Theophany 86: The Ancient of Days and the Son of Man: Daniel 7:9–14
There are moments in Scripture when the veil between heaven and earth seems to become almost transparent.
Daniel 7 gives us one of those moments.
In our last Theophany, we saw the Son of God in the fire, standing with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the midst of the furnace. There He was revealed as the One who is present with His people in their suffering.
Now Daniel's vision takes us somewhere entirely different.
We are no longer looking into a furnace.
We are looking into heaven itself.
And there, seated upon a throne of fire, is the Ancient of Days. Before Him stands an innumerable multitude. The court is seated. The books are opened. The kingdoms of this world are judged.
And then Daniel sees something astonishing:
“I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven.”Daniel 7:13
Who is this figure?
And why does He come with the clouds of heaven?
Daniel is about to show us something extraordinary about Jesus Christ.
The Ancient of Days
Daniel begins with the throne.
“I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit.”Daniel 7:9
The description is overwhelming.
His garment is white as snow. His hair is like pure wool. His throne is a fiery flame, and its wheels are burning fire. A stream of fire proceeds from before Him. Thousands upon thousands minister to Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stand before Him.
Then:
“The judgment was set, and the books were opened.”Daniel 7:10
This is not a picture of earthly power.
The kingdoms Daniel has just seen were represented by beasts. They rose, conquered, devoured, and exercised authority.
But now Daniel sees the One before whom all earthly kingdoms must ultimately stand.
The beasts have their day.
God has eternity.
Human rulers come and go.
Empires rise and fall.
The proud speak their great words.
But the Ancient of Days sits upon His throne.
The judgment belongs to Him.
The Kingdoms of Men Do Not Have the Last Word
Daniel's vision is especially important because the world he sees looks frightening.
The beasts represent kingdoms characterized by power, violence, pride, and domination. The final beast speaks arrogantly against God.
But then the scene changes.
The beast is destroyed.
Its authority is taken away.
The kingdoms of this world are not permanent.
That is one of the great messages of Daniel.
The kingdom that looks invincible today may be gone tomorrow.
We sometimes live as though political power, military strength, cultural influence, wealth, or human authority will determine the future.
Daniel sees something different.
He sees heaven's throne.
And when heaven's court is seated, every earthly power is measured by a higher authority.
The final word does not belong to the beast.
It belongs to God.
And Then Comes One Like the Son of Man
But Daniel's vision contains something even more remarkable.
After seeing the Ancient of Days, Daniel writes:
“I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven.”Daniel 7:13
Notice the contrast.
The kingdoms of the earth appeared as beasts.
But the coming ruler appears as one like a son of man.
He comes with the clouds.
He approaches the Ancient of Days.
And He is brought before Him.
Then comes the astonishing announcement:
“And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom.”Daniel 7:14
His kingdom will include all people, nations, and languages.
And unlike the kingdoms represented by the beasts, His kingdom will never end.
“His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.”Daniel 7:14
Daniel has shown us the kingdom that cannot fall.
And he has shown us its King.
Jesus Called Himself the Son of Man
Centuries later, Jesus repeatedly called Himself the Son of Man.
That title is not merely a poetic way of saying that Jesus was human.
Jesus was deliberately identifying Himself with the mysterious figure Daniel saw.
The connection becomes unmistakable when Jesus stood before the high priest during His trial.
The high priest asked whether He was the Christ, the Son of God.
Jesus answered:
“Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.”Matthew 26:64
Jesus was standing there as a prisoner.
But He spoke of Himself as the One who would come with the clouds of heaven.
The apparent victim was actually the coming King.
The One standing on trial before earthly authorities would ultimately stand in judgment over the kingdoms of the earth.
The contrast could hardly be greater.
They thought they were judging Jesus.
Jesus knew that He was the Judge.
From Daniel to Revelation
The same imagery carries all the way into Revelation.
John writes:
“Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him.”Revelation 1:7
John is deliberately drawing our attention back to Daniel.
The One who comes with the clouds is Jesus.
The One who was pierced is Jesus.
The One whose kingdom cannot be destroyed is Jesus.
The One who stood before earthly judges will one day be seen by every eye.
The suffering Christ is the reigning Christ.
The crucified Christ is the coming Christ.
The Jesus who stood silently before Pilate is the Jesus who will ultimately rule over every nation.
The connection between Daniel 7 and Revelation is therefore not accidental. Revelation identifies the One whom Daniel saw.
The Son of Man Is More Than a Human King
There is something else we should notice.
Daniel says that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him.
The Son of Man receives universal dominion.
His kingdom is everlasting.
His authority is not temporary.
And His rule is not confined to one nation.
This is extraordinary because Daniel's vision begins with the nations of the world represented as beasts.
The nations rage.
The kingdoms struggle.
