Daniel: Chapter 12
Setting
This chapter is a continuation of the same vision that started in Daniel 10, but it is useful to consider that each chapter focuses on a separate issue. Daniel 10 was upon Christ and the heavenly activities. Much of Daniel 11 focused on the prophetic events in the near future of Israel and the impact of the little horn on Israel in Daniel 8. The latter part of Daniel 11 was a prophetic view of the far future of Israel and the impact of the Antichrist upon Israel. Danial 12 concerns Israel only; the church and the Body-of-Christ had long since been resurrected or they had been snatched away, (raptured), 1Corinthians 15:51-58.
Daniel 12 can be sub-divided into three major sections.
- The time of trouble and Michael standing up for the children of Israel
- The resurrections
- The final words and sealing up the book
This verse, Daniel 12:1, along with Daniel 10, illustrates the role of angels in this world's affairs. In context with Daniel 10, the heavenly hosts of God are seen intervening on the behalf of the saints, in this case Israel. Michael stands to watch over the children of Israel from the very beginning of the tribulation. This is the second time that Michael is called by name in the Old Testament. The first time is found in Daniel 10:13, where he is called “one of the chief princes.” The beginning of Daniel 12:1-13 describes a time of great world-wide distress, Psalms 2:1-5, Matthew 24:21-22. Only those of Israel whose name are written in the book will be saved through this disaster, Revelation 12:13-17, Ezekiel 20:33-38. The promise to the people of faith in Israel, whose name are found written in the book, is that they will be delivered during the time of trouble that has never been witnessed since there was a nation, Zechariah 13:8-9. The reference concerning Daniel and his people in this vision relate to the children of Israel. As indicated in the last verses of Daniel 11:1-45, the events of the Antichrist are in the last half of the tribulation. During this time, there will be a purging to separate out the rebels from the faithful among the children of Israel, Revelation 12:13-17, Ezekiel 20:33-38. As a result of this purging, there will be holiness and righteousness in Jerusalem, something that has never been experienced from the opening days of history through the beginning of the millennial reign of the Lord Jesus Christ, Zechariah 14:20-21.
Daniel 12:2-3 is concerned with the resurrection of the Old Testament saints. This was common awareness of this event to those living prior to the cross, but few believed, such as Job, Job 19:25-27. There are only two resurrections spoken of in scriptures, which are referenced here and elsewhere in the Bible, i.e., John 5:28-29. The first resurrection is for the saints to receive their new eternal bodies to be with God for eternity. There are several instances of when people enter into eternal life with their new bodies, beginning with Christ Jesus, John 20:15-17. However, there is only one instance when the unrighteous will suffer the second resurrection. That event is reserved for those who rejected the will of God and did not believe on Him and His Word. They will appear before the great white throne judgment and bear the results of their own sins for eternity, Daniel 12:2-3, Revelation 20:1-5. See the web pages on the rapture and the resurrection on this site for more information.
The following flow chart illustrates the only two paths that every person ever born, must choose to enter. No one is without excuse, Romans 1:15-23.
The first resurrection of the Old Testament saints should not be confused with the rapture of the church where the believers in Christ, and died, wiill have been resurrected, then those who are still alive when the Lord arrives in the clouds will be taken up, 1 Corinthians 15:51-58, 1Thessalonians 4:13-18. The resurrection of the Old Testament saints is a completely, and later event to the rapture of the church. A critical point to understand concerning the first resurrection of the saints, is that there are several instances to this event; some have already occurred, and the rest will occur in this world’s future history, shown in the above graphic. The instances of the first resurrection are:
- The resurrection of Jesus Christ
- The first fruits of the resurrection; a small remnant who were resurrected immediately after the resurrection of Christ Jesus, Matthew 27:52-53
- The rapture of the church, 1 Corinthians 15:51-58, 1Corinthians 3:10-15
- The two witnesses at the mid-tribulation who will be slain in Jerusalem, their bodies left in the street for 3½ days, then God will call them to raise from the dead and ascend to Him, Revelation 11:7-12
- The rising of the Old Testament saints whose resurrection occurs after the seven years of tribulation as told to Daniel at the end of the chapter, Daniel 12:13
The "end of the days" follows the tribulation period, which is the subject of this chapter, and then eternity future. All of those who are part of the first resurrection have a promise of great and wonderful things for eternity, 1Corinthians 2:9-10, Revelation 20:6, Revelation 21:1-7.
