Daniel pt 7

Daniel 7:1: In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel saw a dream and visions of his head as he lay in his bed. Then he wrote down the dream and told the sum of the matter. Daniel declared, “I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea. And four great beasts came up out of the sea, different from one another. The first was like a lion and had eagles' wings. Then as I looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man, and the mind of a man was given to it. And behold, another beast, a second one, like a bear. It was raised up on one side. It had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth; and it was told, ‘Arise, devour much flesh.’ After this I looked, and behold, another, like a leopard, with four wings of a bird on its back. And the beast had four heads, and dominion was given to it. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among them another horn, a little one, before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots. And behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things.

Daniel 7:9: As I looked,

thrones were placed,

and the Ancient of days took his seat;

his clothing was white as snow,

and the hair of his head like pure wool;

his throne was fiery flames;

its wheels were burning fire.

A stream of fire issued

and came out from before him;

a thousand thousands served him,

and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him;

the court sat in judgment,

and the books were opened.

I looked then because of the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.

Daniel 7:13: I saw in the night visions,

and behold, with the clouds of heaven

there came one like a son of man,

and he came to the Ancient of Days

and was presented before him.

And to him was given dominion

and glory and a kingdom,

that all peoples, nations, and languages

should serve him;

his dominion is an everlasting dominion,

which shall not pass away,

and his kingdom one

that shall not be destroyed.

 “As for me, Daniel, my spirit within me was anxious, and the visions of my head alarmed me. I approached one of those who stood there and asked him the truth concerning all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of the things. ‘These four great beasts are four kings who shall arise out of the earth. But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, forever and ever.’

Daniel 7:19: “Then I desired to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the rest, exceedingly terrifying, with its teeth of iron and claws of bronze, and which devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet, and about the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn that came up and before which three of them fell, the horn that had eyes and a mouth that spoke great things, and that seemed greater than its companions. I looked, this horn made war with the saints and prevailed over them, the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given for the saints of the Most High, and the time came when the saints possessed the kingdom.

Daniel 7:23: “Thus he said: ‘As for the fourth beast,

there shall be a fourth kingdom on earth,

which shall be different from all the kingdoms,

and it shall devour the whole earth,

and trample it down, and break it to pieces.

As for the ten horns,

out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise,

and another shall arise after them;

he shall be different from the former ones,

and shall put down three kings.

He shall speak words against the Most High,

and shall wear out the saints of the Most High,

and shall think to change the times and the law;

and they shall be given into his hand

for a time, times, and half a time.

But the court shall sit in judgment,

and his dominion shall be taken away,

to be consumed and destroyed to the end.

And the kingdom and the dominion

and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven

shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High;

their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom,

and all dominions shall serve and obey them.’

“Here is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly alarmed me, and my color changed, but I kept the matter in my heart.”

We can see in Daniel 7 how this adds to Daniel chapter 2. In Daniel 2, there were 4 kingdoms that will rise up, and in Daniel 7 there are 4 beasts. Just like in Daniel 2, the fourth kingdom has a past and future interpretation. We’ll look at that later.

Lets first take a look at these beasts one by one.

I want to point out that before any of the beasts were mentioned, there are the four winds of heaven churning up the sea. Those four winds of heaven are something that you’ll see time and time again in the End Time prophecies. Sometimes they are angels, and sometimes they are just winds. Either way, I think that it is safe to say that it is a spiritual interpretation that is needed here. Lets cross-reference this to Revelation 13:1:

“And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads.”

Notice right away that it starts with “coming out of the sea.” These four beasts all coming out of the sea are in tune with Daniel 2 that they are all the same. Though different, they are all ruled by the same one: Satan.

The first beast was like a lion with the wings of an eagle. What is that? We know it as a gryphon in our modern mythology, but the ancient Hebrews would have thought of it as a cherub (cherubim being plural). This king is one that is likened to the angels. He is strong and powerful like the angels who are before the throne of God. In fact a lion is the king of the jungle. He is considered the strength of the jungle. This is the strongest beast of all.

So who is it talking about? Well, we know that in Daniel 2, the first kingdom was Babylon. Daniel even told the king, “The head of gold is you, King Nebuchadnezzar.” So this first beast must also be Babylon. What makes me so sure? Lets look at the rest of verse 4: Then as I looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man, and the mind of a man was given to it.

When you read the book of Daniel, you find that Nebuchadnezzar was driven out of his palace like a madman. He went out into the field and ate like the animals. His hair grew long (like wings, according to one translation), and his nails grew long (like talons). He had the mind of an animal. There was almost nothing human about Nebuchadnezzar. But the story ends with him coming back to his senses. He rises up and praises the Lord.

