Bulletin Insert (9/26/21): The Third Temple

 

Scriptures relating to the Third Temple

By Pastor Terry L. Reese, Valley GBC of Armagh, PA; 9/25/2021

 

The rebuilding of the Temple is NO MYTH! Various detailed Biblical prophecies speak concerning the rebuilding of the Third Jewish Temple (i.e., the “Tribulation Temple”), which will be standing in Jerusalem on the Temple Mount during the future Seven Year Tribulation Period (after the Rapture of God’s Church), and which will be defiled by the Antichrist. This event was forshadowed by such past events as the defilement of the Second Temple by Antiochus IV Epihanes (2^nd Cent. BC), who sacrified a pig on the Altar and placed a statue of Zeus in the Holy Place (cf., Dan. 8:11-3; 11:31).; and the later defilement of Mt. Moriah by the Roman Emperor Hadrian (AD 117-38), who built a Temple to Jupiter there, erecting a statue of himself where the Holy Place once stood.

Dan. 9:27: “And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.”

Dan. 12:11: “And from the time that the regular burnt offering is taken away and the abomination that makes desolate is set up, there shall be 1,290 days.”

2 Thess. 2:3-4:  “Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.”

Matt. 24:15-16: "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (whoever reads, let him understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.”

Rev. 11:1-2: “Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, ‘Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.’”

Rev. 13:15: “And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain.”

Roman Emperor Hadrian

A Sign-Miracle Confirmed! (Dan. 3:26-30)

 

v. 26a: Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the furnace…

o   A reference to the large ground level opening.

 

v. 26b: "…come out, you servants of the Most High God, and come here!"

o   The fire of his fury thus abated, Nebuchadnezzar, under the control of the Sovereign Hand of God, is compelled by events to set aside his own political/religious agenda and openly acknowledge things that were contrary to his own unregenerate heart and self-centered purposes.

 

o   The Three had professed to be “servants” of the Most High (v. 17)—and indeed, they were now recognized as such by their very oppressor!

 

o   The King recognizes the God of Israel as a “God of gods,” supremely standing above all others (reverting to the form of Dan. 2:47, from which he had lapsed)— though he does not expressly nor formally deny the existence of other deities.

 

o   Calvin, on Dan. 3:26: the temporary & vanishing “conversion” of the reprobate.

“We cannot take too diligent notice of examples of this kind, as many estimate the characters of others from a single action. But the worst despisers of God can submit to him for a short time, not merely by feigning to do so before men, but in real seriousness, since God compels them by his power, but meanwhile they retain their pride and ferocity within their breasts. Of this kind, then, was the conversion of King Nebuchadnezzar. For when astonished by the miracle, he could no longer resist the Almighty, he was still inconsistent, as we shall afterwards see. We may also notice how the impious, who are unregenerate by God’s Spirit, are often impelled to worship God; but this is only temporary, and this equable tenor never remains through their whole life. But when God renews his own, he undertakes to govern them even to the end; he animates them to perseverance, and confirms them by his Spirit.”

 

o   This is yet another example demonstrating that the reprobate can be temporarily made to fear—but this is not synonymous with the lasting conversion characteristic of genuine saving faith (cf., 1 John 2:19; 2 Pet. 2:22).

 

Acts 24:24-25: But some days later Felix arrived with Drusilla, his wife who was a Jewess, and sent for Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. But as he was discussing righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix became frightened and said, "Go away for the present, and when I find time I will summon you."

Ex. 10:16-20: Then Pharaoh hurriedly called for Moses and Aaron, and he said, "I have sinned against the LORD your God and against you. Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and make supplication to the LORD your God, that He would only remove this death from me." He went out from Pharaoh and made supplication to the LORD. So the LORD shifted the wind to a very strong west wind which took up the locusts and drove them into the Red Sea; not one locust was left in all the territory of Egypt. But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the sons of Israel go.

 

v. 26c: Then Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego came out of the midst of the fire.

o   The young men are content to remain in the furnace until commanded to depart! Some observations:

o   Better to be in the midst of a blazing furnace with the Lord than to remain in a palace without Him!

o   In submission to authority, they obey the King’s command to emerge.

o   Like Noah, they do not “come out” (Gen. 8:16) until the appropriately designated, specially appointed moment.

v. 27a: “The satraps…and the king's high officials gathered around and saw…”

o   These lofty pagan dignitaries—"hostile witnesses”—would now serve a Sovereign Living God as reliable & confirming eyewitnesses unto the legitimacy of the sign-miracle!

