DANIEL 12 THE END2011 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Daniel 12 The End

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You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2011.

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Finishing up the book of Daniel, which is always exciting to finish as we go through chapter by chapter, verse by verse, studying through the books of the Bible. And we're here in Daniel chapter 12 and concluding this book and specifically the prophecy that began back in chapter 10. The things that we're studying this evening started in chapter 10 where you remember Daniel was praying and fasting for three weeks.

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And as he was praying and fasting for three weeks, he receives a vision. He sees Jesus high and lifted up. There in verses 5 and 6 of chapter 10. And then an angel comes to him and gives him strength and begins to share with him about the things that were yet to come. And we studied through those things last week in chapter 11. A lot of details, a lot of historical facts for us, but...

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Daniel's perspective, it hadn't happened yet. And so there was these prophetic things about the Persian Empire and then the Greek Empire and how they would split up and the two kings, the northern kings and the southern kings that would war back and forth against one another. And so he was giving all of these details and then it kind of

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Fast forwarded to the time of the end with the Antichrist and the one who will come on the scene and deceive the world and lead a final rebellion against God. And so we went through all of that last week. It's a lot of details there, a lot of amazing things that God declared in advance. And as we look at these things, the the.

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One important thing to remember in chapter 10 verse 14, when the angel is giving all of this information to Daniel, he says, I've come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days.

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And so as we look at these things here in chapter 12, we need to have the perspective and understand that these prophecies are specifically regarding the Jewish people, Daniel's people, the Israelites. And as we look at these things and understand that this is specifically in regards to the Jewish people, it fits perfectly.

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very well within the understanding of prophecy in the last days that we've been studying and we just went through the book of Revelation on Sunday mornings. And so I want to briefly go over with you a quick timeline of the last days.

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just to refresh your memory, and then we'll put it into perspective here as far as Daniel chapter 12. And so here's a quick diagram, a quick timeline of the last days. Now you can get the whole thing, it's on the back table. It's called God's Prophetic Timeline, and you can see it, and you can check it out later. But what we are looking forward to today as the church is we are looking forward to the rapture of the church.

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There are other prophecies that perhaps might be fulfilled before that takes place, but there's nothing that has to happen before the rapture takes place. And so the rapture is the time where the church is caught up to meet the Lord in the air.

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And Paul talks about it in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, 1 Corinthians chapter 15, where we will be caught up. Jesus will come, but he won't set foot on earth. He'll be there in the clouds and we'll be caught up to meet the Lord there in the clouds. And then we'll forever be with the Lord from that point. And so as far as the end times is concerned, for us as the church, that's the thing that we are looking forward to.

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Now, after the church is taken out of this world, then things will begin to progress quite rapidly and the Antichrist will come on the scene. Paul tells us in 2 Thessalonians 2 that the Antichrist will not be revealed until the church is removed or taken out of the way.

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And so the tribulation will begin as the Antichrist comes onto the scene. He will make a deal, an agreement, a covenant or a treaty with the nation of Israel. And that covenant will be a seven-year covenant and that will mark the beginning of what we call the tribulation period.

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And so the Antichrist signing this agreement with Israel begins the tribulation period. It's seven years long. It's divided into two parts. The first three and a half years and the second three and a half years. Now during this time, as you can see, the church is in heaven with Jesus.

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And so it's those who are left behind that will stay on this earth and go into the tribulation period. These seven years of trouble and turmoil and difficulty like the world has never seen before. Well, the event that marks the middle of the tribulation period is called the abomination of desolation. We'll talk about it briefly this evening.

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This is when the Antichrist, that future world leader who will deceive the people, he will go into the temple that will be rebuilt. He'll go into the temple. He'll set up an image of himself. He'll proclaim himself to be God and he'll demand all of the world to worship him.

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And so this marks the middle of that seven-year tribulation period. Now the first three and a half years of the tribulation are pretty bad.

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They're very bad, actually, as we saw in the book of Revelation. But the second three and a half years, the final part of the tribulation period, will become worse and worse and worse. In fact, much more worse than you and I are fully able to understand. There's going to be catastrophes worldwide. There's going to be wars and famines and diseases. All kinds of things will be going on as the wrath of God is poured out upon the earth.

