Chapter 10 introduces us to the coming vision of Daniel 11. Chapters 10-12 seem to fit together as one unit revealing the final prophecy and vision of Daniel. Daniel 10:1 tells us that it is now the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia . This gives us the date of about 535 B.C. Therefore [...]

Daniel’s Prayer (9:1-9)
In verse 1 we read that it is the first year of Darius the Mede, the son of Ahasuerus. Therefore our time is about 539 B.C. when the Medo-Persian empire conquered the Babylonian empire (Daniel 5:31 ). Through the reading of “the books,” which we would understand to be the scriptures because of [...]

The ram (8:1-4)
The next vision of Daniel occurs in the third year of the reign of Belshazzar. Therefore, this vision occurs during the days of the power of Babylon . In Daniel’s vision he sees that he is in the capital of Susa , which is over two hundred miles from Babylon . Daniel raises [...]

Introduction:
The first six chapters of Daniel record the visions of Babylonian kings and the trials of those who had been taken captive. In chapters 7-12 we will now read about the visions that came to Daniel. These chapters are more difficult than the first six chapters and will require us to carefully read the images [...]

Daniel made governor (1-3)
Darius the Mede is now in control of the region of Babylon . Three governors were set up to be in charge over 120 satraps within the kingdom. To each of these governors were the satraps accountable. We see that Daniel was one of the governors. Daniel excelled so much more than [...]

Handwriting on the wall (1-9)
We now read that the king of Babylon is Belshazzar and so it is estimated by scholars that it has been about 23 years since the death of Nebuchadnezzar. As we will notice later in the story, Belshazzar seems to be second in charge of the kingdom, but is given power [...]

Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (1-18)
Chapter 4 is very unusual because it seems that Nebuchadnezzar now takes the pen and writes down the events that took place in the first person. The king of Babylon is going to describe for us the things that personally took place to him. In verse 4 the story begins that Nebuchadnezzar has [...]

Nebuchadnezzar’s golden image (1-18)
Perhaps inspired by the vision he had seen, Nebuchadnezzar decides to build an image of gold. Verse 1 tells us that it was sixty cubits high and six cubits in width. In our terms of measurement, this would be an image that was 90 feet high and 9 feet wide. Thus, this [...]

Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (2:1-16)
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon , begins to have dreams that cause him to lose sleep. So he calls for all of his magicians and sorcerers to come before him to interpret the dream. All of the magicians, enchanters, and sorcerers tell the king to tell them the dream and they will reveal the [...]

There are many similarities between the images Revelation and the prophecies of Daniel. There are probably as many different interpretations regarding the prophecies of Daniel as there are disputes over the interpretation of Revelation. We are going to read the book of Daniel and allow the prophecies to speak for themselves. This means that [...]

Martin Luther said of Zechariah 14, “Here, in this chapter, I give up. For I am not sure what the prophet is talking about.� This chapter has been considered an enigma by many commentators. We will try to do better in interpreting this chapter. Many problems arise for commentators because of their insistence of applying [...]

Cleansing from sin (13:1-6)
Once again we must consider the time markers that are given in this chapter. Notice in verses 1, 2, and 4 that we see the phrase “in that day� pointing us to the time of the days of the Messiah. The time frame of the events of chapter 12 continues to be [...]

In our previous study of Zechariah, we looked into chapters 9-11 where we saw the coming of the Shepherd prophesied who would remove the false shepherds. In chapter 11 the imagery was very detailed as the shepherd takes His two staffs called Unity and Favor and breaks them. The wages are given to the Shepherd [...]

Destruction of Jerusalem (11:1-3)
The first three verses of chapter 11 seem to be rather tame and of the nature that we would simply pass over these words and look for something of importance. The Jewish temple was made of cedars from Lebanon, and from this some have seen a reference here to the destruction of [...]

False shepherds and the Messiah
In verse 2 we see Zechariah note that the people wander like sheep without a shepherd. Why were the people this way? The reason is that those who were to be the leaders and teachers of the people had not done their jobs. Therefore we see in verse 3, “I will [...]

The conquering path of Alexander the Great (9:1-8)
In the first eight verses Zechariah prophesies of the coming judgments upon the nations and cities that surround the land of Israel. In verse 1 we see the burden of the word of the Lord is against Damascus. In verse 2 judgments are pronounced against Hamath, Tyre, and [...]

God is jealous for our hearts (8:2)
What can we do about this if we find ourselves slipping? First, God tells us that He is jealous for our hearts. Let us not continue to fool ourselves into believing that the course we are on is acceptable to God. God is unwilling to share our hearts with [...]

The Lord has some questions for us to answer. What made you decide to come to services this morning? Why were you singing the songs that the song leader chose? Why did you partake of the Lord’s supper? Why did you participate in the prayers that were offered? In short, what are you doing here? [...]

The vision of four chariots (6:1-8)
Zechariah now looks and sees four chariots coming from between two mountains of bronze. The first chariot had red horse, the second had black horses, the third had white horses, and the fourth had dappled horses. Zechariah asks the angel what these are. The angel responds that these are the [...]

Vision of the flying scroll (5:1-4)
Zechariah now looks and sees a flying scroll. The scroll’s length was 30 feet and its width was 15 feet. It is interesting to note at the least that these are the same dimensions as the porch of Solomon built before the entrance of the temple. The flying scroll is [...]

Zechariah is still receiving his repeated visions from the Lord. In the first three chapters we saw the visions speak of encouragement for the present, then move to encouragement in the promise of the Messiah. In chapters 4-6 I believe we see the same movement. The early visions of chapter four are going to give [...]

Vision of Joshua
Zechariah now sees Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan is standing at his right side to accuse him. Here we see Satan always ready to accuse and oppose those who would be followers of God. The Lord says to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you.� Notice that [...]