Session #1 - The Four Beast Kingdoms - Bible Verse Hand Book

Session 1 The Four Beast Kingdoms (Dan. 7:1-8)

I. OUTLINE OF DANIEL 7:1-8

Daniel’s vision: Four beasts symbolizing four world empires

1In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying in bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream.
2 Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
4 “The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it.
5 “And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’
6 “After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.
7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully.
9 “As I looked,
“thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
10 A river of fire was flowing,
coming out from before him.
Thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.
The court was seated, and the books were opened.
11 “Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. 12 (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)
13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. (Dan. 7:1-14)

II. INTRODUCTION

19 During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven (Dan. 2:19)

III. THE FOUR BEASTS (DAN. 7) AND THE GREAT STATUE (DAN. 2)

31“You, O king, were watching…a great image…32This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 34You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet…35The iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together…the stone…became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.”
(Dan. 2:19, 31-35)

41“You saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided…42And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile.” (Dan. 2:41-42)

7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.

19 “Then I wanted to know the meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others and most terrifying, with its iron teeth and bronze claws—the beast that crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. 20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21 As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the holy people of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom.

23 “He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. (Dan. 7:7, 19- 24)

3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. (Rev. 12:3)

The dragon[a] stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. (Rev. 13:1)

3 Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns.

7 Then the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns.

12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast.

16 The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. (Rev. 17:3, 7, 12, 16)

44 “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. 45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.
“The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and its interpretation is trustworthy.” (Dan. 2: 44-45)

44“And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed…it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. 45Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold—the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this.” (Dan. 2:44-45)

IV. DANIEL’S VISION OF THE FOUR BEASTS (DAN. 7:1-8)

1In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head while on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, telling the main facts. 2Daniel spoke, saying, “I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven [angelic and demonic activity] were stirring up the Great Sea [Mediterranean]. 3And four great beasts [empires] came up from the sea, each different from the other.” (Dan. 7:1-3)

Great Sea: Scripture describes the Mediterranean Sea as the Great Sea

6 “‘Your western boundary will be the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. This will be your boundary on the west. 7 “‘For your northern boundary, run a line from the Mediterranean Sea to Mount Hor (Num. 34:6-7)

4 Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. (Josh. 1:4 )

Now when all the kings west of the Jordan heard about these things—the kings in the hill country, in the western foothills, and along the entire coast of the Mediterranean Sea as far as Lebanon (the kings of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites)— (Josh. 9:1)

12 The western boundary is the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea.

47 Ashdod, its surrounding settlements and villages; and Gaza, its settlements and villages, as far as the Wadi of Egypt and the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea. (Josh. 15:12a, 47)

4 Remember how I have allotted as an inheritance for your tribes all the land of the nations that remain—the nations I conquered—between the Jordan and the Mediterranean Sea in the west. (Josh. 23:4)

First beast: A lion with eagle’s wings refers to the Babylonian Empire, 605–539 BC

4“The first [Babylon] was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings. I watched till its wings were plucked off; and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man, and a man’s heart was given to it.” (Dan. 7:4)

The lion:

7 A lion has come out of his lair; a destroyer of nations has set out.
He has left his place to lay waste your land.
Your towns will lie in ruins without inhabitant. (Jer. 4:7)

19 “Like a lion coming up from Jordan’s thickets to a rich pastureland, I will chase Edom from its land in an instant.
Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this?
Who is like me and who can challenge me?
And what shepherd can stand against me?” (Jer. 49:19)

17 “Israel is a scattered flock that lions have chased away. The first to devour them was the king of Assyria; the last to crush their bones was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.”
44 Like a lion coming up from Jordan’s thickets to a rich pastureland, I will chase Babylon from its land in an instant.
Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this?
Who is like me and who can challenge me?
And what shepherd can stand against me?” (Jer. 50:17, 44)

The eagle:

22 Look! An eagle will soar and swoop down, spreading its wings over Bozrah.
In that day the hearts of Edom’s warriors will be like the heart of a woman in labor.
(Jer. 49:22)

