In our previous messages, we talked about Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and Daniel’s interpretation of that dream. Almost 50 years later, Daniel had a vision of his own that tied into the dream he had previously interpreted. The vision is mentioned in Daniel 7.

In the vision, Daniel saw four beasts coming out of the sea. The first was like a lion and had the wings of eagles, the second was like a bear, one was like a leopard, and one a beast described as dreadful, terrible, and strong (Daniel 7:1-8). These four beasts referred to the four kingdoms represented by the statue in the dream Daniel had interpreted for Nebuchadnezzar.

God likes to reconfirm messages sometimes. In this case, God was reconfirming what Nebuchadnezzar’s dream statue meant. Instead of using a statue with various metal elements, God used animals to represent the same Gentile kingdoms that would rule the earth. Here is what each animal represents.

The Lion:

The first was like a lion and had eagles’ wings. Then as I looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man, and the mind of a man was given to it (Daniel 7:4).

The first beast in the vision is a lion with the wings of an eagle. The Babylonian kingdom is compared to the lion in the kingdom. Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom is also mentioned as a lion in Jeremiah 4:7 and as a destroyer of nations. In Ezekiel 17:3, this kingdom is described as an eagle with great wings. If you look at the architecture during the time of the Babylonians, the images are of lions with wings. You also see these images on the currency of the time.

The lion is the head of gold in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.

The Bear:

And behold, another beast, a second one, like a bear. It was raised up on one side. It had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth; and it was told, ‘Arise, devour much flesh.’ (Daniel 7:5).

The second of the beasts of the vision looked like a bear. In ancient times, Persia had dominated over Lydia. The vision showed a bear with three ribs in its mouth. These three ribs are the three empires that Persia conquered: Babylon, Egypt, and Lydia. It states that the bear was given orders to devour much flesh, which implies that the massive military under Persia’s control expanded as far as the eye can see and were a strong military force that managed to destroy many people.

The bear is the chest and arms of silver in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.

The Leopard:

After this I looked, and behold, another, like a leopard, with four wings of a bird on its back. And the beast had four heads, and dominion was given to it (Daniel 7:6).

The third beast of Daniel’s vision was like a leopard. The leopard had four heads and four wings. This beast represents the kingdom of Greece who conquered and took the land under the leadership of one man, Alexander the Great. The four heads represent a division of Kingdoms. After the death of Alexander the Great, this kingdom was divided into four provinces: Egypt governed by Ptolemies, Syria governed by Seleucids, Macedonia governed by Antigonids, and Pergamum governed by the Attalids.

The leopard represents the belly and thighs of bronze in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.

The Beast:

After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among them another horn, a little one, before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots. And behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things (Daniel 7:7-8).

This beast is two-fold. We first see the rise of the Roman Empire back in 63 BC. This empire controlled all other empires until 476 AD. The Roman Empire was divided throughout most of its reign. A divided kingdom emerged in Rome in the year 63 BC. A Roman general named Pompey conquered Jerusalem. Many successors followed including Julius Ceasar who was murdered by Brutus and Cassius. Later this kingdom would be conquered by Octavian and Mark Antony who defeated Brutus and Cassius at a battle.

We again see the same beast again in Revelation 13:1-2: And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads,with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. 

This portion of the vision is incomplete and will be complete once the Roman Empire rises again with the emergence of the Antichrist as the leader. The ten horns are the ten kings that will arise from this kingdom. After this, a little horn will rise. This will be a man with the eyes and mouth of the beast who will bring mass persecution to God’s people. Again this will be the Antichrist who will rule the earth with an iron fist and demand that all people worship him and only him. Christians will be martyred in unheard-of numbers.

Eventually, this beast will end up in the Lake of Fire once the stone, which refers to Jesus Christ, returns to the earth to set up His earthly eternal kingdom.

The beast is the legs and feet of iron and clay in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.

The Son of Man:

“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed (Daniel 7:13-14).

After Daniel saw the four beasts, he then saw “one like a son of man” descending from the clouds. The Son of Man is Jesus whom God the Father sent to this earth in human form to pay the debt for the sins of mankind. Jesus was born of a virgin, preached to the masses for 3 years, and then handed over to man for judgment against false accusations. He was tried, found guilty, sentenced to death, and crucified. Jesus was buried, resurrected, and ascended to Heaven to be with the Father.

God gave the Son all of His glory and power and the authority to reign over all creation. Every person on this earth will bow down and worship Him. His dominion is everlasting and His kingdom will never end or be destroyed.

Jesus made His first appearance on this earth over 2000 years ago. Daniel’s vision tells us that we will see a second appearance of Jesus after the seven-year tribulation ends. Revelation 19:11: Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness, he judges and makes war. This verse along with the verses in Daniel is about the second coming of Jesus to the earth to rule and reign.

After the final kingdom of man, Jesus returns to the earth to take on the final beast and to restore order to the earth. After judging the people and the beast, Jesus will set up His millennial kingdom on this earth that will last 1000 years. Another judgment will occur at that time for the people born during the millennial kingdom and then Jesus’s eternal kingdom will reign forever.

The Son of Man is the stone mentioned in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.

Final Thoughts:

We as Christians are still living in this dream and the vision. The final pieces are still left undone and are future events in God’s timeline. Our roots trace back to the Garden of Gethsemane and the road that Jesus walked and was lead to His death hanging on the cross and dying for us. He did all of this so we can have access to the Father now and He paid our sin debt in full. Because of all of this, we can be a part of that everlasting kingdom mentioned in both Daniel 2:44 and Daniel 7:9.

Glory to our Savior and King Jesus Christ for doing what He willingly chose to do for us so that everyone who believes in Him can take part in His everlasting kingdom. Remember that we are already living in that kingdom with Jesus and reigning with Him while He sits in heaven waiting for the Father to instruct Him to return to the earth.

I leave you with these final words from Jesus Himself: He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! (Revelation 22:20).

Be glad and rejoice! Allelujah!