Bible Commentaries
Daniel 12

Verses 1-4

v. 1. And at that time, at the end of the present world age, shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people, as the heavenly protector of Israel, Daniel 10:13-21; and there shall be a time of trouble, of tribulation and affliction for the believers, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that same time, the climax of the oppression brought upon the spiritual Israel by all antichristian forces; and at that time thy people, the true believers, shall be delivered, everyone that shall be found written in the book, whose name had been entered in the book of life. Cf Revelation 13:8.

v. 2. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, literally, "many, a great multitude of those who sleep in the dust-land, shall awake," shall return to life in the final resurrection, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt, this being the division at the Last Judgment, the believers destined for heaven, the unbelievers to hell with its torments.

v. 3. And they that be wise, the true teachers of the people, shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, in a wonderful glorification, and they that turn many to righteousness, by instructing them in loyalty and faithfulness in the midst of the tribulations of the latter days, as the stars forever and ever, this statement being rightly applied to the work of faithful preachers of the; Gospel in these latter days of corruption and apostasy.

v. 4. But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book, so that its contents, for the present, would not be revealed to men, even to the time of the end, the present Messianic era; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased, literally, "many shall search it through, and thus understanding will become great. " It is true in general that the knowledge and interpretation of the prophecies of old comes to those who search the Scriptures most carefully, diligently comparing prophecy and fulfillment as indicated in the directions of the Lord. Cf John 5:39.

Verses 5-13

A Final Word of Cheer

v. 5. Then I, Daniel, looked, after the angel had finished his message, and, behold, there stood other two, two more angels besides the one who had spoken to him, the one on this side of the bank of the river and the other on that side of the bank of the river, on either side of the Tigris.

v. 6. And one, only one of these angels being introduced as speaking, said to the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, occupying a position above the water, How long shall it be to the end of these wonders? literally, "Till when the end of these marvelous things?" the end being the period, or era, of the Messiah with all that happened in it.

v. 7. And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, as though enthroned there or floating on the waters, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, in the gesture of a most solemn oath, and sware by Him that liveth forever, by the one everlasting true God, that it, the period of these wonderful things, shall be for a time, times, and a half, the duration of the period being the same as that of Antichrist's reign, Cf. Daniel 7:25; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, when the Christian Church would have reached a point apparently near annihilation on account of the oppression of Antichrist, all these things shall be finished, including also the deliverance of the people of the Lord by the angel Michael and everything else that had been included in the great prophecy of the angel.

v. 8. And I heard, but I understood not, he did not grasp the meaning of the angel's announcement; then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things? He wanted a more exact explanation and interpretation of the period to which reference was made and to the sequence of events in that era, for he was still in the dark concerning them.

v. 9. And he said, Go thy way, Daniel, the words being encouraging although in the nature of a refusal; for the words are closed up, altogether concealed, and sealed till the time of the end, so that it would not be lost or mutilated throughout the times then coming and until the Messianic era.

v. 10. Many shall be purified and made white and tried, the time of tribulation bringing out their faithfulness to their Lord; but the wicked shall do wickedly, deliberately closing their eyes and minds to the lessons intended also for them ; and none of the wicked shall understand, the eyes of their understanding being blinded by their own fault; but the wise shall understand, for they would read and interpret the signs of the times aright.

v. 11. And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, Cf. Daniel 11:31, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, in the idolatry introduced by Antiochus Epiphanes, the antitype of Antichrist, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days, a period of time whose duration in human days and years cannot be exactly determined.

v. 12. Blessed is he that waiteth and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days, evidently the end of the great trial intended to test the loyalty of the Lord's children.

v. 13. But go thou thy way till the end be, calmly awaiting death as a deliverance from all present affliction; for thou shalt rest, in the peace of the grave, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days, in the possession of the inheritance of the saints in light, Colossians 1:12, whose enjoyment he will share with all those who, like him, are faithful to the Lord until the end. Blessed are all who await their death in this spirit of calm hopefulness and certain trust in the promise of God!