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Well, that seven-year period comes to an end with the return of Jesus Christ.

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As the armies are gathered together, we call it the Battle of Armageddon. That's when Jesus returns. It's the second coming. And this time, He doesn't just come to the clouds. He comes to the earth. And as He sets foot upon the earth, He puts an end to that rebellion, the Battle of Armageddon, and the armies there are killed. And then He establishes His kingdom here on the earth, and He rules and He reigns on the earth for 1,000 years.

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At the end of that time, there will be a final rebellion led by Satan. And then the final judgment, we call it the Great White Throne Judgment. And then that will usher in eternity and the New Jerusalem, the things that we talked about as we studied through the book of Revelation.

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The things that we'll be looking at here in chapter 12 really deal with from the beginning of the tribulation to the second coming of Jesus. And some of the things that are going to be going on there, we'll just touch on a few elements of it, but I wanted to give you the whole perspective so that it would make sense as we look at these things that are given to Daniel here in chapter 12. So let's start out here in Daniel chapter 12 and look at verse 1. It says this,

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Verse 1.

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Now as it starts out there in verse 1, at that time, this is the continuation of chapter 11. These chapter divisions were added later. So originally it's just one continuous thing. And so chapter 11, as we were looking at the

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the elements there of prophecy and regarding the northern kings and the southern kings. And then as he begins to look even farther into the future and into the time of the Antichrist and referring to what he calls the time of the end.

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And the time of the end is this last period, the tribulation period that he's referring to. And so during the tribulation period is what he means when he says at that time. And so in the middle of the tribulation period is

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Remember last week in chapter 11, we talked about the abomination of desolation that takes place. And so that happens right in the middle. And at that time, as that is going on here in the midst of the tribulation period, then Michael shall stand up. Now, Michael, he says, is that great prince. We also know the scripture refers to Michael in the book of Jude as an archangel.

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And he seems to have a special role. He's a very high-ranking angel, perhaps the highest-ranking angel. We don't know for sure. But he has a special role of protecting the people of God. And he says that great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people.

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Two times here in verse 1, he refers to your people. He's talking to Daniel. And so we understand what he's talking about is the Jewish people. And so Michael is that one who watches out for. He's the protector of the Jewish people.

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During the midst of the tribulation period, the Jewish people come to a right understanding of Jesus as the Messiah. And so during this time, during these last seven years of tribulation, God is doing a work amongst his people and calling them to right relationship with him.

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The church is in heaven with Jesus during this time. There will be those who get saved after the fact. But for you and I as believers today, we'll be in eternity with God at that point. But the nation of Israel who have not believed in Jesus will go into the tribulation period. And during the midst of all this trouble and turmoil, Michael the archangel will stand up as a protector of Daniel's people.

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And notice what he says, there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation even to that time. And so as the angel is giving this insight to Daniel, he says, all of the trouble that nations have experienced will not compare to what will take place during that time of trouble, during that tribulation period.

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Now there's been a lot of trouble that the nation of Israel has experienced. You remember, Daniel is there in Babylon.

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Now in Persia actually, but originally in Babylon because they had been conquered. The nation of Israel, the nation of Judah was conquered by Babylon because of their rebellion against God. And there was some great atrocities that were committed against the people at the cruelty of the Babylonians. And yet the angel tells him,

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This tribulation period, it's not going to compare to that. It's going to be worse than what they've experienced. Notice though, he goes on to say, even to that time. And so when these things begin to take place, they will be worse than anything else that has come before them in history. And so when these things begin to take place,

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And so you can think about in regard to the Jewish people, some terrible things that have been done to this people throughout history. Satan has made war against the Jewish people for many years. Even today we see lots of pressure being put upon the nation of Israel by leaders all around the world. There's very few who support Israel. We could look back to the Holocaust and the atrocities that were committed there.

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And the angel says...

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Even that will not compare to the trouble that will take place during the tribulation period. So we get the understanding, we recognize this is going to be a terrible time. Jesus makes reference to this as well in Matthew chapter 24 verse 21 when he says there's never been trouble like it, there will never be trouble like it again. It's going to be the low point in world history and specifically for the Jewish people.

