Daniel’s vision has revealed the four empires of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome through the images of the four beasts in Daniel 7:1-8. Now, into the confusion and terror of these threatening, escalating, seemingly uncontrollable beasts, the vision pivots and Daniel sees that “thrones were placed” — this is a judgment scene — and “the Ancient of Days took his seat” (verse 9), presiding over all the nations, and over all history, to give and execute his final judgment.
In verse 9 the scene shifts from the chaotic sea and the rising monster-kings, to the courts of heaven. Something similar happens in the book of Revelation, but there the scene of heaven appears first, in chapters 4 and 5, before all hell breaks loose on earth in Revelation 6.
What is going on in heaven as earth descends into chaos?
9 “As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of Days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames; its wheels were burning fire. 10 A stream of fire issued and came out from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.
This is clearly a judgment scene, necessary because of the actions of the “little horn” (Dan. 7:8). Judgment must take place due to God’s righteousness. This is not a trial, but a final sentencing of the end-times Antichrist.
“It is hard not to shudder in awe as you read Daniel’s description. There is astonishment and reverence in his words. He grasps for adjectives to describe the One who is in front of him. He stumbles over numbers trying to define the glorious multitude of those serving the Lord in His court. He does an amazing job at describing the indescribable, but we still need to recognize that are reading just a glimpse of a fraction of a tiny percentage of what he witnessed” (Amir Tsarfati, Discovering Daniel, p. 136)
In verses 9-12, the Ancient of Days sat down to render judgment (vv. 9-10), the beast was destroyed (v. 11), and the other beasts’ dominion was taken away (v. 12).
The Apostle John later saw thrones in heaven too (Rev. 1:4; 4:4; 20:4; et al.). The scene in heaven presented in Revelation 4-5 shows the tranquility of heaven (although continual worship is being exercised) compared to all hell breaking lose on earth in chapters 6-19. While everything is falling apart on earth, God is not pacing back and forth, wringing his hands, wondering what to do next, how to “fix it.” It is all going according to plan, fulfilling prophecies.
David Guzik notes an important difference between the throne room in Daniel’s vision and the throne room in John’s vision. In Revelation 4 we not only see the Father (“one seated on the throne”) and Son (the Lamb), but also 24 elders. But there are no elders mentioned in Daniel 7. Guzik says, “Daniel made no mention of these elders, perhaps because the 24 elders represent the church, and the church was an unrevealed mystery to Old Testament saints (Ephesians 3:17).”
The Ancient of Days (a title only used here) seems to refer to God the Father (cf. vv. 13, 22; Isa. 43:13; 57:15), and denotes his eternality (Psa. 90:2), whereas, in 7:13, God the Son is in view. Since God is a triune being, it is not unusual that this would be the case.
“As a name for God, “Ancient of Days” emphasizes his eternality as well as his fitness to be the one final and decisive Judge of all history, every nation, every empire, and every individual. This is a name for God on his judgment seat. Not only has God been there from the beginning, and seen it all, but he has presided over it all, reigning supreme as God, guiding the course of history as he wills (Ephesians 1:11), and acting decisively, in his perfect timing, to humble the proud and exalt the humble (James 4:6; 4:10)” (https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/god-tells-the-time, accessed August 13, 2025)
The thrones were for the Ancient of Days and for the soon-to-appear “son of man” (v. 13). He wore clothing as white as snow and his hair was like pure wool, which conveys purity (Isaiah 1:18) and wisdom. As righteous judge he sat on his throne of “fiery flames,” with wheels of “burning fire” (cf. Ezek. 1:15-21). These wheels move anywhere and everywhere, here and there, suggesting the universality of God’s sovereignty and judgment.
