7:4 “The first one was like a lion with eagles’ wings. As I watched, its wings were pulled off and it was lifted up from the ground. It was made to stand on two feet like a human being, and a human mind 1 was given to it. 2
7:5 “Then 3 a second beast appeared, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and there were three ribs 4 in its mouth between its teeth. 5 It was told, 6 ‘Get up and devour much flesh!’
7:6 “After these things, 7 as I was watching, another beast 8 like a leopard appeared, with four bird-like wings on its back. 9 This beast had four heads, 10 and ruling authority was given to it.
1 tn Aram “heart of a man.”
2 sn The identity of the first animal, derived from v. 17 and the parallels in chap. 2, is Babylon. The reference to the plucking of its wings is probably a reference to the time of Nebuchadnezzar’s insanity (cf. chap. 4). The latter part of v. 4 then describes the restoration of Nebuchadnezzar. The other animals have traditionally been understood to represent respectively Media-Persia, Greece, and Rome, although most of modern scholarship identifies them as Media, Persia, and Greece. For a biblical parallel to the mention of lion, bear, and leopard together, see Hos 13:7-8.
3 tn Aram “and behold.”
4 sn The three ribs held securely in the mouth of the bear, perhaps representing Media-Persia, apparently symbolize military conquest, but the exact identity of the “ribs” is not clear. Possibly it is a reference to the Persian conquest of Lydia, Egypt, and Babylonia.
5 tc The LXX lacks the phrase “between its teeth.”
6 tn Aram “and thus they were saying to it.”
7 tn Aram “this.” So also in v. 7.
8 tn Aram “and behold, another one.”
9 tn Or “sides.”
10 sn If the third animal is Greece, the most likely identification of these four heads is the four-fold division of the empire of Alexander the Great following his death. See note on Dan 8:8.