Daniel Chapter 8 Lesson

The King James Version (KJV) is mostly used in these lessons. Click here to access the KJV online.

Chronologically speaking, this vision takes place after that reported in chapter 7, and both of them take place during the reign of Belshazzar, thus placing the chapter in time before Daniel 5.

(Dan 8:2) 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.

Shushan in the province of Elam may seem enigmatic. According to Isaiah 21:2, the province was allied to the Medes. But Jeremiah 49:39 shows that it had been taken over by Babylon, and it was linked to Babylon when this vision took place. Apparently Daniel was there on the king’s business.

(Dan 8:3) 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.

(Dan 8:4) 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.

The ram is identified in verse 20 as the kingdoms of Media and Persia, thus associating it with the second beast of Daniel 7. By this time Babylon was so close to the end of its power that it is no longer mentioned in revelation. The two horns aptly represent the association of Media and Persia as one empire.

(Dan 8:5) 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.

(Dan 8:6) 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.

(Dan 8:7) 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, but he cast him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand.

The rough goat is identified in verse 21 as Grecia. It thus corresponds to the four-headed leopard of chapter seven. The notable horn here is an apt representation of Alexander the great, and the prediction describes his conquest accurately.

(Dan 8:8) 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.

At the death of Alexander, his brother Philip Aridaeus was declared king. Along with Alexanders infant sons, Alexander Aegus and Hercules, the empire continued for a time, but at length the boys were murdered. At that time, the four principle generals, who had dispersed into the four quarters of the empire to serve as governers, each assumed the title of king. These were Cassander in Greece and its surroundings, Lysimachus in Asia Minor, Seleucus in Syria and Babylon, and Ptolemy in Egypt.

(Dan 8:9) 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.

(Dan 8:10) 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.

(Dan 8:11) 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.

(Dan 8:12) 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.

The greatest problem of interpreting Daniel lies in identifying the little horn. All other powers are identified by name: Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Greece. History shows that Rome is the great empire that came after Greece, and it would be natural to assume that the little horn of Daniel 8 corresponds to the legs of iron in Daniel 2 and the terrible beast in Daniel 7. The structural argument, that Rome fits the slot, is a strong one.

Near the end of the first century A.D. Josephus, a Jewish collaborator with the Roman empire, interpreted the little horn to be Antiochus Epiphanes, a minor Seleucid king who desecrated the temple in Jerusalem about 160 years before Christ. His motive was to deflect negative statements in the Scriptures from his friends the Romans. During the Protestant Reformation, when the reformers aims heavy accusations against Rome relying on these and other passages, Josephus’ interpretation again served to deflect accusations against Rome. These unworthy motivations underlie the present scholarly understanding that Antiochus is meant by the little horn.

Antiochus was simply the eighth of 26 Syrian kings. If the little horn is one of these kings, it should be the greatest, not one of the feeblest. The little horn was “exceeding great” that is greater than Persia, which was just great (Esther 1:1) and Grecia, which is called very great. The little horn was to stand up against the Prince of princes, an expression that must refer to the Messiah, who certainly did not live during the time of Antiochus, but later.

How did Rome come out of one of the four horns? In 168 B.C. Rome conquered Macedonia, and by the authority of having so done, it became connected with the Jews by the Jewish League in 161 B. C. The prophecy accurately indicates the path by which Rome was introduced into the area of Jerusalem. Rome waxed great toward the south, making Egypt a province in 30 B.C. It waxed great toward the east, making Syria a province in 65 B.C. Rome waxed great toward the pleasant land, that is Judea, and made it a province in 63 B. C. It eventually destroyed the city and the temple, and scattered the Jews throughout the earth.

(Dan 8:13) Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?

(Dan 8:14) And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.

These two verses are a different subject. The world empires are discussed in verses 1-12. These verses refer to the time of the cleansing of the sanctuary. Verse 13 speaks of the end of the earthly sanctuary, and verse 14 draws the attention to the heavenly sanctuary, at a time when the earthly sanctuary no longer exists. These verses become clear only in Daniel 9. But the explanation of verses 1-12 is found in the second half of Daniel 8, as follows.

(Dan 8:15) And it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision, and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man.

(Dan 8:16) And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.

(Dan 8:17) So he came near where I stood: and when he came, I was afraid, and fell upon my face: but he said unto me, Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end shall be the vision.

Daniel fell on his face in prostration out of fear. This is why the angel did not chide him, as the angel did twice in the book of Revelation, when John fell down in prostration of worship.

(Dan 8:18) Now as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep on my face toward the ground: but he touched me, and set me upright.

The deep sleep is mentioned several times in connection with revelation. This seems to correspond to the concept of a trance in modern language. Ellen White at times showed the same characteristics as Daniel.

(Dan 8:19) And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end shall be.

(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.

The interpretation in regard to Medo-Persia and Grecia is clear, even to the degree of power of the four kingdoms into which Alexander’s empire split.

(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.

(Dan 8:24) 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.

(Dan 8:25) 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.

The Roman power is predicted to attack the Messiah, the Prince of princes.

(Dan 8:26) 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.

(Dan 8:27) And I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain days; afterward I rose up, and did the king's business; and I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it.

The interpretation in regard to the cleansing of the sanctuary, that is, the end of the 2300 days, made Daniel ill. This was because of the extreme length of time involved. Looking forward to more than 2000 years was more than Daniel could take.