Daniel
Chapter 7
THE VISIONS
First: The Four Beasts
During the first year of King Belshazzar of Babylon’s reign, Daniel had a dream and visions while he was sleeping. When he woke up, he recorded the dream. This is how the story begins:
Daniel said: “I saw in my vision that the four winds of heaven stirred up the great sea,
and four great beasts, each different from the others, came out of the sea.
The first was like a lion with eagle’s wings. As I looked at it, its wings were torn off. It was lifted from the ground, stood up on its feet like a man, and was given a human heart.
The second was a beast like a bear; it was raised on one side and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told: ‘Go and devour much flesh.
I kept watching and saw another beast like a leopard with four wings on its back; it had four heads and dominion was given to it.
I kept seeing my visions at night and saw a terrifying fourth beast. It was frightening and incredibly powerful; it had large iron teeth; it ate, tore into pieces, and crushed whatever was left underfoot. It was different from the previous beasts and had ten horns.
I was looking at the horns when another small horn appeared among them, and three of the original horns were pulled out by the roots to make room for the new one. It had eyes like a human’s and a mouth that spoke arrogant words.
I looked and saw the following: Some thrones were in place, and One of Great Age took his seat: His robe was as white as snow, and his hair was as white as washed wool. His throne was made of flames of fire with wheels of blazing fire.
A river of fire sprang forth and flowed before him. Thousands upon thousands served him, and a countless multitude stood before him. Those in the tribunal took their seats and opened the book.
But as I remembered the haughty words of the horn with human eyes and mouth, which I had seen before, this animal was killed before my eyes; and its body was destroyed and cast into the fire.
Dominion was taken from the other animals, though they were allowed to stay alive for a while, until the appointed time.
I kept watching the night vision: One like a son of man came on the clouds of heaven. He faced the One of Great Age and was brought into his presence.
Dominion, honor, and kingship were granted to him, and all peoples and nations of every language served him. His dominion is eternal and will never pass away; his kingdom will never be destroyed.
I, Daniel, was deeply troubled because these visions terrified me.
I approached one of those standing there and asked him to explain what all this meant. He responded and provided the interpretation of these things.
‘These four beasts are four kings who will rise from the earth.
But the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, to possess it eternally, forever and ever.’
Then I wanted to understand the meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from the others—extraordinarily terrifying, with iron teeth and bronze claws; it ate, tore into pieces, and crushed underfoot whatever remained.
I also wanted to understand the ten horns on its head, the other horn that had grown, the first three horns that fell, and this horn with eyes and a mouth that spoke arrogantly, which looked larger than the others.
As I watched, this horn fought against the holy ones and was overcoming them
until the One of Great Age arrived to deliver justice for the holy ones of the Most High, and the time came for the holy ones to inherit the kingdom.
Then I was told: “The fourth animal will be a fourth kingdom on earth, different from all the others. It will devour the earth, crush it, and destroy it.
The ten horns are ten kings who will rise from this kingdom. Another will rise after them and defeat three of the kings.
This king will insult the Most High and persecute the holy ones of the Most High. He will try to change the feasts and laws. The holy ones will be handed over to his power for a period—one time, two times, and half a time.
But judgment will come, and dominion will be taken from him; he will be destroyed and completely wiped out.
The kingship, dominion, and leadership of all the kingdoms of the world will be given to the people of the holy ones of God Most High: his kingdom will never end. All the kingdoms will serve him and be subject to him.”
Here ends the story. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled in my mind. I turned pale, and I kept these feelings in my heart.
Commentaries
The Visions.
In this second part of the book, the story shifts back to the time of Babylonian rule. Now, the narrator is Daniel himself, whose dreams and visions reflect a distinct apocalyptic style. Apocalypticism is a literary device often used during periods of persecution. Through symbolic and complex images, God’s intervention in history is depicted to comfort and reassure His “saints,” referring to those who remain faithful to the Lord and the Covenant amid all the suffering and challenges they face (cf. Rev 1:1-8).
First: The Four Beasts.
The four winds stir up the ocean, from whose depths four beasts emerge. As in chapter 2, four empires follow one another, now represented by the four beasts that, with their military power (winds), stir up the earth and dominate it in all its extent (the four cardinal points): the lion symbolizes Babylon; the bear, Media; the leopard, Persia; and the beast, Alexander the Great. The horns represent destructive power, and the little horn in v. 8 introduces Antiochus IV. The climax of the vision is the arrival of the fifth and final Kingdom of God, symbolized by the “human figure” to whom “the old man” grants all power over the nations (13-14). In apocalyptic literature, symbolic images are used as a means of expression to convey spiritual and invisible realities that permeate the physical world.