Nebuchadnezzar’s Statue

King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon summoned his wise men to describe and interpret a dream that eluded his memory. When none could fulfill his demand, he ordered their execution. Daniel heard of Nebuchadnezzar’s intentions and volunteered to elucidate the dream.

Initially, Daniel provided a vivid description of the dream itself. The monarch had envisioned a statue with a head crafted from gold, chest and arms composed of silver, torso and thighs fashioned from copper, legs made of iron, and feet comprised of a combination of iron and clay. Then Daniel proceeded to expound on the symbolic significance of each element, explaining the profound prophetic meaning of Nebuchadnezzar’s vision.

The Hebrew term Babel is Babylon in Greek; our English translators chose to use the Greek form even in the Old Testament, except in the account of the Tower of Babel. Consequently, Babylon can be identified as Babel, and it was situated in close proximity to the presumed location of Akkad. When the city of Assur grew in strength, evolving into the formidable kingdom of Assyria in the northern region, it marked the division of the Akkadian Empire into the Assyrian and Babylonian Empires. Following the death of King Hammurabi of Babylon, the empire succumbed to collapse, and the rulers of Assyria adopted the title once held by the king of Akkad, styling themselves as the Kings of Sumer and Akkad.

The second kingdom in the vision, symbolized by the silver breast and arms, remains unnamed by Daniel. Nevertheless, historical records indicate that the Aryan Empire ascended to power by conquering Babylon in 539 BC, subsequently asserting control over both Babylon and Jerusalem for the ensuing two centuries. For a more comprehensive exploration of the Aryan (Achaemenid) Dynasty and detailed research on the Aryan Empire, we recommend referring to our studies on the Aryan Dynasty and The Four Great Beasts.

The copper belly and thighs in the vision correspond to Europe and are symbolized by the four-headed leopard beast mentioned in Daniel 7. The initial European empire emerged under the leadership of Alexander the Great of Macedonia (Greece) in 330 BC, marked by his conquest of Media and Persia. Following Alexander’s death at the Babylonian palace in 323 BC, his empire was divided among his generals, collectively known as the Diadochi. The remaining three heads of the leopard beast of Daniel 7 are the Roman, French, and British Empires.

For a more in-depth exploration of these European Empires and the prophetic significance of them, we recommend our studies on The Kingdoms of the Ancient World, Daniel 10-12, and The Four Great Beasts.

The fourth kingdom, represented by the legs of iron, is the last empire to rule both Jerusalem and Babylon—the Islamic Empire. In AD 638, the Islamic Rashidun Caliphate seized the Holy Land from the Christian Byzantine Empire. Over the subsequent thirteen centuries, different Caliphates vied for dominance over Jerusalem and the Levant, culminating in the Ottoman Empire relinquishing control to the British Empire in 1917.

Please see our studies The Kingdoms of the Ancient World, Daniel 10-12, and The Four Great Beasts for more information on the Islamic Empire.

Daniel does not name the feet and toes as a separate kingdom per se, but more of an altering of the iron empire’s control over Jerusalem and Babylon. We see that the iron empire still exists, but now it is blended with potter’s clay. Clay in prophecy represents the people of YHWH—the Israelites. YHWH makes it clear that the iron and the clay will not adhere to one another, because the people of iron (Muslim) will not mix with the seed of men (Jewish). The ten toes of the statue, which are also partly Islamic and partly Israeli, coincide with the ten horns on the fourth beast of Daniel 7.

Jeremiah 18:3-6 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and behold, he was working a work on the wheel. And the vessel that he made in clay was ruined in the hand of the potter. And returning, he made it, another vessel, as it seemed good in the potter’s eyes to make it. And the word of YHWH was to me, saying, O house of Israel, Am I not able to do to you as did this potter? declares YHWH. Behold, as the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.

Lamentations 4:2 The precious sons of Zion are weighed against pure gold—how they are counted as earthen pitchers, the work of the potter’s hand!

Britain exercised authority over the Holy Land until the establishment of the modern State of Israel in 1948. This development triggered direct confrontations between the Arabic Muslims residing in the region and the Jewish population immigrating from various parts of the world, marking the commencement of the Arab-Israeli conflicts that would plague the two nations seventy-five years.

This verse says: And in the days of these kings. Which kings? The ones mentioned in the previous verse: the kings of iron and clay. Those being the kings of the Islamic and Israeli people.

