The Future of Isra’el
12: 1-13
The future of Isra’el DIG: Who is Michael? Why would Ha’Shem send him? Why will Isra’el have to suffer in the Great Tribulation? How bad will it be? What do the “two others” signify by their sworn testimony? What is the significance of the 1,290 days and the 1,335 days mentioned here in the last chapter of Dani’el? What is the purpose of the Great Tribulation? What is left unanswered for Dani’el (and you)? What does this say about the basis of faith for a believer?
REFLECT: Judging from the oppressive conditions you see around you, for what groups of people would you especially recommend this book of Dani’el? Why this book for them? Dani’el was told to go on with life even if he didn’t understand. When have you had to cope with life and faith in the midst of perplexity? The bottom line for Dani’el is that the royal power of the Most High God always triumphs over the kingdoms of men. How is that evident for Dani’el personally? For you and your family?
The righteous of the TaNaKh will be resurrected,
multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake to everlasting life.
Micha’el and Isra’el (12:1): As Arnold Fruchtenbaum relates in his commentary on Dani’el, it is important to understand that the angel who began speaking to Dani’el in 10:19 was still speaking here. He now declares: At that time Micha’el, the great prince who protects your people, will stand up. There will be a time of trouble such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people – everyone whose name is found written in the book – will be delivered. In 11:40, the angel introduced the prophecy regarding the military activities of the antichrist with the phrase: at the time of the end. Now he explained that at that time, meaning at the same time as the events of 11:40-45, Micha’el will stand up. Again, the angel used the Hebrew term amad to show that Micha’el’s standing up was an act of military involvement (8:25 and 11:14). Micha’el will take a military stand because he will wage war against Satan and his demons (see the commentary on Revelation, to see link click Di – There Was War in Heaven, and Satan was Hurled Down).
Micha’el is called the great prince because he is the guardian angel of Isra’el. Yet, according to 12:1, there will be a time of trouble. The expression time of trouble is one of the names of the Great Tribulation. It is very similar to the title of the time of Jacob’s trouble found in Jeremiah 20:7. People all over the world will suffer during the Great Tribulation, for the catastrophic judgments of that period will affect all humanity left behind after the Rapture. However, it will be especially severe for the Jewish people because of the principle that is spelled out in Isaiah 40:1-2: Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the LORD’s hand double for all her sins. As much as Ha’Shem will punish the Gentile for their sins, He will punish Isra’el double, following the principle to whom much is given, much is required (Like 12:48). Therefore, the Great Tribulation will be uniquely a time of Jacob’s trouble.
Then the angel added that the period will be worse than anything the world has ever seen: There will be a time of trouble such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. In other words, during the second half of the Great Tribulation, the Jews will be subject to a level of persecution that will surpass all previous persecutions (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Mt – The Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple on Tisha B’Av in 70 AD). Yeshua reaffirmed this truth when He said: For those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now – and never to be equaled again (Matthew 24:21-22). Yet, the angel declared: But at that time your people – everyone whose name is found written in the book – will be delivered. The one-third of the persecuted Jews still alive (Zechariah 13:8-9) will gather at Bozrah, and as the armies of the world, led by the antichrist, tighten the noose around the neck of the Jewish survivors, the scales from their eyes and they realize that Yeshua was really their Messiah. Thus, during the last three days of the Great Tribulation (Hosea 6:1-2), they cry out for forgiveness (see Revelation Ev – The Basis of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ) and all Isra’el alive at that time will be saved, as the TaNaKh says: Out of Tziyon will come a Redeemer, and He will turn Jacob away from ungodliness (Romans 11:26).
The resurrection (12:2-3): The Rapture will include B’rit Chadashah believers and it will occur before the Great Tribulation begins (see Revelation By – The Rapture of the Church). But later, after the Great Tribulation (12:1), during the seventy-five-day interval (see Revelation Ey – The Seventy-Five Day Interval), the righteous of the TaNaKh will be resurrected. Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life and given their eternal glorified bodies, while others to shame and everlasting contempt a thousand years later (see Revelation Fn – The Second Resurrection) (12:2). The Israelites who survive the Great Tribulation will be the objects of the divine deliverance prophesied in Romans 11:26, and will be joined by the righteous of the TaNaKh who are raised from the dead. This is also confirmed by Isaiah (see my commentary on Isaiah Fg – You Who Dwell in the Dust Will Wake Up and Shout for Joy), and Ezeki’el (see the commentary on Ezeki’el Ea – The Valley of the Dry Bones). What a time that would be! All the righteous of the TaNaKh, from every age, would be glorified at the same time! Glory be to God. He is the Promise Keeper.
Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever (12:3). In the context of the TaNaKh, the difference between the wise and the foolish is often their spiritual state. Those who are among the righteous of the TaNaKh are called wise, and those who are not are called foolish. The fool says in his heart, “There is no God” (Psalm 14:1a); for the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to those who are being saved it is the power of God (First Corinthians 1:18). The brightness described here is a common symbol of the Sh’khinah glory (see Isaiah Ju – The Glory of the LORD Rises Upon You). Thus, the resurrected righteous of the TaNaKh will reflect God’s glory just as the face of Moshe did when he came down from Mount Sinai (Exodus 34:29-35).
The sealing of the book (12:4): But you, Dani’el, roll up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will run back and forth to increase knowledge (12:4). The vision that began in Chapter 10 officially ends here in 12:4, and the sealing of the book would be kept safe and closed. When Dani’el wrote his prophecy several hundred years before the birth of Messiah, because of progressive revelation, he did not understand some things that the LORD had shown him. He wanted an explanation, but the fulfillment of his prophecies were a long time off, so he was told to seal them up until they could be explained by later revelation (Dani’el 12:4a and 12:8-9). With the book of Revelation, much of the book of Dani’el was clarified, expanded, detailed and explained. So John, in contrast to Dani’el, was told not to seal up his book because John’s prophecy was already unfolding and the Church Age was underway. For that reason, the message was to be left unsealed. For that reason, the angel told the aged prophet, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near” (Revelation 22:10). Then the angel declared that what Dani’el had n would continue until the time of the end. This refers to the Great Tribulation. By sealing the book, its contents would be specifically preserved for that time because much of the revelation provided in Chapters 10-12 concerns those who will be living at that time.
Then the angel made an interesting announcement: Many will run back and forth to increase knowledge. Some commentators have concluded that the angel was speaking of modern methods of travel or accomplishments in the sciences. However, the expression run back and forth refers to a quest for knowledge (Second Chronicles 16:9; Jeremiah 5:1; Amos 8:12; Zechariah 4:10), not a traveling by airplane. The Hebrew term for knowledge, data, appears with a definite article. It is the knowledge, the very specific knowledge, that is sought; namely, the knowledge that pertains to the end times. Thanks to the book of Dani’el, this knowledge will increase, and, therefore, the knowledge of the end times will also increase. To reflect the definite article before the term data, a paraphrase of this verse may read as follows: Many will go back and forth in their desire for knowledge in the last days. They will find it in the book of Dani’el, where it was preserved until the time of the end. Reading Dani’el will lead to an increase of the knowledge of the end times (12:4). The point of 12:4 is that Dani’el would receive no more visions or revelation.403
The conclusion (12:5-13): The remaining verses of Dani’el 12 will be discussed in three parts: The extent and purpose of the period (12:5-7), Daniel’s request (12:8), and the response (12:9-13).
The extent and purpose of the period (12:5-7): Dani’el, still studying the scene standing on the bank of the Tigris River (10:4), looked, and there before him stood two other angles, one on each bank. These two angels appeared in order to serve as witnesses of what would be said (Deuteronomy 17:6, 19:15). In light of the previous prophecies, one of them asked the obvious question to the man clothed in linen, “How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled, and how long would the persecution of the Jewish people last?” The man clothed in linen was the unnamed angel who had been prophesying to Dani’el since 10:4 (see Dt – The Arrival of an Angel). Unlike the other two angles, he was standing above the waters of the river.
Then the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven and gave the answer. Normally, when an oath is taken in the TaNaKh, only one hand is raised (for example Genesis 14:22 and Deuteronomy 32:40). However, here, the angel raised both hands as a sign of double assurance. He swore by the One True God who lives forever that the duration would be a time, times and half a time. He used the same figure that was mentioned in 7:25, again referring to three-and-a-half years, or the second half of the Great Tribulation.
