In Daniel 2:31-35, Daniel’s description of what Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream reads as follows:
“You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. This image, mighty and of exceeding brightness, stood before you, and its appearance was frightening. The head of this image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. As you looked, 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. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
Daniel went on to interpret Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, and in verses 40-45 we read the following concerning the kingdom that’s represented by the “legs of iron” and “feet partly of iron and partly of clay,” and the “stone” that “struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces”:
And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters all things. And like iron that crushes, it shall break and crush all these.
And as you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom, but some of the firmness of iron shall be in it, just as you saw iron mixed with the soft clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle. As you saw the iron mixed with soft clay, so they will mix with one another in marriage, but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay.
And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever, just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A great God has made known to the king what shall be after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure.”
According to the interpretation provided by Daniel, the kingdoms represented in the image seen in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream are successive. The identity of the first kingdom is revealed to be Babylon (Dan. 2:37-38). We also know from Dan. 5:28 (cf. 2 Chron. 36:28) that the kingdom of the Medes and Persians succeeded the Babylonian kingdom (despite being two separate nations, the Medes and Persians were regarded as one united kingdom; see Dan. 8:20). It’s further evident that the kingdom of Greece succeeded that of the Medes and Persians (Dan. 8:21). Finally, we’re told that the Grecian kingdom – which underwent a fourfold division after the death of Alexander the Great – would be succeeded by a fourth kingdom. And it is during the time of this fourth and final kingdom in the series that the kingdom of God will be set up on the earth.
Significantly, the last kingdom represented in the image that appeared in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream is represented as existing in two different stages or phases: (1) a stronger, unified phase (represented by the legs of the image being made of iron) and (2) a weaker, divided phase (represented by the feet and toes being made partly of iron and partly of potter’s clay). And as is evident from the words, “in their days, that is, of these kings” (v. 44), this last kingdom will come to have multiple kings. And in light of the specific mention of the “toes” of the feet of the image (of which there would’ve likely been ten), it’s reasonable to infer that, during the second phase of the fourth kingdom, authority over this kingdom will be shared by ten kings (as we’ll see, this inference is confirmed by what’s revealed about the fourth kingdom in Daniel 7).
Thus, just as the third kingdom (the Grecian kingdom) came to have a fourfold division after the death of Alexander the Great while still maintaining its essential identity as the third kingdom represented in the image (and as the goat of Dan. 8), so the fourth kingdom will, at some point after succeeding the Grecian kingdom (and after having existed in a stronger and unified state), come to have a tenfold division.
Now, Daniel later had a dream that consisted of visions involving four beasts and “one like a son of man” (Dan. 7:1-14), and was provided with an interpretation of his visions by a celestial messenger. The interpretation of what Daniel saw is recorded as follows in Daniel 7:15-28 (NRSV):
As for me, Daniel, my spirit was troubled within me, and the visions of my head terrified me. I approached one of the attendants to ask him the truth concerning all this. So he said that he would disclose to me the interpretation of the matter: “As for these four great beasts, four kingdoms shall arise out of the earth. But the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever—forever and ever.”
Then I desired to know the truth concerning the fourth beast, which was different from all the rest, exceedingly terrifying, with its teeth of iron and claws of bronze, and which devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet; and concerning the ten horns that were on its head, and concerning the other horn that came up and before which three others had fallen—the horn that had eyes and a mouth that spoke arrogantly and that seemed greater than the others. As I looked, that horn made war with the holy ones and was prevailing over them, until the Ancient One came; then judgment was given for the holy ones of the Most High, and the time arrived when the holy ones gained possession of the kingdom.
This is what he said: “As for the fourth beast, there shall be a fourth kingdom on earth that shall be different from all the other kingdoms; it shall devour the whole earth and trample it down and break it to pieces. As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise, and another shall arise after them. This one shall be different from the former ones and shall put down three kings. He shall speak words against the Most High, shall wear out the holy ones of the Most High, and shall attempt to change the ritual calendar and the law, and they shall be given into his power for a time, two times, and half a time. Then the court shall sit in judgment, and his dominion shall be taken away, to be consumed and totally destroyed. The kingship and dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the holy ones of the Most High; their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey them.”
Here the account ends. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly terrified me, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter in my mind.
