Daniel Chapter 12 Part 1
Basic and General Study of the Book of Daniel
We come now to the final fascinating chapter in this amazing Book of Daniel. As you’ll recall, there were no chapter divisions in the original text, so here the heavenly messenger who started talking to Daniel in chapter 10 is now winding up his long and detailed message.
If we go back to the previous chapter, we find that the last part of it is talking about the last three and a half years of the Antichrist’s reign, which is known as the Great Tribulation, and it ends with the end of the Antichrist. Now Daniel is told that at this time Michael, the great prince and archangel, the commander of Jesus’ heavenly forces, who stands watch over the “children” of Daniel’s people, will stand up.
DAN.12:1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
In Daniel chapter 10, we read that it was Michael who had come to the celestial messenger’s aid and enabled him to gain the victory in the struggle with the prince of Persia. We also read in Revelation another passage about Michael:
**Rev.12:7–9 “And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”
The Devil is cast out of the spiritual realm down to the earth, and at this pivotal moment it seems that he possesses the body of the Antichrist. At this midway point in the last seven years, the covenant is broken, the Abomination of Desolation is sent into the temple, and the Antichrist is possessed by the Devil. At this point he demands that the world worship him, and begins his maniacal persecution of the true believers in God. And so, Daniel is told that this will be a “time of trouble such as never was.” Jesus told us about this time also, and His admonitions are recorded in three of the four Gospels, in Matthew 24, Luke 21, and Mark 13.
**Mat.24:15, 21 “Therefore when you see the “abomination of desolation,” spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place…then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.”
Called the Great Tribulation in the Bible, this era won’t last forever. In fact, it will only last 1,260 days (as explained in the study on Daniel chapter 9). And as we read in chapter 11, it is also a time when great exploits are performed by those who love Jesus, who are warriors of the faith and for His cause. Revelation 11 tells us about two of these witnesses who are a particular scourge on the Antichrist and his kingdom. And the kind of power wielded by these two might not be limited to them, but could also be available to all God’s prophets and followers in one form or another during that dark and violent time.
In the meantime, God is afflicting the wicked with plagues that are unleashed at the sounding of six of the seven Trumpets of Tribulation (expounded on in Revelation chapters 8 to10). They include fire and hail from the sky, a third of the waters of the seas being turned into blood, the waters in the lakes and rivers turning bitter, the light of the sun and stars greatly dimmed, and plagues of monstrous insects. Although the Antichrist and his evil henchmen try to hurt and destroy God’s people, God is a much greater adversary to him and his ilk than they are to us.
"…and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book."
Then all Daniel’s people who are found written “in the book” are delivered in the astounding, momentous event of the Rapture, when Jesus returns at the seventh and last Trumpet to gather His people to Him in the clouds, translating them miraculously into the Heavenly Realm. What is “the book” referred to here? Many passages in the Bible talk about the Book of Life, and this is what it could be referring to.
(Ex.32:33, Ps69:28, Luk.10:20, Ph.4:3, Rev.3:5, Rev.20:12, Rev.21:27, Rev.22:19)
Why the passage says “children of thy people” is open to some interpretation. The apostle Paul made it obvious that
“if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29).
The inheritors of the promises made to the Jews in the Old Testament are the Christians, and this includes everyone, whether Jew or Gentile, who believes in Jesus as their Savior. So now it is the followers of Christ who are the chosen people, the spiritual heirs, of the former chosen people.
DAN.12:2 and many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
DAN.12:3 and they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
The Second Coming of Jesus Christ, often referred to as the Rapture, will be the most anticipated and wonderful event for the followers of Christ who have gone through the Tribulation. They have endured the depths of persecutions and the hell into which the world has descended under the Devil incarnate, the oppressive tyranny of the Antichrist.
Now their moment of release has come when they are to be taken out of this world and transported into the wonders and joys of Heaven. It will have been a very hard and difficult three and a half years. There can be no wishful thinking about it, such as an early Rapture prior to the Tribulation, as taught by some nowadays. But once it is finished, then comes glorious deliverance and reward.
