Well, good morning to everyone. Beautiful morning this morning. My brother called me early this morning from Fort Myers, 37 degrees there this morning. Somehow that made me feel better. 

Well, this morning we come back to our study of the book of Daniel and find ourselves in chapter 2 where we left off with the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream. You remember that God had given to Nebuchadnezzar a night vision while he lay on his bed, and the dream greatly troubled the king, caused him immense turmoil in his spirit, and he called in all of his resources, the magicians, wise men, sorcerers, Chaldeans, to give him an answer to this troubling dream. 

And you also remember that the system they set up in the king's court that the Chaldeans were used as advisors to the king, they had complicated systems and records of dreams and astrology and many different things; they had detailed these things in order to be able to interpret dreams or to give advice to the king and tell him basically what he wanted to hear. Mostly it was a bunch of hocus pocus. 

And as we saw in our text last time, the king had his suspicions about these men, so when they were called in the night, he required of them not only the interpretation of his dream, but the dream itself as well. Let's look at Daniel 2 at verse 3 again just to refresh our memories. Daniel 2, 3, and the king said to them, “I have had a dream and my spirit is anxious to know the dream.” Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever. Tell your servants the dream and we will give the interpretation.” 

The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “My decision is firm. If you do not make known the dream to me and its interpretation, you shall be cut in pieces and your houses shall be made an ash heap. However, if you tell the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts, rewards, and great honor. Therefore tell me the dream and its interpretation.” They answered again and said, “Let the king tell his servants the dream and we will give its interpretation.” 

The king answered and said, “I know for certain that you would gain time because you see that my decision is firm. If you do not make known the dream to me, there's only one decree for you, for you have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the time has changed. Therefore tell me the dream and I shall know that you can give me its interpretation.” 

Well, this is quite a pickle for these government officials and soon it was found that none of them could tell the dream and the king's executioner began to go about his business killing all of the wise men. And at this point, he comes to Daniel who along with his friends found himself as part of this group as advisors to the king. In verse 12 of chapter 2 it says, “For this reason the king was angry and very furious and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.” So the decree went out and they began killing the wise men and they sought Daniel and his companions to kill them. 

Then with counsel and wisdom Daniel answered Arioch, the captain of the king's guard who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon. He answered and said to Arioch, the king's captain, “Why is the decree from the king so urgent?” Then Arioch made the decision known to Daniel. So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time that he might tell the king the interpretation. 

Well, interestingly, Daniel boldly goes to the king and asks him for the very thing that he would not grant to the Chaldeans, time. The king knew the Chaldeans but perhaps he saw something different in Daniel and he was desperate to know the dream. So we see that Daniel and his cohorts go to God in prayer and ask that he would grant to them the knowledge of the dream and its interpretation. 

Now you have to put yourself in this situation. This is a dire circumstance, something that I doubt any of us here have ever faced, imminent death from a sovereign ruler if God does not give to them the necessary wisdom and understanding and arrange the circumstances for their deliverance. But my friends, don't you see that this is precisely what God desired to do all along? 

It is God who was in control and orchestrating these very circumstances. He gave Nebuchadnezzar the dream. He caused the great turmoil and confusion that brought Daniel to this opportunity. And he would now reveal the dream to Daniel and its interpretation so that he might put his man in the very place that he wanted him in the context of the pagan kingdom of Babylon. This is the message of this text, of this book really, there's much here as we will see in way of prophecy and understanding, what is yet to come for Israel, for God's working out of his salvation plans. 

But the theme, the overriding and encouraging message for us in the life and times of Daniel is the providence and sovereignty of God, no matter the circumstances of our lives. So put yourself in Daniel's position as he goes to the Lord in prayer, Daniel 2:17. Then Daniel went to his house, made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 

Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven, answered and said, “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and might are his, and he changes the times and the seasons. He removes kings and raises up kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding. He reveals deep and secret things. He knows what is in the darkness and light dwells with him. I thank you and praise you, O God of my fathers. You have given me wisdom and might, have now made known to me what we asked of you, for you have made known to us the king's demand.” 

