Daniel 7:4-6

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.

[7:4]  ¹ tn Aram “heart of a man.”

[7:4]  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.

[7:5]  ³ tn Aram “and behold.”

[7:5]  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.

[7:5]  ⁵ tc The LXX lacks the phrase “between its teeth.”

[7:5]  ⁶ tn Aram “and thus they were saying to it.”

[7:6]  ⁷ tn Aram “this.” So also in v. 7.

[7:6]  ⁸ tn Aram “and behold, another one.”

[7:6]  ⁹ tn Or “sides.”

[7:6]  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.