Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Daniel
Chapter 7: One Like the Son of Man
With chapter 7 the book turns from history to vision, and to its towering center. Daniel sees four dreadful beasts rise from a stormy sea, the same world-empires of chapter 2, but now shown as God sees them: ravening, brutal, and crowned by a blasphemous little horn that makes war on the saints. Then the scene shifts to heaven: 'the Ancient of days did sit,' the judgment is set, and 'the books were opened.' And into that court comes 'one like the Son of man... with the clouds of heaven,' to whom is given 'dominion, and glory, and a kingdom... an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away.' This is Jesus Christ, the title He loved and claimed at His trial, and the kingdom He shares with His saints for ever. The beasts have their hour; the Son of Man has the everlasting throne.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Daniel chapter 7, the vision of the four beasts and the Son of Man. For each section you will find the KJV text, key word studies, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. This is the last Aramaic chapter and the prophetic heart of the book. We hold the detailed prophetic identifications with humility while fixing our eyes on its sure center: Christ and His everlasting kingdom. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
Empires From the Sea
Four brutal beasts, the kingdoms of the world as heaven sees them.
A Mouth Speaking Great Things
A blasphemous power that makes war on the saints.
The Ancient of Days
God enthroned in fire; the judgment set, the books opened.
The Son of Man
One like the Son of man given an everlasting dominion.
Four Great Beasts Came Up From the Sea (Daniel 7:1-8)
Daniel sees four great beasts rise from a storm-tossed sea, a lion, a bear, a leopard, and a dreadful iron-toothed beast with ten horns, out of which grows a little horn with a mouth speaking great things.
A Mouth Speaking Great Things
"In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters. Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it. And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things."
Word Study
"four great beasts came up from the sea." In chapter 2, human empire appeared as a glorious image of gold and silver; here the same kingdoms appear as they look to heaven, ravening beasts. The "sea," stirred by "the four winds," pictures the restless, turbulent mass of the nations, "the waters which thou sawest... are peoples, and multitudes" (Revelation 17:15). Fallen human power, cut loose from God, is bestial: it devours, tramples, and breaks. What man admires as majestic, God sees as a beast rising from a stormy sea.
"a mouth speaking great things." Out of the fourth beast grows a "little horn" with "a mouth speaking great things", arrogant, blasphemous speech against God. It is the same figure John saw: a beast "speaking great things and blasphemies... to make war with the saints" (Revelation 13:5-7). Across Scripture the final concentration of human rebellion is marked by proud words against the Most High. But great swelling words are the beast's whole strength, and they will be silenced when the throne is set.
Explanation
Daniel sees "the four winds of the heaven" churn "the great sea," and "four great beasts" rise from it. The first is "like a lion" with "eagle's wings"; the second "like to a bear" with three ribs in its teeth; the third "like a leopard" with four wings and four heads; and the fourth "dreadful and terrible... with great iron teeth," that "devoured and brake in pieces," bearing "ten horns." These correspond to the four kingdoms of the great image in chapter 2, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome, but seen now in their true, brutal character.
Daniel's attention fastens on the fourth beast's horns, and especially on "another little horn" that comes up among them, uprooting three, with "eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things." This arrogant, watchful, blaspheming power is the climax of the beastly kingdoms, and it is the enemy the rest of the vision will answer. Human history, from heaven's view, rises to a final defiance of God, a mouth full of great words against the Most High.
Gospel Focus
This vision teaches us to see the powers of the world as God sees them. The empires men build and admire, glittering as gold in chapter 2, are beasts in chapter 7, driven by appetite, cruelty, and pride, and they rise to a climax of blasphemy in the little horn "speaking great things." It is a sober correction to any believer tempted to be dazzled by earthly power. Yet the vision is not meant to frighten but to steady us: the beasts rage for a while, but they are only beasts, and heaven has a throne. When the world's power grows loud and boastful, "speaking great things" against God and His people, remember that its mouth is its main weapon, and its time is short. The next thing Daniel sees is the Ancient of Days sitting in judgment. The beast has a mouth; God has a throne, and a Son of Man to whom the everlasting kingdom belongs.
One Like the Son of Man Came With the Clouds (Daniel 7:9-14)
The scene lifts to heaven: the Ancient of Days sits in blazing glory, the court convenes and the books are opened, the blaspheming beast is slain, and one like the Son of man comes with the clouds to receive an everlasting, universal dominion.
An Everlasting Dominion, Which Shall Not Pass Away
"I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened. I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time. I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed."
Word Study
"the Ancient of days," Aramaic attiq yomin (עַתִּיק יוֹמִין). The Eternal One, God enthroned before all time, "whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool." His throne is "the fiery flame," and countless hosts serve Him as "the judgment was set, and the books were opened", the language of final, righteous judgment (Revelation 20:12). This is the God who was mocked by the little horn's "great words," seated in unshakable majesty. The blaspheming mouth meets the eternal Judge.
