Daniel 7

Daniel sees four terrifying beasts rise from a stormy sea, each standing for a worldly kingdom, and then a heavenly courtroom where God judges them. One like a son of man receives an everlasting kingdom, and the saints share in it. The chapter shows that however fierce human power looks, God’s rule has the last word.

Daniel 7:1

The vision came near the end of Babylon’s rule, in Belshazzar’s first year. Daniel did not keep it private. He wrote it down, so the Lord’s message would be preserved for God’s people in later generations.

BSA: dream (“vision, supernatural revelation”): This was more than an ordinary dream. God was showing Daniel real things about the future.

Daniel 7:2

Daniel sees the four winds of heaven stirring up the great sea. In Scripture the restless sea often pictures the nations in turmoil. The winds come from heaven, so even this upheaval is under God’s hand.

BSA: churning up (“striving, rushing forth”): The picture is of violent, clashing movement, as the nations surge against one another.

See also: Isaiah 57:20; Revelation 17:15.

Daniel 7:3

Four great beasts climb out of the sea, and no two are alike. The beasts are monstrous, not noble. This is how the empires of the world look from heaven’s side: savage powers that rise and devour.

Hebrew: חֵיוָן (chewan, H2423) — “living creatures, beasts.” This is the Aramaic word for wild animals. It marks these kingdoms as unruly and beastly, though each in its own way.

Daniel 7:4

The first beast is a lion with eagle’s wings. Christians have commonly seen Babylon here. Its wings are torn off, and it is made to stand like a man and given a man’s mind. That recalls Nebuchadnezzar’s humbling in Daniel 4.

BSA: mind (“heart, inner self”): The beast receives a human heart, which means the power is humbled and becomes aware of being merely human.

See also: Daniel 4:34-37.

Daniel 7:5

The second beast is a bear, lifted on one side and holding three ribs in its teeth. It is told to devour much flesh. Many see Medo-Persia here, a crushing power that swallowed its neighbors. The command to eat comes from outside, so even this beast acts only as far as it is allowed.

BSA: gorge (“consume, devour”): The word shows the beast’s greed for conquest, which is set in motion by a voice above it.

Daniel 7:6

The third beast is a leopard with four bird’s wings and four heads. It suggests speed and swift conquest. Many take it to be Greece and its sudden spread, later divided among four rulers. Again the text says authority was given to it.

BSA: authority (“dominion, power”): The beast rules only because power was given to it. Its strength is borrowed, not its own.

Daniel 7:7

The fourth beast is not named after any animal, because nothing in nature matches it. It is dreadful, has iron teeth, and tramples what is left. It also has ten horns. Christians have commonly linked it with Rome, though some also look further ahead to a final world power.

BSA: terrifying (“causing fear”): This beast produces terror in all who see it. Its brutality is more than any earlier power.

Daniel 7:8

Among the ten horns a small one rises and uproots three. It has human eyes, which suggests cunning, and a mouth speaking great boasts. Horns stand for power. This is a ruler who starts small and grows proud, setting himself against God.

BSA: arrogance (“boastful, proud, and haughty speech”): The horn’s mouth is full of big talk. It claims for itself a greatness that belongs only to God.

See also: Revelation 13:5-6.

Daniel 7:9

The scene moves from earth to heaven. Thrones are set, and God, the Ancient of Days, takes His seat to judge. His white clothes and white hair show purity and eternal wisdom. His fiery throne on wheels shows that His holiness is searching and that He is always present.

Hebrew: עַתִּיק יוֹמִין (attiq yomin, H6268) — “Ancient of Days, one advanced in days.” The phrase pictures God as the One who was there before all the empires and outlasts them. He has no beginning, while they all do.

See also: Revelation 1:14; Psalm 90:2.

Daniel 7:10

A river of fire flows from God’s presence, and countless angels serve Him. Then the court sits and the books are opened. Nothing is hidden, and nothing is forgotten. God’s judgment is open, orderly and just.

BSA: books (“scrolls, records”): God holds a full record of what people and nations have done, so the verdict rests on truth.

See also: Revelation 20:11-12.

Daniel 7:11-12

Daniel keeps watching because of the horn’s boasting. The fourth beast is slain and burned. The other three lose their power but are allowed to live a while longer. That fits the way the culture and peoples of earlier empires lived on in the ones that followed.

BSA: dominion (“kingdom, authority, control”): The earlier beasts lose their rule, though they are not destroyed all at once.

Daniel 7:13

Now comes a human figure, One like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. Clouds in Scripture belong to God, yet this One looks like a man. He is led before the Ancient of Days. Jesus later spoke of Himself with these very words.

