Daniel and the Scientific Revolution

Introduction

Daniel foretold an increase in knowledge and travel at the end of the age: "But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased." [Daniel 12:4]

The scientific revolution, when the old cosmology was abandoned, was foretold in Isaiah 34:4: "And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree."

When a scroll is rolled together, it suddenly stops, as the spindles can no longer revolve when they meet. The heavens, which were once thought to revolve around the earth, suddenly stopped their rotation, about 1750 AD. The diurnal motion was attributed to the earth, instead of heaven. This was the scientific revolution in astronomy.

The same prophecy foretold the discovery of universal gravitiation, which says all bodies "fall" towards one another. Sir Isaac Newton said the moon falls towards the earth like an apple falls from a tree; Isaiah said all the stars fall like figs!

In the book of Isaiah, 'heaven' is called God's throne, and earth his 'footstool' [Isaiah 66:1]. That is incompatible with geocentrism. What king, who has a throne and a footstool, would rotate his throne around his footstool every day?

Some of the passages suggesting geocentrism in the OT are corruptions added in the 2nd century BC, initiated by Antiochus IV in the 2nd century BC.

One of the most remarkable prophecies in the Bible is the 2,300 days prophecy of Daniel 8:13-14; "Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot? And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed."

The context of the prophecy shows that the "sanctuary" here is the sanctuary of heaven, the starry heaven or the universe. No start date for the 2,300 days is mentioned. The period begins when the words were spoken by the angel, the 3rd year of Belshazzar, [Daniel 8:1]. These 2,300 days can be interpreted as 2,300 years, which end in the mid-eighteenth century. That was when the scientific revolution "cleansed" or "set right" man's view of the heavens. It was when modern astronomy replaced the old geocentric cosmology. About 1750 AD, 23 centuries after Daniel's vision, the rigid heavenly firmament, and the planetary spheres were abolished forever.

Developments in astronomy in the 18th century

The scientific revolution in astronomy began with the work of Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Descartes, and Newton. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, most people still supposed the heavens consisted of a rigid firmament, which rotated around the earth. A revolution in man's thinking about cosmology and astronomy occurred during the eighteenth century, as predictions based on Newton's 'Principia' were confirmed. Consider these developments:

In 1720, Jacob van 'sGravesande published his Mathematical elements of natural philosophy confirmed by experiments, or an introduction to Sir Isaac Newton's philosophy.
In 1725 James Bradley discovered the aberration of light, thus proving the earth's motion.
The third edition of Newton's Principia was published in 1726, when Newton was 80 years old.
In 1736 Pierre Louis Moreau de Maupertuis led an expedition to Lapland to measure the length of a degree along the meridian. The results verified Newton's concept of gravity, which required that the earth is an oblate spheroid, flattened in polar regions.
Francesco Algarotti published his 'Il newtonianismo per le dame' [Newtonianism for the Ladies] in 1736, on Newton's optics. It became one of the most popular accounts of Newton's philosophy.
Voltaire (Francios Marie Arounet) and Madame du Chatelet (Emilie de Breteuil) wrote a popular exposition of Newton's discoveries, "Elements of Sir Isaac Newton's Philosophy". Both French and English editions were published in 1738.
In 1743 Alexis Claude Clairaut explained the figure of the earth by his theorem connecting gravity at points on the surface of a rotating ellipsoid with the centrifugal force at the equator. In 1747 Claurault wrote about a "great revolution in physics" caused by Newton's 'Principia'. The idea that a scientific revolution in astronomy was underway became prevalent in the second half of the eighteenth century. It was the basis for Kant's description of the time as "the age of enlightenment."
In 1744 the Roman Catholic Church allowed the printing of Galileo's Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems. It still remained on the Index of Prohibited Books, and inclusion of Galileo's recantation of Copernican theory was required in the same volume.
In 1747 Emilie de Breteuil and Alexis Clairaut began translating Newton's Principia into French; the work was published in 1759.
In 1749 Clairaut showed that Newton's theory of gravity was confirmed by observations of the motion of the moon.
Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov, who had studied at Freiberg, introduced the new astronomy and the Copernican theory at the Academy of St. Petersburg in Russia, beginning about 1750. In 1755 he founded Moscow University.
In 1750 Thomas Wright published An Original Theory and New Hypothesis of the Universe in which he proposed that the Sun and stars form a giant system rotating around a common centre, thus describing the modern view of the Milky Way.
In 1755 Immanuel Kant suggested that nebulae are large star systems like the Milky Way.
In 1757, the Congregation of the Index "secretly allowed the ideas of Copernicus to be tolerated." Also, Lutheran theologians in Germany opposed the Copernican theory during the first part of the eighteenth century, claiming it was opposed to scripture, "yet at the middle of the century we find some of the clearest-headed of them aware of the fact that their cause was lost." [A. D. White, Warfare of Science with Theology, Chapter III: Astronomy. http://www.santafe.edu/~shalizi/White/astronomy/results-of-victory.html]
In 1757, musician William Herschel of Hanover migrated to England, where he became interested in astronomy. His improved telescope design led to many discoveries.
The return of Halley's comet, which reached perihelion on March 12, 1759, was regarded as a great triumph for the Newtonian theory. Its reappearance in 1758 had been predicted by Edmund Halley.
French mathematician Jean Lerond d'Alembert wrote in 1759: "Our century is called ... the century of philosophy par excellence ... The discovery and application of a new method of philosophizing, the kind of enthusiasm which accompanies discoveries, a certain exaltation of ideas which the spectacle of the universe produces in us - all these causes have brought about a lively fermentation of minds, spreading through nature in all directions like a river which has burst its dams." [Quoted in: Hankins, Thomas L. 1985. Science and the Enlightenment. Cambridge University Press, p. 1.]

