Daniel 2:25-45

The End of the Era of the Gentiles

A sermon by Pastor Joe Haynes

Preached on December 31, 2023 at Beacon Church

It seemed wise to me that we should end this year being reminded that for you who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, there is no reason to be afraid of the future. And every reason to rest confidently in the Lord. But that was not the case with this great man who ruled over Babylon, in Iraq, 2600 years ago. King Nebuchadnezzar was the most powerful man in the world, fabulously wealthy, and successful in whatever he did, but he was having trouble sleeping at night. One night as he lay in bed, his mind was very troubled. He was anxious. And when sleep did come, it came with a dream about the future and it scared him. That king’s nightmare is how we got one of the greatest prophecies in the Bible. The prophecy that has been called, “the Times of the Gentiles.”

What does that mean? Well, a few weeks ago I preached about the Future of Israel. I explained that 2600 years ago, God gave Jerusalem and the Jews into the hands of Gentile rulers. And Jerusalem and the Jews were then ruled by Gentile rulers, by non-Jewish nations, until events of the 20th Century. A great era is ending. The era of the Gentiles, of the nations. That’s what this prophecy in Daniel 2 is about: the era of the nations, the times of the Gentiles, and how it ends. The very first king of that vast era, King Nebuchadnezzar, was given a vision of how it ends and it shattered his confidence, robbed him of sleep, and disturbed him deeply. But if you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, on this last day of the year of our Lord, 2023, you have nothing to fear.

Now let’s be clear about two things before we turn to the dream itself. First, God gave that dream to Nebuchadnezzar. And second, God meant to frighten the king. To put the fear of God in that man’s heart. To humble him. To put him in his place. This becomes clear as the drama of this crisis unfolds. The king called his dream experts together and demanded they first tell him what he dreamed, and then tell him what it meant. This was extremely important to him. Anyone can make up their own interpretation of the dream. But if one of the gods had given the dream, only a true spokesman for that god would know what the dream was. The king realized all his experts who were supposed to know about dreams and magic were lying to him. They were all phony. None of them had a clue. Whatever God had given him that dream, none of his wisemen knew that god. I think that’s what frightened Nebuchadnezzar the most: he was shaken by the realization that the one God he should fear the most was a god he knew nothing about. So God revealed a mystery to Daniel that behooves you to believe God’s Word. “Behooves” means it’s necessary, fitting, right that you do this.

Furious that all his wisemen were fakes, the king ordered his guards to kill them all. Daniel and his three Jewish friends probably just finished their training. They were among the wisemen to be killed. But they prayed to the God of their fathers (23), the God of the Bible, and asked for mercy to be able to reveal the great mystery of the King’s dream. And the God of the Bible heard their prayer and revealed the mystery to Daniel.

 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. (Dan. 2:25-30 ESV)

God showed Daniel the dream and what the dream means. This proves Daniel is a prophet, and that the vision is true.

Receive Daniel’s words as the Word of God [vv31-35]

When Daniel told the king what he had dreamed, Daniel proved he was speaking for God. If you don’t accept Daniel as a prophet of God, you’re a fool. If you don’t accept Daniel’s words as the Word of God, you’re in terrible, terrible danger. By revealing the dream itself to Daniel, God authorized Daniel as a true prophet in the sight of King Nebuchadnezzar. But to you as well!  God revealed this mystery to Daniel so that Daniel could tell it to the king. But Daniel wrote this as a prophet so that what he wrote would be preached. Why? To make God know. To show the world who’s in charge. You must not ignore the proof; you must not disregard the prophecy.

Verses 31-35 are the record of Daniel telling the king what his dream was. 

 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.  (Dan. 2:31-35 ESV)

Daniel wrote this with skill to be read thoughtfully. Look at the detail and order in how Daniel describes the king’s vision (vv32-33): the frightening statue in the shape of a man begins, from head to toe, with gold, then silver, then bronze, then iron and clay. Then in verse 35, Daniel lists them in reverse: iron and clay, bronze, silver, then gold. This is called a chiasm, named for the Greek letter shaped like an ‘X.’ The shape of Daniel’s words points to what’s in the middle; what’s in verse 34. So what’s in verse 34? A stone “cut by no human hands” crushes the statue. This is about the future. (See v29) The dream was about “what will be in the latter days…” The end times. No wonder the great Nebuchadnezzar was so scared. Some things are easy to understand. The great metal image of a man must represent a man or men or the whole human race. The brightness of it, the gleaming gold and silver and bronze and iron was “frightening” (v31), awe-inspiring. Human beings are glorious. But if King Nebuchadnezzar had a magic mirror and asked, “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s greatest of them all?” Wouldn’t that have been him? But what did he see in his nightmare? 

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. (Dan. 2:34-35 ESV)

A stone “cut out by no human hand,” superhuman, supernatural, divine. It came crashing down on the feet of the statue. It pulverized the whole image, head to toe. It reduced the awesome glory of man to dust and the wind blew away every last trace of it. And all that remained was the supernatural stone that became a mountain and filled the world.

