Daniel 7 and Revelations both talk about 4 beasts. How do they relate? Which kingdoms are represented by these beasts? And do the beasts represent the kingdoms?

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It remains a critical factor to use the historicist perspective of history superimposed on the church to understand how the prophetic predictions became fulfilled in the lives of people. The chosen people from Judah were sent into captivity to Babylon and the following kingdoms interact with God’s people. Those under control of Satan tried to negatively impact the followers of the Creator. Babylon was followed by the Medes and Persians who again were conquered by the Greeks. The Greeks were followed by Pagan Rome and then followed papal Rome and after 538 AD we see divided Europe. THE FUTURE UNVEILED Many Christians and non-Christians alike have questions about a New World Order and whether there is a possibility that the economic unification of Europe by way of the euro in order to achieve political unity will in the future become a reality and actually promote this unity. They question whether this will then lead to one world order? The role players here are the United Nations and the ecumenical movement with the Pope as the moral leader of the Christian world. 2 Pet. 1:19 “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.” It is remarkable that the end of time is also characterized by a prophetic dimension and the Lord does not leave us in the dark. John 13:19 “Now I tell you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He.” Jesus challenges us to use the information available to us to verify His authenticity. He is 100% accurate, and not just 15% like prophets such as Nostradamus. Some higher critics of Daniel maintain that it cannot be correct, and they are of the opinion that someone must have written the book after the events, simply because it is too accurate. Dan. 2:28 “But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these.” From the above text, we can deduce that God would like to give us information, specifically from Daniel’s time up to the second coming, or, as it is stated in the Bible, to “the latter days.” Dan. 2:31-36 “You, O king, were watching; and behold a great image! This great image, whose splendour was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. This image's head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. This is the dream. Now we will tell the interpretation of it before the king.” Here we see how Daniel paints the future in broad brush strokes dating from his time right up to the end of time. Then the interpretation follows, which can historically be confirmed and substantiated. Dan. 2:38 “and wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field and the birds of the heaven, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all - you are this head of gold.” Gold represents the world kingdom of Babylon that reigned from 609 BC to 539 BC. Dan. 2:39 “But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.” The chest of silver with the two arms of silver follows and represents Medo-Persia. They reigned from 539 BC to 331 BC. This kingdom was defeated by the bronze kingdom of Greece, and the Greeks reigned from 331 BC to 168 BC. Dan. 2:40 “And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others.” The Greeks were defeated by the iron kingdom of Rome and the Romans reigned from 168 BC to approximately 476 AD. Dan. 2:41-43 “ Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay.” History shows that the Roman Empire was divided into ten nations that now comprise the present-day nations of Europe. According to the prophecy, no nation would again achieve dominance over all the others. Many have since tried to establish a dominant kingdom and they even tried to achieve unity among the nations by intermarriage, but all failed. Political manipulation and even attempts at economic manipulation have been brought into play but without success. Still, to this day, Europe remains divided and in keeping with Daniel 2. This entire prophecy has been accurately fulfilled to the letter. Now the question is: what follows the divided phase? Dan. 2:44-45 “ And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold - the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure.” In the book of Daniel, written during the sixth century before Christ, the Bible gives us a glimpse into history over a period of 2 600 years. We find that the fulfillment took place exactly as prophesied. That makes us excited about the answer to the question: What follows after this? Further studies will indicate that the next event that must still take place according to Scripture is the second coming of Christ, and it is with a longing that we look forward to this wonderful happening! 2 Pet. 3:4-10 “and saying, where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation. For this, they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water. But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the Day of Judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.” May you surrender your life anew to Him every day when you see the sunrise, in expectation of the greatest happening of all time? May He guide your steps and lead you to the Throne of Grace. May we all be ready for this magnificent happening and may not one of us be missed when He comes to fetch us. My prayer is that you will not tire or become weary while you wait on Him, but that you will persevere to get to know more about the God of the universe, as we delve together in the study of His Word and examine the accuracy of it under the magnifying glass because I believe that this will draw us closer to Him. In a later chapter, I intend to explain the detail of events that will, according to the Bible, precede His coming. The accuracy of these will yet again confirm that we worship a great God. This journey through a few subjects is important in order to survive in the third millennium, and also to experience the freedom that is found in Jesus. Pagan Rome was in charge of the world when Jesus came to dwell among us and on their watch, they allowed Christ to be killed. The Caesar moved to Constantinople in the East as the new capital and the Bishop of Rome, the pope now received civil power apart from ecclesiastical power and in the name of Christianity 50 million Bible believers lost their lives. Tradition now according to the church trumped the Word of God and the following became fulfilled: 2 Thess 2:3 “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 4Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.”