166 



REV. E. L. LANGSTON, M.A., ON 



" The sea " in prophecy is always a type of the nations of the 

 world, and the storm on the sea shows that there are various 

 disturbing influences, overruled by God, for the accomplishing 

 of His purposes. You will want to know what evidence I have 

 for interpreting " the sea " in this way. 



We are told in Eevelation xvii. 25, " The waters which thou 

 sawest .... are peoples and nations and tongues," and in 

 Isaiah xvh. 12, " Woe to the multitude of many people which 

 make a noise like the noise of the seas." So Daniel saw the 

 waters stirred to a mighty storm. Eising out of the chaos he 

 saw four beasts, apparently one following the other. The first 

 three beasts — the lion representing Babylon, the bear representing 

 Medo-Persia, the leopard representing Greece; and we want to 

 give our special attention to the fourth beast, for that lefers to 

 the Eoman Empire and corresponds with the legs of iron in 

 the vision of Daniel vii. 7, 8, " After this I saw in the night 

 visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible and strong 

 exceedingly, and it had great iron teeth ; it devoured and brake 

 in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it, and it was 

 diverse from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten 

 horns. I considered the horns, and behold there came a little 

 horn before whom there were three of the first horns plucked 

 up by the roots, and behold in this horn were eyes like the eyes 

 of man, and a mouth speaking great things." 



All students of the Eoman Empire will recognise this as an 

 exact image of Eome, resistless in strength, relentless, pitiless, 

 respecting nothing and appropriating everything. Before explain- 

 ing what these horns and the little horn signify, let us read on, 

 and remember that the words we are about to consider deal with 

 the last days of the Gentile period, the very days in which we 

 are now living (Daniel vii. 9-12). " I beheld' till the thrones 

 were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment 

 was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool ; 

 his throne was like the fiery flame and his wheels as burning 

 fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from him, thousand 

 thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand stood before 

 him, the judgment was set, and the books were opened. I beheld 

 then because of the great words which the horn spake. I beheld 

 even till the beast was slain and his body destroyed and given 

 to the burning flame. As concerning the rest of the beasts, they 

 had their dominion taken away ; yet their lives were prolonged 

 for a season and time." Then what happens? The judgment 

 was set, and the books were opened. Now what judgment is 

 this? And who is to be judged? It is living kings and nations 

 that are judged. Notice the beast with its horns, and the little horn 

 was not slain till after the thrones were set. A close study of 

 this vision is most important, for it contains an outline of events 



