Let's continue in Daniel chapter 7. We looked at this vision of the four beasts in Daniel 7, and we've covered all the way through verse 12, which is a reference to the four beasts in Daniel 7. the beasts of the kingdoms of the world and how they're going to progress. We noted that the restlessness and so on that Daniel displayed led to this progress of heathen authority in verses 4 through 8, where you see Babylon in verse 4, with Nebuchadnezzar's humiliation reference there, and then Persia in verse 5 with the Medes, the Persians. And the three ribs that are referenced there would be Medes, and Persians, and Babylonians that they conquered. And then in verse 6, you have Greece, and you have the leopard that is already a very swiftly moving animal, and then you have these wings of the bird associated with it. and the speed with which Alexander the Great conquered. And then the beast had four heads and dominion was given it to it. That's a reference to the division of Alexander's empire between his generals, if you remember. We talked about Cassandra, Lysinicus, Seleucus, and Ptolemy, which are these four heads. And we had the map where we showed you those regions of the Greek empire dominated by these four generals, which is being referenced here in verse. And then Rome is in view in verses 7 and 8. And then we talked about between verse 7, which is a clear reference to Rome, and then verse 8 is the church age. Right? So the church is not in view here. Remember, even as we discussed this morning, the church is a mystery in the Old Testament. You don't see the church referenced in the Old Testament at all. It's a mystery. It's called a mystery multiple times in the New Testament, meaning that it is something that is not known until God reveals it, and God chose not to reveal it until the New Testament era, which means that throughout the entirety of the Old Testament, the church is not in view. And therefore, the program of God with Israel moves along uninterrupted, right, between the first and second advents. So the people in the Old Testament didn't realize that there were two advents of Christ being prophesied about. They thought all the prophecies about the coming Messiah referred to one magnificent advent. And we talked about, I don't know if I talked about it here, but elsewhere, I've spoken about this principle of a gap between the two advents that you can clearly see from the side, but if you look at it straight on, it looks like just one event, right? So, from the Old Testament perspective, looking forward, they saw the coming of the Messiah. They didn't see the valley in between, and then the second advent, they just saw one coming. That is the idea that we recognize, and that is true between verses 7 and 8. And then verse 8 occurs. And then in verse 9 and 10, we saw the scene in heaven as heavenly judgment is getting ready. As the heavenly judgment is getting ready in heaven, he says, Daniel says, I kept looking until thrones were set up and the ancient of days took a seat. His vesture was like white snow, his hair of his head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames. Its wheels were with a burning fire. A river of fire was flowing and coming out from before him. Thousands upon thousands were attending him and myriads upon myriads were standing before him. The court sat, the books were opened. That is now…judgment is ready to be exacted, right? And so that is the view that Daniel has of heaven during the tribulation period in preparation for the Lord Jesus to return and to set up his millennial kingdom. And then the severity of the judgment was viewed in verse 11, then, I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain. Its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire. That's a reference to Jesus who, when he returns in Revelation 19, is going to take and slay the Antichrist and immediately cast him and the false prophet into the lake of fire. And we looked at this in Revelation 19 last time. As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was granted to them for an appointed period of time. So basically, he subjugated all the other kingdoms that were associated with the Antichrist's reign, and we saw that. having then come and dealt with the antichrist, and having slain him, and cast his body into the burning fire, the lake of fire, which is what he... Well, you know what? In case you weren't here, let's go to Revelation 19 and just read that, right? What Daniel is describing here in verse 11 is detailed for us in Revelation 19. As you see in verse 11, heaven was opened, and he who sat on it is called faithful and true, and in righteousness he judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and his head are many diadems, and he has a name written on him which no one knows except himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. The armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He might strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron, and He treads the winepress of the fierce wrath of God the Almighty. And on His robe and on His thigh, He has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. Then skip down to verse 19. And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to make war against him who sat on the horse and against