Daniel 2 & 7: Panoramic Visions

Daniel 2

• :1-13 – Introduces Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.
• :14-23 – Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and interpretation are revealed to Daniel.
• :24-35 – Daniel describes dream.
• :36-45 – Daniel gives interpretation of dream.
• :46-49 – Daniel and his friends are exalted.

Daniel 7

• :1-14,19-22 – The “main facts” (v. 1) of Daniel’s dream is explained.
• :15-18,23-28 – Daniel’s dream is interpreted.

The Symbols Revealed in Daniel

• 2:38 – Nebuchadnezzar (his kingdom/Babylon) is the head of gold.
• 2:39 – The silver arms and chest represent an inferior kingdom who arises after Babylon.
• 2:39 – The bronze belly and thighs represent another kingdom that will rule over all the world.
• 2:40 – The iron legs and feet represent a 4th kingdom that will be strong and will break and crush all the other kingdoms.
  • 2:41 – The feet and toes of iron and clay represent the division of this 4th kingdom, though it will maintain the strength of the one kingdom.
  • 2:42 – Toes partly of iron and clay show that the kingdom will be partly brittle and partly strong.
  • 2:43 – The mixing of iron with clay shows that this kingdom will mix with men, but they will not be able to stay united together.
• 2:44 – The stone that destroyed the statue represents a kingdom established by God to destroy all the kingdoms of the world.
  • 2:44 – The stone growing into a mountain that fills the earth represents the eternal and unbreakable nature of God’s kingdom.
  • 2:44-45 – The stone cut out without human hands shows that this kingdom will not be made by men, but will be made by God.
    
• 7:17 – The 4 beasts represent 4 kings/kingdoms
  • 7:17 – The sea they came out of shows that they will originate from the earth/men (see Rev. 17:15)
• 7:18 – The saints in heaven show that those who are part of God’s kingdom (which is in heaven, not the earth) will have an eternal kingdom.
• 7:23 – The 4th beast represents an earthly kingdom that is different from other kingdoms, and shall utterly conquer the earth.
• 7:24 – The 10 horns on the 4th beast represent 10 kings/kingdoms who will come from this 4th beast.
• 7:24 – The 11th horn is a kingdom that will rise up after the 10, and will be different from the other kings/kingdoms. He will subdue three of these kings/kingdoms.
• 7:25 – The pompous words the 11th horn spoke represent the blasphemies he would speak against God.
  • 7:25 – This king/kingdom will persecute saints and prevail for a time, times, and half a time. He will also attempt to change the times and laws.
• 7:26 – The kingdom of God will destroy the kingdom of this 11th horn.
  • 7:27 – After the destroying of the 11th horn, God, with His saints, will reign over the whole world.

First Kingdom: BABYLON (Dan. 2:37-38)

Scripture	Prophecy	Fulfillment
2:32	Superior dominion, just as the gold is superior metal and head is superior to body	Nebuchadnezzar derived his authority directly from God (Dan. 5:18-19).  Babylon was called golden (see Isaiah 14:4; Jeremiah 51:7).
2:37-38; 7:4	He temporarily will hold dominion of the world.  Eagle’s wings: widespread kingdom (Is. 46:11), rapidly acquired (Jer. 4:13).	Nebuchadnezzar had much success, conquering much territory (see Jer. 27:5-8).  Israel was held in bondage by Babylon for 70 years (see Jer. 25:11; 29:10; Dan. 9:2).
7:4	Eagle’s wings plucked off: loss of former ability of widespread and rapid conquests.  Giving of man’s heart: restoration of sanity and/or a loss of its lion’s heart of courage	God punished Nebuchadnezzar for his pride, and caused him to be insane for 7 years (see Dan. 4).  After Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Babylon does not progress, and many countries began to revolt and prevail against them.

Second Kingdom: MEDO-PERSIA (2 Chronicles 36:20; Dan. 5:28; 8:20)

Scripture	Prophecy	Fulfillment
2:32,39	As silver is inferior to gold, and the body inferior to the head, so this kingdom will be inferior to the one before it.	The Persian king was more dependent upon other people than the Babylonian (Dan. 6:14-15; Ezra 7:14).  The political power of the central government grew weak because of independence of the provinces.  Its wealth and dominion significantly lessened later in its reign.
2:32; 7:5	2 Arms/ Bear raised on 1 side: 2 reigning powers, one is stronger	Persia and Media united together, but eventually Persia became the clearly dominant power.
7:5	As a bear is cruel and uncivilized, so would this kingdom be.	Medo-Persia was notably uncivilized and cruel (Is. 13:17-18; Dan. 6:24; Esther 3:8-15)
7:5	3 ribs: 3 territories thoroughly stripped by this kingdom.	They conquered land in 3 directions (Dan. 8:4).  The particularly conquered Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt.

