The Little Horn
Book of Daniel Series
March 2nd, 2025
Scripture- Daniel 7
Introduction
First, there will be a lot of scripture today. I’ve printed a page of the relevant scripture, and if you want the notes just let me know and I’ll send you copy.
Mention podcast and sermon central.
Summarize why series jumped from chapter 4 to 7.
The book of Daniel is the key that unlocks our ability to understand and interpret all of the bible’s prophetic verses, and especially the book of Revelation.
In this church, we believe in what is called a pre-tribulation eschatological position. This means we believe that God will take the church out of the world in an event called the rapture prior to executing judgment on the earth during the 7-year period called the tribulation.
This chapter opens that door to us by revealing a person called “The little horn”
You might know him by a different name-
The antichrist.
We will first review how this chapter coincides with Daniel 2, and then look at who this mysterious person is, and how we can identify him.
Let’s begin with prayer
Prayer
Let’s look at how Daniel’s Vision here is similar to the one that Nebuchadnezzar had in chapter 2.
The Vision Unfolded (Daniel 7:1–8)
Daniel’s vision begins with four great beasts emerging from the tumultuous sea, symbolizing chaotic world systems and the rise of successive empires. These beasts correspond to the kingdoms represented in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (Daniel 2), but with added emphasis on their moral and spiritual corruption.
1. The Lion with Eagle's Wings (Babylon) (vs 4)
o This is analogous to Nebuchadnezzar’s vision of a statue with a head of gold.
o to The lion, often a symbol of royalty and power, represents Babylon. The eagle’s wings depict the swiftness of Babylon’s conquests under Nebuchadnezzar. The wings being plucked and the lion standing like a man symbolizes Nebuchadnezzar’s humbling and subsequent restoration after acknowledging God’s sovereignty (Daniel 4).
2. The Bear with Three Ribs (Medo-Persia) (vs 5)
o This is analogous to Nebuchadnezzar’s vision of a statue with a torso and arms of silver
o The bear, raised on one side, reflects the dual nature of the Medo-Persian empire, with Persia dominating the partnership. The three ribs in its mouth signify the major conquests of Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt. The command to "devour much flesh" underscores the empire’s brutal expansionism.
o Anyone who has seen the movie 300 can see the depths of evil that was in Persia at that time.
3. The Leopard with Four Wings and Four Heads (Greece) (Vs 6)
o This is analogous to Nebuchadnezzar’s vision of a statue with Stomach and thighs of Bronze
o The leopard, known for its speed, aptly depicts Alexander the Great’s lightning-fast conquests. The four wings intensify this imagery, while the four heads foreshadow the division of his empire among his generals after his death — Lysimachus, Cassander, Ptolemy, and Seleucus.
o This is also talked about in Daniel chapter 8, where Alexander is portrayed as a huge goat with three horns that ravages the nations.
4. The Dreadful and Terrifying Beast with 10 horns (Rome and the Revived Roman Empire) (Vs 7)
o This is analogous Nebuchadnezzar’s vision of a statue with legs of iron representing the Roman Empire.
o The fourth beast, described as so exceedingly dreadful that Daniel has trouble describing. In doing so he emphases its unparalleled destructiveness.
o Rome crushed all opposition with iron-like strength.
Now- note that the ten horns In Daniel’s vision align with the ten toes of Nebuchadnezzar’s statue (Daniel 2:41-42),
o Both represent a future confederation of ten kings, which Revelation 17:12 confirms will exist in the end times.
Rev 17:12 The ten horns that you saw are ten more kings, who have not yet come into power, and they will rule with the beast for only a short time.
That is the tie in with Daniel 2 with Nebuchadnezzar’s statue.
That’s the review part of this message.
The rest of the message will now focus on verse 8 of Daniel 7. I’ll include verse 7 for context.
This is the point in the sermon where we will be cross referencing a lot of scripture.
Dan 7:7-8 The fourth beast was stronger and more terrifying than the others. Its huge teeth were made of iron, and what it didn't grind with its teeth, it smashed with its feet. It was different from the others, and it had horns on its head—ten of them. (8) Just as I was thinking about these horns, a smaller horn appeared, and three of the other horns were pulled up by the roots to make room for it. This horn had the eyes of a human and a mouth that spoke with great pride.
What is this “Little Horn”?
The Little Horn and the Antichrist (Daniel 7:8, 19–26)
The emergence of the little horn describes the rise of a person called the Antichrist, the wicked one whom Paul describes in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4.
2Th 2:3-4 But don't be fooled! People will rebel against God. Then before the Lord returns, the wicked one who is doomed to be destroyed will appear. (4) He will brag and oppose everything that is holy or sacred. He will even sit in God's temple and claim to be God.
This is the antichrist- the leader that will emerge during the tribulation as a world wide leader of all of the nations on earth.