There are three main purposes for the Great Tribulation: (1) To bring wrath upon an unbelieving world and to make an end to wickedness (Isaiah 13:9 and 24:19-20); (2) to bring about a worldwide revival (see Revelation Dt – And They Sang a New Song Before the Throne); and lastly here in 12:7 (3), to break the power of the holy people, the stubborn Jewish nation. In 11:36-45 (see Dz – The Antichrist), Dani’el was given a vision of what conditions will be like for his people Isra’el during the Great Tribulation. It will continue until pride of the Israelites is broken in order to bring about a national regeneration (see Romans Da – The Redemption of Isra’el). The means by which God will perform this is given in the Valley of the Dry Bones. What is important to note here is that after YHVH gathers the Jews from around the world He will enter into a period of judgment (the Great Tribulation) with them. The rebels among the Jewish people will be purged out by this judgment. Only when they realize that they have tried to establish their own righteousness, the Jewish people will turn to ADONAI and seek His righteousness through Messiah (Zechariah 12:10).
Only then, will the whole new nation, a regenerated nation, be allowed to enter the Messianic Kingdom under the Kosher King, and then all these things will be completed.
Dani’el’s request (12:8): There was still much that Dani’el did not understand. So he asked the unnamed angel, “What will the outcome of all this be?” As it happened to him before in 8:15, he couldn’t make sense of the angel’s words. Therefore, he once again asked for clarification as to the outcome of all that he had been told. But Dani’el didn’t receive a direct response because the event that would bring an end to the Great Tribulation, the Second Coming of Yeshua Messiah, had already been mentioned in 7:13-14.404
The angel’s response (12:9-13): While Dani’el didn’t receive a direct answer to his question, the unnamed angel did respond in the following manner.
a. The sealing (12:9): The angel tactfully replied: Go your way, Dani’el, because the words are rolled up and sealed until the time of the end (12:9). This was not a rebuke, but simply indicates that the prophet should go on about his life and not be concerned about his lack of knowledge because the vision related to the far eschatological future. Dani’el was assured that these prophecies would be preserved, or sealed, for those who will need them, that is, the people who live at the time of the end. As the end approaches, the messages of Dani’el (and other prophecies of the last days) will become increasingly clearer to believers.405
b. The wise and the wicked (12:10): Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. As previously stated, the term wise generally refers to believers. But here, it specifically refers to believers during the Great Tribulation. They will comprehend what Dani’el could not because of Dani’el’s book. As a result of what he wrote, they will be made spotless, refined, and purified, a reference to their salvation. As for the wicked, they will continue to act wickedly, they will never gain saving knowledge, but those who are wise will understand.
c. The 1,290 days (12:11): The Great Tribulation will last seven years, and each half of that period will have 1,260 days. Hence, from the time the antichrist commits the abomination that causes desolation (11:31b), it will be precisely 1,260 days until the end of the tribulation. From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. The angel pointed out that the abomination of desolation, meaning that the image of the antichrist set up in the Tribulation Temple (see Revelation Bx – The Tribulation Temple), will be allowed to continue for thirty days beyond the Second Coming, then it will be removed.
d. The 1,335 days (12:12): Then the angel provided a second time frame: Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days (12:12). The figure of 1,335 days is an additional forty-five days beyond the 1,290 days mentioned in the previous verse. Adding the numbers from verses 11 and 12, there will be a total of seventy-five days between the Second Coming and the establishment of the Messianic Kingdom. Then the angel pointed out that those who make it to the end of the 1,335 days will be blessed. What will happen during those seventy-five days must be derived from other passages. Nine points can be made.
First, the abomination that causes desolation will be removed (see Ez – The Removal of the Abomination That Causes Desolation).
Second, the antichrist will be captured and thrown alive into the lake of fire.
Third, the false prophet, who will serve as the counterfeit Ruach Ha’Kodesh during the Great Tribulation, will also be thrown alive into the lake of fire (see Revelation Fa – The Beast was Captured, and with Him the False Prophet).
Fourth, Satan, who will serve as the counterfeit Father in the Great Tribulation, will be thrown into the abyss for a thousand years (see Revelation Fb – He Seized the Dragon, or Satan, and Bound Him for a Thousand Years).
