Bible Strands
Daniel 7:3
Then four great beasts came up out of the sea, each one different from the others:
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Daniel records a night vision in which he observes four great beasts emerging from the churning sea. The passage functions as a divine revelation delivered to him rather than a spoken address to another audience.
The words — The Hebrew רַבְרְבָ֔ן (rav.revan) literally means "great," marking the scale and authority of the creatures. The verb סָלְקָ֖ן (sal.kan) translates "[were] coming up," denoting a sudden emergence from the sea's depths.
The thread — The imagery of beasts rising from the sea reappears in Revelation 13:1, while Daniel 7:17 interprets the four beasts as four kings. The sequence also parallels the multi-material statue in Daniel 2:32 that represents successive earthly kingdoms.
Why it lands — The text states that chaotic political powers will arise from disorder and appear distinct in their nature. It requires the reader to acknowledge that these forces operate under divine permission and will ultimately be judged rather than worshipped.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.
Cross-references
- Revelation 13:1 Then I saw a beast with ten horns and seven heads rising out of the sea. There were ten royal crowns on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads.
- Daniel 7:17 ‘These four great beasts are four kings who will arise from the earth.
- Daniel 2:32 The head of the statue was pure gold, its chest and arms were silver, its belly and thighs were bronze,
- Daniel 7:4 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 and made to stand on two feet like a man and given the mind of a man.
- Psalms 76:4 You are resplendent with light, more majestic than mountains filled with game.
- Ezekiel 19:3 She brought up one of her cubs, and he became a young lion. After learning to tear his prey, he devoured men.
- Zechariah 6:1 And again I lifted up my eyes and saw four chariots coming out from between two mountains—mountains of bronze.
- Daniel 2:37 You, O king, are the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given sovereignty, power, strength, and glory.