The Prophecies of Daniel
Part 1: The Colossus
Today we are going to begin a series of teachings on the prophecies given to the Old Testament figure, Daniel. The book of Daniel is a fascinating portion of Scripture, which we can learn so much from. Daniel, himself is an extraordinary child of God who serves as a wonderful example of what God can do through those who surrender their will to Him.
There is so much in the book of Daniel that we could cover that we could be studying this book for the entire year if we wanted to. So, while I don’t wish to ignore or play down the significance of certain sections I chose to concentrate on just the prophecies that were given to Daniel for this series.
Like before, this will be more of a Bible Study than a sermon series. We are going to be looking at the prophecies given to Daniel and their interpretations. I will leave the application and personal meaningfulness of the prophecies, up to you. Just like with other studies I will also provide copies of the teachings for you and you can expect handouts as we go along as well.
I hope you had the opportunity to read the second chapter of the book of Daniel in preparation for today. Last week we talked about rightly dividing or handling God’s Word. I wanted to show you how important it is when studying prophecy to know who God is speaking to or about and what time period or dispensation is being discussed. Because if we don’t then we can make prophetic passages say anything we want them to and completely miss the truths that God has laid out for our benefit.
I. Times of the Gentiles
Now having said that, the book of Daniel, which we are about to study, is unique from other prophetic works in the Old Testament. The other prophets like Isaiah, Zechariah, and Jeremiah, were given prophecies about the Jews and were told to proclaim them as warnings to their own people. Daniel, however, was given prophecies concerning a different class of people, the Gentiles.
Now just so there is no confusion, I want to make it clear that no where does Daniel talk about the Church of Christ. He does not see the Church in any of his visions. It is hidden from him. In fact, none of the Old Testament prophets ever saw the Church. So no where in the Old Testament will you find prophecies concerning the Church.
Daniel is experiencing his visions and writing his book 600 years before Christ. From his viewpoint he knows of only two classes of people, the Jews and the Gentiles, (which encompasses anyone who is not a Jew). So keep in mind as we study Daniel that he can only see the Gentiles and their relation to the Jews; he cannot see or even comprehend the existence of the Church. Therefore, NONE of the prophecies found in the book of Daniel can be interpreted as referring to the Church in any manner.
All of Daniel’s visions were of the Gentile nations of the world and their last great ruler, the Antichrist. More specifically Daniel’s prophecies cover the period of time known as the Times of the Gentiles.
While the phrase “Time of the Gentiles” is not found in the Book of Daniel, it is a New Testament phrase used by Christ to refer to the period which Daniel is prophesying about. The words of Jesus in Luke 21:24 help us define exactly what the Times of the Gentiles is. “… Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.”
The Times of the Gentiles is a set period of time in which God allows the Gentile nations of the world to come to power and hold sway over the earth. A time in which the Jewish nation shall be without a king. It is foretold by Hosea.
Hosea 3:4-5, “For the Israelites will live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred stones, without ephod or idol. [5] Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the Lord and to his blessings in the last days.”
It was God’s purpose to make the descendants of Abraham, the Jewish Nation, the leading nation of the world, but their disobedience prevented this. Therefore, God allowed the Jews to be taken into captivity by the Gentile nations of the world, starting with Babylon in 606 BC. When Babylon took over the Jewish nation, the Times of the Gentiles began.
So the Times of the Gentiles began when God transferred earthly rule from the Kings of Israel to the Gentile king, Nebuchadnezzar, of Babylon in 606 BC. They will continue until Israel again becomes the head of the nations when Christ returns to earth to set up His Millennial Kingdom at the end of the Tribulation period. This is the period of time which Daniel’s visions cover.
[Note: While we are presently living in the Times of the Gentiles, Daniel did not see the dispensation of Grace and the church age in his visions. We are living in the valley between the mountain peaks of prophecy. Daniel could see the mountain peaks but not the valley between them.]
II. Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream
So, now let’s turn our attention to Chapter 2 of the book of Daniel and the very first prophecy found there. It was given in the form of a dream to the pagan Gentile king Nebuchadnezzar, of Babylon. But very quickly let’s review what we do know about this passage of Scripture that will help us interpret the prophecy correctly.
We know that the author of the book, Daniel, is Jewish. We know that this book was written for both a Gentile and Jewish audience because first, it was written in the Aramaic language, the language of the Gentiles. And second, it was written in one of the sacred prophetic books of the Jews that became part of our Old Testament. We know also that the prophecy is about the Gentiles because Daniel explains in the interpretation that it is about the Gentile nations of the world. And we know that it has nothing to do with the Church, because Daniel never saw the Church in any of his prophecies.
So, having those things in mind, let’s look at Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. In the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign he had a dream, but when he awoke he couldn’t remember it. All he could remember about it was that it troubled him greatly. So the king calls all of his magicians and astrologers together and demands that they not only tell him what his dream was but that they then interpret it for him. Of course none of them could tell the king his dream so they were all ordered to be executed. But Daniel and his friends took to prayer and God made known to him the dream and the interpretation of it.