It should be emphasized that, when we’re told that “four kingdoms…shall arise out of the earth” (v. 17), that which is in view by the words “the earth” is the same thing that’s in view in, for example, Genesis 1:1 and Daniel 4:35:
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
“All those abiding on the earth are reckoned as naught; according to His will He is doing with the army of the heavens and with those abiding on the earth. And there is no one who shall stay His hand and say to Him, What have You done?”
There’s no good reason to think that “the earth” refers to anything different in Daniel 7:17 than it does in the above verses.
In accord with this point, we also know that the geopolitical territory of the first three kingdoms represented in the image of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream extended far beyond the land of Israel. For example, in Dan. 2:37-39 we read the following:
You, O king, the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, and the might, and the glory, and into whose hand he has given, wherever they dwell, the children of man, the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heavens, making you rule over them all—you are the head of gold. Another kingdom inferior to you shall arise after you, and yet a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.
This means that, when we’re told that the fourth kingdom “shall be different from all the kingdoms” and “shall devour the whole earth, and trample it down, and break it to pieces,” we can know from the context that “the earth” is not a reference to the land of Israel only. The territory referred to as “the whole earth” in Daniel 7 must include, at the very least, the territory of the three kingdoms represented by the first three beasts seen by Daniel. Thus, just as the expressions “the whole earth” and “the entire earth” used elsewhere in Daniel refer to territory that extends far beyond the land of Israel (Dan. 2:35; 4:11, 20, 22), so we know that the expression in Dan. 7:23 is referring to the same worldwide territory. In other words, the territory that’s being referred to as “the whole earth” in Dan. 7:23 is the same worldwide territory that’s being referred to in (for example) the following verses:
Isaiah 14:26
This is the purpose that is purposed concerning the whole earth, and this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.
Jer. 50:23
How the hammer of the whole earth is cut down and broken! How Babylon has become a horror among the nations!
Now, as is evident from the passages from Daniel quoted above, the arrival and establishment of the kingdom of God on the earth will coincide with the complete destruction of the last world-dominating kingdom that will precede it (i.e., the fourth kingdom/fourth beast). In other words, the fourth kingdom will not at any point co-exist with the kingdom of God. The establishing of the latter kingdom means the destruction of the former kingdom.
And not only this, but whatever distinct, recognizable elements of the preceding three kingdoms that will be present during the time of the fourth kingdom will also cease to exist on the earth after the kingdom of God is set up. This is evident from the words, “It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end” (and note that this end of the kingdoms is represented as occurring when the kingdom of God first arrives, and not after some indefinitely long period of time).
The kingdom given to the saints of the Most High
We also know that it is only after the fourth kingdom has been destroyed that the event prophesied in the following verses (Dan. 7:18, 22, 27) will be fulfilled:
“But the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever—forever and ever.”
“…then judgment was given for the holy ones of the Most High, and the time arrived when the holy ones gained possession of the kingdom.”
“The kingship and dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the holy ones of the Most High; their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey them.”
It’s in accord with what we read in these verses concerning the saints of the Most High receiving the kingdom that Christ declared the following to his disciples:
“Do not fear, little flocklet, for it delights your Father to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32).
But how is God going to bring about the state of affairs prophesied in these verses? That is, how is God going to give the kingdom to the saints of the Most High (among whom will be Jesus’ disciples)? And what will be the nature of the kingdom that’s he going to set up on the earth and give to the saints of the Most High?
We’re provided with a clue as to how God is going to accomplish this (as well as what the nature of this kingdom will be) in Daniel 7:13-14. Here’s how these verses read in both the ESV and CVOT:
“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.”
“I was perceiving in the visions of the night, and behold, with the clouds of the heavens One like a son of a mortal was arriving; He came unto the Transferrer of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. To Him was granted jurisdiction and esteem and a kingdom, that all the peoples and leagues and language-groups shall serve Him; His jurisdiction is an eonian jurisdiction that shall not pass away, and His kingdom shall not be confined.”
