In the book of Daniel, Daniel shared how Gabriel told him about kings of the north and south, and concerning one of the final kings he said, “the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all”, and in chapter eleven and verse thirty-eight of his book Daniel shared how Gabriel said about the king of the north, “in his estate shall he honor the God of forces” where we read,
But in his estate shall he honor the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honor with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.
The verse reads, “But in his estate shall he honor the God of forces:” Daniel began with the words, “but in his estate” or “however, nonetheless, notwithstanding and moreover within his, the Supreme Deity’s, stand, pedestal, office and place ” “shall he honor the God” which means “will he, the flattering king of the north, make weighty, glorify and promote the Supreme Deity” “of forces” or “pertaining to safety, protection, refuge and stronghold”. Daniel shared how Gabriel told him the king of the north would promote and glorify the god of protection and strongholds in place of the Supreme Deity Jehovah God.
The verse goes on to say, “and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honor with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.” Daniel continued with the words, “and a god” or “and a deity” “whom his fathers knew not” which means “that his, the king of the north’s, male progenitors and ancestors did not recognize, acknowledge or consider” “shall he honor with gold” or “will he, the king of the north, make weighty, glorify and promote by the use of gold metal”, “and silver” which means “and silver metal”, “and with precious stones” or “and by the use of valuable, prized, weighty, rare and splendid jewels”, “and pleasant things” which means “and desirable, coveted and pleasurable items”. Daniel said Gabriel told him the king of the north would give glory to a deity that his forefathers did not recognize, and he will give glory to this “god” by glorifying him with gold and silver metals, valuable and rare jewelry stones and desirable and coveted items.
When we consider the words in this verse, we learn through Daniel how the king of the north (Antiochus) will replace the Supreme Deity Jehovah God with a deity that provides safety, protection and refuge. He will honor that deity whom his forefathers did not recognize with valuable items such as gold and silver metal, fine jewelry and coveted valuable items. All of these are temporal and earthly, and such is the way of a person who does not think in the eternal realm. Matthew Henry wrote, “He shall set up an unknown god, a new god, v. 38. In his estate, in the room of the god of his fathers (Apollo and Diana, deities of pleasure), he shall honor the god of forces, a supposed deity of power, a god whom his fathers knew not, nor worshiped; because he will be thought in wisdom and strength to excel his fathers, he shall honor this god with gold, and silver, and precious stones, thinking nothing too good for the god he has taken a fancy to. This seems to be Jupiter Olympius, known among the Phoenicians by the name of Baal-Semen, the lord of heaven, but never introduced among the Syrians till Antiochus introduced it.” His works at best will be the works of the flesh, and those works will not gain entrance into God’s Heaven. God knew people had sin in their lives, and those sins lead to death and separation from Him. God sent His Only Begotten Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind, (See John 3:16) and He raised Him from the dead after three days so all who put their faith and trust in Him may be forgiven of their sins, granted everlasting life and equipped with His Holy Spirit so their acts may be accounted for in the spiritual realm and never be satisfied with the temporal works of the flesh. (See Galatians 2:16; 5:19)
Next time Daniel shares how Gabriel says, “thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god”, 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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