his army. It is this beast and the kings that are assembling together to resist the Lord that are being referenced back in Daniel chapter 7. with these kingdoms and these horns that are being referenced, these 10 horns and the little horn that comes up and subjugates the three, leaving then seven. And we recognize that to be the same people being referenced in verse 19. And verse 20, the beast was seized, And with him the false prophet, who performed the signs in his presence, by which he had deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshipped his image, these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire, which burns with brimstone. The rest were killed with a sword which came from his mouth, of the one who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh." So this is a detail of verse 11 of Daniel chapter 7. And then the consequence of that, now, having dealt with the Antichrist, vanquished his enemies, Jesus Christ sets up his kingdom called the Millennium, the Millennial Kingdom of Jesus Christ. And we see that. In verse 13, verses 13 and 14, I kept looking in the night visions and behold, with the clouds of heaven, one like a son of man was coming and he came up to the ancient of days and was presented before him and to him was given dominion, glory. and a kingdom that all the peoples, nations, and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away, and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed. So these are the verses that we really want to look at in the next several minutes, and I want to provide for you some of the details of the millennium, all right? Let's begin by looking in verse 13 at the presentation of the king. And you see, first of all, the identification of the Son of Man, the identification of the Son of Man. The climax of this night vision that was given to Daniel occurs with a glorious view of the coronation of Jesus as the King of Kings. Remember, he has that written on his thigh, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This coronation is in view. He says, I kept looking. This is the ninth time this phrase is repeated by Daniel. indicating that, once again, Daniel's amazement at the succession of events that he's witnessing. And he says, I kept seeking, what's next? What's next? What's next? And finally, he comes, he said, I kept looking to see what was next after what he had described in verses 1 through 12. And of course, behold, With the clouds of heaven, one like the Son of Man was coming, a statement indicating the one envisioned is divine. So this Son of Man is a divine being, which of course we understand is true because the Son of Man was Jesus' favorite self-designation when he was on earth and is therefore a title of deity. So even though it says Son of Man, we understand it to be a divine title. that is attributable solely to the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ, right? So that's the significance of that phrase, the Son of Man. We'll talk about that a little bit more in just a moment. But one of the things I want to reference with you is this description that with the clouds of heaven, one like the Son of Man was coming, with the clouds of heaven. This idea of the clouds of heaven is often a designation that details a divine approach. Right? Let me take you to several verses and just demonstrate it. For instance, in Isaiah 19 verse 1, the scripture says, the oracle concerning Egypt, behold, the Lord is riding on a swift cloud and is about to come to Egypt. The idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them. Clearly, this is a reference to a visitation by God in judgment. In Matthew 24, verse 30, we have, and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. So in Matthew 24, Jesus is claiming to be the fulfillment of Daniel 7, verse 13. because he attributes it to himself when he comes. Now, clearly, this is during the first advent, and it is a description of what will be true at the second advent that has yet to come. Look at Matthew 26, 64. Jesus said to him, you have said it yourself. He's speaking to the high priest. Nevertheless, I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven. That is all a part of the ascription of the God-man who is going to come in judgment on the clouds of heaven. And then in Revelation 1.7, Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over him. So it is to be. Amen. So, this phrase back in Daniel 7, behold, with the clouds of heaven, one like a son of man was coming, indicates that this is an anticipation of the second advent of Jesus Christ. That's what is being described here. He is both heavenly and he is divine. And then the phrase, like the Son of Man, is a reference that refers to the person of the Lord Jesus. And one of the commentaries I read said this, because Christ so frequently couched his language in Old Testament terminology, and since this instance is the only time the phrase is used in the Old Testament with possible reference to Christ, the likelihood is that he had this text in mind when he used the term for himself. He was identifying himself with this one whom Daniel saw. Is there any wonder why, when he says this to the high priest in Matthew 26, that the high priest then reacts so vehemently when Jesus referred to this passage