God’s Vision and Interpretation of Human History: an Exegesis of Daniel Chapter 7
Background for Daniel’s Dream
In Daniel Chapter 7, Daniel is given a great and glorious vision and interpretation of human history, and how his vision will affect the Saints. The first part of Daniel chapter 7 Daniel is given in God’s vision for history (versus 1-14). The vision came to Daniel in 553 B.C44 years after Daniel had been taken into captivity. He first tells us, “that in the first year of Belshazzar King of Babylon Daniel saw a dream and the visions in his mind as he lay on his bed; then he wrote a the dream down and related the following summary of it”. Daniel in a very dramatic dream is given what would be the course of human history. Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has died his son Nabonidus has gone off to Arabia to found a new city where he can gaze at the stars and has left his son Belshazzar in charge of the city of Babylon.
Daniels vision Of Human History
If we were to ask ourselves the question what was Daniels vision for human history? Daniel was taken into captivity in 597 B.C. when Nebuchadnezzar had first come to the city and taken many of the young men captive and in 586 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar had finally destroyed the city of Jerusalem. Daniels vision for human history was the revival of the nation of Israel we know that because in chapter 9 we find that Daniel is praying for the revival of Jerusalem. Daniel as any Jew would have been hoping that God would restore Israel back to its former glory that David and Solomon had raised it to. This vision is shocking to Daniel because it is not a vision of the earthly glory of the nation of Israel but rather a picture of Israel ted by the nations until the end of the age. This was not what Daniel was expecting so it caused him great distress.
If we have the wrong vision of human history we also will be disappointed. God gives us a clear picture of the future where we are going and where we will end up, so that we don’t mistake the journey for the destination. The destination is ultimately the rule of God over the earth and the preeminence of Israel over the nations but in this vision it will not happen the way Daniel expects. Israel will not be restored immediately to its former glory but instead will be a third rate power caught up in the political intrigues of human history.
This is a shocking picture for us as American Christians because it tells us that the goal of human history is not the greatness of America and the coming of democracy to bring peace to the world but this is merely a sideshow on the journey to the fulfillment of the final goal of history which is the rule of God over all the earth. If we don’t understand this vision of history we will be sidetracked by our place in history and so we need this vision just as Daniel needed this vision to see where we are going and what will be the final destination. America will ultimately be destroyed the final beast kingdom that Daniel sees will come and destroy our nation.
St. Augustine had the exact situation in mind when he wrote about in The City of God. The Christian’s of his day’s faith was shaken because Rome was sacked but not destroyed. Christians of Augustine’s day had thought that Rome was the final destination for all of human history. And Augustine reminds his reader that it is merely a stop on the train of God’s plan for human history and that the ultimate goal was the kingdom of God not the kingdom of men.
We also need this reminder or we can become so worldly minded that we are of no heavenly good. We can become so absorbed with our lives with our property with our health with our kids and with the enjoyment of our lives that we forget that where we are is only the journey and not the destination. In many ways this vision is a reminder that we are aliens and strangers headed for an eternal city that is our final destination. Let’s now turn to the vision that Daniel is given for human history.
The Vision the Daniel Was Given.
Daniel in his night vision sees the four winds of heaven stirring up the great sea. Now the great sea can either mean the Mediterranean Sea or it can be a metaphor for the nations of the world. But right from the beginning of this vision we see God over the flow and course of human history, God is stirring up the great sea, God’s winds are blowing upon the nations, God is causing one beast after another to rise and conquer the previous beast. Daniel sees the four great beasts coming up out of the sea each different from the other (verse 3). We are going to see that each of these beasts represents empires that impact the people of God and they extend all the way until the end of the age.
The Babylonian Empire
The first beast that Daniel sees was like a lion and it had wings like an Eagle. How would have Daniel understood this image? Daniel would have immediately understood this as a symbol for the kingdom of Babylon which was currently ruling the world. Every day as Daniel entered the city of Babylon through the Ishtar gate he would’ve passed 120 winged lions on the walls. This image would’ve immediately told Daniel that he was looking at the kingdom of Babylon.
Daniel in this description of the winged lion is reminded of God even over the greatest of rulers. We are told “I kept looking until its wings were plucked off and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on 2 feet like a man a human mind was also given to it”. This is a reminder of Daniel chapter 4 where the “divine” King Nebuchadnezzar is humbled and made insane for seven years until he acknowledges the God of heaven as the true deity. Nebuchadnezzar had claimed to be the divine King of the world but God clipped his wings and reminded him that he was but a man so that Nebuchadnezzar acknowledges who God is and God’s place over the universe (Daniel 4: 28-37).
