Daniel 7 Beasts

Before beginning, note that most believe Daniel 2 and Daniel 7 are equivalent - meaning, Daniel, in chapter 7, is retelling the story of the four kingdoms of Nebuchadnezzar's statue in chapter 2.  In other words, the four kingdoms between the two chapters are identical.

Admittedly there are notable similarities, but I do not believe he is retelling the same story.  I may mention the similarities below, but these are clearly four kings/kingdoms that will arise, and exist at the same time, in the end.

This is one thing I agree with Chris White on, and he has already written it so concisely:

If you take the beasts in Daniel 7, that is a lion with wings, a bear, a four headed leopard, and a ten-horned beast, and you combined them all into one beast, you would have a seven-headed ten-horned beast with characteristics of a bear, a leopard and a lion, exactly what we see in Revelation 13.  White, Chris. Daniel - A Commentary (p. 113). CWM Publishing. Kindle Edition. 

[Rev 13:1-2 LSB]  And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore. Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names. [2]  And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority.

Below, I'll list some of the traditional beliefs (maybe some non-traditional), but I DO NOT believe these kingdoms are related to the statue kingdoms of Daniel 2.

Yahweh's Judgment on Israel:

[Hos 13:7-8 LSB]  So I will be like a lion to them; Like a leopard I will lie in wait by the wayside. [8]  I will encounter them like a bear robbed of her cubs, And I will tear open the chest enclosing their heart; There I will also devour them like a lioness, As a beast of the field would rip them open.

The events in Hosea, may be echoed here in Daniel (and Revelation), suggesting that the represented beasts are in some way expressions of Yahweh's intentionality with Israel.

Daniel 7 is focused on the expectation of an eternal dominion by the earthly representatives of Yahweh.

[Dan 7:18 LSB]  ‘But the saints of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, for all ages to come.’

The sea is often referred to as a symbol of chaos, and/or the multitudes of mankind.

[Dan 7:3 LSB]  And four great beasts were coming up from the sea, different from one another.

Something really interesting to notice is that the first and third beasts are types of "feline-birds"... meaning, "lion with eagles wings" and "leopard with bird wings".  If we equate both of these back to the statue in Daniel 2 we find that the first and third (Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus) were both authorized by Yahweh. 

Nebuchadnezzar - (Dan 2:37–38; 4:1–3 [3:31–33]; 5:18–22).

Cyrus - (Isa 44:24–45:8; Ezra 1:1–4), and later the Persians - (Ezra 6:1–12; Neh 2:1–8).

There's another similarity also - the first, "lion with eagles wings" is more noble than that of a "leopard with birds wings".  So, again in Daniel 7, we notice a progression of types as seen in the statue of Daniel 2.

Beasts two and four are a different story though.  They're both characterized as violent.  While Darius the Mede wasn't noted as being particularly violent, the nation of Media is portrayed in Scripture as violent (Isa 13:17; Jer 51:11, 28).  The fourth kingdom in both Daniel 2 & 7 are excessively violent and here in Daniel 7 they both have threatening teeth.

While the above are interesting similarities, these four beasts (kings/kingdoms) will all arise together in the same future timeframe, prior to the return of King Yeshua:

[Dan 7:17 LSB]  ‘These great beasts, which are four in number, are four kings who will arise from the earth.

Three of them will survive, after the return of Yeshua, for yet another purpose of Yahweh:

[Dan 7:12 LSB]  As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was given to them for an appointed season of time.

The First Beast

[Dan 7:4 LSB]  The first was like a lion and had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man; and a heart of a man was given to it.

Babylon has been described as a lion elsewhere in Scripture:

[Jer 4:7 LSB]  A lion has gone up from his thicket, And a destroyer of nations has set out; He has gone out from his place To make your land a desolation. Your cities will be turned into ruins Without inhabitant.

[Jer 50:17 LSB]  Israel is a scattered flock; the lions have banished them away. The first one who devoured him was the king of Assyria, and this last one who has broken his bones is Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.

Nebuchadnezzar also described as "a great eagle":

[Eze 17:3 LSB]  and you will say, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “A great eagle with great wings, long pinions, and a full plumage of many colors came to Lebanon and took away the top of the cedar.

Again, speaking of the Chaldeans (Babylon):

[Hab 1:8 LSB]  Their horses are swifter than leopards And sharper than wolves in the evening. Their horsemen come galloping; Their horsemen come from afar; They fly like an eagle swooping down to devour.

The plucking of the wings have been seen as a removal of power.  Others have said it seems to be alluding the humanization as seen in the rest of the verse.  In either event, it is certainly reminiscent of what happened to Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4, when his period of madness was restored to reason.

I think we're more likely looking for a "swift" and "mighty" nation.

[2Sa 1:23 LSB]  Saul and Jonathan, beloved and pleasant in their life, And in their death they were not separated; They were swifter than eagles, They were mightier than lions.

If his wings were plucked, and his heart of a lion - changed to the heart of a man, I would say that this nation would no longer be swift and as bold as it once was.

The Second Beast

[Dan 7:5 LSB]  And behold, another beast, a second one in the likeness of a bear. And it was raised up on one side, and three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth; and thus they said to it, ‘Arise, devour much meat!’

"Raised up on one side" seems to mean that the bear was in a threatening stance.  Some have concluded that it represented the Medes strength prior to Persia, but then being overcome by Persia.  One side may represent one part of the Medo-Persian alliance.