during his interview the night he was arrested? Notice what Matthew 26, 65 describes. We've already seen verse 64, where Jesus says, you will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of glory. Then the high priest tore his robes and said, he has blasphemed. Why would he say that? because they understood that the reference in Daniel chapter 7 to the son of man coming in the clouds was a divine reference. And when Jesus refers it or associates it with himself, the high priest claims that Jesus blasphemed. What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you now have heard the blasphemy. What do you think? And they answered, he deserves death. And this was during the early morning hours of the day that Jesus was crucified, right? So, this was clearly understood. What Jesus was saying was clearly understood that Daniel chapter 7 verse 13 refers to the Messiah when he comes, and Jesus says it's referring to him. And it was blasphemy to the high priest. That's the identification of the Son of Man is Jesus Christ. That's who is in view in verse 13. But then look at the introduction to the Son of Man. We're told He came up to the ancient of days and was presented before Him. We are not told who makes the presentation. We don't know that. It just says He was presented. He may present Himself. But more likely, there was an escort of innumerable angels who serve as an honor guard of glory to Christ. This kind of dovetails with what we talked about this morning when it said he was seen of angels and the joy that the angels had, right? The son was presented that he might receive the father's gifts. And the father's principal gift to his son was the kingdom of glory. In Psalm chapter two, this prophecy is made. He says, but as for me, I have installed my king upon Zion. This is God speaking. My holy mountain, I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord. He said to me, you are my son. Today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will surely give the nations as your inheritance, and the very ends of the earth as your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron. You shall shatter them like earthenware." That's exactly, exactly what Revelation 19 described, where he takes the beast, the false prophet, and casts him into the lake of fire, and then destroys the nations, all of his enemies. It is also exactly what we see given to us here, and to him was given dominion, glory, and a kingdom. That's the very thing that the father gives to his son, Jesus the Messiah, at the time of his second coming. That's when this all occurs. The king did not merely conquer other men, he accomplished the conquering of death itself and gained the world's salvation. And so, we understand that for this very task, the son had been chosen that in this triumph of his, so very modest and yet so unspeakably glorious, all history, even the history of the kingdom of God should reach its consummation. So this is what we find to be the apex of all earthly authority, is when all authority is in the hands of the reigning Messiah in Jerusalem, in Israel, for a thousand years, which is what we understand to be the fulfillment of these things. So, let's move to verse 14 and look at the portrayal of the kingdom. So, we see, first of all, the presentation of the king. Now, let's look at the portrayal of the kingdom, look at some of the things that characterize the kingdom. Number one is the dominion of the kingdom, the dominion of the kingdom. And to him was given dominion. This refers to the ruling authority of the Son of Man. He dominates. That's what dominion refers to. He dominates the world. And that was given to him by God. This is the perfect and total authority that no previous man, regardless of how potent they appeared to be, has ever achieved. It doesn't matter what conqueror we're talking about, including Alexander, including Julius Caesar, including any other monarch, Genghis Khan, anybody. It doesn't matter who you're referring to, none of them reach the domination and the dominion of the world that Jesus Christ will enjoy when he comes. till that day that Jesus comes, a measure of dominion will have been bestowed upon many who dwell upon the earth, that is, dominion in the broader sense of the term, even as dominion was given to the four empires that preceded the establishment of his own rule. The dominion that was given to Babylon, the dominion that was given to the Persians, the dominion that was given to Greece, the dominion that was given to Rome, all of those dominions were only a vestige, if you will, or a portion of the level of dominion that Jesus Christ will enjoy when he comes. All who attempted to use such dominion apart from the Lord made a most miserable failure of the attempt. Utopia was never achieved, restoration was never gained, happiness was never provided. This dominion shall now be taken from them all and given to the Lord Jesus Christ, which is why it says dominion was given to him by God the Father as a reward for his faithfulness and for his accomplishment of redemption. Hence, the ruling authority is placed in the hands of its final steward, and all previous stewards, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome, having demonstrated their ineptitude and failure, will