The United States, Germany and Russia in Prophecy
In Chapter 7 (NIV) of the Book of Daniel, Daniel relates a series of visions that passed through his mind in a dream. He wrote down the substance of his dream, and its interpretation. The visions involve four great beasts, each different from the others, which came ‘out of the great sea.’ In his interpretation Daniel tells us that this phrase means they came out of the nations on earth. He tells us that these four great beasts are four kingdoms that will rise on earth. Daniel wrote these prophetic words about 2,500 years ago.
In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying on his bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream.
2Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
4“The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a man, and the heart of a man was given to it.
“And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’
6“After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.
“After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast — terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
8“While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth that spoke boastfully.
9“As I looked, thrones were set in place and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze.
10A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him. Thousands upon thousand attended him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court was seated, and the books were opened.
11“Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. 12(The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)
The Son of Man made the Most High
13“In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshipped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
The Interpretation of the Dream
15“I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me. 16I approached one of those standing there and asked him the true meaning of all this.
“So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things: 17‘The four great beasts are four kingdoms that will rise from the earth. 18But the saints of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever — yes, for ever and ever.’
19“Then I wanted to know the true meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others and most terrifying, with its iron teeth and bronze claws — the beast that crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. 20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell — the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21As I watched, this horn was waging war against the saints and defeating them, 22until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom.
23“He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. 25He will speak against the Most High and oppress his saints and try to change the set times and the laws. The saints will be handed over to him for a time, times and half a time.
26“But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. 27Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.’
28This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself.”
To help us to understand the meaning of these prophecies it will be useful to understand the meaning of some key words and phrases:
v1 first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon: 562BC, the year his grandfather King Nebuchadnezzar died (NIVD).
v2 four winds of heaven: this phrase appears a number of times in the Bible. It means, “during the passage of time” or “following a period of time.”
v2 churning up the great sea: churning up the nations on earth, and changes occurring among them.
v3 came up out of the sea: will emerge from among the nations on earth, v17.
v6 four heads: four empires or former empires (Rev 17:10).
v7 ten horns: ten countries in the Middle East, v24.
v8 another horn, a little one: the false prophet.
v9.Ancient of Days: God.
v13 son of man: Jesus, before He is elevated to ‘the Most High,’ v14.
v13 clouds of heaven: Jesus together with His followers and His angels approaching Heaven following the Rapture on earth.
v15 those standing there: angels.
v18 saints of the Most High: followers of Jesus.
v18 will receive the kingdom: the Millennium kingdom of Jesus on earth.
v25 speak against the Most High and oppress his saints: here the “saints” are the Jewish people who also belong to Jesus as indicated in v27.
v25 change the set times and the laws: abolish the Jewish faith, beliefs and customs.
v25 a time, times and half a time: three and a half years.
As noted, the four beasts are four kingdoms that will emerge on earth. The text tells us these four kingdoms ‘will rise from the earth’ (v17).
It is commonly believed that these four kingdoms were the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Greek, and Roman Empires. However, Daniel tells us that his dream occurred in the first year of Belshazzar, king of Babylon. Belshazzar succeeded King Nebuchadnezzar, the great king of Babylon who succeeded his father, Nabopolassar (626-605BC), who founded the Babylonian Empire. Nebuchadnezzar ruled from 605 until his death in 562BC. Darius, king of the Medes who ruled Babylon briefly as part of the Median Empire succeeded Belshazzar. A few years later, in 550BC, the Persians led by Cyrus the Great conquered the Medes and made their country a part of the Persian Empire, thus ending the Babylonian Empire.
Because Daniel had his series of visions during Belchazzar’s reign, it is obvious that the Babylonian Empire was already in decline, and not “rising.”
However, apart from that, the text makes it clear that the four great kingdoms that will rise relate to the time when this age will end. This is so because the fourth kingdom will be succeeded by Christ’s kingdom, which is the last kingdom that will exist on earth, because He will possess it forever (v18).
Because Jesus will defeat the kingdom of the Antichrist, which precedes His kingdom, and because Jesus’ Millennium kingdom will be the last kingdom on earth, we need to work back from the Millennium in order to identify these four kingdoms, or nations.
The Four Kingdoms Identified
As noted, the last kingdom is Christ’s Kingdom that will begin with His Millennium Kingdom, His thousand-year reign on earth … and then following the last judgment He will continue His reign throughout eternity. The kingdom that precedes His is that of the Antichrist, because Jesus will defeat him (v18, Rev 17:14). Therefore, the fourth beast is the kingdom of the Antichrist. His kingdom will last for only three and a half years, but during that time, we are told, he will devour the whole Earth, trampling it down and crushing it. In other words, the Antichrist is a dictator who is very powerful and extremely cruel and ruthless who will conquer the world, including the nations represented by the three other beasts. We know this because, whereas the Antichrist’s kingdom will be destroyed, the other three will be allowed to live for a while longer. The text tells us that he, the Antichrist, will be different from the “other beasts.” Also, that he will have ten horns, meaning that he will have ten countries aligned with him.
