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Section Introduction

Chapter 7 begins the more 'apocalpytic' section of Daniel. In the first six chapters, Daniel demonstrates the sovereignty of God above the powerful kings of Babylon and Persia, and recounts the way each had to recognise the power of the God of Israel. This would counter their understanding that their rise to power was due to their own ability or to the superiority of their gods. Nebuchadnezzar had to recognise that although he had conquered Judah, he was not the conqueror of Judah’s God.

Through his dream, Nebuchadnezzar was shown that his power and kingdom would ultimately fail (2:39). Through the fiery furnace, he learnt that the God of Israel could protect his people against his plans in remarkable ways (3:25). Then after spending years eating grass like an ox, he learnt that Yahweh could and did humiliate him because of his pride (4:31). Belshazzar was told that his very breath was in God’s power (5:23). Then Darius of Persia had to recognise that God was the living God, who could protect his people from the lions (6:27). The four visions in the second half of Daniel show that this sovereign God also controls the future.

Daniel’s dream about four world empires

In this dream, Daniel sees four great beasts, which represent four great empires. There is a clear parallel with the statue in chapter 2. "As for these four great beasts, four kings shall arise out of the earth ..." (v17).

Four views on chapter 7

Once again, there are four different views on how to interpret chapter seven. The chart below shows these, and the way each view compares the statue (ch 2) and the beasts (ch 7).

1. Liberal Maccabean View

As in the statue (ch 2), the four kingdoms are Babylon, Media, Persia and Greece. The terrible beast would be Alexander the Great. The little horn would be Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and the ten horns would be other Seleucid rulers.

2. Traditional View

The four kingdoms are Babylon, Media-Persia, Greece and Rome. The second beast being raised up on one side represents the greater strength of Persia over Media. The three tusks of the second beast would be the major conquests by the Persians (Lydia, Babylon and Egypt). The four heads of the third beast would be the four-fold division of Alexander’s kingdom. The ten horns of the fourth beast would be ten kingdoms forming the Roman Empire, or ten Roman Emperors. The three horns plucked up could be the three emperors in AD 69 (Galba, Otho and Vitellius). The little horn could be one of the evil emperors, such as Nero or Domitian. Many older Protestant interpretations would claim that the little horn was the papacy, which rose up out of the Roman Empire.

3. Dispensational View

The four kingdoms are the same as in the traditional view. Then the little horn would be the Antichrist ruling over the revived Roman Empire during the tribulation in end times. The ten horns would be rulers under that revived empire. It was often taught that these represented the ten nations of the European Union, but this view has lapsed now there are many more European Union member nations.

4. Maccabean Messianic View

As in the first view, the four kingdoms are Babylon, Media, Persia and Greece, and the little horn would be Antiochus IV Epiphanes.

A look at the text

This vision came in the first year of Belshazzar (552 BC), who co-reigned with this father Nabonidus, so chronologically this vision comes between chapter 4 and chapter 5. Daniel was now about 63 years old. The four beasts came out of the sea (v3). In prophetic writing, the sea often represents the restlessness of Gentile nations (Is 17:12, 57:20) and (Rev 17:15).

First Beast: Lion (v4)

Winged lions were a symbol of Babylon. The street leading to the Ishtar gate was decorated with a long procession of yellow lions on blue-glazed brick. Nebuchadnezzar ruled Babylon for 43 years making it great, powerful and magnificent. He was followed by weaker kings and a decline in power. The wings being plucked off could represent the period of Nebuchadnezzar’s insanity described in chapter 4, then describing his restoration.

Second Beast: Bear (v5)

A bear is the second strongest carnivore after a lion (equivalent to the silver in chapter 2). Bears are strong, but unpredictable, slower and clumsy. There were two periods of the Median kingdom. The first stage was powerful, and the second when it was a inferior partner in the Media-Persian empire after 550 BC. This could be what the bear being raised up on one side represents.

The three tusks represent the three nations conquered by Media (Ararat, Minni and Ashkenaz) and incorporated into their empire. These three join the Medes in conquering Babylon (Jer 51:27-29).

Third Beast: Leopard (v6)

The leopard is the fastest of beasts. If this beast represents Greece, as in the traditional view, then this would be the rapid conquests achieved by Alexander the Great. However, Cyrus of Persia also achieved swift and brilliant victories, so this could just as well be describing him.

The leopard had four wings and four heads. If this beast represents Greece, then these would represent the four rulers who divided the empire between them after the death of Alexander. However, if this is Persia, then these are the first four powerful rulers of Persia (Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius and Xerxes), probably representing the same four rulers as in (11:2). Under these kings, Persia enjoyed a long period of expansion, creating a huge empire, "dominion was given to it" (v6). After Xerxes, Persia began to decline. On the Cyrus Cylinder, Cyrus is described as being the king of the four corners of the earth.