"one like the Son of man," Aramaic bar enash (בַּר אֱנָשׁ). This is the title the Lord Jesus loved and used of Himself more than any other, and He quoted this very verse at His trial: "hereafter shall ye see the Son of man... coming in the clouds of heaven" (Matthew 26:64). To this One is "given... dominion, and glory, and a kingdom... an everlasting dominion." Notice the mystery: the Son of Man comes to the Ancient of Days, yet the glorified Christ of Revelation is described with the very features of the Ancient of Days, "his head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow" (Revelation 1:14). This is the one God revealed in the incarnation: the eternal LORD enthroned, and the same LORD come in flesh as the Son of Man, "God... manifest in the flesh" (1 Timothy 3:16), in whom "dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily" (Colossians 2:9). The everlasting kingdom is His.
Explanation
The scene rises from the beastly sea to the throne room of heaven. "The Ancient of days did sit", God in blazing, snow-white glory, His throne aflame, ministered to by "thousand thousands" and "ten thousand times ten thousand." Then the decisive words: "the judgment was set, and the books were opened." Because of the horn's "great words," the beast is "slain" and "given to the burning flame." Human rebellion, however loud, is judged and consumed before the throne.
Then comes the glory of the whole book. "One like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven" and was brought before the Ancient of Days, "and there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him." Where the beasts had brief and brutal reigns, this King receives "an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed." This is the everlasting kingdom foreshadowed by the stone in chapter 2, now given to a Person, the Son of Man, Jesus Christ.
Gospel Focus
These verses are the mountain peak of Daniel and one of the great Messianic prophecies of the Old Testament. "Son of man" was the Lord Jesus' favorite title for Himself, and when the high priest put Him under oath, He answered by claiming this very scene: "hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven" (Matthew 26:64), the words that got Him condemned for blasphemy, because His judges knew exactly what He was claiming. Daniel saw it centuries before: the Son of Man given "dominion, and glory, and a kingdom," served by "all people, nations, and languages," with a reign that "shall not pass away." And the vision quietly guards the great truth of who He is. The Son of Man and the Ancient of Days are not two Gods, for there is one God; the glorified Christ wears the Ancient of Days' own snow-white glory (Revelation 1:14). Here is the mystery of the incarnation: the eternal LORD Himself came in flesh as the Son of Man to receive, in our humanity, the kingdom that was always His as God. At His name "every knee should bow" (Philippians 2:10), for "the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ" (Revelation 11:15). The beasts had their hour; Jesus has the everlasting throne. Serve Him now, for you will serve Him forever.
The Saints of the Most High Shall Take the Kingdom (Daniel 7:15-28)
Daniel is told the meaning: the beasts are four kings, and the little horn will blaspheme God and wear out the saints for a limited season, until the judgment removes his dominion and the saints of the Most High possess the everlasting kingdom.
Whose Kingdom Is an Everlasting Kingdom
"I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me. I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things. These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth. But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever. Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows. I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom. Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time. But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him. Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart."
Word Study
"the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom," Aramaic qaddishei elyonin. Three times (verses 18, 22, 27) the vision promises that the saints, the holy people of God, will "possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever." The kingdom given to the Son of Man is shared with His people. Persecuted now, the saints will reign with Him, "if we suffer, we shall also reign with him" (2 Timothy 2:12); the song to the Lamb declares, "hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth" (Revelation 5:10). What the beast tried to seize by force, God freely gives to the humble.
"a time and times and the dividing of time." The blaspheming horn is allowed to "wear out the saints" and "think to change times and laws," but only "until a time and times and the dividing of time", a limited, bounded season (understood as three and a half "times"), the same period John gives as "forty and two months" (Revelation 13:5). This is the great comfort for the persecuted church: the beast's power is real but measured, cut short by God's decree. "The judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion."
Explanation
Troubled by the vision, Daniel asks its meaning and is told plainly: "These great beasts, which are four, are four kings." But the outcome is already sure: "the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever." Daniel presses to understand the terrible fourth beast and its little horn, and learns that the horn "made war with the saints, and prevailed against them", but only "until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints."
The interpretation of the fourth kingdom follows: ten kings, then a blasphemous ruler who "shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints... and think to change times and laws" for "a time and times and the dividing of time." Yet his end is fixed: "the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end." And the last word is the everlasting kingdom given "to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom." Daniel is left shaken but keeps "the matter in my heart." The beast wins a battle; the saints win the kingdom.
