seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Daniel 7:1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying in bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream.
2 Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
4 “The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it.
5 “And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’
6 “After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.
7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully.
9 “As I looked,
“thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
10 A river of fire was flowing,
coming out from before him.
Thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.
The court was seated,
and the books were opened.
and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
10 A river of fire was flowing,
coming out from before him.
Thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.
The court was seated,
and the books were opened.
11 “Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. 12 (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)
13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
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Here's the link to the commentary I read this morning.Stirring up the Great Sea: This was almost certainly the Mediterranean Sea. Each one of the empires mentioned in this vision had a geographical connection to the Mediterranean Sea.
Stirring up has the idea of chaos and tumult. “To the Hebrews the sea was both dangerous and mysterious, a restless element but not beyond the Lord’s power to tame.” (Baldwin)
And four great beasts came up from the sea: Four large, ferocious animals emerged from the Great Sea, each one distinct from the other.
The first was like a lion: The first beast was more majestic than any of the following beasts (lions and eagles are “kings” of their realms). But this majestic beast was humbled (wings were plucked off) and made human (a man’s heart was given to it).
A little later (Daniel 7:17) Daniel tells us that these four beasts are four kingdoms ruling over the earth. The first kingdom is the Babylonian Empire, represented by a lion and an eagle. This fits in well with the majesty and authority of Nebuchadnezzar in his reign over the empire of Babylon.
Jeremiah used both the lion and the eagle as pictures of Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 49:19-22), and Babylon’s winged lions can be seen at the British Museum today.
A second, like a bear: The second beast didn’t have the majestic bearing of either the lion or the eagle. A bear is slower, stronger, and more crushing than a lion — and this bear had a voracious appetite for conquest (Arise, devour much flesh!).
The bear represented the Medo-Persian Empire, succeeding the Babylonian Empire. In this partnership between the Medes and the Persians, the Persians dominated the relationship. Most think the three ribs represent their three great military conquests: Babylon, Egypt and Lydia.
The slow, crushing armies of the Medo-Persian Empire were well known. They simply overwhelmed their opponents with superior size and strength. “The Medes and Persians are compared to a bear on account of their cruelty and thirst after blood, a bear being a most voracious and cruel animal.” (Clarke)
Arise, devour much flesh: “The command to arise and devour much flesh indicates the extreme cruelties often practiced by the Persians, and the wide extent of their conquests.” (Ironside)
Another, like a leopard: The leopard was known for its sudden, unexpected attacks. This one was especially swift (with four wings), and clever (having four heads).
Each animal is mighty, but dominates its prey in a different way. “The lion devours, the bear crushes, and the leopard springs upon its prey.” (Strauss)
The leopard represented the Greek Empire. Alexander the Great quickly conquered the civilized world by age 28. “Nothing in the history of the world, was equal to the conquests of Alexander, who ran through all the countries from Illycrium and the Adriatic Sea to the Indian Ocean and the River Ganges; and in twelve years subdued part of Europe, and all Asia.” (Clarke)
After his death his empire was divided into four parts (four heads). Specifically, the four heads were Casander, Lysimachus, Seleucus, and Ptolemy, who inherited Alexander’s domain after his death.
A fourth beast, dreadful and terrible: The fourth beast was indescribable, and uniquely horrific in its power and conquest.
Different… it had ten horns: In the ancient world horns expressed the power and fearsomeness of an animal. This fourth beast was so strong it had ten horns.
Different people picture this in different ways. Some suggest that the ten horns were actually two five-pointed antlers, rather than ten separate horns.
In historical fulfillment, the fourth beast represents the Roman Empire, which was the largest, strongest, most unified and enduring of them all.
“There is an unmistakable correspondence between these horns and the ten toes of the dream image (ch. 2), and the mention of iron in the teeth suggests the legs and toes of iron in that image.” (Archer)
Another horn, a little one… a mouth speaking pompous words: Among the ten horns, three are replaced by one horn that was conspicuous for its dominance (before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots), intelligence (eyes like the eyes of a man), and its boastful talk (speaking pompous words).
And the Ancient of Days was seated: The Ancient of Days is obviously God, but there is debate as to if He is specifically God the Father or God the Son. Most believe it is God the Father, and the white garments and white hair stress the eternal character of God the Father.