The Kingdom of the Medes and the Persians
The vision continues in verse five where Daniel sees a second beast arising out of the sea that resembled a bear. This image may have not been immediately clear to Daniel but it is clear to us with an understanding of the flow of human history. The kingdom that conquered Babylon was the kingdom of Medo Persia. This of course Daniel experienced (Daniel chapter 5) on October 29th 539 B.C. Cyrus king of Persia conquered the city of Babylon and took dominion over the Babylonian empire. Daniel is given more detail about this empire that further helps us identify this empire. The bear is raised up on one side which probably symbolizes the preeminence of Persia over Media. The three ribs in the Bears mouth probably represent the three kingdoms that Medo Persia conquered in order to come to prominence in the world, the kingdoms of Libya, Babylon and Egypt. Again we see God’s sovereignty over the nations because Medo Persia is given by God over the world until God’s purposes have run their course this beast is told, “Arise, devour much meat!” God gives the nations their time and their authority and then holds them accountable for the evil that they do.
The Kingdom of Alexander the Great
The next kingdom that Daniel sees is in verse six. In his vision he is given a picture of a leopard with four wings on its back and four heads. Daniel definitely would not have known the meaning of this symbol and would have wandered at the nature of this picture. Again, with an understanding of human history the vision becomes very clear, for the next kingdom that conquers the world of Daniels day is the coming of the Greek empire under the kingship of Alexander the great. Alexander defeats the Persians in three epic battles and conquers the entire known world. At age 33 in the city of Babylon he died suddenly. Upon his , his for generals divide the kingdom into four parts with each general taking a part. Thus we have four wings or the division of the kingdom into four parts, and four heads the four different rulers who took possession of his kingdom. Again we see God’s sovereignty over the nations in this vision because we are told that dominion was given to him to rule.
The Roman Empire
The next empire has been puzzled over by theologians. If you take the secession of empires this would have to be Rome. Rome replaced Greece as the ruler of the world. The problem that many have is how is this beast the fourth and the final at the same time? Rome has long sense ceased from existence. Some have solved this by saying that in the end of times the Roman Empire will be restored. They have tended to look at the European Union and say that this is a fulfillment of the reestablishment of the Roman Empire. This interpretation tends to be very Eurocentric. However the Main problem with this interpretation is that all of the Middle East was also a part of the Roman Empire. In fact the distinguishing characteristics of the Roman Empire over the rest of the empires mentioned previously in the study is that Rome ruled all the way around the Mediterranean Sea. Rome by far is the most powerful and long-lasting empire in human history.
Let us first examined the details and then see how they are to be understood. In verse seven we are told, “After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet and it was different from all the beast that were before it, and it had 10 horns.” Up until the 10 horns this first description describes Rome perfectly. So for now let us set aside the 10 horns and take that up in a later paragraph. Rome is the fourth beast that has arisen in human history in our chronology. Rome was dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong. Woe to the nation who rebelled against Rome, Rome was ruthless in its retributions and its armies for centuries were unstoppable. When Rome marched against an enemy their goal was complete devastation and subjugation. Those who were not killed were taken as slaves to be, part of the workforce that drove the engine of the Roman machine.
How was Rome different from the other four beasts? I believe it is in the fact that Rome was never replaced by another empire. If you study human history many have tried to restore the Roman Empire but no one has been successful in bringing all of the parts that were in the Roman Empire back together again. Charlemagne called his empire the Holy Roman Empire but really only ruled a small portion of what was the Roman Empire.
The Roman Empire first divided into two parts with half of the Empire being ruled from Constantinople and the other part being ruled from Rome. The western part in Rome ceased to exist in the fifth century and was divided into individual nation states. The eastern half of the Roman Empire existed all the way until 1453 when Constantinople was finally sacked by the Turks. Prior to 1453 beginning in the seventh century the eastern part of the Roman Empire was slowly absorbed by the Islamic invasions that flowed off of the Arabic Peninsula after the of Mohammed. The eastern half of the Roman Empire had been all of Greece and the Middle East and North Africa but Islam slowly took away that territory.
This leaves us with a bit of a puzzle how do we understand the 10 horns of the fourth beast. We are told in the interpretation in verse 24 that the 10 horns are 10 Kings that will arise. Therefore we have to understand that in some sense this kingdom would be divided into individual parts. Just as the Greek empire was divided into four parts and we understand that as the four divisions of Alexander’s empire. I believe that the 10 horns represent the dividing of the Roman Empire into 10 parts. One of the problems in interpretation that arises is this pattern has never a merged on the scene of human history. Therefore it is difficult for us to know exactly what Daniel is being told. Either this is a pattern that will emerge later or we are to understand it symbolically (10 can mean the parts representing the whole in Biblical numerology).