 

v. 27b: “…the fire had no effect…”

o   The young men subjected to proper “scientific investigation.”

o   Their deliverance was COMPLETE & TOTAL! Note these four indicators:

1.    “the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men…”

2.    “nor was the hair of their head singed…”

3.    “nor were their trousers damaged…”

4.    “nor had the smell of fire even come upon them.”

 

o   When genuine, supernaturally-directed sign-miracles are involved, God’s deliverance is not partial, but total, perfect, complete, and abundantly self-evident (cf., Whitcomb’s EBC Commentary on Dan. 3:27).

 

o   Not one Israelite perished in the Red Sea during the Exodus, and not one Egyptian escaped (Ex. 14:28-29)!

 

o   Not one Assyrian escaped the wrath of the Angel of the LORD in the Days of Hezekiah (2 Kings 19:35)!

 

o   When Christ healed individuals, it was a complete healing!

o   Contrast His miraculous healings with the staged “healings” of so many highly promoted charlatans found within today’s Charismatic movement.*

 

o   Likewise, we can be assured that our Redemption that our Lord wrought at Calvary on our behalf is complete (John 19:30; Heb. 10:1-14)!

 

v. 28a: Nebuchadnezzar responded and said, "Blessed be the God…”

o   Nebuchadnezzar openly blesses the God of Israel!

o   Nebuchadnezzar publicly declares the greatness of the deliverance!

o   The king praises the young men for fearlessly & sacrificially trusting in their God!

o   The Head of Gold—the living essence of royal absolutism—praises the young men for violating his own command!

o   The instigator of this attempt to fuse religious idolatry with an all-powerful world-state praises the young men for rejecting the king’s gods!

o   A pagan polytheist praises the Jews for their religious exclusivism!

v. 29a: "Therefore I make a decree…”

o   The earlier destructive decree is now set aside, yielding to a new decree favorable to the Jews.

 

o   The power of the Head of Gold in having absolute authority over his laws stands in marked contrast to that of the rulers of the succeeding Silver (i.e., Persian) Kingdom (cf., Dan. 6:8, 12, 15; Esth. 1:19).

 

o   The second decree marks a dramatic volte-face from the earlier decree imposing a one-world religion!

 

o   The empire-wide impact of this favorable decree must have been enormous with regard to its significance upon Jewish life in a variety of ways.   

 

v. 29b: “the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego”

o   The King respects the God of the Three Holy Children as their God—but fails to appropriate Him as his own!

 

v. 29c: “…shall be torn limb from limb and their houses reduced to a rubbish heap”

o   Echoes the threat against the Chaldeans in 2:5.  

 

v. 29d: “…inasmuch as there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way."

o   The most powerful man in the world publicly testifies as to the unique power of the God of Israel!

o   A recognition by Nebuchadnezzar of the matchless power of the superiority of YHWH—but again, no affirmation that He is the ONE and ONLY True God.

o   Still, this statement perhaps represents a progressive advance in Nebuchadnezzar’s understanding of the power of the God of Israel. Earlier (2:47), he had acknowledged Israel’s God as “a revealer of mysteries.”

 

v. 30: Then the king caused Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego to prosper [or, promoted] in the province of Babylon.

o   The offices of the three faithful men are restored, and additional honors are bestowed upon them!

 

o   The schemes of the wicked Chaldeans (3:8-12) thus backfire in their faces (cf., Dan. 6:24)—even as the scheming Haman would later be forced to eventually honor his great enemy, Mordecai the Jew (Esth. 6) and would ultimately be hanged on the gallows of his own creation (Esth. 5:14; 7:9-10)!

 

Ps. 21:11 Though they plan evil against you, though they devise mischief, they will not succeed.

Ps. 37:1-4 Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.

Job 5:13 He catches the wise in their own craftiness, and the schemes of the wily are brought to a quick end.

Ps. 141:10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets, while I pass by safely.

Prov. 12:13 An evil man is ensnared by the transgression of his lips, but the righteous escapes from trouble.

 

 

APPLICATION: How easy it is to compromise when the entire world is shouting “UNITY!” But what great blessings await those who are willing to stand against the entire world in the Name of TRUTH!

 

_____________________________

 

 

An Application from Church History:

ATHANASIUS CONTRA MUNDUM

John 8:24: “for unless you believe that I AM, you will die in your sins."

