There is a God His Name is Jehovah

The Nations of the Future

Book of Daniel Chapter 2; 7 verses Chapter 2:31-45

What is the theme of the Book of Daniel? God sits upon His throne and He sets up the rulers of all lands, but He also takes them down.

Every ruler in his own way will try to gain domination, wealth, and control of his own nation and as many others that he is able to, but it is Jehovah God who determines, who controls and He overrules them so the world will do all things according to His plan!

If we pay attention to all the prophets of God, we do not have to worry that one of these rulers will cause world-wide war, until after the Church is in Heaven and then Jehovah Himself will destroy this world and then rebuild it.

Pro 8:13 The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.

Pro 8:14 Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength.

Pro 8:15 By me kings reign, and princes decree justice.

Pro 8:16 By me princes rule, and nobles, even all the judges of the earth.

Pro 8:17 I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.

Dan 2:21 And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:

Dan 2:22 He revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him.

All things happen according to God's timetable, which is far different than our own.

If things get to bad where you live, move and quit complaining or blaming someone else.

If the water is rising to close to your house, move and quit complaining or trying to blame someone else.

If you cannot live according to the Word of God where you live, then move, seek out a place where you can put your roots in and serve the Lord.

God will not do things that we can do ourselves!

He tells us what to expect in our lives!

He expects us to be a missionary wherever we live!

He is with us from the moment we are saved, until the moment this old body dies, and our soul joins Him in Heaven.

Jesus said He went back to heaven to prepare us a place. You either believe Him or not!

If the Holy Spirit directs us away from our home, then the Lord has a reason for this!

We must never think that we are alone in this world! The Lord Jesus Christ is our new owner and He will take care of us!

Job 34:21 For his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all his goings.

Psa 34:15 The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.

God is on our side and we must trust the Word of God and grow into the saints of God, no matter where we live!

*****Dan 2:28 But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these;

Dan 2:29 As for thee, O king, thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that revealeth secrets maketh known to thee what shall come to pass.

Dan 2:30 But as for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.

Dan 2:31 Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible.

Dan 2:32 This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,

Dan 2:33 His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.

The first thing the Church and the World needs to understand is, there is a God and His name is Jehovah, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit!

Daniel clearly understood there is a God and Daniel knew who this God was!

The God of Daniel is full of wisdom and knowledge!

He is a powerful God.

He is a just God.

He is a great God.

He is a good God.

He is a merciful God.

He is a faithful God.

He is a Holy God.

He is a God of Love.

He can reveal secrets, because nothing can be hidden from Him!

He knows all things!

He knows the beginning and the ending, and He knows both these things all at the same time.

He does not wait to see what happens!

Nothing can catch Jehovah by surprise!

God can reveal things to His people that no one else can know.

God could reveal the thoughts and the dreams of Nebuchadnezzar to Daniel, even if Nebuchadnezzar had forgotten his dream!

Daniel realized that these things were things of the future.

This king would lay awake at night making plans for his future and the future of his nation and how he would dominate this world and leave it for his sons.

There are many such men who are alive today!

Jehovah took this time to show Nebuchadnezzar that all these things were out of his control.

Just like Joseph, Daniel knew he did not have the power of interpreting dreams. Only Jehovah could show him the meaning of these things!

Gen 40:8 And they said unto him, We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it. And Joseph said unto them, Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I pray you.

Gen 41:15 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it.

Gen 41:16 And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.

We need to have a clear understanding of our Savior so we can understand it is our God, Jehovah who determines the workings of all nations of the world, and who is to be ruler, and when their time will cease and He will name another ruler in their place.

It is Jehovah God who is guiding our world along according to His own plan and there is no power on earth that can change the plan of God!

In this dream of Nebuchadnezzar were the powers upon this earth in the times leading up to the coming of the Messiah, but God's prophets saw far into the future even further than the days we live in now.

This dream was the extent of the dream of Nebuchadnezzar.

Nebuchadnezzar had seen into the future far enough to see all these powerful nations come to an end!

*****Dan 2:34 Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.

We can now see there is a power behind the workings of our world that only the Children of God are made aware of.

Remember the Bible is written for believers!