The "great noise"

The apostle Peter said the heavens would pass away "with great noise." The old cosmology of his time, with its rigid heaven revolving around the earth, has indeed passed away. It occurred in the scientific revolution, and the commotion generated by it continues today. The Bible seemed to support the old geocentric cosmology, because of corruptions introduced by Antiochus IV in the 2nd century BC, that identified the 'raqia' with heaven. (It is 'firmament' in the KJV.) Because of this, many people lost their faith, and abandoned hope in the gospel. They are victims of the fraud of Antiochus IV!

A study on Daniel 8

Daniel 8:1
In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first.

When did Belshazzar begin his reign?

"Belshazzar was the son of Nabonidus, who after ruling only three years, went to the oasis of Tayma and devoted himself to the worship of the moon god, Sin. He made Belshazzar co-regent in 553 B.C., leaving him in charge of Babylon's defense."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belshazzar

The 3rd year of Belshazzar was 550 BC.

Daniel 8:2-3
And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai.

Then I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there stood before the river a ram which had two horns: and the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last.

The ram pictures the Medo/Persian empire.

Daniel 8:4-5
I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and became great.
And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.

The male goat represents the Greeks, and the large horn was Alexander the Great.

Daniel 8:6-7
And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power.
And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand.

Being cast to the ground pictures defeat. Alexander conquered Darius and became ruler of the Persian empire.

Daniel 8:8
Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven.

The goat developed four horns, which represent the Diadochi, or successors, the four kingdoms that arose following the death of Alexander. One of these was the Seleucid kingdom in Syria and Mesopotamia. Antiochus IV was one of the kings of the Seleucid line, a son of Antiochus III.

Daniel 8:9
And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land.

The little horn in the prophecy represents Antiochus IV, a Seleucid king of Syria in the 2nd century BC. Antiochus invaded Egypt, and extended his power in the east, in Mesopotamia, and he also attacked Jerusalem.

Daniel 8:10
And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.

The prophecy of the horn of the goat in Daniel 8:9-10 growing to the east, and to the south, and to the pleasant land, was fulfilled by the Seleucid king Antiochus IV visiting those places and imposing his will, or his rule upon the people living there.

Similarly, the same horn growing up to the stars means that in some way, his influence extended to cosmology. He had the means to stamp out the knowledge of the earth's rotation, that was taught in ancient times by Aristarchus of Samos (310 BC - ca. 230 BC) and Seleucus of Seleucia (born c. 190 BC).

Are 'stars' really stars?

Dispensationalists claim their Grammatico-Historical "method" leads to a more reliable interpretation of scripture than a figurative, or spiritual approach, in which prophetic language is viewed as symbolic. But they fail to apply their "method" in Daniel 8:10. For this prophecy, they want "stars" to be something other than "stars"!

What good is their much vaunted "method," when they can abandon it on a whim? How can they get away with this? They reject "figurative" explanations, claiming that their "method" aims to "dethrone the interpreter." But then, they deny that "stars" and "the host of heaven" mentioned in the prophecy of Daniel 8:10 refer the starry heaven.

Daniel's description of the horn of a goat growing tall, up to the stars, and casting them to the earth, contrasts with the horn's activities in extending itself to the south, and the east, and the glorious land, in verse 9, which clearly describes the military exploits of Antiochus IV against Egypt, and Jerusalem, and the eastern regions of Mesopotamia. So "stars" cannot represent Jews in this case.

Dispensationalists like to quote the following by David L. Cooper: "When the plain sense of Scripture makes common sense, seek no other sense." They abandon this rule, for the stars of Daniel 8:10. They throw out their own rule!

If the stars of Daniel 8:10-11 are not literal, what could they represent? And what does the "host of heaven" represent, if not the sun, moon, planets, constellations, etc.?