Third Kingdom: GREECE (Dan. 8:21; 10:20; 11:2-4)

Scripture	Prophecy	Fulfillment
2:32	Bronze shows this kingdom will be inferior in some way.	The kingdom eventually broke down into divisions, and these divisions fought with one another (also, soldiers wore bronze).
2:32	Bronze extends into 2 thighs: 2 strong empires will reign afterwards.	Eventually, Egypt and Syria would become the two major powers of Ancient Greece.
2:39; 7:6	The kingdom will rule over the whole earth.  4 wings: It will conquer more and do it quicker than Babylon.	In six years Alexander gained the whole empire of Persia, along with mastering many other nations as well.  Alexander demanded to be called “king of the world” and wept when he thought there were no more places left to conquer.
7:6	Leopard is small, spotted, swift (Hab. 1:8), cruel (Is. 11:6), and wild (Hos. 13:7).	Alexander was a small king from Macedon (a small kingdom), but was able to conquer part of Europe and most of Asia in the span of only 12 years, even defeating an army of 600,000 with only 30,000 men.  Alexander was famous for his conflicting personalities.
7:6	4 heads: It will eventually be ruled by 4 different rulers.	After Alexander’s death, Greece was divided into four major divisions, ruled by 4 different successors

Fourth Kingdom: ROME

Scripture	Prophecy	Fulfillment
2:33	Iron is strongest but most inferior of the metals.	Rome would divided and self-destructive.
2:33	2 legs: Divided into 2 empires.	Rome was divided into Eastern and Western Empires at end of Theodosius’s reign (AD 395).
2:33; 7:7,23	10 toes/10 horns: Divided among 10 kingdoms.	At fall of Western Empire (AD 476), Rome broke up into 10 kingdoms.
2:33,41-43	Mixed with clay: a mixture of a foreign substance.  It will still retain its kingdom, but will be weak in parts.	During the fall of the Western Empire, many barbarous nations and peoples entered into Rome and mixed into the Roman kingdom, though it retained its empire.
2:40; 7:7,23	This kingdom will crush all other kingdoms.  It will exceed all other kingdoms in durability, strength, and conquest.	Rome lasted thousands of years in one form or another.  It subjugated Jews, Christians, Persians, Egyptians, and many, many more.
7:19	Nails of bronze: It will incorporate elements of the 3rd kingdom (Greece).	Rome incorporated Grecian elements (e.g. taking some Greeks into the Roman militia)

Historic Fulfillment of These Visions

Note: Using the Bible’s system of chronology, Nebuchadnezzar’s dream/vision was given to him around 524 B.C. and Daniel’s dream/vision occurred around 471 B.C. Whereas many of the events prophesied were not fulfilled until “the latter days” (Dan. 2:28) – hundreds, even thousands, of years later!

Second Note: Before we compare these 2 visions with the history they predict, it is important to observe the different perspectives that Nebuchadnezzar and Daniel had toward the same events. Nebuchadnezzar, who is the epitome of worldly prestige, power, and pride, sees these earthly kingdoms as a “great image, whose splendor was excellent…and its form was awesome.” (Dan. 2:31). But Daniel, the “greatly beloved” servant of God (Dan. 9:23), sees these kingdoms for what they really are in God’s eyes: beasts. And it is the beast image, not the statue, that is carried over into John’s revelation: “I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns…the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion.” (Rev. 13:1-2).

The First Kingdom: Babylon
Scriptures: Dan. 2:32,37-38; 7:4

Prophecy: Dan. 2:32 – This king’s dominion will be superior to the kings who will follow him, just as the head is the highest part of the body, and gold is the most superior metal mentioned. Fine gold shows the glory, excellence, and enduring power of this kingdom. It also alludes to the great wealth of this nation. The head may signify the earliest kingdom, where the lower parts of the body are later kingdoms: “On ancient coins states are often represented by human figures. The head and higher parts signify the earlier times; the lower, the later times.” (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown). Dan. 2:37-38 – God temporarily gave him the dominion of the world*, even though this truly belonged to God’s Son (compare Gen. 1:28 and Luke 3:38, and Psalm 8:1-9 with Hebrews 2:5-8). Dan. 7:4 – A lion is known for its fierceness, strength, power, greatness, dignity, and majesty, and such attributes will be upon this kingdom. As a lion is chief among beasts, this kingdom will be chief among other kingdoms. The eagle’s wings shows that this kingdom will be widespread (see Is. 46:11) and rapidly acquired (Jer. 4:13). The eagle’s wings being plucked off shows that this kingdom will lose its former ability for widespread and rapid conquest. The lifting from the earth and giving of a man’s heart could point to a restoration of sanity and consciousness that they need God (see Dan. 4 and Ps. 9:20), or it could refer to the nation’s losing its lion’s heart of courage and triumph and instead being humbled to mere flesh.

