Daniel 12:13

But go thou thy way till the end be.

Go Thou Thy Way

I. GOD HAS A SPECIAL WAR FOR EACH MAN, AND A GENERAL WAY COMMON TO ALL.

1. The special way. Christianity teaches that God is a Being of infinite love and wisdom, who will guide every man into his special way of thought if we seek to do His will. We have neither the right to complain of, nor to attempt to force the belief of other persons who conscientiously follow their own way of thinking and acting, providing their action be within the lines of morality. The text says, “Go thou”--not our way--“Go thou in thy way.” Let men honestly doubt, if they like; it will do them good. I like the idea that each man has a special way appointed for him. Each man is simply a part of God’s plan. The Heavenly Father is the Architect, Sculptor, Modeller of humanity, and He is leading us aright and guiding the world in the proper path. Let each one of us dare to believe that our life is a plan of God.

2. The general way in which God asks all of us to go. Is it not the way of the cross? Until a man takes up his cross, and guides himself by the example of Jesus, it is impossible for him to attain the highest manhood; for the most divine life on earth is that which bears a cross for the benefit of another. Is not the way in which we are all called to go the way of repentance? Is not this also a way that must be approved by every sound thinking man? Though it is a hard way, it is a safe way; for repentance is the passage from death to life. And is not the general way for all of us that we should be religiously decided? We are not to hesitate and turn about, but be decided, making a bold plunge in our determination to be Christ’s, and to live to do good. Let us go in the general way appointed for all--the way of love. In all our doings with our fellow-men, let us go and come in the way of forbearance and compassion and love; and let us go in these ways because God is our Father and men our brethren.

II. GOD EXHORTS US TO GO IN THE APPOINTED WAY. “Go thou thy way till the end be.” It is easy to find fault with another; it is marvellously difficult to do right one’s sell Thou shalt stand in thy lot, the lot that you are now making, the end you are now preparing. Lord Beaconsfield gave this advice to Greece--“Your country has a great future; therefore be patient and wait.” This advice he carried out in his own life. Defeated, he learned to wait. While he waited, he worked. Many men fail because, though they wait, they do nothing. These are the Micawber class of men, who wait for something to turn up instead of setting to work and turning up something. Let us get into the right way, and resolve with a resolution which will carry you on to the end.. Be determined, be resolute. The text says, “Go thou thy way.” The way God has appointed for you. Our Lord’s way is the safest and best. (W. Birch.)

Good Men and the Future

The cry: “ Oh, my Lord, what shall the end of these things be?” is often wrung from the lips of the sufferer about his pains, the friend about the woes of friends, the patriot about the turmoils of his country, the philanthropist about the state of the world.

I. THE BEWILDERMENT OF GOOD MEN CONCERNING THE FUTURE. As we have already hinted, there is frequently this bewilderment:

1. About the future of the world. How shall Christianity conquer heathendom! So also about:

2. The future of individuals. Recalling the unexpected events in our own past, and the surprises we have seen in the biographies of others, what may not befall us? We are led to reflect upon

II. THE EPOCH WHEN THIS BEWILDERMENT WILL TERMINATE. The “end” will come. This is:

1. The anticipation of universal conscience.

2. The prediction of Scripture.

3. The necessity of the present state of things. Chaos cries out for cosmos, as winter does for spring. This “end” may come to the individual at death, to the race at the great “day of the Lord.”

III. THE DUTY OF GOOD MEN WITH REGARD TO THAT EPOCH. There is not only:

1. Hopeful expectation of it, though that is clearly taught; but:

2. Progress towards it. “Go thy way n; not simply drift through the time-spaces that intervene.

IV. THE DESTINY OF GOOD MEN AT THAT EPOCH.

1. Personal existence is implied. “Thou shalt stand in thy lot.”

2. Right condition is assured, “thy lot.”

3. Perfect blessedness is promised. “Thou shalt rest.” With such a prediction the good man is fortified for all the pilgrimage, battles, storms, that are his present experience. (Homilist.)

Our Way and its End

The opening words of the verse do not me much speak of the a end,” as of what shall be “till the end.” Till the end it will be said to each man separately and individually, “Go thy way.”

I. THE SOLEMNITY OF THIS MESSAGE. In turning your thought from “the end of all things,” and fixing them on the separate and successive deaths of individual men, I lose much that is solemn and impressive in grandeur, but I gain in the solemnity and impressiveness of personal interest. Let us realise it. God shall one day speak thus to you and to me--“Go thou thy way.” In the individuality and solitariness of our dying hour we see its solemnity.

II. ITS CERTAINTY. The “end of all things” can be made the subject of doubt, and it influences but few. But we feel that if there is one thing surer than another, it is that “it is appointed for all men once to die.”