Daniel 2:31-35, “You looked, O king, and there before you stood a large statue – an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. [32] The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, [33] its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. [34] While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. [35] Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were broken to pieces at the same time and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.”
III. The Interpretation
If Nebuchadnezzar was astonished that Daniel was able to reproduce his dream in full detail with such great accuracy then he was probably thunder-struck when he heard the interpretation of the dream.
Daniel 2:37-45, “You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; [38] in your hand he has placed mankind and the beasts of the filed and the birds of the air. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.
[39] After you, another kingdom will rise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. [40] Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron – for iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. [41] Just as you saw that the feet and tows were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. [42] As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. [43] And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.
[44]In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, bit it will itself endure forever. [45] This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not be human hands – a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold to pieces.
The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and the interpretation is trustworthy."
This giant statue or colossus symbolizes the four great world empires of man from the time of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream to the Second Coming of Christ. It not only visually shows us how many empires or kingdoms shall hold sway over the world, it also shows us in what order they shall occur. [Here’s where you’ll wish you paid more attention to all those hated world history courses in school.]
Today we have the hindsight of history to look back upon and recognize the truth of this dream and interpretation. But remember this dream occurred around 600 BC so there is no way that Daniel or anyone could have known what was to come with such accuracy unless God revealed it to them. And you will see as we go through this that it is incredibly or should I say divinely accurate.
A. Babylon – Head of Gold (609 – 539 BC)
So let’s look at this colossus and try to understand what God was telling this great king of the ancient world. I included a handout with a picture of the image so you can visualize this dream.
Daniel tells us that the head of this statue is made out of gold. It represents the first world empire to arise during the Times of the Gentiles - the Babylonian Empire, which the history books tell us lasted from about 609 – 539 BC. In his interpretation Daniel uses the terms “king” and “kingdom” interchangeably. So when he says to Nebuchadnezzar in verses 37 and 38, “You, O King…You are that head of gold,” we know that he is talking about the empire or kingdom of Babylon, not just Nebuchadnezzar, the king.
B. Medo-Persian Empire - Chest and Arms of Silver (539-331 BC)
Following the head of gold were the chest and arms of the statue made of silver. Daniel tells the king in verse 39 that, “After you, another kingdom will rise, inferior to yours.” Now, since this kingdom or empire was still in the future when Daniel was interpreting the dream he couldn’t name this kingdom or any other specifically. All Daniel knew was that this next kingdom was inferior because the metal used to represent it, silver, is inferior or less valuable than gold.
But living in the twentieth century, we have the advantage of being able to look back at world history, and we know exactly what kingdom or empire the chest and arms of silver represent. They are the Medo-Persian Empire, often referred to as just the Persian Empire, which lasted from about 539 - 331 BC. This great empire was a combination of two peoples coming together to form one kingdom, the Medes, (which are the ancestors of today’s Kurdish peoples) and the Persians (today’s Iranians). The statue depicts this kingdom composed of two peoples by comparing it to the two arms of the colossus. The left arm representing Media the weaker, and the right arm Persia, the stronger of the two peoples.
The fact that the Medo-Persian Empire is represented by silver, indicates that as silver is inferior to gold, so the Medo-Persian Empire was inferior to the Babylonian. This we know from history is true, not in the extent of territory that the empire covered, but in wealth, luxury, and magnificence.
[Note: Just so you have a little bit of historical or Biblical reference, the Persian Empire is the one that Queen Esther reigned in and helped to save her Jewish brethren. It is also the empire that was in control when Daniel was thrown into the lions’ den.]
C. Greece – The Belly and Thighs of Brass or Bronze (331-168 BC)
The third kingdom or empire Daniel mentioned in verse 39, “Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth.” Following the course of history, we see that this metal represents the Grecian Empire under the control of Alexander the Great. This empire went through great upheaval and change from 331 – 168 BC. Alexander was its leader for only eight short years before his death at age 33.
At the time of his death the kingdom was divided amongst his four generals. Therefore, the Grecian Empire was not a single empire, but a fourfold empire, composed of the kingdoms of Thrace, Macedonia, Syria and Egypt. Now, while this division is not shown on the colossus, it is revealed in later visions, as we’ll see in the upcoming weeks.
D. Rome – Legs of Iron (168 BC – 476 AD)
The fourth kingdom which is represented by the legs of iron is the Roman Empire (168 BC – 476 AD).
There are three things that we need to take note of concerning this fourth empire. First, notice that the legs make up at least half of the height of the statue. This shows us that the Roman Empire was the longest lasting of all the empires. This we know from history to be true.
