This was about 556 B.C., twenty years before the return of the children of Israel from captivity in about 536 B.C.

The section of this book from 1:3—6:28 speaks of the victory, in their captivity, of God’s degraded elect over Satan’s further devices. The section from 7:1—12:13 records the visions of the overcoming Daniel. Daniel’s faithfulness and victory gave him the position and the right angle to receive the visions from God.

The four winds of heaven signify moves of heaven from four directions, the stirring up of the Great Sea signifies the stirring up of the political situation around the Mediterranean Sea, and the four beasts that came up from the sea signify four great, fierce, cruel, and inhuman kings with their empires (v. 17). That the four winds are “of heaven” does not mean that heaven is the source of the four beasts but that heaven arranged the situation that produced them.

I.e., the Mediterranean Sea. The sea signifies the Gentile nations (vv. 3, 17; Rev. 17:15). God’s economy in His creation was to make the Mediterranean area the center of culture up to the time of Columbus. Human culture has become a great sea full of winds and storms.

In Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (Dan. 2:31-45) human government on the earth was signified by a great human image full of glory and splendor. In the vision of God’s prophet Daniel in this chapter, the heads of human government on the earth, and the governments themselves, are signified by wild beasts.

The first beast corresponds to the head of gold of the great human image in Dan. 2:32a, Dan. 2:36-38, signifying Babylon with its king, Nebuchadnezzar. Its being like a lion, the king of the beasts, signifies that it was the most fierce and cruel, and its having the wings of an eagle, the king of the fowls, signifies that it was in the air, which belongs to Satan, the ruler of the air (Eph. 2:2), and that its move was swift. The plucking of its wings signifies that its moving power was taken away and that it became like a beast in the field, as mentioned in Dan. 4:23-25a, 33. This beast became like a man standing on the earth with a man’s heart, as indicated in Dan. 4:25b, 32b, 34a.

The second beast corresponds to the breast and arms of silver of the great human image in Dan. 2:32b, Dan. 2:39a, signifying Medo-Persia. Its resembling a bear signifies that it was not as strong and swift as the lion but that it was still fierce and cruel. Its being raised up on one side signifies that Media and Persia became one dominion. That three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth signifies that three kingdoms, Babylon, Asia Minor, and Egypt, were devoured by it. Its being commanded to arise and devour much flesh signifies that it would devour more nations.

The third beast corresponds to the abdomen and thighs of bronze of the great human image in Dan. 2:32c, Dan. 2:39b, signifying Greece with its king, Alexander the Great. Its being like a leopard signifies that it was fierce, cruel, and swift (Hab. 1:8a). That it had four wings of a bird on its back signifies that it was swift by means of its four generals. The beast had four heads, signifying that the four wings for swiftness became four heads, four generals who became the heads of four kingdoms. After the death of Alexander the Great, his four generals divided his empire into four kingdoms (see note Dan. 8:8^2a). That the beast was given dominion signifies that it was given authority to rule over the nations.

The fourth beast corresponds to the legs of iron and the feet and the toes, partly of iron and partly of clay, of the great human image in Dan. 2:33, 40-43, signifying the Roman Empire, and specifically Antichrist, the last Caesar of the Roman Empire (Rev. 17:7-11). This is the beast revealed in Rev. 13:1-2. The fourth beast was dreadful and frightful and exceedingly strong, as signified by iron. That it had large iron teeth and claws of bronze, and that it devoured, crushed, and trampled down the remainder (vv. 19, 23) signify that it had great power to devour and crush nations. The beast having ten horns signifies that it had ten kings (v. 24; Rev. 17:12-13), which are the ten toes of the great human image in ch. 2.

A small horn coming up among the ten horns and three of the ten horns being uprooted before it (vv. 20, 24) signifies that Antichrist will come up among the ten kings, and before him three of them will be destroyed. In this way Antichrist will become the strongest horn.

The small horn having eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth speaking great things (vv. 20, 25a) signifies that Antichrist will have sharp insight to perceive things and a mouth to speak blasphemous words against God (Rev. 13:5-6). Because of this, he will be slain, and his body will be destroyed and given to the burning fire (v. 11; Rev. 19:20).

See note Rev. 1:14^2b.

The fire here and in v. 10 means that God is absolutely righteous and altogether holy (Heb. 12:29). Without holiness no one can see the Lord or contact Him (Heb. 12:14 and note Heb. 12:14^1b).

Times refers to the feasts appointed for the Jewish people (Lev. 23), and law, to the law of God given through Moses.

A time and times and half a time (Dan. 12:7; Rev. 12:14) denotes a year (a time) plus two years (times) plus half a year (half a time), or three and a half years, i.e., forty-two months (Rev. 11:2; 13:5), one thousand two hundred and sixty days (Rev. 11:3; 12:6), referring to the last half of the last week prophesied in 9:27, the time of the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21).

Antichrist will wage war with the saints, wear out the saints of the Most High for three and a half years, and prevail against them (vv. 21, 25; Rev. 13:7a and note Rev. 13:7¹).

I.e., holy ones. So throughout this chapter.

In His ascension Christ as the Son of Man is before the throne of God to receive dominion and a kingdom. After He receives the kingdom from God, He will come back to rule over the entire world (Luke 19:12, 15). Christ’s coming will terminate the entire human government on earth from its end to its beginning, and it will bring in the eternal kingdom of God (Dan. 2:34-35, 44).

As implied in Daniel’s vision, Christ accomplished redemption and then immediately came to God in ascension to receive the kingdom (cf. Rev. 5:6-7). This is according to God’s view, in which there is no time element. Like Abraham, David, and the other prophets, Daniel did not see the mystery of the church, which was hidden from the ages and from the generations but was revealed to the New Testament apostles and prophets (Eph. 3:3-11). He did not realize that between the first and second appearings of Christ there would be a period of time during which God would do a marvelous and mysterious work based on Christ’s redemption. This work is to regenerate His redeemed people and then sanctify them, renew them, transform them, and conform them to the glorious image of Christ (1 Pet. 1:3; 1 Thes. 5:23; 2 Cor. 4:16; 3:18; Rom. 8:29). Cf. note Isa. 61:1^1a, par. 3.

Concerning His judgment, God has given all power and authority to Jesus Christ as the Son of Man (John 5:22, 27). Hence, vv. 13-14 describe the coming of Christ, the Son of Man. The coming here is Christ’s ascension after He accomplished the work of redemption (Acts 1:9; cf. Rev. 5:6 and note Rev. 5:6^1a).

Although the dominion and authority of Babylon, Persia, and Greece were taken away, their life, i.e., their culture, has been extended and still remains. As each empire was defeated, its culture was adopted by each succeeding empire. Today the world’s culture is Roman, yet, being an accumulated culture, it contains the cultures of the Babylonians, Persians, and Greeks.

See note Dan. 7:8².

A special court, with God’s throne as the center, has been set up in the universe to judge the four human empires signified by the four wild beasts (v. 26). Everything that is judged by this court will be cast into the burning fire.