This statue had a head of pure gold. (Babylon)

Its chest and arms were silver. (Medo-Persian)

Its belly and thighs were bronze. (Greece)

Its legs were iron. (Rome)

Its feet were part iron and part clay.(European Nations)

While Jehovah had given Nebuchadnezzar this dream of a great statue, Nebuchadnezzar now saw a great stone cut out of a mountain while it rolled down the mountain side and collided with the great statue and destroyed this statue made of so many metals.

Because the feet of this statue was a mixture of iron and clay, it could not stand the force of this stone and the entire statue crumbled and fell in complete destruction.

You see none of these governments were standing on a solid foundation!

Suddenly where this statue stood this stone cut out by the hands of God grew until it filled the whole earth.

Any and every government that is not founded on the foundation of Jehovah God, the Lord Jesus Christ, will not rise as a lasting nation.

1Co 3:11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

1Co 3:12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;

1Co 3:13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.

There is only one foundation for every government, and it is the Holy Ghost filled Church:

Eph_2:20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

There is only one foundation that is sure:

2Ti_2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

What we know up until this time in history, no nation has stood on the foundation of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The United States of America was born on the foundation of Jesus Christ, but is now falling away from that only true foundation.

Even though he is far from perfect our last hope may lie with our president today, Donald Trump and those who follow him.

All these things are in the hand of the Lord Jesus Christ, but they still require our vote when that time comes.

Until Christian Democrats are willing to take a stand on the Lord Jesus Christ, they do not deserve our vote.

We can be a part of this of this great stone or we can crumble just like all the great nations that have gone before us!

So Daniel began to explain these things to the King.

*****Dan 2:35 Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

Dan 2:36 This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.

The truth is that there has been a succession of world powers since the time of King Nebuchadnezzar.

There were great nations before Babylon, but they did not seek world domination as did this king.

The king went to bed at night thinking that one day he might rule the world.

Today as 2019 is gone and we begin 2020 we see the same things going on today.

Puny national leaders dreaming of ruling the world, rejecting the fact that they only hold their position because Jehovah God has placed them in their positions, because it fits into His plan!

Psa 37:10 For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.

Psa 37:11 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

Psa 37:12 The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.

Psa 37:13 The Lord shall laugh at him: for he seeth that his day is coming.

We can either get on the side of Jesus or we will die an eternal death!

No one can deny the truth of this Book of Daniel! History has proven its truth!

Let's listen to Daniel present God's meaning behind this dream of King Nebuchadnezzar.

*****Dan 2:37 Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.

Dan 2:38 And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold.

At this point in the life of King Nebuchadnezzar, no other king had been able to stand against the armies of King Nebuchadnezzar. So in this sense he was king of the kings of that day.

This meaning was that King Nebuchadnezzar was the most powerful king at that time and history tells us that this was true.

Nebuchadnezzar ruled in the years 605/604-562 BC and was the greatest King of ancient Babylon during the period of the Neo-Babylonian Empire which existed from (626-539 BC). It was his father who was its founder, Nabopolassar who ruled from 626-605 BC. It was Nabopolassar who had defeated the Assyrians with the help of the Medes and liberated Babylonia from Assyrian rule. He then continued his conquest of that region of the world.

These things are true history, so they match the dream of Nebuchadnezzar. The god of Nebuchadnezzar was the idol that killed babies in sacrifice.

Nebuchadnezzar believed the false god Marduk had given him the power to rule the world, until the Lord caused him to change his mind.

Dan 4:34 And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation:

Dan 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

Nebuchadnezzar was that head of gold.

Then Daniel showed this king that his empire would soon be ruled by someone else.

*****Dan 2:39 And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.

What do we know from history and the Bible? It was the Medes who first overran Babylon beginning with the death of Belshazzar the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar.

More than once God had said this would happen.

Isa 13:17 Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it.

Isa 13:18 Their bows also shall dash the young men to pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye shall not spare children.

Isa 13:19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.

Jer 51:11 Make bright the arrows; gather the shields: the LORD hath raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes: for his device is against Babylon, to destroy it; because it is the vengeance of the LORD, the vengeance of his temple.