be outshined by this kingdom, the millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ. Now, the distinctiveness of this kingdom is given to you in the next phrase, and to him was given glory. First, dominion. Second, glory. A reference to the distinction earned by the nature and character of the accomplishments of the king. This king did not merely conquer other men. He accomplished the conquering of death itself and gained the world's salvation. And his achievements were incomparable to any king before him. And he, therefore, receives glory reserved for no one but him. He alone is the one who is worthy. Only he is worthy. And notice what Revelation 5 verses 9 to 10 say, and they sang a new song saying, worthy are you to take the book and to break its seals for you were slain and purchased for God with your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation and you have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God and they will reign upon the earth. Verse 12 follows up and says, Revelation 5.12, and saying with a loud voice, worthy is the lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing. And glory is given to him by the Father and recognized by all. Jesus is, therefore, not only the king, but he has three other principal roles as well during the millennial kingdom. The one that captures the greatest fancy is that he's king, and he is. But He's also, even as was described in Revelation 5 earlier, He is the Savior. In Jeremiah 23, verses 5 and 6, it says, Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous branch, and he will reign as king and act wisely. This is a reference to Jesus in the millennium, and do justice and righteousness in the land. And in his days, Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell securely. And this is his name by which he will be called, the Lord our righteousness, the Lord our righteousness. That will be the name that people will fondly provide to Jesus, the Lord our righteousness, which will describe their saved state before the Lord. He also will be judged. This is a little bit more difficult, and we kind of wince at the idea of this because of the severity of his judgment. In Isaiah chapter 11, if you want to turn over there, these references are a little bit lengthy, and so I didn't put them on the slides. But Isaiah chapter 11, look with me at verses 3 through 5. And he will delight in the fear of the Lord, and he will not judge by what his eyes see, nor make a decision by what his ears hear. So he won't need evidence. You get that? This means he won't need evidence. But with righteousness, he will judge the poor and decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth. And he will strike the earth with a rod of his mouth and with the breath of his lips, he will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about his loins and faithfulness, the belt about his waist. His judgment will be perfect because he's omniscient and nothing is hidden from him. He will rule with a rod of iron and he will know the verdict. He won't need to hear evidence. He won't need to see evidence. He'll know the verdict. And so, there will be perfect equity, perfect justice during the millennial kingdom because Jesus will be the judge, but he also will be the restorer. He will be the one that brings back what was originally provided in Eden will resurge during the millennium, the restoration of all things. And during the millennium, there will be great restoration. And you see that in verses 6 through 9 of Isaiah 11. And the wolf will dwell with the lamb. Yeah, right. I mean, the lamb is a great meal for the wolf. No, no, no. They're going to dwell together. The wolf will no longer be carnivorous. Just like at the beginning in Eden, there was no death. And the leopard will lie down with the young goat, and the calf, and the young lion, and the fatling together, and the little boy will lead them. Also, the cow and the bear will graze. Their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox." A lion will be vegan. Like, what? That would be like me being vegan. The nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child will put his hand on the viper's den. They will not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." He will restore the Edenic delight during his reign. So he is the restorer. This is a marvelous depiction of the dominion in his kingdom and the distinctiveness of his kingdom, that he is king, savior, judge, restorer as he reigns upon the earth. Those days will be days of glory. And then finally, the design of his kingdom. And to him was given a kingdom that all the peoples, nations, and men of every language might serve him. A reference to the organized form of his government. It's gonna be worldwide. Every language and people will serve him altogether. They will come and do homage to him, even as Psalm 2 describes. This is the uniqueness of the kingdom of Christ. It is superior to the preceding kingdoms of the four great world empires at every point. Everyone, without exception, will serve him. Everyone. Someone asked me not too long ago, why in the great kingdoms that are prophesied in Daniel, why is China not involved in that? And the answer is because China has been irrelevant to the Jewish people throughout the Old