• Welcome to Religious Forums, a friendly forum to discuss all religions in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Our modern chat room. No add-ons or extensions required, just login and start chatting!
    • Access to private conversations with other members.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

Vision of the four beasts

cvipertooth

Member
I saw in another thread, a reference to the vision of the four beasts in Daniel, and I decided to study up on it a little bit, but i seem to be having some difficulty, anyone have any opinions?

"And the four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse from one another. The first was like a lion, and had eagles wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it" Daniel 7:3-4

I figured I would just start with the first beast, otherwise this thread could get very lengthy. What do you think the symbolism of this passage is? What do the beast, lion, wings, etc. symbolize? What is this prophecy referring to and, how does that help christians in the realm of apolegetics? Any opinion would be helpful, thanks! :D
 

may

Well-Known Member
cvipertooth said:
I saw in another thread, a reference to the vision of the four beasts in Daniel, and I decided to study up on it a little bit, but i seem to be having some difficulty, anyone have any opinions?

"And the four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse from one another. The first was like a lion, and had eagles wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it" Daniel 7:3-4

I figured I would just start with the first beast, otherwise this thread could get very lengthy. What do you think the symbolism of this passage is? What do the beast, lion, wings, etc. symbolize? What is this prophecy referring to and, how does that help christians in the realm of apolegetics? Any opinion would be helpful, thanks! :D

This is about a long-range prophecy, of utmost importance to people living today, it foretells a succession of world powers, symbolized by fearsome beasts, that would have to make way for God’s Kingdom.

"As for these huge beasts," said God’s angel, "because they are four, there are four kings that will stand up from the earth." (Daniel 7:17) Clearly, the angel identified the four beasts that Daniel saw as "four kings." Thus, these beasts signify world powers. But which ones?​

Bible expositors commonly link Daniel’s dream-vision of four beasts with Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of an immense image. For example, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary states: "Chapter 7 [of Daniel] parallels chapter 2." The Wycliffe Bible Commentary says: "It is generally agreed that the succession of four Gentile dominions . . . is the same here [in Daniel chapter 7] as that contemplated in [Daniel] chapter 2." The four world powers represented by the four metals of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream were the Babylonian Empire (gold head), Medo-Persia (silver breasts and arms), Greece (copper belly and thighs), and the Roman Empire (iron legs). (Daniel 2:32, 33) Let us see how these kingdoms correspond to the four huge beasts that Daniel saw

The first one was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I kept on beholding until its wings were plucked out, and it was lifted up from the earth and was made to stand up on two feet just like a man, and there was given to it the heart of a man." (Daniel 7:4) This beast pictured the same rulership as that represented by the head of gold of the immense image, the Babylonian World Power (607-539 B.C.E.). Like a predatory lion, Babylon fiercely devoured nations, including God’s people. (Jeremiah 4:5-7; 50:17) As if with the wings of an eagle, this "lion" sped forward in aggressive conquest.—Lamentations 4:19; Habakkuk 1:6-8.​

In time, the unique winged lion had its wings "plucked out." Near the end of King Belshazzar’s rule, Babylon lost its speed of conquest and its lionlike supremacy over the nations. It was no faster than a man on two feet. Getting "the heart of a man," it became weak. Lacking "the heart of the lion," Babylon could no longer behave like king "among the beasts of a forest." (Compare 2 Samuel 17:10; Micah 5:8.) Another huge beast vanquished it

 
I agree with May, but to continue her points, in reference to the lion-beast that represents Rome, this is often brought into correspondence with being the Anti-Christ.

Many people hold this view to establish the Papacy and the Roman Catholic Church as the Anti-Christ and with evidence and proof to back some of the theories it tends to be very convincing.
 

may

Well-Known Member
Luke said:
I agree with May, but to continue her points, in reference to the lion-beast that represents Rome, this is often brought into correspondence with being the Anti-Christ.

Many people hold this view to establish the Papacy and the Roman Catholic Church as the Anti-Christ and with evidence and proof to back some of the theories it tends to be very convincing.



Antichrist​






Definition: Antichrist means against or instead of Christ. The term applies to all who deny what the Bible says about Jesus Christ, all who oppose his Kingdom, and all who mistreat his followers. It also includes individuals, organizations, and nations that falsely claim to represent Christ or that improperly ascribe to themselves the role of Messiah

 

may

Well-Known Member
the four beasts of Daniel chapter 7 symbolize four world powers dating from Daniel’s day and onward, up until the time for the setting up of God’s Kingdom. Daniel lived past the fall of the Babylonian World Power (the lion) and into the start of its successor, Medo-Persia (the bear). Daniel’s long-range prophecy foretold Medo-Persia’s fall before Greece (the leopard), which in turn would be replaced by "a fourth beast," the Roman Empire and its outgrowth, the Anglo-American World Power

 

Jaymes

The cake is a lie
I know I'm not a Christian, but the first beast sounds like a griffin, if that helps any. :) I'll stay out of any further debate.
 