Therefore, Arioch takes Daniel to Nebuchadnezzar and he brings Daniel in. The king asks him, “Are you able to make it known to me?” And he tells him the dream and the interpretation. What we see is dependence on trust in God, faithfulness to Jehovah one day at a time. When they told Daniel he could not pray, what did he do? He just kept going up to his upper room and opening the doors towards Jerusalem and praying as he always did.

When they threw him in the lion's den, what did he do? He pulled up one of those lions for a pillow and had a good night's rest because God shut their mouths. When he found himself about to be cut in pieces, if he couldn't do the impossible in telling the dream and its interpretation, what did he do? He went to God. He appealed to God in prayer and he trusted the details and the outcome to God. If he were cut in pieces, so be it. He would die in the will of God, faithful to his Lord as Paul and Peter did, martyrs for their faith. 

But that was not God's plan for Daniel. He had plans to have his man in place as prime minister over Babylon for his will and his purposes. And that brings us to our text this morning and the interpretation of the dream as God reveals to us so much more about what would come after this. 

Daniel 2:31, we'll read that text again. “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 a 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. 

In the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, 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.” 

That's an interesting point in verse 35. We had the Babylonian kingdom, we had the Medo-Persian kingdom, the Grecian, Alexander the Great, bronze kingdom, we had the Roman kingdom. But in each of those, there always existed some elements from the former kingdoms, whether that be science or mathematics or culture. These things persisted through all of the kingdoms, and we can see that even to this day that we have much of that remnant in our culture. 

But in verse 35, it says when Jesus comes and sets up his kingdom, he's going to crush all those kingdoms. They're going to be blown away as chaff. There will be no trace of them. So he will set up a new and righteous kingdom. 

Verse 36, “This is the dream, now we will tell the interpretation of it before the king. ‘You, O king, are a king of kings, for the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory. And wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heaven, he has given them into your hand and has made you ruler over them all. You are this head of gold.’" 

Nebuchadnezzar must have liked that, right? He doesn't like verse 39, "'But after you, after you, shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours. Then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything. And like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others. 

Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron. The kingdom shall be divided, yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. 

As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seat of men, but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay. 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. 

And as much 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.” 

And then we see the end of the chapter that Daniel is promoted. I've given you four points on your outline: first, God's purpose in the dream, second, Daniel's faithfulness in Babylon, third, the significance of the vision, and fourth, God's providence in the life of Daniel. 

Well, we briefly discussed God's purpose in the dream and the circumstances of Nebuchadnezzar and Daniel. The most important truth to see here is that God is in control. He's working out His will through the will and actions of men and the affairs of men. But behind all that, we see this most fascinating reality, a spiritual reality, and I'd like for you to just look with me at Daniel chapter 10. 

We're going to look at a couple of other scriptures in the book this morning, but this is truly an amazing passage in Daniel chapter 10. We're now into the Medo-Persian kingdom under Cyrus, and Daniel receives a message, and he's wondering about this. He was mourning three full weeks, he says, verse 2, ate no food, no meat or wine came to my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all until three whole weeks were fulfilled. 

So he's trying to understand this message he's given, he's praying. Verse 4, “Now, on the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river that is the Tigris, I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, a certain man clothed in linen, whose waist was girded with gold of Euphaz. His body was like barrels, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like torches of fire, his arms and feet like burnished bronze in color, and the sound of his words like the voice of a multitude." 

And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision, but a great terror fell upon them so that they fled to hide themselves. Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, and no strength remained in me, for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength." That's quite a sight. Yet I heard the sound of his words, and while I heard the sound of his words, I was in a deep sleep on my face with my face to the ground. 

Suddenly a hand touched me which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands, and he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you.” While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling. Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, watch this now, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard." Isn’t that encouraging? Daniel prayed, your words were heard by God, and I have come because of your words. 

But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days, and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia. Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come. 

