Daniel 8:23–25

“And in the latter time of their kingdom,
When the transgressors have reached their fullness,
A king shall arise,
Having fierce features,
Who understands sinister schemes.

His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power;
He shall destroy fearfully,
And shall prosper and thrive;
He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people.

“Through his cunning
He shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule;
And he shall exalt himself in his heart.
He shall destroy many in their prosperity.
He shall even rise against the Prince of princes;
But he shall be broken without human means.”

Now Gabriel explains the time of the end that he mentioned back in verse 17 while Daniel was still face down. It describes the time of the end of these kingdoms (“in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their fullness”) and it’s beyond creepy.

It describes a powerful king, having fierce features, [and] who understands sinister schemes. He’ll do a lot of damage. He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people.

But that’s not the worst part. His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power. The real power behind this sinister king is spiritual evil.

But that’s not the worst part either. He shall even rise against the Prince of princes. This is a specific reference to God. This idiot will actually rise up against God. Oops.

So, the worst part becomes the best part. But he shall be broken without human means.

Pride goeth before the fall.

While this happens most spectacularly to the enemies of God, we must always beware of our own pride.

Service to the Lord must be humble or it’s not to His glory and thus not service.

These Monday—Friday DEEPs are written by Mike Slay. To subscribe to all the DEEPs click here:

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV stands for the English Standard Version. © Copyright 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved. NIV stands for The Holy Bible, New International Version®. © Copyright 1973 by International Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. KJV stands for the King James Version.