How were stars cast to the earth?

Casting stars to the earth means they are somehow connected with the earth. But how? It was by the identification of the 'raqia' with heaven in Genesis 1:8. The 'raqia' was formerly the earth's rocky crust!

Antiochus was opposed to the heliocentric theory, that had been advanced in the previous century by Aristarchus. Probably, Antiochus and the religious leaders viewed it as a threat to the Greek religion, which was based on the geocentric cosmology, and featured a rigid heaven, identified with Zeus, that revolved around the earth each day, carrying the stars, that were thought to be attached to its inner surface.

Plutarch and Sextus Empiricus refer to "the followers of Aristarchus," but other than Seleucus of Seleucia, we know the names of none of them. Perhaps Antiochus IV, acting on behalf of pagan Greek religion, eliminated them all, and destroyed their works. After Seleucus, there is no further mention of any astronomer supporting the heliocentric theory.

Antiochus influenced the cosmology of generations after him, as he corrupted the cosmology of the scriptures, making many of the cosmological passages support the flawed ideas of the Greeks. Daniel's prophecy exposes these corruptions, and also foretold the scientific revolution that occurred in the eighteenth century, 23 centuries after the vision was given to Daniel.

Daniel 8:11
Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of the sanctuary was cast down.

This is the part of the prophecy that has been most challenging to scholars. How could a goat horn grow so tall, it reaches the stars, and then casts them to the earth, along with the host of heaven, and even heaven itself? Very bright scholars have been stumped by this. One said the imagery is "grotesque." Another said the text is "hopelessly corrupt." But this was all accomplished by the redefining of the 'raqia' as Heaven in Genesis 1:8. This put the stars on the underside of the 'raqia' or firmament, which was originally the earth's rocky crust. It opposed God himself, by corrupting his holy word. It cast truth to the ground, as it promoted the delusion of a rigid heaven revolving around the earth. Antiochus IV stamped out the knowledge of the earth's rotation, which Daniel depicts by the statement "and by him the continual was taken away" in Daniel 8:11. Here the KJV has "daily sacrifice" but it is not referring to sacrifices. The word is "tamiyd" which means "continual" or "constant," and this refers to the knowledge of the earth's diurnal rotation. The Greeks believed the earth was stationary, and the heavens revolved around it. That required that the heavens were rigid, to keep the stars fixed in their relative positions, as if fastened to the inside surface of an enormous sphere. This was the basis for their idea of Zeus, the supreme deity. He was called the strongest of the gods, and the "father of gods and men" in Homer's poems. Antiochus IV was especially interested in promoting Greek religion; he financed the building of the enormous temple of Zeus in Athens, the largest temple in all of Greece. He built a temple of Jupiter Capitolinus at Antioch. He contributed to the worship of Zeus in many Greek cities. An image of Zeus occurs on many of the coins issued during his reign.

The phrase "the daily sacrifice was taken away" in verse 11 should read "the continual was taken away." The word "sacrifice" is not in the Hebrew text, but was added by translators. It refers to the knowledge of the earth's rotation being stamped out during the reign of Antiochus IV. A heliocentric cosmology was supported by Seleucus about that time, but no works of his have survived. Plutarch says he taught it "not just as a theory, but as a fact."

Most editions of the KJV indicate the words added by translators in italics which is evidence that "sacrifice" does not belong in those verses, but has been added by a translator in an attempt to interpret the prophecy.

How truth was cast to the ground

The insertion of the flawed cosmology of the ancient world into the Bible has indeed "cast truth to the ground," as the Bible was discredited, in the minds of many, as a result of the scientific revolution. The Church defended the old cosmology that was eventually abandoned, so theologians were humiliated, and their power was diminished. Many abandoned the Christian faith. This is what Daniel foretold.

The translation "and by him the Constant was taken away" was supplied by Louis Ginsberg, a Hebrew scholar. I think "Constant" refers to the knowledge of the earth's rotation, that was stamped out by Antiochus IV, as that was perceived as a threat to the Greek religion. There would be no need for the popular belief in a rigid heaven if the earth revolved about its axis. Thus, belief in the earth's diurnal rotation undermined belief in the existence of Zeus, the main deity of the Greeks in the hellenistic age. Antiochus IV promoted the worship of Zeus and defended it by eliminating all opposing views.

Were sacrifices "continual"?

The KJV has several references to "daily sacrifice" in this prophecy. The Hebrew word is "tamiyd," which means continual, or constant. In Daniel's prophecies it does not refer to sacrifices, because the ritual temple sacrifices of the Jews were not continual, or constant. In fact, those sacrifices were anything but that. They were discontinued when the Jews went into captivity in Babylon. They were discontinued during most of Daniel's lifetime, and Daniel foretold their permanent abolition, in Daniel 9:27. They have been discontinued since the destruction of the temple in 70 AD. How could such a discontinuous ritual sacrificial ritual service be called "continual"? Clearly, that makes no sense! Dispensationalists reject a demonstrably fulfilled interpretation of Daniel's prophecy, and instead promote their flawed, old, feeble interpretations.

