“In the first year of Belshazzar,” — he has already recounted the events at the end of Belshazzar’s days and the reign of Darius; but here begins the second part of this book. In the first part he narrated the events of Daniel’s life, and from here he begins to relate his prophecies. His words (aside from the first verse, which is from the Men of the Great Assembly, who composed the Book of Daniel, as the Sages said) are written in the first person, for he himself recorded all these matters as they occurred. And the Abarbanel explained that since Jeremiah prophesied regarding Nebuchadnezzar that the nations would serve him, his son, and his son’s son, therefore when Belshazzar, his grandson, came to reign, God showed Daniel that the kingdom of Babylon would soon come to an end, and also revealed to him the kingdoms that would arise after it, until the time of the end. “Daniel saw a dream,” — it does not say “he dreamed a dream,” as it says earlier regarding Nebuchadnezzar, to indicate that this was a prophetic dream; and also because the essence of the dream was a vision of the forms of four beasts. “And the visions of his head were upon his bed,” — for there are dreams that arise from the agitation of the blood and the vital soul, whose source is the heart; here it makes known that the source of this dream was from the faculties of the brain and the intellect, for it was an intellectual influence from the world of separate intellects (which, in the language of the ancients, refers to angels). “Then he wrote the dream,” — immediately upon awakening he recorded the dream so that he would not forget anything. “He related the beginning of the matters,” — since this writing has the status of sacred scripture, he first articulated everything verbally before committing it to writing, as is the law regarding writing sacred texts through divine inspiration. It also means that the general idea of the four kingdoms in this dream was already known to him from Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, but there only the main outline was given and not all the details; therefore he says that the “beginning of the matters” of this dream had already been stated in the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.

“Daniel answered and said,” — from here begin the words of Daniel himself. “I was seeing in my visions of the night,” — at the time he saw the dream, he also saw that it was night; for sometimes one who dreams imagines that he sees by day, but he saw that it was night. This is to indicate that the prophecy came concerning the great “night,” which refers to the exiles, as it is said, “Watchman, what of the night?” and likewise Zechariah said, “I saw in the night,” as explained there. “And behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea,” — the four winds come from the four directions of the world and blow upon the great sea and struggle within it. As I have explained in the prophecy of Zechariah, the four kingdoms are represented by the four directions of the world, for each of the four kingdoms has dominion and a distinct place in one of the four directions. I also explained that the four kingdoms always exist, but at any given time one kingdom becomes dominant—corresponding to one of the winds—while the others are subsumed within it. He saw the world in the form of a great sea, for the סערה (storm) of the winds is more evident in the sea, and the creatures of the sea are greater than those of the land. It was as though each wind was stirring the sea in order to prevail and seize dominion—and through this he saw…

“Four great beasts came up from the sea,” — representing the four kingdoms that emerged one after another to seize dominion. The winds symbolize the powers of the higher rulers that influence the nations, which stand in the four directions of the chariot, as I have explained there. Ezekiel saw them in the form of living creatures, while Daniel saw the creatures that proceed from them in their rule over the lower world, and he perceived their forms differently according to their activity in the earthly realm. He describes them as great, for besides them there are also other, smaller creatures—meaning lesser kingdoms—but these would rise above the other kings and come up from the sea to rule over all. “Different from one another,” — in their forms he saw that they were distinct, for each had its own character, mode of governance, and nature.

“The first was like a lion,” — the first that rose from the sea (for they did not arise simultaneously, but one after another) was in the form of a lion. The Sages have already explained that this refers to the kingdom of Babylon, which then ruled, for it reigned over all like a lion, the mightiest among beasts, which does not turn back from any—thus it ruled over all, while the others were inferior to it, as explained in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, where it is the head of gold. And it is explained in the vision of Ezekiel that he saw this creature above also in the form of a lion, for Assyria and Babylon had the lion as their emblem, as it says, “a lion has come up from his thicket,” and “Hashem roars like a lion,” as explained there. “And it had the wings of an eagle,” — this indicates its swift flight to conquer the world, as it is said, “like an eagle hastening to devour,” and Ezekiel compared it to a great eagle with long wings. “I saw until its wings were plucked,” — when he saw the kingdom of Babylon, its wings were already being plucked; for in the days of Belshazzar they no longer achieved victories nor spread their wings to conquer lands, and Media and Persia were already fighting at their gates, and they had no strength to withstand them, for their wings had already been plucked at that time. “And it was lifted up from the earth,” — this refers to the death of Belshazzar, who was taken from the earth and killed. “And it was made to stand upon two feet like a man,” — it was no longer a roaring, predatory lion, but stood on two feet, meaning Babylon and Chaldea alone, no longer in the form of a lion but in the weak and diminished form of human feet. “And the heart of a man was given to it,” — they became weak and faint-hearted like human beings, for afterward all their might ceased, and they were no longer counted among the powerful beasts.