19 Our pursuers were swifter than eagles in the sky;
they chased us over the mountains and lay in wait for us in the desert. (Lam. 4:19)

3 Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: A great eagle with powerful wings, long feathers and full plumage of varied colors came to Lebanon. Taking hold of the top of a cedar, (Ezek. 17:3)

8 Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves at dusk.
Their cavalry gallops headlong; their horsemen come from afar.
They fly like an eagle swooping to devour; (Hab. 1:8)

Second beast: A bear with ribs in its mouth refers to the Persian Empire, 539–331 BC

5“Another beast [Medo-Persia], a second, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And they said thus to it: ‘Arise, devour much flesh!’” (Dan. 7:5)

Third beast: A leopard with four wings refers to the Greek Empire, 331–146 BC

6“I looked, and there was another [Greece], 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.” (Dan. 7:6)

Four heads: After the death of Alexander the Great his kingdom was divided into four.

8 The goat became very great, but at the height of its power the large horn was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven. (Dan. 8:8)

Fourth Beast: The Antichrist, who is foreshadowed by the Roman Empire

7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.

8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully. (Dan. 7:7-8)

It had ten horns: A ten-nation confederation will align with the Antichrist.

41 Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. (Dan. 2:41-42)

7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.

20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. (Dan. 7:7, 20)

24“The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this [Rome’s] kingdom.” (Dan. 7:24)

3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. (Rev. 12:3)

The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. (Rev. 13:1)

3 Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns.

7 Then the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns.

12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast.

16 The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. (Rev. 17:3, 7, 12, 16)

12“The ten horns which you saw are ten kings…” (Rev. 17:12)

Dreadful and terrible:

15 “I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me.

28 “This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself.” (Dan. 7:15, 28)

2The dragon [Satan] gave him [Antichrist] his power, his throne, and great authority.

13He performs great signs…he even makes fire come down from heaven (Rev. 13:2, 13)

7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns. (Dan. 7:7)

8“I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.” (Dan. 7:8)

19“…the fourth beast, which was different from all the others…” (Dan. 7:19)

23 “He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. (Dan. 7: 23, 24)

Little horn:

11 “Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire.

20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21 As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them, (Dan. 7: 11, 20, 21)

3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction.
(2 Thes. 2:3)

11 It set itself up to be as great as the commander of the army of the LORD; it took away the daily sacrifice from the LORD, and his sanctuary was thrown down. (Dan. 8:11)

27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him. (Dan. 9:27)

31 “His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation. (Dan. 11:31)

11 “From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. (Dan. 12:11)

15 “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— (Mt. 24:15)

The little horn of Daniel 7 is the same little horn of Daniel 8

9 Out of one of them came another horn, which started small but grew in power to the south and to the east and toward the Beautiful Land (Dan. 8:9)

He is the same despicable person of Daniel 11

21 “He will be succeeded by a contemptible person who has not been given the honor of royalty. He will invade the kingdom when its people feel secure, and he will seize it through intrigue. (Dan. 11:21)

Arrogant words :

8“In this horn [was]…a mouth speaking pompous words.” (Dan. 7:8)

11 “Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire.

20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully.

25 He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time. (Dan. 7:11, 20, 25)

36“The king…shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods.” (Dan. 11:36)

4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God. (2 Thes. 2:4)

5He was given a mouth speaking great thingsand blasphemies…6he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle… (Rev. 13:5-6)

8“There was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots.” (Dan. 7:8)

Coming up among them:

8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully. (Dan. 7:8)

He will “arise after them”

24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. (Dan. 7:24)

V. THREE STAGES OF THE FOURTH BEAST

Ten-nation confederation:

24“The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom.” (Dan. 7:24)

12“The ten horns which you saw are ten kings…17and to give their kingdom to the beast…” (Rev. 17:12-17)

The dictatorship of the Antichrist:

24“…and another [Antichrist] shall rise after them [the 10 kings]; he shall be different…” (Dan. 7:24)

12“The ten horns which you saw are ten kings…17God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast…” (Rev. 17:12-17)

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