Paul further expounds on the happenings of verses 2 and 3:
**1 Thes.4:16–17 “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.”
**1 Co.15:51–52 “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”
Those he is referring to as having fallen asleep are those believers who have died. Their bodies are dead in the grave, but their spirits are very much alive in Heaven with Jesus. When Jesus returns at this time, Paul says that all of these will come with Him. Why? Because a very important event is about to occur for them and for those of us who remain. When the Lord descends from Heaven with a shout and the trumpeting begins, the “dead in Christ” shall rise first. All those spirits whose bodies have been buried in the earth are going to be reunited with their physical bodies. However, it is not going to be the old body they knew, but a totally made-over body, regenerated and indestructible, a new heavenly body. We all then get caught up together in the clouds. Yes, we all sail up into the sky in our new bodies.
And for those who have been faithful in their love and service to God, who have through their witness and lives turned many to righteousness, especially the righteousness of believing in our loving and mighty God, it will truly be a wonderful day. For as verse 3 tells us, those wise ones will shine like the sun and stars in the sky forever. (1 Co.15:58.)
But for others it will not be as joyous. All who believe in and receive Jesus as their Savior have everlasting life in Heaven. For believing in and receiving Him is all we have to do to receive His salvation. But to shine like the sun there in Heaven, and to receive the eternal honor and spiritual riches there, we have to do something here. In fact, we have to do a good deal. We have to work for those stars in our heavenly crown by living a life of service to God and humanity.
“For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works” (Matthew 16:27).
DAN.12:4 but thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
Then Daniel is told to close up the book—which seems to infer that he was writing this all down as he received it. When he is told that many shall run to and fro and knowledge will be increased, we understand then that the message is not to be fully understood till the End Time. God told him not to worry that he couldn’t understand it all, that even though the prophecy was given to him, it wasn’t for him.
"...many shall run to and fro" literally means “speeding about, here and there,” or as The Living Bible renders this verse, “travel shall be vastly increased.” When you consider that people’s means of transportation—horse and buggy, wagons, camels, boats, etc.—did not change substantially for thousands of years, you can appreciate the significance of this prophecy.
In 1789 it took George Washington eight days to travel the 200 miles from his home to his inauguration in New York City. The fact that it took eight days is not significant. What is noteworthy is that Julius Caesar could have made the same trip just as rapidly in the year 50 BC! No real progress had been made in transportation over the 18 centuries that passed between their lifetimes. But look how mankind has advanced in the past hundred years!
Two thousand six hundred years ago, another prophet described how “in the days of the Lord’s preparation” (before He returns): “The chariots shall be with flaming torches in the day of His preparation. … The chariots shall rage in the streets, they shall jostle one another in the broad roads; they shall seem like torches, they shall run like lightning” (Nahum 2:3-4).
No horse-drawn chariot ever ran like lightning. Could this be a vision of our modern highways at night filled with vehicles with their headlights on? It would certainly fit the description. And if it is, our modern vehicle-filled highways are another indication that the Lord is soon to return. And they certainly jostle one another in the broad roads. Since the invention of the motor vehicle over a century ago, it is estimated that about 30 million people have been killed in road crashes.
“Knowledge shall be increased”. It is with good cause that the term “information overload” was coined in recent years. If the incredible amount of information that is currently accessible is an indication of the overall knowledge available today, then knowledge has increased within our generation almost beyond imagination!
As far back as 1995, Professor Peter Cochrane of the British Telecom Laboratories’ Advanced Application Division said, “There are now wristwatches that wield more computing ability than some 1970s mainframes. Ordinary cars today have more ‘intelligence’ than the original lunar lander [Apollo Lunar Module].” In the decades since this statement, computer sciences and related disciplines have advanced exponentially.
Buckminster Fuller created the “Knowledge Doubling Curve”; he noticed that until 1900 human knowledge doubled approximately every century. By the end of World War II knowledge was doubling every 25 years. Today human knowledge is doubling every 13 months. According to IBM, the build out of the “internet of things” could soon lead to the doubling of knowledge every 12 hours!!!
“Knowledge shall be increased” …a sign of the End time!!
Be ready for these events. You can receive Jesus at this very moment. Jesus says: “Behold, I stand at the door (of your heart), and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Rev.3:20
Please pray this simple prayer:
"Jesus, please forgive all my faults and sins. I accept that You are the Son of God and that You died for me. I invite You into my heart and life. Thank you for your gift of eternal life and please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. Help me to read and understand Your Word. Amen."
Compiled and edited by Gaetan from multiple sources. gaetan.goye@gmail.com