Introduction

Daniel 2

And the European Economic Community

Verse 1: And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams,
wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him.

The king of Babylon was given a dream which made such a strong impression on him that he was unable to sleep.
God sometimes reveals His will in dreams or visions (Job 33:14-18).

Verse 2: Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the
Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king.

It was popular in Daniel’s day, as it still is today, for world leaders to consult the supernatural. Today the group
called before the king would include astrologers, palm readers, new age worshipers, fortunetellers, spiritualists,
and others involved in the occult. Deuteronomy 18:9-12 says that all spiritualistic activities are an abomination
to the Lord. When the Bible calls something an "abomination," it means it is the most offensive thing imaginable
to God. He does not want His followers to have any connection with the entire realm of the supernatural.
According to Deuteronomy 18:10, "There shall not be found among you anyone that maketh his son or daughter
to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter or a witch, or a charmer,
or a consulter with familiar spirits or a wizard or a necromancer."

Revelation 16 says that obsession and preoccupation with the supernatural will be one of the allurements
which Satan uses to deceive the world. The United States is referred to as a Christian nation. It's money declares,
"In God We Trust." Yet the "fad" of Satanism is popular today. Young people can readily purchase ouija boards
and other New Age devices. God’s followers should not even consider engaging in such activities.
"All those that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord" (Deut. 18:12). God declares that the only kind
of connection needed with the supernatural is with Him through prayer.

Verse 3: And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream.

Verse 8: The king answered and said, I know of certainty that ye would gain the time, because ye see the thing
is gone from me.

Verse 9: But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you: for ye have prepared
lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall
know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.

The king now puts the wise men to the test. There is no way they can lie or fake their way through the interpretation
of his dream.

Verse 10: The Chaldeans answered before the king, and said, There is not a man upon the earth that can shew
the king’s matter: therefore there is no king, lord, nor ruler, that asked such things of any magician, or astrologer,
or Chaldean.

Verse 11: And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other that can shew it before the king,
except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.

Apparently Satan cannot read minds as he was unable to reveal Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. Probably several hundred
wise men and magicians were brought before the king to give the interpretation. Yet not one could make known the king’s dream. God’s followers today can guard against Satan’s efforts to control their minds by avoiding situations in which
he can influence them.

Verse 12: For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.

This scripture emphasizes the king’s extreme displeasure by saying he was "angry" and "very furious."

Verse 13: And the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they sought Daniel and his fellows
to be slain.

The wording seems to indicate that the killing had already begun or was about to begin. Daniel and his friends,
young men at the time of this vision, were not part of this group by choice. They had been taken captive when
Nebuchadnezzar waged a military campaign against Jerusalem (Dan. 1:1). Daniel and his young companions appeared handsome, healthy, and keen of mind. They looked as if they could be useful to the Babylonian kingdom, so they
were brought to the king’s court to learn the wisdom of the Babylonians (Dan. 1:4).

When they arrived at the king’s court, "the king appointed them a daily provision of the king’s meat, and of the
wine which he drank" (Dan. 1:5). Imagine being a teenager and being given such honor. Refusal of the king’s
food could mean death. "But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the
king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might
not defile himself. Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink"
(Dan. 1:8, 12). Daniel determined to stand firm to God and to the principles of pure living which he had been taught in Jerusalem. He requested a diet of plant origin with water to drink for a ten-day trial. A study of the first chapter of the
Bible shows that his request was in harmony with the original diet given to man
(Gen.1:29). "And at the end of ten days their countenances appeared fairer and fatter in flesh than all the
children which did eat the portion of the king’s meat" (Dan. 1:15). After just ten days, they were a striking picture
of health and vigor.

God blessed Daniel and his companions for remaining true to their beliefs, according to Daniel 1:17:
"As for these four children, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel
had understanding in all visions and dreams." Realistically, there is no way Daniel and his friends could have
shown such a marked difference in just ten days. They purposed in their hearts to honor God, and God "gave" them
beyond what they would normally have benefited.

How great were their benefits? "And in all matters of wisdom and understanding, that the king inquired of them,
he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm" (Dan. 1:20).
This is quite a statement. It would be one thing if they were twice as good (200 percent), or even five times as good
(500 percent), but they were ten times better (1000 percent). Regardless of what they ate, they weren’t ten times
better solely because of their diet. They did their best to honor God and God honored them.

Imagine being in Daniel’s situation. He has been placed in the king’s court against his will and now he and his
companions are going to be killed because they are part of this group of wise men. He questions Arioch,
the king’s captain, about the situation and then speaks to the king (Dan. 2:14, 15).

Verse 16: Then Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would give him time, and that he would shew
the king the interpretation.

Daniel asked for time to pray to the God of heaven and request that God reveal the interpretation of the king’s dream.