III. THE MEANING OF THIS MESSAGE. When we are called to “go our way,” it is implied that this life is not the end of our being, that death does not put an end to our active existence. At death we only go away from time into eternity, from the world that is seen into the world that is not seen. At death we enter into an eternity of conscious and continued activity. The message that calls us away indicates the direction in which we are to go. “Thy way”--the way in which thou art walking. The way in which thou now art walking is now irrevocably, eternally, unalterably, “thy way”--the way which thou hast chosen, and in which thou must go on for ever. Onward and onward, at death, each shall go in his own way. Sinners and saints shall continue to go on in their respective ways. Perpetuity is implied in this going our own way, perpetual progression; and perhaps also is implied accelerating speed. Are we, then, now walking in the way in which we would wish to go on for ever? (W. Grant.)

A New Year’s Message

Daniel had been receiving partial insight into the future by the visions recorded in previous Chapter s. He sought for clearer knowledge, and was told that the book of the future was sealed and closed, so that no further enlightenment was possible for him. He is bidden back to the common duties of life, and is enjoined to pursue his patient course with an eye on the end to which it conducts, and to leave the unknown future to unfold itself as it may.

I. THE JOURNEY. This is a threadbare metaphor for life. The figure implies perpetual change. The landscape glides by us, and we travel on through it. If life is truly represented under the figure of a journey, nothing is more certain than that we sleep in a fresh hospice every night, and leave behind us every day scenes that we shall never traverse again. What madness, then, to be putting out eager hands to clutch what must be left, and so to contradict the very law under which we live. Another of the commonplaces that spring from this image is that life is continuous. There are no convulsions in life. To-morrow is the child of to-day, and yesterday was the father of this day. What we are springs from what we have been, and settles what we shall be. We make our characters by the continuity of our small actions. Let no man think of his life as if it were a heap of unconnected points. It is a chain of links that are forged together inseparably. Therefore, we ought to see to it that the direction in which our life runs is one that conscience and God can approve. The metaphor further suggests that no life runs its fitting course unless there is continuous effort. There will be crises when we have to run with panting breath and strained muscles. There will be long stretches of commonplace where speed is not needed, but pegging away is, where the one duty is persistent continuousness in a course. Mark the emphasis of the text, “Go thy way till the end.” You older men, do not fancy that in the deepest aspect any life has ever a period in it which a man may “take it easy.” You may do that in regard of outward things, but in regard to all the deepest things of life no man may ever lessen his diligence until he has attained the goal. Until the end is reached we have to use all our power, and to labour as earnestly, and guard ourselves as carefully, as at any period before. And not only “till the end,” but go thy way “to the end.” Let the thought that the road has a termination be ever present with us all. There is a great deal of so-called devout contemplation of death which is anything but wholesome. It is more unwholesome still never to let the contemplation of that end come into our calculations of the future. Is it not strange that the purest thing is the thing that we forget most of all.

II. THE RESTING-PLACE. “Thou shalt rest.” This is a gracious way of speaking about death. It is a thought which takes away a great deal of the grimness and terror with which men generally invest the close. It is a thought the force of which is very different in different stages and conditions of life. Few, if any, however, but have some burden to carry, and know what weariness means. The final cessation of work has a double character. The only way to turn death into the opening of the gate of our resting-place is setting our heart’s desires and our spirit’s trust on the Lord Jesus.

III. THE HOME. “Stand “--that is Daniel’s way of preaching the doctrine of the Resurrection. “Thy lot.” Image from the security of the Israelites in Canaan. Humanity has not attained its perfection until the perfected spirit is mated with a perfect body. God is the true inheritance. In that perfect land each person has precisely as much of God as he is capable of possessing. What determines our lot is how we went our way till that other end, the end of life. Destiny is character worked out. Therefore, tremendous importance attaches to the fugitive moment. Each act that we do is weighted with eternal consequences. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)

The Path and End of the Upright Man

Daniel’s career was neither smooth nor easy. But the course he chose was so sure and true that this text, the last recorded voice to him from Heaven, bade him pursue it patiently, in sure expectation of a happy eternity.

I. HIS WAY.

1. The way of resolute consecration to God.

2. The way d steadfast faith in Divine friendship.

3. The way of regular private devotion and BibLe study.

II. THE END PROMISED HIM. “The end of that man is peace.”

1. Repose in Hades.

2. A personal share, at the resurrection, of Christ’s Kingdom.

3. An inheritance for ever. Let the Heavenly word which closes the book of Daniel

(1) awaken the undecided; and

(2) confirm the resolution of the believing to adopt his course. (David Dale Stewart, M.A.)

The Servant of God Dismissed and Rewarded

1. We are all, like Daniel, servants of God, and charged with the performance of that work which He has respectively assigned us, arising out of our situation in life, and the various duties and engagements connected with it.

(1) We have our providential work to do. The situation and work of mankind are various, but the appointment is of God. There are some persons who imagine that the labours which arise from providential circumstances are distinct from piety and obstructive of it. They may be made so, but they are not so necessarily. No man has a charter to be idle. Idleness as infallibly destroys the soul as open sin committed against God. We are all stewards of his manifold gifts.

(2) Our connection with the Church of Christ opens to us another class of service. As members of religious society we have our duties. When we are ourselves “converted,” we are to “strengthen the brethren.” No Christian man “liveth unto himself,” and no Christian man “dieth unto himself.” Every man that professes the name of Christ is bound to promote His cause--not in the spirit of party, but in the spirit of Christianity. We are to stemthe torrent of iniquity, promote the influence of truth, and endeavour to extend the religion of the Son of God to every land.

