John Calvin Commentary Daniel 7:1-2

"In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream and told the sum of the matters. Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of heaven brake forth upon the great sea." — Daniel 7:1-2 (ASV)

Hear. Daniel begins to offer instruction specific to the Church. For God had previously appointed him an interpreter and instructor to secular kings. But now God appoints him as a teacher to the Church, so that he may carry out his office within it and instruct the sons of God in the heart of the Church.

We must notice this first of all, because up to this point his predictions extended beyond the limits of the household of faith, but here Daniel’s duty is restricted to the Church. He says: This vision was given to him in the first year of King Belshazzar, before that change happened, which we have already seen.

First of all, we must try to understand the purpose of the Holy Spirit; that is, the purpose and use for which He revealed the material of this chapter to Daniel. All the prophets had offered to the elect people the hope of deliverance, after God had punished them for their ingratitude and obstinacy.

When we read what other prophets announce concerning their future redemption, we might suppose the Church to have been promised a happy, quiet, and completely peaceful state after the people had returned from captivity. But history testifies that it turned out very differently. For the faithful would have grown weary and fallen away unless they had been warned about the various disturbances that were near.

This, then, is the first reason why God revealed to His prophet what we will soon see; namely, that three monarchies still remained, each of which would succeed the previous one. During all of them, the faithful were to endure steadfastly and constantly, relying on the promises, although they would see the whole world shaken and severe and distressing upheavals prevailing everywhere.

For this reason, Daniel’s vision concerning the four empires is presented here. Perhaps it will be better to postpone summarizing it until the Prophet begins to discuss each beast separately. But regarding the first two verses, we must observe the time of the dream.

Before the Medes and Persians took over the Chaldean Empire, the Prophet was instructed about this subject, so that the Jews might recognize the partial fulfillment of what God had so often promised them and their fathers. For if their enemies had conquered Babylon without any new prediction, the Jews perhaps would not have been so attentive to those prophecies which had been spoken in their favor long ago.

Therefore, God wished to refresh their memories. Then, when they saw the fall of that empire which everyone thought to be impregnable, they would perceive the working of God’s secret counsels and the partial, if not complete, fulfillment of what He had testified through their prophets. He says—he saw a dream. When he previously spoke of King Nebuchadnezzar's dream, he mentioned a vision, but not for the same reason, because unbelievers, when they see, do not truly observe.

They perceive something indeed, dimly and indistinctly, and their thoughts immediately fade away. The Prophet’s method was different because he not only dreamed but also saw a distinct vision, and so could profitably deliver to others what he had received. The Prophet then expresses something specific by this phrase, for we know how prophets usually attribute such visions to God when they perceive the secrets of heaven, not with physical eyes, but by the illumination and understanding of the Spirit.

He adds—visions of his head were on his bed; so that the dream would have more weight, and so that we would not think any confusion existed in Daniel’s brain. In this way, he expresses how he saw in a dream, with a calm mind, whatever the Lord wished him to know. He afterwards adds—Then he wrote the dream, and explained the meaning of the words.

By this phrase, he teaches us that his seeing the vision was not for his own personal sake, but for the common edification of the Church. Those who suppose Daniel to have leapt suddenly from his bed, so that he would not forget the dream, offer a vain and frivolous comment. Daniel rather wished to bear witness to this vision as not for himself alone, but common to God’s elect people; and therefore not only to be proclaimed orally, but to be delivered to posterity for a perpetual remembrance.

We must bear in mind these two points: first, Daniel wrote this prophecy so that the knowledge of it might always be upheld among the faithful; and second, he considered the benefit of posterity, and so left the vision written. Both these points are worthy of note to encourage us to pay greater attention to the vision, since it was not delivered for a single individual; but God chose Daniel as His minister, and as the herald and witness of this oracle.

Therefore, we see how it concerns us; it was not teaching for any single age, but it extends to us and should flourish until the end of the world. He repeats the same thing by adding—he explained the sense of the words. For those who separate these two clauses seem to stumble on plain ground.

Daniel then spoke and said—this refers not to spoken words, but to writing; as if the Prophet had said, 'I have fulfilled my duty.' He knew that what we will afterwards see concerning the four monarchies was not divinely entrusted to him so that he would suppress anything made known. Rather, he felt himself to be a chosen instrument of God, who was thus providing the faithful with reasons for trust and endurance.

He spoke, therefore, and explained; that is, when he desired to proclaim this oracle, he testified that there was no difference between himself and God’s Church in this announcement. But as he had been a chosen and ordained teacher, he delivered what he had received through his hands. Therefore, Daniel not only commends his own faith but also urges all the devout to attentiveness and earnest concern, so that they would not despise what God had declared through his mouth.

He repeats again, He saw in his vision during the night. Again, I say, Daniel affirms that he presented nothing but what God had authoritatively given to him. For we know that in the Church all human traditions should be treated as worthless, since all human wisdom is futility and lies. As God alone deserves to be listened to by the faithful, so Daniel here asserts that he offers nothing of his own by dreaming in the ordinary way, but that the vision is sure, and such that it cannot deceive the devout.

He afterwards adds, Behold! The four winds of heaven fought in a great sea. I much prefer this rendering. Interpreters differ regarding the winds, but the true meaning appears to be this: Daniel uses a universally known simile, for such a turbulent upheaval is seldom experienced on solid ground as it is at sea when a mighty tempest arises.

Without doubt, he here presents the image of a raging sea to warn the faithful about the dreadful commotion that was near, just as if the sea were agitated with storms and raging with tempests on all sides. This is the meaning of the phrase. Therefore, he names four winds to show the faithful how the motion that would shatter the globe would not be single and simple, but that various storms would arise together on all sides—exactly as it happens.

We may sometimes see the earth moved just as if a tempest were tossing about the sea in all directions, but the motion will still be single. But God wished to show His prophet not only a simple upheaval, but many different ones, just as if all the winds were to meet in one general conflict.

Philosophers, indeed, list more winds than four when they desire to discuss the number with precision, but it is the common phrase to speak of four winds blowing from the four quarters or regions of the globe. The meaning, however, is clear and not at all forced—the world being like a troubled sea, not agitated by a single storm or wind, but by different conflicting blasts, as if the whole heavens conspired to stir up commotions.

This vision at first glance was very bitter to the faithful, because they counted the years prescribed to them by Jeremiah; the seventieth year was now near, and God had then promised them an end of their troubles. Now God announces that they must not indulge in the hope of rest and joy, but rather prepare themselves to endure the onslaught of the fiercest winds, as the world would be everywhere agitated by different storms.

They might perhaps suspect God of not fulfilling His promises, but this ought to be sufficient for calming their minds and supporting them with the hope of redemption, when they saw that nothing happened either rashly or by chance.

Again, God addressed their temptations, so that their courage would not fail, by teaching them that the path to their redemption was not quite as easy as they had previously imagined from former predictions.

God indeed had not changed His plans. For although a long time had passed since He spoke through Isaiah and the other prophets, He still wished to prepare the Jews for delay, so that it would not break down the courage that would be required to face such great afflictions.

But when redemption really approached, then God explained its path more fully and clearly, and showed how great and severe the remaining struggles were. Therefore, the faithful, instructed by such prophecies, would struggle strenuously and yet continue steadfastly in their course of faith and patience.