Connect Daniel 7:4 with other biblical prophecies about kingdoms and their downfall. Daniel 7:4 — The Lion with Eagle’s Wings “The first beast was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off, and it was lifted up from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a man, and a human mind was given to it.” (Daniel 7:4) Key Identifiers • Lion = royal power, fierce conquest • Eagle’s wings = speed of expansion • Wings torn off = abrupt humbling • Standing like a man = forced acknowledgment of human frailty • Human mind given = restored—but limited—understanding Parallel Picture in Daniel 2 • Head of gold on Nebuchadnezzar’s statue (Daniel 2:32, 38) mirrors the lion: same kingdom—Babylon. • Both visions highlight splendor first, collapse later. Old Testament Prophecies Foretelling Babylon’s Fall • Isaiah 13:19 — “Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms… will be overthrown by God.” • Jeremiah 50:13 — “Because of the LORD’s wrath she will not be inhabited.” • Jeremiah 51:37 — “Babylon will become heaps… a horror and a hissing, without inhabitant.” • Isaiah 14:4-23 — taunt song over the fallen king of Babylon: pride always ends in the grave. Within Daniel — Nebuchadnezzar’s Personal Humbling • Daniel 4:28-33 — the king is driven from men like a beast: “While the word was still in the king’s mouth… he was driven away.” Wings torn off. • Daniel 4:34-37 — restored “sanity” when he praises Heaven: the beast stands like a man with a renewed mind. • Daniel 5:30-31 — Belshazzar’s abrupt end; Medo-Persia enters exactly as foretold. Other Kingdoms, Same Pattern Babylon’s story is a template. The Lord repeats it with every proud empire: • Assyria — Nahum 3:18-19: lion imagery again, but “no healing for your wound.” • Tyre — Ezekiel 28:2 - “Your heart is proud… yet you are but a man.” • Medo-Persia — Daniel 8:20-22: the ram replaced by the goat; empire shifts overnight. • Greece — Daniel 8:8: “the large horn was broken”; Alexander’s kingdom shattered. • Rome’s final form — Daniel 7:7-11 and Revelation 17:10-14: the last beast crushed by Christ. New Testament Echoes • Revelation 18:2 — “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the Great!” End-time commerce collapses exactly as ancient Babylon did. • Revelation 17:16-17 — allied kings “will hate the prostitute… and burn her with fire,” echoing Jeremiah 51. • 2 Thessalonians 2:8 — “the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of His mouth.” Every final empire meets the same fate. God’s Unchanging Pattern over the Nations 1. Exaltation — God permits mighty expansion (lion with wings). 2. Pride — rulers credit themselves (Isaiah 10:13). 3. Humbling — wings pulled off, dominion removed (Daniel 7:4). 4. Transitional mercy — a “human mind” may be offered if repentance occurs (Daniel 4:34). 5. Replacement — another kingdom arises until Christ returns (Daniel 2:44). Takeaways for Today • World powers rise only by God’s decree (Daniel 2:21). • National pride invites divine teardown. • Repentance is God’s standing offer, even for emperors. • All earthly kingdoms are temporary; only the Son of Man’s kingdom is everlasting (Daniel 7:13-14). |
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