(3) There is a work arising out of our personal salvation. The work of salvation can only be elected by strong and vigorous efforts. We cannot of ourselves form a gracious thought or a good desire. We know these things, but let no man plead them as an excuse for his own sloth. God works in us, but He also works by us. He saves us, but He effects our salvation by giving energy and application to our own powers; and in the strength which He imparts He calls us to resist evil, to watch and pray, to mortify our corruptions, to cultivate our knowledge and every grace. This is our personal and our daily work. Every duty assigned to us day by day is the work which God has given us to do. Frequently to reflect on this will produce the happiest results.

2. In the text we have an important intimation of the termination of all things. “Go thy way till the end be.” There will be an end--an “end of all things.” Strangely, we feel little interest in contemplating the end of all things.

(1) There will be an end of the providential dispensations of God. This is strongly marked in the text, which follows a series of prophecies relating to the fate Of empires. An angel reminded Daniel that as end will be put to the dispensations of Providence with respect to nations and empires. A time will come when all the tumults of earth will be hushed into silence. Why should we feel surprised at the changes in our own circles, when things so vast, so firm, so lasting, must end and be forgotten!

(2) There will be an end of that which is of infinitely more importance than the concerns of empires--the mediatorial kingdom of Jesus Christ of that Daniel had an interesting view. Before him the triumphs of the Gospel were displayed. Jesus Christ has a kingdom more extensive than that of any earthly monarch. The Saviour will not always be the Mediator between man and God. He must exchange the office of Intercessor for that of Judge.

(3) There will be an end of the world itself. The heavens and earth that are now shall pass away.

3. An interesting view of the state of the pious dead between death and the end of all things. “Thou shalt rest.” It cannot mean annihilation, nor a loss of consciousness between death and the termination of all things. This rest is the composure and settled triumph of the spirit, escaped from wind, tempest, battle, danger, and at home with God. Rest from religious labours, and from religious fears.

4. Instruction in the closing part of the angel’s address to Daniel. Allusion is to the manner in which the tribes were settled in Canaan.

(1) The Christian’s Heaven is secured as was Canaan to the Israelites.

(2) Rewards relate to character.

(3) Both variety and degree are suggested.

(4) The full reward will come at a fixed period. Two considerations. The faithfulness of Jesus will conduct you to this happy state if you are found faithful. And this subject is well calculated to encourage the faithful saint. (R. Watson.)

The Servant of God Dismissed and Rewarded

These are the words in which the angel Gabriel dismissed the prophet after delivering his message to him. The book of Daniel is interesting for the length of time it covers; the eventful period to which it relates; the nature of the prophecy it contains; and the character of the man who wrote it. In intellect he was a giant; in morals he was a model.

1. Daniel’s death or dismissal. “Go thou thy way.” This may be regarded as the God-sent summons for him to depart this life. The way we have walked through life is the way we must walk in death. Death is only finishing the journey; it is but the last step in the life-trodden way. Daniel could not have been less than ninety years old when he received this angel’s visit. He was full of years and honours. If we are in our sins unreconciled to God, death can only come as the “King of terrors.” If we are at peace with God through Jesus Christ, then death will come to us, as he came to Daniel, in the form of an angel of light; as a blessing, as a friend, as “the servant Jesus sends to call in to His arms.”

2. Notice what the angel said to Daniel about his condition after death. “For thou shalt rest.” A condition of conscious happiness in the presence of the glorified Redeemer. A rest, not of sleep, but of conscious enjoyment. A satisfying rest, but yet a rest that does not bring with it the full reward of final blessedness.

3. How long is this state to continue? “Till the end be.” “In the end of the days.” This end must be the end of the present dispensation; the end of the kingdom of this world. The end of the days means the morning of the resurrection. Then the rest will enter on a new stage of development that will go on in widening and deepening channels of glory and blessedness for ever.

4. Note what the angel said about Daniel’s final state, when the end comes. “Thou shalt stand in thy lot.” (R. Newton, D.D.)

The Christian in Life, in the Grave, and in Heaven

That is a dark leaf in the book of God’s providence which, on account of one man’s disobedience, made it necessary that death should pass upon all men. Partakers of Adam’s fall, we share in Adam’s penalty. The prophet Daniel is the most faultless human character on record. To the young, he is an example of humble and self-denying piety; to those of mature years, of stern and unbending uprightness; to the aged, of holy and triumphant faith in the promises of a covenant, keeping God. Daniel was a life-preacher. His influence is to be found in his daily life. His acts were a commentary on the purity of his creed, and himself a temple to his Maker’s praise. Yet all this could not revoke the sentence of the angel, “Thou shalt rest.”