Fourth Beast: Terrible, dreadful and exceedingly strong (v7)

The traditional view is that this beast represents the Roman Empire. However this makes it difficult to identify the ten horns and the little horn that follows it. There are a number of difficulties in this interpretation. The first is, as noted in the dream of the statue (ch 2), that Rome certainly had a large empire and was very strong, but it never conquered all the territory of the Babylonian, Median or Persian empires.

However, if this beast represents Greece, then it gives a good description of the rapid and powerful conquests by Alexander the Great, who certainly broke the empires into pieces (v7), conquering the entire area of the Persian Empire. Being a more western nation, Greece was different from the empires that preceded it (Babylon, Media and Persia) (v7b), while Rome was more similar to Greece.

In the traditional view of the fourth beast being Rome it is difficult to identify the ten horns, the little horn and the three horns that the little horn plucks up (v7b - 8). Various suggestions are made, but none are completely satisfactory. The ten horns could represent ten kingdoms or ten kings absorbed into the Roman Empire, or otherwise a series of ten Roman Emperors, but it is difficult to identify these with any certainty. The little horn would possibly be Nero or Domitian, and the three horns plucked up, the emperors during the Roman civil war in AD 69 (Galba, Otho and Vitellius). Many Reformers claimed that the little horn was the papacy.

The Dispensational view pushes this into the future, saying that the little horn is the Antichrist leading a revived Roman Empire during the tribulation, persecuting the church (v21), with the ten horns being kingdoms within that empire, or the European Union.

However, the little horn can also be seen as giving a very accurate description of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and the suffering he caused to the Jewish people. Before Antiochus IV, there were seven Seleucid kings:
1 - Seleucus I (Nicator)
2 - Antiochus I (Soter)
3 - Antiochus II (Theos)
4 - Seleucus II (Callnius)
5 - Seleucus III (Soter)
6 - Antiochus III (The Great)
7 - Seleucus IV (Philopator), the older brother of Antiochus IV.
These could be represented by seven of the ten horns of the fourth beast.

Then the three plucked up by the roots (v8) would be the following.
1: The first would be Demetrius, the son of Seleucus IV (Philopator) who was the heir to the throne, and the nephew of Antiochus IV. He was held hostage in Rome to replace Antiochus IV, but Antiochus seized his throne in his absence.
2: The second was Heliodorus, the king’s minister, who poisoned Seleucus IV (Philopator), and usurped the kingdom.
3: And the third was another Antiochus, also Antiochus IV, the baby son of Seleucus IV (Philopator), who reigned together with Antiochus Epiphanes for five years, when he was murdered by him.

These three usurped the throne, and each was usurped in turn, allowing Antiochus IV Epiphanes to seize the throne. This statement, "a little horn coming up among them (the ten horns); to make room for it, three of the earlier horns were plucked up by the roots (v8) seems to give an accurate description of Antiochus IV Epiphanes seizing the throne of Syria. Antiochus IV certainly spoke arrogantly, claiming to be a manifestation of Zeus.

Court Scene (v9-10)

The scene now dramatically changes to a courtroom scene, described in poetry, with an Ancient One, or Ancient of Days taking his place on his throne. This is a description of God sitting on his throne in glory about to act as the judge of all mankind. There are allusions to this scene in the Book of Revelation, particularly in the description of the final judgement in Rev 20. According to Rev 20, the books record what people have done, "And the dead were judged according to their works, as recorded in the books" (Rev 20:12). There is a similar description in the Book of Enoch, "In those days I saw the Head of Days when he seated himself on the throne of glory, and the books of the living were opened before him. And all his host which is in heaven above in his counsellors stood before him." (Enoch 47:3). Significantly, this vision of God in his glory is placed within the description of the actions of the little horn, implying that whatever this person does, he will be held accountable for his actions by the Almighty God, who judges the nations.

Beast Destroyed (v11-12)

In the context of judgement, the scene now returns to the arrogance of the little horn. The beast was put to death. This was the fourth beast, out of which the little horn arose. The power of this beast will be removed when God acts in judgement. Whether this represents Antiochus, or the final Antichrist, the message is that God will act in judgement and will reward his saints. The comment in verse 12 is a bit of a mystery, it says that the dominion of the other three beasts will be taken away, but the lives will continue.

The appearance of the one like a Son of Man (v13-14)

The scene now changes back to heaven, and returns to poetry. This time it describes one like a human being, like a son of man, coming in clouds of heaven and being presented before the Ancient One.

The phrase, Son of Man, is literally 'son of Adam', and is used several ways in the OT, each based on its natural meaning as a human being. God continually addresses Ezekiel the prophet as 'son of Adam', which is translated 'human', or 'mortal' (eg Ezek 2:1). It is used to describe mankind in general in Psalm 8: "what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals (son of man) that you care for them?" (Ps 8:4). In this passage, it also describes a human being, but one who is given dominion, glory and kingship, so it gains a Messianic meaning too. During his ministry, Jesus looked back to this passage to use the term, 'Son of Man' to refer to himself. The only other person to use it to refer to Jesus was Stephen (Acts 7).

