Daniel 7.4-Daniel Describes the First Beast.mp3.crdownload
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Tuesday April 30, 2013
Daniel: Daniel 7:4-Daniel Describes the First Beast
Lesson # 203
Please turn in your Bibles to Daniel 7:1.
Daniel 7:1 During Belshazzar’s, Babylon’s king, first year, Daniel saw a dream specifically visions in his mind on his bed. Then, he wrote down the dream. He declares the beginning of the account. 2 Daniel began to speak and said, “I was in a trance like state, staring because of my vision during the night as behold the heaven’s four winds were blowing violently against the great sea. 3 Then, four great beasts, one different from the other, came up out from the sea.” (Author’s translation)
Daniel 7:4 “The first was like a lion and had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man; a human mind also was given to it.” (NASB95)
Daniel under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is employing the figure of “asyndeton” in order to get the reader’s attention that he is now beginning to describe the four beasts he mentioned in verse 4 as coming up out of the sea.
“The first was like a lion” is referring to the first of the four beasts which Daniel describes as coming up out of the sea in his vision and is comparing the appearance of the first beast which appeared in a vision to Daniel with the appearance of a lion.
“And had the wings of an eagle” denotes that the first beast was a lion whose appearance was accompanied by wings of an eagle.
Once again, Daniel under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is employing the figure of “asyndeton” in order to emphasize the statement here at this point in verse 4.
The Holy Spirit uses this figure because He wants the reader to dwell upon this description of the first beast since it describes Nebuchadnezzar’s transformation in becoming a believer and in particular an obedient believer as a result of the Lord’s disciplining him for seven years.
“I kept looking” is composed of the masculine singular peʿal (Hebrew: qal) active participle form of the verb ḥǎzā(h) (חֲזָה) (khaz-aw´), “looking” which is followed by the first person masculine singular peʿal (Hebrew: qal) active perfect form of the verb hǎwā(h) (הֲוָה) (hav-aw´), “I kept.”
The verb hǎwā(h) denotes Daniel’s trance like state when he saw the eagle’s wings plucked off the first beast which came up out of the great sea.
The verb ḥǎzā(h) means “to stare” in the sense of steadily looking at something with studious attention and with openmouthed wonder and amazement.
“Until its wings were plucked” is composed of the preposition ʿǎḏ (עַד) (ad) which is followed by the particle dî (דִּי) (dee), which together are translated “until” and then we have the third person masculine plural peʿil (Hebrew: qal passive) perfect form of the verb merǎṭ (מְרַט) (mer-at´), “were plucked” which is followed by the masculine plural construct form of the noun gǎp̄ (גַּף) (gaf), “wings” which is modified by the third person feminine singular pronominal suffix hî(ʾ) (הִיא) (he), “its.”
The preposition ʿǎḏ is employed with the particle dî as a temporal marker indicating that Daniel was in a trance like state staring at the first beast since its appearance was like a lion with eagle’s wing attached to it “when” or “as” the eagle’s wings were plucked off it.
The verb merǎṭ means “to be torn off, to be plucked off” in the sense of having the structure of the wings of the first beast attached to its body torn off.
Some interpret this verb to mean that the feathers of the wings of this first beast were pulled out with the wings remaining intact.
However, it is better to interpret this verb as meaning that the wings of this first beast were totally removed from it since the first beast is made to stand on two feet like a human being and was given a human mind as well.
There is a transformation of the first beast indicating it lost its beastly nature and which transformation would not be complete if it still had wings like a bird.
“And it was lifted up from the ground” is the next event that took place after the eagle’s wings of the first beast were torn off it.
“And made to stand on two feet like a man” presents the purpose of the first beast being lifted up from the ground indicating that the first beast was transformed from a lion to a human being.
“A human mind also was given to it” completes the transformation of the first beast from a lion to a human being.
Daniel 7:4 “The first beast was like a lion with eagle’s wings attached to it. I was in a trance like state staring when its wings were torn off. Then it was lifted up from the ground for the purpose of it standing on two feet like a human being. A human mind was also given to it.” (My translation)
The first beast symbolizes Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon since it corresponds to the head of gold in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel chapter two, which Daniel identified as being Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon (See Daniel 2:37-38).
Further confirmation comes from history itself since both the lion and the eagle were both national symbols of Babylon (See Jeremiah 4:7, 13; Ezekiel 17:3).
Nebuchadnezzar is elsewhere compared to both the lion (Je. 4:7; cf. 49:19; 50:44) and the eagle (Ezk. 17:3, 11–12). Cf. v 4 with 4:33–34.
Just as gold is the most precious metal on earth so the lion is the king of the wild beasts of the earth.
The fact that this first beast was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man and was given a human mind indicates that this refers to Nebuchadnezzar after being humbled by God and in particular its speak of him after being disciplined by God for seven years and being restored to power by God (Daniel 4).
Though the king became a believer as a result of God miraculously delivering Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from his power, Nebuchadnezzar was still thinking arrogantly and conducting himself as an unregenerate person in rebellion against God.
The discipline broke this arrogant mentality and sinful behavior in rebelling against God.
So this description of the first beast in Daniel 7:4 as standing on two feet like a human being and being given a human mind is a reference to Nebuchadnezzar thinking and acting in accordance with the will of God as a believer.
This is indicated by the fact that of all four beasts, the first beast was distinguished as having its beast-like character transformed into a human being.
Remember, the four beasts all describe the empires of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome as beasts in order to convey God’s viewpoint of these nations.
In Scripture, heathen nations are often depicted by wild beasts in order to express the animal like character of these nations which are unregenerate and deceived by sin and Satan.
Here in Daniel chapter seven the Holy Spirit is depicting the unregenerate heathen nations as wild animals in order to convey to the reader God’s viewpoint of these nations.
Therefore, the fact that these four empires are described as beasts emphasizing their unregenerate character and the first beast was transformed from a wild beast to a human being would indicate that Nebuchadnezzar was not only saved but he was obedient to God and no longer in rebellion against him after being disciplined for seven years.
The description of the first beast as being transformed from a wild beast to a human being here in Daniel 7:4 indicates that Nebuchadnezzar after the discipline was loving his neighbor as himself after this discipline in contrast to the kings of these heathen empires which followed Babylon.
The tearing off the wings of the first beast would be a reference to the end of the discipline administered to him by God as a believer since the eagle’s wings correspond to the description of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4:33 when he was disciplined by God for seven years.
If you recall, Daniel 4:32 tells the reader that Nebuchadnezzar was driven away from mankind so that his dwelling place was among the beasts of the field.
He even ate grass like cattle for seven years until he acknowledged that God was sovereign over him.
Daniel 4:33 records that Nebuchadnezzar was driven away from mankind and even habitually ate grass like cattle.
Furthermore, he was continually drenched with the dew from heaven until his hair became extremely long like eagle’s feathers likewise his nails like a bird’s claws.
This description in Daniel 4:33 would indicate that the eagle’s wings on the first beast speak of Nebuchadnezzar being disciplined and the tearing off the wings would indicate the end of that discipline after seven years.