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and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he be lieved in his God: this miracle was the reward of his faith and zeal, and gave the king spirit to punish Daniel's persecutors, and honour Daniel's God.

And the king commanded, and they brought those men which had accused Daniel, that is, the principal of them, and they cast [them] into the den of lions, them, their children, and their wives; and the lions had the mastery of them, and brake all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the den; being let down by cords, they were killed as fast as they went down by the lions, without staying to satisfy their hunger on their carcasses; which plainly showed that Daniel's deliverance was miraculous.

Then king Darius wrote unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto 26 you. I make a decree, that in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he [is]. the living God, and steadfast for ever, and his kingdom [tbon j which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion [shall) power] unto the end; this was going a great way, but not far enough 27 to abolish idolatry, and establish the worship of Jehovah. He delivereth from trouble, and rescueth out of it, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath delivered 28 Daniel from the power of the lions. So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian, his nephew, who succeeded him.

1.

H

REFLECTIONS.

OW careful should we be, whatever our stations are, to behave in an honest, prudent, unblameable manner. This was Daniel's praise. His enemies narrowly watched him, but could find no injustice, negligence, or even indiscretion in him. Thus should we study to behave with integrity, caution, and prudence; providing things honest in the sight of all men: that our good may not be evil spoken of; and that they who seek occasion against us may find none.

2. We have here a noble example of steadiness in religion. Daniel prayed in his family as often, and in the same manner as before, notwithstanding the edict. Neither his age, honour, nor great business, made him neglect his daily devotions. Many would have thought him imprudent in this; to save his life, he might surely have left off praying for a month ; or have prayed privately: but he kept steadily to his pious practice, and would not omit his duty, even in the face of death. This is very contrary to many of those which in the present day are called prudential maxims; but prudence, as it is called, is often shameful

cowardice, loving the praise of men more than the praise of God, and making way for other and greater omissions. Let the servants of the living God be steady and uniform in their devotions and obedience, and arm themselves with courage against all the terror and scorn of the world.

3. Observe the care which God takes of his faithful servants : He approved and rewarded Daniel's steadiness, though men might blame his rashness and imprudence. His power stopped the mouths of the furious lions; and He, who gave his angels charge to preserve Daniel, can deliver his servants in the greatest dangers. Let an humble confidence in his power restrain that fear of man, which bringeth a snare. Let us faithfully do our duty; and then he will be our refuge and strength; and a present help in time of trouble,

4. See and adore the justice of God in the destruction of Daniel's persecutors. Their deep laid schemes came to nothing; vea, their evil doings came upon their own heads; and even their

and

lies, which they thought to have aggrandized by Daniel's rumore destroyed with them: in the snare which they laid for him, were their own feet taken. Thus, as the psalmist observes, the Lord is known by the judgments which he executeth; and the wicked is ensnared in the work of his own hands.

CHAP. VII.

Daniel's vision of the four beasts; of God's kingdom; and the interpretation thereof.

1

In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, that is, sen

enteen years before the events recorded in the last chapter, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed : then he wrote the dream, (and) told the sum of the matters. 2 Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea; referring to the four greatest monarchies of the earth, and the vio3 lent commotion that attended their rise. And four great beasts 4 came up from the sea, diverse one from another. The first [was] like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and, or, wherewith, it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a 5 man's heart was given to it.* And behold, another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, or,

This refers to the Babylonian and Median monarchy, which arose on the ruin of the Assyrian. It was as a lion for fierceness, and as an eagle for speed; but its wings were plucked; many enemies arose in the last years of that empire; and it then became more rame and tractable than before; and its princes were taught to consider themselves as mere human creatures.

it raised up one dominion, and (it had] three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it and they said thus unto it, 6 Arise, devour much flesh.* After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, a fierce creature, which springs with exceeding velocity upon its prey, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and 7 dominion was given to it. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it and it [was] diverse from all the beasts thrat [were] 8 before it; and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn [were] eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things; that is, blasphemies and excommunications; referring to the pope, as will be explained afterwards. The design of the next section is to comfort the people of God under the tyranny of this power, to assure them of God's universal providence, the security of Christ's kingdom, and the destruction of antichrist.

