christ with an establishment of an earthly/worldly Kingdom in Jerusalem for 1,000 years.
Because we have something those deceived don't have.
The Spirit of truth that "teaches" through the word, rather than the spirit of Antichrist that teaches through the world. And we not be left ashamed by listening to the words of men rather than the words of the Bible. That we are not seduced, deceived, led away in different lusts by the great harlot.
1st John 2:26-28
- "These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you.
- But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
- And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming."
If we hold fast to the doctrines taught us, we will not be deceived by the evil ruler arising that has an understanding of dark sentences. Though he will be skilled in subtlety and understands how to use the bible to gain advantage and position, we have one greater dwelling within us that teaches us what is truth and what is lawlessness. This is who the King of Grecia is. He is the enemy of God's congregation, the Ram, representing old and new congregation.
Right now, I KNOW that Satan has already been loosened from the bottomless pit and is attacking God's congregations all over the world to deceive many with false teachings. But his power and reign will only last a short season which is what the "little horn" refers to!
Hope this helps.