What Does Daniel 7:17 Mean?

These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth (אִלֵּין חֵיוָתָא רַבְרְבָתָא דִּי אִנִּין אַרְבַּע אַרְבְּעָה מַלְכִין יְקוּמוּן מִן־אַרְעָא)—The Aramaic chewata ravrevata (חֵיוָתָא רַבְרְבָתָא, "great beasts") identifies the terrifying creatures from Daniel's vision (7:3-7) as symbolic representations of earthly kingdoms. The interpretation that these are four kings (arba'ah malkhin, אַרְבְּעָה מַלְכִין) uses "kings" to represent kingdoms or empires—a common biblical usage where ruler and realm merge (Daniel 2:38; 8:20-21).

The phrase which shall arise out of the earth (yequmun min-ar'a, יְקוּמוּן מִן־אַרְעָא) emphasizes these empires' earthly, human origin in contrast to God's eternal kingdom. They emerge from the "great sea" (7:2-3), symbolizing chaotic humanity and turbulent nations (Revelation 17:15). Though powerful and terrifying, these beasts are creaturely—temporal, limited, and ultimately subject to divine judgment. The four kingdoms traditionally identified are Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome, matching the statue's metals in Daniel 2.

The vision's apocalyptic imagery—beasts representing empires—introduces a prophetic genre developed extensively in later Scripture, particularly Revelation. The succession of earthly kingdoms, however impressive, leads to divine intervention when "one like the Son of man" (7:13) receives eternal dominion. This pattern assures persecuted believers that human empires, no matter how brutal, are temporary. God's kingdom alone endures. Christ's identification as "Son of man" (used 80+ times in the Gospels) connects Him to this Danielic vision of divine sovereignty and eschatological judgment.