According to one interpretation of this important passage, the individual seen “coming with the clouds of the heavens” is a symbolic representation of “the saints of the Most High” referred to in Daniel 7:18, 22 and 27. For example, in one of his articles (The coming wrath: Son of Man's vindication (part 3 of 3)), fellow believer Andrew P. defends this view as follows:
When the vision is interpreted for Daniel, he’s told that the four beasts represent “four kings,” while the one like a son of man is the “saints of the Most High” who will “receive the kingdom” forever (7:17-18). “Son of man” is an idiom that refers to a human being. Thus, in this vision, God’s people are represented as a human, as opposed to the wicked kingdoms which are represented as beasts. Daniel asks about the fourth beast, and is told that this will be a “fourth kingdom” which will severely oppress God’s people. But after its dominion is taken away,
the kingdom, dominion, and greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people, the saints of the Most High; their kingdom will be a perpetual kingdom, and all dominions will serve and obey them. (7:27)
Thus, in Daniel, the ‘coming of the son of man’ doesn’t refer to a human being actually descending from heaven to earth. The “one like a son of man” is no more an actual human being than the “four beasts” are actually animals; moreover, the direction of his “coming” is to God in heaven, rather than from heaven to earth. This is symbolic language for the vindication of God’s people over their enemy, and the arrival of God’s kingdom.
Andrew makes the same point in his commentary on Christ's “Olivet Discourse” (Olivet Discourse Notes.pdf):
“According to the interpretation of Daniel’s vision, this “coming” doesn’t refer to the Messiah’s return to earth, but rather to the vindication of the people of God at the destruction of the fourth earthly kingdom (Dan 7:17f; 26f)…the ‘coming of the Son of Man’ refers to the vindication of God’s people that took place at the destruction of apostate Israel in AD 70.”
Andrew is correct that the direction of the “coming” (or “arriving”) of the individual seen by Daniel (the “one like a son of man”) is “to God in heaven, rather than from heaven to earth.” However, we’re not actually told by the messenger who spoke to Daniel that the individual seen “coming with the clouds of the heavens” is a symbolic representation of, and is to be equated with, “the saints of the Most High.” That is, we’re not told that what the messenger declared concerning the saints of the Most High is the interpretation of the vision described in Dan. 7:13-14. This is being inferred by those who hold to this interpretation.
The assumption of Andrew and others who see the individual referred to in Dan. 7:13-14 as a symbolic representation of the saints referred to in v. 18 is that, since the messenger provided Daniel with an explanation of the “four great beasts” and the horns seen on the fourth beast, what we read in v. 18 must be his explanation of Daniel’s vision of the “one like a son of man.” However, there is actually a subtle difference between what the messenger said when explaining what the beasts and horns represent and what he later said concerning “the saints the Most High” to whom “the kingdom and the jurisdiction and the majesty of the kingdom under the entire heavens will be granted.” Here, for example, is the explanation of the four beasts seen by Daniel as recorded in Dan. 7:17:
“These monstrous animals, the four of them, are four kingdoms that shall arise from the earth.”
The same formula is used in Dan. 7:23-25 (where we find the messenger providing an interpretation of the fourth beast, the 10 horns and the 11th horn). Notice what each explanation provided by the messenger has in common. The messenger first specifically refers to what Daniel saw in his vision, and then he explicitly equates what Daniel saw with what it represents (e.g., the four beasts “are four kingdoms that shall arise from the earth,” the fourth beast will “be a fourth kingdom on the earth,” the ten horns are “ten kings” who shall arise; etc.). However, in contrast with his explanation of the beasts and horns, the messenger doesn’t use the same “formula” when referring to the saints who shall receive the kingdom. He doesn’t say that “the one who is like a son of man is (or will be) the saints to whom the kingdom shall be granted.” He could’ve easily done so (just as he provided an exact explanation of the fourth beast, the ten horns and the “little horn”). But he doesn’t do this.
When seeking to understand what the messenger revealed to Daniel, we must not ignore or gloss over the fact that, while the messenger explicitly equates the beasts and horns with future kingdoms/kings, he doesn’t explicitly equate the “one like a son of man” with the holy ones who shall receive the kingdom. While this fact doesn’t conclusively prove that the individual seen “coming with the clouds of the heavens” doesn’t represent the saints of the Most High, it is at least consistent with this understanding. That is, what the messenger actually said to Daniel is consistent with the view that the individual seen by Daniel “coming with the clouds of heaven” is not a symbolic representation of the saints of the Most High.