“And behold another beast,” — this is the kingdom of Media and Persia, which conquered Babylon and ruled after them. “It was like a bear,” — for it did not have the strength of the lion, since they did not rule universally as Nebuchadnezzar did, who ruled over Assyria, Persia, Media, and all the twenty-five nations listed by Jeremiah (chapter 25). Likewise, in the dream of the statue, Media and Persia were represented as silver, which is inferior to gold and not as strong. The Sages said that they “eat and drink like a bear,” as explained by Rashi. “And it was raised up on one side,” — since Media and Persia were two separate kingdoms, and Darius the Mede first received the kingdom, it is depicted as though the bear moved on two sides, at times toward Media and at times toward Persia; but afterward it remained standing on one side, for after Darius died, Cyrus his son-in-law inherited the entire kingdom, and from then on it remained in the hands of Persia until the last Darius. “And three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth,” — it seized three kingdoms: Babylon, Assyria, and Media-Persia, which constitute three “sides” of the world. Therefore Darius appointed three administrators over the entire kingdom, each over one of these three regions. It is depicted as holding the ribs between its teeth because the bear does not live exclusively on meat and is nourished by other things as well; likewise, at first the Persians did not destroy the peoples they conquered as Nebuchadnezzar did, who was like a lion devouring only flesh. “And thus they said to it: Arise, devour much flesh,” — nevertheless, it was commanded (through the prophets) to consume much flesh, meaning the slain of Babylon; for the prophets foretold that it would destroy and kill all the inhabitants of Babylon. This was not the natural tendency of this “bear,” but occurred by divine decree, as prophesied by Isaiah and the other prophets.

“After this I saw, and behold another, like a leopard,” — this is the kingdom of Greece. The leopard is of the same kind as the lion, but even more bold and fierce; so too Alexander of Macedon was stronger and more audacious than all. “And it had four wings of a bird upon its back,” — for Alexander also flew to the four directions of the world like a bird of the heavens, in a short time conquering all four quarters of the inhabited world. “And the beast had four heads,” — for after his death his kingdom was divided into four heads, as it is explained later (8:22), “four kingdoms shall arise from the nation.” “And dominion was given to it,” — but to the beast itself, that is Alexander, dominion was given over all four heads; for only after his death were they divided into four, but while the beast itself existed, they were all included within a single entity.

