We have now come to another amazing study of Prophecy of the Book of Daniel Chapter 7 Commentary. This should increase your faith in the word of God!
Click here to go to the previous study – Prophecies of Daniel 6 Commentary: Daniel in the Lion’s Den.
Prophecy of Daniel Chapter 7 Commentary
Now we come to the heart of these wonderful prophecies. Speaking to His prophets through dreams and night visions is God’s way of giving truth to His people. God said to Israel, ‘If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.’ Numbers 12:6.
Daniel 7:2, 3 Commentary
Subsequent world history is covered by the prophecy of chapter 7, just as it was covered by the prophetic image of chapter 2. There are these differences between the two prophecies, however:
The prophecy of chapter 2 was intended to be understood by a heathen king; therefore it was very simple. The prophecy of Daniel chapter 7 was intended to be understood by the prophet, his people and the Church, and therefore it reveals far greater detail, and a deeper meaning.
The prophetic image of chapter 2 briefly shows us world history in its purely political forms; while the vision of chapter 7 presents four great world empires in their spiritual significance, as they relate to God’s work and His people. This chapter is relevant for us today.
We are plainly told by the angel (in verse 17 and 23) that the four beasts are symbols of four kings, or kingdoms. In His wisdom, God represents the glory of human kingdoms as purely and entirely of the earth, as animals that have no concern for heavenly things. It is to lift the human race up from thinking only of material things to understand eternal, spiritual things, that the Bible has been given to us.
One hundred years earlier, the prophet Hosea used the same symbols of a lion, a leopard, a bear, and a non-descript fierce beast to describe kingdoms which would have dominion over God’s people because of their sins and their forgetfulness of Him (see Hosea 13:5-8). Had Israel remained true to God, these four cruel empires would not have been permitted to arise as they did. How much depends upon the faithfulness of God’s people! They are ‘the light of the world’, and if that light goes out, how great is the darkness! (Matthew 6:23.)
Daniel 7:4 Commentary
The first kingdom, represented by the lion, is the equivalent of the head of gold of the image of chapter 2, which was the Babylonian Empire. Jeremiah likened the Babylonian army of invasion to the coming of a destroying lion (see Jeremiah 4:7; 21:7). The eagle’s wings denote the speed of the Babylonians’ conquests. Habakkuk said that the Chaldeans’ ‘horses also are swifter than the leopards…they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat’. Habakkuk 1:6-8.
Beginning with the time of Nebuchadnezzar’s mental illness recorded in chapter 4, the empire of Babylon lost its spirit and its strength. When Babylon fell, the mighty men of the empire could not even fight – ‘they became as women.’ Jeremiah 51:30. This weakness was symbolized by the lion being made to stand upright, and the weak, fearful heart of a ‘man’ given to it in place of its former lion-like courage.
Daniel 7:5 Commentary
The bear represents the same kingdom as do the breast and arms of silver of the image, which is Medo-Persia. The raising up of the bear on one side symbolizes the fact that the Medes under Darius were the more powerful of the two tribes at the beginning, but later the Persians under Cyrus took control. There were three great nations that were conquered by the Medes and Persians, and treated most cruelly after they rose to power: Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt.
These are symbolized by the tree ribs between the bear’s teeth. Few animals can be more cruel than a bloodthirsty bear, and cruelty was the outstanding characteristic of the Persian Empire. As we saw in chapter 6, verse 24, the innocent wives and children of condemned men were punished with them. This is something governments don’t do today.
Daniel 7:6 Commentary
This kingdom, symbolized by the leopard, corresponds with the thighs of brass of the image. It symbolizes the Grecian kingdom as established by the swift conquests of Alexander the Great. The leopard is a small animal compared to the bear. Historical accounts vary concerning the size of the opposing forces, but Alexander’s army was much smaller than the huge Persian army that Darius III brought against it ( http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/alexander.htm ).
The four wings show how swiftly the Greeks traveled to surprise their enemies. Alexander was famous for his organizing skill and rapid marching. The four heads show the division of his empire into four separate kingdoms after his death. These will be described in chapter 8, in the comments on verse 8.