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Now the church again will be in heaven with Jesus for those who accept Christ before the rapture of the church. But those who are left behind will go through this time of trouble like the world has never seen.

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But notice he says at the end of verse 1, at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone who is found written in the book. And so the angel has given Daniel some hope here. He says, look, there's going to be a time of trouble, but many of your people will be delivered. Many Jews will be preserved or delivered through this time. He says, everyone who is found written in the book.

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And so those who are written in the book will be delivered through the midst of this tribulation period. And what book is that? Well, it's probably the book that's referred to in Revelation chapter 13. There we get the understanding, the description of the Antichrist and the things that he will be accomplishing.

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And it tells us in verse 8 of Revelation 13 that all who dwell on the earth will worship him whose names have not been written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. And so there's a book of life of the Lamb who is slain before the foundation of the world. That Lamb, of course, is Jesus Christ. And so those who are written in the Lamb's book of life or Jesus' book of life

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will not worship the Antichrist. So those who do not worship the Antichrist, here the angel tells Daniel, they will be delivered. Those who are written in Jesus' book, that is, those who have turned to Jesus for salvation and have grasped hold of Him and are walking in relationship with Him, they will

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Now it doesn't necessarily mean physically. They will most likely be put to death. But they will be delivered in that their souls will be delivered. That they will have eternity with God. And so here the angel is giving Daniel some insight in regards to the Jewish people in the last days and the things that will be going on. Verse 2.

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And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever. Here in verses 2 and 3 now, he goes beyond this tribulation period and he begins to talk about the resurrection. And so...

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Many will be saved and preserved through the tribulation period, he tells Daniel. Those who have turned to Jesus and have looked to Him for salvation. But those who have died will be resurrected. Now it's interesting as you look at this, you can have the understanding and recognize that every human being will live forever. Every one of us. We will live forever. We...

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Need to make a choice, however, in what condition or in what state we will live forever. And so he says there in verse 2, those who sleep shall awake, some to everlasting life, door number 1, and some to shame and everlasting contempt, door number 2. That's the decision we have to make. That's the decision that is for every human being.

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No matter what our backgrounds are, no matter what our nationality is, no matter what our income level is, no matter where we've been or where we're going, every single one of us, we will live forever. The question is, when we awake...

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Will it be to everlasting life or to everlasting content? There's no gray area, you know, everlasting middle of the road. You know, that doesn't exist. It's everlasting life or everlasting content or everlasting judgment. Jesus declares this as well in Matthew chapter 25 verse 46.

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He says, these, talking about the wicked, will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. And so there's a reality that you and I have to face as those who will live forever. That is that we will live forever in one of two states, either an everlasting life, that is in heaven, relationship with God, eternity,

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Things that we can't even imagine as far as the goodness that God has in store for us. Or everlasting punishment. Quite the opposite. Things that we can't even imagine as far as the punishment and the consequences for rebelling against God and turning away from Jesus as Savior and Lord.

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And so every one of us will live forever. The angel explains to Daniel, those who sleep will awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. We have to make a choice. We make a choice in this life to determine how we will spend eternity. The Bible makes that very clear.

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With that in mind, he says, verse 3, those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever. And so he says, look, understanding that we're eternal, understanding that we will live forever, that some will be to life and some will be to punishment, he says the wise then will be involved and engaged in the business of turning people to righteousness. Righteousness.

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so that they may experience eternal life, everlasting life. The wise will be involved in turning people to the things of God, to Jesus Christ. He says, those who are wise shall shine. That is, those who are wise will be a witness for God, will declare the truth of God, will share, you know what Jesus said, let your light so shine that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

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The wise, understanding the state of eternity that faces us, will be involved in shining the light, sharing the gospel, declaring the truth that He is Lord and that He died upon the cross for our sins.

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He says, those who turn many to righteous will shine like the stars forever and ever. I always like it when I hear Pastor Chuck share through this portion of Scripture because he always shares the illustration of fireworks. And how he would, you know, with his family, he would go and he would watch the fireworks. And if you are familiar with fireworks, I'm sure you are. They can be quite spectacular, right?

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But they don't last very long. There's always that moment at the end, like you're glad you saw them, but then you just want some more and then they're already gone. Alright, grand finale and wow, that's awesome. And then it's over. And then it's just smoke and there's no more fireworks. But then he goes on to share about if you wait and you wait for the smoke to clear, then you'll begin to see the stars. Yes.

