The Kingdom Foretold by Daniel

Nebuchanezzar’s Dream: A Look Into The Future

Back when Babylon, with Nebuchadnezzar at its head, was ruling over the known world, Daniel (of the Lion’s Den story) and his three friends were among the wise men of the land. And one night the king had a dream that woke him up and left him feeling strangely disturbed.

Bits and snatches of what he’d seen may have drifted through his mind, but basically he’d forgotten the dream. He was only aware that it was significant — and troubling. So he called his chief wise men and said. “I had this dream and it’s bothering me. I want you to tell me what it means.”

“Sure,” they answered, always willing to please the king. (Especially NOT willing to displease the king.) “Tell us the dream and we’ll tell you what it means.” (At least they could come up with something reasonable.)

“I wish I could, but I can’t remember any of it. So you’re the brilliant ones here. Plus, you’re supposed to have an inside track with the powers upstairs. Surely you can get in touch with Whoever, then tell me what I dreamed and the interpretation.”

Can’t you just hear them gasp? “Your Majesty! You’re asking the impossible. Could you give us some idea what the dream was about?”

Nebuchadnezzar scowled. “I can’t remember. So, let me put it this way. Explain the dream and its meaning and you shall receive rich rewards and great honor. If you don’t, I’ll have you all cut in pieces and your houses razed. Now get on with it and do what you need to do to recover it for me.”

Likely the poor sages were quaking, but they had no clue — and the king wasn’t apt to be fooled by a tale they could quickly cobble together. They appealed to his common sense: “Your Majesty, no king has ever asked such a hard thing of any wise man. We aren’t gods, only they can pull up a forgotten dream.”

Nebuchadnezzar appears to have had a rather short fuse. He took autocratic to the top notch here. “That’s it,” he roared. “You’re toast — the lot of you!”

As the King expected his order to be obeyed right now, no questions asked, Daniel and his friends were rounded up along with all the sages in Babylon, to face the firing squad. Of course they asked, “What’s with this sudden, drastic decree?”

When Arioch, who was doing the roundup, explained about the king’s dream that agitated him so much, Daniel said, “Give us a little time. Perhaps the God of Heaven, whom I serve, will show me the dream and the interpretation.”

“Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste and said thus unto him, I have found a man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation.” Daniel 2:25.

Now I’m going to paraphrase and abbreviate their conversation; you can read the account in Daniel 2: 28-46.

The king asked Daniel, “Are you really able to tell me my dream?”

And Daniel replied, “No man on earth can tell you, but there is a God in heaven that reveals secrets. In your dream He’s making known to you, King Nebuchadnezzar, what shall come to pass in the latter days.”

“In your dream you saw a great statue, a glorious shining image with the likeness of a man. His head was of fine gold; his arms were of silver; the belly and thighs were of brass, and the legs were of iron and its feet were of iron and clay mixed.

“Then you saw a huge stone that had been cut, but not by human hands, and the stone was hurled at the image and it smashed the image. The gold, silver, iron and clay were crushed all together into dust and the wind blew them away. But the stone that had broken the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

“And here’s what it all means: The image represents various kingdoms of this earth. At present we have your kingdom, Your Majesty: the head and shoulders of gold. God has given you this vast and mighty kingdom. But there will arise another kingdom after yours, though it will be inferior. This is represented by the silver. Another kingdom will follow that one, but not as great; it’s the one represented by the brass.

“The fourth kingdom to follow will be as strong as iron and its armies will advance over the earth, conquering all the other nations and crushing all resistance. But at the height of its power it will be divided and weakened, as you saw the feet and toes were part of iron and part of clay.

“But in the days of this last kingdom, the God of heaven will set up a completely different kingdom, one not made with human hands, and it will expand and fill the whole earth. It will never be destroyed, but it will break in pieces and consume all the other kingdoms and shall stand forever. These are the things that will come to pass; this is the future you saw in your dream.”

And Nebuchadnezzar was thrilled, because this was exactly what he’d dreamed. And he made Daniel a great man and a ruler over the province of Babylon.

It has been generally understood by Christians through the ages that these kingdoms represent first Babylon, then the kingdom of the Medes & Persians, then Greece and finally the Roman Empire, during which time Jesus came and his kingdom, that “stone not cut by human hands” which became a holy mountain. There are a number of references in the Old Testament to this “holy mountain” and how it will expand over all the earth — as Christianity has done — and it will be a spiritual kingdom.

“Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.” Isaiah 56: 7

“They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” Isaiah 11: 9

Jesus answered and said unto him, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3