Daniel 7:7 Commentary
No animal in creation is terrible enough to be compared with this kingdom! This is Rome, symbolised in chapter 2 by the legs or iron. The ten horns are the same as the ten toes of the image – ten kingdoms which arose from the ruins of the pagan Roman Empire. Pagan Rome was a tyrannical force, seldom equalled in history for its heartless cruelty. She filled her cup of iniquity by taking part in the Crucifixion of the Son of God, and by murdering thousands of the early Christians.
Scripture makes the point that this fourth power ‘was diverse from all the beasts that were before it’, but what does this mean? E.W. Marter helps us understand this: ‘The Roman Empire was not only more powerful than those before it. It was different. They were all monarchies. It was, at first, a republic.’ (A plain man’s guide to Daniel and the Revelation, p.25, Stanborough Press Ltd, 1997.)
Daniel 7:8 Commentary
Who is this ‘little horn’? He is the main subject of this chapter. Surely God’s Word will not hide the truth from us! All the details of the prophecy so far have laid a foundation for our understanding of who or what his power is. This ‘little horn’ power is the subject of many prophecies in the Bible: evidence that God wants us to understand clearly who it is.
It plays a very prominent part in world history. The book of Daniel is no longer a sealed book, for we have reached the ‘time of the end’ when it is to be opened (Daniel 12:4). As we proceed, we shall see how simple and easy it is to understand God’s message in these prophecies.
Daniel 7:9, 10 Commentary
In Revelation 14:6,7, we read an announcement to the world that the time of the judgment here described has already come.
What thinking man can fail to tremble before God when He acts as our personal judge? It will be a fearful time when the angels assemble before Him and the books which record every secret of our lives are opened for divine inspection. It is of this judgement time, when our names will be called for judgement on our lives, that Jesus warns us’…..take heed to yourselves, lest that day come upon you unawares…pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy…to stand before the Son of man.’ Luke 21:34-36.
Daniel 7:11-14 Commentary
Now we can see that the ‘little horn’ is not a political power, because his ‘great words’ are considered during the spiritual judgment in Heaven. The ‘little horn’ is, therefore, a religious power that is opposed to God. It is a great church that is active in the world. It grew to prominence like a branch shooting out of the roots of the old pagan Roman Empire.
Daniel noticed something else very interesting: although the three previous beasts, or world kingdoms, had their dominion taken away, their ‘lives’ were prolonged until the time of the final judgement. Thus, Babylon’s wealth and glory, Medo-Persia’s cruelty, and Greeks subtlety and philosophy are all merged in the great and terrible Roman kingdom; and the ‘little horn’ power has learned his marvellous wisdom from the experience of the four beasts whose wisdom and power live on in him.1
The ‘one like the son of man’ is none other than Jesus, the Son of God, who loved to call Himself ‘the son of man’ because He became on with us, our Elder Brother. The footsteps of Jesus can be traced all through the Old Testament because he is the One ‘whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting’ (Micah 5:2). This coming of the Son of man is not to this earth at His second coming, but ‘to the Ancient of days’, the Father. The Son of man has been despised and rejected. It has seemed that His cause could not triumph. But now He is honoured and vindicated. The One who was spat upon, beaten, mocked, disrobed, and crucified before the gaze of the world is now given ‘glory and a kingdom’ which are everlasting.
This is the work of God’s judgment, which has given Jesus ‘a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow…And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father’, Philippians 2:9-11. God does not force ‘every knee’ thus to bow before Him, nor does He threaten those who do not confess that Jesus is Lord. It is a free, voluntary confession and homage won by the love of Christ. But although all, both saved and lost, will at last bow their knees before Christ, those ‘nations and languages’ which serve Him eternally are the great host of the redeemed (see Revelation 21:24).
Daniel 7:15, 16 Commentary
If Daniel himself was so concerned to understand this prophecy, surely we also, living in these days of trouble, should be greatly concerned about its meaning! Jesus said, ‘whoso readeth [Daniel] let him understand’. Matthew 24:15. We are happy that the angel himself made known to Daniel the meaning of the prophecy. We are not left to guess or invent our own private interpretations!
Daniel 7:17-22 Commentary
Daniel understood the developments signified by the first three kingdoms, but the fourth one, so strange, powerful and cruel, distressed him. What especially troubled him was the change among the ten horns on the fourth beast. The ‘little horn’ was different from the others.