So here we see a glimpse into the spiritual battle going on all the time, hidden from our eyes. Notice the angel says to him that his words were heard immediately, that he had come because of Daniel's prayer. But he was held up by demons, these kings of Persia, demons who were in charge of specific geographic regions and rulers of those realms to influence them, to cause them to work against God's will and purpose. 

And Michael, the archangel, had to come to help this angel get through to Daniel. Now much of this is a mystery to us, but reality nonetheless. Spiritual forces are at work behind the scenes, and what we know for sure is that God is in control of all these things, allowing what He will for His purposes, His glory, and our good. 

Daniel finds himself in a real predicament in chapter 2, facing sure death. But God had it all in His hands all along. And what did God want from Daniel? What does He want from you and from me? He wants us to believe Him, to trust Him, to depend on and look to Him, to be faithful today. And that is precisely what we consistently see in the life of Daniel: his faithfulness to God, even in the heart of pagan Babylon. 

And so we see Daniel turn to God in prayer, place his faith wholly in Jehovah to provide, and this is exactly what God does. He provides to Daniel the dream and its interpretation for Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, for Israel, even for Nebuchadnezzar. And we see the interpretation of the dream. He says, Nebuchadnezzar is the head of gold. This head of gold on this statue of this man represents Babylon and Nebuchadnezzar. Then you see another kingdom which will come after that, and a third kingdom, and a fourth kingdom. 

God revealed to Daniel, as Daniel now reveals to the king, that the vision he had of the statue of a man represents four kingdoms. First the head of gold, Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon. And we see some interesting things in this man made of metal, this vision, that in each successive kingdom the value and purity of the metal decreases. And I think this represents the sovereignty of their rule. 

Nebuchadnezzar was a true dictator, a true dictator. And this is God's form of government. Did you know that? When Jesus comes and rules on David's throne, in that kingdom he will set up, did you know that we will have a complete, unabridged dictator in the person of Jesus Christ? The problem with a dictator in the times of the Gentiles, which we live, is that every man is corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. 

But no doubt this is the finest form of government, as Nebuchadnezzar answered to no one. He was a head of gold. Later we will see that the subsequent kingdoms were bound by constitutions and laws and shared authority, but not the head of gold. We also see, as we observe the statue, that the metals become stronger as we move down, culminating in the iron kingdom of Rome that crushes and destroys and dominates in power. 

I want you to see one other interesting thing, a revelation in Daniel chapter 7. Turn to chapter 7 with me. In Daniel chapter 7, Daniel had a dream while he was on his bed, and he wrote down the dream telling the main facts. It says, verse 2, “I saw in my vision by night and behold the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea, and four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other. The sea represents the world, the Gentile nations. 

The first was like a lion and had eagle's wings. I watched till its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man, and a man's heart was given to it. And suddenly another beast, a second like a bear, it was raised up on one side, had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth, and they said thus to it, “Arise, devour much flesh.” After this I looked, there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird. The beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it. 

After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth. It was devouring, breaking in pieces and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots, and there in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth speaking pompous words. 

I watched till the thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated. His garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, its wheels a burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him, a thousand thousands ministered to him, ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court was seated, the books were opened. I watched them because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking. I watched till the beast was slain and its body destroyed and given to the burning flame. 

As for the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and a time. I was watching in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought him near before him. Then to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom that all peoples and nations and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass away, and his kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed." 

In Daniel 2, we see a vision of a great statue of a man in all its splendor, magnificent in Nebuchadnezzar's dream. In chapter 7, we see a parallel vision given to Daniel. This vision is of the exact same thing, the kingdoms of the Gentiles and Christ's kingdom to come. But in chapter 7, they are horrific beasts, consuming, devouring the earth. So what is the difference here? 

In chapter 2, we see the kingdoms of men from the perspective of a man, of Nebuchadnezzar. But in chapter 7, we see these same kingdoms of men, of the Gentiles, as wild, consuming beasts. We see them from God's perspective. So we see the Babylonian empire, the head of gold. We see the Medo-Persian empire, the kingdom of silver, Alexander's kingdom of Greece, the bronze, then the kingdom of iron, Rome, crushing everything in its path. 

