The term 'beast' in the book of Daniel symbolizes a government or Gentile empire — not a literal creature.
In Daniel 7, four great beasts arise out of the sea, and Daniel is told these are four kings and a fourth kingdom upon earth (Daniel 7:17, 23). Les Feldick teaches that the word 'beast' is simply a biblical term for a government, and it reveals the bestial character of these empires — driven by greed and indifferent to human rights.
Daniel 7:3 — The verse that introduces the four great beasts coming up out of the sea — the vision the question asks about.
Daniel 7:17 — Daniel's inspired interpretation: the four beasts are four kings that arise out of the earth.
Daniel 7:23 — Identifies the fourth beast specifically as a fourth kingdom upon earth.
Daniel 7 records a vision of 'four great beasts' coming up out of the sea (Daniel 7:3). The first beast 'was like a lion, and had eagle's wings' (Daniel 7:4); the second was 'like to a bear' (Daniel 7:5); the third was 'like a leopard' (Daniel 7:6); and the fourth was 'dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly' (Daniel 7:7). The biblical text does not leave the meaning uncertain. Daniel 7:17 says plainly, 'These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.' Daniel 7:23 likewise explains, '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.' Thus, Scripture itself interprets the beasts as kings and kingdoms. They rise out of the great sea and are described in terms of their power, their devouring, and their breaking in pieces — not as animals to be understood literally.
Les Feldick teaches that the word 'beast' in Scripture — including Daniel 7 — simply means a government. He warns readers, 'don't let that word beast conjure up a vision of some seven-headed lion or anything like that' (Clip 2). The four great beasts of Daniel 7 come up out of the 'sea,' which Les explains is symbolic for humanity (Clips 2, 4). These beasts are not animals but empires — the same four Gentile kingdoms Nebuchadnezzar saw in Daniel 2: Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome (Clips 4, 6, 7). Les also explains why the term 'beast' is used. These governments operate 'bestially' — with no concern for human rights or for the individual (Clip 1). Daniel saw them 'bestial in their makeup,' and every one of these empires was based on greed (Clips 0, 6). The same symbolic language continues into the New Testament: the beast of Revelation is the revived ancient Roman Empire, a consortium of nations headed up by one man, the Antichrist (Clips 1, 3, 5).
Les Feldick explains that the term is a matter of character, not appearance. The governments are 'so bestial in their operation' that they have no concern about human rights and no concern about the individual (Clip 1). Daniel sees these empires come out of the mass of humanity 'bestial in their makeup,' and Les stresses that every one of these great Gentile kingdoms was based on nothing but greed (Clips 0, 6).
Daniel's four beasts are a lion, a bear, a leopard, and a dreadful and terrible fourth beast (Daniel 7:4-7). Les Feldick identifies them: the lion is Babylon, the bear is the Medo-Persian Empire, the leopard is the Greek Empire under Alexander the Great, and the fourth beast is the Roman Empire (Clips 4, 6, 7). These are the same four Gentile empires that Nebuchadnezzar saw in Daniel 2 as the head of gold, the chest of silver, the belly of brass, and the legs of iron (Clip 7).
Les teaches that Revelation uses the same symbolic language as Daniel. The beast of Revelation 13 is 'first and foremost the revival of the old ancient Roman Empire,' and it is called a beast for the same reason — the government will be bestial in its operation (Clip 1). John sees the same empire in the same context: a consortium of nations with ten horns, headed up by one man, the Antichrist, and described as 'like unto a leopard, his feet like a bear, and his mouth like a lion' — combining the beasts Daniel saw (Clips 3, 5).
Les points out that the 'great sea' of Daniel 7 is 'a symbolic term for humanity.' The four winds of heaven strive upon the mass of humanity, and out of that sea of humanity the four great beasts come up (Clips 2, 4). This reinforces that the beasts are not creatures from the ocean but governments arising from the peoples of the earth.
Empires Built on Greed
Les teaches that every great Gentile kingdom — including Alexander's Greece and Rome — was based on nothing but greed, which explains the bestial character of the empires pictured as beasts.
A Government That Is Bestial
Les teaches that the beast is a government — 'that's all it is' — and it is called a beast because its operation is bestial, with no concern for human rights or the individual.
Beast Means Government
Les explicitly says 'the beast term in Scripture is simply a government' and warns against picturing a seven-headed monster; he also explains the 'sea' as symbolic for humanity.
Symbolic Language Reduced to Literal
Les stresses that Daniel, Ezekiel, and Revelation write in symbolic language, and the 'beast' is not an eerie creature but a government headed up by the Antichrist.
The Four Empires Identified
Les identifies Daniel's four beasts as empires: the lion is Babylon, the bear is the Medo-Persian Empire, the leopard is Greece under Alexander, and the fourth beast is the dreadful Roman Empire.
John's Beast Matches Daniel's
Les shows that John's beast in Revelation — like a leopard, feet of a bear, mouth of a lion — merges the same beasts Daniel saw, representing a consortium of nations under the Antichrist.
Beasts Bestial in Makeup
Les teaches that Daniel saw the empires come out of humanity 'bestial in their makeup,' the same unfolding Nebuchadnezzar saw in Daniel 2 — Babylon the lion instead of the head of gold.
Daniel 7 Parallels Daniel 2
Les connects Daniel 2's metals — head of gold, chest of silver, belly of brass, legs of iron — to Daniel 7's wild beasts, showing the same four empires, with Babylon as the lion.
Daniel 7:3: And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.
The key vision verse: the four beasts arise out of the sea, setting up the question of what they symbolize.
Daniel 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.
The first beast (a lion) is the beast Les identifies as Babylon.
Daniel 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.
The second beast (a bear) is the beast Les identifies as the Medo-Persian Empire.
Daniel 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.
The third beast (a leopard) is the beast Les identifies as the Greek Empire under Alexander the Great.
Daniel 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.
The fourth beast, 'dreadful and terrible,' is the empire Les identifies as Rome; the verse stresses its devouring, terrible character.
Daniel 7:17: These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.
Daniel's own inspired interpretation showing the beasts are kings, not literal animals.
Daniel 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.
Daniel's inspired interpretation identifying the fourth beast as a fourth kingdom upon the earth.
Daniel 2:32-33: This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, And his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.
Nebuchadnezzar's dream of four metals that Les says portrays the same four Gentile empires as Daniel's beasts.
No. Daniel 7:17 tells Daniel the four great beasts are four kings, and Daniel 7:23 calls the fourth beast a fourth kingdom. Les Feldick also stresses that the word 'beast' in Scripture means a government, not a seven-headed creature (Clip 2).
Les Feldick identifies the lion as Babylon, the bear as the Medo-Persian Empire, the leopard as Greece under Alexander the Great, and the dreadful fourth beast as the Roman Empire (Clip 4). These are the same four empires shown in Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Daniel 2 (Clip 7).
The word describes their character and behavior. They operated bestially — driven by greed, with no concern for human rights or the individual (Clips 0, 1). Daniel saw them come out of the mass of humanity 'bestial in their makeup' (Clip 6).
Yes. Les teaches that Revelation uses the same symbolic language. The beast of Revelation 13 is the revived ancient Roman Empire — a consortium of nations — with the same composite description: like a leopard, feet of a bear, mouth of a lion (Clips 1, 5).
Watch the Teaching: Daniel's Four Beasts and the Revived Roman Empire Explained