That is, it shall be taken away; it shall come entirely to an end. Access 50+ premium resources. vision. display. John Gill's Exposition of the Bible is in the public domain and may be freely used and distributed. 19Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; 20And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows. The second like a bear, three ribs in its mouth, the Medo-Persian Empire. But yet it has a further reference, and foretels the like persecuting power and rage in Rome heathen, and no less in Rome papal, against the Christian religion, that was in Antiochus against the pious Jews and their religion. It is commonly by some symbol; some mark; some peculiarity of the time or age referred to, that the designation is made, or by some symbol that may be understood when the event has occurred. He has a joyful prospect given him of the prevalency of God's kingdom among men, and its victory over all opposition at last. grew from the beast among It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. 'The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. 16I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. First, Daniel watches four beasts rise out of a stormy sea. 23Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. [1] Why use an image of a beast you ask? And so he told me, and he made me know the interpretation of the things. reliance on engineering and technology to apply its might. The great beasts from the sea were four kings, which shall arise from the earth (Dan 7:17-18). There would be the exercise of some kind of authority in regard to existing times for festivals, or other occasions, and to existing laws, and there would be a purpose so to change them as to accomplish his own ends. (c) It would be small at first - as was the horn Daniel 7:8, and we are to look for the fulfillment in some power that would be feeble at first. As there is no larger natural period than a year - no cycle in nature that is so marked and obvious as to be properly suggested by the word time, it cannot be supposed that any such cycle is intended. For while we have been looking at what mankind is plotting on earth, there is a whole different plan being hatched in heaven and the schemes of the antichrist are soon to be dramatically interrupted by the King of kings and the Lord of lords! Coming to the Ancient of days and receiving the authority, the dominion, the glory, the kingdom, that all of the world should rule. Rome is that beast bearing the Whore on its famed seven hills (Rev 17:9). 17These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth. They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast. This was to succeed the other three, symbolized by the lion, the bear, and the leopard. It devoured the three main provinces of Babylon Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt, which are indicated to us by Babylons political organization (Dan 2:49; 3:30; 6:1-2). This passage is important for it gives us more clues concerning this fourth beast. It had eagle's wings that were plucked. And then our attention is diverted to the scroll that is in the right hand of God because an angel is proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to take this scroll and to loose the seals?" And this also refers, (1.) In it they divided the world into 10 regions which they referred to as kingdoms. Well, good question. So Daniel and John had corresponding visions of this throne of God and the glory of the throne of God and the impending judgment upon the kingdom of man. It has a stout look it presumes far more of itself and ruler than other kingdoms. We will later see The first beast is a winged lion The kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ will take the dominion and last forever and ever. What is this same horn that shall prevail so far against the saints?" God shall judge the world by his Son, to whom he has committed all judgment, and, as an earnest of that, he comes for the deliverance of his oppressed people, comes for the setting up of his kingdom in the world. But now going back, we're gonna start dealing now with prophecies or with visions that Daniel received.The first one, here in chapter 7, was when Belshazzar was in his first year as the king of Babylon. Or for a three and half year period will he rule, coming to Jerusalem, and beginning to make war against Israel. It is highly recommended that you use the latest versions of a supported browser in order to receive an optimal viewing experience. [3] History obviously records the Roman Empire as ruthless and violent. [1.] He shall wear out the saints of the Most High; he will not cut them off at once, but wear them out by long oppressions and a constant course of hardships put upon them, ruining their estates and weakening their families. priestly family called the Maccabees. Beasts! The Roman Catholic Church is the great enemy of the saints of God. And that he finally declares that he himself is God and demands to be worshipped as God. 17 These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth. Here we have, I. We have a collective noun here for a succession of kings in each kingdom four sets of successions, as Paul uses woman as a collective noun (I Tim 2:11). It would only be part of that time. I approached one of those standing there and asked him the true meaning of all this. So this vision is of four kingdoms that would arise from out of, and dominate, the gentile nations. Babylon was a majestic kingdom the head of gold with rapid success, which is shown by the lion with eagles wings, regal and powerful (Jer 4:7,13; 48:40). 