 

 

Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria, was an unswerving opponent of the heretical but influential Arian Party within the Church of the 4^th Century. The Arians denied the Triunity of God and full deity of Christ, affirming that Christ was a lesser, created demigod (much like the Jehovah’s Witnesses cult of our own day). Athanasius refused to accept Arianism as a legitimate expression of Christianity, and thus refused to acknowledge supporters of the Arian Party as brothers in Christ and members the Communion of the Faithful.

 

The Imperial pressure against Athanasius to receive the Arians as legitimate brethren was enormous, as Rome’s newly Christianized government desired peace and outward unity amongst nominal “Christians.” For this reason, Athanasius was sent into exile no less than five times for tenaciously clinging to principles of ecclesiastical separation with reference to what Imperial authorities no doubt regarded as impractical, inconvenient, and insignificant matters of personal theological conviction.

 

Athanasius was reviled as hard-headed, fanatical, stubborn, and unreasonable by the unity-seeking Imperial authorities of his day, and was viewed as a man who stood “against the entire world.” Yet for this very reason, he is honored today by Bible believing Christians as a man who rightly perceived that entire Gospel turns upon this very matter of the full Deity of Christ and the Triunity of God. He is therefore remembered forever in the hearts of the Faithful as Athanasius Contra Mundum:

 

“ATHANASIUS AGAINST THE WORLD!”

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* “And the types of miracles that are being claimed today are absolutely nothing like New Testament miracles; absolutely nothing like them. In fact, the types of miracles today could be distinctly seen as different than New Testament miracles. Jesus and the apostles instantly and completely healed people born blind, a paralytic, a man with a withered arm - all obvious, indisputable miracles. Even Jesus’ enemies didn’t challenge the reality of His miracles, and He had the people there to verify them. He raised the dead, of course, as we well know.”

 

“They never did a miracle that was slow, they never did a miracle that took time, they never did a miracle that was less than permanent. By contrast, most modern miracles are partial, gradual, temporary, sometimes reversed, and almost impossible to verify. And the only instant miracles today seem to be those that deal with psychosomatic diseases; people with visible disabilities are rarely, if ever, helped at all by modern faith healers. I recently watched a televangelist interview a man he had supposedly healed of lameness. The man said he was free from his wheelchair for the first time in several years; however, the man was walking with crutches and had heavy braces on his legs.”—Dr. John MacArthur; Does God Do Miracles Today? https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/90-56

"MY HOLY MOUNTAIN" (9/5/21); Bulletin cover & back

 Holy Houses of the past...

Blueprints of former Holy Houses compared with the coming Millennial Temple...

A History of God's Earthly Dwelling Places...

Further Bulletin Notes on the Glorious Millennial Kingdom (8/29/21)

 

Further Notes on the Times of Refreshing 

(Acts 3:19-21)

Pastor Terry L. Reese, Valley GBC, Armagh, PA, 8-22-21

 

 

A. A Kingdom established.

1. The Fall of the Satanic “Trinity.”

a. Satan bound in the Abyss for 1,000 yrs. (Rev. 20:1-3).

b. Beast & False Prophet sent to Gehenna (Rev. 19:20-21).

 

2. Jews & Gentiles surviving the Tribulation are purged of rebels.

>Israel purged (Ez. 20:36-38); the Nations judged (Matt. 25).

>Only the saved of Israel & the Nations enter the Kingdom!

 

3. The establishment of Messiah’s Throne (Zech. 14:9).

In that day, the LORD will rule over the whole earth (Dan. 7:27)!  

 

4. Jerusalem exalted (Mic. 4:1); greater Israel established (Gen. 15).

 

5. The Reign of Messiah embraces the entire Earth (Rev. 5:1-10).

Ps. 2:8: “Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, and the very ends of the earth as Your possession.”

 

B. The Occupants of the Kingdom.

1. The Governing Authorities (Rev. 20:6); glorified & immortal.

a. The glorified saints of the Church Age (Raptured prior to the Tribulation (1Thss.4:15-17, 1Cor.15:50-52), returning with Christ (Rev.19:14).  

b. OT & Tribulation Era saints (raised after the Tribulation, Dan.12:1-3).

 

2. Their subjects: believing Jewish & Gentile survivors of the Great Tribulation and the Sheep & Goats Judgment (Matt. 25:31-46).

 

>These enter the Kingdom in mortal bodies (and thus, procreate).

 

C. WHY are the Temple & its sacrifices revived (Ezek. 40-48)?

1. There will be a literal Temple, with a literal Aaronic Priesthood!

 

2. A fulfillment of the covenant promises unto the sons of Aaron, Phinehas, & Zadok (Ex. 29:9, 40:15; Num. 25:13; 1Sam. 2:35; Jer. 33:17-22).