But if what Daniel was told concerning the saints of the Most High isn’t the explanation of his vision of the “one like a son of man,” then what’s the connection between what Daniel saw and what he was later told concerning the saints of the Most High? And who did Daniel see coming “with the clouds of the heavens” and being brought before Yahweh? I think the following passage can help us answer these questions:
Acts 1:6-11
Those, indeed, then, who are coming together, asked Him, saying, “Lord, art Thou at this time restoring the kingdom to Israel?” Yet He said to them, “Not yours is it to know times or eras which the Father placed in His own jurisdiction. But you shall be obtaining power at the coming of the holy spirit on you, and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in entire Judea and Samaria, and as far as the limits of the earth.”
And saying these things, while they are looking, He was lifted up, and a cloud took Him up from their eyes. And as they were looking intently into heaven at His going, lo ! two men stand beside them in white attire, who say also, “Men! Galileans! Why do you stand, looking into heaven? This Jesus Who is being taken up from you into heaven shall come thus, in the manner in which you gaze at Him going into heaven.”
In addition to what Christ himself had been teaching his disciples concerning the kingdom of God, it’s likely that the disciple’s question concerning the restoration of the kingdom to Israel was at least partly informed by what’s prophesied in Daniel 7. In any case, I don’t think it can be disputed that the people whom the disciples referred to as “Israel” in their question to Christ (and to whom the kingdom is going to be restored) are the same people referred to as “the saints of the Most High” in Daniel 7. In other words, those who comprise the “Israel” to whom the kingdom is going to be restored are “the saints of the Most High” referred to in Dan. 7.
Moreover, it’s clear that the disciples understood Christ himself to be the one who will be restoring the kingdom to Israel. We can also conclude that they were correct in this understanding. For example, in Revelation 1:5-6 and 5:9-10 we read the following:
“To Him Who is loving us and looses us from our sins by His blood and makes us a kingdom and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and might for the eons of the eons! Amen!”
And they are singing a new song, saying, “Worthy art Thou to be taking the scroll and to open its seals, for Thou wast slain and dost buy us for God by Thy blood. Out of every tribe and language and people and nation Thou dost also make them a kingdom and a priesthood for our God, and they shall be reigning on the earth.”
Although the disciples correctly understood Christ to be the one through whom God is going to be giving the kingdom to the saints of the Most High (so that “they shall be reigning on the earth”), they didn’t fully understand – at least, not at the time when they asked the question recorded in Acts 1:6 – that Christ would have to ascend to heaven first, and that the restoration of the kingdom to Israel would not be taking place until after Christ returns to earth (which will be “in the manner in which” the disciples gazed at him “going into heaven”).
What confirms this understanding is the fact that Jesus clearly understood himself to be the “Son of Mankind” seen by Daniel (Matt. 9:6; 10:23; 13:41; 16:27-28; 24:30-31; etc.). Jesus even distinguished the “Son of Mankind” from his disciples (Matt. 19:28), and those whom he came to save (Matt. 20:28). At no point when Jesus referred to the “Son of Mankind” is there any indication that he had in mind either a group of people whom he represented (i.e., “the saints of the Most High”), or both himself and others. Rather, he had in mind a single human individual (i.e., himself).
In light of these considerations, we have good reason to understand the scene described in Dan. 7:13 as a depiction of Christ’s ascension to heaven, and his being subsequently ushered into the presence of Yahweh to sit at his right hand. And in accord with what the messengers told the disciples in Acts 1:11, it is only after Christ returns to earth that he will be “restoring the kingdom to Israel.” Thus, it is because of what took place when Christ ascended to heaven (and which was being depicted in the night vision seen by Daniel) that “the kingdom and the jurisdiction and the majesty of the kingdom under the entire heavens” will be granted to “the saints of the Most High” so that the saints “[take] possession of the kingdom” (Dan. 7:22, 27).
Thus, the connection between what Daniel saw in his night visions concerning the individual “coming with the clouds of the heavens” and what he was later told concerning the saints of the Most High is as follows: The future state of affairs involving the saints of the Most High is going to come about because of the state of affairs seen by Daniel in his vision of the “one like a son of man.” That is, the connection between what Daniel saw in the vision described in Dan. 7:14-15 and what the messenger subsequently revealed in Dan. 7:18 (and later in verses 22 and 27) is that the giving of the kingdom to the saints of the Most High will be a direct result of what Daniel foresaw taking place in the vision described in Dan. 7:13-14. And this means that it’s through Christ that God is going to set up the kingdom that’s prophesied in Daniel 2:44-45 (and that this is going to occur when Christ returns to earth).