“After this I saw in the visions of the night,” — for in this vision he saw a long night and a very dark exile. “And behold, a fourth beast,” — this is the kingdom of Rome, as agreed by Rashi, Nachmanides, and Maimonides in his letters. “Terrifying, dreadful, and exceedingly strong,” — the Abarbanel explains that the success and dominion of Rome depended on three things: great cruelty to instill fear in the hearts of the nations so that they would not rebel—this is “terrifying”; great wisdom and intelligence in the organization of their governance—this is “dreadful”; and strength in defeating their enemies—this is “exceedingly strong.” Since these traits are also found in the other beasts, as it says “fearful and dreadful,” therefore it adds “exceedingly,” meaning that these qualities were present in this beast to a far greater degree. “And it had great iron teeth,” — for teeth grind food finely and thereby incorporate it into the body, turning it into the substance of the one who consumes it. This symbolizes Rome’s practice of absorbing conquered kingdoms into itself, making them one body with the Roman empire. However, the more distant kingdoms that were not absorbed into its core rule remained separate; over these it sent military governors who trampled and devastated the people. Regarding the kingdoms it fully absorbed, it says “it devoured and crushed,” — for it had iron teeth capable of consuming even the hardest bones. And regarding what remained outside its body and kingdom, it says “and the remainder it trampled with its feet.” “And it was different from all the beasts that were before it,” — meaning that it did not resemble the earlier beasts in any respect. The earlier beasts, though distinct from one another, still shared certain similarities; but this beast was different in every way. That is, its governance, its power, and the length of its dominion were entirely unlike those that came before it. Furthermore, after the nations incorporated into the Roman empire later adopted beliefs completely different from those of the earlier kingdoms—who were idol worshippers—it was also different in this regard. Thus the angel said, “the fourth beast shall be a kingdom upon the earth that shall be different from all kingdoms.” “And it had ten horns,” — in my view, these correspond to the ten toes that Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream concerning this same kingdom. I have explained that in the end of days the Roman empire will encompass within it ten great kingdoms that will rule over the four directions of the world. Although at first they were all one kingdom, they later divided into two, until eventually they will be divided into ten kingdoms, with the smaller kingdoms dependent upon them. Just as in the third beast he saw four heads—even though in Alexander’s lifetime it was a single head, and after his death it was divided into twelve rulers, yet ultimately it settled into four heads—so too here he saw Rome in the vision with ten horns, representing what would arise at the end. These correspond to the ten toes of its feet; he saw their root already in the head of the beast, which bore ten horns from the outset—meaning that all ten future kingdoms were included within it as a single unity.

“I was considering the horns,” — he contemplated and deeply understood these horns, for from them a “horn of salvation” would arise. “And behold, another small horn came up among them,” — the Abarbanel explained that this refers to the rule of the papacy, which began in Rome and was initially small and insignificant; the emperors who ruled the Roman empire (which encompassed all the ten horns that would arise within it) did not consider it important at all. Afterward, this horn grew strong in the days of the emperor Constantine, who brought Sylvester the pope out of hiding and installed him in Rome, granting him imperial authority so that he and his successors would rule Rome and Italy, while the emperor moved to Constantinople and established his seat there. “And three of the former horns were uprooted before it,” — this has greatly perplexed the commentators. In my view, he saw that three of the horns—among the kings who would arise within the general Roman empire—would cast off the authority of the papacy. Indeed, one can find three powerful and wise kings who separated themselves from papal authority many centuries ago; thus they were “uprooted” from his dominion (which encompassed the entire Roman realm). Alternatively, if one includes the kingdom of Ishmael within the broader Roman sphere, then those who separated from its authority divided into three religious factions: the religion of Muhammad, and two factions among those who altered the original religion—each of which broke away from this “small horn” and opposed its religious and political authority. In the angel’s explanation it says, “three shall fall before it,” meaning that they will separate and break away from his dominion. It also says afterward, “and he shall humble three kings,” for there will be a time when they are uprooted from him, and afterward they will fall away completely and separate permanently from his rule; and he will strive to subdue them. “And behold, eyes like the eyes of a man were in this horn,” — this small horn was not like the other horns, which have no eyes or mouth and whose power is only in physical force—through striking, warfare, and weapons. Rather, the power of this horn is through eyes and a mouth: the eyes symbolize intellect and wisdom—they will think, analyze, and study, and will turn their eyes to the books of the Torah and the words of the prophets, gaining wisdom from the sacred writings like human beings (that is, like Israel). “And a mouth speaking great things,” — its power will be through speech: either through mastery of rhetoric and argument, as will be explained further, or because its strength lies not in sword and war but in its mouth, establishing and dissolving matters by the breath of its lips. Through this, it waged struggles in earlier times with mighty kings and prevailed over them, until they submitted and sought forgiveness from it, as is known from historical accounts—so that this horn triumphed through its speaking of great things.

