The four kingdoms in Daniel
The book of Daniel seems to be the source of many end-time interpretations. Let’s take a closer look at what this is all about and start with the basics.
The four kingdoms
Chapters 2 and 7 of Daniel give us a glimpse of four different kingdoms, chapter 2 using the vision of a statue while chapter 7 describes them as beasts.
Both chapters describe them as successive (chapter 2 explicitly, chapter 7 by conquering each other and replacing one another).
Looking at chapter 2 we have a starting point because the first one is Babel. Babel was destroyed by the Median/Persian Empire. Some commentators see the Median and Persian empires as two different successive empires, but this does not reflect history as both empires were united BEFORE they destroyed Babel.
The third would be the Greek under Alexander the great who conquered the Median/Persian Empire. This empire split into 4 empires after the death of Alexander the Great, which were eventually consumed by the Roman Empire.
If we look at chapter 7, we see a similar picture.
It begins with Babel:
“And four great beasts came up out of the sea, different from one another. 4 The first was like a lion and had eagles’ wings. Then as I looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man, and the mind of a man was given to it.”
Babel was symbolized with a lion as a statue or portrait and was probably referred to by Jeremiah as a lion and eagle describing the judgment of Edom.
Next come the Persians:
“And behold, another beast, a second one, like a bear. It was raised up on one side. It had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth; and it was told, ‘Arise, devour much flesh.’”
The bear which raining on one side refers to the common Median and Persian Empire, while the latter one are the smaller but eventually took the lead.The three ribs and the reference to devour describe the three mayor conquests of Lydia (547 B.C.), Babel (539 B.C.) and Egypt (525 B.C.).
Followed by the Greek:
“After this I looked, and behold, another, like a leopard, with four wings of a bird on its back. And the beast had four heads, and dominion was given to it.”
The leopard describes very well the rapid expansion of his kingdom from Greece to India and in less than two decades. After his death, the kingdom divided into 4 successors representing the 4 heads.
Finally come the Romans:
“After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet.”
The Roman Empire conquered the last of the Greek empires and was the greatest empire that conquered all with iron strength. Iron was also the material of chapter 2.
The end of the kingdoms
Both chapters describe the end by a divine event. In chapter 2 this is described as “a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces" and “the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.”
This reminds us on the cornerstone that is Jesus Christ, who is the foundation of the Church. He was not made by “human hand” and He became the ruler of the world, giving Him authority to the church to rule.Looking at chapter 7 we also have an intervention which is the Ancient of Days and the Son of Man who overcomes the kingdoms and He will set up an eternal kingdom.
Who is the Son of Man?
In the context of Daniel it was Israel, as they receive a kingdom as the Son of Man, but this was fulfilled in Jesus as the true Israel as Son of Man is the only title He uses for Himself.
There is more
We saw that chapters 2 and 7 talk about the same four kingdoms and end in the Roman Empire when Jesus is born and conquers the empires on the cross. But there are some things that do not fit:
- Chapter 2 talks about more kingdoms that represent the feet of the statue.
- The stone in chapter 2 (Jesus’ first coming) did not destroy the whole statue (the Roman Empire was still there for more than 400 years).
- The explanation of the fourth beast in chapter 7 does not fully describe the Roman Empire (fearful and dreadful, different from all the beasts before it, and had ten horns)
- this empire was not so different in these aspects from the ones before it, the ten horns do not make such sense and were never fixed in Roman history.
- The scene in chapter 7 of the coming of the Son of Man sounds like a final judgment, but not much would seem to change after the judgment if this were the Roman Empire.
- There are many thoughts on this, here is my view (borrowed from others).
The story does not end with Jesus coming to earth, but it did start a major change in world history: The church now rules the earth! With the spreading of the gospel in worship, prayer, witness and perseverance, the world is changing.
But how much are we taking advantage of it? Instead of a new world, we see the world covered with crusades, inquisitions, forced conversions using the fear of hell.On the other hand, the change of rulership is not so obvious because Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world. As Jesus and the church take over the rule of the earth, we must ask ourselves what it means to rule in God’s kingdom.
The Roman Empire is the last of the four that had direct rule over Israel. After the new covenant with Jesus, God’s people are scattered all over the earth, and there is no one empire that covers them all.
There is much controversy about the ten kings and the three horns, about which Daniel inquires more in chapter 7, but we must discuss them in the context of the book of Revelation, where we see the evil trinity and the ten kings again.