Why does the text say 'daily sacrifice'?

Dispensationalists resort to a version of the text of Daniel 8:10-14 that has been altered by some unknown interpreter, which has the additional word "sacrifice" inserted where Daniel was not referring to sacrifices. In the KJV, where the word "sacrifice" appears in Daniel 8:10-11, it is italicised, showing it is not genuine, and is absent from the Hebrew text. Dispensationalists base their interpretation on this corruption! They reject interpretations that view "stars" and "the host of heaven" of Daniel 8:10 as astronomical, so violating their own "method"!

The word "sacrifice" occurs in italics in most editions of the KJV, which is meant to indicate that it has been added to the text by translators. So it is hazardous to base an interpretation on the shaky insertion of words by KJV translators who lived in an age characterized by its ignorance of the true structure of the universe.

There are many examples where the addition of a word makes the meaning more clear, but that is not so in this case, as the text has nothing at all to do with sacrifices or the temple service.

Why would Daniel record a prophecy having to do with the temple service when the temple did not exist, and he was an exile living in Babylon? It would not make sense. And in fact the prophecy is not about the temporary lapse of some ritual sacrifice.

Simply reading it without the word "sacrifice" might lead one to conclude it is not referring to sacrifices. So what else could it mean? What else but the daily revolution of the earth about its axis? It could also be called the "continual" revolution of the earth about its axis, or the "constant" revolution of the earth about its axis, and even the "diurnal" revolution of the earth about its axis. What is more "constant" or "continual" or "daily" than that? It was the knowledge of it that Antiochus IV stamped out in his kingdom, and perhaps in other countries as well, in order to defend the Greek religion, that was founded on the superstion that the heaven was a rigid shell revolving around the earth, that was identified with Zeus.

Is the prophecy about ritual sacrifices?

The prophecy has nothing to do with sacrifices, as the word "sacrifice" was not original. It was added by translators. Simply noting that it occurs in italics is proof.

Dispensationalists misinterpret Daniel's prophecy about the 2,300 days. The follow the traditions of men who assumed Daniel's prophecy was about a lapse in the ritual Mosaic sacrifices and the Jerusalem temple. But those rites were temporary, and intended as a shadow or figure of the true gospel of Christ. Daniel foretold the permanent abolition of those sacrifices in Daniel 9:27.

Daniel 9:27 "...in half of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease..."

This verse does indeed refer to the ritual Mosaic sacrifices that were made obsolete by Christ's death, which was the sacrifice God made for us, to take away the sins of the world. In Daniel 9:27 the word "sacrifice" is not italicized. According to the Online Hebrew Interlinear, the word used for "sacrifice" is "zbch."

Daniel must have known how to write the word "sacrifice" when he needed to, so why would he omit that word in Daniel 8:11 & 12, if indeed he was writing about sacrifices in that chapter? Of course, the truth is that Daniel's vision in chapter 8 was not about a lapse in sacrifices, which is the reason he did not mention them. But scholars who attempted to interpret Daniel's prophecy, who Dispensationalists blindly follow, added the word "sacrifice" in the text of Daniel 8:11 & 12, where it does not belong. The KJV translators followed an old tradition, that destroys the meaning of Daniel's prophecy.

How can ritual sacrifices be significant today?

Why would God be concerned about a lapse in regular ritual sacrifices that were only temporary? Why would he gave Daniel a vision about it, the account of which has challenged many generations of scholars? Why would Daniel say it was to be significant at the "time of the end"? [Daniel 8:17] How could the lapse of a ritual daily sacrifice for a few years in the 2nd century BC have any significance in the modern world? If the lapse of ritual sacrifices were a future event, how would that be significant?

Was Daniel obsessed with ritual sacrifices?

Dispensationalists paint Daniel as a wild-eyed, fanatical Jew, obsessed with a lapse of the regular temple sacrifices, as if God really cared about them! How could the lapse of some ritual sacrifices centuries in the future, that scripture declares were obsolete anyway, have any significance at all for the modern world?

Daniel 8:12
And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.

The context is an account of a goat horn that grows so tall, it extends up past the tree tops, past the high hills, past the clouds, and higher than the moon, to the stars! And it casts stars to the ground, and tramples them. Not only stars, but it casts the "host of heaven" to the ground as well. That is the sun, moon, and planets. And it casts the place of God's sanctuary, heaven itself, to the ground! And finally, it casts the truth to the ground. So there are four things cast to the ground and trampled.

stars
the host of heaven
the place of God's sanctuary, heaven itself
the truth

This is all symbolic. The symbolic language describes the effect of the cosmological corruptions that Antiochus and the hellenized Jews who assisted him made to the scriptures. They identified the 'raqia' with heaven by the addition of the statement "And God called the firmament Heaven" in Genesis 1:8, or its equivalent in the ancient languages. This corrupted the creation account in Genesis 1, and numerous changes were made in cosmological passages throughout the OT.