Verse 19: Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

Daniel’s confidence in God is rewarded. God miraculously reveals to him both the king’s dream and its interpretation.
Daniel is now able to tell the king exactly what he wants to know. What a sense of gratitude and praise Daniel
must have felt. In response to God’s revelation, Daniel offers a prayer of praise and thanksgiving that is unparalleled
anywhere in Scripture. He gives all the glory to God.

Verse 20: Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his:

Verse 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:

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

Physical light is beautiful. Even more beautiful is the spiritual light that is offered to all. God will give His followers
light and understanding as they study His Word. He offers His followers today who serve Him faithfully no less a
blessing than he did Daniel and his friends.

Verse 23: I thank thee, and praise thee, O thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and
hast made known unto me now what we desired of thee: for thou hast now made known unto us the king’s matter.

Verses 24 - 26 say that no time was wasted in taking Daniel before the king because the killing of the wise men had
started or was about to start. The wise men and astrologers who were under Satan’s influence probably didn’t
realize that they owed their very existence to this group of God’s faithful young men.

Verse 27: Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded
cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the king;

Verse 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;

Daniel declares that the God of Heaven knows the future and has revealed the secrets of what will happen throughout
history down to the end of time. Notice that Daniel doesn’t take any personal credit for what he is about to reveal to
the king but gives all the glory to the God of Heaven.

The phrase from verse 28, "what shall be in the latter days," suggests that those who are living now can
certainly expect to find something applicable to current time in this prophecy. Not only is the present time
the "latter days" but also the last days.

Verse 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.

A modern translation of the Bible would probably call the appearance of the image "awesome, huge, and bright."
Whatever it looked like, it made a tremendous impression on the king. Amazingly, in just a few words Daniel outlines
2500 years of world history.

Verse 32: This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,

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

Verse 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.

This mysterious stone cut without hands is the focal point for Daniel 2. It comes out of the mountain and crashes into
the feet of the image, grinding the whole image to powder.

Verse 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.

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

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

Verse 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.

Notice that it says, "wheresoever the children of men dwell." The Bible is clear that King Nebuchadnezzar was
ruler of the world: "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." Then Daniel gives the key to understanding this prophecy:
"Thou art this head of gold." Daniel tells King Nebuchadnezzar that the head of gold represents the great
golden empire of Babylon.

Babylon came to power in 605 BC and lasted until 538 BC. Daniel 5 depicts what actually took place the
night Babylon fell. Belshazzar, who succeeded Nebuchadnezzar to the throne, had great wealth and power.
On the final night of his reign, he hosted an enormous party. Belshazzar, along with his princes, wives, concubines,
and lords, were in a drunken revel. Apparently the chain of command was broken and the city was left unguarded.

In Isaiah 45:1-2, the Bible foretold two hundred years in advance that Cyrus, mentioning him by name, would
conquer Babylon. "Thus saith the Lord . . . to Cyrus, . . . I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the
two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut;. . . I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder
the bars of iron." Under cover of night, Cyrus marched the combined armies of the Medes and Persians outside
the walls of Babylon, diverted the Euphrates River that ran through the city, and marched into Babylon on the
dry riverbed. Once inside he met little resistance.

The architects of Babylon had designed huge gates with bars of iron to prevent entrance into the city by way of
the river. But alas, the two hinged gates had not been shut, exactly as God foretold. That night God numbered the
days of the great Babylonian kingdom and ended it (Dan.5:26).

Verse 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.

The chest and arms of silver represent the next world empire, Medo-Persia.

Most people think of silver as being inferior to gold. So it was with the Empire of the Medes and Persians.
The Medo-Persian government ruled the world until 331 BC.

But a third kingdom would arise: "and another third kingdom of brass which shall bear rule over all the earth."
The belly and thighs of brass represent the government of Greece. The armies of Greece, under the command of
Alexander the Great, met and conquered the armies of Medo-Persia on the Plain of Arbela in 331 BC, thus establishing
Greece as the third world empire.

Verse 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.

Notice an interesting thing here. As the order of the metals descend from the head of the image (gold, silver, brass, iron),
they decrease in value, but they actually increase in strength. A bulldozer built of solid gold may be beautiful in
appearance, but the first time it hits a stump, it will be destroyed. Gold just doesn’t have the strength that iron has.
How fitting to describe the iron kingdom of Rome as one that would "break in pieces and bruise."

In its conquests, Rome was the most powerful and cruel empire in history, annihilating all opposition.
In many cases it made slaves of those it conquered, a fate worse than death. The shameful and torturous death of
Jesus Christ by crucifixion was ordered by the Roman governor Pontius Pilate at the demand of unbelieving
Jewish leaders. Crucifixion continued to be employed against Christians until it was finally abolished by
Emperor Constantine, who blended paganism and Christianity in an effort to unify his empire.