You don’t have to be wiseman to see why Nebuchadnezzar was frightened by what he saw. He was scared by what happened to the great metal image. He was afraid of the stone and what it stands for. What it represents. What it means. But Daniel wrote this to be read. He wrote well. With skill. So everyone who reads it and everyone who hears it would zero in on that Stone and what it stands for. Telling the king what he dreamed was just the proof that Daniel is a prophet of God. The really urgent question is, will you listen? God revealed a mystery to Daniel that behooves you to believe God’s Word. First, God revealed the mystery of what the king dreamed so that he would listen to Daniel. Second, God revealed the mystery of what the dream means.

Believe in Daniel’s prophecy of the Kingdom of God (vv36-45)

When Daniel told the King what the dream meant, the king accepted it. But then Daniel wrote down the interpretation in this book. Let me put that another way: Daniel didn’t just spook the king into believing his prophecy of the future until the end of the world. He put it in writing. It has been right here in this book for 2500 years. Daniel was so confident that his prophecy true that he published it in the language spoken by everyone in Babylon. I want you to see why that matters.

As Daniel turns now, in verse 36 and following to the meaning of the king’s dream, what he reveals about the future is in stages. Starting with the era of the Babylonian Empire he was living in, Daniel’s prophecy predicts what happens next, and then after that, and then after that, all the way to the end of the world as we know it. The thing is, that Daniel published this AFTER the first part of his prophecy had already come true. And he made sure anyone could read it in their own language. But the book of Daniel has been around ever since. And stage by stage, section by section, Daniel’s interpretation of the king’s dream has been put to the test. At any time, if any part of it failed to happen like Daniel said it would, he would have been discredited. In that case, you would be right to ignore what he wrote. But even though this has all been out there for everyone to read for 2500 years, the future of the world has unfolded stage by stage just like Daniel said it would.

No other book can make that claim. Only the Bible has passed the test of time century after century and proven true. Only the prophets of God and the Apostles of Jesus Christ have been verified and vindicated in everything they wrote in Scripture. The Word of God still stands, after all these centuries, as totally true. Where are Babylon’s wisemen now? Where are the sages of Persia and the philosophers of Greece and the orators of Rome? Dead. Gone. Dust. Where is the Bible? Right here. Public. Still preached in churches all over the world today. Tested by time. Withstanding every attack, every challenge, every spurious attempt to discredit its claims. The reason I am hammering this point is that God revealed a mystery to Daniel that behooves you to believe God’s Word. The fact that this prophecy is true—the dream and its interpretation—has massive implications. You must not set it aside or ignore it. You can’t hide from it. You can’t bury your head back in the sand and pretend you haven’t heard. Not once it has been preached in your hearing. So let me preach it. And if you ignore it, your blood be on your own head. I’m just the herald relaying the message written right here in God’s Word. You will have to answer to God. ""This was the dream. Now we will tell the king its interpretation," (Dan. 2:36 ESV). Once he proved he speaks for God, Daniel interpreted the vision.

The head of gold (37-38)

The statue, or image, is made of four metals: gold, silver, bronze, and iron. Let’s read them one at a time: 

 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. (Dan. 2:37-38 ESV)

God rules over the whole human race. God gives authority and power to kings. God gave Nebuchadnezzar “the kingdom, the power, the might, and the glory…” God put man and beast under Nebuchadnezzar. God gave Nebuchadnezzar dominion over kingdoms and creatures. From the great to the small, down to the details. Everything in Nebuchadnezzar’s life was in God’s control; none of it was ever in the king’s control. King Nebuchadnezzar, and the Babylonian Empire, is the head of gold. This great man, this ruler of kingdoms, this mighty conqueror who conquered Jerusalem and later burned God’s Temple to the ground, he was never in charge. He was an instrument in God’s hand all along. A tool used for God’s purposes. And if that’s true of one of the greatest kings the world has ever known, what about you? Who do you think you are? On what authority do you take credit for your success, for your achievements? Do you think all your learning, your education gives your words authority? You’re not even as great as King Nebuchadnezzar. And everything he had was given him by God. “What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?” (1 Cor. 4:7 ESV)

The chest and arms of silver (39a)

Daniel then tells the king that the great empire he has built will fall to another nation. "Another kingdom inferior to you shall arise after you..." (Dan. 2:39a ESV). An inferior kingdom will rise and Babylon will fall. By the time Daniel wrote this book, this had already come true. It had happened. This first part of the prophecy was fulfilled in the year 539 when the Persians conquered Babylon. Daniel even wrote about it later in chapter 5. God judged Persia as inferior to Babylon in worth, but silver is stronger than gold. The Persian empire was ruled by Cyrus the Great. He appointed a king over the province of Babylon and extended Persia’s rule farther than Babylon’s was.

The middle and thighs of bronze (39b)

"...And yet a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth," (Dan. 2:39 ESV). If you count major world empires starting from Babylon, number three is Greece. The son of a Macedonian king grew his kingdom to become the biggest empire the world had ever known. His name was Alexander the Great. In his short time as emperor, he ruled “over all the earth”—that is, “all the land,” which he took from Persia and more. He conquered Persia in 330 BC.[i] The Greek Empire was stronger than the Persian Empire, but God judged it even inferior in worth. Immoral. More depraved. But the worst was yet to come.