Human rulers boast.
But God's answer is not another beast.
God's answer is the Son of Man.
And that Son of Man is Jesus.
He is truly man.
But He is also far more than merely a human ruler.
He comes with the clouds of heaven.
He receives everlasting dominion.
And He receives the worship and service of all nations.
The New Testament does not leave us wondering who Daniel was seeing.
It points us to Jesus Christ.
The King Who First Came as a Servant
There is a mystery here that becomes clearer when we look at the whole story of Jesus.
Daniel sees the Son of Man coming in glory.
But the Gospels show Him first coming in humility.
He is born in Bethlehem.
He grows up in Nazareth.
He walks the roads of Galilee.
He touches lepers.
He welcomes sinners.
He teaches the crowds.
He heals the sick.
He raises the dead.
And then He goes to the cross.
The King is crowned with thorns.
The King is mocked.
The King is crucified.
The King appears defeated.
But Daniel had already shown us that the story does not end there.
The One who comes with the clouds receives an everlasting kingdom.
The cross is not the end of Jesus' story.
The resurrection follows.
The ascension follows.
The exaltation follows.
And one day, the return follows.
The One who came first in humility will come again in glory.
What Daniel Wants Us to See
Daniel 7 is not simply giving us information about the future.
It is changing the way we see the present.
We live in a world where kingdoms still boast.
Leaders still exercise power.
Nations still rise and fall.
People still speak as though they control history.
But Daniel pulls back the curtain.
He lets us see what is really happening.
The throne is occupied.
The Ancient of Days is seated.
The books will be opened.
The beasts will not rule forever.
And the Son of Man has been given an everlasting kingdom.
That means the Christian does not have to live in fear of the future.
We may be troubled by what we see.
We may be confused by the behavior of nations.
We may wonder where history is going.
But history is not wandering aimlessly.
It is moving toward the throne of God.
And toward the appearing of the King.
From the Fire to the Throne
There is a beautiful connection between Theophany 85 and Theophany 86.
In Daniel 3, the Son of God is with His people in the fire.
In Daniel 7, the Son of Man is before the throne receiving the kingdom.
The first vision tells us:
He is with us when we suffer.
The second tells us:
He will reign when history reaches its appointed end.
That is the Jesus we need.
Not merely a Jesus who comforts us in difficult circumstances.
Not merely a Jesus who forgives our sins.
Not merely a Jesus who walks beside us.
He is all of those things.
But He is also the King.
The One who walks with us through the fire is the One to whom the Father has given everlasting dominion.
The One who was rejected by men is the One before whom every nation will ultimately bow.
The One who was crucified is the One who will come with the clouds.
And His kingdom will never be destroyed.
The Revelation of Jesus Christ
Theophany is ultimately about seeing God revealed.
And Daniel 7 gives us one of the clearest Old Testament glimpses of the glory that would be revealed in Jesus Christ.
Daniel saw the throne.
Daniel saw the Ancient of Days.
Daniel saw the judgment.
And Daniel saw One like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven.
Jesus later took that very image and applied it to Himself.
John saw the same Christ and declared:
“Behold, he cometh with clouds.”Revelation 1:7
So the message of Daniel 7 is not simply that God wins in the end.
It is more personal than that.
Jesus wins.
His kingdom will not pass away.
His dominion will not end.
His people will not be forgotten.
And the King who was with His servants in the fire will one day be revealed to the whole world in glory.
The Son of God in the fire.
The Son of Man before the throne.
The King coming with the clouds.
This is Jesus.
And His kingdom shall have no end.
*******************************Oh, the love that drew salvation's plan!
Oh, the grace that brought it down to man!
Oh, the mighty gulf that God did span
At Calvary! ------ William Reed Newell, 1868-1956
*******************************
HE IS COMING AGAIN
Lift up your heads, pilgrims aweary,
See day’s approach now crimson the sky;
Night shadows flee, and your Belovèd,
Awaited with longing, at last draweth nigh.
Refrain
He is coming again, He is coming again,
The very same Jesus, rejected of men;
He is coming again, He is coming again,
With power and great glory, He is coming again!
Dark was the night, sin warred against us;
Heavy the load of sorrow we bore;
But now we see signs of His coming;
Our hearts glow within us, joy’s cup runneth o’er!
Refrain
O blessèd hope! O blissful promise!
Filling our hearts with rapture divine;
O day of days! Hail Thy appearing!
Thy transcendent glory forever shall shine.
Refrain
Even so, come, precious Lord Jesus;
Creation waits redemption to see;
Caught up in clouds, soon we shall meet Thee;
O blessèd assurance, forever with Thee!
Refrain - Mabel J. Camp, in The Voice of Thanksgiving, 1913
“…in the same way you have seen Him go
into Heaven.” Acts 1:11
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