Israel Third Temple Update: Deep Dive Into The Daniel 8 Prophecy

Meta Description:

In Israel Third Temple Update: Daniel's Prophecy Fulfilled, we take a deep dive into the Daniel 8 prophecy. Is the stage set for the Third Temple In Jerusalem? Read on to learn more.

Significance of the Temple In Jerusalem For Israelites

The temple in Jerusalem was of immense significance to the Israelites, serving as the very heart of their spiritual, national, and cultural life. Its establishment was not merely about building a grand structure, but about fulfilling a core belief about their relationship with God.

The Temple in Jerusalem Was Established As A Worship Center To The Most High God

According to Israelite belief, the Temple was established to be a dwelling place for God on Earth. Before the Temple, the Israelites had the Tabernacle—a portable sanctuary that housed the Ark of the Covenant, which was a symbol of God's presence.³
When King David conquered Jerusalem and made it his capital, he wanted to build a permanent structure to house the Ark and serve as the new central place of worship for all the tribes of Israel. However, God forbade David from building it because he had "shed much blood." The task was given to his son, Solomon.
The completion of the Temple was seen as the fulfillment of a divine promise and a sign that God's presence, the Shekinah glory, would rest among His people.

The significance of the Temple for Israelites:

A Symbol of God's Presence: The Temple was the most sacred place on Earth for the Israelites. The innermost room, the Holy of Holies, was considered the very dwelling place of God. This made the Temple a tangible symbol of God's covenant with His people and His desire to be in their midst.⁷
The Center of Religious Life: The Temple was the sole location for many of the most important religious practices. It was where priests offered daily sacrifices for atonement, thanksgiving, and communion with God. It was also the destination for the three annual Feasts of God — Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot. During these feasts, Israelites from all over the land would travel to Jerusalem to worship and celebrate.
A Unifying Force: The Temple served as a powerful symbol of unity for the twelve tribes of Israel. It was a communal gathering place that brought people together, reinforcing their shared identity, laws, and history. The Jerusalem Temple was a central hub for not only religious worship but also legal and administrative functions. One of these was meetings for the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish court.
A Place of Prayer and Hope: Even after its destruction, the Temple remained a focal point for Jewish prayer and a symbol of their hopes for the future. The memory of the Temple and the longing for its restoration are deeply woven into Jewish tradition, liturgy, and daily life, as seen in prayers for its rebuilding and mourning customs such as the fast of Tisha B'Av.

Timeline of the Jerusalem Temple

Here's a brief overview of the Jerusalem Temple:

First Temple Period (c. 957 BCE - 586 BCE)

c. 957 BCE: King Solomon, son of King David, built the First Temple in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah. It was a magnificent structure designed to house the Ark of the Covenant and serve as the central place of worship for the Israelites.
7th Century BCE: The First Temple underwent a series of reforms and renovations, most notably under King Hezekiah and later King Josiah, who sought to centralize worship and remove idolatrous practices.
586 BCE: The Babylonian army, led by King Nebuchadnezzar II, besieged Jerusalem. They plundered and destroyed the First Temple, marking the end of the Kingdom of Judah and the beginning of the Babylonian exile.

Second Temple Period (c. 516 BCE - 70 CE)

c. 538 BCE: The Persian King Cyrus the Great issued a decree allowing the exiled Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple.
c. 516 BCE: Construction of the Second Temple was completed under the leadership of Zerubbabel and High Priest Jeshua. This temple was not as grand as the first but served its purpose as the new center for Jewish worship.
c. 20 BCE: King Herod the Great initiated a massive renovation and expansion of the Second Temple. The project, which lasted for decades, transformed the temple into a sprawling and architecturally impressive complex. This is often referred to as Herod's Temple.
c. 66 CE: The Great Jewish Revolt against Roman rule began. The temple became a fortress for Jewish rebels.
70 CE: The Roman army, led by General Titus, captured Jerusalem after a long siege. The city was burned, and Herod's Temple was completely destroyed, leaving only the Western Wall as a remnant. The destruction of the Second Temple marked a turning point in Jewish history, leading to the end of the temple-based sacrificial system and the rise of Rabbinic Judaism.

Daniel's Prophecy About The Cleansing Of The Temple

Daniel the prophet was shown the timeline related to the rebuilding of the temple. This was given by God in a prophetic dream about beasts which represented THREE world superpowers that would succeed Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom.

These three world kingdoms or superpowers were represented by a/an :

1. ram with two horns, one of which was longer than the other (Daniel 8: 3 & 4).

2. goat with a prominent horn between its eyes (Daniel 8: 5-8).

3. horn which arose from the 4 horns which replaced the goat's horns.

Importance of the horn:

This horn had a very bad effect on the Jerusalem Temple. It:

took away the daily sacrifice (Daniel 8: 11).
threw down the sanctuary (Daniel 8: 11).
conquered the Lord’s people because of their rebellion (Daniel 8: 12).
Threw truth down to the ground (Daniel 8: 12).

Daniel’s Vision of a Ram and a Goat - Daniel 8: 1 - 14

In the third year of King Belshazzar’s reign, I, Daniel, had a vision, after the one that had already appeared to me.