Hebrew: בַּר אֱנָשׁ (bar enash, H1247) — “son of man, one like a human being.” After the beasts, here is a truly human figure. Yet he comes on the clouds, which in the Bible is how God Himself comes.

See also: Mark 14:62; Revelation 1:7.

Daniel 7:14

The Son of Man is given rule, glory and a kingdom. Every nation and language serves Him, and His kingdom never ends. The beasts’ kingdoms are temporary, but this kingdom is received from God and lasts forever.

BSA: serve (“worship, obey”): The service of all peoples is not mere obedience to a ruler. It carries the sense of honor and worship.

Hebrew: פָּלְחוּן (pālĕchūn, H6399) — “serve, worship.” This Aramaic word is used elsewhere in Daniel for serving and worshiping God, so it shows the honor given to this king.

See also: Matthew 28:18; Philippians 2:10-11.

Daniel 7:15-16

Daniel is deeply disturbed. He does what a wise person does: he asks one of the heavenly attendants standing near. God is willing to explain these things to those who honestly seek their meaning.

BSA: alarmed (“terrified, dismayed”): Daniel is not calm about what he saw. The vision overwhelmed him with fear.

Daniel 7:17-18

The angel gives the first answer: the four beasts are four kingdoms, rising from the earth. They are earthly and passing. Then comes the great contrast: the holy ones of the Most High will receive the kingdom and keep it forever.

BSA: saints (“holy ones, set apart”): God’s people are called holy because they belong to Him, not because they are strong.

Hebrew: קַדִּישֵׁי עֶלְיוֹנִין (qaddishei elyonin, H6922) — “holy ones of the Most High.” The plural form of Most High stresses His full majesty. His people are His own, set apart for Him.

See also: Luke 12:32; Revelation 5:10.

Daniel 7:19-20

Daniel presses for more about the fourth beast. He mentions its iron teeth and bronze claws, and the horn with a mouth of boasts. The horn looks bigger than the others, though it started small. This shows how his terror drives him to understand.

BSA: true meaning (“the exact interpretation, the divine significance”): Daniel wanted more than a general idea. He wanted certainty about what God was saying.

Daniel 7:21-22

The horn wages war on the saints and for a time seems to win. This is hard to read, but the verse says it only goes on until the Ancient of Days arrives. When He judges in favor of His people, their suffering ends and their kingdom begins.

BSA: pronounced judgment (“a court decision, conflict or strife”): God’s verdict settles the quarrel between His people and their oppressors, and He rules for the saints.

See also: Revelation 11:15.

Daniel 7:23-24

The fourth kingdom will be unlike all others and will crush the whole earth. The ten horns are ten kings from it. Then another king rises, different from them, and brings down three. Christians have read this in different ways, but all agree it describes a proud, persecuting power.

BSA: devour (“consume, eat up”): The kingdom takes and uses up whatever it conquers, like a wild animal feeding.

Daniel 7:25

This ruler speaks against God, wears down God’s people, and tries to change sacred times and laws. He sets himself above both God and the calendar. His hold on the saints lasts only a limited period, three and a half times. Believers differ on how to read that period, but all agree it is short and fixed.

BSA: oppress (“wear out, harass”): The pressure on the saints is steady and grinding, meant to wear them down.

See also: Revelation 12:14; 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4.

Daniel 7:26

Then the court sits again. The ruler’s power is taken away and destroyed for good. However strong and loud the persecutor is, his end is certain. God’s justice is not defeated by a tyrant’s success.

BSA: court (“judgment, seat of authority”): The court shows that the final word is a legal one, spoken by God from His throne.

Hebrew: דִּינָא (dīnā, H1780) — “judgment, court.” This is the same Aramaic word found in Daniel’s name, which sounds like God’s judging. Daniel’s very name points to the theme of this chapter.

Daniel 7:27

The chapter ends in glory. The rule and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven are given to the saints of the Most High, and His kingdom is everlasting. All rulers will serve and obey Him. Those who suffered under the beasts end up sharing in Christ’s reign.

BSA: obey (“hear and follow, be subject to”): True obedience begins in listening to the King, and then following what He says.

See also: Luke 1:32-33; 2 Timothy 2:12.

Daniel 7:28

The vision ends, but Daniel is shaken. His face goes pale, and he keeps the matter in his heart. A great revelation can bring awe and even fear. He treasures what he has learned and carries it quietly before God.

BSA: pale (“changed, was altered”): The vision changed Daniel’s very look. What he saw left him physically shaken.