Daniel 7:3

3 And four great beasts came up out of the sea, different from one another.

Daniel 7:3 Meaning and Commentary

Daniel 7:3

And four great beasts came up from the sea
Which are afterwards interpreted of four kings or kingdoms, ( Daniel 7:17 ) , which rose up in the world, not at once, but successively, and out of the sea or world, through the commotions and agitations of it; and these are the four monarchies, Babylonian, Persian, Grecian, and Roman; compared to "beasts", because of the rapine and violence, cruelty, oppression, and tyranny, by which they were obtained, set up, supported, and maintained; and to "great ones", being not like single separate kingdoms, as the kingdom of Israel, and the like, but consisting of many kingdoms and nations, and so like beasts of an enormous size: diverse one from another;
in their situation, language, manner, strength, and power; hence expressed by divers sorts of beasts, as the lion, bear, leopard; as in Nebuchadnezzar's dream by different metals, gold, silver, brass, and iron.

Daniel 7:3 In-Context

1 In the first year of Belshaz'zar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head as he lay in his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, and told the sum of the matter.

2 Daniel said, "I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea.

3 And four great beasts came up out of the sea, different from one another.

4 The first was like a lion and had eagles' wings. Then as I looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand upon two feet like a man; and the mind of a man was given to it.

5 And behold, another beast, a second one, like a bear. It was raised up on one side; it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth; and it was told, 'Arise, devour much flesh.'