* When the Bible speaks of the “world”, it does not necessarily mean the entire physical world. For instance, Luke 2:1 speaks of a census for “all the world”, when referring to only the Roman world. Paul makes a similar application of this concept of “the whole world” when he is referring to only the Roman world (Rom. 1:8; Col. 1:23). In the case of Daniel 2:38, the language seems to indicate Babylon’s subjugation of the “world” that surrounded the Israelites: “There were other powerful kingdoms in the world at this time, as that of the Scythians; but it was the kingdom of Babylon that reigned over the Jews,” (Matthew Henry).

Fulfilled: The golden head is said to be the kingdom that Nebuchadnezzar reigned over, that is, Babylon (Dan. 2:37-38), which was known as the golden city (see Isaiah 14:4 and Jeremiah 51:7). Babylon flourished during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, where he conquered vast areas in relatively swift timing (see Jer. 27:5-7), its ferociousness compared to a lion (see Jeremiah 4:7 and 50:17). He had unlimited success in all his battles, thereby having full dominion over all the land that he desired to conquer: Egypt, Nineveh, Arabia, Syria,Tyre, and its Phoenician colonies (see Jer. 27:5-8). In Daniel 2:37 he is called the “king of kings”, and so he held many kings and kingdoms under his power and allegiance (see Jeremiah 52:32). He ruled over all the nations in that part of the world, over all their livestock and property, and he even ruled over the wild animals in the field and birds of the sky by demanding that no one could hunt the land animals or birds of the air without his consent. In all these instances we see that Nebuchadnezzar held the power of Babylon, and this was far greater than any power that future Babylonian kings would have (it only took 23 years for the empire to collapse after Nebuchadnezzar died, with nothing of note done by his successors, thus this kingdom is identified primarily with Nebuchadnezzar, see Dan. 4:30). But it was not long after these conquests that Nebuchadnezzar became exceedingly proud and forgot that God alone gave him his dominion (Dan. 4:30), as a result of his pride, God caused him to become insane for 7 years (read Daniel 4) and after these 7 years expired, he recognized that God alone held the true power. After Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, no new progress is made in Babylon, and many of the countries that paid tributaries to them began to revolt and prevail against them. This eventually led to the conquest of the Medes and Persians over the Babylonians. During its reign, Babylon held Israel in bondage for 70 years (see Jer. 25:11; 29:10; Dan. 9:2).

The Second Kingdom: Medo-Persia
Scriptures: Dan. 2:32,39; 7:5,17

Prophecy: Dan. 2:32 – As silver is inferior to gold and the body inferior to its head, so this kingdom will be inferior to the one before it (see also Dan. 2:39) – this would naturally include its riches, power, and victories. As there were two arms, so this kingdom will have two reigning powers (specifically, the Scriptures view the right arm to have greater honor and power than the left, e.g. the numerous references to the power in God’s “right hand” in the Psalms, the blessing of Joseph in Gen. 48:13-14 and the honor and shame of Jesus’ two hands in the parable of the sheep and goats [Matt. 25:31-46], and thus one ruling power of this kingdom should be expected to be more powerful than the other). 7:5 – As a bear is less generous and strong than the lion, but more uncivilized, and equally cruel, fierce, and voracious, so we might assume this kingdom to be the same. The bear being raised on one of its sides shows that one of the sides of this kingdom would hold more power than the other. The 3 ribs in the bears mouth shows that there would be 3 places that would be thoroughly stripped of much of their power and glory. As the bear was chewing on the ribs, it was told to “Arise, devour much flesh!” and thus will this kingdom be compelled to conquer many others.