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And they're not just a flash and then they're gone, but they're there continually, permanently, eternally. And so he shares that to give the exhortation, which sky do you want to shine in? And that's something for you and I to consider. Are we wise? We can be a flash, be like the fireworks, and be popular or make our mark in this world with the things of this life, or...

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We can make our mark in the world with the things of eternity and shine like the stars. That is that the things that we do, the work that we're involved in, the things that we share, they have eternal value. They're long lasting. They're not short lived. Think about how many stars we have seen musically.

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Think about all those who've gone through American Idol. Think about all those who've, you know, come to fame and fortune and then faded away. It's not long-lasting. And so you could, you know, obtain those types of things, theoretically, but it won't last you very long. You might shine brightly here in this earth's sky for a few moments, but it won't last very long.

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But if you're involved in, engaged in the work of eternity and turning people to righteousness and helping people come to right relationship with God through Jesus, well, then you will shine eternally. There will be eternal rewards. It will be long lasting. Some things for us to consider and think about. He goes on in verse 4. But you, Daniel...

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Shut up the words and seal the book until the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro and knowledge shall increase. And so now the angel is explaining this stuff to Daniel. Now he switches gears a little bit and he begins to address Daniel personally or specifically. And so he's told him about the nation of Persia and the kings that are coming and then the nation of Greece and

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the split up of the nation and then these two kingdoms, the northern and the southern kingdom that will war against one another. And then as that foreshadows the Antichrist and the tribulation period and the things that will happen there. Now the angel speaks to Daniel. He says, okay, Daniel, now seal up these words. Seal up this book until the time of the end. For Daniel, these things were not...

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Until later on. He says it's going to be later on that these things will be fulfilled. And so seal up the book until that time. He says at that time then many will run to and fro and knowledge shall increase. The understanding of this or the idea here that he's saying is as time progresses, as we get closer and closer to the end, then there will be more and more understanding of these prophecies.

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And for you and I today, as we've just finished going through the book of Revelation on Sunday mornings, I think it's quite clear. We are living in the last days. In fact, in Revelation chapter 22 verse 10, there the apostle John is told, do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. You and I are living in the last days since the time of the apostle John, almost 2,000 years ago.

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We are in the last days right now. That is, the end could happen at any moment. I've shared this example in the past, but I think it's a good one. Time has continued since the beginning of creation, going in a forward motion like this. But when Jesus came, that took us to the edge of the last days. And since then, time has continued, but parallel to eternity. And so, at any moment...

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We could step into eternity. At any moment, Jesus could return. And so time continues on, but we're in the last days. We've been in the last days because at any moment, Jesus could come back and we could be ushered into eternity. And so...

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The Apostle John is told, don't seal up the book, but Daniel is told to seal up the book. You're not going to understand it, Daniel. In fact, we'll see in just a few moments, Daniel recognizes, I don't understand what's going on here. I don't understand what all of this vision means. But as we look at the book of Revelation, we have further revelation, we have further understanding of these end times and the things that we've been talking about.

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And as we progress closer and closer, these prophecies become more and more real. And we get a better and better understanding. And so knowledge is increased and running to and fro and getting the picture of what is happening and what God has declared. It's becoming clearer and clearer as we get closer to these events taking place. Verse 5, Then I, Daniel, looked, and there stood two others, one on this riverbank and the other on that riverbank.

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And one said to the man clothed in linen who is above the waters of the river, How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be? Then I heard the man clothed in linen who was above the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven and swore by him who lives forever and ever that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time. And when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished."

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And so as we continue on now, Daniel has been receiving all of this insight from this angel and he pauses for a moment to kind of take a look around. And going back to chapter 10, he talks about how he received this vision while he was there on the riverbank. And so now he kind of regains himself. He looks around and he sees two others there on the riverbanks, one on each side of the riverbank.