His throne was a fiery flame: This was a brilliant manifestation of God’s splendor and the fierce heat of His judgment. There seems to be something lava-like in the stream of fire pouring from the throne; it was like a river of vast destructive power.
Its wheels a burning fire: Many commentators say that in the ancient eastern world royal thrones were often on wheels. Yet it is just as likely that they represent the endless activity of God.
A thousand thousands ministered to Him: This describes the innumerable company of angels surrounding the throne of God.
Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him: This describes humanity standing before God in judgment.
Court was seated, and the books were opened: The Bible describes several books before God, and any of these or combination of these could be meant.
The sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking: Here the “little horn” of the fourth beast again speaks pompous words. The final human dictator we commonly call the Antichrist will be characterized by his boastful, blasphemous speech (Revelation 13:5-6).
Because of the distinction between the fourth beast and the horn, some conjecture that the beast of Revelation 13 is not the Antichrist but his government or administration. If this is so, it is a small distinction. To a large extent, a man does represent and personify an entire government or system. When we think of Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, the figures of Hitler as an individual and Nazi Germany as a state are virtually the same.
I watched till the beast was slain… the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: The fourth beast is destroyed and the others may continue, but without dominion of their own. When Jesus sets up His kingdom, the empire of the Antichrist will be completely crushed, yet some nations will continue into the Millennium.
One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven: The title Son of Man was a favorite self-designation of Jesus, used more than 80 times in the four Gospels. He receives all dominion previously held by the beasts and His reign will be permanent.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away: The reign of Jesus does not last 1,000 years — it is permanent. However, Jesus will rule over this earth before it is remade, with Satan bound for 1,000 years.
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Did you read it all? There's a lot more in the commentary. Lions, bears, leopards, and an Anti-Christ with horns... oh my!
Did you read it all? I can recall a couple of "Daniel studies" and sometimes they get really hung up on the four beasts, wings, eyes, and the biggie "who".
I've heard the Lion isn't a lion, it's a lion on a flag.
The bear with the ribs in his mouth... Well people are generally so tired of harping on the lion, the bear gets left behind. He's just constantly hungry [when he isn't hibernating].
The leopard is hardly mentioned in the Bible studies... maybe that's how his jumping onto the scene is so "surprising". After all, we're so tired of animals by the time we get to it, the leopard is just plan boring. We're lulled by incomprehension. Imagine a nation being just boring, under the radar, until it blows a battleship out of the water, or throws a nuke into the sea dangerously near another nation.
And then there's the Anti-Christ.... I've heard it represents a superpower. The commentary calls it horrific. It has iron teeth and it leaves total destruction behind. What are "iron teeth"? And on top of that... It has 10 horns!!!! What's with the horns?
Now the commentary wants us to compare the 10 horns to the 10 toes of the statue Nebuchadnezzar dreamed off. That makes sense, the ten toes were made of iron and clay, just ready to bust apart and bring the rest of the statue down. I've heard the horns are NATO. BUT, there's a twist....
Up pops a little horn, and it knocks out three nations that are in its way. My mind is screaming Canada, Mexico, Panama.... but that's just silly... right? It could be Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran just as well. How about the US, Russia, and China? How about China, North Korea, and Ukraine? Like I said... The commentary calls it horrific.
I'm afraid to mention who the little horn might be. I don't want to call him by his name. I've heard a name bandied around lately.
The lion, bear, and leopard are properly disposed of by God.
And last but definitely not least.... the Anti-Christ is taken out by God.
Check out verse 8. While God is taking His throne, and opening up the books, that little horn keeps on testifying. While God disposes of the Anti-Christ, that little horn keeps on testifying. On top of that, in verses 9-12 the little horn seems to be "reporting" like the combo of CNN, NBC, CBS, ABC, and TBN.
And then verses 13-14 describe Jesus being called to a meeting with God, where He is given His Assignment. Jesus is given dominion over earth forever.
Now look, I'm just an old woman with an online Bible and some online Commentary. I've been to some Bible Studies and I've posted some Bible Studies online. BUT I really don't have a clue. I write what comes to mind and then sometimes, later in the day, I go back and read what I wrote and I think "I wrote that?!?".
So, let me make this perfectly clear... I don't have a clue.
It's a good thing Daniel will interpret his vision in the next set of verses.
Daniel will explain....
The four beasts....