I. TO EVERY MAN THERE IS APPOINTED SOME USEFUL SPHERE OF LABOUR. Usefulness is one of the ends for which our Maker has formed us. No man can boast a charter for idleness. There is a restlessness about the mind of man which must be employed about something--a perpetual elasticity which must have occupation--whether it be to guide the plough or frame our laws. But if man scorns all useful and good occupations, Satan is sure to provide him with a bad one. Man has not a greater foe than sloth. There is no exemption from appointed labour for those whom Providence has enriched with “all manner of store,” and released from the necessity of toil. Our work must not be confined to the duties which belong to us either as citizens or as men. We call ourselves by the name of Christ; and, if we are wise, we shall not rest till we have made that calling sure. We must, like our Master, “be about our Father’s business”

II. A TIME IS COMING WHEN THE SERVANT OF GOD SHALL BE DISMISSED AND REPOSE FROM HIS LABOURS. The state of the soul between death and judgment has always been a favourite subject of speculation. The state of the soul after death is entirely a matter of revelation. Admitting that the soul will have a conscious existence immediately it leaves the body, our enquiry is, What will that condition be? It is not its most perfect fruition. That is not till “the end of the day.” And yet it must be fruition, or it would not be gain to die. The angel calls it a state of rest. It shall be the first stage in that moral progress in which the soul is changed from glory to glory; never completing the number of its perfections in finding that it can attain no more.

III. THE PERIOD WHEN THE SERVANT OF GOD SHALL RECEIVE HIS ETERNAL RECOMPENSE. Days and months and years are milestones along the road of life. But there shall be an end of these days. Our joys will be always beginning then; one unceasing now of a space that shall never terminate. The soul of the righteous shall “stand” when all else have fallen, erect in the confidence of its own immortality, and waiting for its “lot at the end of the days.” What shall the lot be? Will it be the same for all? Who, then, will be contented to shine as a star when there is another glory, “the glory of the sun,” within his reach? Can we overlook the danger that if we are seeking only the poorest “lot at the end of the days,” it may turn out that we shall find no lot at all; that having sown with a niggard hand we shall find no fruit but bitterness. Forget not that we have every one of us a work to do, and a work in which every day we live must bear its part. (Daniel Moore, M.A.)

The Lot at the End of the Days

These words contain undoubtedly the dismission of Daniel from his whole life work, and may, therefore, be applied to anyone who has been working well for God, and has now gone to rest. The text, taken in its connections, may bring to our view:

I. THE MAJESTY AND GREATNESS OF THE PROVIDENCE OF GOD. There is no subject perhaps which we are so apt to dwarf and belittle in our ordinary conceptions as the subject of the world-providence of God..We require to place ourselves, so to say, in a petition to see it. This book of Daniel is a magnificent climbing-ground. It gives us a succession of far-reaching views. It shows us the continuity of history, the connecting of one thing out of another, the plan of God in it all. God says not only to individuals, but to communities of men, and witnesses for the truth; to churches and to generations, “Go thy way.” What power of will and thought is His which can develop itself in fulness only through all the worlds and along all the ages! How vast is His providence, by which the whole is wrought out. Everything is ruled and used for the accomplishment of His ultimate and perfect will.

II. HOW LITTLE IS INDIVIDUAL MAN. Insignificant as man is, God is mindful of him. A fly is more than a cathedral, for it is living, organised, capable of motion, and of a kind of thought, and is, therefore, more in the scale of being than any form or size of inanimate matter. A man, living, intelligent, immortal, is more than the whole providence of God. It, therefore, may be expected that God will look to and tenderly regard the sons of men. We may trust Him to gather up the fragments of our life activity, so that nothing at all shall be lost. God says to every one of His dying children, “Go thy way. Thy day’s work is done. I have watched thee at it all the day long. I alone know what thy work has been. I have known thy secret purpose, and I have reckoned that in thy work. Thy work is done. Go in trustfulness. Go in peace.”

III. “THOU SHALT REST.” To go from earthly labour for God is to go to Heavenly rest. Even the earthly part rests in the grave. But the better part is carried to the waiting yet happy and restful company of sainted souls. Some interpret “sleeping in Jesus” literally. There is nothing unphilosophical in this theory. The practical extinction of time is not difficult to imagine. No length of time is anything when compared with eternal duration. He that falls asleep in Jesus may sleep safely through all the remaining ages of time, and still have undiminished eternity to live in. But it seems that to sleep in Jesus is not to be unconscious. It is to be in Paradise; and that must mean, to be patient, percipient, happy. The meaning seems to be, “Thou shalt rest,” and know that thou art resting. Of course, this rest after the work of life will be more or less to each, according to the labours that have preceded it. He who does what his hand findeth to do with his might through life’s working day, will go to his Heavenly rest with a satisfaction and a zest which loiterer and laggard can never know.

IV. THE REST AT DEATH IS PREPARATORY TO SOMETHING FAR MORE COMPLETE AT THE “END OF THE DAYS.” Then--when the whole vast system of earthly providence is wound up--then shall each man, woman, and child stand in their “own lot.” The reference here is chiefly to the righteous. The term “stand” expresses the completeness, and above all the permanence of the new life. And it will be our own lot. We shall stand then in that which we are making now. We shall claim that which by our faith we claimed before, and in a measure possessed by our love and hope. (Alex. Raleigh, D.D.)