Either way we are safe with our interpretation of the fourth beast as the Roman Empire because Rome has been divided into individual parts but the final pattern that is pictured in this passage is yet to emerge. Just look at the map of the world that was formally the Roman Empire and you will see that this time in human history Rome is divided into individual nation states. The final division of 10 just has not arrived yet. The problem with speculation lies in the fact that most who take this as some type of European Union fail to realize that Rome included all of the nations that surround the Mediterranean Sea. Therefore in order for this to be fulfilled the union would have to include most of Europe, Eastern Europe, Turkey, the Middle East, and North Africa. Until these areas are divided into 10 the beast has yet to arrive.
The point is Rome would not be replaced but would remain divided until the time of the little horn when the little horn reunites the 10 parts (whatever they may be) and the power of the Roman Empire would once again reemerge on the scene of earth’s history. This does not mean that the city of Rome will once again be the power behind the empire, but rather Daniel seven has the emergence of the little horn as the one who unites the power of the Roman Empire and becomes the final beast. The problem with taking this passage and trying to understand it in terms of something other than the Roman Empire being divided it makes the chronology meaningless. Especially since were talking a succession of empires. Daniel is telling us there would not be an immediate succession as in previous history Babylonian to Medo Persian to Greek to Roman but there would be a gap when the nations would be divided into individual parts until the time that the little reunites the power of the Roman Empire and conquers the world.
In verse eight Daniel sees something strange in his vision he sees the arrival of someone he calls the little horn we read, “while I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it; and behold this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts”. Daniel sees that the final conflict for God’s people would be with the little horn who reestablishes the power of the Roman Empire. It is very interesting to me that the little horn is not one of the 10 which in my mind communicates the thought that the little horn is not from the original territory of the Roman Empire but is from outside of it and is a foreign entity. Daniel is told that the little horn comes up among the 10 and up roots three. This uprooting of three of the parts that were the Roman Empire caused the rest of the seven to capitulate and go along with the empire building program of the little horn. The fact that he has eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth that utters great boasts reminds us of the fact that he is a mere human ruler. He is not the divine messianic king that we are looking for from heaven.
A Vision of God’s Sovereignty
Beginning in verse nine we are given a vision of God yes the little horn is powerful he is restored the power of the Roman Empire. He is making great boasts about himself telling the world how great he is. In the midst of the pomp and pageantry of the world we are to be impressed with God’s position over the universe and not man’s position over the kingdoms of men. We are told, “I kept looking until thrones were set up, and the Ancient of Days took his seat; His vesture was like white as snow and his hair of his head was like pure wool His throne was ablaze with flames, its wheels were a burning fire. A River of fire was flowing and coming out from before him; thousands upon thousands were attending him and myriad upon myriads were standing before him the courts set in place and the books were opened”.
It is this vision of God ruling over history sitting on his throne that we as believers especially need when we face worldly powers. It is not a false pomp and pageantry of the rulers of this world that we are to be impressed with it is the reign of the sovereign God seated on his throne moving the course of history towards is appointed end. And it is God’s judgment that we must fear and not the judgment of men who can only kill the body but cannot throw the soul into hell.
In spite of the great boasts of the worldly powers of this age we must continue to persevere in our allegiance to the God of heaven because ultimately God will execute his judgment upon them and they will be destroyed by his sovereign power. Verse 11 says, “then I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was slain, and his body was destroyed and given to the burning fire. We can be assured as Christians that the dominion of man will ultimately come to an end and there will be a point at which God’s reign will be executed over the earth and worldly powers will once and for all be destroyed. The little horn’s kingdom will ultimately be destroyed and he will be thrown alive into the Lake of fire (Revelation 19: 20).
A Vision of the Kingdom of Christ
In verse 13-14 we are given a vision of Christ in his messianic kingdom. We read, “I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, and He came up to the ancient of days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed.” One of Jesus’ favorite titles for himself was the Son of Man is what ties Jesus in to this passage.
The disciples were constantly thinking that Jesus as the Messiah should bring in the eternal kingdom and yet in his first coming this was not Jesus is mission it was to bring about the forgiveness of sins through his on the cross. Yet when Jesus stood before Caiaphas the high priest he said, “Jesus said to him you have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you hear after you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven”. Jesus is saying you may put me to today but someday I will come back as the ruler of the world.