“I was watching until thrones were cast down,” — that is, he saw the beast in the vision until the time came when the thrones would be overthrown. The Sages explained (in the Midrash Tanchuma) that these are the thrones of the idolaters, which the Holy One, blessed be He, will overturn. It does not say “the thrones were set,” but rather “were cast down,” as it says, “I will overturn the throne of kingdoms.” The throne represents rulership, and he saw the overthrow of the thrones of the idolaters, as in Haggai: “I will overturn the throne of kingdoms and destroy the kingdoms of the nations, and overturn chariots and their riders… each by the sword of his brother,” meaning through turmoil arising among the nations themselves. Alternatively, as explained by Abarbanel, this refers to the thrones of the heavenly princes of the nations—that their power and influence will cease. “And the Ancient of Days sat,” — that is, the Holy One, blessed be He, who is beyond time (not subject to time), as it says, “those who know Him do not see His days.” He sat upon His throne to judge the earth, as it says, “Hashem sits forever; He has established His throne for judgment.” “His garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head like pure wool,” — garments symbolize actions and attributes through which He operates, for attributes are called “garments.” The “head” symbolizes thought, and the “hair” represents the outward expression of hidden thought. This teaches that God Himself is entirely filled with kindness and mercy, and His “garments”—His attributes through which He acts—are only righteousness and compassion, symbolized by whiteness, in contrast to red, which signifies judgment and bloodshed. Likewise, even His hidden thoughts that are revealed at that time will be only righteousness and salvation, for with Him there is no evil, only goodness and kindness. However, “His throne was flames of fire,” — the consuming fire and severe judgment emerge from the throne and downward, as it says, “righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne; fire goes before Him and burns His adversaries.” The fire does not come from God Himself—for “Hashem reigns, let the earth rejoice”—but rather from the place of His throne. As explained in the vision of Ezekiel, during miraculous governance, influence descends from the world of the throne to the world of the spheres through the living creatures that move the spheres; these receive from the throne and guide the “wheels” according to the divine will. Thus, he saw sparks and flashes of the fire of judgment emerging from the throne to the spheres, and through this “its wheels were burning fire,” — a blazing fire of anger and wrath to destroy the wicked. Now he explains how these sparks of fire proceed from the throne to the spheres:

“A river of fire was flowing and issuing forth from before Him,” — that is, from the throne the fire extends to the spheres through a river of fire that passes by means of the living creatures, which draw the fire down to the “wheels.” And the Sages said: “From where does it emerge? Rabbi Jeremiah said: from the sweat of the living creatures.” He now explains what this river of fire is: “A thousand thousands served Him,” — the living creatures and the holy seraphim, prepared to serve the throne and to bring down its influence to the world of the spheres, number a thousand thousands. “And ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him,” — these are the seraphim who stand before the throne, the higher princes in the world of the throne who influence below; they are greater than those who serve, and they are “ten thousand times ten thousand,” exceeding the “thousands.” This is the river of fire that flows and goes forth — the “ten thousand times ten thousand” correspond to the fire as it exists in the world of the throne, while the “thousand thousands” correspond to what flows forth from it into the lower world. “The judgment sat, and the books were opened,” — upon the throne sits judgment to judge the world, as it says, “I will bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat,” and the books are opened to examine their deeds and their judgment.

“I was watching then because of the sound of the great words which the horn was speaking,” — he saw that the primary basis of the judgment, and the sin recorded in the books, was the voice of the great words that the horn was speaking. And likewise with the horn of the Ishmaelites, whose prophet gave their doctrine, speaking falsehood against the true faith and against God—upon this comes the principal judgment. “I was watching,” — and I saw its judgment, “until the beast was slain,” — which refers to the removal of the power of the Ishmaelites, and the destruction of its body, etc.

“And as for the rest of the beasts,” — the other kingdoms, “their dominion was taken away,” — “dominion” refers to rule with force and cruelty, such as the harsh rule of the Roman emperors at the time of the destruction; this will then be removed. “Yet their lives were prolonged,” — they will remain alive, continuing to exist and govern, but without such domination, that is, in a gentle and orderly manner, not through violence and bloodshed, “for a season and a time,” — until the appointed end-time arrives.

“I was seeing as the vision of the night” – now he saw a new vision, and also this he saw with the night, for still will be the darkness of exile established until the time when the dawn will awaken and break through from among the clouds of gloom.