Corruption of the Bible's cosmology was foretold

It was Antiochus IV who initiated the revision of the cosmology of the OT, as part of his hellenization campaign. This involved corrupting the scriptures, changing the meaning of 'raqia,' which formerly referred to the earth's crust, and redefining it as heaven in Genesis 1:8. So in the corrupted creation account, the oceans and seas became the waters above the heavens, and the stars were put on the underside of the earth's crust! The phrase "firmament of heaven" is redundant if 'firmament' always referred to heaven. There would have been no need to use both words.

In Old Latin, the word 'firmament' was not used for heaven. It was probably introduced in the Latin translation of Genesis 1 to avoid saying "And God called the caelum caelum."

What happened to ancient heliocentrism?

Many have wondered why heliocentrism came to an abrupt end in the 2nd century BC. Daniel's prophecy gives us the answer. It was stamped out by Antiochus IV for religious reasons. Antiochus wanted to protect the Greek religion, and heliocentrism undermined the premise on which that religion depended. There would be no need for Zeus, if the earth revolves on its axis, as Zeus was the rigid heaven of the ancient world, the sphere of the fixed stars. Antiochus actively promoted the worship of Zeus in the Greek cities. He financed building the great temple of Zeus at Athens, where he was once elected to a civic office. He built a temple of Jupiter Capitolinus at Antioch. He contributed to other Greek temples. He outlawed other religions in his realm.

Daniel 8:13-14
Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?

And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.

Daniel was given the duration of the time "till" or "unto" the cleansing of the sanctuary, which was 2,300 "evening mornings" or days. These can represent years, so the period ends 23 centuries later, about 1750 AD. That is when God's sanctuary, the starry heaven, was cleansed of the old concept of a rigid firmament holding the stars in their positions, revolving around the earth every day. The rigid heaven, and the planetary spheres, equants, epicycles, etc, were swept away like old cobwebs, 23 centuries after Daniel's vision. Man's view of the heavens was set right. It is one of the most amazing prophecies of the Bible!

A pointer to Genesis 1

The text says 2,300 evening mornings, which are identified as days in Genesis 1. Since "days" can represent years, so can "evening-mornings".

Daniel's prophecy exposes the corruption of the cosmology of the Bible, and in particular the changed meaning of the 'raqia' or 'firmament' mentioned in Genesis 1, that was made on day 2. It was originally the earth's crust that was made in the primeval waters. This was changed in the 2nd century BC by the insertion of "And God called the firmament Heaven" in Genesis 1:8. The change introduced the hellenistic Greek idea of a rigid heaven into the Bible. Other changes were made to cosmological passages in the Bible to support this fraud, initiated by Antiochus IV.

The reference to "evening mornings" is a kind of pointer to Genesis 1, where the main cosmological changes were made. The chapter is overloaded with the word "firmament" in the KJV, as that word occurs 9 times in one chapter. The word occurs only rarely in the rest of the Bible.

What is the start date for the 2,300 days?

The 2,300 days began when Daniel saw the vision. There is no need to look for some other start date! The question was "how long shall be the vision concerning the continual, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?" So the period applies to the duration of the vision, and ends with the cleansing of God's sanctuary, the starry heaven or universe. If they are literal days, they end after only a few years, while Daniel was still alive in Babylon! The prophecy is about a much longer time span than that, and concerns one of the major events in the history of man, the scientific revolution.

There have been many failed attempts to interpret the prophecy. Most assume some other start date than the one plainly supported by the prophecy itself, which is when the words were spoken by the angelic messenger. That is the implication of the phrase "Unto 2,300 evening mornings.." They begin when Daniel saw his vision, and end when the "sanctuary" is cleansed or set right, which is a description of the scientific revolution, when man's concept of the universe was set right, and his notion of the heavens was "cleansed" of the idea of a rigid firmament revolving around the earth every day, the Olympian Zeus! The ancient Greeks identified Zeus with the sky, which they viewed as a rigid sphere or dome that rotated around the earth, that held up all the stars.

Only one start date fits!