Rev 13:1-9 I looked and saw a beast coming up from the sea. This one had ten horns and seven heads, and a crown was on each of its ten horns. On each of its heads were names that were an insult to God. (2) The beast that I saw had the body of a leopard, the feet of a bear, and the mouth of a lion.
Pause- Look at how the antichrist is described- He has attributes from Nebuchadnezzar’s the entire statue or every beast in Daniel’s dream, indicating he rules the entire earth. The beast described here is the antichrist.
(Vs) 2b The dragon (satan) handed over its own power and throne and great authority to this beast (antichrist). (3) One of its heads seemed to have been fatally wounded, but now it was well. Everyone on earth marveled at this beast, (4) and they worshiped the dragon who had given its authority to the beast. They also worshiped the beast and said, "No one is like this beast! No one can fight against it."
(5) The beast was allowed to brag and claim to be God, and for forty-two months it was allowed to rule. (6) The beast cursed God, and it cursed the name of God. It even cursed the place where God lives, as well as everyone who lives in heaven with God. (7) It was allowed to fight against God's people and defeat them. It was also given authority over the people of every tribe, nation, language, and race. (8) The beast was worshiped by everyone whose name wasn't written before the time of creation in the book of the Lamb who was killed. (9) If you have ears, then listen!
What we see here is that the antichrist rises from the ten-kingdom confederation, which represents the former Roman Empire. So, the antichrist will most likely emerge from somewhere in Europe or Northern Africa which was part of the Roman Empire.
Revelation 13:5–7 further elaborates on this figure, who will blaspheme God and wage war against the tribulation saints.
Now, there have been “little a” antichrists in history (1 John 2:18)- they were types or examples of how this ruler will act. Antichrist simply means enemy of Christ, or opposite of Christ.
A few examples- Many Roman emperors who persecuted and executed Christians. Revelation was written when Emperor Domitian
(Duh mission) was in power, and he was so evil and so out of control that his own praetorian guard assassinated him.
Other examples from history that people could have thought was the antichrist in trying to conquer the earth-
Genghis Khan
Napolean Bonaparte
Our favorite- Adolf Hitler
Joseph Stalin (Soviet Union)
Mao Zedung (China)
These were examples of little antichrists.
They were the opening act to the main event- the real antichrist coming into power.
How will we know who that person is?
A couple of criteria have to be met, and are seen in the bible.
The first criteria is seen in the first seal be broken in Revelation-
Rev 6:1-2 At the same time that I saw the Lamb open the first of the seven seals, I heard one of the four living creatures shout with a voice like thunder. It said, "Come out!" (2) Then I saw a white horse. Its rider carried a bow and was given a crown. He had already won some victories, and he went out to win more.
Look closely at the details. This first horsemen is described as a ruler with a bow, but no arrows. This indicates that he comes to power politically, not by military might, at least in the beginning.
That’s the first criteria, but there are a few more that occur later in the tribulation.
However, to directly witness those, it will require you to be present at the mid-point of the tribulation. The church should have raptured prior to this, but if someone comes across this lesson or podcast after the church is gone, here are the for sure ways that you can identify the antichrist.
The second criteria
1. The mark- The antichrist takes complete total control of money, world markets, and finance
Rev 13:16-18 All people were forced to put a mark on their right hand or forehead. Whether they were powerful or weak, rich or poor, free people or slaves, (17) they all had to have this mark, or else they could not buy or sell anything. This mark stood for the name of the beast and for the number of its name. (18) You need wisdom to understand the number of the beast! But if you are smart enough, you can figure this out. Its number is six hundred sixty-six, and it stands for a person.
These verses describes what is known as the Mark of the Beast. The number 666.
How do we interpret this?
Remember, the Apostle John wrote Revelation in Greek, and the Greek language has numerical equivalents attached to their letters. What John is saying, is if you take the person’s name and add up the letters, the number will be 666. It says if you are smart enough you can figure this out- I believe that simply means you are able to read and write given that the vast majority of people in the 1st century were not able to read or write.
If you willingly receive this mark, you are doomed. This is an unforgiveable sin, and we will see why in a moment.
There is also a second part of receiving this mark.
It will answer the question that might be in your minds right now- what if they knock you out and tattoo this mark on you? Will God still send you to hell?
Rev 19:20b This is the same (False) prophet who had worked miracles for the beast, so that he could fool everyone who had the mark of the beast (here is the part that really condemns you) and worshiped the idol. The beast and the false prophet were thrown alive into a lake of burning sulfur.
The mark of the beast is a Two part sin- willingly receive the mark, and worship the image of the beast which will be a statue set up that represents the antichrist.
The third way to confirm the identity of the antichrist-
2. The abomination that causes desolation-
Jesus speaking- Mat 24:15 Someday you will see that "Horrible Thing" (The abomination that causes Desolation) in the holy place, just as the prophet Daniel said. Everyone who reads this must try to understand!
