3) The Four Beasts
The vision of Daniel 7 and the world empires
In Daniel 7, the prophet receives a vision parallel to Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, but with additional details. Four beasts represent the same four empires, but now with focus on the conflict between good and evil.
The Vision of the Beasts
From where did the four beasts come?
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Answer: From the great sea, churned by the winds
Daniel 7:2-3: "Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another."
What do seas and waters represent in prophecies?
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Answer: Peoples, multitudes, nations and languages
Revelation 17:15: "And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues."
The Lion with Wings
What did the first beast, a lion with eagle's wings, represent?
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Answer: Babylon, corresponding to the head of gold
Daniel 7:4: "The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man’s heart was given to it."
The Bear
What did the second beast, a bear raised up on one side, represent?
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Answer: Medo-Persia, corresponding to the chest of silver
Daniel 7:5: "And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh."
In the traditional historicist interpretation, what did the three ribs in the mouth of the bear signify?
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Answer: Three conquered kingdoms: Lydia, Babylon, and Egypt
Daniel 7:5: "And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh."
The Leopard
What did the third beast, a leopard with four wings, represent?
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Answer: Greece, corresponding to the belly of bronze
Daniel 7:6: "After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it."
What did the four heads of the leopard signify?
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Answer: The division of the Greek empire into four parts after Alexander
Daniel 7:6: "After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it."
The speed of the Greek conquests under Alexander helps explain the leopard’s four wings. After his death, the empire was divided among four main generals, as also indicated in Daniel 8:8, 22 and Daniel 11:4.
The Terrible Beast
What did the fourth terrible beast represent?
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Answer: Rome, corresponding to the legs of iron
Daniel 7:7: "After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns."
How many horns did the fourth beast have?
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Answer: Ten horns
Daniel 7:7: "After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns."
What do the ten horns represent?
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Answer: Ten kingdoms that arose from the fall of Rome
Daniel 7:24: "And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings."
And Now?
Daniel 7 confirms and expands Daniel 2:
- Same outline: Four world empires
- Animal symbolism: Reveals the character of the empires
- Ten horns: The divisions of Rome
- More details coming: About the little horn
My Decision
I see that God reveals the future with precision through different symbols that harmonize. History confirms Daniel’s prophecies. I trust that what has not yet been fulfilled will also happen as revealed.