Nebuchadnezzar, the powerful king of Babylon, had deep concerns about the future. Nebuchadnezzar had more than one dream, but one of them appears to be a recurring dream, Daniel 2:3.
Falling asleep after these unhappy thoughts, he was subjected to a dream from God in answer to his concern about ‘what should come to pass hereafter,’ Daniel 2:29. So impressive was the dream, his sleep was disturbed, and he awoke.
In the ancient world, there was a belief that dreams were the way the will of heaven was revealed to men, Genesis 20:3 / Genesis 20:6 / Genesis 31:11 / Genesis 37:5-6 / Genesis 40:5 / Genesis 41:7 / Genesis 41:25 / Numbers 12:6 / 1 Kings 3:5 / Joel 2:28 / Job 33:14-16.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘In accordance with the common belief among the ancients, he regarded this as a Divine message. The dream, too, was of such a character as to make a deep impression on his mind, though its distinct features and details had gone from him.’
The king immediately calls for his wise men, Daniel 2:2. He demands that they give him an interpretation without his revealing what he had dreamed, Daniel 2:3.
Butler, in his commentary, says the following.
‘They seem to be regarded in their day as the very elite of Babylonian society. The ‘Chaldeans’ of Daniel’s time, therefore, were probably men of great learning who could trace their ancestry back to families of the original conquerors of Babylon.’
Constable, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Evidently, it was customary for the Babylonian kings to tell their dreams to their advisers, who would then provide a politically correct interpretation that would satisfy the monarch. However, Nebuchadnezzar wanted his wise men not only to give him an interpretation but also to tell him what he had dreamed.’
It is not likely that the king had forgotten what had made such an impression on him, but rather that if these men were good enough to interpret, they could also tell what he had dreamed. The magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and astrologers probably spoke Aramaic. The Aramaic language was widely used throughout the empire.
Young, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Aramaic was called Chaldean until the latter half of the nineteenth century.’
The magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and astrologers are confident they can interpret the dream, Daniel 2:4 / Daniel 1:20, but notice how the king puts a spanner in the works.
He refuses to tell them the dream and gives them a warning. If these so-called wise men can’t tell him what his dream was and how to interpret it, they will be murdered and have their houses destroyed, Daniel 2:5.
Driver, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The violence and peremptoriness of the threatened punishment is in accordance with what might be expected at the hands of an Eastern despot; the Assyrians and Persians, especially, were notorious for the barbarity of their punishments.’
However, if they tell him what his dream was and interpret it, they would be blessed with gifts, rewards and great honour, Daniel 2:6. And so the king has set out the terms and conditions and demands to be told his dream and the interpretation of it, Daniel 2:6.
The work of magicians, astrologers and sorcerers was based to a great extent on trickery and falsehood. One wonders if Nebuchadnezzar didn’t know this, having dealt with them over a period of years. He does not want some old interpretation or fraudulent prediction; he wants the truth.
It remains a sad fact that many today think astrologers and fortune-tellers can predict their future. They are frauds today as they have always been, and Christians must stay away from such people, Deuteronomy 18:10-13 / Revelation 21:8.
It appears the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers are in panic mode, they know they are fraudsters and so once again they ask the king for something, anything to go on concerning his dream, Daniel 2:7 / Genesis 41:32. The king knew they were stalling for time since the king had already laid down the terms and conditions, Daniel 2:8 / Daniel 2:5-6.
Once again, the king threatens them to interpret the dream, the death penalty, and he appears to be fully aware of what they are up to. They have conspired, they have misled in the hope that the situation would have changed, Daniel 2:9. Once again, the king demands that they tell him his dream and what it means, Daniel 2:9.
As with all fraudsters, they always have a get-out clause when they are put on the spot. Here it is the astrologers, who say, no one on earth can tell the king what his dream was and what it means. No king has ever asked such a thing from any magician or enchanter or astrologer, Daniel 2:10.
Notice the second get-out clause the astrologers give, it’s too difficult because only the gods can tell people what their dreams are and what they mean, and they don’t live among humans, Daniel 2:11. Under threat, they spoke the truth that no man living had such power and that only divinity could do this.
McGuiggan, in his commentary, says the following.
