The Lord gave the prophet Daniel a series of visions depicting the coming major “kingdoms” or empires, which will then be followed by the appearance of God’s eternal kingdom on earth. This final kingdom will be led by the returning and glorified Jesus Christ, and will replace and sweep away all of the world government systems and influences that precede it.
Daniel’s first recorded prophecy came years earlier, and related to a dream God had given King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. The Lord then revealed the dream and its meaning to Daniel, an image of a magnificent statue, a human figure, which depicted the great empires and governments to rule on earth before God’s divine kingdom comes. In the dream:
32 The head of that statue was of pure gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, and its feet partly iron and partly clay. Daniel 2:32-33 (TLV)
Each part of the statue represents a coming world empire and its rulers.
The power and authority of each subsequent ruler and empire is diminished, as indicated by a lower position on the statue and an inferior metallic composition. The shared interpretation of these great empires is Babylon (the head of gold), Medo-Persia under Cyrus and Darius (the arms of silver), Greece under Alexander the Great (the belly and thighs of bronze), and Rome and its present-day descendants (the legs of iron and feet of mixed iron and clay).
Every trace of these empires will one day be removed, replaced by the coming kingdom of heaven, led by a powerful and glorified Jesus Christ. As Daniel’s first prophecy continues:
44 “Now in the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will this kingdom be left to another people. It will crush and bring to an end all of these kingdoms. But it will endure forever. 45 For just as you saw a stone cut out of a mountain, yet not by hands, crush the iron, bronze, clay, silver and gold, the great God has made known to the king what will happen in the future. Now the dream is certain, and its interpretation is trustworthy.” Daniel 2:44-45 (TLV)
Daniel’s vision confirms that the overthrow of Babylon was an act by the will of God, and it’s replacement, Medo-Persia, was put in place through His hand.
Daniel’s two later visions also refer to Medo-Persia, first as a beast with the attributes of a bear, then depicted as a two-horned ram. Reading from Daniel 7:
5 “And behold there before me was another beast, a second one, like a bear. It raised itself up on one side; it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Arise, devour much flesh!’ Daniel 7:5 (TLV)
The Medo-Persian empire was a great conqueror in its time. Its armies were massive, moving across the land slowly, and devouring everything before them, like a bear. Soldiers’ families would often accompany the military campaigns, further slowing their pace of conquest. The Medo-Persian leaders would be used by God to free the exiles of Judah when Babylon was defeated. The exiles were then allowed to return home to rebuild God’s temple in the city of Jerusalem, which Nebuchadnezzar’s armies had destroyed seventy years earlier.
In Daniel’s third vision, he saw an image as he was standing by the Ulai Canal in Susa, the capital of Medo-Persia. Daniel’s third vision included new imagery:
3 I lifted up my eyes and looked up, behold, a ram with two horns was standing in front of the canal. The two horns were long but one was longer than the other, but the longer one grew up last. 4 I saw the ram charging toward the west and north and south. No animal could stand against him—none could deliver from his hand. So he did as he pleased and magnified himself. Daniel 8:3-4 (TLV)
This empire was ruled by two united-but-competing entities, the Medes and the Persians, with Persia, the second, longer horn, evolving into the more powerful element. This allied kingdom would expand greatly through the subjugation of peoples to their west, north, and south, including the former Babylonian empire, Egypt, and Lydia, as represented by the three ribs in the mouth of the bear in Daniel’s previous vision.
The Medo-Persian empire would prevail until 333 BC, when it will be defeated by the next great world empire, Greece, under Alexander the Great. The two horns on the ram, representing the Mede and the Persian leaders in the vision, will be seen to be impacted by Alexander in the next meditation.
When dealing with bible prophecy, there will often be competing, and sometimes contradictory, interpretations offered. For instance, some see Daniel’s second prophecy about the bear as being a reference to present-day Russia. This interpretation implies that his second vision is a reference to the latter days, just before God installs His new kingdom. This may be. Also, the Lord sometimes uses a single prophecy to have both near-term and long-term fulfillments, and that may also be the case here.
God includes this prophetic information in His word for believers to read and to ponder. He likely does this to inform, to encourage us, and to remind us that He is still in control, no matter what is transpiring around us. At the end of the day, God’s kingdom is the one which will remain, replacing all others, for all time. Its loving King, Jesus, is here with us by the Holy Spirit today, and we may reach out to Him in faith at any time. Jesus will never turn anyone away who comes to Him in humility, reverence, and a penitent heart, no matter what our past sins or failures may be. He will reign over His majestic kingdom forever, and invites each one of us to join Him. That is too good of an offer to pass up.
Reflection
What might God be saying to you through Daniel’s visions?
Lord Jesus, we recognize You today as the One who came to earth to bear our sins upon the cross, dying for our complete forgiveness and purification, and rising again to bring us eternal life. No matter what we have done, Your sacrifice on the cross is far greater, and will sponge our sins and failures away forever. Help us to follow You and Your light as we seek to walk with love and forgiveness for others, just as You have loved and forgiven me. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
Have a blessed and beautiful day walking with the Lord today.
Daily Meditations from the Genealogy of Jesus 