9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, rather, till the thrones were set or placed, and the Antient of days did sit, whose garment [was] white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne (was like) the fiery flame, 10 [and] his wheels [as] burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened; intimating that God would appear by some remarkable 11 judgments to put an end to the papal power. I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld [even] till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, 12 and given to the burning flame. As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time; that is, the wasting of the other kingdoms shall be gradual; though they change their masters, and have not their former power, yet they shall continue as nations; but the destruction of the last shall be great and 13 entire, and no kingdom shall succeed it. I saw in the night visions, and, behold, [one] like the Son of man came with the

This refers to the Persian empire: it was subject to the Medes at the conquest of Babylon, but soon raised itself above them. The three ribs probably refer to Lydia, Egypt, and Babylon, which the Persians devoured; their success made them greedy of more do. minion. The Persians were remarkably cruel then, and continue so still.

+ This refers to the Grecian empire, and the rapid conquests of Alexander; his kingdom was divided into four, after his death, by his four generals.

+ This refers to the Roman empire; the horns denote its power, and the number of them refers to the ten kingdoms into which it was divided.

clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him, that is, the angels brought him near. From this prophecy the Jews learned to speak of the Messiah as the Son of man, and of his kingdom as the kingdom 14 of God and heaven. And there was given him dominion and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion [is] an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom [that] which shall not be destroyed: some understand this of Christ's power after his ascension; but it is rather designed to intimate, that the destruction of the papal empire shall make way for the greater triumph of Christ's kingdom.

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I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of [my] body, and the visions of my head troubled me; that is, the terrible appearances in the visions, and the confusions and per16 secutions to which they probably referred. I came near unto one of them that stood by, to one of the attendant angels, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made 17 me know the interpretation of the things. These great beasts, which are four, [are] four kings, [which] shall arise out of 18 the earth. But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever; the kingdom of Christ shall survive all these empires, and 19 the saints shall reign for ever. Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, it being first a kingdom, then a commonwealth, then an empire, then a divided empire, and then a mixture of civil and ecclesiastical power, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth (were of] iron, and his nails [of] brass; (which] devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; those conquests which the Romans could not possess themselves, they gave to their

20 allies; And of the ten horns that (were] in his head, that is, the ten kingdoms, into which the Roman empire was divided; or rather, that part of it which did not belong to the former beasts, which amidst all the confusion of the empire was still called ten kingdoms from their first number; and (of) the other which came up, that is, antichrist, or the Romish hierarchy which arose from a very small beginning, and before whom three fell, three of those kingdoms within the territory of the pope, that is, Lombardy, Ravenna, and the neighbourhood of Rome; even [of] that horn that had eyes like a man, like a seer, who had great penetration, and pretended to be inspired, and a mouth that spake very great things, blasphemies, bulls, curses, and excommunications, whose look (was) more stout than his fellows, who claimed superiority over the other horns, that is, all the 21 princes of the earth. I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; persecuting all 22 that opposed the papal usurpations. Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom. 23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and 24 break it in pieces. And the ten horns out of this kingdom [are] ten kings [that] shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall 25 subdue three kings. And he shall speak (great) words against the most High, or, as the most High; assuming arrogant titles, such as belonged to God alone; and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws, instituting sacred times, deposing kings, and dispensing with laws, human and divine: and they shall be given into his hand until a time, and times, and the dividing of time; that is, this power shall continue a year, two years, and half a year, meaning 26 prophetic years.* But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy [it] unto the end; Christ shall destroy him by the brightness of his com27 ing. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom [is] an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him; then shall commence the flourishing state of christianity

28 for one thousand years. Hitherto (is) the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me; the prospect of such confusions, persecutions, and troubles greatly affected me; and my countenance changed in me, I became pale: but I kept the matter in my heart, and reflected upon it, and have now recorded it for the benefit of the church.

1.

REFLECTIONS.

THE general view here given of the state of the world, is

mournful, but just. A stormy sea, like winds contending, empires like furious beasts, full of tyranny and cruelty. Even the papal kingdom, that pretends to be the kingdom of Christ, differs in some respects, but in this especially is like the rest, the support of idolatry and tyranny.

2. It is a great consolation to God's people in all ages, that He reigneth. Neither days nor years make any alteration in him; his kingdom ruleth over all, and thousands of angels minister unto him. He hath committed it to his Son, and his kingdom shall

• Thus Nebuchadnezzar was to continue seven times, that is, seven common years, but this is sometimes called forty two months, (as in Rev. xii. 5.) or twelve hundred and sixty prophetical days, that is, so many years. These were to commence when the pope became a horn, or a governor; which was in the year 756; so that the pope's domision will probably end, and the triumph of Christ's kingdom begin, about the year 2000.

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