Some Quick Notes on the "Little Horn" Prophecy in Daniel 8
The Little Horn of Daniel 8. In this chapter, Daniel sees the vision of the ram, goat, and little horn. While perhaps a challenging vision (enough to confuse Daniel and cause him to become sick—v. 27), it also clearly prophesies the coming of the Medo-Persian empire and its defeat by Greece (vv. 20–21). If that is the case, then the little horn also predicts Antiochus Epiphanes (175–163 BC). The Master’s Seminary Journal published a helpful article explaining this and a chart to help with the elements of the vision: [1] Specifically, the vision fits Antiochus because he persecuted God’s people (v. 24), he magnified himself (vv. 11, 25 [“Epiphanies” means “God manifest”]), he started from a place of insignificance (v. 9), he died of natural causes (v. 25), rose to power out of the ranks of Alexander the Great’s four generals (v. 9), experienced marginal victory in conquests south, east, and in Israel (v. 9), defiled the temple and inter...