The legs of iron (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," (Dan. 2:40 ESV). The last ruler of the last part of the Greek Empire was the famous Cleopatra, of the Greek house of Ptolemy ruling in Egypt. She and her infamous lover, Mark Antony, were defeated by the first Roman Emperor, Julius Caesar Augustus.[ii] Cleopatra and Antony committed suicide in 30BC and Caesar Augustus established Rome as the greatest Empire the world has ever known. More powerful than every kingdom before it, “like iron that crushes,” it broke and crushed everything in its way. The Roman Empire lasted for 500 years until, weakened and corrupt, the city was sacked in the year 476 AD.[iii] By a man named Odoacer, of Germanic descent.[iv] The Roman Empire was not defeated by another Empire. It was split into pieces. The part of it that wasn’t previously Greek, or Persian, or Babylonian, broke up into ten pieces.

The feet and toes of iron and clay (41-43)

 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.  (Dan. 2:41-43 ESV)

Unlike the gold head, silver chest, bronze middle, and iron legs, the feet of the image are not pure but mixed. Unlike the Babylonian, Persian, Greek, and original Roman Empire, the latter Roman Empire was not one nation but many. Not one ethnicity but mixed ethnicities. The ethnic divisions divided from each other and modern Europe was born.

Some people think Daniel’s prophecy just means the Roman Empire had weak feet. That Daniel wasn’t predicting the rise of European kingdoms. But Daniel doesn’t just interpret the feet of the image; he points out the toes. “AS you saw the feet and toes…” (v41); “And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay…” (v42) Daniel points out the toes specifically. There are ten of them. After the collapse of the Roman Empire, ten kingdoms of different ethnicities emerged from the ruins of the Empire. By the year 533, Europe was divided among the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxons, Franks, Allemans, Burgundians, Visigoths, Suevi, Vandals, Ostrogoths, Bavarians, and Lombards.[v] Since then migration and war has moved borders and changed names but there are still ten countries in the part of Europe that was once Rome: The U.K., France, Luxemburg, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Italy, Austria, Spain, and Portugal. Sir Isaac Newton noticed that even though Europe changed a lot over those centuries, there have normally been just ten kingdoms or countries ever since.[vi]  Why does that number matter? Because the superhuman Stone that frightened King Nebuchadnezzar falls on the feet of the statue in the time of the ten toes.

The Stone, in verse 34, doesn’t fall on the legs. It falls on the feet. Then verses 41-42 specifically point out the toes of the feet. And verse 43 says “they will mix with one another” but they won’t hold together. Well doesn’t that just describe modern Europe? Always trying to unite, but never staying united. This, predicts the prophet Daniel, is what will be left of these great empires at the end of the times and era of the Gentile nations. And now we come to the very heart and centre of the King Nebuchadnezzar’s nightmare. But the hope of all who love Christ.

The stone cut by no human hand (44-45)

 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." (Dan. 2:44-45 ESV)

Daniel’s God-given interpretation of the dream tells us four things about Kingdom that is coming at the end of the world as we have known it. Four things in verse 44. 1) It is God’s Kingdom that is coming. What Jesus so often called “the Kingdom of God,” or “the Kingdom of Heaven.” Why? Because Daniel says, “the God of heaven will set up a Kingdom;” His Kingdom. Not of men but of God. Not of earth but from Heaven. Not natural but supernatural. 2) When will it come? “In the days of those kings…” (looking back to verses 42-43). In the time of the ten toes. When ten countries rule the lands in Europe previously ruled by Rome. Well my friends, we are living in the time of those kings. And it is the last stage in the Times of the Gentiles. It is the part of the statue on which the Stone from heaven falls. 3) The Kingdom of God that comes next will never end. It will not be destroyed. It will never be taken over. (44b) 4) When God’s Kingdom comes it will abruptly end and violently crush everything that remains from the Gentile rulers of the last 26 centuries. It will not be gradual in its coming but sudden. [read v45]

God revealed a mystery to Daniel that behooves you to believe God’s Word. And believe in God totally and absolutely. God gave Nebuchadnezzar “the kingdom, the power, the might, and the glory,” (v37). From the king of Babylon to the king and Prime Ministers of Netherlands or the United Kingdom; to the president of France and Prime Minister of Italy, God raises them up and brings them down. Our hope, as believers in Jesus Christ, never depends on economic growth or national stability. We look to the Scriptures and we can see that God is doing exactly what He said He would do. The era of these rebellious nations is almost over. We look to the Word of God and believe His promises. Believe in His Son.

For two-and-a-half-thousand years this great prophecy of Daniel’s has proven true. The Word of God has stood the test of time. So isn’t it time you start listening? I invite you to join me in reading through the Bible again in 2024. Believe in the God of the Bible. Put your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the King from Heaven who is coming very soon to set up His Kingdom forever. Do not hope in humanity. Hope in God. Rest in confidence that 2024 is in God’s hands.