This prophecy tells us that during the days when both the Islamic and Israeli kings control the Middle East, Yeshua’s kingdom of stone will come and will break these kingdoms into pieces. First, His kingdom will smash the feet of iron and clay (new State of Israel and Palestine), then it will destroy what remains of the four kingdoms of iron (Islamic), copper (European), silver (Aryan), and gold (Akkadian) until there is no trace of them. Finally, Yeshua’s kingdom will cover the whole earth and He will reign a thousand years.

Psalm 2:9 You shall break them with a rod of iron; You shall dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.

Isaiah 1:21-25 O how the beautiful city has become a harlot! She was full of justice; righteousness lodged in it—but now, murderers! Your silver has become dross; your wine is diluted with water. Your princes are rebellious and companions of thieves. Everyone loves a bribe, and is pursuing rewards. They do not judge the orphan, nor does the cause of the widow come to them, and says the Lord, YHWH of Hosts, the Mighty One of Israel, Alas! I will be eased of my foes, and avenge Myself of My enemies. And I will return My Hand on you, and refine your dross as with lye, and take away all of your alloy.

Isaiah 1:27-28 Zion shall be redeemed with justice, and her returning ones with righteousness. And the ruin of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together. And those who forsake YHWH shall be consumed.

What we will see in the near future is terrorist attacks on major cities, most likely Rome, Vatican City, New York, and Tel Aviv, but possibly others as well. NATO forces, under the direction of the final King of the North (Revived Roman Empire) of Daniel 11, will move into the Levant and crush the Islamic resistance. Israel will be renamed the State of Israel and Palestine with its new capital at Jerusalem. The land will be divided into ten ‘princedoms’ which will represent the toes of iron and clay on Nebuchadnezzar’s Statue. They will immediately begin rebuilding Solomon’s Temple on the Temple Mount. When these events occur, Yeshua’s return will be imminent.

Revelation 19:11-16 And I saw Heaven being opened. And, Behold! A white horse, and He sitting on it having been called Faithful and True. And He judges and wars in righteousness. And His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on His head many diadems, having a name that had been written, which no one knows except Himself; and having been clothed in a garment which had been dipped in blood. And His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in Heaven followed Him on white horses, being dressed in fine linen, white and pure. And out of His mouth goes forth a sharp sword, that with it He might smite the nations. And He will shepherd them with an iron rod. And He treads the winepress of the wine of the anger and of the wrath of God Almighty. And He has on His garment and on His thigh a name having been written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

Zechariah 12:9-11 And it shall be in that day, I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour on the house of David, and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of prayers. And they shall look on Me whom they have pierced; and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and shall be bitter over Him, like the bitterness over the firstborn. In that day the mourning in Jerusalem shall be great, like the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the valley of Megiddo.

Isaiah 28:14-19 So hear the word of YHWH, scornful men, rulers of this people in Jerusalem. Because you have said, We have cut a covenant with death; and, We have made a vision with Sheol—when the overwhelming rod passes through, it will not come to us, for we have made the lie our refuge, and we have hidden in falsehood. So the Lord YHWH says this: Behold, I place in Zion a Stone for a foundation, a tried Stone, a precious Cornerstone, a sure Foundation; he who believes shall not make haste. And I will lay justice for a line, and righteousness for a plummet; and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of the lie; and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be covered; and your vison with Sheol shall not rise up. When the overwhelming whip passes through, then you shall be for a trampling to it. As often as it passes, it shall take you; for morning by morning it shall pass; and by day and by night, it shall only be a terror to understand the message.

Revelation 17:12-14 And the ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but will receive authority as kings one hour with the beast. These have one mind, and their power and authority they shall give up to the beast. These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of Lords and King of Kings, and the ones with Him are the called and elect and faithful ones.

Isaiah 11:10-12 And it shall be in that day, the Root of Jesse stands as a banner of peoples; nations shall seek to Him; and His resting place shall be glory. And it shall be in that day, the Lord shall again set His Hand, the second time, to recover the remnant, of His people that remains, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Ethiopia, and from Persia, and from Shinar (Sumer), and from Hamath, and from the coasts of the sea. And He shall lift up a banner for the nations, and shall gather the outcasts of Israel, and gather those dispersed from Judah, from the four wings of the earth.

Isaiah 2:2-4 And it shall be in the last days, the mountain of the house of YHWH shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow into it.

Revelation 20:4-6 And I saw thrones, and they sat on them. And judgement was given to them, and the souls of the ones having been beheaded because of the witness of Jesus, and because of the work of God, and who had not worshipped the beast nor its image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand. And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one having part in the first resurrection. The second death has no authority over these, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with Him a thousand years.