Gospel Focus
The interpretation is unvarnished about the cost and unshakable about the outcome. The little horn "made war with the saints, and prevailed against them", God does not promise His people escape from persecution; sometimes the beast prevails "for a season." The saints are worn out; times and laws are twisted against them. But the whole vision is bracketed by a certainty repeated three times: "the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom... for ever, even for ever and ever." The persecutor's leash is measured to the day, "a time and times and the dividing of time," and then "the judgment shall sit." This is exactly the hope the New Testament gives the suffering church: "the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18), and "if we suffer, we shall also reign with him" (2 Timothy 2:12). So do not measure the future by the beast's present roar. Its dominion will be taken away; the kingdom belongs to Christ the Son of Man and, in Him, to His saints, "whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom." Hold the matter in your heart, and endure.
Chapter 7 in Review
Daniel 7 is the prophetic heart of the book. Daniel sees "four great beasts" rise from a stormy sea, the world-empires of chapter 2 shown now as heaven sees them, brutal and devouring, climaxing in a fourth beast whose "little horn" has "a mouth speaking great things" against God and makes "war with the saints." Then the scene lifts to the throne: "the Ancient of days did sit," "the judgment was set, and the books were opened," and the blaspheming beast is destroyed. And "one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven" to receive "dominion, and glory, and a kingdom... an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away." The vision closes with the promise, three times repeated, that "the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom... for ever."
For the Apostolic reader this chapter shines with Christ. The "Son of Man" is the title Jesus used most and claimed under oath at His trial, and Daniel saw His everlasting dominion centuries in advance. The vision quietly holds the mystery of the one God: the Son of Man who comes to the Ancient of Days is the same LORD who wears the Ancient of Days' snow-white glory in Revelation, the eternal God come in our flesh to receive the kingdom that was always His. It teaches us to see earthly power soberly, as beastly and brief, and to endure persecution with hope, for the beast's time is measured and the saints' kingdom is everlasting. The world has beasts and boasting mouths; heaven has a throne, an open book, and a Son of Man whose reign will never end. Serve Him now, endure faithfully, and you will reign with Him for ever.
- Human empires, glorious to man, are beasts to heaven, driven by appetite and pride (7:3-7; Revelation 17:15).
- Human rebellion climaxes in a blasphemous power with "a mouth speaking great things" (7:8, 25; Revelation 13:5-7).
- God reigns as "the Ancient of days"; the judgment is set and the books opened (7:9-10; Revelation 20:12).
- "One like the Son of man" is Jesus, given an everlasting dominion, His own claim at His trial (7:13-14; Matthew 26:64).
- The Son of Man and the Ancient of Days are the one God, revealed in the incarnation (7:9, 13; Revelation 1:14; Colossians 2:9).
- The beast prevails for a measured season; the saints possess the everlasting kingdom (7:21-27; 2 Timothy 2:12; Revelation 5:10).
Questions for Reflection
- Do you see the powers of the world as glittering images or as beasts? How does heaven's view change your fears?
- Jesus claimed this vision as His own identity. What does "the Son of man" with an everlasting dominion mean for your loyalty?
- The Son of Man and the Ancient of Days meet in the one Lord Jesus. How does that deepen your worship of Christ?
- The beast's time is measured; the saints' kingdom is forever. How does that steady you under pressure or persecution?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Daniel 7 is in Aramaic; key terms: attiq yomin ("Ancient of days," verses 9, 13, 22); bar enash ("Son of man," verse 13); qaddishei elyonin ("saints of the most High," verses 18, 22, 25, 27). The four beasts parallel the four kingdoms of Daniel 2 (Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome). The sea as peoples: Revelation 17:15; Isaiah 57:20. The blaspheming horn and its war on the saints: Revelation 13:5-7; 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4; the "time and times and the dividing of time" (three and a half times): Daniel 12:7; Revelation 12:14; 13:5. The Ancient of Days and the judgment with opened books: Revelation 20:11-12; Psalm 90:2. "Son of man" as Jesus' self-title and His trial claim: Matthew 8:20; 26:64; Mark 14:62; Acts 7:56; His coming with clouds: Revelation 1:7; His authority to judge "because he is the Son of man": John 5:22, 27. The one God, the Son of Man wearing the Ancient of Days' glory: Revelation 1:13-14; God manifest in flesh: 1 Timothy 3:16; Colossians 2:9; every knee bowing: Philippians 2:9-11. The saints reigning with Christ: 2 Timothy 2:12; Revelation 5:10; 20:4; the everlasting kingdom: Luke 1:33; Revelation 11:15. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- The four beasts from the sea and the blaspheming little horn: Daniel 7:1-8; Revelation 17:15; 13:5-7.
- The Ancient of Days on the throne and the Son of Man's everlasting dominion: Daniel 7:9-14; Matthew 26:64; Revelation 1:14; Colossians 2:9.
- The interpretation: the beast's measured season and the saints' everlasting kingdom: Daniel 7:15-28; 2 Timothy 2:12; Revelation 5:10; Luke 1:33.