The Labouring Saint’s Dismissal to Rest

1. The person dismissed, Daniel. Note:

(1) His qualifications; wisdom, love to his people, uprightness and righteousness in the discharge of that high place whereunto he was advanced.

(2) His employment. Consider the nature of the employment itself, and some considerable circumstances of it. All his visions close with some eminent exaltation of the Kingdom of Christ.

2. The dismission itself. Singly, relating to his employment only. In reference to his life also. The Lord dischargeth Daniel from his farther attendance on Him in the way of receiving visions and revelations. And there is also intimation that he must shortly lay down his mortality. Three things may be intended in the word “end.” The end of his life. The end of the world. Or the end of the things whereof the Holy Ghost is peculiarly dealing with Daniel. God oftentimes suffers not His servants to see the issue and accomplishment of these glorious things, wherein themselves have been most eminently engaged. Observe that the condition of a dismissed saint is one of rest. Rest holds out two things to us. A freedom from what is opposite thereunto, wherein those that are at rest have been exercised. And something which suits them, and satisfies their nature in the condition wherein they are. What is it the saints are at rest from? Sin, and labour, and travail. What is it that they are at rest in? In the bosom of God, because in the fruition and enjoyment of Him they are everlastingly satisfied, as having attained the utmost end whereto they were created, all the blessedness whereof they are capable. Every man stands in a threefold capacity, natural, civil, and religious. And there are distinct qualifications that are suited unto these several capacities. (J. Owen, D.D.)

The Assurance of Rest and Future Glory given to Daniel

Many extraordinary discoveries had been made to Daniel of the principal events that were to happen to the Church and world to the end of time. Some hints were given him as to the times when these events should happen. The prophet did not understand them, and, therefore, desired to be more particularly informed concerning them. He is told that they would not be fully understood “till the accomplishment” explained them. He is cut short with the assurance that whatever was the state of the Church and the world, his own state should be happy. He must, therefore, attend to his duty, wait God’s time, and comfort himself with these pleasing prospects.

I. THE CHARGE GIVEN TO DANIEL. “Go thy way till the end be.” Some understand this as a dismission from life. Prefer to understand it as, “attend to your proper business, the duties of your station and age, till the end of life comes.” It may be a discharge from his public of office as prophet. It may be a general admonition not to be too inquisitive about prophetic matters. The Greek version renders, “Go thy way, and be at rest”; be content with that station and condition to which God hath appointed thee. Go on faithfully and cheerfully through that portion of life which yet remaineth unto thee.

II. THE GRACIOUS ENCOURAGEMENT SET BEFORE HIM. Three things are promised.

1. A peaceful rest in the grave. Thou shalt die in peace, and enter upon a state of rest. This implies that the present is a state of trouble and disquietude. Little rest is to be expected here. Good men, and good ministers in particular, have their peculiar troubles. Their bodies shall rest in the grave, and their souls shall rest with God. The former is a kind of negative happiness. The latter is the rest of a being who is still existing, a rational, active spirit. It wants something suited to its nature, that will satisfy and fill its desires; and this it finds in God, to whom it returns, as to its rest, portion, and happiness.

2. Daniel is promised a glorious resurrection from the grave. His rest in the grave was to continue to the end of the days, and that he was then to stand in his lot. The end of the days refers to the resurrection. Observe, then, that days shall have an end. The revolution of seasons shall cease. Then Daniel, with the rest of God’s faithful servants, shall arise and stand upon the earth.

3. Daniel is promised a happy portion in the Heavenly world. The expression in the text intimates that there shall be a day of judgment, when every man shall be tried, and have his lot publicly assigned to him. It may also intimate that good men shall stand in that judgment, and not, like the wicked, flee to hide themselves from the presence of the Judge. The expression intimates that there shall be different lots or portions assigned to good men, according to the degree of their holiness and usefulness here. Application:

(1) See the necessity of securing a happy lot for ourselves. See how kindly God treats His servants, and how comfortably He speaks to them.

(2) Let the servants of God attend to the charge given to Daniel.

(3) Let aged saints comfort themselves with the prospects of this happiness promised to Daniel. It is the lot of all God’s faithful servants. (J. Orton, S. T. P.)

A Divine Course for Every Man

All human affairs are under God’s dominion, and must develop the wisdom of His rule and the glory of His counsel. Daniel’s visions perplexed his soul. He longed for more light, but to his eager cry there came the calming direction, and the consoling assurance, of the text.

I. THERE IS AN APPOINTED COURSE FOR EVERY MAN. With all our similarities, we are made to feel our separateness. “Thou.” “Thy way.”

1. Having a separate existence we have a separate way. This is set forth in Scripture, and evident by observation. (Hebrews 11:1 for illustrations.)

(a) Then we should take our case to God, and our course from God. “Wait on the Lord”--consult Him, trust Him, give attention to Divine requirements. “Wait for the Lord “--for the indications of His will within, and the movement of His hand without. “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.”