This beast in Daniel 7:4 has its wings plucked off and it was lifted from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man. It is obviously talking about Nebuchadnezzar. This is an analogy of the very story we read about earlier in the book of Daniel.

The second beast comes out of the sea. It looks like a bear that is raised up on one of its sides. What is the bear? The bear represents Medo-Persia. The Medes were weaker than Persia, but they work together. We’ll see this again in Daniel 8. There is a mention of the bear lifted on one side because the one side is stronger than the other. The 3 ribs in the bear’s mouth represent the 3 conquests of Medo-Persia. In 546 BCE, they conquered Asia-Minor. We read in Daniel 5 about their taking Babylon. Their last conquest was Egypt in 526 BCE.

The third beast is a leopard that has four wings like a bird. It also has four heads. This is Greece. Alexander conquered Medo-Persia, and in his dying days made the statement, “The 4 strongest among you will rule after me.” So after Alexander passed away, his kingdom was distributed into 4 parts. I think this is why we see 4 wings and 4 heads. However, the wings would also denote agility. This kingdom takes power quickly. Any one who knows their ancient history even slightly knows that Alexander had conquered the known world before he was 30. It was extremely quick.

The fourth beast represents two things. I mentioned this briefly earlier. We see a representation in verse 7 about iron teeth. This relates it back to Rome. Yet, there is still a future interpretation to it. What makes me say this?

Daniel 7:7: After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.

Revelation 13:3: And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns.

There are relations from the fourth beast in Daniel 7 and the beast that represents the final kingdom (which is the kingdom of the antichrist) in the book of Revelation. This isn’t the one place we find it, and I’m sure that as we continue to go through this you’ll become more convinced that this fourth beast is indeed the kingdom of Satan.

Now, lets get into the 10 horns real quick. If this fourth beast is a representation of that future kingdom represented by the feet, what do they have in common? They have the number 10 in common. Daniel even makes reference to the toes in chapter 2. These 10 horns are 10 kings. This is another place where Rome doesn’t fit. There were more than 10 Caesars. Which 10 do you want to pick? These kings are something entirely different.

This is one of those places where I’m giving you less because it’s more. You now know that the 10 horns are 10 kings. We find that out in Revelation 17. Who are the 10 kings? I’ll let you come to your own conclusions on that. I will say this, though: don’t think that these 10 kings are some Europeans. From what I can understand, this beast rules the world. He has influence over all the nations (but that doesn’t mean he has dominion over all the nations; we’ll see that later in Daniel).

Notice in verse 8 that an eleventh horn springs up. It’s called “a little one.” This is the antichrist. The fact that it says it is a little horn is not something to pass over. We’ll read later over and over again that this comes back up. The antichrist will not be some prominent figure. He starts with a small following. This will be repeated, so I don’t mind putting it out there without referencing other places.

Notice that three of the first horns are uprooted by this antichrist. Whoever these kings are, this antichrist comes to power by even going against those in his own kingdom. It is much like Hitler’s rise to power. Hitler wasn’t a prominent figure. He got to the top by uprooting others who were prominent. I don’t know if he will go to war or kill the other 3 kings. All I can say from this text is that he casts them down out of the spotlight. They are not longer prominent (whether by media or by death, I don’t know).

This verse about the antichrist ends with its boastfulness. Lets consider Revelation 13 again: And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven.

This is the antichrist.

But what do we see right after the establishment of the antichrist in Daniel 7?

Verse 9-10: As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames; its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire issued and came out from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.

Suddenly it appears as though the judgment of the world is taking place. But we have already read that the second coming of Christ happens in verse 13, not in verse 9. So what is this? I want to submit that this is the prequel. This is what is spoken of when Jesus said that He will separate the sheep from the goats in Matthew 25. The books are opened in Matthew 25, and in Revelation 20:11-15 the books are opened.

What are the books? The books are the record of who did what and how we reacted during the Tribulation. Why do we see them opened and the court in session before the antichrist is cast into the fire? Why do we see these things before Jesus returns? I believe that these are the records of how we act and react. That is why Jesus’ one question He asks in His return (Matthew 25) is whether we took care of the least of these His brethren. When everything turns to hell all around us, are we still able to stand and show love? When the love of many wax cold, do we also turn a cold shoulder to the world?

There is a story of a village that started to get plagued with disease. People started dying from this sickness. It wasn’t long before the healthy realized that they too might get sick. They started to separate themselves. They started to store up for themselves and to stop sharing with the sick. They were destined for death anyway, right? They were driven by fear of becoming like those who were sick. Their fear drove them to build a wall dividing them from the sick. Eventually that wasn’t enough. What if they decide to go around the wall? They built more walls to block them out. You couldn’t enter in by any means. But you also couldn’t exit. When the end comes, will you be one who builds a wall to keep yourself clean, or will you see the need and pour yourself out at any cost?