To learn the identity of the nations representing the three other beasts we need to remember that they will be present on earth during the time of the Antichrist. Also, we need to be mindful of how these three nations differ from the Antichrist; and also, how they resemble one another.
As to how they differ: we know the Antichrist’s nation of origin was Babylonia, now Iraq, an Islamic nation, so we can be sure that the other three beasts have a founding faith that is different from his.
As to how they resemble one another, we need to think about each of the three animals, the leopard, the bear and the lion; we need to consider each animal’s distinctive characteristics: how each animal achieves its primary objectives, namely, how it obtains its food and how it maintains its territory. With this in mind we see that each animal, characteristically, attacks to gain these objectives. In the context then, we need to be mindful of how the three countries gained and maintained their power, how they governed, and how they conduct or have conducted their wars.
The third beast looked like a leopard, and on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast, or nation, had four heads, and unlike the first and second beasts it was given authority to rule. The four heads represent four empires or remnants of former empires (Rev 17:10-11). To learn the identity of this nation, we need to address the question: Is there a major power on earth today that fits this description? One that attacks with the agility and the swiftness and the skill of a leopard; one that attacks from the air suggested by the four wings on its back; * one that is not war-like (apart from attacking its prey a leopard is a solitary animal, it tends not to attack its own kind except to defend its territory); one that has three empires or former empires aligned with it; and that has the ability to rule the world.
Let’s speculate and suggest: The United States of America.
*In terms of its distinctiveness, the superiority and strength of the USA is derived from its air power, unlike the former British Empire, for example, whose power was derived from its navy.
The second beast looked like a bear, was raised on one side and had three ribs between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’ Again, we can speculate: Reference to a bear suggests the emblem of Russia. The bear raised up on one of its sides suggests two sides — the Czars and Communism; the side raised up representing Stalin and the brute strength of this regime in the former Soviet Union. Reference to the three ribs between its teeth points to the dead bodies of many millions of Soviet citizens, for example, in Ukraine as a result of their deliberate starvation by Stalin in the famine-genocide that took place there in 1932 and 1933. (It is reported that mothers exchanged their babies so they would not have to eat their own) And being told to ‘get up and eat your fill of flesh’ while already holding meat in its mouth suggests the subjugation of neighboring states by this regime, as well as the murders, unjust imprisonment (gulags in Siberia) and other atrocities committed by this ruthless dictator, atrocities that resulted in the death of tens of millions of “victims of Stalinism.”
The first beast was like a lion, and had wings of an eagle. Its wings were torn off, it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a man, and the heart of a man was given to it. Again we can speculate that reference to an eagle suggests the German emblem under the Kaiser. When Adolf Hitler came to power, like a male lion he tolerated no rivals and in June 1943 he purged his party of all opponents and had them executed. Again, like the king of the beasts, his goal was “Deutschland uber alles,” the superiority of the German race in global society. The domineering attitude of Hitler with the Gestapo and the German armies is akin to the dominance of lions in the animal kingdom. The wings torn off and being lifted up on two feet and given the heart of a man suggests the defeat of Hitler and his republic and the emergence of present democratic Germany.
There is one thing these three nations have in common: Unlike Iraq, they were all founded on the Christian faith. Members of the Christian faith founded the United States, Germany as well as Russia.
Among the first settlers of the United States were the Pilgrims, Christians who fled religious persecution in Europe. And the 56 men who signed the constitution were each Christian (with two exceptions) and that faith has been predominant throughout its history. Germany was a Christian nation before it became the Holy Roman Empire, and this heritage continued past the Protestant Reformation in 1517 under Martin Luther until the present. And Vladimir I converted the people in the region that became Russia to Christianity in AD 862.
Even though subsequent rulers were replaced by an atheistic regime from time to time, as was the case with Russia under the Communists and to a lesser extent in Germany under Hitler, the fact remains that Christians founded each nation.
Admittedly the identity of the three beasts is speculative, but there are a number of facts that should be considered:
- First, the identity of the fourth beast as the Antichrist who will appear at the end of the age is not in doubt because it is clearly predicted.
