The Liberal interpretation of Daniel 7 does not fit the text.

Purpose

The Little Horn In Daniel 7, four animals symbolize four successive empires. Liberals, who do not believe that the Book of Daniel contains real prophecies, hold that Daniel was written after the events it pretends to predict. Specifically, they propose that it was compiled in the 2nd-century BC, at the time of the Greek King Antiochus. But the purpose of this article is to show that this Liberal interpretation does not fit the text of Daniel 7.

This article assumes that the article on Daniel 2 has been read.

Overview of Daniel 7

Four Consecutive Kingdoms

Four animals, a lion, a bear, a leopard, and a dragon-like beast, come out of the sea, one after the other. They are explained as “kings,” but the fourth beast is “a fourth kingdom” (Dan 7:17, 23). In other words, a king is a kingdom, and the four animals symbolize four kingdoms, each consisting of a series of kings.

Like the four metal-kingdoms of Daniel 2, the four beast-kingdoms in Daniel 7 will reign consecutively. We see this in the following:

The first three beasts will exist “before” the fourth (Daniel 7:7).
The fourth beast will devour the “whole earth” (Daniel 7:23), which does not leave space for other beasts. These empires are ‘worldwide.’
Daniel 7:6-7 several times uses the phrase “after this” to describe the chronological sequence of these animal kingdoms.

The Sea symbolizes the people.

The four animals are said to arise out of the sea, but also “from the earth” (Daniel 7:3, 17). Therefore, the sea is the earth, not the physical earth, but the people of the world.

The Ten Horns are fragments of the Fourth.

Initially, the fourth beast had ten horns, explained as ten kings that will arise out of it (Daniel 7:7-8, 24). However, since ‘kings’ are equivalent to ‘kingdoms,’ the ten horns symbolize ten kingdoms, each consisting of a series of kings. In other words, the ten horns growing out of the 4th animal symbolize that the fourth empire would fragment into many kingdoms.

The 11th horn is the Antichrist.

After the first ten horns, an 11th horn grows out of the fourth beast. It comes up “among” the first ten horns, uprooting three of them (Daniel 7:8).

Initially, it was small, but it grew and eventually dominated the other kingdoms. This 11th horn is the main character and main purpose of the vision. Daniel 7 allocates much more space to it than to any of the other characters. The only reason that Daniel describes the preceding kingdoms is to enable the reader to identify this 11th horn.

It persecutes God’s people, blasphemes God, intends to change times and law, and will only be destroyed when Christ returns (Daniel 7:8, 20, 25). In other words, the 11th horn symbolizes the Antichrist.

Daniel 7 explains Daniel 2.

The visions of Daniel 2 and 7 are similar in several respects. For example:

In both, there are four consecutive empires. As there are four metals in Daniel 2, there are four animals in Daniel 7.

In both, the fourth is called the “fourth kingdom” (Dan 2:40; 7:23) and is associated with iron (Daniel 2:40; 7:7).

In both, the fifth phase is a continuation of the fourth. This is indicated in Daniel 2 by the iron of the fourth empire continuing in the fifth phase (Daniel 2:33), and, in Daniel 7, by the 11 horns growing out of the 4th animal.

In both, the fifth is a fragmented phase, when many kingdoms exist concurrently. This is indicated in Daniel 2 by the description “divided kingdom” (Dan 2:33), and, in Daniel 7, by the 11 horns of the fourth animal. Different kings will rule different parts of the ‘world.’

In both, the divided kingdom ends with God’s Eternal Kingdom (Daniel 2:44, cf. 7:26-27).

Given these similarities, commentators agree that Daniel 2 and 7 predict the same Four Empires, the same fifth Divided Kingdom, and the same Eternal Kingdom. In other words, the 11 horns in Daniel 7 are equivalent to the divided kingdom in Daniel 2.

However, Daniel 7 provides more details. Specifically, Daniel 7 adds the Antichrist, who is not mentioned in Daniel 2. That Antichrist, the 11th horn, will arise only after the first four empires and after the first 10 horn-kingdoms.

Comparison Table

Therefore, the two chapters may be compared as follows:

Daniel 2	Daniel 7
Head of Gold	Lion
Breast and Arms of Silver	Bear
Belly and Thighs of Bronze	Leopard
Legs of Iron	Fourth animal, dreadful, terrifying, and extremely strong
Feet of Iron and Clay	Eleven horns of the fourth animal
Eternal kingdom	Everlasting Kingdom

The two visions form a unit.

The two visions explain one another. For example:

Since Daniel 2 identifies the Gold Kingdom as the Babylonian Empire, that is also the identity of the Lion Kingdom in Daniel 7.

Daniel 2 does not mention the Antichrist, but Daniel 7 reveals that it will rule during the fifth divided kingdom in Daniel 2.

The Liberal Interpretation of Daniel 7

The academic world, including theological faculties, is unable to accommodate miracles, such as accurate predictions of the future, in its explanation of reality. Everything must have a natural explanation. Consequently, since the Book of Daniel mentions the Greek Empire by name, in the academic view, also known as the Liberal view, Daniel was written AFTER that empire was already established. In other words, they believe that Daniel is history written in the form of prophecy. Specifically, in this view, Daniel was written during the reign of the Greek king Antiochus IV, who persecuted the Jews and defiled the temple in the middle of the 2nd century BC. Read the Wikipedia article on the Book of Daniel, or any other encyclopedia, to get a sense of the academic perspective.

Since liberals regard the 11th horn, the Antichrist, to be the Greek king Antiochus IV, they hold that the fourth animal symbolizes the Greek empire, and that the 11 horns are 11 consecutive Greek kings.

Objections to the Liberal View

This article opposes this interpretation for several reasons:

1. Comparison of the Animals

Firstly, both Daniel 7 and 8 use animals to symbolize consecutive empires. Both chapters also describe the animals with characteristics such as multiple heads, horns, and wings. Daniel 8 has only two animals, explicitly identified as the Medo-Persian and Greek Empires. The next article, by comparing the animals in Daniel 7 to those in Daniel 8, will show that the fourth empire is the Roman Empire, not the Greek Empire, as the Liberals propose.

2. The horns exist AFTER the fourth empire.

Secondly, in the Liberal interpretation, the 11 horns, including the Antichrist, exist DURING the fourth empire. However, Daniel 2 shows that the 11 horns exist AFTER that fourth empire:

As discussed, the five parts of the statue in Daniel 2 symbolize five consecutive periods of history. Since the 11 horns of Daniel 7 are parallel to the divided kingdom in Daniel 2, which follows after the fourth empire, the 11 horns exist AFTER that fourth empire, not during it.

3. The horns exist concurrently.

Thirdly, in the Liberal interpretation, the 11 horns exist consecutively. However, Daniel shows in several ways that they exist concurrently:

(a) The horns are parallel to the “divided kingdom” in Daniel 2, and the term “divided kingdom” implies concurrent fragments.

(b) These kings will attempt to unite through intermarriage (Dan 2:43), implying that they live concurrently.

(d) The 11th horn uproots three other horns (Daniel 7:8), implying that at least these three ‘kings’ existed concurrently.

(e) Both animals in Daniel 8 have horns, and, in both, the horns represent concurrent kingdoms (Daniel 8:20-22):

The Ram has two horns, representing the Medes and Persians of the Medo-Persian Empire.

The Goat grows four horns, representing the four concurrent divisions of the Greek Empire.