Now, just as we’re not told that the individual seen by Daniel symbolizes the saints of the Most High, so we’re not told that the coming of the “one like a son of man” is ”symbolic language for the vindication of God’s people over their enemy, and the arrival of God’s kingdom.” In fact, even if it were true that the individual seen by Daniel symbolically represents “the saints of the Most High,” it wouldn’t be the case that the messenger was referring merely to “the vindication of God’s people over their enemy, and the arrival of God’s kingdom” in Dan. 7:18 (an interpretation that would suggest that “the arrival of the kingdom” is something that’s distinct from, and will be happening in addition to, the “vindication” of the saints of the Most High).
Here, again, is how Dan. 7:18 reads in the ESV:
“But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, forever and ever.”
And in v. 27 we read the following:
“And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; his kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.”
Obviously, for these saints to be given “the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven” implies that they’re going to be vindicated over their enemy, and that the kingdom of God will be arriving. But the state of affairs being described here is not limited to their being vindicated over their enemy. Nor is it the case that the arrival of the kingdom is in any way distinct from (and just happens to coincide with) the “vindication” of the saints that will be occurring. Believing that the Jewish persecutors of the early church were judged in 70 AD is not the same thing as believing that, at this time, the saints who were persecuted received the kingdom and possessed the kingdom “forever, forever and ever” (or, more literally, “for the eon, even for the eon of the eons”). One can believe that the Jewish persecutors of the early church were judged in 70 AD without also believing that, at this time, “the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High.”
Thus, even if we were to understand the prophesied state of affairs described in Dan. 7:18, 22 and 27 as the explanation/interpretation of what’s described in Dan. 7:13-14, we ought to conclude that this prophecy has yet to be fulfilled. That is, when we understand the state of affairs being revealed in Dan. 7:18, 22 and 27 literally (as it ought to be understood by those who, like Andrew, understand these verses as the explanation/interpretation of a previously-described symbolic vision), the only possible conclusion at which we can arrive is that the events of which the messenger was speaking have not yet occurred, and pertain to an entirely future state of affairs. For there’s not a single event in history that one could point to as being the fulfillment of (or even the start of the fulfillment of) what we’re told in these verses is going to happen.
The future reign of the 11th king of Daniel 7
As noted earlier, the last kingdom represented in the image that appeared in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream – i.e., the fourth kingdom of Daniel 7 – will, at some point, come to have multiple kings (hence the words, “in the days of those kings”). This is confirmed by the fact that the “fourth beast” seen by Daniel had ten horns (which, as we learn from the messenger who spoke to Daniel, represent ten kings). However, the focus of Daniel’s vision of the fourth beast/kingdom is not on the ten horns/kings. Instead, the focus is on an 11th king who will rise to power (and, evidently, become the most powerful ruler) over the fourth kingdom at some point after the ten kings are already in power. In fact, we’re told that his rise to power over this kingdom will involve the “abasing” of three of the ten kings. Although we’re not told what, exactly, the “abasing” of these three kings will involve, we do have reason to believe that they won’t be killed by the 11th king, or removed from power.
The next thing Daniel sees in his vision of the fourth beast is the 11th horn waging war against the saints and prevailing over them until his dominion is taken away. In the interpretation of this vision, we’re told that the king represented by the 11th horn shall “wear out the saints of the Most High…and they shall be given into his hand for a season and two seasons and half a season.” Later, in Dan. 12:5-7, this time period is referred to as “an appointed time, two appointed times and half an appointed time,” and is said to end “when the shattering of the hand of the holy people is concluded.”
This period of time during which the saints will be persecuted by the 11th king of the fourth kingdom will continue until his authority is taken away, and the saints of the Most High receive the kingdom (Dan. 7:11, 18, 21-22, 25-27). Thus, the day on which the authority of this king is taken away and his kingdom is destroyed will be immediately after the last day on which he will have authority. And according to Rev. 13:5, the ruler of the fourth kingdom (who is represented as a “wild beast”) will be exercising authority for “42 months” (i.e., 3 ½ years, or 1,260 days; cf. Rev. 12:14). This means that the authority of this ruler is going to be taken away (and the saints of the Most High will receive the kingdom) the day after these 42 months/1,260 days end.
