Daniel 8:22
in Daniel 8The four horns that replaced the broken one represent four kingdoms that will rise from that nation, but will not have the same power.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And as for that which was broken, in the place whereof four stood up, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not with his power.
KJV
Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.
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This verse in Daniel 8
Commentary
9 notes on this verseNow that being broken,.... That is, the great horn Alexander, the first king of the Grecian monarchy; whose death, either by drunkenness, or by poison, is here expressed by being "broken".
This site's exposition
are the kings of Media and Persia
on Daniel 8:20-22
The angel now gives the interpretation the text itself states without ambiguity: the two-horned ram is the kings of Media and Persia, the rough goat is the king of Grecia, and the great horn between his eyes is the first king, Alexander by the bench's unanimous reading. When that horn is broken, four kingdoms rise out of the one nation, but not in his power, the successors ruling as heirs of his conquest rather than of his own line. The commentators note that Scripture here interprets its own symbol, leaving no room to dispute what the ram and the goat represent, whatever remains debated in the horn that follows.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
After [Alexander's] death his empire will be divided into four kingdoms, but though those reigning over them are four, they will not succeed in achieving what he achieved but will be seen to be much inferior to his strength.
That these things are true, just as has been said, Daniel himself testifies. For he spoke in this way, "And it happened when I saw the vision and I sought to understand, and behold, there stood before me an appearance of a man, and I heard the voice of a man above the midst of the Ubal, and he called and he said, 'Gabriel cause him to understand that vision.' And he came and stood holding me, and when he came, I was astounded and fell upon my face and he said to me, 'Understand son of man. For the vision is for the end of time.' And while he spoke with me I was astounded and I fell upon my face upon the ground and he touched me and stood me on my feet and he said, 'Behold, I myself make known to you what will be at the end of wrath. For the vision is of the end of time. The ram which you saw, who had horns, he is the king of the Persians and Medes. And the male goat is king of the Greeks. And the great horn which was above the midst of his eyes, he is the first king. And after he is shattered, four horns stood up after him, four kings from his nation shall arise and not in his strength. And at the end of their kingdom, when their sins are full, a king, shameless in countenance, shall arise, and who understands riddles. And his rule shall be strong and not in his own strength and he shall destroy wonderful things and he shall prosper and he shall practice and he shall destroy the mighty and the holy people, and the yoke of his chain shall prosper. Cunning is in his hand and in his heart he shall be magnified and in cunning he shall destroy many and he shall stand for the destruction of many and he shall shatter people as eggs in a hand. And the vision of evening and morning which was said is true. […]
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
11 Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down. 12 And a host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:98%@v11-12
The ram signified the succession of the kings of Media and Persia; the rough goat signified the kings of Greece; the great horn was Alexander; the four horns that rose in his room were the four kingdoms into which his conquests were cantoned, of which before,
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
not in his power--not with the power which Alexander possessed [MAURER]. An empire united, as under Alexander, is more powerful than one divided, as under the four Diadochi.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
But not in his power - The four kingdoms which shall arise out of the Macedonian empire shall not be of Alexander’s power or family, nor have his strength and dignity.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Now that being broken - By the death of Alexander. Whereas four stood up for it - Stood up in its place. Four kingdoms shall stand up - Ultimately. It is not necessary to suppose that this would be immediately. If four such should in fact spring out of this one kingdom, all that implied in the prophecy would be fulfilled. On the fulfillment of this, see the notes at Dan 8:8. But not in his power - No one of these four dynasties had at any time the power which was wielded by Alexander the Great.
The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהַ֨נִּשְׁבֶּ֔רֶת | vehanishberet | and the broken [horn] | H7665 → | 147 times |
| וַתַּֽעֲמֹ֥דְנָה | vataamodenah | and they arose | H5975 → | 521 times |
| אַרְבַּ֖ע | ʾarba' | four [horns] | H702 → | 318 times |
| תַּחְתֶּ֑יהָ | tachteiha | in place its | H8478 → | 505 times |
| אַרְבַּ֧ע | ʾarba' | four | H702 → | 318 times |
| מַלְכֻי֛וֹת | malkhuyot | kingdoms | H4438 → | 91 times |
| מִגּ֥וֹי | migoy | from a nation | H1471 → | 561 times |
| יַעֲמֹ֖דְנָה | yaamodenah | they will arise | H5975 → | 521 times |
| וְלֹ֥א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| בְכֹחֽוֹ׃ | vekhocho | with power its | H3581 → | 126 times |
וְהַ֨נִּשְׁבֶּ֔רֶתand the broken [horn]
vehanishberetH7665 →147 times
וַתַּֽעֲמֹ֥דְנָהand they arose
vataamodenahH5975 →521 times
אַרְבַּ֖עfour [horns]
ʾarba'H702 →318 times
תַּחְתֶּ֑יהָin place its
tachteihaH8478 →505 times
אַרְבַּ֧עfour
ʾarba'H702 →318 times
מַלְכֻי֛וֹתkingdoms
malkhuyotH4438 →91 times
מִגּ֥וֹיfrom a nation
migoyH1471 →561 times
יַעֲמֹ֖דְנָהthey will arise
yaamodenahH5975 →521 times
וְלֹ֥אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
בְכֹחֽוֹ׃with power its
vekhochoH3581 →126 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Daniel 8:8Thus the goat became very great, but at the height of his power, his large horn was broken off, and four prominent horns came up in its place, pointing toward the four winds of…
it leads to
- Daniel 7:2
Daniel declared: “In my vision in the night I looked, and suddenly the four winds of heaven were churning up the great sea.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Revelation 7:1
After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back its four winds so that no wind would blow on land or sea or on any tree.
- Daniel 8:5
As I was contemplating all this, suddenly a goat with a prominent horn between his eyes came out of the west, crossing the surface of the entire earth without touching the ground.
- Daniel 7:2
Through
Daniel 11:4But as soon as he is established, his kingdom will be broken up and parceled out toward the four winds of heaven. It will not go to his descendants, nor will it have the…
it leads to
- Daniel 8:8
Thus the goat became very great, but at the height of his power, his large horn was broken off, and four prominent horns came up in its place, pointing toward the four winds of…
- Jeremiah 12:17
But if they will not obey, then I will uproot that nation; I will uproot it and destroy it, declares the LORD.”
- Daniel 7:8
While I was contemplating the horns, suddenly another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like those of a…
- Jeremiah 12:15
But after I have uprooted them, I will once again have compassion on them and return each one to his inheritance and to his land.
- Daniel 8:8
Through
Daniel 8:3Then I lifted up my eyes and saw a ram with two horns standing beside the canal. The horns were long, but one was longer than the other, and the longer one grew up…
it leads to
- Daniel 8:20
The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kings of Media and Persia.
- Daniel 8:20
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies7
About Daniel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 4.27.1-2; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Theodoret of Cyrus, COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 8:22.