Certainty for the Future

What does the future hold? Is anyone in charge? Can we look forward to the future with confidence? Is there anything we can count on? Our lesson today is on an ancient prophecy from the book of Daniel. The prophet Daniel's predictions have been amazingly accurate for the past 2,500 years. They speak with relevance to us today. They promise certainty for the twenty-first century. They reveal that God is really in control of history.

Throughout history the Bible has proven its accuracy in predicting the future. This study is an outline of world history from Daniel's time to our time today. Before we turn to the book of Daniel, let's discover a few things about Bible prophecy.

01. How far-reaching is God's ability to reveal the future?
Isaiah 46:9-10
09. Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me,
10. Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,’
Note
In contrast to all false gods, God knows "the end from the beginning." He alone has the ability to reveal the future consistently.

02. How willing is God to reveal the future to His people?
Amos 3:7
Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, Unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets.
Note
God has the ability to look into the future and foretell what is going to take place centuries before the events come to pass. He revealed the mysteries of the future to the Bible prophets. These Bible prophets share God's messages of the future with us. As we see these prophecies fulfilled, our faith in God increases. One of the Bible's most significant prophecies regarding the future is found in Daniel 2.

03. In the book of Daniel, what unusual thing happened to Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon?
Daniel 2:1
Now in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; and his spirit was so troubled that his sleep left him.
Note
Nebuchadnezzar had a dream of great significance, but when he woke up the next morning he couldn't remember it. He was greatly troubled.

04. Whom did the King ask to tell him his dream, and the interpretation?
Daniel 2:2-3
02. Then the king gave the command to call the magicians, the astrologers, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans to tell the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king.
03. And the king said to them, “I have had a dream, and my spirit is anxious to know the dream.”
Note
Miraculously, God hid the dream from Nebuchadnezzar's mind. If the king could have remembered the dream the psychics would have been able to make up a plausible interpretation. The wise men of Babylon utterly failed.

05. When the wise men could not reveal the king's dream, what did Nebuchadnezzar do?
Daniel 2:12-13
12. For this reason the king was angry and very furious, and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.
13. So the decree went out, and they began killing the wise men; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them.
Note
The angry king condemned all the wise men of Babylon to death when they could not tell him what he had dreamed. Daniel was a Hebrew captive in the king's court and educated in the University of Babylon. He too was considered one of Babylon's wise men. He certainly was not a psychic, fortune-teller, or astrologer, but he was one of the educated elite of Babylon.

06. When the kings soldiers sought to kill him, what did Daniel do?
Daniel 2:16–18
16. So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell the king the interpretation.
17. Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions,
18. 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.
Note
Daniel asked the king for time so that he could pray to the God of heaven who reveals all secrets. He had confidence that God would solve the problem.

07. After Daniel and his friends sought God earnestly, how was the dream and its interpretation revealed to Daniel?
Daniel 2:19
Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

08. Who did Daniel say was the only one who could make known the dream and it's interpretation?
Daniel 2:28
But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these:
Note
Remember, the prophet Isaiah said that God is the only one who knows all things. The God of the universe is the only one who can reveal the future (Isaiah 46:9, 10).

09. To what time does the dream apply?
Daniel 2:28
But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these:
Note
The book of Daniel especially reveals events in the last days of earth's history. The king's dream focuses on the end-times. It foretells events that occur at the close of this earth's history.

10a. What did Daniel say king Nebuchadnezzar had seen in his dream?
Daniel 2:31–35
31. “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.
32. This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze,
33. its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.
34. 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.
35. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and 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.

10b. What do the metals in this great image represent?
Daniel 2:38–40
38. 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.
39. But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.
40. 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.
Note
According to Daniel's interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream, each corresponding metal represents a successive kingdom that would dominate the world. Beginning with Babylon, the prophet traces the destiny of the nations through the centuries.

10c. List the corresponding metals that make up the Image:
Daniel 2:32–33
32. This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze,
33. its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.
Head = G__D
Chest & Arms = S____R
Belly & Thighs = B____E
Legs = I__N
Feet = partly I__N & partly C__Y

Identifying The Kingdoms

11a. Whom does the Bible identify as the head of gold? What kingdom does this head of gold represent?
Daniel 2:38 (last part)
... you [Babylon] are this head of gold.
Note
Gold, a fitting symbol for Babylon, was used lavishly throughout the empire. The golden image of Bel Marduk, the chief god of Babylon, sat on a golden throne beside a golden candlestick before a golden table. Bel Marduk's temple contained 18 tons of gold, 8.5 tons of gold in the altar and throne alone. God knew what He was doing when He used gold as a symbol of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom ruled the world from 605 B.C. to 539 B.C. A metal represents a king or kingdom. Babylon would not last forever. It would be overthrown by a second dominant world power.