God’s vision for human history is ultimately the kingdom of Christ ruling the nations of the world. This is consistent with what we see in the book of revelation we see the coming of Christ kingdom. In essence Daniel seven is a microcosm of the book of revelation in the Old Testament. Just as the people of the Old Testament needed to see that God’s vision was for his messianic kingdom and not for independent rule in Jerusalem we also need to see that the goal of history is not the rule of the United States of America but the kingdom of Christ ruling the nations of the world. If we are going to live in the world we need to remember that history is moving towards the rule of the kingdom of Christ. Therefore our lives are to reflect the thought that someday we will be a part of Christ’s kingdom and that all earthly Powers will be done away with. And Christ will be the only power that will be left in the world.
God’s Interpretation of Human History
Daniel seven continues in verse 15 where Daniel is given God’s interpretation of human history. Daniel was very alarmed by this vision that he is given and he is disturbed in his mind by what he has already seen. In verse 16 Daniel inquires of one of the angelic messengers the exact meaning of the vision that he was just given. The explanation is as follows, verse 17, “these great beasts, which are four in number, are four Kings who will arise from the earth. But the Saints of the highest one will receive the kingdom and possessed the kingdom for ever, for all ages to come.” In essence Daniel is told I have bad news for you but I also have good news for you. The bad news is the four beasts are four Kings who will arise from the earth and will te your people. The good news is God has planned that the Saints would ultimately receive God’s kingdom and it wouldn’t be a temporary kingdom like the kingdoms of earth but would be and eternal kingdom that would last for ever and ever. Daniel is told in essence Daniel you’re going to get the kingdom that you desire but it’s just not going to come on your timetable. There’s going to be some difficulties that God’s people are going to have to go through but in the end it will be a kingdom far greater than any kingdom that has ever ruled this world.
The Meaning of the Fourth Beast
The Angel then gives this explanation of the fourth beast. This beast is a kingdom that will arise and will conquer the whole world because of its great military power. What is different about this kingdom? I believe the difference is that the fourth beast that arises is the first to conquer all the way around the Mediterranean Sea. But in the final phase of this kingdom we will see that through the power of the original Roman Empire the little horn will be able to conquer the whole world. In other words the Roman Empire will be the vehicle for the little horn’s conquest of the world. We see in this that the little horn will not be some subtle conspiracy that will arise in the world he will be a mighty conqueror who will bring nations down not through intrigue but through . So many today are looking at conspiracies to be the final beast, chips under the hand, the tion of global bankers, the New World order, the Masons, etc. However if we take this literally Daniel is clearly saying that the fourth beast will come to world tion through military conquest not through conspiracy.
The Explanation of the 10 Horns
In verse 24 the Angel then begins to give Daniel the explanation of the meaning of the 10 horns. “As for the 10 horns, out of this kingdom 10 Kings will arise; and another will arise after them and he will be different from the previous ones and he will subdue three Kings.”
The question that arises from this verse, are the Kings subsequent or chronological. If they are subsequent then we are looking for the appearance of the former Roman Empire to be divided into 10 parts with 10 rulers in order for this passage to be fulfilled. If they are chronological then we are looking for 10 rulers in a row who will be usurped by another King.
The first argument I would use for these Kings being subsequent is found in the third beast. Just as the four heads and the four wings of the third beast represented the four generals who inherited Alexander’s kingdom so I believe the imagery of the 10 horns clearly represents that 10 Kings will ultimately inherit the power and territory of the Roman Empire.
The second argument that I would make is from Daniel chapter 2 where we see these 10 in the 10 toes of the statue that Nebuchadnezzar sees in his dream verse 44, “in the days of those Kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put to an end all these kingdoms but it will itself endure forever” the Kings that Daniel is referring to are the 10 toes of the statue. Daniel is told in the days of those Kings God will set up his eternal kingdom. So I take it from this that the Kings which are 10 a number are subsequent and not chronological.
Therefore we are looking for the Roman Empire to be divided into 10 equal parts by 10 rulers. In other words this becomes a point of identification for us that we are looking at the beast empire that the Bible has been warning us about. This is why the imagery of 10 is so important all throughout biblical prophecy. Beginning in Daniel two we see the 10 toes of Nebuchadnezzar statue, and moving onto the book of revelation we see that the beast of revelation chapter 13 has 10 horns and 10 crowns on his horns. This is something that we are to look for so that we will know that we are dealing with the beast that God has been warning us about all throughout biblical prophecy.
The problem is that many today speculate and try to guess what the meaning of the 10 horns may be rather than using them as a point of identification that will become clear when you arrive at the moment in time that God is speaking of. Biblical prophecy is meant to give warning and becomes clearer when the fulfillment arrives. To spend our time speculating as to what possible structure could be the meaning of the 10 is pointless. When the former Roman Empire is divided into 10 equal parts you will know that you are looking at the final phase of the fourth beast that Daniel seven is warning us about.
