After the Babylonian captivity, Aramaic replaced Biblical Hebrew as the everyday language in Israel. However, Biblical Hebrew was still used for religious purposes. After Alexander the Great, the Ptolemies and the Seleucids ruled Israel for almost two hundred years. Thus, the Jewish culture was heavily influenced by this Hellenistic culture. Koine Greek was used not only for international communication, but also as the first language of some Jews. This development was furthered complicated by the fact that the largest Jewish community in the world lived in Ptolemaic Alexandria, Egypt. Many of these diaspora Jews would have Greek as their first language. Thus, first the Torah, and then other Hebrew scriptures, were translated into standard Koine Greek, the Septuagint.
Alexander the Great
Yahweh will be a guard (Zech 9:8-9:8)
“Then I will encamp
At my house
As a guard.
Thus,
No one shall march to and fro.
No oppressor
Shall again overrun them.
Now I see
With my own eyes.”
Yahweh was going to be the guard of his house. People would not be able to move around or overtake it. Perhaps, this is an allusion to a visit of Alexander the Great to Jerusalem on some of his exploits. He obviously spared the city. Thus, no oppressor would be able to overrun them. Yahweh was going to see all this with his own eyes.
The king of the south (Dan 11:5-11:5)
“Then the king of the south
Shall be strong.
But one of his officers
Shall grow stronger
Than he.
He shall rule
A realm greater
Than his own realm.”
The king of the south was Ptolemy I (305-283 BCE), a general who had served with Alexander the Great. He took over Egypt and Hellenized it with the important Greek speaking city of Alexandria. Seleucus I Nicator (305-281 BCE) was his officer who grew stronger than Ptolemy. He then became known as the king of the north.
The great Greek king (Dan 11:3-11:4)
“Then a warrior king
Shall arise.
He shall rule
With great dominion.
He shall take action
As he pleases.
While still rising
In power,
His kingdom
Shall be broken.
It shall be divided
Toward the four winds of heaven,
But not to his posterity,
Nor according to the dominion
With which he ruled.
His kingdom
Shall be uprooted.
It shall go to others
Besides these.”
This warrior king was Alexander the Great (356-323 BCE), who had great power. He died while still young, only 32 years old. When he died, his great kingdom was divided into 4, like the 4 winds of heaven. Cassander, Lysimachus, Seleucus, and Ptolemy became the 4 rulers, none of whom were his children.
Gabriel explains the vision (Dan 8:19-8:22)
“Gabriel said.
‘Listen!
I will tell you
What will take place later
In the period
Of wrath!
It refers
To the appointed time
Of the end.
As for the ram
That you saw
With the two horns,
These are the kings
Of Media and Persia.
The male goat is
The king of Greece.
The great horn
Between its eyes
Is the first king.
As for the horn
That was broken,
In place of which
Four others arose,
Four kingdoms
Shall arise
From his nation,
But not with his power.’”
Gabriel told Daniel to listen to what he was going to tell him. This all would take place at a later appointed end time, when the wrath of God would be displayed. Then he went into details about the vision. The ram with the two horns represented Media and Persia. The male goat was the king of Greece. His broken horn represented the 4 people who took over after the death of Alexander the Great, Cassander, Lysimachus, Seleucus, and Ptolemy, the successors of Alexander. However, these 4 kingdoms would not be as strong as the first kingdom of Greece under Alexander.
The great power of the goat decimated (Dan 8:8-8:8)
“Then the male goat
Grew exceedingly great.
But at the height
Of his power,
The great horn
Was broken.
In its place,
There came up
Four prominent horns
Toward the four winds
Of heaven.”
This male goat became exceeding great, Alexander the Great. However, at the height of his power, at the age of 32, he died. Thus, the great horn was broken. Instead of one leader, there were 4 horns or leaders, equivalent to the 4 winds of heaven. These were Cassander, Lysimachus, Seleucus, and Ptolemy, the successors of Alexander.
The goat attacked the ram (Dan 8:6-8:7)
“The goat came toward
The ram
With the two horns,
That I had seen
Standing
Beside the river.
It ran at him
With a savage force.
I saw it
Approaching
The ram.
The goat was enraged
Against it.
The goat struck
The ram,
Breaking
Its two horns.
The ram
Did not have power
To withstand it.
The goat threw
The ram down
To the ground.
The goat trampled
Upon the ram.
There was no one
Who could rescue
The ram
From its power.”
Next Daniel witnessed the attack of the goat against the ram. The goat was angry, so that it struck the ram, breaking its 2 horns. Here is an indication that Alexander the Great, the goat, had attacked the Persians and Medes, the 2-horned ram. The ram could not recover, as the goat threw the ram to the ground and trampled over it. There was no one there to rescue the ram from the power of this goat.
The vision of the goat (Dan 8:5-8:5)
“As I was watching,
A male goat
Appeared
From the west.
It came across
The face
Of the whole earth,
Without touching
The ground.
The goat
Had a conspicuous horn
Between its eyes.”
While Daniel was watching the ram, a goat from the west appeared, maybe a reference to Alexander the Great (356-323 BCE). This goat was a like a flying animal, but there was no mention of any wings. This goat simply moved without touching the ground. However, it did have a horn between its eyes, like a unicorn.
The last of the ten kingdoms (Dan 7:24-7:26)
“As for the ten horns,
Out of this kingdom,
Ten kings shall arise.
Another shall arise after them.
This one shall
Be different
From the former ones.
He shall put down
Three kings.
He shall speak words
Against the Most High.
He shall wear out
The holy ones
Of the Most High.
He shall attempt
To change
The sacred seasons.
He shall attempt
To change the law.
They shall be given
Into his power
For a time,
Two times,
Half a time.
Then the court shall sit
In judgment.
His dominion shall be
Taken away,
To be consumed,
To be totally destroyed
To the end.”
Next, he explained that the 10 horns on the beast were the 10 Greek kings that succeeded Alexander the Great in his kingdom. However, there was a vehemence against the little horn king that overthrew the 3 kings. This was, of course, a reference to the Greek King Antiochus IV Epiphanes (175-163 BCE), who was different from the other Greek rulers. He spoke openly against the Most High God. He wore out God’s holy ones. He attempted to change the holy seasons and do away with the religious festivals. He also tried to change the Jewish law. He had power for a little while, before the final kingdom would come. Then his dominion would be taken away. He would be consumed and destroyed. 1 Maccabees, chapter 1, went into great detail about this king.
The fourth kingdom (Dan 7:23-7:23)
“This is what
He said.
‘As for the fourth beast,
There shall be
A fourth kingdom
On earth.
It shall be different
From all the other kingdoms.
It shall devour
The whole earth.
It shall trample it down.
It shall break it
To pieces.’”
It is not clear who the “he” speaking here is. It could be the Ancient One or that attendant who was standing around, but it is not Daniel. The 4th beast would have a kingdom, unlike any other kingdom. This kingdom would devour the whole earth, trample it down, and finally break it into pieces. This could be a reference to Alexander the Great (356-323 BCE) and the large Greek kingdom that he established.
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 