beast should prevail against the faints, until judgement was given to the faints, and the time came that the faints poffefsed the kingdom, y 22.; which is explained, y 27. by the universal converfion of the nations, there mentioned as following upon the fall of that little horn. The second character is in 25. which shews that the power of that horn should continue time, times, and the dividing of time, which will be explained afterwards; it is fufficient at present to observe, that the conclusion of these mysterious times is here made cotemporary with the time of the end, fo oft mentioned in this book, or the time of the universal converfion; which is confirmed by the words immediately following the mention of that converfion, and the fall of the horn, that was the great obstacle to it, y 28. "Hitherto is the end of the matter," or of the chief subject-matter of prophecy, as we may reasonably understand the words. Thus the second as well as the first prophecy in this book, relating to the four empires, reaches down below the end of the Roman empire, and to the univerfal empire of the Meffiah, as the great end. 3. That the fame thing may be faid likewise of the third general prophecy, which is that in the 8th chapter, appears from 17. & 19. where it is no less than thrice declared, that the vision should reach to the time of the end, or that the remotest events pointed at in it fhould happen toward that period: which remotest events, as appears from the close of the prediction and chapter, relate to an extraordinary adverfary, who is faid to destroy, or, as that word alfo fignifies, to corrupt wonderfully; and is reprefented as eminent for policy and craft, y 25. and deftroying many by peace or profperity; as craft feems the more neceffary to his becoming mighty, because when he is faid to be so, it is added, but not by his own power; which seems to hint, that by craft | craft and policy he would cause others make a furrender of their power to him: and whereas in y 9. he is faid to wax exceeding great toward the fouth and the east, this seems to imply, that his rife would be from the north-west *. 4. As to the subsequent prophecies in this book, the remarkable prediction in Daniel ix. concerning the death of the Meffiah, and the desolation of the Jews following upon it, expressly carries down to the time called the confummation, which appears to be the same with the time of the end, fo oft mentioned elsewhere in this book; especially when this part of Dan. ix. is compared with Dan. xii. 7. And as to the long prophecy that takes up the last three chapters of this book, that it reaches to the time of the end, is evident from fome expreffions in every one of these chapters; as particularly chap. x. 14. about the latter days, chap. xi. 35. about the time of the end, and chap. xii. 4. where Daniel is commanded to feal the book, even to the time of the end; which shews, that the events foretold would not be all fulfilled till that time; and the sequel of that chapter speaks of the end of the wonders foretold in this prophecy, as cotemporary with the end of time, times, and an half, which appears from chap. vii. 25. 26. 27. to be the time of the universal converfion, and of the end of the difperfion of the holy people, and the end of defolating abomination. II. After proving that the several general prophe. cies in this book reach to the time of the end, the objections that have been made against the true interpretation of these prophecies make it needful to prove, that the little horn of the fourth beaft was to arife after the division of the Roman monarchy; for which proof it is fufficient to make out these two points: first, That the fourth beast reprefents that monarchy; and, 2. that the time of the rife of the ten kings, represented by the ten horns of that beast, must be the time of the fall and division of that monarchy. : 1. That the fourth beaft represents the Roman monarchy, may be made out by many clear proofs; feeing the four beasts in chap. 7. as well as the four parts of the image in chap. 2. are exprefsly said to represent four kingdoms or monarchies, reckoning from the Babylonian as the first, (as is clearly declared chap. 2.), the Roman must necessarily be the fourth. If the third beast is the Greek empire, the Roman must be the fourth: and that this is the case, is evident from chap. vii. 6. where the third beast is faid to have not only four wings of a fowl, but alfo four heads, implying that the empire represented by that beaft would be divided into four parts; which shews it to be the Greek empire, though we had no other argument for this but the manifelt conformity of the description with known history; but we have besides this the prophet's own explication of the emblem in view, chap. viii. 8. compared with ỷ 20. 21. where the beaft with four notable horns is expressly declared to be the king of Grecia, who conquered and fucceeded the Medo-Persians, and whose kingdom, after the death of the first king, viz. of Alexander himself, and his first succeffors, in whose time the empire was kept entire, was divided into four parts. It is evident also, that the fourth beast must represent the Roman monarchy, because it represents the last great or univerfal tem poral monarchy, the monarchy that should be divi. ded into ten parts, and that should not be broken by another fifth universal temporal monarchy like itself, but by that division into so many parts *, when conquered nations would shake off the yoke, * Dans ii. 41. "And whereas thou fawest the feet and toes, "the kingdom shall be divided." and and recover their sovereignty; and these parts are represented as continuing divided till the time of the end, when the stone, chap. 2. would smite the image upon his feet: and it may be proper to observe, that seeing the ten horns of the fourth beaft manifestly correspond with the ten toes of the feet of the image, this shews that it is not absolutely necessary to be very precise in determining all the ten horns, or the ten kingdoms into which the fourth empire was divided. 2. That the time of the rife of the ten horns, is the time of the fall and division of the Roman empire, is evident, because it is said, y 24. " And the "ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that "shall arife," &c.; and the name either of horns or of kings is not given in this prophecy to fubordinate governors, but to fovereigns; and as the four horns of the third beast are explained chap. viii. 20. 21. &c. to be four parts into which the third empire was to be divided, the 2d chapter speaks ex. pressly of the division of the fourth empire, y 41. 42. and of the weakening of it, in speaking of the feet, or of the lower and later times of that empire: all which things, compared with uncontested facts relating to the fall and division of that empire, shew that the time of that division is the time of the rife of the ten horns or ten kings mentioned in the prophecy. Seeing it is faid, y 24. that the little horn would arise after the ten kings, and would fubdue three kings; these things give the following general characters of the time of the rise of the little horn, (without fixing the precise year), namely, that it should be fome time after the fall of the Roman empire, and the division of it into ten principal parts; and some time before, or at least about the time that three kings should be fubdued by a little prince, to whom the characters in the context may be found fingularly applicable. III. In III. In afcertaining what is meant by the little horn, a variety of circumstances in the description of it must be confidered. 1. That by the little horn we are to understand, not one individual ruler, but a fucceffion of rulers, enjoying the fame power and authority, is evident from the prophetic style all along; the four parts of the image in chap. 2. and the four beasts, or four kings, as they are called, chap. vii. 17. fignifying fucceffions of many kings, whose history, taken all together, reaches to the time of the end. In the vifion explained chap. 8. 20. & 21. though there is but one ram and one he-goat, yet it is faid, "The "ram which thou fawest having two horns, are "the kings of Media and Perfia; and the rough goat is the king of Grecia; and the great horn " that is between his eyes is the first king;" implying, that the he-goat itself represents others befides the first king; as y 22. shews that the other four horns of that he-goat reprefent, not four particular persons, but four kingdoms. But befides all this, the great things faid to be done by the little horn of the fourth beaft, and the continuance of his power to the time of the universal converfion of the nations, puts it beyond all question, that it is not one particular person that is meant, but a very long fucceffion. 2. As to the place of the little horn's rise and reign, though the particular city or country is not named, yet feeing he is faid to come up among the ten horns or kings who would share the old Roman empire among them, this thews, that the feat of that little horn should be within the bounds of that empire. That it would be in the western parts, may be convincingly made out from this one remark, that the eattern or Greek emperor cannot be that horn: for, 1st, He could not be called little among the ten; nor, 2dly, could he be faid to come up among them, and after them, both which are |