Part 16 (2/2)

As the dominion pa.s.sed from Babylon to the next great power, the prophet says:

_Prophecy._--”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.”

_History._--The Medes and Persians overthrew Babylon. Medo-Persia was a dual kingdom, lifting itself up on one side, first the Median branch the stronger, then the Persian, under Cyrus and his successors, rising higher. This two-sided characteristic, noted as a distinguis.h.i.+ng mark in the prophecy, was emphasized by the ancient writers also. aeschylus, the Greek poet, who lived in the time of Persia, wrote:

”Asia's brave host, A Mede first led. The virtues of his son Fixed firm the empire....

... Cyrus third, by fortune graced, Adorned the throne.”

--”_Persoe._”

The word spoken in the vision, ”Arise, devour much flesh,” describes the history from the time when the Persian side rose uppermost. Rawlinson says, ”Cyrus proceeded with scarcely a pause on a long career of conquest.”

An alliance against Persia was formed by Lydia, Egypt, and Babylon (Herodotus 1:77); and as these three great provinces were subdued, they may well be represented by the three ribs in the mouth of the Medo-Persian bear.

Grecia

Yet another kingdom was to follow, and strikingly the symbol pictures the characteristics of the Greek conquest.

_Prophecy._--”After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; and the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it.”

_History._--The third kingdom was Grecia. Under Alexander the Great, the Greeks swept into Asia with the quickness of the leopard's spring. And the four wings on the leopard must represent astonis.h.i.+ng fleetness.

Plutarch speaks of the ”incredible swiftness” of Alexander's conquests.

Appian wrote:

”The empire of Alexander was splendid in its magnitude, in its armies, in the success and rapidity of its conquests, and it wanted little of being boundless and unexampled, yet in its shortness of duration it was like a brilliant flash of lightning. Although broken into several satrapies, even the parts were splendid.”--_”History of Rome,” preface, par. 10._

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE THIRD BEAST

”After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard.” Dan. 7:6.]

Thus the ancient Roman writer pictured the career of Grecia just as represented by the prophetic symbol--the fleetness, the great dominion given it, the division of the empire into satrapies, as suggested by the four heads of the leopard. Out of the conflicts following Alexander's death, there came the fourfold heads.h.i.+p of the empire. Rawlinson says, ”A quadripart.i.te division of Alexander's domain was recognized.” (See ”Sixth Monarchy,” chap. 3.) The real situation is best represented, as Dr. Albert Barnes says, by ”one animal with four heads,” just as the prophetic symbol described it centuries before.

Thus the course of empire followed the outline of the ”sure word of prophecy” from age to age.

”Armies were ranged in battle's dread array: They fought--their glory withered in its bud; They perished--with them ceased their tyrants' sway; New wars, new heroes came--their story pa.s.sed away.”

There was to be no abiding kingdom till the time came for G.o.d's glorious kingdom to be set up.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE FOURTH BEAST

”After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly.” Dan. 7:7.]

Rome

<script>