And four great beasts, different one from another, came up out of the sea.
וְאַרְבַּ֤ע חֵיוָן֙ רַבְרְבָ֔ן סָלְקָ֖ן מִן־יַמָּ֑א שָׁנְיָ֖ן דָּ֥א מִן־דָּֽא׃
3 Church Fathers comment on this verse
Why does it not mention that he observed women? Whenever punishment and condemnation are depicted, the Scriptures employ the imagery of women, while beasts are used to symbolize kingdoms. In this instance, the focus is on the kingdom, and it is portrayed through a sensual image. This portrayal is fitting, as the characteristics of kingdoms are particularly evident in beasts, making them essential to the prophet’s vision.
In a nocturnal vision, I beheld four winds from heaven contending upon the vast sea, accompanied by four distinct great beasts emerging from the waters. The four winds symbolize the celestial beings assigned to oversee the principalities of the earth, as indicated in Deuteronomy: When the Most High distributed the nations and scattered humanity, He established their limits according to the number of God’s angels. The Lord's inheritance is His people; Jacob is His chosen possession (Deuteronomy 32:8-9). The sea represents the worldly age we inhabit, filled with turbulent and bitter waves, paralleling the explanation provided by the Lord in the parable of the net cast into the sea.
Moreover, the dragon is termed the ruler of all that dwells in the waters (Job 41:26), and as for his heads, they are said to be crushed beneath the waves (Psalms 73:13). In the book of Amos, it states: if he descends into the depths of the sea, I will command the serpent, and it shall bite him (Am. 9:3). Regarding the four beasts that arose from the sea, we understand from the angel’s words that these great beasts represent the four kingdoms that will emerge from the earth (v. 17). The four winds battling upon the great sea are termed heavenly because each angel supports the kingdom appointed to him. It is important to note that the reference to beasts signifies the ferocity and brutality characteristic of these kingdoms.
Nebuchadnezzar perceives the physical form, learning the futility of the temporal world, understanding that these are merely representations, as the divine Apostle writes (1 Cor. 7:32), and not true realities. There exists nothing enduring or substantial in the present; everything shifts, deteriorates, and fades away. In contrast, the blessed Daniel observes the tumultuous sea, gaining insight into the worries of earthly existence. As a captive, he is compelled to witness a foreign land, and through this necessity, he becomes acquainted with life's anxieties and tempests.
The king, who values gold, silver, bronze, and iron, receives symbolic interpretations of these materials relating to kingdoms and learns of the succession of rulers, realizing that the glory of royal authority is fleeting and subject to swift transformations. Conversely, the Prophet, who pays no heed to these values, beholds four fearsome beasts and learns that the most formidable empires, which instill dread in humanity, will eventually meet their demise. There will be only one eternal kingdom prepared by the Lord of Hosts for the saints. Thus, he describes this life, filled with countless tribulations, as a sea, with the fluctuations of human affairs likened to the winds that stir the waters. Just as the waves are driven northward by the southern breeze and then pushed southward anew by the northern wind, similarly, when the Assyrians dominated the world, they managed to subjugate all around them. However, with the transition of power to the Persians, the desire for autonomy sparked among the populace. This pattern continued as the Macedonians seized the scepter, prompting all, who had once submitted to their predecessors, to pay tribute to them. Eventually, when the Romans asserted their dominion, all disregarded the Macedonians and moved decisively westward; the Macedonians themselves became subjects of Rome. Hence, the Prophet aptly likens the tumult of human affairs to winds that continually shift the waves of the sea. He mentions four winds to signify the four succeeding kingdoms. He illustrates the distinct characteristics of each beast, as he expresses:
Passages read together with this verse.
THEOSIS