26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. 2. He is so, and therefore theirs shall be so. The four heads are the four generals who divided the kingdom after Alexander. 7), when more closely viewed, resolves itself into four, with their interpretations, but we shall treat it singly. See Daniel 6:5, Daniel 6:7, Daniel 6:12 (Daniel 6:6, Daniel 6:9, Daniel 6:13); Ezra 7:12, Ezra 7:21. 6. The second beast was a bear, inferior to a lion in glory, power, mobility, speed. [Note: Pentecost, p. And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. "Satan has great wrath, knowing that he hath but a SHORT TIME. There is no room for splitting Media and Persia or Greece and its four sections. So for now, let's have a look at the interpretation of this vision that Daniel is given. These characteristics are the following: (a) That it would spring out of the others, or be, as it were, one form of the administration of the same power - as the eleventh horn sprang from the same source as the ten, and we are, therefore, to look for the exercise of this power somehow in connection with the same kingdom or dynasty. pulled out by the Here the dual identification of the beasts with kings and kingdoms becomes transparent. This fits in well with the majesty and authority of Nebuchadnezzar in his reign At this point in the examination of the passage, the only object is to look at it exegetically; to examine it as language apart from the application, or unbiassed by any purpose of application; and though absolute certainty cannot perhaps be obtained, yet the following may be regarded as exegetically probable: (1) The word time may be viewed as denoting a year: I mean a year rather than a week, a month, or any other period - because a year is a more marked and important portion of time, and because a day, a week, a month, is so short that it cannot be reasonably supposed that it is intended. He will show in His times He is the Blessed and Only Potentate (I Tim 6:13-16). We shouldn't take these things lightly for the vision that Daniel saw greatly alarmed him. For they knew how many innocent persons everywhere perished in every city, a kind of diversion which delighted them; they were fully aware how easy it was to attract all the power of the whole world to themselves, when it was able to put forth neither strength, nor skill, nor power against them. like the eyes of a man and a mouth. It is the total time between the First Advent and the Second Advent of Christ. So as this Rome broke the former empires into pieces and placed governors over them. Sienkiewicza 82/84 Now after the 10 division stage [8] , we read above that 'another king' will arise. Here are just a few quotes - some old, some recent: "By the end of this decade (2000 A.D.) we will live under the first One World Government that has ever existed in the society of nations. a government with absolute authority to decide the basic issues of human survival, one world government is inevitable." Copyright 2023, Bible Study Tools. All other NFL-related trademarks are trademarks of the National Football League. 28Hitherto is the end of the matter. fourth beast has iron teeth and destroys whatever it wants. He watches the beast bearing the little horn cast into the fire the fourth beast! 16 I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. The probably meaning both in appearance and in the way in which it According to And interesting, the four heads, when Alexander the Great died, the kingdom, or the Grecian Empire, did not pass on, because Alexander the Great did not have any children, did not pass on in a dynasty, but actually was divided into four separate heads and four of his generals began to rule: one in Syria, one in Egypt, one in Asia Minor, and the other in Greece. His kingdom is theirs; they reckon themselves exalted in his exaltation, and desire no greater honour and satisfaction to themselves than that all dominions should serve and obey him, as they shall do, Daniel 7:7; Daniel 7:7. It is fair to say that what Daniel saw was pretty full on! The third beast was a leopard, inferior further, but exceedingly fast and harsh. Very few instances can be referred to in which this is done. And that is what we shall look at in the next study! (d) It would grow to be a mighty power for the little horn became so powerful as to pluck up three of the others Daniel 7:8, and it is said in the explanation Daniel 7:24, that he would subdue three of the kings. 