(b) We should render obedience. “To every man his work.” We are not compelled to “go” by a fixed fate. Man is moral, and, therefore, free to disobey. The element in obedience that pleases God is willingness. Christian principles, right motives, untiring service, will make our days bright with Heavenly light. Is the course you are taking one that God and conscience can approve? “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man”--but what about the end thereof?

2. Providential mysteries ought not to interfere with duty. There are hidden things in creation, secrets in God’s dealings, and mysteries in the Scriptures. Shall all obligation be superseded until these are fully known? There is nothing dark about duty. (Micah 6:8.) O troubled soul, cease repining; weak heart, take courage; depressed, baffled spirit, repose in God! Inactivity brings no solution; fretfulness removes no obscurities. Trust and toil, and life will be a diversity of discoveries. With a separate existence and a peculiar way--do thine individual duty. “ Go thou thy way.” A commonplace but impressive fact is next inculcated.

II. THAT THERE IS AN END TO MAN’S COURSE ON EARTH. “Till the end be.” When, where, or how Daniel passed away, we know not. The end came, “and he died.”

1. Think of the inevitable end

(a) to business engagements;

(b) to Sabbath enjoyments;

(c) present sufferings;

(d) earthly relationships;

(e) our connection with time.

2. The end is under God’s control. “Man’s days are determined, the number of his months are with Thee; ‘Thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass.”

3. The end of this life is the beginning of another. To abide in our calling, strive after conformity to Christ’s image, daily to renew our acts of trust and service, and faithfully discharge the stewardship of life, will help us to finish our course with joy, and prepare us for the world to come. The words to Daniel give:

III. THE PROMISE OF AN ALLOTTED FUTURE. “For thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.”

1. A pledge of rest. God’s promised rest is not the calm of unfeeling apathy, nor the rest of the grave; but the rest of perfect satisfaction. Revelation 17:13; Revelation 21:3.)

2. The assurance of a personal portion. The way in which the land of promise was divided to tribes and families supplies the figure. A better inheritance than a few acres of land is assured to the man, Daniel; an individual portion, peculiar and permanent. “Thou shalt stand in thy lot at the end of the days.” At the end of the days will come the day of days--judgment. Then the possession of some shall be “everlasting life,” and the doom of others a shame and everlasting contempt.” (Verses 1-3.) Let us carry away these related and suggestive thoughts--an individual life and path, the burden of singular duties, a separate judgment, and a personal reward. Listen to the voice of your God. He tells you to walk resolutely in the path of His choosing; He reminds you of the end of your earthly course; and predicts, for the obedient, untroubled rest and an enduring portion. “Go thou thy way till the end be; for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.” (Matthew Braithwaite.)

Daniel, His Example and Reward

These words reveal to Daniel three things important to be known. How God’s servants leave of their life-work here. What happens to them immediately it is over. What is their final condition. We have all of us work to do here. Some have to labour, others to direct; some to teach, others to learn; some to rule, others to obey. But whatever our place is, God has put us in it. God gives us our duties in it. Daniel’s had been a long and difficult life. Having a good record, it was a happy day at last when his warfare was accomplished, and he got the message of his dismissal, “Go thy way; faithful servant, thy work is done.” That the end we wish for those we love and live for. At the eventide of our time, God will say to each labourer in his turn, “Go thy way.” What, then, is our intermediate state? Does the Scripture inform us where we are to be, what we are to do, until the end come? Thou shalt “rest”--not in death, or unconsciousness. But this rest will not be then complete. The triumph of the Church, though assured, will not yet be consummated. When the resurrection trumpet of the great jubilee shall sound, then the people of God shall enter each upon the full enjoyment of their inheritance, long ordained and set apart; and to each it shall be true, “Thou shalt stand in thy lot.” You know the reality of life is not in life’s uncertain goods, but in the hopes and promises of God; and those are happy who, walking through the wilderness, use them for a well, and the pools are filled with water. The child of God, walking in an honest, simple faith, may have to face many trials, but never the trial of hearing, like the king, “Thy hope is at an end, thy kingdom is departed from thee.” The longer he works on the brighter grows his promise, and though he go his way and take his rest, he will stand again in his lot at the end of days. (T. F. Crosse, D. C. L.)

The Duty of a Good Man in Time of Trouble

I. A GOOD MAN’S LIFE IS OFTEN PASSED IN THE MIDST OF GREAT EVENTS. This was the case with Daniel.

II. A GOOD MAN’S SOUL IS OFTEN PERPLEXED BY THE VARIETY AND MYSTERIOUSNESS OF THESE GREAT EVENTS. These words of the text show that Daniel was greatly perplexed. How is it that we are so perplexed with the operations of God’s providence.

1. We have not the capacity to judge. The events of time are remote in their causes, and complicate in their details, and vast in their consequences. We cannot understand God, nor find out the Almighty to perfection; therefore, let us be resigned.