Jer 51:12 Set up the standard upon the walls of Babylon, make the watch strong, set up the watchmen, prepare the ambushes: for the LORD hath both devised and done that which he spake against the inhabitants of Babylon.

Dan 5:30 In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain.

Dan 5:31 And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old.

Just a quickly, the Persian Empire spread by uniting with the Medes.

Dan 8:20 The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia. The 2 horns represented the Medes and the Persians.

The two arms of the statue and the horns of the goat signified the two divisions of this empire.

Also there was another fulfillment of prophesy.

Isa_44:28 That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.

Isa_45:1 Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut;

Ezr 1:2 Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The LORD God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

This Kingdom lasted from 539-331 BC

These would be the kingdom of silver, but there would also be the kingdom of brass.

This kingdom of brass is the kingdom built by Alexander the Great!

This thing happened during the quiet years between the Old Testament and the New Testament.

This Kingdom lasted from 331 to 146 BC.

Alexander the Great quickly swept across the Medo-Persian Empire easily defeating the armies of Persia.

It was during this time that many Jews ended up in Egypt.

Dan 8:5 And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.

Dan 8:6 And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power.

Dan 8:7 And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand.

This Kingdom was great until the death of Alexander. Alexander overdosed on alcohol!

Dan 8:8 Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven.

Dan 8:9 And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land.

Dan 8:10 And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.

It is the breakup of Alexanders Kingdom after his death, that allowed the Roman Empire to develop.

Rome may never have defeated Alexander!

*****Dan 2:40 And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

We are foolish if we cannot see the hand of the Lord in building up and tearing down of kingdoms!

Joh 19:10 Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?

Joh 19:11 Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.

This Empire of Rome existed in the time of Christ, but even this empire developed because it fit into God's plan!

Rom 13:1 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.

The Roman Empire was a time of great cruelty throughout the world and much of this cruelty still exist today!

It is during this time of cruelty that the Church was established, and the "Gospel" made its way through the Roman Empire and into Europe and eventually to America.

The first Christian in Europe was a young lady name Lydia.

Act 16:14 And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.

Who established the first Church in Europe in her own home!

We should keep in mind that the world of Rome was a male dominated world and a very cruel and sinful world.

The empire of Rome lasted some 600 years and some say it still exists.

Then we come to those toes made part of clay and part of iron.

*****Dan 2:41 And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.

Dan 2:42 And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.

Dan 2:43 And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.

It is toward the end of the time of Rome that a federation of nations began to appear.

It is these 10 European nations where the military and commercial power of the world settled for a time, all according to God's plan of taking the "Gospel of Jesus Christ" to "whosoever" would trust in the Lord.

These nations battled themselves over and over till in the end we know that England, France and Spain became dominant for a period of time.

And soon after this there was an explosion of knowledge.

Dan 12:4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.

Do these 10 nations reflect the things we read in Chapter 7?

Dan 7:20 And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.

Dan 7:21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;

Dan 7:22 Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.

Dan 7:23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

Dan 7:24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

Dan 7:25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

Rome ruled by absolute power, but Rome failed because of corruption and wickedness in its government which passed on to its people!

Alexander ruled and was not so cruel, but his kingdom failed because of wickedness and alcohol.

These are all things in Prophesy that we see from the truth of the Scriptures.

Many have written their thoughts and it would be good to look at all those things that are written, but there is one thing we know for sure!

*****Dan 2:44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

Dan 2:45 Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.

To be cut out of a mountain without hands teaches us the omnipotent power of our Divine Lord and Savior!

In the end there will be only one kingdom and it will be the kingdom of King Jesus!

King Jesus will begin His rule with a rod of iron.

Psa_2:9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.

Rev_2:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

Rev_12:5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

Rev_19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

This "rod of iron" will be based upon the love of God and because God loves us, we must follow and obey His commandments, so we do not get caught up in the things of this world, which always end in destruction!

God's kingdom will begin during the period of these kings and reach fulfillment when the Lord returns to claim His Kingdom!

God's Kingdom will triumph over all the kingdoms of this world!

God's Kingdom will endure forever!

God's Kingdom is a sure thing!

Daniel said: "the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure"

This is Jehovah's guarantee of a time that much of it has not yet come!

Amen

Let's Pray!