DANIEL 7
23 “Thus he said: ‘As for the fourth beast, there shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, which
shall be different from all the kingdoms, and it shall devour the whole earth, and trample it down, and break it to pieces.24 As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise, and another shall arise after them; he shall be different from the former ones, and shall put down three kings.25 He shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and shall think to change the times and the law; and they shall be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.
26 But the court shall sit in judgment, and his dominion shall be taken away, to be consumed and destroyed to the end.And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; his kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.’28 “Here is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my
thoughts greatly alarmed me, and my color changed, but I kept the matter in my heart.”
– Daniel 7:23-28
DANIEL 7 INTERPRETATION OF THE DREAM
In this account, Daniel gets the interpretation of his dream regarding the four beasts from the angel. Daniel was particularly concerned with the fourth beast. The fourth beast represents a fourth kingdom which is very different from all other kingdoms. According to some commentaries, the Antichrist arises from the fourth beasts in which there will be a comeback of the Roman Empire with a partnership with ten world leaders. Revelations 13:16-17 alludes to this Antichrist and his number is 666. The beast of Revelation 13 has also ten horns and John described it as one that looks like a leopard but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion.
Gotquestions.org says “. The Antichrist will take his position of leadership at the expense of three of those leaders, and he will eventually wield global authority. A true tyrant, the Antichrist will demand worship and seek to control all aspects of life.” It seems to me that the beasts in Daniel 7 are almost the same beast in Revelation 13. Like Daniel’s fourth beast, John’s best speaks proudly and oppresses God’s people. There is a good ending to all of this, the kingdom of God will reign and shall be without end.
REFLECTION
· Why do you think Daniel kept the interpretation of the dream to himself?
