During its time, the Babylonian Empire was one of the most powerful and wealthy kingdoms in what we know today as the Middle East. King Nebuchadnezzar ruled over the empire 600 years before Christ was born. This was a wealthy and powerful empire that took Jerusalem captive, including Daniel who served in the King’s court. Later in his reign, Nebuchadnezzar did something that caused God to strike down his Kingdom. Sacred vessels and objects were taken from the Temple of God and brought to Babylon.

One night the King had a dream which bothered him greatly. He called in his advisors and they could not interpret the dream. Daniel was also asked to interpret the dream and told the King that he would need some time to ask God about the dream and would get back to the King with an interpretation. We read in Daniel 2:17-23 that Daniel prayed to God and God responded with an answer.

We discussed in the previous part that Nebuchadnezzar dreamt about a statue made of various elements: a head of gold, a chest of of silver, a belly and thighs of bronze, and lower legs and feet of iron and clay. A large rock strikes the statue and destroys the statue. This rock eventually becomes large like a mountain that fills up the whole earth.

Daniel interpreted the dream for Nebuchadnezzar. This statue represented Nebuchadnezzar’s current kingdom and the kingdoms that would come to rule over the earth. Eventually all of these Kingdoms would be destroyed and overtaken by a Kingdom set up by God (Daniel 2:31-35). Daniel did knew that the first kingdom was Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom, but did not specifically know who the other kingdoms were at the time.

A study of history shows us a true interpretation of the dream:

• Head of Gold. Babylon was given to King Nebuchadnezzar to rule from 626-539 BC. Gold symbolized might and power.
• Chest and Arms of Silver. This was an inferior kingdom that would destroy the Babylon kingdom. The Medo-Persians reigned from 539-331 BC under Cyrus.
• Belly and Thighs of Bronze. This represented the kingdom of Greece that lasted from 331-63 BC. One of the rulers was Antigonus. This kingdom extended out through the known world but eventually would be overthrown by another Kingdom.
• Legs and Feet of Iron and Clay. This is a divided kingdom that is both strong a week. Clay is brittle and this indicated that this kingdom will have a mixture of people who are not united as one. A divided kingdom emerged in Rome in the year 63 BC. A Roman general named Pompey conquered Jerusalem. Many successors followed including Julius Ceasar who was murdered by Brutus and Cassius. Later this kingdom would be conquered by Octavian and Mark Antony who defeated Brutus and Cassius at a battle. In 37 BC, a man named Herod the great was appointed king over Judea by Octavian and Mark Antony. In 27 BC, Caesar Augustus became the first Roman Emperor. Herod refurbished the temple in Jerusalem.

It is believed that Jesus was born sometime between 6-4 BC. In this time Judea became a province ruled by a governor. As we look back in history, we know that Jesus was crucified by Pontius Pilate. After 3 days, Jesus rose from the dead and was seen by over 500 people. This event took place around 30 AD

Jesus told his apostles that the temple that Herod had refurbished would be crushed. Jesus predicted the destruction of the Jerusalem temple which took place in 70 AD by the Roman Empire (Matthew 24:2). The Roman Empire lasted a long time and finally fell in 476 AD.

Tomorrow we will discuss the last piece of this dream: the rock that destroys the statue. Find out why the rock is so important to this story and to our lives today.

Click here to go to part 1 of the study.