‘They spoke more truth than they knew. They are our witnesses that astrology and the like are fraudulent! If these people have any power at all, why must they have crystal balls? Why can’t they perform with an onion or a hot dog? If the power is in the ball, let’s go straight to the factory where they are made and cut out the middleman or woman!’
The king has had enough; he sees through them and their lies. He’s so angry and so furious, he orders the execution of all of the so-called wise men of Babylon, Daniel 2:12. Just as Pharaoh had anger issues, Genesis 40:2 / Genesis 41:10, the king certainly has anger issues too, Daniel 3:13 / Daniel 3:19.
Furious with their inability to impart this knowledge, it seems the king has had his fill of deceit, trickery and fraudulent predictions; a decree of execution was given against all the wise men in the kingdom, Daniel 2:13.
It was left to Arioch, captain of the guard, to carry out the decree, Daniel 2:14. In a sense, it was a decree against all the worldly wisdom and philosophy of his day. The decree included all wise men; thus, this involved Daniel and his three friends, who were not even aware of the situation, Daniel 2:14-15.
When advised of the decree, Daniel goes before the king requesting a delay in the execution of the sentence that he might have time, and then he would give the king his demanded interpretation, Daniel 2:16. Time was obviously granted for Daniel to provide the interpretation, which also shows how much respect Daniel had among them.
Archer, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The stage was now set to show the reality, wisdom, and power of the one true God-Yahweh-as over against the inarticulate and impotent imaginary gods the magicians worshipped. It is the same general theme that dominates the remainder of the book and serves to remind the Hebrew nation that despite their own failure, collapse, and banishment into exile, the God of Israel remains as omnipotent as he ever was in the days of Moses and that his covenantal love remains as steadfast toward the seed of Abraham as it ever had been.’
Daniel did not go to his book of Chaldean wisdom and philosophy, but rather he enlisted the help of his friends in entreating God for the answer, Daniel 2:17 / James 5:16-17.
McGuiggan, in his commentary, says the following concerning them praying and seeking wisdom.
‘There is no doubt about this being more effective than peering into an ox’s liver or mumbling over a glass ball or worrying!’
He urged Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah to pray for mercy from God concerning the dream so that they themselves wouldn’t be killed, Daniel 2:18. It would have been a most impressive scene to have seen those four men praying that night, Philippians 4:6-7.
Constable, in his commentary, says the following.
‘This title for God appears five times in this chapter, Daniel 2:18-19 / Daniel 2:28 / Daniel 2:37 / Daniel 2:44, plus elsewhere, particularly in books that have pagan Babylon as their setting. It appears in Daniel 5:23; nine times in Ezra; four times in Nehemiah; and in Genesis 24:3 / Genesis 24:7 / Psalms 136:26 / and Jonah 1:9. The Babylonians worshipped the heavens, but Yahweh is the God over all ‘the heavens,’ not just the God of heaven. He is sovereign over all.’
God answered their prayers, and Daniel was given a vision in which the mystery of the dream was revealed, Daniel 2:19. This causes him to break out in a prayer of thanksgiving to God in which he speaks of the sovereignty, consistency, omniscience and reliability of God, Daniel 2:20-23.
Constable, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Daniel identified two evidences of God’s wisdom. First, He gives wisdom to the wise; He is the source of all wisdom. Second, He reveals things that would be unknown to humans otherwise. He can do this because He knows what is unknown to people, and the light of knowledge dwells with Him.’
McGuiggan, in his commentary, says the following.
‘No one believing in Him has ever been put to shame. So, when we tell the story of God, we’d do well to tell of Him as an old God, old in victories, judgment, forgiveness, and tender mercies. Tell of Him as a personal God who relates to families; to fathers and sons; mothers and daughters.’
Daniel requests that Arioch bring him before the king so that he might give the interpretation, Daniel 2:24. With all haste, Daniel is brought before the king and tells the king he has found someone from among the exiles from Judah who can tell the king what his dreams mean, Daniel 2:25.
Notice the king asked if Daniel could tell him his dream and interpret the dream, Daniel 2:26. Notice Daniel’s reply, he says no wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain the mystery of the king’s dream, Daniel 2:27, but Daniel knows Someone who can, the God of heaven, Daniel 2:28. He tells the king that the God of heaven has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come, Daniel 2:28.
Dunagan, in his commentary, says the following concerning things to come, Daniel 2:28.