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Now, we don't know if these are other people, perhaps that God is revealing the future to. Some have suggested that it could be Zechariah, who also has a vision of the end times, and the Apostle John, as we saw in the book of Revelation, and his vision of the end times. And that's a possibility. It could also be two angels or, you know, something else that we're not fully aware of. But he sees these two others there, and one of them asks,

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This man in linen who's above the waters. Now going back to chapter 10, verse 5 and 6, this man in linen is that vision that he saw there in chapter 10, which is probably a vision of Jesus. And so he sees Jesus there above the waters, and one of these individuals, one of these men or angels, whatever they might be, asks Jesus,

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The man in linen asked Jesus, how long is this going to go on? This time of trouble, this tribulation period, how long is it going to go on? He raises up both hands. He swears by Him who lives forever, by the Heavenly Father, and He says, it will be for time, times, and half a time. How long is that?

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We understand that to be three and a half years. Time being one year, times being two years, and then half a time being half a year. So three and a half years.

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Now we understand that from those things that we studied in the book of Revelation because the book of Revelation describes the last portion of the tribulation period, that last three and a half years, by using that phrase, time, times, and a half a time. Also by using the phrase 42 months, which is also three and a half years. Also using the description of 1260 days.

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1260 days is the same as 42 months, is the same as three and a half years, which is referred to by time, times, and a half a time.

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And so what is being referred to here in this portion, in Daniel chapter 11 and 12, is that final three and a half years of the tribulation period. It's a time referred to as Jacob's trouble. It's a time referred to as the time that there was more trouble than the world has ever seen before. It's going to be the worst of the worst there in the closing days of the tribulation period. And so it's going to last for three and a half years.

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Now you can also see this phrase, time, times, and a half a time, in Daniel 7, verse 25, and Revelation 12, verse 14. And you can see how that refers to the three and a half year period. Verse 8,

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And he said, Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, made white and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly, and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand.

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I like Daniel. He's pretty honest. He says, although I heard these things, I didn't understand. I didn't know what was going on. I've been given this great vision. I'm recording it for you. I don't know what it means, Daniel says. I think that's pretty awesome. He's pretty honest. Now, again, he's instructed, seal up the book.

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These are the things regarding the end times. You're not going to understand them, Daniel. The knowledge of these things will increase and become more clear as it gets closer to the end. But I like the way that Daniel approaches this. He says, my Lord, what shall the end of these things be? And so he says, I don't understand. I don't know what you're talking about. Just tell me the bottom line. What's the conclusion? How does it end?

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You ever do that? You know, someone's telling you a story and they're like, you know, they're talking about all these details and you're like, I don't care about that. I don't even know what you're talking about. Just tell me the end. How does it end?

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You know, they start telling you something and, oh yeah, yeah, she told me on Thursday. Oh no, was it Wednesday? Oh no, I think it was Friday. Who cares? What did she say? You know, what happened? Tell me the end. And so that's what Daniel says here. He says, what's the end of these things? How does it all end? There's this time of trouble, okay, and I get that and I understand that, but how does it end? What's the result? And he's instructed to seal up the words. Close it up.

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These are things that will be revealed during the time of the end. Now, much of this is revealed in the book of Revelation, which again is an indication we are living in those last days. Now, he says here in verse 10, he says, Now, once again we see we have a choice to make. There's two options. As we get closer and closer to the end, to the return of Jesus,

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We have a decision to make. We have a choice. And that is, are we going to be those who are purified and refined and made white? That is, those who are walking with God.

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Through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Or are we going to be the wicked who do wickedly? There's no middle area where, well, I kind of don't really like to do wickedness and I don't really want to walk in relationship with God. Jesus said, you're either for me or against me. The Bible makes it very clear. In regards to eternity, either you will be awakened to eternal life or to eternal judgment.

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And this is a reality that we need to face. This is a reality that we need to allow to penetrate to our hearts for our own selves, but also for the sake of the people around us, that we would be wise and turning many to righteousness, that we would shine like the stars, that we would be invested in the things of eternity. In these last days, Daniel's instructed, Daniel is told, there'll be two kinds of people.

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Those who are refined, those who are purified, those who are drawing near to God. And there are those who are wicked and will continue in their wickedness. He says, none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand. In these last days, the wicked don't understand the last days.

