Daniel 7: Four Great Beasts

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. — Daniel 7:1

What did Belshazzar’s dream mean? Let’s look at it verse by verse.

Daniel 7:2-4

2 Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea.

3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.

4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.

  • The first beast represents the Babylonian empire. Nebuchadnezzer, in Daniel 5, was made like a beast and then restored by Yah.

    • Daniel 5:20-22

      20 But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him:

      21 And he was driven from the sons of men; and his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses: they fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; till he knew that the most high God ruled in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will.

      22 And thou his son, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all this;

    • Daniel 4: 33-37

      33 The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws.

      34 And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation:

      35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

      36 At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.

      37 Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

Daniel 7:5

And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh.

  • This beast represents the Medo-Persian empire, a dual empire, in which the Persians eventually became more dominant than the Medes when “In 553 BC, Cyrus the Great, King of Persia, rebelled against his grandfather, Astyages, King of the Medes, and won a decisive victory over him in 550 BC. After this, the Medes were now subject to their close kin, the Persians, who now ruled over -- and expanded -- the Medo-Persian Empire. When Cyrus conquered Babylon in 539 BC, the Medes and the Persians took over the territory of Neo-Babylonia and ruled over the largest empire so far known in the West.” (Source: Jesuswalk.com)

Assyrian and Babylonian Human-headed winged lion (lamassu) Source: Metmuseum.org

Map of the Medo-Persian Empire (Source: Jesuswalk.com)

Daniel 7:6

After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it.

  • This beast represents the Greek empire, led by Alexander the Great, who is often depicted sitting on a leopard skin saddle. (Pictured below)

Alexander The Great N(356-323 BC) Mounted On Bucephalus His Favorite Horse Wood Engraving German 19th Century Poster Print

Daniel 7:7-8

7 After 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.

8 I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.

  • The beast represents Rome.

  • A horn according to Daniel 7 is a kingdom as stated in Daniel 7:24:

    “And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.”

  • The little horn is Vatican city.

    • According to Legalclarity.com :

      “Vatican City became its own country through a 1929 treaty with Italy that resolved a nearly 60-year standoff over papal territory. At just 0.44 square kilometers (0.17 square miles), it is the smallest independent state in the world, created specifically so the Catholic Church’s leadership could operate free from any nation’s political control.”

Map of Vatican City (Source: Britannica.com)

  • According to Daniel 2 the iron represents it’s form of rule as seen in Daniel 2:40:

    “And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.”

  • In scripture, clay represents mankind :

    • Isaiah 64:8

      But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.

    • 2 Corinthians 4:7

      But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

    • Job 10:8-9

      8 Thine hands have made me and fashioned me together round about; yet thou dost destroy me.

      9 Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay; and wilt thou bring me into dust again?

    • Isaiah 45:9

      Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands?

  • The fatal wound occurred when in 1798 “On direct orders from Paris, French troops led by General Louis-Alexandre Berthier invaded Rome, effectively ended the Papal States, and arrested the ageing Pope Pius VI.” (Source: Historyskills.com)

  • Daniel 7:8 mentions it will have the eyes of a man. See Revelation 13:18:

    “Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.”