This description seems to portray God’s throne as like a chariot. Chariots were used by rulers in the ancient Near East as vehicles of conquest and victory. The little horn may have been “speaking great things” (Dan. 7:8), but the Ancient of Days would soon conquer (v. 11). From his fiery throne-chariot “a stream of fire issued and came out from before him.” This flame-stream represented holy judgment pouring forth from the throne. It also speaks of “the divine warrior’s fearsome power to destroy his enemies” (Iain Duguid, “Daniel” in The Reformed Expository Commentary, p. 115). Everything reminds us that “our God is a consuming fire” (Heb. 10:29) and nothing can stand before His judgment.
Adding further details centuries later, Paul said that when the time comes for the destruction of the Antichrist and his empire, “the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God” (2 Thess. 1:7-8). Verse 9 goes on to say, “They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might…” (2 Thess. 1:9). This represents His complete and total victory and absolute justice.
Daniel’s attention was next directed to the throng of worshippers. He described those surrounding this scene: “A thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him” (v. 10). These were probably angels (a similar vast number of angels in mentioned in Revelation 5), functioning here as heavenly worshipers. Daniel was trying not to be numerically precise but rather to indicate their innumerability, there were too many to count.
As the angels stood in the presence of the judge, “The court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.” The court sprang into action. The “little horn” will be judged; furthermore, Satan will be judged, as well (Rev. 19:19-20:10). The “little horn” will be destroyed and silenced (Dan. 7:11, 26).
“This is an amazing display of the power of the Most High. As fierce and intimidating and powerful as these four great beasts are (and especially the fourth!), the Ancient of Days sits in judgment and effortlessly executes justice. No threat, no challenge, no prolonged struggle. He only says the word and the greatest beast is destroyed” (https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/god-tells-the-time, accessed August 13, 2025)
“The books were opened” (Dan. 7:10). David Jeremiah notes that the Bible speaks of several books. Moses spoke of a book in which his name was written, but if God would not forgive the Israelites for their sins, he asked that God would “blot me out of the book you have written” (Exod. 32:32). There is the book of tears (Psa. 56:8), the book of reverence (Mal. 3:16) and in Revelation 20 the book of life. The Book of Life (Rev. 20:15) will have the names of all the redeemed. Those whose names are not found in that book will be cast into the lake of fire.
The implication is, however, from Revelation 20:12, that this is a record of the works of men (cf. Is 65:6 for record of evil deeds, and Mai 3:16 for remembrance of good deeds). As Leupold states it, “In them are written, not names, but deeds of men, a record of their ungodly acts, on the basis of which they will be judged” (H. C. Leupold, The Exposition of Daniel, p. 305).
Every person will stand before God in judgment one day, from the lowest servant to the great kings. Greece’s Alexander the Great, Persia’s Cyrus, and Babylon’s Nebuchadnezzar will all appear before God’s throne. He will have the last say. Their high ranking on earth will give them no special favors in heaven. Every person will be judged on the basis of their deeds.
If Alexander the Great and Nebuchadnezzar cannot escape judgment, do not think that you can.
There is only one way that we can escape this judgment, and that is to have Christ’s righteousness credited to our accounts so that we are “not guilty” any longer. There is absolutely “no condemnation” for those in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:1).
This language confirms that the Ancient of Days sat on his fiery chariot-throne for the purpose of rendering a righteous judgment from the heavenly courtroom.
Isaiah 66:15-16 says,
15 “For behold, the Lord will come in fire,
and his chariots like the whirlwind,
to render his anger in fury,
and his rebuke with flames of fire.
16 For by fire will the Lord enter into judgment,
and by his sword, with all flesh;
and those slain by the Lord shall be many.
The “books” were most likely the record of deeds spoken of elsewhere in Scripture (cf. Exod. 32:32-33; Pss. 56:8; 69:28; 139:16). God knows exactly and completely the deeds of everyone—absolutely nothing escapes His notice–including the wicked little horn and the other beasts. The writer of Hebrews sounds this ominous note: “And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account” (Heb. 4:13).
