Ancient Babylonia - Daniel and the Prophets
Daniel (606-534 B.C.) "Dani El" (My Judge is God). Daniel and the other
prophets of Israel spoke by the Word of the Lord concerning Babylon and its
destruction, as well as the outcome of several other nations and cities. Daniel was taken captive during Nebuchadnezzar's first attack on Jerusalem in 607 BC. He became a chief minister at the royal court in Babylon. God used him mightily through dreams and interpretation of visions.
In the third year of Cyrus (conqueror of Babylon, and founder of the Persian
Empire) Daniel, had a series of visions through which God revealed to the
minutest details, the future concerning the Jews as well as the ultimate fate of each world governing empire from his own day on through to
the second coming of Christ. He specifically mentions Babylon, and then Mede-Persia, and then Greece, and
the fourth being the most powerful, was the Roman Empire.
Some of the famous miracles of the Bible are found in Daniel such as The Fiery Furnace, The Handwriting
on the Wall, and Daniel in the Lion's Den.
Daniel was a man of incredible character and his book is considered one of the most important prophetic books of the Old Testament. Some of the topics mentioned are: the antichrist, the
great tribulation, the second coming of Christ, the resurrection and the
judgments. Probably the most important passages in Daniel are in chapter 9, which deal
with the exact time of the death of the Messiah. After 7 + 62 (69) weeks
(seven year periods) the Messiah would be "cut off" which is a clear prediction of
His death.
Daniel also saw a vision of the Messiah in chapter 7 as the "Son of Man" coming with the clouds of heaven:
Dan 7:13-14 "I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they
brought Him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a
kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is
an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one
which shall not be destroyed."
Ancient Babylonia
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