Dinogrrl

peeb!
There's a specific name for winged lions...can't remember...anyway, the lion also represents Jesus.

This is where I hate talking about symbolism...

And also, winged lions are the symbol of Mark. Yup.

That's really all the useful info I have :D;;. Once I had the appearances of the four beasts memorized, but that was a looong time ago...
 

EnhancedSpirit

High Priestess
First I would like to say, thank you for giving me something to study on. I have read a lot about how these are symbols for the leaders of Daniels time, but don't we believe this to be a prophecy of the future of man, not about Daniel's time?

First I would like to set the stage for my theory with this:
bible study said:
The Great Sea was a common term for the Mediterranean Sea, but is used in several places of the Bible to describe the "sea" of humanity in its Gentile sense. For other references, see Isaiah 17:12-13; 57:20; Jeremiah 6:23; 46:7-9; 47:2; Revelation 13:1; 17:1,15.
The "four winds of heaven" is also a common term in Scripture. We see it used to describe spiritual forces, both good and evil. The term is used 90 times in the Old Testament, 30 times in the New.
With this I believe Daniel is seeing the world in turmoil (the four winds of heaven) and out of the chaos comes four nations. Most agree to this point, however, when I hear the descriptions given by Daniel, this is the vision I see:

The first beast was "something like" a regal lion, the king of beasts, with wings of an eagle. I see the lion representing the European Royalty- and included in that was the United States (the wings of the Eagle), but the wings where ripped off. The United States seperated from England.

The second beast is like a powerful bear. I see the Russian empire.

The third beast was like a leopard, a fast-moving, agile cat. It had four wings and four heads. This puts the vision of Africa in my head, but I do not know enough about Africa to validate the connection. I could say it has something to do with the struggle for power between the nations of Africa.

The fourth beast is so terrible it leaves Daniel without adequate idioms to describe it. When I read this I see the Orient. A dragon represents to me Eastern culture. And it's funny, but the iron teeth reference made me think of the Japanese anime my son likes to watch. Or the old Godzilla movies.

I thoroughly enjoy studying the Bible and the messages God so loving left for me. But I must now ask. What is the message. We are not suppossed to dwell on the past, or worry about the future. So what is this message, and how does it apply to now? What wisdom is hiding in the knowledge?

The message I recieve is this: fear not the four beasts, for God is on your side. The beast will come, have come, we don't know, nor should it matter. When it comes to pass(if it hasn't already), it is the will of God, it has been written that it will happen. So there is no reason to be afraid of it.
 

may

Well-Known Member
EnhancedSpirit said:
First I would like to say, thank you for giving me something to study on. I have read a lot about how these are symbols for the leaders of Daniels time, but don't we believe this to be a prophecy of the future of man, not about Daniel's time?

First I would like to set the stage for my theory with this:
With this I believe Daniel is seeing the world in turmoil (the four winds of heaven) and out of the chaos comes four nations. Most agree to this point, however, when I hear the descriptions given by Daniel, this is the vision I see:

The first beast was "something like" a regal lion, the king of beasts, with wings of an eagle. I see the lion representing the European Royalty- and included in that was the United States (the wings of the Eagle), but the wings where ripped off. The United States seperated from England.

The second beast is like a powerful bear. I see the Russian empire.

The third beast was like a leopard, a fast-moving, agile cat. It had four wings and four heads. This puts the vision of Africa in my head, but I do not know enough about Africa to validate the connection. I could say it has something to do with the struggle for power between the nations of Africa.

The fourth beast is so terrible it leaves Daniel without adequate idioms to describe it. When I read this I see the Orient. A dragon represents to me Eastern culture. And it's funny, but the iron teeth reference made me think of the Japanese anime my son likes to watch. Or the old Godzilla movies.

I thoroughly enjoy studying the Bible and the messages God so loving left for me. But I must now ask. What is the message. We are not suppossed to dwell on the past, or worry about the future. So what is this message, and how does it apply to now? What wisdom is hiding in the knowledge?

The message I recieve is this: fear not the four beasts, for God is on your side. The beast will come, have come, we don't know, nor should it matter. When it comes to pass(if it hasn't already), it is the will of God, it has been written that it will happen. So there is no reason to be afraid of it.

"Four huge beasts were coming up out of the sea," said Daniel. (Daniel 7:3) What was symbolized by the windswept sea? Years later, the apostle John saw a seven-headed wild beast come out of the "sea." That sea represented "peoples and crowds and nations and tongues"—the vast body of mankind estranged from God. The sea, then, is a fitting symbol of the masses of mankind alienated from God.—Revelation 13:1, 2; 17:15; Isaiah 57:20.Jehovahs witness have a really good book all about the book of Daniel ,i find it really interesting the book iscalled (pay attention to Daniels prophecy)

 
Top