The Little Horn
The final actor in our drama is the little horn. He comes along at the time that the 10 are on the scene of world history and he subdues three Kings. We have already seen that he is not one of the 10, but Daniel tells us that he is different from the previous ones. This I believe is another indication that he is an outsider conquering what was formally the Roman Empire. He is not like the 10 Kings who are ruling the power of the Roman Empire, but will be something other than Western in his outlook. Whatever he has will make him distinct from the Roman Empire that he is subduing and using as a vehicle for world conquest.
In order to come to power he will conquer three of the 10 rulers and the rest will capitulate. In Revelation 13: 4 the people of the world are recorded as saying, “who is like the beast, who is able to wage war with him”. His military power will impress the other seven Kings so much that they willingly give their power and authority to the little horn. Revelation 17 speaks of these 10 Kings in verse 12 where we read, “That 10 horns which you saw are 10 Kings who have yet received a kingdom, but they will receive authority as Kings with the beast for one hour they have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast”. Once the 10 horns are sufficiently impressed with the power of the beast they will give him their complete allegiance to accomplish his purposes.
Daniel is given some characteristics of this little horn that were not previously given in the vision. He is told in verse 25, “He will speak out against the most high and wear down the Saints of the highest one, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law’s and they will be given into his hand for time, times, and a half a time”. We are told five things that this little horn will do. First he will speak out against the most high. This is a reference to the fact that he will oppose the God of the Bible. In the book of revelation we are told that this little horn will set himself up as the object of worship and the world will worship him.
He will not only set himself up against God himself but he will become the arch enemy of the Saints. Daniel tells us that he will wear down the Saints of the highest. From an Old Testament perspective we would have to say first of all that he will be anti-Semitic but also from a New Testament perspective we can understand that Christians are in view here as well. This theme of the persecution of the Saints is continued in many other passages in the Bible, such as: Matthew 24: 9-13, Revelation 12:17, 13:7. In this passage is perfectly pictured in revelation chapter 12 where we have Satan’s hatred of the Jewish people and his wrath against Christians. Satan will use the beast to try to destroy the Jews and to persecute the church before Christ comes back.
He will oppose God’s law and try to change the calendar. In other words he is going to have a different system of law and a different system of keeping time than what has been commonly understood. Probably Western law which is based upon the Bible will be replaced with some other system of law that will be different from the one that is commonly accepted. The Roman calendar that we all follow will be replaced with a different system of keeping time that will not begin with the birth of Christ, but will begin with some other date.
What I find interesting at this point is that Islam fits this perfectly. Islam has a different set of laws called sharia law which is different from the law which is based upon the Bible. Their calendar dates from the day in which Mohammed became a political leader and so they have a completely different system of keeping time.
Daniel is given the duration of his rule when he is told, “and they will be given into his hands for a time, times, and a half a time.” This same construct is used in Revelation 12:14 where it speaks of the amount of time that Israel is protected in the wilderness out of Satan’s reach. This phraseology is prophetic speak for 3 1/2 years. Time equals one, times equals two, and a half a time equals one half year and when you total little all up to equals 3 1/2 years. This time frame is often used in biblical prophecy as we just saw it is used for the time. That the woman who is Israel is protected in the wilderness but revelation 13:5 gives it as the duration of the beast rule. There we are told “that the beast will have authority to act for 42 months” or 3 1/2 years. We are told here the duration at the Saints will have to endure the little horn will be 3 1/2 years.
After the 3 1/2 years God will take away the power of the little horn and he will be annihilated and destroyed forever. Worldly powers only have a short time on the world stage and then they are gone. They make great boasts they threaten the people of God and try to remove us from our allegiance to God but here we are reminded that their duration is short and in the end God will always decide in favor of his people. Therefore no matter what comes our way we must stand firm in the truth that God is given to us and not let any worldly power move us away from our relationship to him.
The Saints Will Rule
God’s final point of interpretation is that once all of the evil powers of this age are finally destroyed the Saints will be given dominion over the world. In verse 27 we are told, “then the sovereignty, the dominion and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the Saints of the Highest One; his kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom and all the dominions will serve and obey him.” This is the beautiful truth that we have to look forward to God will ultimately decide in favor of us and will give us dominion over the nations. The Bible says that we will rule and reign with Christ and we can trust that this will come about. In the end all dominion and authority and power will belong to God alone and those who have live for his glory in the world.
Posted by swenner64 
Posted by swenner64 