God’s Kingdom is Coming!
Daniel’s description of the king of Babylon, King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream:
“You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. This image’s head was of fine 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 clay. You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. – Daniel 2:31-35 NKJV.
Daniel states to King Nebuchadnezzar the details of the dream he appears to have forgotten. Then, Daniel proceeds to give an interpretation of the dream. The image seen in the dream pictures the current kingdom and three coming kingdoms with historical accuracy.
Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom represented by Gold.
Medo-Persian kingdom represented by silver.
Greece represented by bronze.
Rome represented by Iron.
The Roman Empire’s armies have been described by historians as iron legions as they crushed all those who opposed them. The Roman Empire in the western world was the longest lasting empire.
Commentators believe that iron also represents the tribulation empire since the empire during the tribulation will have similar characteristics as the Roman Empire.
Now seen on the world stage are the Russian army’s hundreds of tanks preparing to roll across Ukraine. Will they be the instrument through which the tribulation empire is eventually established after the rapture?
The good news is that Daniel’s interpretation foresees the destruction of the tribulation kingdom by the “stone”, or you could say “rock.” This “stone” is Jesus Christ, and at the end of the seven years of the Tribulation, He will win victory at Armageddon establishing the forever kingdom of God.
Daniel 2:44-45: And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold—the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure.”
Matthew 6:10, “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.”
(In the Book of Daniel we are given a prophecy of events leading to and through the Tribulation.)