This is what God is recording. He is looking to see whether we are still willing to take people in, even if we know that it might mean we die. He is looking to whether we have the character to love those who are our enemies. The Tribulation is not a time of rejoicing. It is not something to look forward to. It is a terrible and terrifying day. Who will you be when that day comes?

When we reach Daniel 7:11, we see that the antichrist is still alive. This isn’t the judgment spoken of in Revelation 20:11. The beast (not just the horn) is thrown into the fire. The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time. What is that? That is paired up with Revelation 19:11-21. This is the second coming. This judgment that takes place – the court that is in session – is about Jesus’ return.

I know I just said that it is before His return, and it is. But it all flows from verse 9 into verse 11. The beast being thrown into the fire is obviously what Revelation 19:20 is saying. There is the Tribulation, which sets in motion the return of Christ. It is a ticking clock from that point on. 7 years after the start of the Tribulation, Christ returns. From the start of the Tribulation, the Lord takes His seat as judge and records all the deeds of men, good or evil.

What about this statement from verse 12? The other beasts are getting to stay on the earth? We see this in other Scriptures as well. In Isaiah, it is spoken of that the people of Israel are escorted back to their land by kings and queens. It is mentioned in Revelation 20 that there is a war after Jesus’ return. Satan riles up an army against Jerusalem. Where does his army come from? It comes from these other nations.

In verse 13, we see the second coming. I know that some think this is the ascension. That has some serious complications. The rest of the chapter is pointing to this as being the very end of the age. Jesus has already claimed that He has all authority and power; why would it be given to Him at the end of the age (verse 14)?

It all goes back to Daniel 2. Daniel 2 has some evident signs of being fulfilled. That is true. But has it come into fullness? If it hasn’t been fulfilled entirely, then it isn’t enough. A partial fulfillment isn’t a fulfillment. This is that stone in Daniel 2 that establishes the kingdom of God forever. If it is that Christ comes back, and then everyone is either taken to heaven or cast into hell, then why would the kingdom grow? There is a Millennium in Revelation 20 that needs to happen. Many, many Scriptures speak of things that can only happen in the Millennial Kingdom. What is the Millennium? It is the thousand years that Jesus rules and reigns on earth. It is clearly marked that there will be heaven on earth.

So when we get to this part about every nation and men of every language worshipping God, we’re talking about either the Millennium or the New Heavens and New Earth. Which we place it in doesn’t matter for this commentary. Here is where there is freedom on your part to search it out and come to your own conclusion.

In verse 15 we start to see where God is interpreting the dream for Daniel. We find a little more detail being added in the later part of the chapter. We find in verse 21 that the little horn (antichrist) wages war against the saints and defeats them. This is paralleled in Revelation 13:7. He defeats them “until the Ancient of Days came” and pronounced favor on the saints of the Most High and they inherited the Kingdom forever.

We see in verse 24 that the 10 horns are indeed 10 kings. The antichrist comes out of this kingdom and will “put down” or subdue 3 of the other kings.

We get to verse 25 and find the first mention of laws and “set times.” These are references to the Jewish laws and set times (feasts). We will see this stated again in Daniel. Other places to reference would be Matthew 24 (when you see the abomination of desolation…) and 2 Thessalonians 2 (but the whole book is important).

Sadly, the ESV doesn’t really put the subject very well. Those who shall be given into the hand of the antichrist or a time, times, and half a time are “the saints.” The saints and the wise in the book of Daniel are the same thing. We’ll see them called wise later in the book. The saints are any people who believe in Jesus. In Revelation 12, the dragon pursues the woman (Israel) and can’t overtake her. He then turns against the saints – “those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.”

We next find in Daniel 7:26-27 that God judges the world. Once again, I want to emphasize that there is more to what happens than this. But this is just the framework. So to not cause for it to be too difficult to grasp at once, I am only putting down what we see. After the 3 ½ years (time, times, and half a time), we enter into the Millennial Kingdom. Daniel wouldn’t have thought of it that way. The way that it seemed to the prophets of the Old Testament was that there was the end of this age and then the next. When the Messiah comes and rescues Israel and restores them to their Land, that starts the next age (we would call it heaven).

So when we read that the nations are handed over to the saints, and the saints will rule over them, understand that this is only a piece of the puzzle. The 1000-year reign of Christ was only hinted at (if even that) in the Old Testament. It wasn’t until the book of Revelation was written that we find any concrete evidence for such a claim. Now that it has been revealed, though, we can understand and put into perspective a ton of prophecies and promises.

And thus the chapter ends.