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It's kind of made a mockery of right now because of the whole thing with the guy predicting the rapture of the church and then it didn't happen. So, okay, well, let me change the date then. The Bible declares that no one knows the day or the hour. It's going to happen in an instant when we're not expecting it. And the whole thing going on now just exaggerates the problem. The wicked just don't understand. They don't understand the last days, the things of the Lord.

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but the wise shall understand. The wise shall understand. You remember Jesus when He was talking to the religious leaders? He says, look, you guys can look at the sky and you can determine, oh, tomorrow is going to be a good day. You can look at the sky in the morning and say, oh, rain is coming. You can discern the times physically, but you're not able to look and see what's going on and recognize this is what the Bible has declared. He rebuked them.

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For being able to understand the times of this life, but not the times of eternity. Here Daniel is told, the wise will understand. Are you able to recognize the times? Are you able to recognize that as these things are happening with Israel, it's becoming more and more clear, we're in the last days. All of these things that are described here in the book of Daniel, in the book of Revelation, they can begin to happen at any moment. Are you able to understand and discern?

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Jesus could return this evening or tomorrow morning or next week. Are you able to discern, to understand? It might be five years from now, but there's nothing stopping Him. Are you able to discern and understand? As we see what's going on within our own nation, we see the progression of wickedness. In our nation, we don't see the progression of righteousness. We see the decline of righteousness, the decline of godliness, the decline of sin,

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Christianity, the decline of all things holy. We're not headed to a good place. Things aren't getting better and better. Are you able to understand? Are you able to discern? To recognize the importance of these days that we face? That it's not time to just goof off and like, well, I'll make my decisions later. I'll really be committed and go all out for the Lord later on. It's not time for that. Now, if you don't understand that, it's because you're not

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Invested in the things of God. But you're invested in the things of this life. And you're oblivious to the things of God. We need to be those who understand. Who can see what's going on and realize and recognize. The gospel needs to go out. We need to be those who shine. Because eternity is at hand. We're right here on the edge. The wicked don't understand that. They'll just continue on in wickedness. Like in the days of Noah.

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Jesus referred to this as well. He said, look, the time of the end is going to be like how it was in the days of Noah. That is, Noah, he was wise. He heard from the Lord. He knew what was coming. He prepared. People mocked him. They thought he was crazy. Probably hurt his feelings. But so what? His life was saved. These days, we're so worried about getting our feelings hurt or hurting other people's feelings. We'd get caught up and consumed. We'd be probably those who...

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Kind of laughing and scoffing at Noah. But Noah stood up for righteousness. He was a bright shining light. And even though no one repented, no one joined him and his family in the ark, he witnessed, he declared, he shared. Even though he would have been mocked and scorned and ridiculed, he understood. The wicked didn't understand. And so what did they keep doing? Jesus said they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying and giving in marriage. They were just continuing on with life as normal, life as usual.

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That's how it's going to be when all of this begins to take place. The world as a whole, they won't understand. They're going to continue to have their meals. They're going to continue their parties. They're going to continue to get married and live it up. And then suddenly, bam, all of these things is going to be upon them. But the wise will understand. The wise will be ready.

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Jesus told us in Luke chapter 21 to pray always that we would be counted worthy to escape these things. You see, we're to understand the things that are to come. God gives it to us, although it was sealed in Daniel's day, here in the book of Revelation we have it revealed, unveiled. He wants us to be ready. He told His disciples and He told us to be ready. Over and over He told His disciples, He told us to watch, to be alert, to be

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In regard to these last days, we need to be praying always that we would be counted worthy to escape. We're living in these days and it can begin at any moment. The wise will understand. They'll respond accordingly. The wicked will just continue on in their wickedness. Verse 11.

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Finishing up the book of Daniel, which is always exciting to finish as we go through chapter by chapter, verse by verse, studying through the books of the Bible. And we're here in Daniel chapter 12 and concluding this book and specifically the prophecy that began back in chapter 10. The things that we're studying this evening started in chapter 10 where you remember Daniel was praying and fasting for three weeks.

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And as he was praying and fasting for three weeks, he receives a vision. He sees Jesus high and lifted up there in verses 5 and 6 of chapter 10. And then an angel comes to him and gives him strength and begins to share with him about the things that were yet to come. And we studied through those things last week in chapter 11. A lot of details, a lot of historical facts for us, but

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From Daniel's perspective, it hadn't happened yet. And so there was these prophetic things about the Persian Empire and then the Greek Empire and how they would split up and the two kings, the northern kings and the southern kings that would war back and forth against one another. And so he was giving all of these details and then it kind of...

