Why Read and Study daniel and Revelation?

Why Read and Study

Daniel and Revelation?

Seven-headed dragons. Beasts rising up from the sea. Cryptic numbers

like 666. Riddles like ¡°mene, mene, tekel, parsin.¡± What¡¯s going on in the

books of Daniel and Revelation?

Maybe you¡¯ve tried to read these books, but you gave up because they

seemed so bizarre and difficult to understand. Maybe someone promised to

show you from them what¡¯s going to happen at the end of the world, but then

spun out a scenario that was too arbitrary and fanciful to believe. Experiences

like these make many people avoid these books.

And that¡¯s a real shame, because they have a powerful message to share

about how God is in control of history, and how no power on earth can

defeat his purposes. Daniel and Revelation describe some of the most difficult

experiences that people who love God have ever endured, and show how

these people stayed loyal to him, even to the death. These books give us a

glimpse into the never-ending worship that surrounds God in heaven and

extends through all of creation. All of this is simply too good to miss.

And so we should read and study Daniel and Revelation. But we should

do this responsibly, grounding these books in the times and places where they

were written, appreciating the situations they were originally addressing, and

understanding them as the special kind of writing they are. That¡¯s what this

study guide will help you do. This is how we approach every other book of the

Bible, and there¡¯s no reason to make these two books an exception.

When we read and study Daniel and Revelation this way, their story

comes alive for us. They¡¯re not end-of-the-world speculation, but accounts

of real people, in real-world situations, living out their faith with integrity

instead of watering it down under pressure. Sure, these books can also help

us understand what things may be like in the ultimate conflict between good

and evil at the end of human history. But we don¡¯t have to wait until then

to become part of the story they¡¯re telling. God needs people today who will

suffer and sacrifice and worship and triumph just as the people in these two

books do. Are you in?

Understanding the

Books of the Bible

DANIEL

and

REVELATION

Also available in the

Understanding the Books of the Bible series:

John

Genesis

Wisdom: Proverbs/Ecclesiastes/James

Joshua/Judges/Ruth¡ªMarch 2011

Thessalonians/Corinthians/Galatians/Romans¡ªMarch 2011

Future releases:

Exodus/Leviticus/Numbers

New Covenants: Deuteronomy/Hebrews

Samuel¨CKings

Amos/Hosea/Micah/Isaiah

Zephaniah/Nahum/Habakkuk

Jeremiah/Obadiah/Ezekiel

Haggai/Zechariah/Jonah/Joel/Malachi

Psalms Books 1¨C3

Psalms Books 4¨C5/Song of Songs/Lamentations

Job

Chronicles/Ezra/Nehemiah/Esther

Matthew

Mark

Luke¨CActs

Colossians/Ephesians/Philemon/Philippians/Timothy/Titus

Peter/Jude/John

Understanding the Books of the Bible

DANIEL

and

REVELATION

Christopher R. Smith

Contents

Why Read and Study Daniel and Revelation?

i

For Leaders

How These Study Guides Are Different

Session 1

1

Daniel

Experiencing the Book of Daniel as a Whole

13

StorieS of Daniel anD HiS frienDS in exile

Session 2

Daniel and His Friends Refuse to Compromise Their Faith

18

Session 3

Daniel Interprets Nebuchadnezzar¡¯s Dream

23

Session 4

Daniel¡¯s Friends Refuse to Bow to the Golden Statue

Biblica Publishing

We welcome your questions and comments.

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30

Session 5

Nebuchadnezzar Acknowledges the Most High God

33

Session 6

Belshazzar Sees the Handwriting on the Wall

37

Session 7

Daniel is Thrown Into the Lions¡¯ Den

Understanding the Books of the Bible: Daniel/Revelation

ISBN-13: 978-1-60657-057-9

Copyright ? 2011 by Christopher R. Smith

12 11 10 / 6 5 4 3 2 1

Published in 2011 by Biblica

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing

from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, TODAY¡¯S New International

Version? TNIV?. Copyright ? 2001, 2005 by Biblica, Inc.?. Used by permission of Zondervan. All

rights reserved worldwide.

A catalog record for this book is available through the Library of Congress.

Printed in the United States of America

41

Daniel¡¯S ViSionS of tHe future

Session 8

Daniel¡¯s Vision of Four Beasts and the Ancient of Days

46

Session 9

Daniel¡¯s Vision of the Ram, the Goat, and the Horns

52

Session 10

Daniel¡¯s Prayer and Gabriel¡¯s Answer: Seventy Sevens

56

Session 11

Daniel¡¯s Vision of the Kings of the North and South

60

Session 12

For Leaders

Revelation

Experiencing the Book of Revelation as a Whole

67

¡°in tHe Spirit¡± on tHe iSlanD of patmoS

Session 13

John¡¯s Vision of Jesus in His Glory

74

Session 14

The Letters to the Seven Churches

79

How These Study Guides Are Different

84

Did you know you could read and study the Bible without using any

chapters or verses? The books of the Bible are real ¡°books.¡± They¡¯re meant to

be experienced the same way other books are: as exciting, interesting works

that keep you turning pages right to the end and then make you want to go

back and savor each part. The Understanding the Books of the Bible

series of study guides will help you do that with the Bible.

While you can use these guides with any version or translation, they¡¯re

especially designed to be used with The Books of The Bible, an edition of the

Scriptures from Biblica that takes out the chapter and verse numbers and

presents the biblical books in their natural form. Here¡¯s what people are saying about reading the Bible this way:

¡°in tHe Spirit¡± in HeaVen

Session 15

The Lamb before the Heavenly Throne

Session 16

The Lamb Opens the Seven Seals

89

Session 17

The Seven Angels Sound Their Trumpets

93

Session 18

John¡¯s Mission to Warn God¡¯s People is Renewed

97

Session 19

The Woman and the Dragon

101

Session 20

The Dragon and the Beasts

105

Session 21

Angels Pour Out Seven Bowls

110

116

I love it. I find myself understanding Scripture in a new way, with

a fresh lens, and I feel spiritually refreshed as a result. I learn much

more through stories being told, and with this new format, I feel the

truth of the story come alive for me.

122

Reading Scripture this way flows beautifully. I don¡¯t miss the chapter

and verse numbers. I like them gone. They got in the way.

130

I¡¯ve been a reader of the Bible all of my life. But after reading just a

few pages without chapters and verses, I was amazed at what I¡¯d been

missing all these years.

¡°in tHe Spirit¡± in tHe WilDerneSS

Session 22

The Fall of ¡°Babylon the Great¡±

¡°in tHe Spirit¡± in HeaVen, continueD

Session 23

Defeat of God¡¯s Enemies, Final Judgment, and Renewed Creation

¡°in tHe Spirit¡± on a mountain

Session 24

The New Jerusalem

1

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