Since the angel said "Unto 2,300 days," the implication is that the period began right then, at the moment the words were spoken. The prophecy is dated to the 3rd year of king Belshazzar, (Daniel 8:1) which was probably about 550 BC. Any other proposed start date is arbitrary, depending only on the whim of some wanna-be interpreter. The question asked by the angelic messenger was: "for how long shall be the vision...?" The answer given was "Unto 2,300 evening mornings, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." This was the period of time that the particular transgression described in the vision was to endure. It was the span of time from when Daniel saw his vision, to the cleansing of God's sanctuary, which is the starry heaven or the universe. This is the period from approximately 550 BC to 1750 AD, which is 23 centuries. How could Daniel have accurately predicted the scientific revolution, when God's sanctuary, the starry heaven or universe, was "cleansed," and man's view of it was "set right," except by the power of God?

Context of the 2,300 days prophecy

The prophecy about the corrupted cosmology of scripture in verses 10-12 is the setting for the 2,300 days prophecy of Daniel 8:13-14. So the 2,300 days prophecy has to do with cosmology, and the most significant even related to cosmology in all of man's history was the scientific revolution. Why wouldn't Daniel have written a prophecy that foretold it? Religious folk have missed it, and failed to find any fulfilment of the 2,300 days prophcey. Even the learned Bible scholars were stumped!

The prophecy has been fulfilled in an amazing fashion. The period has to be counted from the date that Daniel gave for his prophecy, the third year of Belshazzar. That was the mid-6th century BC. The period given works out to 23 centuries, taking a "day" for a year. So it was fulfilled in the mid-eighteenth century, when man's ideas about cosmology were indeed "cleansed" and set right, by the scientific revolution, when the discoveries of Isaac Newton were widely accepted and understood, and his works were translated into the various common languages.

What is the end date?

The "target" of the 2,300 years prophecy was the mid eighteenth century. This was the period, more so than any other time in history, when the old idea of a rigid rotating heavenly "firmament" was abolished, and man's thinking about cosmology was "set right".

No temple existed when Daniel saw his vision, so it makes little sense to claim the vision was about temple rituals being discontinued!

The prophecy of Daniel 8 is not about the Jerusalem temple, or any ritual sacrifices, but the "Sanctuary" of verse 14 is the starry heaven, the universe. That is what was "cleansed" in 1750 AD by the scientific revolution. That is, man's view of the heavens was set right, as the discoveries of Sir Isaac Newton and others became widely known and understood. The old idea of a rigid heaven carrying around the stars each day was abolished. The planetary spheres vanished. The diurnal motion was attributed to the earth rather than the heavens. All of this fulfilled Daniel's vision of the 2,300 evening mornings, which represent 23 centuries, from the time Daniel saw his vision, to the scientific revolution.

Any connection with 70 weeks prophecy?

Some people have tried to interpret the prophecy of chapter 8 by using the prophecy of chapter 9, which mentions a period that begins with the decree of a Persian king that allowed the Jews to return from exile. I believe the SDA interpretation says the 2,300 evening morning prophecy begins at the same time as the 70 weeks. But there is no scriptural basis for that. The original calculations of William Miller were based on this assumption, which resulted in failed predictions when thousands of his followers waited in vain for the return of Christ and the end of the world to occur sometime between March 21, 1843 and March 21, 1844. It is called the "Great Disappointment."

Redefining 'raqia' in Genesis 1

The text says "2,300 evening mornings" which of course points to Genesis 1, where an "evening and morning" is equated to a "day." Since "days" can represent years, so can "evening mornings."

The cosmology presented in Genesis 1 was revised by Antiochus IV and his agents, the hellenised Jews who admired the geocentric cosmology of the Greeks, which required a rigid heaven, that revolved around the earth. The 'raqia' or firmament was identified with the rigid heaven by the insertion of "And God called the firmament Heaven" in Genesis 1:8. Before, the 'raqia' was the rocky crust of the earth, made in the primeval waters on day 2. It separated the upper waters from the waters of the earth's interior. The upper waters became oceans and seas when the land surface emerged above the waters on day 3. Identifying the 'raqia' with Heaven meant the upper waters became the "waters above the heavens" and the lower waters became the oceans and seas. Other passages of scripture were changed to support the idea of a layer of waters above the heavens, such as Psalm 148:4, "Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens."

Of course, now we know the heaven is not a rigid shell surrounding the earth, and there are no waters above it. But for thousands of years, the cosmology of the Bible has been corrupted as a result of the fraud initiated by Antiochus IV. Daniel's prophecy exposes it, so now we can recognize the flawed cosmological passages and understand their origin. It is an amazing error correction mechanism built into the Bible!

I am not one of those who insists that the days of Genesis 1 are 24-hour, literal days. I think God's work of creation described in Genesis 1:26 is not finished yet. The sabbath of rest is still future for believers, Hebrews 4:9-11.

Since Daniel 8:14 refers to evening mornings, which points to Genesis 1 where an evening and morning is called a "day," it also sends a signal that the "evening mornings" are symbolic, and need to be interpreted.