‘This is referring to the days following the reign of Nebuchadnezzar up to the time when Jesus will come and build His church. Both Isaiah, Isaiah 2:2-4, and Peter, Acts 2:16-17, speak of God’s kingdom being established in the last days.’
Just as Joseph had a dream about his brothers and interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, Genesis 37:5-6 / Genesis 41:7 / Genesis 41:25 / Genesis 40:5, Daniel now goes ahead and begins to tell the king what his dream was, Daniel 2:28. God was dealing with the king in a direct and personal way.
Daniel tells the king that is was God, the revealer of mysterious who had shown the king what was going to happen, Daniel 2:29. Notice how Daniel takes no credit for himself, he hasn’t got greater wisdom than anyone else alive, 1 Corinthians 2:6, but gives God the glory, Daniel 2:30. He is merely an instrument to bring the interpretation to the king.
Nebuchadnezzar’s dream was that of a great and awesome image, Daniel 2:31. Its head was of fine gold, its breast and arms were of silver, its belly and sides of bronze, Daniel 2:32, and its legs of iron with feet part iron and part clay, Daniel 2:33.
While the king was watching, a stone ‘cut out without hands’ struck this image on its feet, destroying it, Daniel 2:34, so thoroughly that its fragments were like the chaff of a summer threshing floor with the wind carrying the pieces away, Daniel 2:35. The stone that struck the image became a great mountain filling the whole earth, Daniel 2:35.
It is no wonder that this dream had bothered the king. Dreams were considered special signs, and this being such an awesome sight would have concerned the king greatly. Who or what was this stone? Some suggest it is Christ himself, Psalms 118:22-23 / Matthew 21:42-44 / Acts 4:10-11.
Daniel now proceeds to give the interpretation as given to him by God, Daniel 2:36. He tells the king that he is the king of kings, Ezekiel 26:7 and that the only reason he has power and dominion, power, might and glory is because God gave it to him, Daniel 2:37 / Romans 13:1 / 1 Peter 2:13-17.
McGuiggan, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Given can be written over all areas of human endeavour. The nations may strive and sweat and groan in exertion, but the kingdom is ‘given’.
God gave him the right to rule over all of mankind, all of the animals and birds in his hands, Daniel 2:38 / Jeremiah 29:23.
Constable, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Earlier, Jeremiah had warned the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon: that God had given Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty over the entire earth, including the animals, Jeremiah 27:6-7 / Jeremiah 27:14. While the extent of his empire was not as great as those that followed him, he exercised absolute control as no one after him did.’
Daniel then tells him that the head of gold is Nebuchadnezzar and his great empire, Daniel 2:38.
Talbot, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom was likened unto gold because it was an absolute monarchy, God’s ideal government. Nebuchadnezzar was not, however, God’s ideal monarch!’
Daniel tells the king that after him, a second kingdom would arise, which would not be as powerful as Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom, Daniel 2:39. This kingdom was represented by the breast and arms of silver of the image, Daniel 2:32.
This was the Medo-Persian Empire, which followed the Babylonian kingdom, Daniel 8:20-21. Darius the Mede was a close confederate of Cyrus, who appointed him as his first governor over Babylon after it was taken from the Chaldeans.
The Medo-Persian Empire was formed under Cyrus the Great, who took over the empire of the Medes and conquered much of the Middle East, including the territories of the Babylonians, Assyrians, the Phoenicians, and the Lydians. Remember that Cyrus had been prophesied in Isaiah 44:28, one hundred years earlier.
The Babylonian empire came to an end in 539 B.C. when the Persian army stormed the city under the leadership of Cyrus, who was a respected ruler who showed kindness to the Jews and allowed those who desired to return to Judah and even provided funds for the rebuilding of the temple. Remember that Cyrus had been prophesied in Isaiah 44:28 one hundred years earlier.
A third great empire of bronze would next arise, Daniel 2:39. This was the great Greek Empire built by Alexander the Great, who conquered the world as a young man.
Alexander started out as the king of Macedon, and he went on to extend Macedonian power not only over the central Greek city-states but also to the Persian empire, including Egypt and lands as far east as the fringes of India.
His conquests included Anatolia, Syria, Phoenicia, Judea, Gaza, Egypt, Bactria, and Mesopotamia, and he extended the boundaries of his own empire as far as Punjab, India.