“And to him was given dominion, honor, and kingship,” — the Abarbanel explains that in place of the long exile, during which all courage was lost and fear entered their hearts, he will be given dominion and strength; in place of being despised and lowly, he will be given honor; and in place of having no king or rulers, he will be given kingship in the Holy Land. “And all peoples shall serve him,” — this corresponds to the honor given to him; and regarding dominion it says “his dominion is an everlasting dominion,” — for dominion is exercised with force, and by nature the rule of a tyrant does not endure long, yet this dominion will endure forever. And regarding kingship it says “and his kingdom shall not be destroyed,” — for kingship is based on worthiness, and sometimes a kingdom is ruined if one’s actions make him unworthy to rule; but this kingdom will not be destroyed, for the spirit of error will pass from the earth and they will no longer sin.

“My spirit was distressed,” — literally, “my spirit was shortened,” “within its sheath,” — that is, within my body (for the body is like a sheath or casing for the spirit, as it is said, “My spirit shall not contend within man forever”).

“I approached,” — I drew near to one of the angels who stood before Hashem, “and I asked him with certainty,” — that is, I sought from him the true explanation concerning all this, “and he said to me,” — in such a way that he made known to me the interpretation of the matter.

“These great beasts, which are four,” — indicate that “four kings shall arise from the earth,” — and the expression “arise from” (with the preposition from) indicates rising from a place in order to depart from it, as in “the men rose up from there” (Genesis 18:16). This teaches that he did not see the four kingdoms in terms of their establishment and reign—otherwise he would not have seen Babylon, whose time had already passed and whose end had come. Rather, the four kingdoms were shown to him in terms of their removal and downfall—how they would depart from the earth. Therefore he also saw Babylon as one about to rise from the earth in order to be removed from it, as it says that its wings were plucked and it was taken from the earth—this is what they intended to show him. For this reason, the angel does not now explain further details about the four kingdoms, since the main purpose of this vision is to reveal the removal of the four kingdoms and the establishment of the kingdom of heaven that will arise after them. And thus it says:

“And the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the kingdom,” — that is, this is the ultimate purpose of the vision: that in the end, those who are holy in the higher realm will receive the kingdom. This is the meaning of “the son of man came to the Ancient of Days,” — that he sanctified himself and drew near to God, and was brought before Him. “And they shall inherit,” — and they will not arise from the earth (to pass away) like the previous kingdoms, but will inherit the kingdom forever, “even forever and ever,” — extending into the eternal world that follows this transient and perishable world.

“Then,” — “I desired to know the truth,” (the word tzaviti relates to desire, and yatziv to truth), concerning the fourth beast, — after he understood that the end would come only after the downfall of the fourth beast, he wished to know its nature: first, because it was different from all the others; second, because of its extraordinary terror; and also about its iron teeth (and he adds bronze claws, which were not mentioned earlier—for in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the statue, the toes were iron mixed with clay, because there the toes represented the kingdoms that would exist at the end. But in this vision, they are all included in the ten horns, for he already saw the ten kingdoms at the very beginning of the fourth beast’s existence, since from the outset it encompassed all the kingdoms that would later divide into ten parts. Therefore, the toes in that earlier vision did not indicate a specific aspect of the end of days, but rather the strength of the beast at its beginning.)

“Also,” — he asked about the ten horns that were on its head, and about the other horn that came up, before which three horns fell, and that horn had eyes and a mouth speaking great things.

“I was watching,” — and he further relates that he remembered that in the dream he saw that this horn made war with the holy ones of the Most High and prevailed over them, (that is, it compelled Israel in earlier times during periods of religious persecution—whether through arguments and debates, or through harsh decrees to abandon their faith—and it succeeded against them in this way).

“Until the Ancient of Days came and judgment was given to the holy ones of the Most High,” “and the time arrived, and the holy ones inherited the kingdom,” — that is, redemption depends either on the completion of the appointed time, or on a time of favor even before that time. Regarding the “time of favor,” when they sanctify themselves with greater holiness so that God draws near to them (as it says, “and he came to the Ancient of Days and was brought near before Him,” and the Sages said: “if they merit, behold, with the clouds of heaven came one like a son of man”), it is clear that this refers to a time of merit, when they draw near to God through their holiness and are called “the holy ones of the Most High.” In such a case, redemption comes through justice and judgment; thus it says “the Ancient of Days came” (meaning redemption comes directly from God), and “judgment was given to the holy ones of the Most High,” (meaning it is granted because of their great holiness). On the other hand, if redemption comes through the arrival of the appointed time (as it is said, “if they do not merit—at its time”), it says “and the time arrived,” and then “the holy ones inherited the kingdom,” — they receive the kingdom as their inheritance even if they are not “holy ones of the Most High,” but simply holy to their God, as it is said: “if they do not merit—humble and riding upon a donkey.”