Daniel 8:14 was fulfilled by the scientific revolution, about 1750 AD. Man's concept of the heavens was set right, as the discoveries of Isaac Newton became widely known and accepted, and men realized the earth rotates, not the heavens. The rigid firmament of heaven vanished, along with the planetary spheres.

Daniel 8:15-17
And it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision, and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man.

And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.

So he came near where I stood: and when he came, I was afraid, and fell upon my face: but he said unto me, Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end shall be the vision.

The vision spans a lengthy period, but it could be understood only at the end time.

Daniel 8:18-23
Now as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep on my face toward the ground: but he touched me, and set me upright.

And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end shall be.

The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia.

And the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king.

Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.

And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.

The events described in Daniel 8:9-12 occurred in the 2nd century BC, but their effects lasted for a long span of time. Antiochus IV destroyed the heliocentric interpretation of cosmology, and stamped out the knowledge of the earth's diurnal rotation. He also changed the cosmology of the Bible, making it conform to the cosmology of the Greeks. These are the events pictured by the horn of the goat growing up to the stars and casting them to the earth, along with the host of heaven, and even heaven itself, the place of God's sanctuary.

The momentous effects of those events were to be felt far into the future, after the scientific revolution, which occurred 23 centuries after Daniel saw the vision. The date given for the vision was the third year of Belshazzar, 550 BC. The scientific revolution occurred in the eighteenth century. That is when most people realzed that the earth revolves, not the sky. The idea of a rigid firmament of heaven was abandoned. Newton's theory of universal gravitation was widely accepted as true.

As a consequence of the corruptions introduced into the Bible by Antiochus IV and his agents, the Bible seems to support the discredited cosmology of the ancient world.

This is what caused the Church much consternation, even to the present day. Theologians had opposed Galileo and his teachings on the basis of their understanding of the Bible. They sent him before the Inquisition. Galileo was forced to recant, under threat of torture. The Church was later disgraced and humiliated, and the Bible discredited in the minds of many. This persists today. Daniel's prophecy shows the origin of the flawed cosmological statements, such as the reference to the sky being "strong ... as a molten looking glass" [Job 37:18], the story of Joshua telling the sun to stand still, [Joshua 10:12], the sun racing across the sky like a bridegroom [Psalm 19:5], the immobile earth [1 Chronicles 16:30], the "waters above the heavens" [Psalm 148:4], and many similar passages.

The interpretation of the vision given in the last half of the chapter explains the consequences of events described in symbolic language in the first section. I suggest the "king of fierce countenance" represents the materialistic science and philosophy, that arose after the scientific revolution. Many of those who understood science became enemies of the church, and the Bible. They saw Christianity as opposing knowledge and progress. This was due in large measure to the flawed cosmology contained in the Bible, and the corruptions introduced in the hellenistic period, that were initiated by Antiochus IV.

Daniel 8:24
And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.

What has destroyed the faith of many in the past two and a half centuries? The rise of materialistic, sceptical science and philosophy has been a factor. This is the "king of fierce countenance" that has weakened the Church, and intimidated Christians, so that many have abandoned their faith in God. It has undermined the authority of the Bible, by sceptical criticism. People abandoned their faith because they supposed that the Bible's cosmology was false, and so could not be of Divine origin. They did not understand that the flawed cosmological statements were introduced by fraud in the 2nd century BC, as foretold by Daniel.

Daniel 8:25
And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.

The 2,300 days prophecy of Daniel 8 is already fulfilled, and its accuracy cannot be disputed! It is not a prophecy about the Jerusalem temple, or any ritual sacrifices there, past or future. The "sanctuary" mentioned in Daniel 8:14 is the starry heaven, or the universe. It was "cleansed" in 1750 AD, 23 centuries after the date given by Daniel for his vision. The prophecy foretold the scientific revolution, perhaps the most momentous event in man's history, apart from the resurrection of Jesus.

In the scientific revolution, man's view of the heavens was "cleansed" or set right, as the discoveries of Sir Isaac Newton and other astronomers became widely known and understood. The old idea of a rigid heaven carrying around the stars each day, and the planetary spheres were banished to oblivion. The diurnal motion was attributed to the earth rather than the heavens. This fulfilled Daniel's vision of the 2,300 evening mornings. They represent 23 centuries, the period from Daniel's vision, the third year of Belshazzar or 550 BC, to the scientific revolution, about 1750 AD.