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Fast forwarded to the time of the end with the Antichrist and the one who will come on the scene and deceive the world and lead a final rebellion against God. And so we went through all of that last week. It's a lot of details there, a lot of amazing things that God declared in advance. And as we look at these things, the the.

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One important thing to remember in chapter 10 verse 14, when the angel is giving all of this information to Daniel, he says, I've come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days.

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And so as we look at these things here in chapter 12, we need to have the perspective and understand that these prophecies are specifically regarding the Jewish people, Daniel's people, the Israelites. And as we look at these things and understand that this is specifically in regards to the Jewish people, it fits perfectly.

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very well within the understanding of prophecy in the last days that we've been studying and we just went through the book of Revelation on Sunday mornings. And so I want to briefly go over with you a quick timeline of the last days.

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just to refresh your memory, and then we'll put it into perspective here as far as Daniel chapter 12. And so here's a quick diagram, a quick timeline of the last days. Now you can get the whole thing, it's on the back table. It's called God's Prophetic Timeline, and you can see it, and you can check it out later. But what we are looking forward to today as the church is we are looking forward to the rapture of the church.

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There are other prophecies that perhaps might be fulfilled before that takes place, but there's nothing that has to happen before the rapture takes place. And so the rapture is the time where the church is caught up to meet the Lord in the air.

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And Paul talks about it in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, 1 Corinthians chapter 15, where we will be caught up. Jesus will come, but he won't set foot on earth. He'll be there in the clouds and we'll be caught up to meet the Lord there in the clouds. And then we'll forever be with the Lord from that point. And so as far as the end times is concerned, for us as the church, that's the thing that we are looking forward to.

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Now after the church is taken out of this world, then things will begin to progress quite rapidly. And the Antichrist will come on the scene. Paul tells us in 2 Thessalonians 2 that the Antichrist will not be revealed until the church is removed or taken out of the way.

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And so the tribulation will begin as the Antichrist comes onto the scene. He will make a deal, an agreement, a covenant or a treaty with the nation of Israel. And that covenant will be a seven-year covenant and that will mark the beginning of what we call the tribulation period.

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And so the Antichrist signing this agreement with Israel begins the tribulation period. It's seven years long. It's divided into two parts. The first three and a half years and the second three and a half years. Now during this time, as you can see, the church is in heaven with Jesus. And

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And so it's those who are left behind that will stay on this earth and go into the tribulation period. These seven years of trouble and turmoil and difficulty like the world has never seen before. Well, the event that marks the middle of the tribulation period is called the abomination of desolation. We'll talk about it briefly this evening.

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This is when the Antichrist, that future world leader who will deceive the people, he will go into the temple that will be rebuilt. He'll go into the temple. He'll set up an image of himself. He'll proclaim himself to be God and he'll demand all of the world to worship him.

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And so this marks the middle of that seven-year tribulation period. Now the first three and a half years of the tribulation are pretty bad.

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They're very bad, actually, as we saw in the book of Revelation. But the second three and a half years, the final part of the tribulation period, will become worse and worse and worse. In fact, much more worse than you and I are fully able to understand. There's going to be catastrophes worldwide. There's going to be wars and famines and diseases. All kinds of things will be going on as the wrath of God is poured out upon the earth.

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Well, that seven-year period comes to an end with the return of Jesus Christ.

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As the armies are gathered together, we call it the Battle of Armageddon. That's when Jesus returns. It's the second coming. And this time, He doesn't just come to the clouds. He comes to the earth. And as He sets foot upon the earth, He puts an end to that rebellion, the Battle of Armageddon, and the armies there are killed. And then He establishes His kingdom here on the earth, and He rules and He reigns on the earth for 1,000 years.

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At the end of that time, there will be a final rebellion led by Satan. And then the final judgment, we call it the Great White Throne Judgment. And then that will usher in eternity and the New Jerusalem, the things that we talked about as we studied through the book of Revelation.