Fifth, though a great many Gentiles will be killed during the Great Tribulation, and the Gentile armies will be slaughtered in the Campaign of Armageddon (see Revelation Ex – The Eight Stage Campaign of Armageddon), a number will still be alive during the seventy-five-day interval. Those Gentiles will then be gathered for judgment (Joel 3:1-3). The judge will be none other than Yeshua Messiah, who will sit on a throne encompassed by His glory in the Valley of Jehoshaphat. All the Gentiles will be gathered before Him. The accused will not be allowed to quibble over their guilt or innocence. There will be a Prosecutor, but no defender; an Accuser, but no advocate. There will be an indictment, but no defense mounted by the accused; the convicting evidence will be presented with no cross-examination. There will be an utterly unsympathetic Judge and no jury. There will be no appeal of the sentence once it is pronounced. The guilty will be punished eternally with no possibility of parole in a prison from which there is no escape. Banished for eternity, they will be without God, without love, and without hope. In this judgment the Gentiles will be divided into two camps: the pro-Semitic sheep camp and the anti-Semitic goat camp (see The Life of Christ Jy – The Sheep and the Goats). The anti-Semites who will aid the antichrist in the effort to destroy all the Jews, will be killed and sent to hell. They are the ones who, according to 12:12, will fail to attain the 1,335th day and, consequently, lose out on the blessings of the Messianic Kingdom.
Sixth, the righteous of the TaNaKh will be resurrected (see Revelation Fd – The Resurrection of the Righteous of the TaNaKh).
Seventh, the believers who will be beheaded for refusing to take the mark of the beast will also be resurrected (see Revelation Fe – I Saw Those Who Had Been Beheaded for the Testimony for Jesus).
Eighth, the first resurrection will take place (see Revelation Ff – Blessed and Holy are Those Who Have Part in the First Resurrection).
And Ninth, the wedding feast of the Lamb will be celebrated (see Revelation Fg – Blessed Are Those Invited to the Wedding Feast of the Lamb).
e. Dani’el’s future (12:13): The book closes with a statement regarding Dani’el’s future. As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance.406 The angel reaffirmed what he had already said in 12:9: Dani’el could leave now because no more information would be given to him. The prophet was on his way until the end of days. The primary theme of the book of Dani’el is the times of the Gentiles (see Ao – The Times of the Gentiles). The end of that timespan will be the actual end of the Great Tribulation. Dani’el himself would not make it to that time because he would rest, meaning he would die.
The day is coming when Messiah will ride out to conquer and to recreate, a day when the kingdom of this world will become the Kingdom of our Lord and His Messiah (Rev 11:15). In the meantime, our task as believers is simply to testify to our Lord’s greatness and grace by our words and by our sufferings. As we cling to ADONAI in the midst of our trials that we do not understand, we testify to YHVH’s grace to a watching world and to the heavenly beings. Like Jacob, who wrestled with God at the crossings of the Jabbok River even after he had been crippled by the encounter (Gen 32:24-31), we testify not by our strength and might but simply by our persistence in clinging to God in the midst of our brokenness.
And when the final trumpet sounds for us, bringing to an end our earthly conflict, at least we too will hear our Redeemer say to us: As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance. We will rise with Dani’el – the same Dani’el who endured the trials of the lions’ den and the challenges of living in an alien land, who prayed daily for the coming of God’s Kingdom and who prospered throughout the exile – all with all the believers from every age, to receive our final reward in Messiah.407
Dear Heavenly Father, Praise You for how wonderful You are! Your wisdom is infinite, knowing in the future with precise exactness. Your Great Steadfast Love is powered by your Almighty Power and Perfect Holiness and Faithfulness! What a comfort it is to have you as our Father! There is nothing about You that we would ever want changes and there is nothing in you that can be improved! Earthly fathers are of this earth and even good ones are still not perfect like you. Your love is so great to have given Your one and only Son to rescue and redeem mankind. How great that nothing can separate me from Your love! For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Messiah Yeshua our Lord (Romans 8:38-39). So wonderful to love and to know You! Though in this world there is much pain and many trials, those who love You can live in peace (Romans 8:18), having no fear, for their hope and trust is in You, our Loving Almighty Heavenly Father! Fear not, for I am with you, be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Surely I will help you. I will uphold you with My righteousness (Isaiah 41:10). In Messiah Yeshua’s holy Name and power of His resurrection. Amen
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