The 2,300 days represent 2,300 years, which represents the time from the time Daniel saw his vision, to the scientific revolution in astronomy, in the mid eighteenth century AD. The third year of Belshazzar, which is the date Daniel gave for his prophecy, was about 550 BC. After 23 centuries, God's sanctuary, the starry heaven or universe, was to be cleansed. It was a prophecy that foretold the demise of the old notion of a rigid heaven revolving around the earth each day, with the stars and planets, and sun and moon inside. All the planetary spheres postulated by the philosophers, and the rigid heaven, were swept away to oblivion by the scientific revolution. The "wisdom" of the wise men of that time was made foolish; they thought the geocentric system was supported by scripture. How could it be overthrown? They persecuted Galileo, who observed the heavens with a telescope, and said the earth rotated about its axis, and denied that the sun went around the earth every day as the theologians who followed Aristotle claimed.

How faith has been destroyed

The church and the Bible were discredited by the rise of modern science, and that is what Daniel's prophecy describes. I suggest the "king of fierce countenance" of verse 23 is not a literal human, but materialistic sceptical philosophy, which arose after the scientific revolution, and opposes Christ and the gospel! It is materialistic, scientific scepticism that sneers at the Bible and the promise of the gospel. Millions have abandoned their faith, because of its claims. This is what has overthrown the faith of many people in the past two and a half centuries, as Daniel foretold.

This prophecy about the corruption of the cosmology of the Bible, and the scientific revolution in the eighteenth century would become significant at the end time, as it shows God's hand in history, bringing about the scientific revolution at the time appointed. Only God, who rules all, can accomplish such things. Amazingly, even Isaac Newton, a devout Christian who studied Daniel's prophecies intensively throughout his life, and wrote a book on them, was unable to understand the significance of the 2,300 day prophecy, although his discoveries had a crucial role in its fulfilment.

Daniel 8:26
And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days.

The vision was to be shut up, and not understood, till the end time.

Daniel 8:27
And I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain days; afterward I rose up, and did the king's business; and I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it.

Giants of the scientific revolution

Newton said he "stood on the shoulders of giants." The Scientific revolution was the culmination of the work of many men, besides Newton, who all could be called giants of their time. Some of them are:

Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543)
- proposed a heliocentric cosmology, and a rotating earth
- published De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres) in the year of his death, 1545
- The Roman Catholic Church's Congregation of the Index banned 'De revolutionibus' in 1616, and also prohibited any work that defended the mobility of the Earth or the immobility of the Sun

Tycho Brahe (1546-1601)
- made accurate observations of planets
- catalogue of stars
- Tychonic System

Francis Bacon (1561-1626)
- experimental method
- inductive reasoning

Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)
- studied uniform acceleration
- improved telescope
- observed sunspots, satellites of Jupiter
- championed Copernicanism

Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
- used astronomical observations made by Brahe
- derived 3 laws of planetary motion

René Descartes (1596-1650)
- connected plane geometry and algebra
- founded analytic geometry
- developed the Cartesian coordinate system

Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)
- developed probability theory
- invented a mechanical calculator
- principles of hydrodynamics
- hydraulic press
- reasoning based on definitions

Robert Boyle (1627-1691)
- practiced the principles advocated by Bacon
- described experiments so others could repeat them
- propagation of sound
- Boyle's Law
- chemistry of combustion
- expansion of water upon freezing

Christiaan Huygens (1629-1695)
- invented pendulum clock
- discovered ring of Saturn
- organised Academie des Sciences, Paris 1666.
- developed the wave theory of light

Isaac Newton (1643-1727)
- theory of universal gravitation
- laws of motion
- classical mechanics
- conservation of momentum
- reflecting telescope
- theory of colour
- differential and integral calculus
- Principia Mathematica, 1687

Ole Christensen Rømer (1644-1710)
- finite speed of light
- explained discrepancy in the period of eclipses of the moons of Jupiter

Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716)
- differential and integral calculus
- binary math
- said the universe is the best one possible

Edmund Halley (1656-1742)
- encouraged Newton to write his Principia Mathematica, and financed its publication
- he proposed that the parabolic trajectory of a comet was an elongated ellipse, and that comets may return at regular intervals. On the basis of records of comet sightings in 1456, 1531, 1607 and 1682, he predicted its return in 1758. When his prediction came true, it was seen as confirming the Newtonian system. The comet was named Halley's Comet. It was seen again in 1835, 1910 and 1987.
- discovered the proper motion of the "fixed" stars

James Bradley (1693-1762)
- investigated parallax
- discovered aberration of light, proving the earth's motion

Daniel Bernoulli (1700-1782)
- fluid mechanics
- kinetic theory of gases

Links

Ancient Coinage of Seleucia, Antiochos IV
Antiochus IV Epiphanes by Mahlon H. Smith
Antiochus IV, Epiphanes - 1901 article by Louis Ginzberg in The Jewish Encyclopedia
Antiochus IV Epiphanes in Jerusalem by Daniel R. Schwartz.
Antiochus IV Epiphanes - from Wikipedia
Antiochus IV Epiphanes - by Jona Lendering
Chanukah Parallels by Jonathan Rosenblum
Heliocentrism