In Daniel 12:4, Daniel is told by the angel to seal up the book. Sealing the document was a formal and legal process as shown in Jeremiah 32:8-12, to preserve the record of an event. A great deal of time, millennia, will elapse from Daniel's day until the end of times arrives. In fact, over two millennia have elapsed between then and now. From the time Daniel wrote this book until the writing of the book of Revelation, a time span of about 650 years had elapsed. The Apostle John wrote the Revelation of Jesus Christ, was after the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ Jesus, 1Corinthians 1:1-4. This began the last days, Hebrews 1:1-2, and John was instructed not seal up the prophecies he was given for the time was at hand. Revelation 22:10-13. In general, the event of the Lord's resurrection is the beginning of the church, and when the end of times begins. Prior to that time, in Daniel’s day, the major event being looked for was the coming Messiah.
As seen up to this point, there are many segments of time that reveal significant events that will occur upon Israel and the world. So the additional comment that the book is to be sealed, even to the time of the end, indicates a long period of time will elapse before the fulfillment of the words in this book; this includes beyond the church age, to the last judgment before God on his great white throne, and then on into the future eternity. As an aside, the Old Testament saints were never informed that there would be a church age that would include Gentiles. The Lord kept this secret since the beginning of time, until the time came for the secret to be revealed to Paul, Ephesians 3:1-12.
This book is not written solely for those in Israel who suffered greatly under Antiochus IV Epiphanes, but for all mankind to understand when the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ, would first appear in the world, and all of the succeeding events after the Lord’s death on the cross, and before His return to establish His millennial reign over the earth, centered in Israel. The final characterization of the end time is the two-fold attributes of life that will exist; what we are witnessing today. There will be a great deal of extended travel among the general populace, and knowledge will greatly increase. Certainly, one can argue today that in the history of man, the recent past and beginning of this new century have witnessed an explosion in the ability to mass transport people and supplies worldwide, and the breadth of knowledge in general continues to expand at dizzying rates of change.
In Daniel 12:5-6, he observes two other beings, each on the opposite sides of the bank of the river. This is still a continuation of the vision that Daniel had beginning with Daniel 10:1-21 concerning his people, Israel. The person over the water is arguably the pre-incarnate Christ. One person on the bank helps clarify the prophesy given to Daniel in Daniel 11 by asking the person over the water “how long will before these things are fulfilled?”
In Daniel 12:7, it is the pre-incarnate Christ who answers the angel, that it will be a time, times, and half a time, the same as 3 ½ years. The topic is the last half of the tribulation. When the pre-incarnate Christ lifts His hand toward heaven, there are at least two things being addressed. First is the realization of the Lord's deity, being the same as God, John 14:8-12, John 17:20-26, and therefore He can swear by no other name than His own, Hebrews 6:13.
Second, is the relationship between the Father and the Son, where the Father reveals all things to the Son, Acts 1:7, Revelation 1:1. Since the pre-incarnate Christ is over the water, it may represent all the nations, Daniel 7:2, Revelation 13:1, Revelation 17:1. The two angels on either shore may represent to the two people groups in the world from a Biblical perspective, Israel and Gentiles. The preincarnate Christ over the water, shows that He is over all, Romans 9:5, 10:12.
The summation of the 3½ years includes the scattering of the tribulation saint's power, Daniel 7:20-22. At the end of the 3½ years the Lord will return to establish His millennial reign over the whole world. In the page discussing Daniel chapter 9 and the reason for the 70 weeks, the relative time of the Lord's return and establishment of His millennial reign is shown. This will follow only after the rebellion of the children of Israel is dealt with during the last 3 ½ years of the tribulation. Then the Lord will circumcise the heart of His people to love the Lord their God and live, Deuteronomy 30:6. There is more discussed on this subject describing the flight of the remnant of Israel into the wilderness during the last half of the tribulation on this website on the page discussing Revelation chapter 13, the fleeing woman. This is further clarified by Daniel 12:10 where many will be purified, made spotless and refined.
