July 22: THE COURT OF THE HEAVENLY SANCTUARY
“I watched till thrones were put in place, And the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, And the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, Its wheels a burning fire; A fiery stream issued And came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him; Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, And the books were opened.” Daniel 7:9-10
Even as Daniel is hearing a mouth speaking pompous words (v.8), his gaze is lifted upward and directly into the heavenly dwelling place of Almighty God. It is a majestic and awe-inspiring scene. Daniel saw thrones being put in place. Not only should the sublime imagery alone seize our attention, but the nature of the scene, what is happening in it, calls out for the most serious consideration. This is a judgment scene and eternal issues are at stake.
The description of the Ancient of Days (my favorite name for God) here shows us that He is a personal being (see also Revelation 4:3,7). Though the sight of Him is beyond spectacular, the view of Him given to Daniel does not include His face (see Exodus 33:20). The sight of His throne and its wheels brings to mind Ezekiel’s attempt to describe it (Ezekiel 1). The fiery stream issued, according to Isaiah, is the LORD’s breath (Isaiah 30:33; 66:15-16). The mention of the fire of God tends to strike fear in the heart of sinful man, but those who love Him possess a reverent fear (not terror) that displaces the basic human fear of fire (see Isaiah 33:14-15; Daniel 3:25).
Daniel’s attempt to number the heavenly angels who remained faithful to God is framed by the largest increment of numbers in use at the time: a thousand. Therefore, he expresses the sight of the multitude as a thousand thousands and ten thousand times ten thousand. Daniel’s choice of words here suffice very well, as none of us could gaze over this magnificent multitude and produce an exact count of faithful angels in service to the Ancient of Days.
The court was seated, And the books were opened. The timing of this judgment will become quite clear as we move forward in Daniel’s writings. But for now, we can begin to get an idea of the timing by Daniel saying that the court was seated even as pompous words were emanating from the mouth of the little horn.
The orderliness of court proceedings must be kept in mind as we anticipate the return of the Lord Jesus to take His faithful ones to Heaven. He will most definitely know ahead of time for whom He is coming! Hear His words:
“Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.” Revelation 22:12
“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” John 14:1-3