 

3. But… why such revived animal sacrifices post-Calvary?

a. First: animal sacrifices can never remove spiritual guilt (Heb.10:1-4,11); only the Blood of Christ can cleanse eternally & spiritually (Rom.3:25)!

b. Animal sacrifices in the Old Testament were efficacious, however, in regard to external, ceremonial cleansing—holding back the outbreak of the wrath of God upon the sinful nation in whose midst He was dwelling.

 

c. Ezekiel’s millennial sacrifices are similar in this sense; God will again be dwelling, in His glory, amidst unglorified, mortal, sinful men in a Theocratic Commonwealth.

 

d. Such sacrifices will also serve as a powerful & graphic reminder of the Redemptive Work of the Lamb of God who shed His blood for us!

The Joys of the Millennial Kingdom

The Joys of the Kingdom—the Times of Refreshing (Acts 3:19-21)

The Millennial Kingdom (Rev. 20:1-7) is not the final consummate Eternal State of absolute perfection (Rev. 21-22; the New Heavens & the New Earth)--but it does constitute a glorious contrast to "this present evil age" (Gal. 1:4)!

1. Prosperity; Eden-like conditions.

Isa. 32:15b: “And the wilderness becomes a fertile field, and the fertile field is considered as a forest.”

Isa 35:1-2 ESV The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad; the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus; (2) it shall blossom abundantly and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the LORD, the majesty of our God.

Isa 35:6b-7 For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water; in the haunt of jackals, where they lie down, the grass shall become reeds and rushes.

 

2. Peace (Isa. 9:6)…

Micah 4:3: And He will judge between many peoples and render decisions for mighty, distant nations. Then they will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation will not lift up sword against nation, and never again will they train for war.

 

3. Amazing, Antediluvian-like longevity… but death still present…

Isa 65:20 ESV No more shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the young man shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed.

 

4. Health.

Isa 35:5-6 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.

 

5. Animal life restored to its original benevolence.

Isa 11:6-9 ESV The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. (7) The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. (8) The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den. (9) They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

Isa 65:25 ESV The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain," says the LORD.

 

6. Perfect Government! The justice of Messiah! Isa. 32:1a: "Behold, a king will reign righteously..." 

Isa 11:4 “…but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth…”

Ps. 72:1-4: Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to the royal son! May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice! Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people, and the hills, in righteousness! May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the children of the needy, and crush the oppressor!

Jer. 33:14-15:  “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.

 

Dr. Whitcomb:

At last, a perfect government, for the whole world, for a thousand years – the Millennium! And, glorious beyond description, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, Jesus the Christ. In Him, will reside all three branches of government – the Supreme Court, the Congress, and the Executive Branch – “For the LORD is our Judge, the LORD is our Lawgiver, the LORD is our King. He will save us” (Isaiah 33:22).

 

What a marvelous world that will be – (1) a perfect religion centered in the Temple in the Holy Land; (2) a perfect education system; (3) perfect health; (4) perfect protection from harmful creatures; and (5) total protection from Satan and demons!

7. Everything will be Holy unto the Lord; no sacred/secular dichotomy.

Zech. 14:20-21: And on that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses, “Holy to the LORD.” And the pots in the house of the LORD shall be as the bowls before the altar. And every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holy to the LORD of hosts, so that all who sacrifice may come and take of them and boil the meat of the sacrifice in them. And there shall no longer be a trader in the house of the LORD of hosts on that day.

 

This is the standard believers should be fulfilling today!

1 Cor. 10:31: Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

Studies in Daniel: A Fourth Man in the Fire!

 5. The Miraculous Deliverance & its Aftermath (3:24-30).

v. 24a: Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astounded…

o   Another rapid change in the King’s temperament: shock & awe (cf., Dan. 5:6)!

Prov. 21:1: The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; He turns it wherever He will.

 

v. 24b: "Was it not three men we cast bound…”

o   The key emphases: “three” and “bound.”

 

v. 24c: They replied to the king, "Certainly, O king."

o   The King’s question provokes a confession of truth by his high officials.

o   A Sovereign GOD is in control of the situation!

 

v. 25a: He said, "Look! I see four men loosed and walking about in the midst of the fire without harm…”

o   Unlike the apocryphal Greek “additions,” which picture an angel extinguishing the fire (3:49-50, in the Douay-Rheims numbering of verses), the canonical Aramaic version makes it clear that the men were preserved “in the midst of the fire.”