It’s further evident from Rev. 19:19-20 that the authority of the ruler of the fourth kingdom referred to in Dan. 7 is going to be taken away (and his kingdom destroyed) on the day when the “wild beast” is arrested, and the armies of the kings of the earth are destroyed by Christ. This event – which will involve the removal of the wild beast’s authority and the destruction of its kingdom – will fulfill the prophecy of the image-destroying stone and the arrival of the kingdom of God on the earth (Daniel 2:34, 44-45). So it follows from this that Christ is going to return to the earth immediately after the final 1,260 days of this eon have transpired. This is further confirmed by the words of Christ in Matt. 24:29-30. In these verses we read that, “immediately after the affliction of those days” (i.e., after the time of “great affliction” referred to earlier in v. 21, which will begin after “the abomination of desolation” is “standing in the holy place”), Christ will return to earth (v. 30).
Here, then, are some key points to keep in mind:
1. The ten kings of the fourth kingdom and the king represented by the “little horn” (the 11th king) will be contemporaries; the 11th king rises to power after the 10 kings are already in power.
2. Three of these ten kings will be “put down” (or “abased”) by the 11th king when he rises to power and becomes the supreme ruler of the fourth kingdom.
3. Under the rule of the 11th king, the fourth kingdom will have worldwide dominion.
4. The 11th king will persecute “the saints of the Most High,” and the saints will be given into his hand for a definite period of time (a season, seasons and half a season – i.e., 3 ½ years, or 42 months).
5. This time period will end with the defeat of the saint-persecuting 11th king, and the destruction of his kingdom (i.e., the second phase of the fourth kingdom).
6. In accord with what we read in Dan. 2, it is when the kingdom of God comes (which, in Dan. 2, is represented by the stone striking the feet of the image and destroying the image) that the saint-persecuting king will be defeated and his kingdom will be destroyed.
7. It is after the saint-persecuting king has been defeated and his kingdom has been destroyed that the dominion of the kingdom of God becomes worldwide (represented by the image-destroying stone becoming “a great mountain” and “filling the whole earth”).
With these points concerning the saint-persecuting 11th king of Daniel 7 in mind, let’s now consider what John wrote in Revelation concerning a seven-headed, ten-horned “wild beast.” In Revelation 13:1-8 (CLNT) we read the following:
And it was standing on the sand of the sea. And I perceived a wild beast ascending out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on its horns ten diadems, and on its heads blasphemous names. And the wild beast which I perceived was like a leopardess, and its feet were as a bear's, and its mouth as the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gives it its power and its throne and great authority. And I perceived one of its heads as if it had been slain to death, and its death blow was cured, and the whole earth marvels after the wild beast. And they worship the dragon, seeing that it gives authority to the wild beast. And they worship the wild beast, saying, “Who is like the wild beast?” and “Who is able to battle with it?” And to it was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies. And to it was given authority to do what it wills forty-two months. And it opens its mouth in blasphemies toward God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, and those tabernacling in heaven. And to it was given to do battle with the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given to it over every tribe and people and language and nation. And all who are dwelling on the earth will be worshiping it, everyone whose name is not written in the scroll of life of the Lambkin slain from the disruption of the world.
We find additional information concerning the symbols in Revelation 17:7-13:
And the messenger said to me, “Wherefore do you marvel? I shall be declaring to you the secret of the woman and of the wild beast which is bearing her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. The wild beast which you perceived was, and is not, and is about to be ascending out of the submerged chaos, and to be going away into destruction. And marvel shall those dwelling on the earth, whose names are not written on the scroll of life from the disruption of the world, when they observe the wild beast, seeing that it was, and is not, and will be present.
Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains where the woman is sitting on them, and they are seven kings. Five fall, one is, the other came not as yet; and whenever he may be coming, he must remain briefly. And the wild beast which was, and is not, it also is the eighth, and is from among the seven, and is going away into destruction.
And the ten horns which you perceived are ten kings who obtained no kingdom as yet, but are obtaining authority as kings one hour with the wild beast. These have one opinion, and they are giving their power and authority to the wild beast.
What we read in these passages is undoubtedly a continuation of the subject of the fourth kingdom and its final, chief ruler that we find introduced in Daniel 7.
Notice that, in the inspired explanation provided by the messenger, the seven heads of this beast are explicitly said to be “kings.” Notice, also, that “the wild beast” is distinguished from “the ten horns” that John saw on the wild beast. This indicates that, when we read of “the wild beast” in Revelation 13 and 17, that which is primarily in view (and being referred to as “the wild beast”) is one of the kings that’s being represented by one of the heads of the beast.