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The things that we'll be looking at here in chapter 12 really deal with from the beginning of the tribulation to the second coming of Jesus. And some of the things that are going to be going on there, we'll just touch on a few elements of it, but I wanted to give you the whole perspective so that it would make sense as we look at these things that are given to Daniel here in chapter 12. So let's start out here in Daniel chapter 12 and look at verse 1. It says this,

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Verse 1.

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Now as it starts out there in verse 1, at that time, this is the continuation of chapter 11. These chapter divisions were added later, so originally it's just one continuous thing. And so chapter 11, as we were looking at the elements there of prophecy and regarding the northern kings and the southern kings and then...

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As he begins to look even farther into the future and into the time of the Antichrist and referring to what he calls the time of the end. And the time of the end is this last period, the tribulation period that he's referring to. And so during the tribulation period is what he means when he says at that time. And so in the middle of the tribulation period,

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Remember last week in chapter 11, we talked about the abomination of desolation that takes place. And so that happens right in the middle. And at that time, as that is going on here in the midst of the tribulation period, then Michael shall stand up. Now, Michael, he says, is that great prince. We also know the scripture refers to Michael in the book of Jude as an archangel.

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And he seems to have a special role. He's a very high-ranking angel, perhaps the highest-ranking angel. We don't know for sure. But he has a special role of protecting the people of God. And he says that great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people.

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Two times here in verse 1, he refers to your people. He's talking to Daniel. And so we understand what he's talking about is the Jewish people. And so Michael is that one who watches out for. He's the protector of the Jewish people.

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During the midst of the tribulation period, the Jewish people come to a right understanding of Jesus as the Messiah. And so during this time, during these last seven years of tribulation, God is doing a work amongst his people and calling them to right relationship with him.

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The church is in heaven with Jesus during this time. There will be those who get saved after the fact. But for you and I as believers today, we'll be in eternity with God at that point. But the nation of Israel who have not believed in Jesus will go into the tribulation period. And during the midst of all this trouble and turmoil, Michael the archangel will stand up as a protector of Daniel's people.

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And notice what he says, there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation even to that time. And so as the angel is giving this insight to Daniel, he says, all of the trouble that nations have experienced will not compare to what will take place during that time of trouble, during that tribulation period.

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Now there's been a lot of trouble that the nation of Israel has experienced. You remember, Daniel is there in Babylon.

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Now in Persia actually, but originally in Babylon because they had been conquered. The nation of Israel, the nation of Judah was conquered by Babylon because of their rebellion against God. And there was some great atrocities that were committed against the people at the cruelty of the Babylonians. And yet the angel tells him,

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This tribulation period, it's not going to compare to that. It's going to be worse than what they've experienced. Notice though, he goes on to say, even to that time. And so when these things begin to take place, they will be worse than anything else that has come before them in history. And

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And so you can think about in regard to the Jewish people, some terrible things that have been done to this people throughout history. Satan has made war against the Jewish people for many years. Even today we see lots of pressure being put upon the nation of Israel by leaders all around the world. There's very few who support Israel. We could look back to the Holocaust and the atrocities that were committed there.

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And the angel says...

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even that will not compare to the trouble that will take place during the tribulation period. So we get the understanding, we recognize this is going to be a terrible time. Jesus makes reference to this as well in Matthew chapter 24 verse 21 when he says there's never been trouble like it, there will never be trouble like it again. It's going to be the low point in world history and specifically for the Jewish people.

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Now the church again will be in heaven with Jesus for those who accept Christ before the rapture of the church. But those who are left behind will go through this time of trouble like the world has never seen.

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But notice he says at the end of verse 1, at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone who is found written in the book. And so the angel has given Daniel some hope here. He says, look, there's going to be a time of trouble, but many of your people will be delivered. Many Jews will be preserved or delivered through this time. He says, everyone who is found written in the book.

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And so those who are written in the book will be delivered through the midst of this tribulation period. And what book is that? Well, it's probably the book that's referred to in Revelation chapter 13. There we get the understanding, the description of the Antichrist and the things that he will be accomplishing.

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And it tells us in verse 8 of Revelation 13 that all who dwell on the earth will worship Him whose names have not been written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

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And so there's a book of life of the Lamb who is slain before the Father. We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.