 

o   The only thing disturbed was their bonds! Persecution only liberates the believer!

Matt. 5:11-12: “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

 

o   There is much blessing that comes from persecution & other assorted trials!

o   It increases our dependence upon God and His grace (e.g., in 2 Cor. 12:9-10, God denies Paul’s prayer request to remove the thorn in the flesh because He wanted to give Paul something better than physical comfort)…

 

o   It serves to embolden and toughen the believer (James 1:2-3)…

 

o   It earns us crowns & rewards (Rev. 2:10)…

 

o   We are encouraged in our identification with Christ—both in present suffering and in future glory (Rom. 8:17-25; 1 Pet. 4:12-19)…

 

o   It serves as an example unto others (Heb. 11:32-40)…

 

o   In Intertestamental times, the dying Matthias encouraged his sons to continue the Maccabean Revolt by pointing to examples such as that of the Three Holy Children, as recorded in the non-canonical history of 1 Macc. 2:59: “Ananias, Azarias, and Misael, by believing were saved out of the flame.”

 

o   The author of Hebrews makes an oblique reference to this incident as an example of those who, by faith, “quenched the power of fire” (Heb. 11:34).

 

o   Martin Luther was encouraged by the events of Daniel 3 when facing possible death & betrayal in connection with his appearance before the Diet of Worms (1521). Note his letter unto his prince, Elector Frederick the Wise:

 

You ask me what I shall do if I am called by the emperor. I will go even if I am too sick to stand on my feet. If Caesar calls me, God calls me. If violence is used, as well it may be, I commend my cause to God. He lives and reigns who saved the three youths from the fiery furnace of the king of Babylon, and if He will not save me, my head is worth nothing compared with Christ. This is no time to think of safety; I must take care that the gospel is not brought into contempt by our fear to confess and seal our teaching with our blood.

o   Even as Adolf Hitler would later have the torturous deaths of the 1944 July Plot conspirators filmed for his personal amusement, Nebuchadnezzar took a “ringside seat” to watch the horrific deaths of the young men.

 

Dan. 3:25b: “walking about in the midst of the fire without harm…”

o   Indicative of the huge size of the furnace…

 

o   A spectacular deliverance that pre-figures the fulfilment of the promise of Isa. 43:1-2, in which the entire Hebrew nation will be purged and cleansed by the fire of the Great Tribulation (cf., Isa. 4:4) in preparation for Millennial Glory, even as the oppression of Pharaoh had prepared them for the Exodus unto the Promised Land (Deut. 4:20, 1 Kings 8:51, Jer. 11:4).

 

Isa. 43:1-2: But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel, "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame burn you.”

 

Isa. 4:3-4: It will come about that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy—everyone who is recorded for life in Jerusalem. When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and purged the bloodshed of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and the spirit of burning, then the LORD will create over the whole area of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, even smoke, and the brightness of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory will be a canopy.

 

Deut. 4:20: "But the LORD has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, from Egypt, to be a people for His own possession, as today.

 

In His Judgments, such as the Babylonian Exile, God does not destroy, but rather, refines His chosen Covenant People (Isa. 48:10; Ezek. 22:17-22).

 

Isa. 48:10: Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.

 

"The Fourth Man-Ver. 1" AscendingArtz

v. 25c: “…and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!"

o   What is the best rendering of the Aramaic?

“and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God” (KJV, NKJV)

“and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!" (NASB, NIV, ESV, ASV)

“and the appearance of the fourth resembles a divine being.” (ISV)

 

o   There is no definite article (“the”) in the original Aramaic.

o   “Elohim” can be used of the One True God—but can also be rendered in the plural as “gods.”

 

o   Translators historically equivocate; it seems that the KJV rendering is offered out of theological considerations—as opposed to strictly grammatical ones. The Aramaic seems to indicate that the Fourth Man was, in some unspecified manner, “god-like,” from King Nebuchadnezzar’s perspective.

 

NET: “And the appearance of the fourth is like that of a god!”

 

o   Nebuchadnezzar’s further commentary interpreting the identity of the Fourth Man (v. 28, “angel”) seems consistent with the NASB/NIV rendering.

 

A. This comment by Nebuchadnezzar raises two questions:

 

1.     What did Nebuchadnezzar—a pagan—mean in using this phrase, with regard to his own subjective level of understanding?

 

2.     Objectively speaking, WHO was the Fourth Man, in reality? Is the Fourth Man the Angel of the Lord (i.e., a Divine Theophany, the Preincarnate Eternal Son; cf., Judges 13), or a created angel sent by God (cf., Dan. 6:22)?