Testament. And it's only the nations that touched Israel because this is all a Jewish prophecy. This is all about Israel. Even the establishment of the kingdom is primarily for fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant with reverence to the land promises, with reverence to the Davidic covenant. The land promises would be the Palestinian covenant. The seed promises would be the Davidic covenant of the king. And then the spiritual promises are the new covenant and they all come to their absolute fulfillment in the millennial kingdom when Jesus Christ returns, all of them. So China's not mentioned because it's irrelevant to Israel from the time of Abraham through. Now, China is referenced in Revelation, and we'll probably get a glimpse of that as we move through this, but it's not categorized as one of the kingdoms that had great impact on controlling Israel, right? So that's why, in case anyone else might have that question as well. Now, finally, in the last couple of minutes, and I can deal with this quickly, the potency of the kingdom. The potency of the kingdom in the latter part of verse 14. You see in the potency here, first, the permanence of the kingdom. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away. An apparent reference to the fact that his sovereign authority will never be given to another king. Jesus is that final king, and his kingdom will never be removed from him. He will always rule for the thousand years, and then into the eternal state where he turns over his kingdom to the Father, and all of his enemies have been put under his feet, and God will be all in all, and God and Christ will reign forever. This double positive, It's an everlasting dominion, which will not pass away. That's a double reference here, double emphasis. Demonstrate that this kingdom is so perfect and absolute that change and decay can never again set in on it. So this kingdom will not implode, this kingdom will not wane, this kingdom will not find a dissolution through departure of peoples. There will be no weakening of the kingdom all thousand years that it exists. And the promise of this kingdom is in that last phrase, and his kingdom is one which will not be destroyed, verse 14 says. That not only will it never rot from within, it will never be assailed from without. It will never be destroyed. So it will not pass away of its own ineptitudes, nor will it ever be assaulted or destroyed. Here you see that the things that contribute to the demise of all the other kingdoms As we ourselves are knowing in this great land in which we live, the degeneracy, the immorality, the laziness, the graft, the preoccupation with pleasure, and other factors, they will never touch the perfection of the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ. The rule and reign of Christ will be the consummation of every attempt of man to govern, and it will take the God-man to demonstrate how it ought to be done. And when he picks up his staff, his rod of iron and rules, it will be exemplary. He will come in glory and show his creatures how it should have been done all along. In addition to the future literal rule of Christ, His dominion, glory, and power can be present even in the individual hearts of men today. The Lord Jesus can reign in our hearts as we await Him, right? And should. Well, in these two verses, we have great delight as we anticipate what will be the consummation of the plan of God. In terms of the purposes of God, which will be in the Daniel 70-week prophecy that's coming up here in chapter 9, this is going to demonstrate that the absolute consummation of all of it is going to be at the millennial reign of Christ. Therefore, glory and honor belong to the Son of God for his rule and reign is perfect and eternal. May we rejoice that we know this King even already today. Let's pray. Father, thank you for your word. Thank you for its power. Thank you for its clarity. Thank you how it all fits together so perfectly. And Father, we know that there's so much confusion about the kingdom, about the millennium, from people who believe we're already in it, to people who believe that it will never be, to people who believe that it will come in the future, and then after that, Jesus is going to return. There's so many aberrant views of the kingdom and the millennium. Help us to be biblical and tied to the text and allow your word to be naturally understood and interpreted with literal interpretation. Lord, when we do, we see how marvelously these things work together and how gloriously the Lord Jesus Christ is viewed. Help us to submit to him even today. Help us to recognize that He is our King, and we have every responsibility to serve Him faithfully as a citizen of heaven. Lord, one day we will return with Him when He comes to set up His kingdom, and we will reign with Him for that thousand years, and we look forward to the glory that He will receive during those days. Meanwhile, may we as a church bring glory to the Lord Jesus Christ. in our individual lives daily, and also as we gather together corporately in our worship. May our adoration of the Son of Man, the ruler, the one who is our Lord, the King of kings, may it be genuine and fervent and honoring to Christ. And we'll thank you for these things in Jesus' name. Amen.