“Thus he said,” — and the angel answered him: “The fourth beast,” — represents a fourth kingdom that will exist upon the earth, which will be different from all the kingdoms, as explained above (verse 7). “And it shall devour the whole earth,” — this corresponds to the great iron teeth, “and it shall tread it down and crush it,” — this explains the phrase “and the remainder it trampled with its feet.”

“And its horns,” — the ten horns indicate that this kingdom will ultimately contain within it ten kingdoms that will arise from it at the end. “And another,” — this refers to the small horn that will arise after the Roman kingdom has been established and has spread over all the nations (which in the end will be included in ten kingdoms). “And it will be different from those before it,” — that is, from all the kingdoms that existed before its time, since they will no longer practice idolatry and similar forms of worship as in the days of the earlier kingdoms. “And it will humble three kings,” — this has already been explained above (verse 8).

“And he shall wear out the holy ones of the Most High,” — that is, in the times of religious persecution, when the small horn arose (identified here with the prophet of the Ishmaelites), many righteous ones and holy ones of the Most High were destroyed. “And he shall think to change times and law,” — for Muhammad established the religion of the Ishmaelites, altering the prior religions and changing the appointed times (festivals). “And they shall be given into his hand until a time, times, and half a time,” — since it speaks in general terms and does not specify which “time,” it must refer to a known measure. This could be either the four hundred years of the Egyptian exile, or the four hundred and ten years during which the First Temple stood—so explained the Sages and earlier commentators. However, they interpreted “half a time” as half of either 400 or 410 years, and according to that approach all the calculated end-times would already have passed. The correct explanation is that “half a time” refers to half of the total period of “a time and times.” If we take a “time” as 400 years, then “times” (plural) are 1,200 years, and half a time is 600 years—altogether 1,800 years. This would lead to a calculated end in the year 1868 (counting from the destruction of the Temple by the Romans). However, this does not align with other timelines in this book. Therefore, it must be that the “time” refers to 410 years (the duration of the First Temple). Thus “times” are 1,230 years, and half a time is 615 years—totaling 1,845 years. This leads to the year 1913, which aligns with the other timeframes in this book, as will be explained. This same timeframe appears again in chapter 12, where the angel says to Daniel that “for a time, times, and half a time all these things shall be completed.” Since the time is stated in a concealed manner, and the known durations in Daniel’s era were 400 and 410 years, it is possible that the repetition hints at both measures: that from the calculation based on 400 years (leading to 1868) the process begins, and it continues until the calculation based on 410 years (leading to 1913), which marks the final conclusion.

“And the judgment shall sit,” — afterward, at the time of the great judgment, God will sit upon the throne of judgment; this explains what was said above, “until thrones were cast down and the Ancient of Days sat.” “And his dominion shall be taken away,” — this explains what was said above, “until the beast was slain.”

“And the kingdom,” — this explains what was said above (verse 13), “and behold, with the clouds of heaven came one like a son of man.” And see what I explained (verse 14), “and to him was given dominion, honor, and kingship.” Here it says: “and the kingdom, and the dominion, and the greatness shall be given to the people of the holy ones of the Most High,” as explained above. And the meaning is that the “son of man” refers to the holy ones of the Most High, with the anointed one (the Messiah of the God of Jacob) at their head.

“Until here,” — this too is from the words of the angel, who told him that until the kingdom of heaven—the eternal kingdom—arises, this will be the end of all things and the ultimate purpose of God’s work in His world; for all the exiles and the four kingdoms were merely preparation and means toward this exalted goal, which is the end of all deeds. “And I, Daniel, my thoughts greatly alarmed me and my appearance changed,” — for the vision came with an exceedingly great emotional force, since it was a terrifying vision that looked far ahead to the end of days, and it came upon him with great intensity. And from that time he kept the matter in his heart and did not reveal it to anyone, for he understood that a long and dark night of exile still lay ahead, and he did not wish to pain those who were still hoping.