Fulfilled: The kingdom of the Medes and Persians succeeded the kingdom of the Babylonians (see 2 Chron. 36:20; Dan. 5:28; 8:20), and, according to Scripture chronology, lasted 130 years. This joint kingdom was formed by an alliance between Darius the Mede and Cyrus the Persian (who was said to be a Persian by his father, but a Mede by his mother, and also the nephew of Darius the Mede). Eventually Cyrus would conquer the Medes and become the sole ruler of both empires.

The kingdom of Persia was inferior to the kingdom of Babylon in multiple ways. Where Nebuchadnezzar derived his authority directly from God (Dan. 5:18-19), not from man, the Persian king was much more dependent upon others (e.g. Dan. 6:14-15; Ezra 7:14; Esther 1:13-16). Also, the kings of Persia derived their ruling power from the nobility of their person and birth, whereas Nebuchadnezzar’s power was derived directly from God (Dan. 2:37-38). In addition to these, the political power of the central government was weakened due to a growing independence of the provinces (contrast this with Nebuchadnezzar, whose sole word was law throughout the empire). And though this kingdom was originally larger, and perhaps richer than Babylon, it would later vastly shrink in all ways (peace, prosperity, glory, riches).

Medo-Persia was notably uncivilized, living austerely in their mountains (see Is. 13:17). They were also notoriously cruel and ruthless (see Is. 13:18; Jer. 51:48,56 – “the plunderers”). The Persian laws punished entire families and neighborhoods for the offense of one man (see Dan. 6:24), and the Persian king Ahasuerus was even willing to exterminate all of the Jews based on the statements of one man (see Esther 3:8-15). Cyrus was the principal agent in gaining glory and power to this empire, and he became the sole king of both kingdoms, thereby raising the Persian arm of the empire above the Median one.

Cyrus was initially beckoned by Darius, as well as those from other kingdoms, to help in capturing and destroying many lands. This empire, largely indebted to Cyrus, conquered land primarily in 3 directions – westward, northward, and southward (see prophecy in Dan. 8:4) and though they conquered much territory, they particularly ground and oppressed Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt (of whom Sir Isaac Newton and Bishop Chandler assume to be the fulfillment of the three ribs in the bear’s mouth). This empire of Persia would eventually fall to Alexander the Great, king of Greece.

The Third Kingdom: Greece
Scriptures: Dan. 2:32,39; 7:6,17

Prophecy: Dan. 2:32 – The bronze shows that this kingdom will be inferior in some way to the first two. The belly may point to the excessive indulgence and luxury of this kingdom (see Rom. 16:18; Phil. 3:19). As the bronze of the belly splits into two thighs, so this kingdom will have two primary successors who will flourish in their strength. Dan. 2:39 – This kingdom will rule over all the earth, which probably means the known earth of that time, or the surrounding regions (see footnote under “Babylon”). Dan. 7:6 – The leopard is smaller than a lion or bear and known for its spots, yet it is equally noted as being swift (Hab. 1:8), cruel (Is. 11:6), and never tame – even springing from hiding upon its prey (Hos. 13:7), and such were the characteristics of this kingdom. 4 wings, instead of the 2 on the lion, may indicate that this king would conquer more of the world, and do it quicker, than that of the 1st kingdom. The 4 heads of the leopard signify that this kingdom would find its rule and authority divided by 4 rulers.

Fulfilled: The Kingdom of Greece, under the power of Alexander the Great, succeeded Medo-Persia (see Dan. 8:21; 10:20; 11:2-4). In six years’ time Alexander gained the whole empire of Persia, a great part besides of Asia, and made himself master of Syria, Egypt, India, and other nations. His soldiers were famous for their bronze armor, and some have thought Alexander famous for drunkenness and the Ptolemies, some of his successors, famous for their excessive luxuries. Though Alexander commanded that he be called “king of all the world”, and wept when he thought he had run out of empires to conquer, it was nevertheless an inferior kingdom in multiple ways: the kingdom became divided and the divisions fought against one another (not remaining united like Babylon and Persia), it was an aristocracy not derived of birth but of individual influence, and perhaps inferior of wealth and extent of dominion to the Persian monarchy (Matthew Henry).

Alexander was a small king from a small kingdom (Macedon) but was able to conquer part of Europe and much of Asia in the span of only 12 years. Alexander had many wise counselors of his father’s around him, though he was rash and hasty – he was famous for his conflicting and inconsistent “virtues and vices”. He was able to defeat an army of 600,000 with only 30,000 men, and this happened within the space of a few years. After Alexander died (being only 33 years old!), his kingdom was divided into four major divisions among four main successors: (1) Cassander gained Macedon and Greece, (2) Lysimachus gained Thrace and Bithynia, (3) Ptolemy gained Egypt, (4) Seleucus gained Syria. Soon, however, Egypt and Syria asserted themselves as the two major powers of Ancient Greece.