Let me explain what Jesus is talking about. Jesus is saying that in the time of the tribulation, history will repeat itself in something that happened about 150 years before Jesus was born.
During the time that Alexander the great and his generals from Greece ruled the holy land. During that time, there was a governor named Antiochus Epiphanes IV (an tia’ a kus eh puh’ fayanz).
In Daniel 8:9-14, There is a prophecy in the bible about this man, he is also assigned the title of “The Little Horn” because he does something so incredibly evil that the antichrist will copy it about halfway through the tribulation.
The Jews at that time were rebelling and in response to their rebellion, Antiochus went into the temple of God, ripped down the curtain separating the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple, then slaughtered some of the priests, then slaughtered a pig and mixed it with the blood of the dead priests, and poured that all over the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies. He then set up a statue of Zeus next to the mercy seat.
That is an abomination, and it caused desolation to the purity of the temple.
The antichrist will do the same thing at the midpoint of the tribulation- rip down the curtain, sacrifice an unclean animal, and pour it all over the holy of holies while setting up an statue of himself and forcing people to worship him.
Of course, the temple has to be rebuilt for that to happen, but plans have been in place for years, and in the last 20 years or so they have genetically bred a red heifer, which is required to purify the temple before it’s placed in use. All the materials and temple tools have been fashioned according to the Levitical law, and all they need is the permission to begin building.
Those are the three ways you can identify who is the antichrist.
However, we believe that God will remove the church prior to any of this happening. Therefore the antichrist will not be completely revealed on earth in full power until after the rapture.
The reason for that is 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7 explains that the restrainer (likely the Holy Spirit working through the Church) must be removed before the Antichrist is revealed. This aligns with the belief that the Church will be caught up to meet the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17) before the tribulation begins.
During his full 3 ½ year reign The antichrist will murder billions of people in his quest to set up the devils idea of heaven on earth.
However, in his sinful insanity, he will not be noticing that something is occurring in heaven.
Let’s leave earth for a moment, and enter into the throne room of heaven.
The Ancient of Days and the Son of Man (Daniel 7:9–14)
Dan 7:9-12 Thrones were set up while I was watching, and the Eternal God (KJV- Ancient of Days) took his place. His clothing and his hair were white as snow. His throne was a blazing fire with fiery wheels, (10) and flames were dashing out from all around him. Countless thousands were standing there to serve him. The time of judgment began, and the books were opened. (11) I watched closely to see what would happen to this smaller horn because of the arrogant things it was saying. Then before my very eyes, the fourth beast was killed and its body destroyed by fire. (12) The other three beasts had their authority taken from them, but they were allowed to live a while longer.
This verse gives us insight into what is happening in heaven during the second half of the tribulation. I believe the first half of the tribulation will be the wedding supper of the LAMB, and the second of the tribulation we will be what the book of Hebrews calls the great cloud of witnesses watching God as HE begins to judge the earth with the trumpet and bowl judgments.
We see in this vision that God the Father, called the Ancient of Days takes His seat in judgment. This scene parallels Revelation 4–5, where God is sits on HIS throne, and the Lamb of God, Jesus the Christ is found worthy to open the seals judgments.
Daniel alludes to this in-
Dan 7:13-14 As I continued to watch the vision that night, I saw what looked like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven, and he was presented to the Eternal God. (14) He was crowned king and given power and glory, so that all people of every nation and race would serve him. He will rule forever, and his kingdom is eternal, never to be destroyed.
The Son of Man coming with the clouds (Daniel 7:13) is a direct reference to Jesus, who used this title for Himself (Matthew 24:30).
Revelation 19:11–16 describes His glorious return to defeat the Antichrist and establish His kingdom.
The dominion given to Him is everlasting, fulfilling the promise of Psalm 2 and Revelation 11:15 that Christ will reign forever.
Finally, we see the end of the antichrist, and his failed attempt to create satan’s version of heaven on earth.
The Final Kingdom and Eternal Reign (Daniel 7:26–27)
Dan 7:26-27 " (26) But he (the antichrist) will finally be judged, and his kingdom completely destroyed. (27) "Then the greatest kingdom of all will be given to the chosen ones of God Most High. His kingdom will be eternal, and all others will serve and obey him."
Conclusion
I know this message felt like we took a drink from a fire hose. I want to leave you with this-
When we people talk about the end of the world, and end times prophecy they often do it from a spirit of fear.
While the bible describes the end times as being horrible to live through, we have the blessed hope of not having to live through it, but only being witnesses to it from heaven.
All rise
Two thoughts I want to leave you with this morning-
1. Christ wins, therefore, we win.
2. If you struggle with hearing satan condemn you for your past, remind him this is his future- defeat and damnation.
Those two things, if believed, will free you from living in fear no matter what happens here on earth.
Prayer/altar call.
