First Three Beasts
In a dream, Daniel saw “four beasts ascending” from a chaotic sea. Each corresponded to one of the four parts of the “great image” that Nebuchadnezzar saw previously in his dream of a great image with a head of gold, a torso of silver, brass thighs, and legs of iron and clay. Daniel’s vision of four creatures utilizes that same fourfold structure.
The “head of fine gold” in
Nebuchadnezzar’s earlier dream represented his reign over the Neo-Babylonian
Empire. Each of the image’s four sections represented a different kingdom,
beginning with Babylon. Likewise, in Daniel’s dream, Babylon is the first of
the four “beasts” that he saw “ascending from the sea.”
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[Photo by Johannes Plenio on Unsplash] |
When Daniel interpreted the king’s dream, he identified the “head of gold” by name but not the three subsequent kingdoms. Moreover, the clues from his interpretation are too few and ambiguous to link them to any known empire from history with certainty.
THE DREAM
Likewise, in Chapter 7 of Daniel,
the identities of the second, third, and fourth “beasts” are elusive, though
more details are provided than in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. But there is little
doubt that the first “beast” is Babylon - (Daniel 2:37, 7:1-8).
Daniel received this vision in the “first
year of Belshazzar” when Babylon was still the dominant power in the region.
Belshazzar was the regent who governed the city for his father, King Nabonidus
(556-539 B.C.). He was killed when the city fell to the “Medes and Persians”
in October 539 B.C.
In his dream, Daniel saw “visions of his head upon his bed.” This
description is a verbal link to the earlier dream received by
Nebuchadnezzar:
- (Daniel 2:28-29) – “There is a God in heaven that reveals secrets, and he has made known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed are these; as for you, O king, your thoughts came upon your bed, what should come to pass hereafter.”
In Daniel’s dream, the “four winds of
heaven” were agitating the surface of the sea, symbolizing restive nations
and peoples. The Aramaic text describes the winds as “bursting forth upon
the great sea,” and this suggests that the turbulence was caused by the
emergence of the “four beasts” from the sea.
The Aramaic verb rendered “ascending”
is an active participle, denoting action in progress. It describes the
process of the four creatures “ascending” out of the sea in quick succession
- (Daniel 7:17, 8:8, 11:14, Revelation 7:1-3, 17:15).
The first three were unnatural and
composite creatures, each with characteristics from disparate animal species.
For example, the lion had “eagle wings.” And each was driven by
animalistic voracity to seize and devour prey.
FIRST THREE BEASTS
The “winged lion” corresponds to the
“head of gold” in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. It represents his domain. Daniel
is familiar with the writings of the prophet Jeremiah who also used lions and
eagles to symbolize Babylon, a swift and voracious conqueror - (Jeremiah
4:13, 25:9-14, 49:19-22, Daniel 9:1-2).
In its art and architecture, lions
represent the glory and might of Babylon. One of its most important deities was
Ishtar, the goddess of love and war. She closely resembled the Canaanite deity
Ashtoreth (Astarte), and later she became identified with the Greek
goddess Aphrodite. Her symbols included the lion, and she was linked to
the planet Venus. Old Testament references to the “Queen of Heaven” have
this goddess in view - (Jeremiah 7:18, 44:18).
The lion is a powerful predator. In the
passage, its wings point to the rapidity of its movement, and their removal indicates the curtailment
of that movement. Nebuchadnezzar conquered vast territories in only a few short
years, but the rapid expansion of his Neo-Babylonian Empire ceased after his
death.
The second beast appeared “like a bear,”
but with one side raised higher than the other. It corresponds to the silver
portion of the earlier image, the torso and arms that were “inferior” to
the head of “fine gold.”
The bear is as strong as the lion but lacks
agility. It is a more ponderous creature. Its two sides parallel the two arms
of the silver torso, and this suggests a divided kingdom. In Daniel’s dream, he
does not see a bear rearing up on its hind legs, but one that elevates its feet
on either side as it steps forward - (Daniel 2:32, 2:39).
The bear was gripping “three ribs in its
teeth.” This points to prey that is seized by a ravenous animal. Whether
the number “three” is literal or symbolic is not clear. The bear is
commanded to “rise and consume much flesh,” presumably, a summons to the
kingdom represented by the bear to launch further conquests.
The third “beast” resembled a
leopard with four wings and four heads. The “dominion given to it” is a link
to the third section of Nebuchadnezzar’s “great image” that was destined
to “rule over all the earth” - (Daniel 2:39).
The leopard was also an agile predator, and,
once again, its wings suggest speed. Wings normally occur in pairs, and
therefore, the number “four” indicates two pairs of wings, possibly
pointing to motion in the four directions of the compass.
Its four “heads” were not connected
to its wings. Elsewhere in the book, “heads” represent kings and
their realms. The four heads are grouped together, suggesting they are
contemporaneous and not consecutive, as well as a fourfold division of the
kingdom - (Daniel 2:32-38, 7:20).
The information provided on the first three
beasts is minimal and allusive. As will become apparent, the focus of Daniel’s
dream is on the monstrous fourth “Beast,” especially its “little horn
with a mouth speaking great things.”
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