The Eternal Kingdom

Daniel 2:25–49 ESV

25 Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste and said thus to him: “I have found among the exiles from Judah a man who will make known to the king the interpretation.” 26 The king declared to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream that I have seen and its interpretation?” 27 Daniel answered the king and said, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, 28 but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream and the visions of your head as you lay in bed are these: 29 To you, O king, as you lay in bed came thoughts of what would be after this, and he who reveals mysteries made known to you what is to be. 30 But as for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because of any wisdom that I have more than all the living, but in order that the interpretation may be made known to the king, and that you may know the thoughts of your mind. 31 “You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. This image, mighty and of exceeding brightness, stood before you, and its appearance was frightening. 32 The head of this image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 34 As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. 36 “This was the dream. Now we will tell the king its interpretation. 37 You, O king, the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, and the might, and the glory, 38 and into whose hand he has given, wherever they dwell, the children of man, the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heavens, making you rule over them all—you are the head of gold. 39 Another kingdom inferior to you shall arise after you, and yet a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. 40 And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters all things. And like iron that crushes, it shall break and crush all these. 41 And as you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom, but some of the firmness of iron shall be in it, just as you saw iron mixed with the soft clay. 42 And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 As you saw the iron mixed with soft clay, so they will mix with one another in marriage, but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay. 44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever, 45 just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A great God has made known to the king what shall be after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure.” 46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face and paid homage to Daniel, and commanded that an offering and incense be offered up to him. 47 The king answered and said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings, and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.” 48 Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. 49 Daniel made a request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon. But Daniel remained at the king’s court.

God is still here

While in exile, the people in Judah may have concluded that God was no longer around nor interested in His covenant people. Why would he allow such a shameful defeat for his people and the plunder of His temple? Where is God when we need Him? The book of Daniel will remind us that God is present and at work in all things to bring forth his glorious will.

In the early years of his reign, King Nebuchadnezzar had a troubling dream. He chose not to reveal it to his wise men and demanded that they give both the dream and its meaning or else they would all die. All would lose their life, but among the wise men of Babylon stood a righteous person named Daniel. Although he knew the methods of Babylon, he refused to use them. For he knew that God alone could solve this problem.

Troubles for a purpose

The king appeared preoccupied with his world, kingdom, and personal life, and at this moment, God gave Nebuchadnezzar the dream. If God gave the dream, then no human wisdom could reveal it except God alone. When Daniel gave the dream and interpretation to the king, he clarified to the king who was truly in charge. It was the God in heaven who had allowed things to occur as they did. God gave the dream and would reveal the meaning to those who would seek Him and listen to its meaning.

Let us remember that God is at work drawing the hearts and minds of people to himself. He sometimes sends troubling situations to accomplish this. The Bible reminds us of people like Jacob, who met recognized God when he was running for his life from the threat of his brother Esau. What about when God knocked Saul off his riding animal and gave him a vision of Jesus so that He could know the truth. If God sends the trouble, he will also reveal his truth so that we may turn to Him and give Him glory. Don’t be surprised when God does this, instead ask God to use you as a “Daniel” to someone who needs to know God’s truth. So be present and ready to reveal the truth of God’s word to all who need to hear it.

A Statue That Will Not Stand

Nebuchadnezzar’s dream contained a human statue composed of various materials. From the top, the head of gold is the heaviest and most precious metal, and the remaining parts of the statute are inferior. The last kingdom of the statue gets the longest description. It can crush all the previous kingdoms, but iron mixed with clay is strong but also brittle because it is divided. The mixing implies the “seed of humans” pointing to the inevitably of its destruction. If we consider the construction of the image, we find that the statue is top-heavy from the dense weighted gold. Essentially, the statue is designed to fall over, and it is made to crumble. But then a stone cut out by no human hands appeared and struck the statue at the bottom. It broke the statute into pieces which then became dust in the wind. Then the stone became a great mountain that filled the earth.

The dream is meant to settle Nebuchadnezzar's thoughts about the future and prepare the world for a greater kingdom that comes from God. For all that is of human origins is bound to fail, and only that which comes from God will remain. The mysterious stone may appear common compared to the metals, but it is powerful. It is not from human origin but from God alone.