2 In my vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa in the province of Elam; in the vision I was beside the Ulai Canal.

3 I looked up, and there before me was a ram with two horns, standing beside the canal, and the horns were long. One of the horns was longer than the other but grew up later.

4 I watched the ram as it charged toward the west and the north and the south. No animal could stand against it, and none could rescue from its power. It did as it pleased and became great.

5 As I was thinking about this, suddenly a goat with a prominent horn between its eyes came from the west, crossing the whole earth without touching the ground.

6 It came toward the two-horned ram I had seen standing beside the canal and charged at it in great rage.

7 I saw it attack the ram furiously, striking the ram and shattering its two horns. The ram was powerless to stand against it; the goat knocked it to the ground and trampled on it, and none could rescue the ram from its power.

8 The goat became very great, but at the height of its power the large horn was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven.

9 Out of one of them came another horn, which started small but grew in power to the south and to the east and toward the Beautiful Land.

10 It grew until it reached the host of the heavens, and it threw some of the starry host down to the earth and trampled on them.

11 It set itself up to be as great as the commander of the army of the Lord; it took away the daily sacrifice from the Lord, and his sanctuary was thrown down.

12 Because of rebellion, the Lord’s people and the daily sacrifice were given over to it. It prospered in everything it did, and truth was thrown to the ground.

13 Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to him, “How long will it take for the vision to be fulfilled—the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, the rebellion that causes desolation, the surrender of the sanctuary and the trampling underfoot of the Lord’s people?”

14 He said to me, “It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary will be reconsecrated.”

Archangel Gabriel Interpreted The Meaning of the Ram and Goat

As Daniel struggled to understand the vision, its meaning was revealed by Archangel Gabriel:

1. ram: The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kings of Media and Persia (Daniel 8: 20).

2. goat: The shaggy goat is the king of Greece (Daniel 8: 21)

3. little horn - He is a fierce looking king that will cause astounding devastation ... He will destroy those who are mighty, the holy people (Daniel 8: 23 & 2).

Archangel Gabriel's Interpretation Of The Ram, Goat and Little Horn - Daniel 8: 15 - 27

15 While I, Daniel, was watching the vision and trying to understand it, there before me stood one who looked like a man.

16 And I heard a man’s voice from the Ulai calling, “Gabriel, tell this man the meaning of the vision.”

17 As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostrate. “Son of man,” he said to me, “understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.”

18 While he was speaking to me, I was in a deep sleep, with my face to the ground. Then he touched me and raised me to my feet.

19 He said: “I am going to tell you what will happen later in the time of wrath, because the vision concerns the appointed time of the end.

20 The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kings of Media and Persia.

21 The shaggy goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn between its eyes is the first king.

22 The four horns that replaced the one that was broken off represent four kingdoms that will emerge from his nation but will not have the same power.

23 “In the latter part of their reign, when rebels have become completely wicked, a fierce-looking king, a master of intrigue, will arise.

24 He will become very strong, but not by his own power. He will cause astounding devastation and will succeed in whatever he does. He will destroy those who are mighty, the holy people.

25 He will cause deceit to prosper, and he will consider himself superior. When they feel secure, he will destroy many and take his stand against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be destroyed, but not by human power.

26 “The vision of the evenings and mornings that has been given you is true, but seal up the vision, for it concerns the distant future.”

27 I, Daniel, was worn out. I lay exhausted for several days. Then I got up and went about the king’s business. I was appalled by the vision; it was beyond understanding.

History Has Already Confirmed The Fulfillment Of Daniel's Prophecy And Its Interpretation

Table 1 shows the approximate timeline of the World Kingdoms/Empires/Superpowers that God showed to Daniel. We can see clearly that God foresaw everything and revealed it all to help us know where we are in time.

Table 1: Timeline Of The Empires In Daniel's Vision

Symbol from Daniel's Dream (Chapter 8)	Archangel Gabriel's Interpretation	Historical Fulfillment & Timeline
Two-horned ram	"The kings of Media and Persia" (Daniel 8:20)	Represents the Medo-Persian Empire (550–330 BC). The two horns symbolize the Medes and the Persians, with the second horn (Persia) growing taller, signifying its dominance.
Shaggy goat with a large horn	"The king of Greece" (Daniel 8:21); the large horn is "the first king"	Represents the Greek Empire (330–146 BC), led by Alexander the Great (the large horn). The goat's swiftness symbolizes Alexander's rapid conquest of the Persian Empire.
Four horns replacing the broken horn	"Four kingdoms will arise from his nation, but not with his power" (Daniel 8:22)	After Alexander's death, his empire was divided among four of his generals (the Diadochi). These four Hellenistic kingdoms were the Ptolemaic Kingdom (Egypt), the Seleucid Empire (Syria/Mesopotamia), the Antigonid dynasty (Macedonia/Greece), and the Attalid dynasty (Anatolia).
"Little horn" that grows from one of the four horns	"A fierce-looking king, a master of intrigue... He will destroy the mighty, the holy people" (Daniel 8:23-24)	Roman Empire's destruction of 70AD

The Fourth Horn Is Widely Believed To Be Antiochus IV Epiphanes of the Seleucid Empire

This figure is widely interpreted as Antiochus IV Epiphanes of the Seleucid Empire. He persecuted the Jews, desecrated the Jerusalem Temple (the "holy people"), and fought against the power of God, fulfilling the description of a devastating and arrogant ruler.