Verse 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.

When the kingdoms of Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Greece were entered into the history books, their world-dominating
power went with them. This was not to be the case with the Roman Empire: "the kingdom shall be divided."
This says that Rome would be divided, or fragmented. Most historians agree that ten divisions emerged from the
divided Roman Empire:

1. Alamanni (Germany) 6. Visigoths (Spain)
2. Franks (France)7. Lombards (Italy)
3. Burgundians (Switzerland)8. Heruli (AD 493)
4. Suevi (Portugal)9. Vandals (AD 534)
5. Anglo-Saxon (Britian) 10. Ostrogoths (AD 538)

Verse 41 says that Rome would be divided, and that is exactly what happened. Rather than coming to an end,
it fragmented. "But there shall be in it of the strength of the iron." The word "but" denotes a contrast. Even though
Rome fragmented, in "it" (the divided kingdoms) would be the strength of iron. Rome was the iron kingdom.
Even today in the modern nations of Europe, Rome can be expected to be the dominating influence. In a mixture
of iron and clay (i.e. chunks of iron and lumps of clay), the iron is definitely the stronger part.

Verse 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.

The fragmented nations resulting from the breakup of the Roman Empire would number ten, just as the image
had ten toes.

Verse 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.

This verse says, "They (the divided kingdoms) shall mingle themselves with the seed of men." In an attempt to
unify Europe, at one time nearly all the European heads of state intermarried, but even this could not prove the
prophecy wrong: "but they (the nations of Europe) shall not cleave one to another." At least seven attempts have
been made throughout history in which Satan has set out to prove this prophecy wrong. Charlemagne, Charles V,
Louis XIV, Napoleon, Kaiser Wilhelm, Hitler, and Mussolini all set out to unite Europe. A united Europe would mean
control of the world, but just as the Bible predicted, all such plans have failed.

Revelation 17 mentions one final attempt to unite Europe. The following paragraphs will briefly examine the prophecy of Revelation 17:12-14 for an overview of how these ten toes are shaping the world today. For a complete study of this
important subject, follow these prophecies in sequence to their conclusion in a three-part study of Revelation 17.

According to Daniel 2:44, "in the days of these (ten) kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom." John the
Revelator also describes the movements of the same ten kings just before they "make war with the Lamb, and the
Lamb shall overcome them" (Rev. 17:14).

Revelation 17:12 says, "And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet;
but receive power as kings one hour with the beast."

Revelation 17:13 continues, "These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast."

A careful study of the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation reveals that the ten kings of Daniel 2 are the same ten kings
as those in Revelation 17 "which have received no kingdom as yet." A study of Revelation 17 further reveals that "as yet"
refers to an exact time period. The Bible makes it clear that the ten kings have received "no kingdom (singular) as yet."
This does not say they haven’t received their kingdoms (plural). These nations have been kings since the breakup of the
Roman Empire, but they have not "as yet" spoken with "one mind" as referred to in Revelation 17:13. Just before the
coming of Jesus, during a short period of time referred to as "one hour," these nations will receive power from or have
some kind of an alliance with the "beast." The present study of Daniel 2 does not attempt to identify this "beast" power. However, this power will be examined in detail in subsequent studies of the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation.
Whatever length of time the "one hour" period refers to, during that time "These (the nations of Europe) have one mind,
and shall give their power and strength unto the beast" (Rev. 17:13).

In 1992 under the Maastricht Treaty, the European Economic Community (created with the signature of the
Treaty of Rome on March 25, 1957) emerged as the strongest economic trading block in the world. Today it directly
involves fifteen nations with 400 million consumers. This is the first time since the Holy Roman Empire that Europe has
been in a position to speak with one voice.

A poster circulated by the Council of Europe, one of the three main divisions of the European Economic Community, pictures the tower of Babel as its logo and the phrase "Many Tongues, One Voice" as its motto. "The poster is a combination of a fifteenth century drawing of the tower of Babel, with the imposition of a modern crane, illustrating that the Common Market alliance in 1992 will complete the building of a one-world order whose top will reach to heaven. The twelve stars represent the 1990 membership of the Common Market" (Europe is Rising! Oklahoma City, OK: Hearthstone Publishing, 1990, Inside cover).

The words of Jesus will soon be fulfilled: "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven" (Matt. 6:10).
Let’s prepare now to be citizens of Christ’s eternal kingdom.

In December 1991 delegates from the 12 member states met in Maastricht, the Netherlands, to approve a treaty calling for a central bank, a common
currency by 1999, an exchange-rate mechanism (ERM), and closer political union. After a lengthy ratification process, the treaty was finally put into effect
on Nov. 1, 1993 (Compton’s Encyclopedia Online, 1998).