The Son of Man meets the Ancient of Days
A century or so on and Isaiah’s prophecies must have seemed like a distant dream: Jerusalem had been toppled and the people of God are in Babylonian exile. Daniel, at the time of King Belshazzar, has an apocalyptic dream. A series of mythic creatures appear, suggestive of successive world-ruling regimes – a lion, a bear, a leopard. In his vision, these are followed by a fourth kingdom, a terrifying, iron-teethed beast. But each ruler (epitomising the fluctuating fortunes of successive empires) is stripped of authority before ‘one like the son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven’ appears (Dan 7: 13). He is presented to a dazzling image of the Ancient of Days. [pause…just dwell for a moment on what that description of God sparks in your imagination]. At one level, this seems to refer to a new age on earth where, following millennia of man-made kingdoms, this saviour-king figure will be given ‘authority, glory and sovereign power’ over all peoples. So here we get another OT glimpse of a qualitatively different kind of kingdom. In three ways. It is described as a ‘dominion that will not pass away…a kingdom that will never be destroyed.’ (Dan 7: 14-15). A kingdom that will be received and possessed by believers (Dan 7:18, 22). A kingdom in which ‘all rulers will worship and obey God.’ (Dan 7: 27). Unlike all the kingdoms that have gone before it, this one is global. Irreversible. Final.
Contrary to appearances, the rise and fall of empires, the wars over territory, the periods of ethnic cleansing, and the cruel subjugation of people that litter the centuries are not random acts. God is not absent or indifferent. He is in charge of the timeline of history, and sovereign over geopolitics. This is a national low water mark in Israel’s history with the powerful Persian empire and the brutal Roman state yet to come. God chooses this moment to reveal to one man, Daniel, that a time is coming when he will call to account all wicked rulers and set up his rule over the earth. This does not diminish the horror of wars, but it helps me see the transience of those presidents, kings and armies who posture and plunder. It engenders hope for a just and secure future for those who believe.
Chris is emeritus professor at Middlesex University, London, specialising in leadership development. As a chartered psychologist, his recent books observe life from unique angles: 20th-century Myanmar through the eyes of a Burmese family; bible stories from the perspective of the stones present, and just published, a light-hearted collision with rural Provence. Chris lives in the UK with his wife April, and they love gathering with the extended family in France each summer.