Why Antiochus IV Epiphanes could not be the fourth horn

Antiochus IV Epiphanes ruled the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC to 164 BC. The Seleucid Empire is one of the four horns that arose from the Grecian Empire. He was a king of this Hellenistic kingdom, which was centered in Syria and Mesopotamia.

This does not fulfill Daniel's prophecy that a little horn would arise at the LATTER PART OF THE REIGN OF THE FOUR HORNS.

“In the latter part of their reign, when rebels have become completely wicked, a fierce-looking king, a master of intrigue, will arise (Daniel 8: 23).

Here are some key details about Antiochus' reign, which is relatively early in the period of the four horns:

Start of Rule: In 175 BC, his brother, Seleucus IV Philopator, was assassinated.² With the rightful heir, his nephew Demetrius, being a hostage in Rome, Antiochus seized the throne for himself with the help of allies.³
Persecution of the Jews: He is most infamous for his persecution of the Jews, which included the desecration of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. This action triggered the Maccabean Revolt.
End of Rule: Antiochus IV died in 164 BC while on a military campaign in the eastern part of his empire.

Importantly, his timeline is approximately 175 - 164 BCE. If he were the fourth horn, the temple should have already been rebuilt in 2300 days from the time he desecrated it:

14 He said to me, “It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary will be reconsecrated.”

Here are my previous writings about Antiochus.

Rethinking The Roman Empire As The Little Horn That Conquered The Four Horns

The Roman Empire did not arise from the four Hellenistic empires, but it conquered them. This is consistent with Daniel 8:

22 The four horns that replaced the one that was broken off represent four kingdoms that will emerge from his nation but will not have the same power.

23 “In the latter part of their reign, when rebels have become completely wicked, a fierce-looking king, a master of intrigue, will arise.

24 He will become very strong, but not by his own power. He will cause astounding devastation and will succeed in whatever he does. He will destroy those who are mighty, the holy people

Here's how the Roman Empire fulfilled Daniel's prophecy

The Roman Republic expanded its territory through a long series of military conflicts, eventually bringing the last remaining Hellenistic kingdoms under its control.² The transition to the Roman Empire was a result of internal political turmoil within Rome, not the direct continuation of a Hellenistic state.

The Rise of the Roman Empire

The Roman Empire's rise was a gradual process that began with the Roman Republic.³ It was not a single event but a series of military conquests and internal political transformations.⁴

Roman Republic Expansion: Beginning as a city-state, Rome expanded its control over the Italian peninsula and then engaged in the Punic Wars against Carthage (264–146 BC) to become the dominant power in the Mediterranean.⁵
Civil Wars: The vast wealth and new territories brought with them social and political instability.⁶ The Republic was torn apart by a series of civil wars between powerful generals, most famously between Julius Caesar and the Senate, and later between his heir, Octavian (Augustus), and Mark Antony.⁷
Establishment of the Empire: After Octavian defeated his rivals, he consolidated power, and in 27 BC, the Senate granted him the title "Augustus," effectively making him the first Roman Emperor.⁸ While maintaining the appearance of the Republic, he held absolute authority, marking the official end of the Roman Republic and the beginning of the Roman Empire.⁹

The Hellenistic Empires and Rome

The relationship between the Roman Republic (and later Empire) and the Hellenistic kingdoms was one of conquest and cultural absorption.¹⁰ The Roman expansion into the Greek-speaking East led to the Roman Republic defeating the four main Hellenistic successor kingdoms:¹¹

Antigonid Kingdom of Macedon: Rome defeated the Antigonids in a series of wars, finally conquering them in 168 BC.¹²
Seleucid Empire: Rome fought the Seleucids in the Roman–Seleucid War (192–188 BC), stripping them of their territory in Anatolia.¹³ The rest of the empire was later absorbed in 64 BC.
Attalid Kingdom of Pergamon: The last king of Pergamon, Attalus III, bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in 133 BC, who then turned it into the province of Asia.
Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt: This was the last Hellenistic kingdom to fall. After Octavian defeated Mark Antony and the Ptolemaic queen Cleopatra VII in 31 BC, he annexed Egypt as a Roman province in 30 BC, which marked the end of the Hellenistic era.

Although Rome defeated the Hellenistic empires militarily, it was heavily influenced by their culture. The Romans adopted and adapted Greek art, philosophy, religion, and literature, leading to the rich Greco-Roman culture that would define the Roman Empire for centuries.

More coming next week in the will of the Lord. The clue lies in Jesus' prophecy confirming Daniel's revelation about the destruction of Jerusalem, which by the way, has already taken place.

Related Posts

Thursday, September 4, 2025

Israel Third Temple Update: Daniel 8 Prophecy Fulfilled