It means God kept Daniel's end-time prophecy closed and hidden until the end time, when He would open it to the wise.
Les teaches that God sovereignly sealed the book of Daniel from about 500 B.C. until the approach of the end times, with no clear teaching of end-time events appearing until the late 1800s. Daniel himself did not understand the words he wrote. Now, in the time of the end, the Holy Spirit is opening these prophecies so the wise understand while the wicked continue in wickedness.
Daniel 12:9 — This verse directly states that the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end, the very phrase in question.
Daniel 12:4 — God commands Daniel to seal the book even to the time of the end, giving the original sealing instruction.
In Daniel 12:4, the angel commands Daniel, 'But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.' Daniel then says in verse 8, 'And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?' The reply in verse 9 is direct: 'And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.' Verse 10 then describes what will happen at that time of the end: 'Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.' The New Testament records the same principle in Luke 18:34: after Jesus told the twelve plainly that He would be delivered to the Gentiles, mocked, scourged, killed, and rise again, Luke writes, 'And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.'
Les Feldick teaches that Daniel 12 is one of the clearest examples of God keeping His end-time purposes secret until He is ready to reveal them. From Daniel's own day, about 500 B.C., God said the book was to be closed up and sealed for about 2,500 years, until the time of the end. Daniel himself did not understand what he had written; he said, 'I heard, but I understood not,' and asked what the end of these things would be. God's answer was simply to tell him to go his way, for the words were closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Les shows how God is sovereign in this concealment. Just as God had a way of closing minds and ears when Jesus told the twelve what would happen to Him in Jerusalem, so God kept Daniel's prophetic book veiled until the appointed time. Historically, Les says, there was virtually no clear teaching on end-time events until the middle and late 1800s. Then men of God began to put the prophetic Scriptures together, anticipating Russia's rise to power and the return of Israel as a nation, because the Holy Spirit was opening the Scriptures. In Les's teaching, we are now in that time of the end. Modern technology, such as satellite television, makes the book of Revelation believable in a way earlier generations could not imagine. The prophecy stands: many are being purified and tried, the wicked continue in wickedness, and the wise understand.
In Daniel 12:8 Daniel says, 'I heard, but I understood not,' and asks, 'O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?' Les makes the point that Daniel could realize that terrible times were coming, but he could not grasp the details of his own prophecy. God's reply was that the words were closed up and sealed until the time of the end, showing that even the prophet was not given the understanding until God's appointed time.
Les explains that God is sovereign and has a way of closing minds and ears. From Daniel's time, about 500 B.C., the words were to remain closed for about 2,500 years. There was no clear teaching on end-time prophecy until the late 1800s, when men of God began to understand it. Jesus' words to the twelve in Luke 18 show the same pattern — the meaning of His death and resurrection was hidden from them until His time.
Les cites the mid-to-late 1800s as the period when end-time teaching first emerged, with men predicting the rise of Russia and the return of Israel as a nation. He also points to modern technology — satellite television and instant worldwide communication — that makes the book of Revelation believable and 'plain as day.' This matches Daniel 12:4's promise that in the time of the end, many would run to and fro and knowledge would be increased.
Daniel 12:10 says that many shall be purified, made white, and tried, but the wicked shall do wickedly, and none of the wicked shall understand; the wise shall understand. Les applies this directly to our day: the wicked continue in wickedness — and we have not yet seen the worst — while believers who are being purified are given understanding of end-time prophecy as God opens the Scriptures.
God Closes Minds and Ears
Les uses Luke 18:31 to show that God keeps truths secret by closing minds and ears, which parallels the hiding of Daniel's sealed words until the end time.
Shut Up the Words and Seal the Book
Les emphasizes Daniel 12:4, where God commands Daniel to seal the book for about 2,500 years until the time of the end, when many would run to and fro and knowledge would be increased.
Prophecy Opened in the Late 1800s
Les teaches that it was not until the late 1800s and turn of the century that men began to grasp prophecy, exactly as the sealing promise said would happen at the end time.
End-Time Events Plain Through Modern Technology
Les points to satellite TV and modern communications as evidence that Revelation is now believable and plain, showing that God has opened the sealed words to the wise at the time of the end.
No End-Time Teaching Until Mid-1800s
Les notes that almost nothing was preached about end-time events until the middle 1800s, when men of God began to put the prophetic Scriptures together.
The Holy Spirit Opens the Sealed Words
Les credits the Holy Spirit for opening the prophetic Scriptures, leading men to see a returning Israel and the rise of nations like Russia — evidence that the time of the end has arrived.
Daniel Understood Not
Les stresses that Daniel himself wrote the prophecy but did not understand it, saying 'I heard, but I understood not,' and asking God what the end of these things would be.
What Daniel 12's Sealed Words Describe
Les provides the context of the sealed words: Michael standing up, the great time of trouble, Israel's deliverance, and the resurrection to everlasting life or shame and everlasting contempt.
Daniel 12:4: But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
God's direct command to Daniel to seal the prophecy until the end time, establishing the main subject of this page.
Daniel 12:8: And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?
Daniel's own admission that he did not understand the words he had written.
Daniel 12:9: And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.
The angel's explicit statement that the words are sealed until the time of the end.
Daniel 12:10: Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.
Shows that the sealing will be lifted for the wise at the end time, while the wicked remain in darkness.
Luke 18:34: And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.
New Testament example of God hiding truth from the twelve even when Jesus spoke plainly, similar to Daniel's sealed words.
It means God deliberately kept Daniel's end-time prophecies closed and hidden until the last days. Daniel himself did not understand what he wrote, and it was not until the late 1800s that men of God began to understand these prophecies. Les teaches that at the time of the end, the wise will understand while the wicked will not.
Daniel wrote prophetic words about the end but said, 'I heard, but I understood not' (Daniel 12:8). Les explains that the meaning was closed to Daniel because it was not yet God's time to reveal it. God told him simply to go his way, since the words were sealed until the time of the end.
According to Les, there was no clear end-time teaching until the middle and late 1800s. At that point the Holy Spirit began to open the prophetic Scriptures, prompting men to anticipate events like Russia's rise and Israel's return. By 1900, a number of teachers had put the end-time prophecies into a clear perspective.
No. Daniel 12:10 says none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand. Les applies this to our day: the wicked continue in wickedness, while believers who are being purified are given growing understanding of end-time prophecy.
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