2. We are not fit to judge. We love Daniel because we see he was just as weak, and just as foolish, as we are, at times.

III. A GOOD MAN’S DUTY IN THE TIME OF TROUBLE IS TO WAIT THE END OF THESE PERPLEXITIES, RATHER THAN TO TRY AND EXPLAIN THEM. There will be an end. Let us wait till then. We are to stand by as spectators in the great drama of life in which God is all in all. Not careless or uninterested spectators; far from that, but devout and reverent beholders of the great mystery. Nor yet idle spectators either. We are to go and stand in our lot till the end of the days; to go and occupy our place, and fill our niche, and do our work, and be willing, after having served our generation, to die in harness, having accomplished our mission. (W. G. Barrett.)

The Christian’s Path, and its Glorious Termination

We see the wisdom of God in surrounding prophecy generally with obscurity; we see His wisdom in involving it in comparative darkness, because, as men are to be the instruments in executing the Divine purpose and accomplishing the Divine counsels, if prophecy were very clear, the responsibility of these agents would be certainly compromised, and the process of Divine moral government would be certainly interfered with. But in the prophecies of Daniel we see that he was carried far above the ordinary range of prophetic vision. His eye swept down the whole stream of time. He saw the establishment of Messiah’s Kingdom, which is to comprehend all kingdoms. In this verse he comes before us to receive his dismissal; prophetic work was done. We are here taught some very important truths.

1. That every child of God has his own way marked out and appointed by Heaven, in which it is his duty, through all the trials and afflictions of his life, faithfully to persevere, till death, the end, has come. The prophet is commanded to go his way, his own special way. I cannot go in another man’s way, neither can another man go in my way. We are born into this world under certain laws and conditions, which determine our fitness for certain situations and employments, and have each a certain path of usefulness and honourable activity marked out for us. These differences in our constitutions, these differences as to peculiar adaptations, these differences as to faculties and susceptibilities--why, they are the very foundation of human society, for what one man is not meet for, another man is. This, kept in mind, will make us more patient and charitable and forbearing towards our fellow-men. No man can tell what it is that his brother man has to contend against; no man can tell what it is that his brother has to do battle with in his own breast, or, it may be, through bodily disorder.

2. Whatever our gifts may be, we should bear in mind that they came from God at first, who gives to every man according to His wisdom and grace. The poor man should remember that his poverty is not dishonourable. He may be as honourable before God as any man can be, and have his rank in the sight of Heaven equally with the prince and the peer. There is nothing dishonourable but sin. Since our way is marked out by God, it would not contribute to our happiness if we could get out of that way. It is not change of situation in this world that can make a man happy.

II. AFTER DEATH THE SOUL OF THE SERVANT OF GOD SHALL ENTER ON A STATE OF REST. The rest of the soul after death is not unconsciousness. Men found this opinion upon a certain philosophic creed. Dreams foreshadow the great truth that the soul of man can exist, yea, be conscious of action, when separated from the body. The Christian enters upon a state which, while it is called rest, is full of unspeakable blessedness. It is rest in contradistinction to the toil and labour and trial, and disappointment and pain, in this mortal world, a state where the mind will be invigorated and exalted to the loftiest degree.

III. THERE WILL BE A RESURRECTION.

1. This is to take place at the “ end of the days.” The great cycles of Providence will come to their termination. There will be an end to the days of grace, an end of Sabbaths, and ministry, and ordinances.

2. There will be the resurrection of the good. Mark the attitude “stand.” Mark the attitude, mark the dignity, mark the nobility, of it.

3. “Thou shalt stand in thy lot.” Israel had, in Canaan, each his own lot. So in the resurrection, each one shall have his own place, and his own inheritance; exactly suited to his intellectual, moral, and spiritual capabilities. We shall find, each of us, that we have got as much given to us as we are capable of receiving. Is not this an encouraging and inspiring prospect? (J. Kernahan, B. A.)

On the Prospect of Heaven

To afford the pained heart desired relief, the prospects of futurity, which the gospel of Jesus Christ affords, are especially suitable and useful.

1. The servants of God shall enjoy rest after death. While their mortal part reposes in the grave, their spirit rests in the embraces of their Lord. We are taught to look on our present life as the season of trouble and exertion. The remembrance of what life is may keep us from idolising present comforts, from making a god of this world. The word “rest,” applied to the future destination of the believer, teaches us also to conceive of the life that precedes it, as one of labour. We are now called to the labour of duty, to improve the spring-time of life, by sowing to ourselves righteousness, that we may reap in mercy. Now we are called to the labour of self-denial, and the labour of watchfulness. Amidst the labours and cares of life, be it our aim to secure, through the Saviour, this place of rest for ourselves.

2. The servant of God shall possess an inheritance in the Heavenly Canaan. The angel said unto Daniel that he should “stand in his lot.” Joshua made the tribes cast lots for their respective portions. When the land was thus divided, they possessed the lot appointed them by Jehovah. That Canaan was type of a better. That better country the God of all grace shall divide amongst His faithful people, and each disciple of Christ shall have his share. This will be larger or smaller, according as believers have, by Divine grace, been made to excel in every Christian virtue, in usefulness in their generation. This place is called an inheritance, to show them that they have not procured a right to it by the purchase of their own works,. but as a legacy left them by a friend. It is upon account of their connection with Christ as their elder brother that they have any right to it--that they shall ever possess it. The promise, “Thou shalt rest,” refers to exemption from evil; the promise, “Thou shalt stand in thy lot,” to the enjoyment of good. By the first, the good man had the prospect of deliverance from pains, and sorrows, and cares, and sins. By the second, his hopes were raised to the possession of a great portion, an inheritance in eternity.