11b. What metal follows gold? What kingdom would arise next? What nation conquered Babylon?
Daniel 2:32, 39
32. This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze,
39. But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.
Daniel 5:26-28.
26. This is the interpretation of each word. MENE: God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it;
27. TEKEL: You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting;
28. PERES: Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.”
Note
The Medes and Persians overthrew the Babylonians in 539 B.C. Beginning with the leadership of the Persian king Cyrus, they ruled from 539 B.C. to 331 B.C. Each of these empires was a dominant world power that aggressively oppressed God's ancient people.

11c. What metal follows silver? What kingdom would overthrow the Medes and the Persians?
Daniel 2:39
But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.
Daniel 8:20, 21.
20. The ram which you saw, having the two horns—they are the kings of Media and Persia.
21. And the male goat is the kingdom of Greece. The large horn that is between its eyes is the first king.
Note
The nation of Greece overthrew the Medes and the Persians in 331 B.C. The prophet Daniel describes the Greeks in two ways. First, as bronze in the image of Daniel 2. The Greeks were known for their bronze-plated armor. Second, the prophet describes a fierce battle between a ram and a he-goat in Daniel chapter 8. He clearly identifies Greece as the goat that tramples down Media-Persia, the ram.

11d. How is the fourth world dominant power described?
Daniel 2:40
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.
Note
The Roman Empire conquered the Greeks in 168 B.C. The Romans ruled the world during the time of Christ. The ancient historian Edward Gibbon, in his Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, referred to "the iron monarchy of Rome," using the exact expression from the Bible.

12. What significant events would occur next? Would a fifth world-ruling empire arise to overthrow Rome?
Daniel 2:41
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.
Note
The prophet Daniel predicted that the Roman Empire would be divided. The breakup of the empire occurred from A.D. 351 to A.D. 476. Daniel continued, "But they will not adhere to one another" (verse 43, NKJV).* History has followed this prophecy like a blueprint. Dictators and rulers have attempted to unite Europe through the centuries, but have absolutely failed. The Roman Empire was divided. The divisions of the empire into the eastern and western sections formed the foundation of the nations located in Europe today.

13. Would the nations of Europe ever be united into one cohesive, lasting, political nation again?
Daniel 2:42, 43.
42. 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.
43. As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay.
​Note
Oppression of God's people does not last forever. Although the Roman Empire lasted longer than any prior empire-no small feat in and of itself-God saw that ultimately oppressive regimes would collapse. God's Word is clear. These seven prophetic words, "They shall not cleave one to another," have stopped every would-be conqueror of Europe through the centuries. Throughout history, political leaders such as Charlemagne, Charles V, Louis XIL Napoleon, Hitler, and Stalin have attempted to dominate by uniting Europe. Each has desperately failed. Communism stretched its tentacles across Europe. One nation after another fell into its grasp. But Communism failed. The Berlin Wall came down. Freedom triumphed! Bible prophecy is accurate. The future is in God's hands. He can be safely trusted. He will safely guide us into the twenty-first century.

PROPHECY UPDATE! Recently Brexit has occurred in Britain further fracturing the objective of European unity.

14. What will the next event be in history? Is there hope for the 21st Century?
Daniel 2:44-45
44. 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.
45. Inasmuch 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.”
Note
The rock represents the coming kingdom of God. Soon all wickedness, evil, and rebellion will be gone forever. The forces of evil will be crushed, destroyed, and broken in pieces. God will establish His everlasting kingdom forever. You can face the future with confidence. The twenty-first century is bright with the promises of God. The future is in the hands of God. Hope is on the way.

Concluding Statement:
The prophecy of Daniel 2 correctly foretells the rising and falling of kingdoms right down to our day today. The next event to occur is when Jesus sets up His own kingdom that will never be destroyed. Do you want yourself and your family to be ready for that day when Jesus comes again to set up His eternal kingdom?

For further Study read the following Bible passages on the coming Kingdom of Christ:
Titus 2:12, 13
John 14:1-3
Revelation 11:15; 17:14; 19:11-16; 21; 22.

​A Pictorial summary of Nebuchadnezzars Dream: