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BACKGROUND
Let us begin by remembering that we will be using the KJV of the scriptures.
The 2300 day prophecy is found in the eighth chapter of Daniel. The prophecy itself is given from verse three to verse
fourteen, and the explanation is given in verses twenty to twenty-six. Please read the whole chapter through carefully
before continuing on with this article.
You will find verses three to eight explained by verses twenty to twenty-two.
The ram with two horns is the Media Persian Empire which is destroyed by the first king of a united Greece. He now dying,
his kingdom is divided into four parts.
Historically, the first king of a united Greece was Alexander, who
died in 323 BC after conquering the Medo Persian Empire. After his death, many men tried to assume his mantle as
ruler of the lands that he had conquered. In 304 BC Antigonus declared himself king and demanded that all the others
submit to him. Cassander, Lysimachis, Nicator and Ptolemy did not agree and also declared themselves to be kings over their
own lands. This issue, of who was greatest, was finally decided at the battle of Ipsus in 301 BC when Antigonus
was defeated and killed by the other four. Meanwhile, the son of Antigonus, Demetrius, was able to flee the field and
continued as king of various areas in his father's place.
In 297 BC Cassander died and was succeeded by
his eldest son Philip, who in turn died the next year (296 BC). In 295 BC, the widow of Cassander, Thessalonice; divided
the kingdom of Macedonia between her two remaining sons, Antipater and Alexander. They took to quarreling and Antipater
murdered his mother and attacked his brother Alexander. Alexander called for help from Demetrius, who came
and murdered the young man, seizing his kingdom. Demetrius then attacked Alexander's brother, Antipater, who
fled to his uncle Lysimachis. Lysimachis had the lad executed for the murder of his sister, the boy's mother in
294 BC. These events brought to an end the family of Cassander. Extinguishing Cassander, his wife and his three
sons and reducing the successors of Alexander to five; Demetrius, Ptolemy, Lysimachis, Pyrrhus and Nicator.
To further complicate things a number of the possessions of Demetrius declared their independence while these struggles
were going on. After Demetrius took the necessary time to secure Macedonia he proceeded to retake Thessaly and Boeotia
in 291 BC, completing the job in 290 BC. By 288 BC Pyrrhus, Lysmachis and Ptolemy united against
Demetrius and defeated him, making joint war against him and forcing him to abandon his kingdom of Macedonia.
Demetrius, left with only his possessions outside of Macedonia; tried to move into Asia with his army but was finally taken
prisoner in 286 BC after his army fell apart, Thus Alexander's kingdom was finally divided into four
parts under Lysimachus, Ptolemy, Pyrrhus and Nicator; fulfilling Dan 8:22 in 286 BC. This historic material is readily
available with a little research.
THE END TIME
For at the TIME
of the END shall be the VISION Dan 8:17. Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the LAST END of the indignation:
for at the TIME APPOINTED the END SHALL BE Dan 8:19. And in the LATTER TIME of their kingdom, when the transgressors are COME
TO THE FULL Dan 8:23. This VISION, this prophecy is for the END TIMES. It was not and could not have been fulfilled
by Antiochus, Epiphanes over two thousand years ago! It is for our day, NOW!
THE
2300 DAYS
How long shall be the VISION? Unto 2300 days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed Dan 8:14.
Margin 2300 evenings and mornings. What is an evening and morning? The evening and morning were the first day
Gen 1:5. The evening and morning were the second day Gen 1:8. The evening and morning were the third day Gen 1:13. One
evening and morning is one day. Two evenings and mornings are two days. Three evenings and mornings are three days. One hundred
evenings and mornings are one hundred days. And, twenty-three hundred evenings and mornings are twenty-three hundred days!
Suddenly from the four divisions of Alexander's kingdom in Dan 8:8, the prophecy leaps forward to the
last days Dan 8:9. Shown in the explanation; are the four divisions in verse twenty-two leaping forward to the LATTER
TIME in verse twenty-three.
In the LATTER TIME a fierce king shall appear, understanding secret things he shall
destroy and prosper Dan 8:23-24. He shall destroy many while they are AT PEACE Dan 8:25, 1 Thes 5:3. He shall stand
up against the Prince of Princes, Jesus Christ at His coming Dan 8:25, but he shall be broken Dan 2:35 and thrown into the
fire Rev 19:20 and Dan 7:11. This fierce king shall have power to make war, to occupy Jerusalem, for forty
two months or 1260 days Rev 13:5. When he and the false prophet are destroyed the sanctuary will be CLEANSED!
This king magnifies himself against the Prince of the host, Jesus Christ. By the Prince of the host, Jesus Christ, the daily
was taken away (stopped) and His sanctuary was cast down Dan 8:11 being given over to the gentiles Rev 11:1-2
and because of transgressions the host was given over to this king, margin.
The whole vision about this king shall
be 2300 days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed Dan 8:13-14.
The explanation is this: From the time that
Alexander's empire is divided into four parts, until the sanctuary shall be cleansed and the kingdoms described in
Dan 2 destroyed with the death of the fierce king and the false prophet shall be 2300 years (a year for a day). Coming
forward 2300 years from 286 BC arrives at 2014 AD, adding one year for the year zero gives us 2015 AD, when the sanctuary
shall be cleansed by the coming of Jesus Christ. Now subtracting 42 months (1260 days) shows that this final beast emperor
is to be empowered and will occupy Jerusalem at the end of 2011 or shortly thereafter. Of course this depends on what date in 286 BC the four parts were finally established Did this
happen at the beginning, or at the end of 286 BC? This is further complicated by the fact that different Greek leaders
had different starting points for their years. Given the historical difficulties of the Greek struggles it is possible that
this date might be in error by a year or two, but one thing is certain; IT IS VERY CLOSE INDEED!
When Demetrius fled from Macedonia, his son Antigonas 2 Gonatus accompanied him. Arriving in Athens; Demetrius
went on into Asia. Within a few years Lysimachis and Pyrrhus took to fighting each other and in such a state, Macedonia
was taken by the Gauls in 279 BC. Antigonas declared himself king in exile after the death of his father Demetrius in
283 BC. He remained a king without a throne until he managed to defeat the Gauls in 277 BC.
Whether this short
period of nine years of exile until the king's return to defeat the Gauls fulfills the prophecy could be a subject of
discussion. If it does not, I can find no other period when only four successors to Alexander ruled his dominions.
There is in fact; nothing in the prophecy to indicate exactly how long the division to only four rulers would last. Another possible indication of the nearness of the times, is the
fact that until the Catholic Bishop Usher developed his chronology of history, putting the creation at 4004 BC: It was commonly
believed that creation occurred in 3987 BC . 6000 minus 3987 leaves us with 2013 AD; add one for year zero and we have 2014 AD. Then we must remember that
the 6,000 must be completed before the sanctuary is cleansed therefore the Kingdom will be set up at the end of year 6,000
which is the beginning of the year 6,001 as the year that the sanctuary would be cleansed by the coming Kingdom of God. That
year works out to 2015! Of course it is impossible to know for sure even though it does provide some indication of the
nearness of the times. |
