In Daniel 2 the prophetic dream of Nebuchadnezzar involved four ancient kingdoms which would be progressively interpreted as being Babylon, Medo-Persian, Greek, and finally the Roman empire.
These kingdoms have all but diminished and disappeared so what kingdom has overtaken them and continues to endure forever even to this very day, verse 44? Who is this “Rock” that would become a huge mountain filling and influencing the whole earth in sequence and succession to these kingdoms?
Rashi believed it to be the Messianic kingdom that would come to exist during the time of the Roman occupation.
31 “You looked, O king, and there before you stood a large statue—an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. 32 The head of the statue was made of pure 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 baked clay. 34 While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were broken to pieces at the same time and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.
36 “This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. 37 You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; 38 in your hands he has placed mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.
39 “After you, another kingdom will rise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. 40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. 41 Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.
44 “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. 45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.
“The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and the interpretation is trustworthy.”
The “Rock” may seem to be inferior and insignificant much like how the Messiah himself would appear in His humble earthly state as indicated in Micah 5:2, Isaiah 53, Zechariah 9:9, and Psalms 118:22 and yet his lowliness would be surpassed by the mountainous heights of His greatness and glorious majesty.
This “Rock” is described in Daniel 2:45 as not originating through human hands or efforts but the L-rd Himself would lay this stone, Isaiah 28:16(Romans 9:33, 1 Peter 2:6).
This “Stone” would be foundational as a precious and chief cornerstone yet it was to be rejected by its builders, Psalms 118:22(Luke 20:17, 1 Peter 2:7).
Not only would this “Stone” be rejected but it would also be a stumbling stone and a “Rock” that would make men fall. Isaiah 8:14(Luke 20:18, Romans 9:33, 1 Peter 2:8).
The Messiah was also be related as the spiritual “Rock” that accompanied the Israelites during the exodus, 1 Corinthians 10:4.
The identity of the “Rock” is evident much like how Daniel made the writing on the wall plain to Belshazzar.
The “Rock” is none other than Yeshua or Jesus who to this day and forever is sung about in our modern hymnals as being the “Rock of Ages”.
My challenge to you is whether or not you will continue to allow your culture and identity to hold you back in allowing this “Rock” to be an obstacle of stumbling and falling or will you trustingly cling to it unashamedly?
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