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of the image, and with the bear of Daniel's first vision; Macedonia, or the goat with four horns, coincides with the third kingdom of brass, and the four-winged and four-headed leopard; and the little horn coincides with the iron and clay; and with the fourth beast, or fourth kingdom; and the host and sanctuary restored, coincide with the stone cut out of the mountain, and with the ancient of days and his throne; the destruction of the little horn, or king of fierce countenance, coincides with the fall of the great image of monarchy, and taking of the beast or fall of the fourth empire, completely.

CHAPTER IX.

DANIEL'S THIRD VISION OF THE WORLD.

THIS vision extends from the beginning of the eleventh chapter of Daniel to the end of the twelfth. It is the explanation of all the previous universal visions to Daniel, and is made by some angel, perhaps Gabriel. It appears that Daniel had a vision in the third year of Cyrus, and that he had set himself to study to understand it, and had been engaged in prayer for that purpose. An angel came to him while he was thus engaged, and told he would show what was "noted in the scriptures of truth." By this we understand, that the angel was further to explain the visions before given and recorded; and, also, to explain his last vision. The object of the angel was to explain Daniel's last vision; and, as he proposes to explain all that had occurred

before it, it is presumable that they all signified about the same things. It must, however, be recollected, that the explanations of visions, while they cover the ground of the vision, often add particulars which are only given in a general manner by the vision. This interpretation was given in the third year of Cyrus.

SECTION I.

THE PERSIAN EMPIRE.

Interpretation.—“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."

As this was stated in the days of Cyrus, the four kings mentioned must succeed him. These were, Cambyses the son of Cyrus, Smerdes the Magian, Darius Hystaspes, and Xerxes. Of Xerxes, Justin says, "You may praise his riches, not the general; of which, there was so great abundance in his kingdom, that when rivers were dried up by his army, yet his wealth remained unexhausted." Xerxes' invasion of Greece, is one of the most memorable events of history.

SECTION II.

THE GRECIAN EMPIRE.

"And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion, and do according to his will. And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven:

and not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled; for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those."

That this describes Alexander and his kingdom, every one can see. Alexander died in Babylon, and in fifteen years his posterity was extinct, and his kingdom was divided into four parts, to the four winds. Macedon and Greece formed the western part; Thrace and Bithynia, the northern; Syria, the eastern; and Egypt, the southern part; and each was ruled by persons not of Alexander's family. The angel, after these declarations, proceeds to describe the history of the two principal branches into which the Macedonian empire was divided, under the name of north and south, or kings of Syria and Egypt. He proceeds with this description very minutely, and gives a better history than any other ever written of them. At the latter time of their kingdom, he introduces the Roman power. As his description of Syria and Egypt is minute and lengthy, we shall not interpret it, but refer the inquisitive to the perfect interpretation of Bishop Newton. We begin our next exposition at the appearance of the Roman power in Asia, which is mentioned in the thirtieth verse.

SECTION III.

ROMAN EMPIRE.

The succeeding portion of the prophecy is symbolic, and, of course, doubled. It gives a history of the Roman power coinciding with the iron legs of the great image, and with the iron and clay, and follows it by the great restoration of Israel, and the resurrection of the dead.

Paragraph I.

SHIPS OF CHITTIM, OR ROME.

"For the ships of Chittim shall come against him, (that is, against Antiochus Epiphanes, the Syrian king,) therefore, shall he be grieved, and have indignation against the holy covenant; so shall he do."

The ships of Chittim are the ships of Rome. The prophet Balaam had predicted this very event. He said, "Ships shall come from the coast of Chittim, and shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he, also, shall perish forever." Chittim, or Kittim, was one of the grandsons of Japhet, and settled in the south of Europe, and the Romans were, most probably, his descendants; at any rate, his name was given to south Europe, according to ancient scholars. Bishop Newton, in his fifth dissertation, has shown this fully.

In Balaam's prediction, Asshur and Eber are put for their posterity: Eber standing for the Hebrews, for they received their name from him. Balaam makes the term he refer to the ships of Chittim, and thus it becomes a prophetic term of multitude, and denotes one embodied people, or nation. As no doubt of our exposition can be entertained here, we pass on. Antiochus, in his last descent into Egypt, was grieved at interferences with his plans, by ambassadors, who came in ships from Rome, and peremptorily ordered him to desist from his designs. He complied, reluctantly, with their demands, and returned homeward.

On his way back, he vented his indignation upon the Jews. He detached Appolonius with 20,000 men, who went to Jerusalem, slew great multitudes, plundered the

city, set it on fire, and shed blood on every side of the

sanctuary, and defiled it. ities to the factions who

Josephus ascribes these calamcommunicated with Antiochus,

and persuaded him to invade Judea. Thus, "he had intelligence with them that forsook the holy covenant.”

Paragraph II.

ARMS, OR THE ROMAN MILITARY POWER.

1. "And after him (Antiochus) ARMS shall stand up." Bishop Newton says, this is the literal rendering of the original term mimmdu. Arins are always used to represent the military power of a kingdom.-Ezek. xxx. 21; Jer. xlviii. 25. As a symbol of a great power, it must properly represent a military nation, and thus coincides with Rome, which was, emphatically, a military empire. At this period of history, Rome conquered Macedon, one of the four horns of the he goat, in the preceding vision, and then grew up out of it in the east, and expanded toward Asshur and Eber. The countries. of Illyricum, and Pergamos, soon became theirs; so that they "stood up" in the east, as far as the Taurus. All Egypt and Syria, including the Jews, also, soon fell to them. "Arms standing up," after "Antiochus in Asia," must refer to the Romans, who succeeded him in Asia and Egypt. This prophecy of Rome in Asia, matches the preceding vision.

2. "They (arms) shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice." The Romans polluted the temple with the blood of thousands; and they, by war, caused the daily worship in the temple to ccase, by the interruption of the daily offerings.

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