Daniel 7:15-28
The Interpretation of the Dream
15 “I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me. 16 I approached one of those standing there and asked him the meaning of all this.
“So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things: 17 ‘The four great beasts are four kings that will rise from the earth. 18 But the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever.’
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. 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.[b]
26 “‘But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdomsunder heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlastingkingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.’
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.”
This dream is vivid and confusing. It is easy to get lost in the imagery and wonder what the meaning is. The first part of the dream is fairly simple. It is very similar to the one found in chapter 2 and much of the interpretation can be found there. However, Daniel is concerned by the ferocity and aggression of the fourth best and asks for further interpretation.
The big question then is who or what is this “little horn” who is ferociously waging war against the people of God and defeating them? Who is causing Daniel such fear? There are generally three suggestions:
- Calvin argues that it is the series of then Caesars who persecute God’s people.
- Another popular view is that is it Antiochus IV Epiphanes who waged war on the Jews and sacked the temple in Jerusalem in 168 BC.
- The third view is that it refers to an Antichrist, who will not reach its full power until just before the second coming of Christ.
The dream does not leave any doubt about the conclusion of the events. The evil power will be stripped of its power and Jesus will receive all power and dominion forever. As scary as it is, this dream reminds us that powers will come and go but that only the Kingdom of God is eternal. It does not rise and fall like our political systems. We have a king who reigns forever and ever. He deserves all the glory and honour. This is true on the big scale of politics, persecution and war and it is also true in the day to day battles of our lives. Jesus is King and however hard it seems, the future is secure and full of hope.