In its rise to power, it uprooted three kingdoms that stood in its way. Daniel understood that this power was the real enemy of the saints of God, because it persecuted them so severely that the Ancient of days sat in judgment upon it in Heaven and said, ‘It is enough.’
Daniel 7:23-25 Commentary
We have already seen that the fourth kingdom, corresponding to the legs of iron of the image, was the kingdom of pagan Rome. Between AD 351 and AD 476 the Empire of Rome was invaded by heathen tribes from the north, who tore it to bits. Ten smaller kingdoms sprang up out of its ruins. Historians generally agree that the seven of the ten kingdoms which grew out of the ruins of the Roman Empire are England, France, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy. These seven remain to this day, but not three others which were ‘plucked up by the roots’: the Heruli, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths.
But who is the ‘little horn’? Is it possible for us to know with certainty!
In South America, some people who could not read or write asked a missionary to send them a teacher. He agreed to do so. ‘But,’ they asked, ‘how will we know that the teacher is really sent by you?’ The wise missionary picked up a stone, broke it in two, gave half to the people and kept half himself. ‘When the teacher comes, he will bring the other half of this broken stone, and you can know that no other teacher in all the world can have a broken stone that will fit your half!’
So it is that the prophecy of Daniel is one half of a broken stone, while history presents the other half, which fits together so perfectly that even a child can see that God’s Word has been precisely fulfilled.
Six clear, identifying marks are presented in the words of the angel: 1. The ‘little horn’ will arise out from among the ten kingdoms of the Roman Empire, but be different from them . 2. It will, in its fight for power, subdue three kingdoms which oppose its ambition. 3. It will speak ‘great words’ (blasphemy – see Revelation 13:5) against the Most High God. 4. It will ‘wear out’, or persecute, the saints of the Most High. 5. It will attempt to change times and the law of God. 6. It will continue ‘a time, times, and half a time’, or three and a half years of prophetic time.
Now let us examine these six identifying marks to see if history presents the fulfilment of the prophecy, as the two parts of a broken stone fit together.
- The ‘little horn’ will arise out of the ten kingdoms of the Roman Empire but be different from them. Rome being the capital of the world, the pastor of the Christian church there came to be looked upon as the leading bishop of all the churches. As the apostasy predicted by the apostle Paul developed (see 2 Thessalonians 2:3-12; Acts 20:29, 30), the Church became more worldly and powerful. False doctrines were received, among them a tradition that Peter had been given sole authority to rule over the Church as the Bishop of Rome, and that the popes were his successors.
They built their ambition on the idea that Christ’s kingdom was indeed a kingdom of this world. They forgot Christ’s words, ‘My kingdom is not of this world.’ The popes determined to put down by force all resistance to their claim to spiritual and temporal authority, and to the right to rule over the nations. Thus the ‘little horn’ is not a mere political kingdom as were the other ten, but a religious power arising from among the political powers and superseding them.
There were five steps by which the Papacy reached the place where it could make this exalted claim (a) the Bishop of Rome was first on a level with all other Bishops, and took the place of an equal brother, (b) then he offered his words of advice as from an elder brother; (c) as the years went by, his words were received as from a father, (d) as the Roman Empire became weaker, the Bishop of Rome (now called ‘Pope’, or ‘papa’ which means ‘father’ in Latin) grew stronger until he was respected as a lord; (e) finally, the claim would be made that the pope was God on Earth.
We quote from the following source to illustrate this progression of power: ‘Another consequence of the fall of the Roman power in the West was the development of the Papacy. In the absence of an emperor in the West, the popes rapidly gained influence and power, and soon built up an ecclesiastical empire that in some respects took the place of the old empire and carried on its civilising work’ – Myers’s General History, page 316.
- The ‘little horn’, in its fight for power, will subdue three kingdoms which oppose his ambition. What does history say? Edward B Elliot writes: ‘I might cite three (kingdoms) that were eradicated from before the pope out of the list first given, viz., the Heruli, under Odoacer, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths.’ Horae Apocalypticae, vol. III, page 134, note 1.
Odoacer, king of the Heruli, like the other two kingdoms uprooted, opposed the claims of the Papacy. The new king of the Ostrogoths, Theodoric, conquered Odoacer and his soldiers. But the friends of the Papacy were soon sorry to find that Theodoric was also opposed to the Papacy.The papacy then turned to become the determined enemy of Theodoric and the Ostrogoths. At the same time, a third hostile kingdom form North Africa threatened the Papacy; that is, the Vandals.
