Beasts: A wild animal in biblical prophecy symbolizes nations that are, have been or will be enemies of Israel specifically and God's people generally.
Daniel has a vision in which he sees two beasts engaging in mortal combat. The angel Gabriel is sent to tell Daniel the meaning of the vision. "The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kings of Media and Persia. The shaggy goat is the king of Greece." Daniel 8:20 Both of these nations conquered and occupied Israel at one time or another.
Beasts With Multiple Heads: A beast depicted having multiple heads suggests successive historical occurences of said beast.
The apostle John in vision is shown a woman riding a beast having seven heads. An angel tells John, "The seven heads are... seven kings [kingdoms]. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come."
Revelation 17:9-10 The kingdoms that have fallen (are past), that were enemies of Israel, were Egypt, Assyria, Babylonia, Medo-Persia and Greece. The one present in Johns time was the Roman empire.
Beasts With Horns: Horns on a beast either represent the power they have to act or the divisions that occur when that power is broken.
Going back to Daniel's vision of the ram and the goat the angel Gabriel explains, "The shaggy goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn between its eyes is the first king. The four horns that replaced the one that was broken off represent four kingdoms that will emerge from his nation but will not have the same power."
Daniel 8:21-22 In this case, multiple horns represent entities that exist contemporaneously.
Beasts Wearing Crowns: Crowns are worn by royalty, persons who generally have absolute authority. Prophetic beasts are sometimes shown having crowns on their heads or their horns. Some are not wearing crowns at all, which is the case for the scarlet beast of Chapter 17.
The presence of crowns or lack thereof can be explained by the following: "The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast." Revelation 17:12 This prophecy therefore is futuristic when these powers come into existence.
Winged Beasts: The use of wings as biblical symbols has two applications: 1) Protection and 2) Rapidity in flight. Both can be used in reference to the relationship between God and man. "How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings." Psalms 36:7 "Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles." Isaiah 40:31
Wings are also used to depict the rapidity of conquest. "The king of Assyria with... its outspread wings will cover the breadth of your land, Immanuel."Isaiah 8:7-8
Waters: Both Daniel, while exiled in Babylon, and the apostle John who was exiled on the island of Patmos, saw in vision creatures coming up out of the sea. "In my vision at night I looked, and... four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea." Daniel 7:2-3 "I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads." Revelation 13:1
The most definitive text is this: "The waters you saw... are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages." Revelation 17:15 For both these prophets the sea represented the nations surrounding the Mediterranean.
Winds: Wind as a prophetic symbol is used to describe a disturbance that brings chaos, destruction and unrest. Wind is also used in context with the four cardinal directions.
"See, the storm of the Lord will burst out in wrath, a driving wind swirling down on the heads of the wicked." Jeremiah 30:23 "In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. Daniel 7:2 "After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds."Revelation 7:1
Colors: Colors in the Bible have many symbolic meanings.
Red and Scarlet, the colors of impurity and sin, the opposite of which is white. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow." Isaiah 1:18
Blue and purple: The colors of royalty. "Mordecai... was wearing royal garments of blue... and a purple robe." Esther 8:15
Black: "That day will be... a day of distress and anguish... trouble and ruin... darkness and gloom,Zephaniah 1:15