John Walvoord notes:
“In Matthew 25:31-46, there is a corresponding judgment which chronologically may be considered to follow the one here pictured. In Daniel, the judgment is in heaven and relates to the little horn and the beast. In Matthew, the judgment follows the second coming of Christ pictured in Daniel 7:13-14 and extends the original judgment upon the beast to the entire world. Even without any emendation or explanation from other texts of the Bible, it is clear that this is at the end of the interadvent age and the end of the times of the Gentiles. It, therefore, demands a fulfillment which is yet future, and it is futile to attempt to find anything in history that provides a reasonable fulfillment of this passage” (https://walvoord.com/article/248)
We need to remember this scene in heaven, whenever we see this world careening out of control or when our life seems to be falling apart, to remember that there is One who sits on the throne, in perfect control and who will ultimately bring everything to a conclusion, rendering justice. As Jesus himself said, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matt. 10:28).
As Daniel kept looking intently upon the vision that was before him, the scene shifted once again to earth.
11 “I looked then because of the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. 12 As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.
While vv. 9-10 are taking place, Daniel heard “the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking.” The “little horn” is the first to be judged.
These are the sins of the little horn. He has exalted himself against God Most High. The beast in Revelation 13 speaks “blasphemous words.” All throughout history he has attempted to exalt himself and take God’s place in the hearts of humanity. Again, this seems to be reflected in the words of the Babylonian king in Isaiah 14:13-14…
13 You said in your heart,
‘I will ascend to heaven;
above the stars of God
I will set my throne on high;
I will sit on the mount of assembly
in the far reaches of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.’
Throughout Satan has imagined himself to be better than the Most High God.
At the same time, “The beast was killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire.” This action reflects a fulfillment of the judgment rendered from the throne, from which the stream of fire had poured forth (vv. 9-10). According to Revelation 19:10 this destruction comes when he is cast alive into the lake of fire, following Christ’s coming in power to overthrow his army assembled in the valley of Jehoshaphat (Joel 3:12; Zech. 14:1-4). The final phrase of this verse, “given over to be burned with fire” indeed refers to this punishment of the Antichrist.
In verse 12, not only did God judge the little horn, but He also removed dominion from the other beasts. God is sovereign, and he may give or take away dominion whenever he chooses, as has been stated and demonstrated throughout the book of Daniel (Dan. 2:21; 4:17, 32).
“Rest of the beasts” may be a reference to the “ten horns,” since in verse 11 it appears that a horn can also be considered a “beast” in an individual sense. If this is true, then God judged both the little horn (“the beast”; v. 11) and the other ten horns (“the rest of the beasts”; v. 12).
Even though the little horn was judged in a way that implied his destruction (cf. v. 11), the “rest of the beasts” (the “ten horns” in the interpretation suggested here) were not immediately destroyed in like manner. “A season and a time,” while not precise, suggests, however, the temporariness of their prolonged lives.
What verse 12 is saying is that the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, and Grecian empires were to some extent continued in their successors; that is, Gentile power shifted as to rulership but continued more or less in the same pattern: By contrast, at the second coming of Christ the fourth beast is completely destroyed, and a totally different kingdom which is from heaven succeeds the fourth empire. Up until this very moment (that is, at the return of Christ) it was always “the times of the Gentiles,” Luke 21:24).
The end of the prior three empires contrasts with the end of this fourth one. God took away the dominion of each of the earlier three kingdoms one by one, but they continued to exist “for an appointed period of time,” as realms of the kingdom that overcame them. So the Medes and Persians took over the realm of the Babylonians, the Greeks took over the territories conquered by the Medes and Persians, and Rome subsumed them all. But God will cut off the fourth empire completely, and it will continue no longer (v. 11). Thus the end of the fourth kingdom will result in a totally new condition on the earth. It will be the end of the “times of the Gentiles.” We learn next that this will be Messiah’s reign on the earth (cf. Rev. 19:19—20:6).
Grace Still Amazes 