Bible Memory Verse:
“In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed…” Daniel 2:44
“The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever…” Deuteronomy 29:29
King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that troubled him. He was going to kill all the wise men in Babylon because they could not tell him his dream and interpret it. Daniel asked to appear before the king. He asked for time so that he might interpret the dream for him. Then Daniel returned to his house and urged his friends to plead for mercy from the God of heaven. During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision.
Daniel was brought before the king to tell him the dream and interpretation. Daniel said, “No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind as you lay on your bed are these:
As you were lying there, O king, your mind turned to the things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed you what was going to happen. As for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because I have greater wisdom than other living men, but so that you, O king, may know the interpretation and that you understand what went through your mind.
You looked, O king, and there before you stood a large statue, awesome in appearance. The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on the feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 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.
This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. The God of heaven has given you, O King, dominion and power and might and glory; in your hands he has and placed mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.
After you, another kingdom will rise, not as great as yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron–for iron breaks and smashes everything–and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. The feet and toes that were partly of baked clay and partly of iron will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it. As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. As the iron was mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united.
In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it will endure forever. This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by 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."
.
Then King Nebuchadnezzar said to Daniel, “Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you were able to reveal this mystery.”
Then the king gave Daniel many gifts. He made him ruler over all of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men. Moreover, at Daniel’s request the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego administrators over the province of Babylon, while Daniel himself remained at the royal court.
_______________________
Daniel interpreted King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream probably about 4,000 years ago. Looking back in history we know that the head of gold is Babylon, which was the world empire at the time of King Nebuchadnezzar. The breastplate of silver represents the Medea-Persian Empire, the world empire after the time of Babylon. Daniel was still alive at the beginning of the Medea-Persian Empire. The belly and thighs of bronze represent the Greek Empire. The legs of iron represent the Roman Empire, which ruled the world when Jesus was born. The Romans ruled over the Jews when Jesus was crucified. The Jews were not allowed to kill anyone so they had to get Rome to crucify Jesus.
Some of what God showed King Nebuchadnezzar in his dream has not happened. At the present time, there is no empire ruling the world. The toes that are partly clay and partly iron is a kingdom that has not appeared. It will happen sometime in the future.
Jesus is the Rock not made from human hands that will strike the statue and crush it. He will destroy every world empire at the time the ten toes of iron and clay are ruling. The kingdom that Jesus will set up will never end.
QUESTIONS:
1. Why did God give this dream to King Nebuchadnezzar?
2. Who was the head of gold?
3. Who is the rock that struck the statue?
4. What happened when the rock struck the statue?
5. What did King Nebuchadnezzar do for Daniel because Daniel told him the meaning of the dream?
Thank for the website