DANIEL CHAPTER 2 AND 7 : ARE THEY THE SAME?

by Douglas Ecklund
(Florida)

Many hold to the interpretation that Daniel Chapter 2 and 7 both reflect the same kingdoms; that they are just a different way to express them, a different pictorial representation of the same kingdoms.
I am not saying this is incorrect, however, maybe we are making some assumptions to arrive at this view; maybe we are not strictly looking at what scripture says.

I am selecting Scriptures pertinent to the discussion.

First, Daniel 2:

Dan 2:38
And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold.

Scripture clearly states that Nebuchadnezzar and therefore the kingdom of Babylon is the head of gold.

Dan 2:39
And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.

Most hold to the view that the next kingdom is Medo-Persia and the third kingdom is Greece.
Scripture does not specify.

Dan 2:40
And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

The views differ here but most hold to the fourth kingdom being the Roman empire.
Scripture does not specify.

Dan 2:41
And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.

Many consider this the revived Roman empire.
Scripture does not specify.

Dan 2:44
And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

The kingdom of Christ Jesus.

Next Daniel 7:

Dan 7:1
¶ 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.

Note that this vision is in the first year of Belshazzar. This will be referred to later.

Dan 7:3
And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.

The four beasts are described as arising from the sea with no indication of them being successive as in Daniel 2.
We are not told that they arise together either.

Dan 7:4
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.

While this could be another vision of Nebuchadnezzar as in Daniel 2, the description is not the same, nor does Scripture directly support applying these attributes to Nebuchadnezzar or Babylon.

Dan 7:5
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.

Again we find a totally different description from Daniel 2.

Dan 7:6
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.

Another totally different description from Daniel 2.

Dan 7:7
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.

Here we find some similarity to Daniel 2 in the reference to iron.
Also is the same statement of this kingdom braking in pieces.
Diverse from all the beasts that were BEFORE it; the word before could mean as existing beforehand or it could mean laid out in front of.

Dan 7:15
¶ I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.

They give us some trouble too.

Dan 7:17
These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.

Shall arise indicates future tense, so how could the first beast in Daniel 7 be Nebuchadnezzar if Daniel 2 specifies that Nebuchadnezzar is the head of gold and by the time of this vision Belshazzar is king and Nebuchadnezzar is dead?
Nebuchadnezzar’s reign could not be a future event as indicated by this passage.

Dan 7:23
¶ 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.

This fourth beast is identified by scripture as the end time kingdom.

Dan 7:24
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.

Scripture defines the ten horns as ten kings of the last day kingdom.

Dan 7:25
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.

Scripture details the horn that shall arise after.

Dan 7:28
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.

In conclusion;
To posit that the beasts in Daniel chapter 7 correspond to the kingdoms of chapter 2 might be proven the case by future events, but this is not obvious from scripture.
This view falls upon application of Daniel 7:17 wherein the four beasts are four kings which SHALL ARISE. The first beast in Daniel 7:4 would be Nebuchadnezzar. How could it be said that in the first year of the reign of Belshazzar, Nebuchadnezzar, who has reigned and is dead, will arise as king?

There is a way to consider that the statue kingdoms of Daniel 2 could be reflected again in Daniel 7. If the beasts of Daniel 7 were all the newly revived entities of Daniel 2 incorporated into an amalgamated fourth beast kingdom.
Consider the following passages.

Rev 13:1
¶ And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
Rev 13:2
And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

Here we have the leopard of Daniel 7:6, the bear of 7:5 and the lion of 7:4
Could this beast be a revival of the kingdoms of Daniel 2 ?
Could all of the Daniel 2 kingdoms be incorporated under the umbrella of the fourth kingdom of the beast?

There is some Biblical support for this.

Dan 2:35
Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

In this passage of Daniel 2 it can be seen that ALL the kingdoms of the statue are broken TOGETHER by the stone, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Dan 2:44
And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

Here again in Daniel 2 God’s kingdom shall consume ALL these kingdoms. That is ALL the kingdoms described in Daniel 2 pictured by the statue.
How could ALL the kingdoms of the statue be consumed since they have vanished, unless they are reconstituted in the fourth beast. For them to be ALL be broken Together they must in some fashion have dominion again.