Something had to be done!
In AD 533 the Emperor Justinian of the East made a decree in which he exalted the Pope to be the head of all the churches. To make effective this new decree, he sent his general Belisarius with an army into Africa to crush the opposing Vandals. The next year he succeeded. The same general then fought against the Ostrogoths, finally driving them out of Italy in AD 538. Thus the three kingdoms were uprooted from before the ‘little horn’.
- The ‘little horn will speak great words against the Most High. Some of of the arrogant and blasphemous claims made by the Papacy are quoted here from Ferraris’s Roman Catholic ‘Eclessiastical Dictionary’:
‘The pope is of so great dignity and so exalted that he is not mere man, but as it were God, and the vicar of God..The pope is crowned with a triple crown, as king of heaven and of earth, and of the lower regions…The power of the Roman Pontiff by no means pertain(s) only to heavenly things, to earthly things, and to things under the earth, but even over angels, than whom he is greater… For he is of so great dignity and power that he forms one and the same tribunal with Christ….The pope is as it were God on earth.’ Prompta Bibliotheca, article ‘Papa’, II, vol. VI, pages 26-29.
As late as 1894, Pope Leo XIII said: ‘We hold on this earth the place of God Almighty.’ Here is a power fulfilling the will of Lucifer, son of the morning, who said, ‘I will exalt my throne above the stars of God…I will be like the most High.’ Isaiah 14:13,14. It was for such pride and blasphemy that Lucifer, now known as Satan, was cast out of Heaven. In Malachi Martin’s The Keys of This Blood the papal plans were set out in some detail for the twenty first century. The aim of the plan was global political supremacy.
- The ‘little horn’ will wear out the saints of the Most High. During the Dark Ages, which began in AD 538, some 50,000,000 Christians were persecuted to death by the Papacy. This horrible record is one of the darkest stories of human history. We quote now from a few historians:
‘That the church of Rome has shed more innocent blood than any other institution that has ever existed among mankind, will be questioned by no Protestant who has a competent knowledge of history.’ – Lecky’s History of Rationalism in Europe, vol. 11, page 32.
Let a Roman Catholic author state the facts:
‘The church [Roman Catholic] has persecuted. Only a tyro [very ignorant person] in history will deny that….One hundred and fifty years after Constantine the Donatists were persecuted, and sometimes put to death…Protestants were persecuted in France and Spain with the full approval of the church authorities. We have always defended the persecution of the Huguenots [French Protestants], and the Spanish Inquisition… When she thinks it good to use physical force, she will use it …Will she give absolute freedom and equality of all church and all faiths? The catholic Church gives no bonds for her good behaviour.’ – The Western watchman. 24 December, 1908.
Pope Martin V (AD 1417 – 1431) gave the following instructions to the King of Poland concerning the followers of John Huss, who were true Christians:
‘Make it a duty to exterminate the Hussites. Remember that these impious persons dare to proclaim principles of liberty; they maintain that all Christians are brethren….; they hold that Christ came on earth to abolish slavery; they call the people to liberty….Whilst there is still time, then, turn your faces against Bohemia; burn, massacre, make deserts everywhere, for nothing could be more agreeable to God, or more useful to the cause of kings, than the extermination of the Hussites.’ – L.M. de Cormenin, The Public and Private History of the Popes of Rome, vol. II, pages 116,117.
- The ‘little horn’ will attempt to change times and the law of God. We quote again from the Roman Catholic Prompta Bibliotheca, by Ferraris:
‘The Popes is of so great authority and power that can modify [change], explain or interpret divine laws.’ – Vol. VI, page 29.
In the Roman Catholic catechisms used for teaching the common people, the law of God is modified, so that the second commandment forbidding the worship of images as been deleted. The fourth is shortened, so as to support the observance of the first day of the week (Sunday) in place of the true Sabbath. The tenth is divided into two commandments. Regarding their change of the fourth commandment, they say in an officially approved catechism:
‘Question: Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals of precept?
‘Answer: Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree withe her. – she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority.’ – A Doctrinal Catechism, by Stephan Keenan, page 174.