And this brings us to the feet and toes. The ten toes are described in chapter 7 in the parallel vision as ten kings, ten horns, ten rulers, powers and authority in this final form of the kingdom of Rome. And this kingdom will be a loosely held confederacy, iron mixed with ceramic clay. They will not bond together. This vision gives us a vast expanse of time, incredible descriptions and many related details in other scriptures that we'll look at, the times of the Gentiles as Jesus calls it. 

This time continues until He comes, until He wipes out all of it, establishing His rule and reign and authority on earth, ruling with a rod of iron as the government is on His shoulders. Also notice that these are physical kingdoms on earth in the realm of man. Each of the four kingdoms are physical in nature, and we should expect the same of the kingdom of Christ as the words tell us that it will fill the whole earth and Jesus will rule with a rod of iron. He will have complete and total control as God's man on earth in a theocratic rule on David's throne. 

None of these details concerning the kingdom lend themselves to a spiritual rule in heaven, even as we read in Revelation 20 concerning the 1,000-year reign on earth of a physical resurrection of the saints which precedes it. And these saints will come with Jesus and rule and reign with Him on the earth in the time of His kingdom. 

After Nebuchadnezzar comes another king, the Medo-Persian king, a man named Cyrus. So many interesting details, so many places in the scriptures that tie in with this vision with the book of Daniel. I want you to think of this with me. We've studied this before. 

Assyria and Egypt were the great powers of the world before Neo-Babylon. And we've seen in 2 Chronicles and 2 Kings that God was at work to bring Babylon to power to remove Egypt and Assyria as the ruling kingdoms. He did all of this; think about the great battle of Carchemish, Necho's dealings with Josiah and Judah, all these great armies, battles, circumstances. He did all of this to put Nebuchadnezzar in place for the express purpose of chastening Judah and showing the power and glory of God ultimately. 

And all of this he did to only have Nebuchadnezzar and the Neo-Babylon kingdom in power for 70 years. That's how long Babylon's rule would last, the time of the captivity revealed by Jeremiah. And Daniel found this in his studies of that prophecy. This is profound, amazing is our God and his dealings with men. 

But I want to tell you about this Cyrus that will take over the kingdom of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar was the head of gold, all-powerful sovereign. But what happened when God needed to put him down in his pride, remember? We'll study that soon, Lord willing. It says that very hour Nebuchadnezzar lost his mind and ate grass like an ox, slept outside where the dew settled on him, and at the end of that passage it says, “God is able to put down the proud.” 

Not until God decided to give back his right mind did Nebuchadnezzar, the great head of gold, even function as a man. God raises up rulers. He takes them down as he pleases for his purposes. And he also did this with Cyrus. Listen to these amazing words from Isaiah, Isaiah 44:28 says, “Who says of Cyrus, this is God, God says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd and he shall perform all my pleasure,’ saying to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be built,’ and to the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.’” Isaiah 45:1, “Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus.” 

Now this is the king of the Medo-Persian kingdom, a pagan king. “Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held to subdue nations before him and loose the armor of kings, to open before him the double doors so that the gates will not be shut.” Now here's the amazing part: Isaiah wrote these prophecies 200 years before Cyrus was born, before he ruled in Babylon, establishing the Medo-Persian kingdom. 

The 2 Chronicles and Ezra give us the account of the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecies 200 years later. 2 Chronicles 36:22 says, “Now in the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing, saying, ‘Thus says Cyrus, king of Persia, all the kingdoms of the earth, the Lord God of heaven has given me. He has commanded me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah, who is among you of all his people. May the Lord his God be with him and let him go up.’” 

God stirred up the heart of Cyrus, the Persian king, so that he made a proclamation to go back and rebuild the temple. Ezra 1:7, “King Cyrus also brought out the articles of the house of the Lord.” Remember, Nebuchadnezzar took the articles out of the temple and carried them back; well, King Cyrus brings them back out to go be put back in the temple. 