The Fourth Kingdom: Rome
Scriptures: Dan. 2:33,40-43; 7:7-8,11,19-25

Prophecy: This fourth kingdom is given the most attention here because nowhere else in the book of Daniel is it mentioned, though it is the focus of much of Revelation. Dan. 2:33 – Iron is strongest but most inferior of the metals. The two legs show that it would be a divided kingdom. 10 toes shows that there will be 10 prominent divisions of this kingdom. Mixing with clay shows that it would have an element of the world and humanity mixed in (as man is constituted of clay, see Gen. 2:7 and 2 Cor. 4:7), in other words, the kingdom will be mixed with men who are not of this kingdom. Dan. 2:40 – This kingdom will be able to crush all other kingdoms. Dan. 2:41,43 – The kingdom will have outside influence, but will remain a kingdom. Dan. 2:42 – This outside influence will make it vulnerable at times, but it will yet stay strong. Dan. 7:7,23 – This is a kingdom that exceeds all others in strength, durability, and conquest. 10 horns symbolize the 10 kings/kingdoms that will inherit this kingdom. Dan. 7:19 – Nails of bronze shows that it will incorporate elements of the bronze kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar’s vision (the 3rd kingdom).

Fulfillment: The kingdom of Rome succeeded Greece, establishing itself as a dominant world empire that would last thousands of years in one form or another. Though Rome incorporated elements of the Grecian monarchy, even taking some Greeks into the Roman militia, and its emperor was chosen by popular military election (instead of by God, birth, or even by individual influence), it would yet go on to be an empire unparalleled in the history of the world. Not only did it utterly subjugate the Jews and Christians, it also subdued and conquered the Persians, Egyptians, Syrians, Africans, French, Germans, and many more (under the influence of many of its fierce rulers, such as Scipio, Pompey, Julius Caesar, and others). Rome was divided into the eastern and western empire in the times of Theodosius (AD 395). When the Western Empire fell, it broke up into 10 kingdoms (these kingdoms fluctuated throughout their history, but have always seemed to generally retain their division of 10)**. At the time of this division, many barbarous nations and people (such as the Goths, Hunns, and Vandals) entered into Rome and mixed into the Roman kingdom (e.g. by intermarriages and alliances). This mixing made Rome very volatile and vulnerable to attacks, yet in some places it remained strong; all efforts of uniting proved vain as many of the kingdoms went to war with the others and joined with the enemies of those they had formerly made alliances with. Since its division into 10 kingdoms, there have been multiple efforts to reunite these parts into one great empire (as by Charlemagne and Napoleon), but none have succeeded. Even to the time of the Reformation, Rome retained 10 kingdoms (though they did not always remain in the same state with the same people, they still were in the same place and within the same empire).

** Different commentators have given different lists of these 10 kingdoms due to disagreements in the time they should be reckoned and what area actually constituted Rome.  In Appendix III of Daniel and the Revelation, Uriah Smith states: 

The ten kingdoms which arose out of the old Roman empire, are symbolized by the ten horns on the fourth beast of Daniel 7.  All agree on this point; but there has not been entire unanimity among expositors as to the names of the kingdoms which constituted these divisions.  Some name the Huns as one of these divisions, others put the Alemanni in place of the Huns.  That the reader may see the general trend of what has been written on this subject, the following facts are presented: – 

Machiavelli, the historian of Florence, writing simply as a historian, names the Huns as one of the nations principally concerned in the breaking up of the Roman empire.  Among those who have written on this point with reference to the prophecy, may be mentioned, Berengaud, in the ninth century; Mede, 1586-16388; Bossuet 1627-1704; Lloyd, 1627-1717; Sir Isaac Newton, 1642-1727; Bishop Newton, 1704-1782; Hales, –1821; Faber, 1773-1854.

Of these nine authorities, eight take the position that the Huns were one of the ten kingdoms; of these eight, two, Bossuet and Bishop Newton, followed by Dr. Clarke, have both the Huns and the Alemanni; only one, Mede, omits the Huns and takes the Alemmani.  Thus eight favor the view that the Huns were represented by one of the horns; two, while not rejecting the Huns, consider the Alemanni one of the horns; one rejects the Huns and takes the Alemanni.  Scott and Barnes, in their commentaries, and Oswald, in his Kingdom that Shall not be Moved, names the Huns.