The Everlasting Kingdom

From the text, we know that Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon is the first kingdom. So who are the other kingdoms of the statue? The dominant historical view in Christianity has understood that: Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome are the remaining kingdoms. Some also maintain that the last kingdom should be Greece, but Daniel's interpretation emphasis is not to clarify the identity of the remaining kingdoms but to teach that God will set up an everlasting kingdom. This kingdom will crush and outlast all worldly kingdoms because it comes from God. God gave this dream to remind those who doubted or needed encouragement that God was still present. The dream confirmed that God was not only with His people but also in control. They needed to wait in hope upon the Lord, endure in faithful obedience.

As Christians, we recognize the ultimate kingdom of God realized in and through Jesus Christ. The prophets foretold that a King would one day be born in Bethlehem. And years later, Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary in that town. The king of the Jews at that time, King Herod, knew that this Newborn King was a threat to his little “empire of iron and clay”. But Herod could not stop Jesus. Jesus was indeed the King of a new kingdom. In His teaching and actions, Jesus showed that He was the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of David, and the Son of Man. He held all the authority of God. And Yet He was crucified on a Roman cross and buried in a tomb. It might have seemed that the kingdoms of the world had destroyed Christ, but in fact, Jesus would crush the kingdoms of this world through his resurrection. He rose again on the third day. And he ascended into heaven and sits enthroned at the most prominent place of authority, at the right hand of the Father. Jesus is the stone cut out without human hands. He is divine. Some may reject Him, but to those who receive Him, He is the Cornerstone.

Acts 4:11–12 ESV

11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

He is the Rock upon word the Church stands. He is eternal, and we look forward to his second coming.

We must recognize that God was at work in the heart of the king, and the first step was for him to acknowledge the God of Daniel. Nebuchadnezzar responded to God’s revelation by giving God honor. Nebuchadnezzar experienced the blessing of Proverbs 25:2.

Proverbs 25:2 ESV

2 It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out.

But there was more response required for even the demons believe that there is One True God and tremble with fear. James 2:19

James 2:19 ESV

19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!

But they are not worshippers nor followers of God, and neither is King Nebuchadnezzar, just yet. God is still at work until Nebuchadnezzar surrenders his life, entrusts himself to God in faith, and seeks God. Hebrews 11:6

Hebrews 11:6 ESV

6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

Where are you in your decision about Jesus? God desires that you seek. If you seek Him, you will find Him.

Where are we?

As we consider Nebuchadnezzar's dream and its interpretation, we may wonder, “Where we are at?”. Has not Christ come? Is not the kingdom of God made available? Why do the world's kingdoms still appear like a part of Nebuchadnezzar's standing statue rather than a defeated cloud of dust? We would do well not to think the meaning of the dream is solely a timeline sequence. Rather, it gives us a description of the world’s pattern and tendency until the second coming. Although there might not be world empires like long ago, we still see echoes of the former kingdoms and their place in this statue. These powers rise and fall. All empires and kingdoms will soon fail, and the kingdom of God continues. Let us not place our hope in our government, our American culture, or the people. For all that is built without Christ will fail. Listen to the Roman historian, Livy, who described Rome long before the collapse, some 450+ years before it fell.

The subjects to which I would ask each of my readers to devote his earnest attention are these-the life and morals of the community; the men and the qualities by which through domestic policy and foreign war dominion was won and extended. Then as the standard of morality gradually lowers, let him follow the decay of the national character, observing how at first it slowly sinks, then slips downward more and more rapidly, and finally begins to plunge into headlong ruin, until he reaches these days, in which we can bear neither our diseases nor their remedies.

from The History of Rome, Preface - Livy

Even Livy recognized that Rome had the potential to fail. Let us recognize that our America is not eternal. The USA can crumble soon, but hopefully much later. So, where should we place our hope if all that we hold dear as our nation will crumble like iron and clay? Daniel knew that He had to put his faith in God. The Neo-Babylonian empire of Nebuchadnezzar would last less than 90 years. Let us remember how he acted in his day when the world seemed to be crumbling.

Daniel 2:17–18 ESV

17 Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, 18 and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.