Daniel 12:1-13
1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
3 And they that be wisea shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
5 Then I Daniel looked, and, behold, there stood other two, the one on this side of the bankb of the river, and the other on that side of the bank of the river.
6 And one said to the man clothed in linen, which was uponc the waters of the river, How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?
7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time,d times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.
8 And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?
9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.
10 Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.
11 And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abominatione that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.
12 Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days.
13 But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.
The Men who were Loyal to God
Daniel
Robert Bryce
Chapter 12
v1 ‘At that time Michael will come’, continued the man. ‘He is the great *angel who looks after your people. There will be a time of terrible trouble. It will be the worst time since the nation began. Then God will rescue those among your people whose names are in his book. v2 Many of those who have died will come back to life again. God will give life that will never end to some of them. But some will have shame and disgust always. v3 Those who are wise will shine like the bright sky. Those who help many people to obey God will shine like the stars always.
v4 Now you, Daniel, do not add to this message. Close the book and keep it secret until the end. Many will try hard to increase their knowledge.’
Verses 1-4 This is the rest of what the man told Daniel. This is certainly about the end of the world. It will be a terrible time, especially for the people who love the real God. (See Mark 13:19-20.) But the *angels will help them and God will rescue them. God will only allow bad things to happen for a certain time.
The people who have died will come back to life. God will reward those who were loyal to him. They were the wise people. Those who did not love God will have shame.
The man told Daniel to stop writing. The things that he told Daniel about will not happen yet. They will not happen until just before the end of the world. But they will certainly happen. God has promised that they will happen.
v5 Then I, Daniel, looked up and I saw two other people. One of them was on this side of the river with me. The other one was on the other side of the river. v6 One of them spoke to the man who was wearing white clothes. He was beyond them over the water. He asked him, ‘How long will it be before these extraordinary things end?’ v7 The man who was wearing white clothes lifted up both his hands towards the sky. I heard him make a promise by God, who lives always. ‘It will end after three and a half years. Then the enemies who oppose the power of the holy people will stop. And all these events will be complete.’
Verses 5-7 Daniel saw two more *angels. One of them asked the man, ‘How long will it be before these extraordinary things end?’ The *angel knew that God would only allow bad things to happen for a certain time.
The man said that the time would last three and a half years. He actually said one time, two times and half a time. This may mean three and a half years. But God will stop these bad things after a certain time.
Then the end will come. Then God will show his power. He will show that he is in control.
v8 I heard his words, but I did not understand. So I said, ‘My *lord, how will it all end?’ v9 ‘You may go now, Daniel’, he said. ‘This message will remain secret until the end comes. v10 God will make many people holy and good. But wicked people will continue to do evil things. Wicked people will not understand what God wants. But wise people will understand. v11 From the time that there is no daily *sacrifice there will be 1290 days. That is from the time that they put the awful thing in place. v12 The people who wait patiently for 1335 days will be happy. v13 You yourself must be patient and you must continue until the end. You will die. But then you will live again and receive your reward at the end of time.’
Verses 8-13 Daniel still did not understand. He asked the man a different question. ‘How will it all end?’ But the man did not tell him any more. He said that he would not explain any more until the time arrived. This means that we will not understand all about the end of the world. But we do know enough. We know that many bad things will happen. We also know that God will stop those things after a certain time. The good people are those who are really wise. Wicked people are not wise and they will continue to do evil things.
We do not know what the 1290 days and the 1335 days mean. But they both mean about three and a half years. We do know that God will only allow the bad things to happen for a certain time. God’s people must be patient. Then they will be happy.
The man told Daniel to be patient. Daniel would die before the end of the world. But the man promised him that he would become alive again. Then God would give him his reward.
angel ~ God’s servant in heaven, who brings messages from God.Lord ~ Lord is a special kind of name, and a title, for God. The Jewish people often use this title for God. It shows that he is over all. Or it may mean that he is always God.
lord ~ when this title does not mean God, it just means someone very important.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew or anything that belongs to a Jew.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe. It is also a name for people from Judah and Israel.
sacrifice ~ a gift, such as food or an animal; people often gave it as part of their worship of God or of a false god; a gift to God to ask him to forgive us; or to thank him for something.
worship ~ to show honour to someone superior; to respect God; to praise and serve God; to tell God that we love him very much; or, to serve and to show honour to a false god.