In the book of Daniel, Daniel shared how Gabriel said, “also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to confirm and to strengthen him. And now will I show you the truth. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than they all: and by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia”, and in chapter eleven and verse three of his book Daniel shared how Gabriel told him, “a mighty king shall stand up” where we read,
And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion,
and do according to his will.
The verse reads, “And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, …” Daniel began with the words, “and a mighty king” or “and a valiant, strong and brave royal ruler” “shall stand up” which means “will be erected, appointed and established”, “that shall rule” or “who will reign and govern” “with great dominion” which means “by the use of an abounding and exceedingly powerful supremacy and dominance”. Daniel shared how Gabriel told him that a powerful royal ruler would arise who would reign with an exceedingly powerful supremacy.
The verse goes on to say, “… and do according to his will.” Daniel continued with the words, “and do” or “and perform, produce and work” “according to his will” which means “in keeping with his, the mighty king’s, pleasure, delight, acceptance and favor”. Daniel shared how Gabriel said this “mighty king” would perform and act in keeping with his own desires and pleasure.
When we consider the words in this verse, we learn through Daniel how Gabriel told him of an exceedingly powerful royal ruler who would rise after the four “kings” in “Persia”. This “mighty king” was “Alexander the Great” of Greece, and because he was such a complete conqueror, he was able to do whatever he desired. Matthew Henry wrote, “When Alexander conquered Asia, he was worshiped for a short time as a god, but because there is no other God than the True God Jehovah, his reign did not last.” God sets up leaders and nations, and He takes them down. All people in authority positions rule only for the time God allots for them. Afterwards, they all perish. God knows we too shall “perish” for all eternity because of the sin in our lives if we do not have a “Savior” to redeem us. For this reason He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raised Him from the dead after three days. God loves us, and when we yield our lives to Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and help us by His Holy Spirit that the leaders and rulers in this world are all under His omnipotent hand. (See John 3:16; 16:13)
Next time Daniel shares how Gabriel told him, “when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven”, 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".
No comments:
Post a Comment