- Second, on March 16, 2003, the leaders of the United States, Great Britain, and Spain met in the Azores with the Prime Minister of Portugal. The United States is the most powerful and prosperous nation in human history, and its formation through the union of separate states qualifies it as an empire (WBE E211). The other three are former empires. Are these the ‘four heads’ mentioned in verse 6? Officially the purpose of the meeting was to coordinate their policies with regard to the impending invasion of Iraq. I can understand the United States and Great Britain meeting, but why only Spain and Portugal? Why not also Australia, Poland and other members of the coalition? Could the answer be that Australia and the others were never empires? Was the meeting arranged by a higher power and was its real purpose to fulfill this prophecy, thereby helping us to understand it? (As a startling aside, on the day of the meeting Saddam Hussein stated “If there is war Iraq will take the war to every area in the world!” Unless this was just an extravagant boast — and given the circumstances I don’t believe it was — this statement is a most profound, prophetic warning, because that is exactly what the Antichrist is predicted he will do. And it ties in with his resurrection, discussed in the book in the following chapter)
- Third, there are many events prophesied in the Bible in relation to the time when this age will end that have already been fulfilled, but let us consider just four: the Jews returning to their homeland (Jer 30:3), the world becoming secular (Dan 8:23 and comments, Rev 18:23), the existence of nuclear weapons (Isa 19-22, 14:22-23; Jer 50:40 & 46, 51:1-4, 26 & 29; etc.) and the power and diversity of the means of communication (explained in the book at Matt 24:14). Fulfilled prophecies such as these, along with many others, set the time-frame for all end-time prophecies, they label all predicted events that follow as end-time prophecies … which is confirmed as each of those prophecies is fulfilled. For example, when the prophecy that the Jews would return to their homeland at the end of the age was fulfilled it not only confirmed that event as an end-time event, but it also confirms the other prophecies which were fulfilled subsequently as end-time events, and as fulfillment of prophecy. The same is true of a prophecy concerning a devastating tsunami or hurricane or earthquake. It is those that have occurred after the state of Israel was proclaimed as an independent nation that are considered as end-time events. The same is true of the world’s acceptance of secularism as the predominant belief, as is the fact of the expansion of the whole field of communication to a global scale, and the existence of nuclear weapons, etc. These predicted events — events predicted as end-time events — are confirmed as an end-time event by the fact of their fulfillment. The fact that these prophecies have been fulfilled tells us, for example, that the prophecies about civil strife, wars, famines, earthquakes, godless deeds, godless attitudes, etc. — many of which have occurred in all parts of the world in recent decades and are still being fulfilled daily — all confirm that we are living in the end-time period.
As to how all this relates to this particular prophecy … we can tie the identities of the three “beasts” that we have speculated on to the end-time that is prophesied: Because the three “beasts” in the prophecy are three countries that relate to the end-time, and, because Iraq and the three countries we have identified (the USA, Germany and Russia) also relate to that period, then based on the fulfilled prophecies just discussed, which, of course, also relate to that period, we can be reasonably sure that our interpretation is the correct one.
And let us not overlook verse 12, which tells us that the three countries will survive the Antichrist.
Fourth, let us remember the words of Jesus when He spoke about the end of the age: ‘When you see all these things you know the end is near, right at the door.’
- And finally, when we take into account the major events that are shaping, and shaking, the world today and how accurately they relate to what the Bible predicts will happen in the end-time, we must take these words of Daniel, as well as the prophecies recorded by other writers of the Bible, very, very seriously.
The phrase, “It was given authority to rule” can be interpreted two ways, depending on whose authority is in view, God’s or the American people. If the former and if our interpretation of the third beast is correct, then the administration of President George W. Bush had God’s blessing* (v6). On the other hand, unlike Stalin, and perhaps to a lesser extent, Hitler, President Bush was elected by popular vote. Thus, both interpretations appear correct.
Verse 12 tells us that the three “beasts” ‘had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.’ This prophecy has been fulfilled with respect to both Hitler’s Germany and the Soviet Union. As for the USA, President Bush is no longer in office. Furthermore, the USA will lose its authority in the world with the collapse of the economy; and that event will prove most significant in bringing the Antichrist to power.
Verse 18 tells us that Jesus and His followers ‘receive the kingdom,’ singular, yet it refers to the four beasts. This is because Jesus will have defeated the Antichrist, who will have conquered the other three thus making the four kingdoms one.
The death of the Antichrist will signal the end of the Great Tribulation, and the end of this age.
*An example of this blessing is the fulfillment of the pledge President Bush made to the Congress on behalf of the American people following 9/11: Not a single person has been killed by terrorists in the USA since the atrocity on September 11, 2001. However, I have a feeling that based on some of the major events taking shape today that the blessing may no longer apply, and that this will more clearly manifest itself in the months ahead!
The False Prophet
The false prophet, the “little horn,” will emerge out of the ten countries in the Middle East that are aligned with the Antichrist. He will subdue three of those countries (Pakistan? Afghanistan? And perhaps the tribal areas, including the regions of North and South Waziristan? [vs. 8, 20 and 24]). The fact he will subdue three countries tells us he has his own army or militias and bands of insurgents. He will look and be more imposing than the leaders of the other ten; he will be boastful, and he will speak out against Jesus (v25). Also, he will oppress ‘the saints,’ the Jewish people. He will wage war against the Jewish people and will defeat them. He will dominate them for 3 1/2 years, the duration of the Great Tribulation, and he will outlaw the Jewish faith (indeed he will ban all religions and beliefs other than his own) and he will change their laws and customs by invoking and enforcing his own (v25).
This means that the Islamic extremist terrorists who are becoming so aggressive today will be successful in their stated aim of forcing the religion of Islam upon the world when they embark upon their conquest, led by the Antichrist and supported by the false prophet!
(There is one person on earth today who fits the profile of the false prophet precisely, and that person is Osama bin Laden. He is reported to be living in a cave, and Revelations 13:11 tells us he will come out of that cave, ‘out of the earth,’ when he makes his appearance on the world stage as the false prophet!)