It was raised up on one side it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth and it was told, "Arise, devour much flesh." And behold, another beast, a second one, like a bear. Then as I looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand upon two feet like a man and the mind of a man was given to it. The first was like a lion and had eagles' wings. And four great beasts came up out of the sea, different from one another. I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea. The translation below is the Revised Standard Version. This Son of Man cannot be identified, but from "Book of Similitudes" (first half first century CE) on, authors have interpreted him as the Messiah. (The image of God as an ancient man can also be found in texts like Job 36.26 and Psalm 102.25.) The author of Daniel believes that God will hand over power to a mighty ruler who will bring peace to mankind (the "one like a son of man" who comes "with the clouds of heaven"). He is punished by God, who is presented to us as an ancient of days. Therefore, this horn is said to be speaking "boastful words". The ten horns represent Alexander's successors the eleventh is Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who persecuted the Jews and blasphemed against their God. Alexander was often depicted with the ram's horns of his divine father Ammon. The ten-horned beast with iron teeth: the empire of Alexander the Great (336-323).The four-headed leopard with fowl's wings: the Achaemenid Empire (539-330).The bear: the Median empire (which existed until 550).The image is well chosen, because animals like these are sometimes depicted in Babylonian art. The lion with eagle's wings: the Babylonian empire (which existed until 539 BCE).The four beasts stand for the great eastern monarchies. This chapter is one of the oldest Jewish apocalyptic texts only the Book of Watchers (a part of the First book of Enoch) is older. In the seventh chapter, Daniel describes future events, which are in fact events that took place when Daniel was composed ( more.). The hero of the book, Daniel, is a courtier of the Babylonian ruler Belshazzar, the son of king Nabonidus and regent during his father's absence. The book of Daniel was written during the Maccabaean revolt, a rebellion against the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who had started a persecution of orthodox Jews. Daniel's Son of Man Coin of Alexander, with ram's horns