In the Olivet Discourse, Jesus quoted the first part of verse 13, "the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory", to describe his second coming (Mt 24:30, Mk 13:26, Lk 21:27). He also quoted parts of verse 13 and 14 during his trial before the Jewish Sanhedrin, a statement which led to him being condemned to death for blasphemy (Mt 26:64, Mk 14:62, Lk 22:68).

It is often assumed that this passage is describing the second coming, but it is important to note that the one like a son of man came TO the Ancient One and was presented before him (v13). At the second coming, Jesus will be coming FROM the Ancient One. It is better to conclude that this passage describes the ascended Jesus returning to God after his death and resurrection, and being given dominion, glory and kingship (v14). It was at this time that the Kingdom of God was established. However, the kingdom starts small, in the same way as the stone in chapter 2, but grows to be a great mountain which fills the earth (2:35). In many parables, such as the mustard seed (Mk 4:30-32), Jesus taught that the Kingdom of God will start small, but grow very large, until the final harvest at his Second Coming.

Daniel's response and questions (7:15-28)

The remainder of the vision consists of a description of Daniel’s response, and the questions he asks the attendant (an angelic being) about the vision. As with other visions Daniel receives, he is greatly affected emotionally, spiritually, and physically. After this vision, his spirit was troubled within him, and the visions terrified him (v15).

General question about the beasts (7:16-18)

His first question is more general, wanting the meaning of the vision. The angelic being explains that the four beasts represent four kingdoms. These four kingdoms will rise and will fall, but in contrast to these, the Kingdom of God given to the one like a son of man will be possessed by his saints for ever. As noted before, according to the different views these four kingdoms are either Babylon, Media, Persia and Greece, or are Babylon, Media-Persia, Greece and Rome. Whichever view is correct, the message of this passage is clear: the human kingdoms will rise and will fall, but God’s Kingdom will last forever, and God’s people will possess that kingdom.

Specific question about the fourth beast and the little horn (7:19-27)

Daniel then wants more explanation about the dreadful fourth beast (v7), which was different from the other three. He also wants to understand about the ten horns and the horn that spoke arrogantly (v8) (v19-20). The vision continues to describe persecution of the saints by little horn, it makes war on the saints a prevails over them, until the Ancient One comes in judgement, at which time the holy ones gain possession of the kingdom (v22).

Between the different views described above, there is particular disagreement over the identification of the little horn. The two Maccabean views would say that the fourth empire was Greece, and little horn was Antiochus Epiphanes. The traditional view would say that the fourth empire was Rome, and the little horn would either be a particular Roman emperor, or the papacy, who persecuted the believers. The Dispensational view would say that the fourth beast was the Roman Empire, but the ten horns were part of a revived Roman Empire in end times, and the little horn was the Antichrist, ruling for 3½ years. In this view, the kingdom would be established during the Millennium following the second coming of Christ.

It is helpful to read this section together with the description of the original vision (v7-8), as much is repeated, with some extra information. As noted above, this is a good description of the Greek Empire, and the rule of Antiochus IV Epiphanes. The Greek Empire was different from Babylon, Media and Persia, in being more western. The empire of Alexander expanded rapidly as he trampled down and broke the Persian Empire (v23). As noted above, the 10 toes can be seen as representing the Seleucid kings. There were seven kings, then the final three were overthrown by Antiochus, each being 'plucked up by the roots' (v8).

This section gives a good description of Antiochus, who certainly spoke words against the Most High (v25a), claiming to a manifestation of Zeus, and rededicating the temple to himself. He did wear out the holy ones (v25b), removing the last Aaronic High Priest, and persecuting the Jews. He did also change the sacred seasons and the law (v25c), effectively abolishing Judaism, burning the Torah, forbidding circumcision, and in particular removing the daily burnt offering, and having a pig sacrificed on the altar of the temple. The Jews were given into his power for time, two times and half a time, equalling 3½ years, from 167 to 164 BC. There is no need to push this meaning of this passage into our unknown future to describe some future Antichrist.

The explanation concludes with a description of the judgement of the little horn, and the kingdom of the saints, expanding on the original vision (v11-12). All descriptions of judgement in the Bible should be seen as happening in history, but also foreshadowing the final judgement. God did act in judgement on Antiochus. After the successful revolt by the Maccabees, Antiochus was struck down with pains and died in agony. The events are described in more detail in the comment on chapter 8 (8:35). The holy ones of the Most High would be the faithful believing Jews during the time of the Maccabees, but also God’s faithful ones through history, who will inherit the Kingdom that would be established through his Son, Jesus, the Son of Man, who was given all power, dominion and authority.

Daniel’s final response (7:28)

Once again, Daniel is overcome by the vision and the explanation, but he kept his thoughts to himself. He is terrified by the thought of the rise of this dreadful fourth beast, and in particular the little horn, which will exalt itself, and persecute God’s people.

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