To attempt to change the law of God is something which God Himself says He cannot and will not do (Psalm 89:34). We need not wonder that Daniel was amazed when he heard the words of the ‘little horn’!
- The ‘little horn’ will continue for a time, times, and half a time. A ‘time’ is another expression for a year. ‘Times’ would therefore be two years; and the ‘dividing of time’ half a year. Thus altogether the little horn power would continue in authority for three years and a half, prophetic time, with the saints delivered into his hand for that time.
We have already learned that the various symbols found in the prophecies of Daniel are easily explained in the Bible itself. Beasts represent kingdoms; waters, multitudes of peoples; horns, kingdoms that arise out of empires; and so on. Likewise, in Bible prophecy a day is a symbol which stands for a year of literal time (see Ezekiel 4:6; Numbers 14:34).
This same period of time is mentioned in Revelation 12:14. In Revelation 13:5 it is again spoken of as 42 months, counting twelve months to a year (12 x 3.5 = 42). Again we find the same time period in Revelation 12:6, as 1,260 days, counting 30 days to the month for 42 months (42 x 30 = 1,260). It is clear, then, that the little horn, the Papacy, would rule supreme in Europe, persecuting the saints of God, for 1,260 literal years.
History confirms that the Papacy continued in power for just that length of time. We have seen in section 2 that Justinian made a decree in AD 533 giving the Papacy unlimited power over all the churches. This decree went into effect in AD 538, when the last of the three kingdoms opposed to the Papacy was pulled up by the roots. Thus the time for beginning the 1,260 years of papal rule is AD 538.
Exactly 1,260 years later, the Papacy lost its temporal power. On 20 February 1798, Berthier, a general of the French army under Napoleon, took the Pope a prisoner in Rome, effectually putting an end to the Papacy’s temporal power in Europe. After that time there was no effective persecution of the saints in Europe. They were free to worship God.
Like a broken stone, the two halves of which alone can join together perfectly. Daniel’s prophecy and the testimony of history agree together in clearly pointing out the ‘little horn’ power.
Daniel 7:26-28 Commentary
Daniel is permitted to look down to the end of time, when the little horn, together with the beast who carries him, are destroyed in the final end of sin and sinners. Just before the end, the deadly wound suffered by the Papacy will be healed (see Revelation 13:3,14), and for a short time, the whole world will wonder after him. However, the heavenly judgment has passed sentence upon him. Though he may prosper for a time, his final end is certain.
How encouraging it is to God’s people to know that the kingdom will be given to those for whom it has been prepared since the foundation of the world. In all their trials and afflictions, God’s true worshippers may remember this wonderful promise.
This vision of Daniel, which was to him such a source of concern, should also concern us in these last days, lest we be found serving the ‘little horn’ ignorantly, and thus share in its final destruction. May we build our faith on what is true, as found in the Word of God!
And do not be afraid of the ‘little horn’! Even now, the judgement in Heaven is taking away his ‘dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto thee end’. The ‘little horn’ has been forever defeated. The power he now exercises is like the writhing of a snake which has already been beaten on the head. Thoughtful people who love the truth, those who sincerely desire to follow the Lamb of God, are daily being delivered form the ‘dominion’ of the Papacy. Christ enlightens their eyes and frees them for their fear. This work Christ is doing as He ministers as High Priest in His closing work in the heavenly sanctuary (see chapter 8 commentary). The work will continue until every true follower of His will be freed from the ‘dominion’ of error, sin, and fear
Footnotes
The same truth is illustrated in the fourth chapter, where we noticed that although the great tree, Babylon, was cut down, the root was allowed tor remain in the earth (see notes, verse 23). Again, we see the same truth indicated in Revelation, chapter 13, verses 1 and 2, where the leopard beast (the same power as the ‘little horn’) combines the characteristics of the lion, bear, and leopard. Thus we see that modern, spiritual ‘Babylon’, opposing God’s truth, contains the same wicked elements of these ancient worldly empires.
See Matthew 16:18-20, 18:17, 18; and Psalm 149:5-9, where it is seen that the keys of the Kingdom, and power to bind and loose, are given to the whole Church, and not to anyone man.
Click here for the next study – Prophecy of Daniel 8 Commentary: The Cleansing of the Sanctuary.
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Prophecy of Daniel Chapter 7 Commentary and Bible Study Video
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