 

o       Nebuchadnezzar, as an OT-era pagan, would have no knowledge (unless it were divinely revealed) of the Triunity of God, or of the unique and distinct Personality of the Divine Son.

 

o       However, Nebuchadnezzar, under God’s direction, could have unconsciously spoken “better than he knew,” much like Caiaphas (John 11:49-52) or Pilate (John 19:19).

 

o       A “son of God” could be understood in the OT sense, referring unto an angelic-being (v. 28; cf., Job 38:7); or, conversely, “a son of the gods” could be understood in a pagan, polytheistic sense (i.e., an awesome member of a divine polytheistic pantheon).

 

o       The Jewish Talmud affirms that the Fourth Man should be identified as the angel Gabriel (cf., Dan. 9:21).

 

o       Christian interpreters, on the other hand, have often (but not dogmatically, nor universally) been inclined to affirm that Fourth Man is the Divine and Pre-incarnate Christ, the Eternal Son of God.

 

o       Objectively, it cannot be dogmatically affirmed whether or not the Fourth Man is the Angel of the LORD (i.e., a Christophany—a pre-Incarnate manifestation of the Son), or a created-angel who was employed instrumentally by God (cf., Acts 12:7). There is nothing that would utterly demand—nor rule-out—either position.

 

o       If this incident is viewed as a direct fulfillment of Isa. 43:1-2, it could well be argued that the Rescuer, the Fourth Man, is in fact the pre-Incarnate Christ—the same One who would later stand alongside Paul during his hour of trial at Jerusalem (Acts 23:11)!

o   Certainly, it would not be inconsistent with the spirit of prior revelation to strongly suspect that the Fourth Man who stood with the Three Holy Children in the midst of the fire was, in point of fact, that very same One who…

 

…walked with Adam & Eve in the Garden (Gen. 3:8)…

…communed with Abraham by the Oaks of Mamre (Gen. 18:1)…

…provided for Hagar & Ishmael in in the wilderness of Beersheba (Gen. 21)…

…wrestled with Jacob at Peniel (Gen. 32:24-30)…

…spoke to Moses out of the Burning Bush (Gen. 3:1-4:23)…

…met Joshua as the Commander of the Army of the LORD (Josh. 5:13-15)…

…encouraged Gideon at the oak that was in Ophrah (Judges 6:11)…

…amazed Manoah & his wife at Zorah (Judges 13:2)…

…called Isaiah in the year that King Uzziah died (Isaiah 6:1-13)…

…struck down 185,000 Assyrians in the Days of Hezekiah (2 Kings 19:35)…

 

o   Given the context of the close thematic relationship between this narrative and that of chapter 2, it would be unsurprising if King Nebuchadnezzar should personally be suffered to come face-to-face with that great Heavenly Stone that ultimately pulverizes and utterly annihilates the great colossus that represents Gentile World Power (Dan. 2:44-45).

 

o   On Old Testament Theophanies.

o   Theophanies: an important OT Era method of Divine communication with men, in that no man, in this flesh, can behold the Divine Essence (Ex. 33:20).

 

o   A Theophany is a temporary & sudden manifestation of Deity in a sensible form that is tangible unto the human senses.

 

o   Theophanies are NOT like the Incarnation (Isa. 7:14)! Rather, they are temporary manifestations; not a genuine or permanent assumption of humanity. Theophanies had no past, nor future; only a brief ministry for revelational purposes.

 

o   It seems that Theophanies were usually the Son (i.e., Christophanies), prefiguring and anticipating the Incarnation and the Son’s role as the visible Member of the Godhead.

 

o   An important exception: in Dan. 7:9 we see a rare theophany of God the Father as “the Ancient of Days”—appearing with a Christophany (v. 13)!

 

o   An important Theophany: Christ as “the Angel of the Lord” (Heb., malak YHWH)

o   The term “Angel” (“Messenger”) is used of men, created angels, and, in this case, of God Himself. Context determines meaning.

 

o   “The Angel of the LORD” can be identified with Christ in His pre-Incarnate state; a Person identified with God—and yet, distinct in Personality.

 

o   A functional emphasis: Christ is YHWH in terms of His Deity, Being, and Essence, and is thus co-equal with the Father. In relation to the Father, however, He acts, functionally, as One who is sent.

 

o   This richly anticipates NT revelation concerning multiple Personality within the Nature of the Godhead.