Second, the colossus is divided into two legs. This would imply that the Roman Empire would be divided into two parts. This we also know to be true because in 364 AD the Roman Empire was divided into its Eastern division with Constantinople as its capital and its Western division with Rome as its capital.
The third thing we should take note of is that the iron which represents Rome carries on into the feet and toes of the next world power. This is because Rome was never totally destroyed. Its eastern division changed its name to the Byzantine Empire and later the Ottoman Empire, but it never really experienced total destruction.
Likewise, the culture, government, economy, and religion of the western division have carried on throughout the centuries in Europe, Australia, and Northern America to this very day. So, while the physical infrastructure of the Ancient Roman Empire may be mostly gone, the rest of it is still in existence today.
E. Last Days’ Empire – Feet of Iron and Clay
The feet and toes of the Colossus represent the final World Empire that will occur before the return of Christ. This is the only kingdom we cannot put a definite name on because it is not a part of history but of the present and future.
Some prophecy scholars refer to it as the Revived Roman Empire because of the presence of the iron in the feet and toes. They go on to say that the present-day European Union is this final kingdom, because it is made up of the countries that were once territories controlled by Ancient Rome.
While I believe the EU may be a part of this kingdom, I’m not sure I’d go as far as to call the last days’ kingdom the Revived Roman Empire, because that limits it to the area that Ancient Rome once controlled. And I believe the main substance that represents this final kingdom is the clay not the iron. The mixture of iron just means that it will carry some of the characteristics of Ancient Rome. In fact, we’ve already said that the Roman culture, government system, etc. are alive and present today in just about every modern technological country in existence. So, I believe we are living in the time of this last days’ kingdom.
It’s interesting that this kingdom is a mix of iron and clay, because they are two substances that can mix and exist together, and yet retain their separate identities. Iron and clay won’t combine to form a new substance. This tells us that this end-time kingdom will be a co-mingling of nations in which each kingdom retains its own identity.
This is what we are seeing the beginning of in the development of the United Nations and the European Union. Individual nations, all with some form of Ancient Roman influence in their formation, are coming together to form a larger entity or power – or dare I say “empire.” And at the same time they are retaining their own identities, cultures and sovereignty.
1. What Is The Clay?
Now, I want to address a misconception that you may come across if you ever do any studying of your own of this dream and its interpretation.
One trusted prophecy scholar has looked at these verses in Daniel and said that the clay represents the Hebrew or Jewish people. He makes a good argument by saying that the Jews have been scattered among the nations, mixed in with them like the clay and iron, but have still retained their unique identity as Jewish. He goes on to use Jeremiah 18 as support for his argument because in this passage the Lord calls the house of Israel clay in the hands of the potter.
Now, while I am not denying what he says about the Hebrew people, I still don’t think the clay in this dream represents the Jews. I have several reasons as to why I think this way.
First, if you notice the clay is only mixed with the iron and not with any of the other metals in the statue, right? It is also only present in the Last Days’ Empire represented by the feet and toes. The Jews, however, have been dispersed among the nations of the world since the time of Babylon. If the clay represented the Jews then it should be mixed with all the other metals of the statue from the head down, not just found in the feet and toes.
Second, the substances used to make the statue also represent world empires. The Jewish people have never been and still aren’t a world empire.
Third, we need to remember that this statue is a picture of Gentile world power. It is visually showing us what is happening during the Times of the Gentiles. The statue is not about the Jewish people at all, because the Jews are not a leading powerful nation during the Times of the Gentiles.
Fourth, this passage of Daniel was originally written in the Aramaic language and not Hebrew. This is important because Aramaic was the common language of the Gentiles in power at the time of its writing. So this passage was written for and about the Gentiles. If it concerned the Jews it would be written in their language, Hebrew.
And one last reason is the simple fact that this dream was given by God to a Gentile king – not to a Jew. So, this dream was again about the Gentile powers of the world, not the Jews.
So this is why I don’t think the clay of the image stands for the Jews. The clay is the substance that best describes the final empire – a0 federation that is brittle and easily broken.
We are going to stop there today and continue with this interpretation next week. Please bring the handout of the Colossus back with you as we complete this passage. I’m not sure if we’ll get into the next vision as well, so just in case we do, please read Daniel 7 in preparation. If we don’t get to it next week you will have two weeks to read Daniel 7 and prepare for the next vision.
Sermon Sources:
Froese, Arno. Daniel’s Prophecies Made Easy: Prophecies Made Easy Series. Midnight Call Ministries. The Olive Press, Columbia, SC. Copyright 2004.
Larkin, Rev. Clarence. The Book of Daniel. Clarence Larkin Estate, Glenside, PA. Copyright 1929.
Larkin, Rev. Clarence. Dispensational Truth or God’s Plan and Purpose in the Ages. Clarence Larkin Estate, Glenside, PA. Copyright 1918.
Lindsey, Hal. Study of Daniel. Series on CD.
www.danielrevelation.com
