The Book of Daniel, like the book of Revelation, is a book of prophecy, which means a revealing of future events. In fact the prophecies contained in this book are one of the clearest ways that we can be sure that the Bible is no ordinary book, that it is in fact divinely inspired, for no ordinary book could reveal the future so clearly, powerfully and accurately as does the book of Daniel.
To the casual reader the book may appear to be full of mysterious dreams, strange beasts and symbols and many other things which are apparently hard to understand, and yet, like the book of Revelation, the book of Daniel was written specifically for our time today, for our generation living in the closing moments of earth’s history, and God intends that everyone should understand these prophecies, since they apply especially to our own time.
God’s faithful servant Daniel, from whom the book takes its name, was instructed to "seal up" the prophecies he was given, and which he wrote down, until the "time of the end":
Daniel 12:4 "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."
The book of Daniel reveals clearly that we today are living in that "time of the end", and the prophecies contained in the book have now been "unsealed" for us, making it possible for us to understand them clearly today.
In his book, the prophet Daniel outlines in vivid detail world events that we can see unfolding before our eyes today. His prophecies, which cover twenty-five hundred years of history, clearly outline world events from his own time (around 606/605 B.C., approximately six hundred years before Christ) to the very time in which we are living today.
In Daniel’s prophecies we see clearly revealed such things as:
• The time of Christ’s first advent.
• The rise of the antichrist power that would persecute God’s faithful people.
• The progression of world empires from his own time until the second advent of Christ.
As we draw near the close of earth’s history, these prophecies provide "inside information" on Satan’s plans and activities, and reveal the last-day deceptions and delusions which Satan uses to deceive the world’s population. His prophecies help us to see where we are in the stream of time and help us to know and be sure that Christ’s coming is "even at the door".
Finally, we see clearly revealed in the prophecies of this book, that God is always in ultimate control of human events, and also that He cares faithfully and tenderly for all who are faithful to Him and wonderfully delivers them from the power of their enemies.
So now let's begin the exiting journey as we begin to unlock the mysteries contained in the amazing book of Daniel...