Daniel's Prophecy on the Fourth Beast
Daniel prophesized about the fourth beast that would be destroyed in the end times. The detailed prophecy was written in Daniel 7:23-28:
Daniel 7:1-14 records Daniel's vision of four beasts that represent the four kingdoms on the earth before Messiah's everlasting Kingdom (Daniel 7:1-14). The first refers to the kingdom of Babylon, the second to the kingdom of Persia and Media, the third to the kingdom of Greece, and the fourth to the kingdom of Rome. The fourth kingdom would be different from all the previous ones, and would devour the whole earth, tread it down, and break it into pieces. Out of this kingdom would arise ten kings.
When the eleventh king arose, three of the previous kings would have fallen. After this king secured the power, he would speak great words against the Most High and persecute the saints of the Most High until a time and times and half a time. Since the phrase "a time and times and half a time" means 1,260 prophetic days/years, we conclude that the power of the eleventh king would be removed in the 1260th year from its establishment.
Who is the eleventh king and when did he secure the power and become more powerful than the other 7 kings? History tells us that after the western Roman Empire, ten kingdoms arose:
1. Ostrogothic Kingdom (493-553 AD)
2. Visigothic Kingdom (418-720 AD)
3. Kingdom of Lombard (468-774 AD)
4. Mauri Kingdom (533-698 AD)
5. Sub-Roman British Kingdom (410-597 AD)
6. Kingdom of Burgundy (411 to 534 AD)
7. Frankish Kingdom (481-843 AD)
8. Vandal Kingdom (435 AD-534 AD)
9. Alamanni Tribal Kingdom (3rd century-911 AD)
10. Kingdom of the Suebi (409-585 AD)
The main religion of the Ostrogothic, the Visigothic, and the Vandal Kingdoms was Arianism, which was a heretical Christian faith according to Catholicism. Because of conflict in religion, these three kingdoms were destroyed by the Eastern Roman Empire and were never reestablished. The other seven kingdoms mostly fell before 774 AD but revived later on. For example, most territories of the Alamanni Kingdom were within the territory of modern Germany; the territories of the kingdom of Burgundy are within modern Switzerland and Austria; the Mauri Kingdom has become the modern state of Mauritania. These 10 kingdoms after the Western Roman Empire appear to fit well the ten kings (horns) in the vision of Daniel.
There was an important historical event that took place in 756 AD. The Frankish king Pepin the Short conferred upon Pope Stephen II the territories belonging to Ravenna, which extended the temporal rule of the Popes beyond the duchy of Rome. This donation provided a legal basis for the establishment of the Papal States. The seeds of the Papal States as a sovereign political entity were planted in the 6th century AD during the period of the Eastern Roman Empire under Emperor Justinian I. But the sovereignty of the Papal States had not come until Charlemagne became the sole king of the Frankish Kingdom in December 771 AD. He continued his father's policy towards the papacy and became its protector to guarantee the sovereignty of the Papal States.
Before 771 AD, the sovereignty of the Papal States was still challenged by the very existence of the Kingdom of Lombard. After 771 AD, Charlemagne protected the Papal States and guaranteed its sovereignty. For example, the territory ruled by the papacy was invaded by Desiderius on 1 February 772 AD. Pope Adrian I then sought the assistance of Charlemagne. Charlemagne entered Italy with a large army and besieged Desiderius in his capital of Pavia in 773 AD. He banished Desiderius to the Abbey of Corbie in France in 774 AD, and adopted the title "King of the Lombard" himself. Charlemagne reached the height of his power in 800 AD and was crowned as Emperor of the Romans by Pope Leo III on Christmas Day at Rome's Old St. Peter's Basilica.
Since all Holy Roman emperors considered their kingdoms to be the descendants of Charlemagne's Empire, the effective date of the Holy Roman Empire's establishment should have been in December 771 AD when Charlemagne became the sole king of the Frankish Kingdom. Only after this date was the sovereignty of the Papal States guaranteed by the Roman emperors. Most historians believe that the Papal States was terminated on 20 September 1870 AD. In fact, this was the fourth disestablishment, but it still, in fact, exists at present.
The Holy Roman Empire is the small horn of the fourth beast. Because this small horn spoke pompous words against the Most-High, persecuted His saints, and intended to change times and law, he will be destroyed forever after the saints are given into his hand for a time and times and half time (Daniel 7:25). This prophecy means that in the 1260th year from the starting of the small horn, he and the fourth beast will be destroyed forever (Daniel 7:11).
Since the first emperor Charlemagne was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800 AD, historians set the year of 800 AD as the commencement of the Holy Roman Empire. In fact, he became the sole ruler of the Frankish Kingdom and the protector of the Papal States in December of 771 AD when his brother died suddenly and unexpectedly. The sudden and unexplained death of Charlemagne's brother in December 771 AD made him the sole ruler of his kingdom. This should have been a divine interference of God. Therefore, the Holy Roman Empire should have begun in December 771 AD.
This point is further supported by analogy to the coronation date of Nebuchadnezzar. The Jerusalem Chronicles indicate that Nebuchadnezzar was crowned as the king of Babylon on the first day of the sixth Babylonian month of 605 BC. However, God counted his reign to start on the day when his father died: the 8th day of the fifth month of 605 BC. In the same day of 587 BC (the 8th day of 5th month in the Babylonia calendar is the 10th day of the fifth month in the Hebrew calendar), Jerusalem and the holy temple were burned down. God counted this day to be the first day of the 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign. Moreover, the 9th or 10th day of the fifth month in the Hebrew calendar is the fast day of the Israelites, as commanded by God. Therefore, the death of Nebuchadnezzar's father on this special day should have also been a divine interference of God.
If the Holy Roman Empire began in December 771 AD, the 1260th year from this date should be the year between December 2030 and December 2031 (see Figure 1 in Introduction). The destruction of Babylon the Great, the city of Rome—marking the end of the fourth beast—should occur shortly after 25 March 2031 (see Chapter 40).