'After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. Perhaps it was this that put Daniel into such a fright, and this part of the visions of his head troubled him more than any of the rest. The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. The interpreting angel now granted the prophet more insight about the fourth beast and particularly about the little horn. Another point to note is that from the book of Daniel we find that this 'little horn' (the Antichrist) comes up among the 10 kings and takes three of them out. Every one of these means "The whole Christian Dispensation.". It likewise promises that the gospel kingdom shall be set up, a kingdom of grace, the privileges and comforts of which now, under the heavens, shall be the earnest and first-fruits of the kingdom of glory in the heavens. This could not be shown to be a violation of prophetic usage, or to be forbidden by the nature of prophetic language, because nothing is more common than symbols, and because there are actual instances in which such an interpretation must be understood. "Thus he said: The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it. will oppress Gods people but will ultimately die. Wyraenie zgody jest dobrowolne. The dominion of the enemy shall be taken away,Daniel 7:26; Daniel 7:26. (g) This would be a persecuting power: and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, Daniel 7:25. ; and it would seem to be much more probable that such method would be adopted as designating the time referred to than a literal method. Article Images Copyright 2023 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. about how powerful and wonderful it is (given that it took out three 18But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever. The only question of importance in regard to the period of time here designated is, whether this is to be taken literally to denote three years and a half, or whether a symbolic method is to be adopted, by making each one of the days represent a year, thus making the time referred to, in fact, twelve hundred and sixty years. [3] You may remember from chapter 2 that the legs of iron represented the Roman Empire, but there was also a final stage - the ten toes! descended from Alexanders divided Greek empire. Ogranicza Was jedynie wyobrania. In the last six chapters, he The fourth beast has iron teeth and destroys whatever it wants. Web7 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. This kingdom would be given power over the saints for 3 times. The phrase and the dividing of a time means clearly half of such a period. The person that stood by, the angel, of whom Daniel made his inquiries, and who answered him, as follows: the fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom on earth; which shows that the angel, by four kings, Daniel 7:17, meant four kingdoms, that should successively arise in the earth, and out of it, one after another; and this kingdom is not the kingdom of the Seleucidae, nor the Turkish, but the Roman empire; for this is to continue until the kingdom of Christ takes place; see Daniel 7:7: which shall be diverse from all kingdoms; from the kingdoms and monarchies that were before it; particularly as a kingdom, in its form of government, both when Pagan and when Papal; see Daniel 7:7: and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces: not the whole land of Judea only, as some read and interpret it; but the whole world, which the Romans became masters of; and the phrases used denote the destruction and desolation they made, wherever they carried their arms, and the cruelty and tyranny they exercised, and the vast profusion of blood made by them, both among the Heathens they subdued, and the Christians they persecuted. 7After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. The four winds of heaven represent the Providence of God in the affairs of men (Jeremiah 49:36; Ezekiel 37:9; John 3:8). Three And I beheld [he said] till the thrones were cast down ( Daniel 7:9 ), You remember in Nebuchadnezzar's vision, the stone hit the feet in its the stone hit the image in his feet and the image crumbled; it was cast down. The interpretation of the fourth beast 7:23-25. But Gods people triumphed and the kingdom of God remained unconquerable, whereas the Roman Empire crumbled and even the most brutal of its emperors was destroyed. The fourth and final beast that Daniel sees is the most dreadfulterrifying and frightening and very powerful ( Daniel 7:7 ). It was characterized by dreadful and terrible strength exceedingly. And again (Daniel 7:27; Daniel 7:27), The kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heavens, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High. And as there is so much particularity in the language used here, a time, and times, and half a time, it is to be presumed that some definite and marked period is intended, and that it is not time in general. You see, our story has taken us out to the end of Daniel's life during the reigns of Darius and Cyrus, the Medo-Persian kings. As God is again revealing the four world-dominating empires. The Old Testament generally uses this term to refer "to the entire territory of the Near and Middle East that in any way relates to the Holy Land." One horn grows larger than the others and is boastful. We are studying Second Thessalonians, and this chapter will help understand the second chapter there. "So I beheld until these thrones, the ten kings, were cast down.". But the full accomplishment of this will be in the everlasting happiness of the saints, the kingdom that cannot be moved, which we, according to his promise, look for (that is the greatness of the kingdom), the crown of glory that fades not away--that is the everlasting kingdom. The leopard represents the size and rapidity with which Greece conquered. He observes the blasphemous words of the little horn, which had a mouth. survives its rage. The design of Satan has been to wear out the saints of the Most High, that they may be no more in remembrance; but the attempt is vain, for while the world stands God will have a church in it.