“And Cyrus, king of Persia, brought them out by the hand of Mithrath, the treasurer, and counted them out to Shezbazar, the prince of Judah.” Ezra goes on to tell us that Cyrus provided all the money, all the food and drink, and supplies to build the temple. And in Ezra 6:14 it says, “So the elders of the Jews built and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, and they built and finished it according to the commandment of the God of Israel and according to the command of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia.” And Daniel served under Cyrus the king, God's man in God's place. 

Let me ask you, are you concerned about the future? About the world and where we are headed? What might come? Do the events of the world cause you anxiety, perplex you? The vision we see in chapter 2 as well as chapter 7 tell us about the times and turmoil and oppression for Israel, but also for God's faithfulness and mercy along the way. They tell us about yet future events, a time of great turmoil on this earth, continued persecution throughout the times of the Gentiles, but also of a future deliverance and the coming of Jesus and a kingdom on earth that will fill the whole earth and wipe away the kingdoms of men. 

If there's one lesson we can take from the book of Daniel, it is that we can trust God. That God is sovereign and in control, working out His will and that He does what is best for me for His glory and for His purposes. That's what I most want. I most want His purposes to be accomplished, His will to be done for His glory and His great name. 

You see, my circumstances and the circumstances of the world are irrelevant. And Paul taught us this as well by his life and example and by his words. He said, “I have learned in whatever state I am in to be content in Christ.” Now, we abound with material wealth here in this place in our time. Are we content in Christ? 

There may come a time when we will be abased in the things of the world. Will we then be content in Christ? Will we understand our desperate need for Jesus every day? Look at Daniel's circumstances. He was a boy, a noble boy in Judah, and the pagan Babylonian army came and seized him and killed thousands and drug him away to a foreign land. 

Now he's been trained in the ways of the king to serve him in his court. And then comes this dream. And now he's going to be killed with the rest of the wise men. Do you have circumstances like that? Do you know that God's in control of your circumstances as well? Will I learn that my circumstances are not the issue? Jesus, His gospel, God's will and purpose, His glory, these are the things that matter. 

And I am to trust Him, to believe Him, to depend on Him, to abide in Him and know and believe and trust that He is able. I'm not able. Daniel was not able. He said that, didn't he? He is able to do abundantly, exceedingly more than we could ever ask or think for the express purpose of His glory in the church. 

And this is what we see at the end of our text in the life of Daniel. Look at Daniel 2:46 as we close. “Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face,” this head of gold, the ruler of the world, the sovereign, “fell on his face prostrate before Daniel and commanded that they should present an offering and incense to him. The king answered Daniel and said, ‘Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings and revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret.’ Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon. 

Also, Daniel petitioned the king and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon, but Daniel sat in the gate of the king.” And God had His man in His place in Babylon. Daniel was faithful. He trusted God, and God put him where He wanted him. 

Paul was faithful too. And what happened to Paul? Shipwrecked, night in the deep, perils of countrymen, stoned at Lystra, left for dead, in the Mamertine prison, the sewer of Rome, taken out to have his head cut off. And God had His man in His place there as well. Is there anyone you love more in the biblical writers than Paul? He gave us so much of the scriptures and yet he didn't have Cadillacs and mansions. He had stocks and bonds, but they were a different kind. 

The point is to be faithful and to trust the Lord. For Daniel, there were some difficulties there, trouble and trial, uncertainty, but God was in control all along. And we need to, just as Daniel did, believe Him, commit ourselves to Him, commit ourselves to Him who judges righteously, just as Jesus did. 

Let's close in prayer. Father, we're so thankful that You're in control, that You are working out Your will in the affairs of men. And we're thankful that we are Yours, Your sons, that You're our Father, that we can trust You and believe You and depend on You. We can take the promises that You have given us of Your grace, Your sufficient grace for today, the privilege of serving You and the work that we have to do here in this world for the gospel. Thank You for our brothers and sisters, for this body, this church. Thank You for Your Word, the truth, and thank You for the certainty that we have that all things will come to pass as You intend and You will bring Your kingdom on this earth and we will rule and reign with Jesus. We look forward to that day. In Jesus' name, amen.