It’s further evident that one of these seven kings will also be an 8th king (for we’re told that the 8th king “is from among the seven”). In other words, the 8th king is going to be identical with one of the seven kings. But which of the seven kings will the 8th king be? Answer: the king represented by the head that is the focus of Rev. 13 – i.e., the head that had the appearance of having “been slain to death,” and “whose death blow that was cured” (Rev. 13:3, 12).
In other words, the head whose death blow was healed represents the 7th king and the 8th king. Evidently, it’s because this king is going to be restored to life after suffering a “death blow” that he’s able to be referred to as both “among the seven” and also the 8th king. His reign as one of the seven kings is cut short by the “death blow” he receives. However, because he’ll be restored to life (when his “death blow” is “cured”), he will reign as king again (making him both the 7th king and the 8th king). This king will, therefore, have two reigns (before the “death blow” and then after it’s healed).
That this king is the same as the 11th king referred to in Daniel 7 is evident. As was the case with the fourth beast seen by Daniel, the seven-headed beast seen by John has ten horns. These ten horns represent ten kings (Rev. 17:12) – i.e., the ten kings referred to in Daniel 7. Keeping in mind the fact that the 11th horn was the focus of both Daniel’s vision and the explanation of his vision, it’s significant that there is no appearance or mention of an 11th horn on the seven-headed beast of Rev. 13. The implication is that the 11th king of Daniel 7 is being represented differently in the vision given to John, as described in Rev. 13 and 17. Rather than being represented as another horn on the beast, the 11th king is being represented as one of the heads of this seven-headed beast – i.e., the head of the beast that appeared to have been “slain to death,” but whose “death blow was cured.” The reason for this change in imagery is likely due to the fact that the 11th king referred to in Daniel 7 is going to become the supreme ruler of the fourth kingdom (for we read that the ten horns that represent the ten kings will “give their kingdom to the wild beast, until the words of God shall be accomplished” [Rev. 17:18]).
It’s this king – the king represented by the head that was healed of a death blow – who is the focus of Revelation 13 (and who, due to his supremacy over the kingdom that the beast represents, is referred to as the beast itself). It’s this king who is in view when we’re told that the beast “opens its mouth in blasphemies toward God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, and those tabernacling in heaven.” It’s this king who is in view when we’re told that “the whole earth” will “marvel after” this beast, and that “all who are dwelling on the earth will be worshipping it.” And it’s this king who’s in view when we’re told that the beast will have authority “to do what it wills forty-two months,” will “do battle with the saints and to conquer them” and will be given “authority…over every tribe and people and language and nation.”
The fact that the beast will be doing battle with the saints and will “conquer them” is, of course, in accord with what’s said concerning the 11th king in Dan. 7:26 (and the “forty-two months” – which, again, is 1,260 days, or 3.5 years – during which the beast will “do what it wills” are equivalent to the “time, times and half a time” referred to in Dan. 7:26).
When we read that this beast will be given “authority…over every tribe and people and language and nation,” it should be kept in mind that, according to the messenger’s interpretation of the fourth beast, the dominion of the fourth kingdom will be worldwide in scope (Dan. 7:23). Thus, the reference to “every tribe and people and language and nation” in Rev. 13:7 is a reference to mankind in a general sense (including both Jews and – primarily – gentiles). It is not, in other words, a reference to just one kind of people who, for whatever reason, were born outside of the land of their ancestors (such as the Jews who were dwelling in Jerusalem for Pentecost, but were “from every nation under heaven” [Acts 2:5]). Rather, it refers to people who are just as ethnically and racially diverse as those referred to in the following verses:
Daniel 4:1
King Nebuchadnezzar to all peoples, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you!
Daniel 4:34-36
At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, “What have you done?”
Daniel 5:18-19
O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father kingship and greatness and glory and majesty. And because of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him.
Daniel 6:25-27
Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth: “Peace be multiplied to you. I make a decree, that in all my royal dominion people are to tremble and fear before the God of Daniel, for he is the living God, enduring forever; his kingdom shall never be destroyed, and his dominion shall be to the end.
Daniel 7:14
And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
For part two of this study, click here: Have the prophecies concerning the fourth kingdom of Daniel 2 and 7 already been fulfilled? (Part two)
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