Do the four beasts in Daniel 7 represent the Diadochi kingdoms

Question

I heard an argument that I was curious if anyone discussed and considered. Is there strong exegetical evidence to support identifying the four beasts described in Daniel 7:3 as representing the four main kingdoms that emerged from Alexander the Great's empire after his death—the Diadochi kingdoms of Ptolemaic Egypt, Seleucid Syria, Macedon, and Thrace? Also, I read in the Sillabyne Oracles that it indicates that Antiochus IV spun out from the ten horns.

Are there any strong counterarguments to this view? Does the contextual and symbolic evidence presented here provide good support for seeing the four beasts as references to the Diadochi kingdoms? I am not saying I am fully committed to it, but I thought it was an interesting point.

Answer 1

Compare Daniel 7:27 and 2:44. Both say the same thing, that is, they describe the same event. Jesus Christ and His saints will rule the whole earth forever.

Daniel 7:27:

(During the reign of the fourth beast) “And the kingdom and rulership, and the greatness of the kingdom under all the heavens shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. And all kingdoms shall serve and obey Him”.

Daniel 2:44:

“And in the days of these kings (iron and clay mixed toes), the God of Heaven shall set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed. And the kingdom shall not be left to other people. It shall break in pieces and destroy all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever”.

So, logically, we can see:

The iron legs of the statue in Daniel 2 = 4th Beast in Daniel 7 = the Roman Empire

The bronze belly and thighs = 3rd beast Leopard = the Greek Empire of Alexander

The silver chest and arms = 2nd beast Bear = the Medo-Persian Empire

The golden head = 1st beast Lion = Babylonian Empire

[Daniel plainly tells Nebuchadnezzar, “You are the head of gold” (Dan 2:38)]

So, obviously these four beasts described in Daniel 7:3 cannot be the Diadochi kingdoms that came out only from the third Greek Empire.

Diadochi Kingdoms

Daniel 7:6:

“After this I was looking, and, behold, another like a leopard, and to it were four wings of a bird on its side. And also to the beast were four heads (these are the Diadochi Kingdoms). And rulership was given to it”.

Daniel 8:5:

“And I was considering. And behold! A male of the goats (the Greek Empire) came from the west, over the face of all the earth and did not touch the ground (Alexander the Great conquered the world even before he was 30 years of age!). And the he goat had an outstanding horn (King Alexander) between his eyes”.

Daniel 8:21:

“And the shaggy goat is the king of Greece (i.e., the kingdom of Greece). And the great horn between his eyes is the first king (this is Alexander the Great)”.

Daniel 8:8:

“Then the he-goat became very great. And when he was mighty, the great horn was shattered (Alexander’s untimely sudden death). And in its place came up four outstanding ones (these are the Diadochi kingdoms) toward the four winds of the heavens”.

So, the Diadochi kingdoms are limited to the bronze belly and thighs or the third beast, the leopard.

Answer 2

Chapter 7 depicts four visionary beasts: a lion, a bear, a leopard and a terrifying beast. However, those have to be seen as having their counterparts in the vision of the statue, and also with the vision in chapter 8. All the information from those other chapters have to be collated to get a clear picture.

Babylon is stated to be the head of gold on the image, its chest and arms of silver equaling the ram in ch. 8 (which is Medo-Persia).

The belly and thighs of bronze equal the goat in ch. 8 (which is Greece, including the Ptolomies and Selucids, and the later Maccabees and Hasmoneans).

Then the legs of iron equal the terrifying beast, which is Rome.

This is taken from the NIV Study Bible 1987 edition, with a helpful diagram and detailed explanations with dates (page 1289). Another Study Bible (the NLT) seem to be in agreement, and the scholars who produced them are qualified in biblical hermeneutics.

However, it is the angel who then gave Daniel the understanding of what those visions means who is The Authority. He stated in chapter 7, verse 17 that the four beasts represent four kingdoms that were to arise from the earth. Details were given about the fourth beast, but it is the leopard in ch. 7 that fits the bill for what happened after Alexander the Great's sudden and early death; not the other three beasts. Here is how the NIV Study notes explain this, after describing how it had four wings on its back, and four heads (7:6):

"The leopard with four wings represents the speedy conquests of Alexander the Great (334-340 B.C.) and the four heads correspond to the four main divisions into which his empire fell after his untimely death in 323:

Macedon and Greece (under Antipater and Cassander), Thrace and Asia Minor (under Lysimachus), Syria (under Seleucus I), Palestine and Egypt (under Ptolomy I).

Recall how chapter 8 has to go alongside chapter 7 to get all the details? This confirms the interpretation just given. The study notes explain:

"8:3 - The ram represents the Medo-Persian empire (v. 20). The longer of his two horns reflects the predominant position of Persia. Vs. 5 - The rapidly charging goat is Greece, and the prominent horn is Alexander the Great, 'the first king' (v. 21). 8:7 - Shattering his two horns: Greece crushes Medo-Persia. 8:8 - His large horn was broken off. The death of Alexander the Great at the height of his power (323 B.C.). Four prominent horns - four heads (7:4-7)."

It then goes on to detail the other horn emerging from one of the four horns belonging to the third kingdom (Greece). The horn that started small is Antiochus IV Epiphanes.

So, to answer the question: it is not the four beast in chapter 7 that represent the Diadochi kingdoms. It is the leopard with four heads (which is but one of the four beasts).

Answer 3

A more common and more natural interpretation is that the winged leopard, the third beast,represents Alexander and the Diadochi are represented by the four heads (ch7 v6). Compare the ram and th goat in ch8.

It looks as though the four beasts are in sequence. The winged lion is an iconic image of Babylon. The lopsided bear can be naturally understood as the lopsided alliance of Medes and Persians.

It seems to me that this chapter, at least, treats the little horn as coming out of an empire subsequent to Alexander's. Perhaps considerably later, since the beginning of v7 suggests a fresh vision.

Answer 4

Context
To arrive at a clear, concise interpretation, the whole chapter 7 containing this vision must be considered.

(1) The fourth beast in Daniel 7 is described as diverse from the other three beasts (empires), and was noted as having great iron teeth (v. 7). The only empire noted for iron was the Roman Empire. The Greeks were noted for bronze.

(2) The mention of ten horns (rulers), and three of them plucked up by another aligns with the history of the Roman dictatorships! The last three, Galba, Otho, and Vitellus, were killed in one year, and Vespasian became emperor.

(3) The prophecy of the four beasts culminated in the establishment of the Kingdom of God (vss. 13-14, 27) The announcement of Jesus at the beginning of His ministry, The Kingdom is at hand, referred to the first century A.D. which is past the time zone of the Diadochi.

There is no possible way that the vision of chapter seven of Daniel referred to the four generals of Alexander the Great! [Note, The Sillabyne Oracles, outside the canon, are not a reliable place to glean accurate information for interpreting the Bible.]