In Daniel 12:8-9, Daniel expresses his lack of understanding and his difficulty in grasping the enormity of what he had heard. Daniel focused on the end of all these judgments, and was wondering when will it end. The answer given to Daniel is similar to what the Lord Jesus Christ said to His disciples when they asked a similar question prior to the Lord's ascension, Acts 1:6-7. In both cases, they were not given the answer they were looking for, but their question was answered. They were not to know the exact date of the end of all these things, and the establishment of the Lord's millennial reign. They and we are only given the time relative to the succession of other events once they occur.
In Daniel 12:10, the pre-incarnate Christ does provide more details to describe the end times. The tribulation will sharply separate all peoples into two groups, the wicked and the wise. Other scriptural passages describe segregation of the righteous from the wicked, Revelation 22:11. What separates these two groups is the Spirit of God working through the saints of God. The Apostle Paul wrote at length about this, and the revelation of the Spirit to make known to the saint the things of God. 1Corinthians 2:6-15. This also follows the above discussion on the time times and half a time.
In Daniel 12:11-12, there are references to two other time periods which exceed the original time, times, and half a time, or the equivalent of either that is the same as 1,260 days. The other two time periods given are 1,290 days and 1,335 days. All three time periods have the same approximate point of origin, which is the midtribulation period, but the three times giving in this chapter have differing purposes. The two time periods given in these two verses have been the subject of great debates, and there is no real consensus on interpreting them. The following is the viewpoint expressed for the web site. The three time periods spoken of in this chapter are:
- 1,260 days until when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished (the end of the tribulation, and after the battle of Armageddon), Daniel 12:7
- 1,290 days from when the daily sacrifice is taken away and the abomination of desolation is set up
- 1,335 days, on that day there will be blessings for those who wait.
The first period of time, 1,260 days, or time times and half a time in Daniel 12:7, originates exactly at the midpoint of the seven years of the tribulation, and concludes at the battle of Armageddon.
The other two dates are speculated to originate at the time when the Antichrist invades Israel, which is not necessarily the same time as the midtribulation. At the time of the invasion, the Antichrist establishes his center of government in Jerusalem, which may occur days or months prior to the exact midtribulation point. However, in Revelation 11:1-2, the Apostle John is given a reed to measure the tribulation temple, but he is told not to measure the outside of the court for that was given to the Gentiles for 42 months, or 3 ½ years. Therefore, this marks the midtribulation point when the worship of the image of the Antichrist is to begin. Further, the end of the judgment is with the pouring out of the last bowl judgment, Revelation 16:17-21, in which an unimaginable cataclysmic event occurs within and throughout the entire world where everything is virtually destroyed, which would possibly include the tribulation temple in Jerusalem. For this reason, first two dates, 1,260 days and 1,290 days, are assumed to end simultaneously, at the battle of Armageddon, all judgment and evil in the world ceases. Therefore, it is presumed that the extra 30 days in the 1,290 days in Daniel 12:11 precedes the midtribulation point, and is the time when the Antichrist has established his center of government in Jerusalem, Daniel 11:41 and Daniel 11:45. It is then he causes temple worship to the Lord to cease, and at the end of the 30 days, his false prophet completes the image of the Antichrist and erects it in the holy place. From that time forward, when the false prophet erects the image of the Antichrist in the holy place, he will cause the world to worship the Antichrist and thereby cause the abomination that makes desolate to occur, Mathew 24:15-22, and Revelation 13:11-18.
In Daniel 12:12, Daniel is told that blessed is he that waits for the 1,335th day. No other information is given as to what that blessing will be, or what will be the trigger that will commence this period of time. It is assumed that in context with the previous verse that the start time for both periods of time, 1,290 days and 1,335 days, will be the same. The difference of 45 days has to be accounted for. Since this endpoint is looking forward to a blessing rather than the end of judgment, it would not appear to do violence to the other prophecies to think that these are days that extend beyond the battle of Armageddon. In fact, what greater blessing will there be for the survivors of the seven years of tribulation than to wait an additional 45 days after the end of Armageddon, and witness the event when the glory of the Lord enters into the new Millennial temple, Ezekiel 43:1-5. More is written on the associated timeline page that is found on web page on Ezekiel chapter 43.