16. I came near one of those standing there and asked what all this meant.“So he told me and explained to me what these things meant:
17. ‘The four great animals are four kingdoms that will come from the earth.
18. But the holy people who belong to the Most High God will receive the power to rule and will have the power to rule forever, from now on.’
19. “Then I wanted to know what the fourth animal meant, because it was different from all the others. It was very terrible and had iron teeth and bronze claws. It was the animal that crushed and ate what it killed and then walked on whatever was left.