In biblical tradition bears were particularly associated with ferocity and often paired with lions (1 Sam 17:34–37; 2 Sam 17:8; 2 Kgs 2:24; Hos 13:8; Amos 5:19; Prov 28:15; Lam 3:10).  We know that the Medes did join forces with Babylon to finish off Assyria.  The bear is noted as being powerful as compared to the quickness and agility of a leopard.

The earliest Peshitta Gloesses (3rd -5th century AD) specifically comments that the bear is to be recognized as the Medes:

Daniel 7:5 (Bear Gloss Variant): Syriac: ܗܕܐ ܡܠܟܘܬܐ ܕܡܕܝܐ (hda mlkwt' dmdy') Translation: "This is the kingdom of the Medes."

It is clear, that early on, only the context of Daniel was taken into account and they clearly believed the four were:  Babylon, Medes, Persians, and Greece.

The bear has already dug in to his lunch as he has three ribs in his mouth when he's told to "Arise, devour much meat!".  The Persian/Median Empire mainly expanded to the North, West, and South due to geographical barriers in the East (see Daniel 8:4).  I believe this is represented by the three ribs in the bears mouth.

I would also note that almost every time a bear is figured in scripture the idea of it being, as it says here, “deprived of her cubs,” is mentioned. That is the biblical bear is the most ferocious when its offspring is threatened.  White, Chris. Daniel - A Commentary (p. 124). CWM Publishing. Kindle Edition.

Meaning, this nation may be acting out of some form of self-defense. 

The Third Beast

[Dan 7:6 LSB]  After this I kept looking, and behold, another one, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird; the beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.

Again, from the earliest copies of the Peshitta Glosses:

Daniel 7:6 (Leopard Gloss Variant): Syriac: ܗܕܐ ܡܠܟܘܬܐ ܕܦܪܣܐ (hda mlkwt' dprsa) or ܕܦܪܣܝܐ (dprsya) in some copies. Translation: "This is the kingdom of Persia" (or "the Persians").

Not surprisingly, leopards are noted for their speed...

[Hab 1:8a LSB]  “Their horses are swifter than leopards...

They're also patient predators:

[Jer 5:6 LSB]  Therefore a lion from the forest will strike them down; A wolf of the deserts will devastate them; A leopard is watching their cities. Everyone who goes out of them will be torn in pieces Because their transgressions are many; Their acts of faithlessness are mighty.

[Hos 13:7 LSB]  So I will be like a lion to them; Like a leopard I will lie in wait by the wayside.

The four heads and four wings is likely pointing to the beasts universality.  It has also been claimed that it represents the divided kingdom after Cyrus, but none can agree as to the exact divisions.  In Daniel 2 the third kingdom is said to "rule over the whole earth", here the third beast is explicitly given dominion... "and dominion was given to it".

Once again, we're dealing with a swift nation, possibly a swift coalition of nations (four heads).  A leopard with wings is going to be patient but when it's time, it'll be moving fast.

The Fourth Beast

The legs or iron in Daniel 2 represented the divided kingdom suggesting that it referred to the two major successors to Alexander’s kingdom, the Ptolemaic and Seleucid dynasties.

Here is the exact quote for the fourth beast in the same early Syriac Peshitta manuscript tradition (the one that splits Medes and Persians):

Daniel 7:7 (Fourth-beast gloss variant) Syriac: ܗܕܐ ܡܠܟܘܬܐ ܕܝܘܢܝܐ (hda mlkwtʾ d-yāwānyā) Translation: “This is the kingdom of the Greeks / Yawan.”

Here in Daniel 7 we seem to be focusing in on the Seleucid dynasty.

We'll not find a specific animal assigned, just a "fearsome and terrifying and extraordinarily strong" beast that was "different from all the" previous beasts.

[Dan 7:7 LSB]  After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, fearsome and terrifying and extraordinarily strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.

The iron teeth that "devour and crush" remind of the destructive power of the fourth kingdom in Daniel 2.

Notice the phrase "it was different from all the beasts that were before it".

The word for "before" isn't speaking of something as occurring before in time.  It means, the other beasts were in front of it... meaning, they all coexist at the same point in time.

The main difference to notice about this fourth beast is the absence of any controlling Divine authority, or presence.

What is most important in the description, however, is the shift from the divine control over the first three beasts, represented through the use of the divine passive and direct command—and the fact that this different beast acts autonomously, signified by active verbs: eating and crushing and trampling.   Newsom, Carol A.. Daniel: A Commentary (The Old Testament Library) (p. 225). Presbyterian Publishing Corporation. Kindle Edition. 

"and it had ten horns"

Horns are a common figure for royal power in the Bible (e.g., Ezek 29:21; Zech 1:18 [2:1]; Ps 132:17).

We'll see these ten horns again later in Revelation.

[Rev 13:1 LSB]  And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore. Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names.

Again...

If you take the beasts in Daniel 7, that is a lion with wings, a bear, a four headed leopard, and a ten-horned beast, and you combined them all into one beast, you would have a seven-headed ten-horned beast with characteristics of a bear, a leopard and a lion, exactly what we see in Revelation 13.  White, Chris. Daniel - A Commentary (p. 113). CWM Publishing. Kindle Edition.