The fourth power whose legs were iron, and feet were part iron and part clay, Daniel 2:40-43 / Daniel 2:33, is the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire was well known for its use of iron in weaponry.
There is no cohesiveness within this empire. The iron weaponry of the Roman soldiers helped to secure their dominance in warfare, and they used it to subdue their enemies and to become the great Roman world empire that was represented by legs of iron in the figure in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.
Dunagan, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The Roman Empire was as strong as iron, for it swallowed up lands and peoples who had been part of the previous three empires, but the empire was also fragile and divided, just like iron and clay cannot be mixed. Though Rome succeeded in conquering the territories that came under its influence, it never could unite the peoples to form a united empire.’
All students of history know the difficulties experienced by Rome in trying to hold together her vast empire. Though Rome succeeded in conquering the territories that came under its influence, it never could unite the peoples to form a united empire.
Dunagan, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The Roman Empire was as strong as iron, for it swallowed up lands and peoples who had been part of the previous three empires, but the empire was also fragile and divided, just like iron and clay cannot be mixed. Though Rome succeeded in conquering the territories that came under its influence, it never could unite the peoples to form a united empire.’
In the days of the fourth empire, the Roman Empire, a fifth kingdom, one of supernatural origin would arise, destroying the fourth empire, Daniel 2:44-45. It would be different from the others.
It would not be temporal but spiritual; it would also be universal and eternal. This is clearly the kingdom of God, and His kingdom will consume all other kingdoms and stand forever.
Daniel once again gives God the glory. It was God who had shown the king what was going to happen in the future, and because it was revealed by God, the king would know his dream is true, and its interpretation is trustworthy, Daniel 2:45.
There have been various interpretations placed upon this image. The above view must be the correct view since it is the only one that harmonises with history. History testifies that Babylon was succeeded by Medo-Persia and that Greece came next, followed by Rome.
The kingdoms represented by the image are successive. Also, we know that the kingdom of God was established during the period of the Roman Empire, Matthew 3:1 / Mark 1:14-15 / Luke 3:1-3 / Colossians 1:13 / Luke 22:29-30 / Mark 9:1 / Revelation 1:9 / Mark 9:1 / Acts 2:47 / Colossians 1:12-14.
Premillennialists have made much of the ten toes of the image. This is interesting in that while the toes are mentioned, there is no effort by Daniel to single them out as representing the ten kingdoms.
By making a play on the toes, Premillennialists are able to extend the Roman Empire to the present age by having ten kingdoms come out of the Roman Empire.
A popular chart shows this image with toes as long as its body. In order for the image to meet date and time requirements, the toes have to be stretched out so as to reach up into our time.
The fact remains that the stone strikes the image on the feet where the toes are located. Thus, the entire image, including its toes, was destroyed. The kingdom came during the Roman Empire; therefore, the image does not extend to the present day.
It appears that Nebuchadnezzar is well satisfied with Daniel’s interpretation. So satisfied that he actually falls before Daniel and pays him honour, and orders that an offering and incense be presented to him, Daniel 2:46.
It appears that the king thinks Daniel may be a god, hence why he worships him. Why? Perhaps the fact that these things were far off in the future relieved the king’s mind.
Also, the fact that Daniel was able to tell what he had dreamed proved he would also be correct in the interpretation. Knowing the character of Daniel, we know he would have no part in this exaltation.
Daniel 2:47 does not mean that Nebuchadnezzar became a convert to God. The next chapter shows he believed in many gods. God at that moment was the greatest, but only one among many.
Notice that Daniel is exalted, lavished with gifts and promoted to a position of high authority, Daniel 2:48. It appears that the king was true to his earlier words, Daniel 2:6.
Daniel immediately requests the promotion of his three friends Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to become administrators over the province of Babylon, but Daniel remained at the royal court, Daniel 2:49.
In this chapter, we clearly see the power and superiority of God over paganism and the kingdoms of the world. Here, also, is predicted the superiority of His kingdom over the kingdoms of the world. While all of the four great empires are history, the kingdom of God still stands today.
God’s kingdom does not conquer by sword or instruments of carnal warfare but by the word of God sown in the hearts of men, changing their lives. This is how the Roman Empire was taken by the kingdom of God. The book of Revelation assures the early Christians that God was in control and that he would give them the victory if they will overcome.