3. This inheritance of the servant of God shall be lasting. “At the end of the days.” At the end of all days. The conviction of the uncertainty of what we have here, casts a damp on the enjoyment of it; but the lot in Heaven, the portion of the Christian, is abiding, is lasting, is for ever.

4. The prospect of this rest, and inheritance, supports the soul in the view of the approaching calamities. The same prospect is the believer’s support in the view of personal trials. We are all taught the uncertainty that hangs over all our present comforts, but with the view of Heaven as his approaching rest the Christian shall never be entirely destitute--never be left without the cheering light of hope.

5. The enjoyment of Heaven will make up the loss of the comforts the Christian possesses below.

6. In Heaven, the glorified saints shall hear of the triumphs of the Church on earth. And

7. We are here taught that the hopes of futurity should impel to present duty, Daniel was not to spend his time in indolent contemplation of those glorious events, but to go on his way in the path of duty. From these remarks learn:

(1) To view afflictions in the light of eternity.

(2) To look at duty in the light of eternity.

(3) Let the Gospel-neglecter contemplate his conduct in the light of eternity. (A. W. Knowles.)

The Christian’s Lot

“Thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot.” Such shall be the word to all who cast in their lot with God. They shall have the sweet assurance, ere they pass through the dark river of Jordan, that they are passing on to their rest. Daniel knew God himself. Many identify knowing of God with knowing God. A man reads about God, hears about God, thinks about God, sees God in nature, traces Him in providence, admires Him in revelation, and then he thinks--I know God. He only knows of God. To know God is much closer and more personal. It is to have heard Him speaking to us as none other ever has spoken to us. It is to have come into spiritual contact with God. And what is our joy in Christ? It is this, that Christ knows not of us, but that he knows us. He knows all about you, and your heaven on earth is that you know Him. (F. Whitfield, M.A.)

Human Life

I. THE PERPLEXITY. How much in the history of human life there is to perplex! The origin of sin. The reign of wrong. The prosperity of the wicked. The afflictions of the good. The tardy march of the Gospel, etc. These events often make men pessimists, who declare that life is not worth living.

II. THY CRISIS. “Till the end be.” There is a great crisis awaiting the life of mankind.

1. Analogy suggests this.

2. So does science.

3. So does the moral sentiment.

4. So does Scripture. See Mat 25:1-46; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Revelation 20:11, etc.

III. THE DUTY. “Go thou thy way.”

1. There is a divinely-appointed way for every man to pursue.

2. It must be pursued, however great the difficulties. Wait calmly and courageously for the end.

IV. THE ULTIMATE DESTINY.

1. “Thou shalt stand,” personally. Thou, not another for thee. Thine individuality will never be amalgamated, thine identity never be lost.

2. “Thou shalt stand,” appropriately. What is the true lot of man? A correspondence of his circumstances with his character. A man’s moral character must ultimately, under the government of a righteous God, determine his position.

3. “Thou shalt stand,” peacefully. “Thou shalt rest.” The moral universe, agitated by the storms of successive ages, shall be hushed, every godly man shall rest. Conclusion. “Go thou thy way till the end be,” brother. The portentous clouds will not always roll over thy sky, nor will confounding whirlwinds always bewilder thee on thy path. There is an end, in that end thou shalt rest, rest in holy faith and love, and shalt have “thy lot.” A sphere suited for thy moral aspirations and faculties, a sphere that will give scope to thy every power, satisfy thy every want, and transcend thy highest expectations. (David Thomas, D.D.)

No Rest Till the End is Reached

“Go thy way till the end.” You, my contemporaries, you older men, do not fancy that in the deepest aspect any life has ever a period in it in which a man may “take it easy.” You may do that in regard of outward things, and it is the hope and the reward of faithfulness in youth and middle age that when the grey hairs come to be upon us we may slack off a little in regard to outward activity. But in regard of all the deepest things of life no man may ever lessen his diligence until he has attained the goal. Some of you will remember how, in a stormy October night years ago, the Royal Charter went down three hours from Liverpool, when the passengers had met in the saloon and voted a testimonial to the captain because he had brought them across the ocean in safety. Until the anchor is down and we are inside the harbour we may be shipwrecked if we are careless in our navigation. “Go thou thy way until the end.” And remember, you older people, that until that end is reached you have to use all your power, and to labour as earnestly, and guard yourselves as carefully, as at any period before. (A. Maclaren, D.D.)

In View of the End

According to Calvin, he was to be content with his lot, and expect no more visions. Bullinger understands the words as an exhortation to persevere, and continue to the end. According to Junius, he was to set all things in order, and make himself ready for his end, without curiously searching further into these things. Brightman understands the words as intimating that what the Lord might have further to reveal, He would do it by other prophets, as He did by Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. (T. Robinson, D.D.)