In the book of Daniel, Daniel shared how Gabriel told him, “the king of the north … shall stand in the glorious land, which by his hand shall be consumed. He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his whole kingdom, and upright ones with him; thus shall he do: and he shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her: but she shall not stand on his side, neither be for him. After this shall he turn his face unto the isles, and shall take many: but a prince for his own behalf shall cause the reproach offered by him to cease; without his own reproach he shall cause it to turn upon him. Then he shall turn his face toward the fort of his own land: but he shall stumble and fall, and not be found. Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory of the kingdom: but within few days he shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle. And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honor of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries. And with the arms of a flood shall they be overflown from before him, and shall be broken; yes, also the prince of the covenant”, and in chapter eleven and verse twenty-three of his book Daniel shared how Gabriel said, “after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully” where we read,
And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully:
for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.
The verse reads, “And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully:” Daniel began with the words, “and after the league made with him” or “and following the covenant, alliance and treaty with him, the prince spoken of in our previous verse” “he shall work deceitfully” which means “he, the flattering ruler will act, labor, produce and prepare in a crafty, false and subtle way”. Daniel shared how Gabriel told him this flattering ruler would act in a false and crafty manner following his treaty with the previous ruler.
The verse goes on to say, “for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.” Daniel continued with the words, “for he shall come up” or “because, since and on account that he, the flattering ruler, will arise, arrive and enter”, “and shall become strong” which means “and will be mighty and powerful” “with a small people” or “alongside and accompanying a little or few amount of human beings”. Daniel shared how Gabriel told him this flattering ruler would arise and become mighty and powerful accompanied by just a few “people”.
When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we learn through Daniel how this flattering ruler labors and acts in a crafty and subtle manner following his covenant with the other “prince”. He will rise up in power and might with only a few people accompanying him. Matthew Henry wrote concerning this flattering ruler, “his nephew, the rightful heir, whom he pretended to covenant with that he would resign to him whenever he should return, v. 22. But (v. 23) after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully, as one whose avowed maxim it is that princes ought not to be bound by their word any longer than it is for their interest. And with a small people, that at first cleave to him, he shall become strong.” God knew all the plans and deception this flattering ruler had in mind, and He oversaw all of his antics. God knows us as well, and nothing, including our sins, are hidden from Him. Those sins separate us from a personal relationship with Him, and for this reason He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind. He raised Him from the grave after three days, and when we yield our lives to Him as our personal “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and give us His Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth and empower us to live according to that truth so we may be His witnesses in the world. (See John 16:13; Acts 1:8)
Next time Daniel shares how Gabriel says, “he shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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