And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
Read it in contextDaniel Interprets the Dream
Start reading at Daniel 2:24 (Daniel 2:24 to Daniel 2:45).
An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
Dreams, deliverances, and judgments confront royal pride and show faithful witnesses living under successive rulers.
2:24Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise men of Babylon: he went and said thus unto him; Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and I will shew unto the king the interpretation.
2:25Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus unto him, I have found a man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation.
2:26The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?
2:27Daniel 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;
2:28But 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;
2:29As for thee, O king, thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter: and he that revealeth secrets maketh known to thee what shall come to pass.
2:30But as for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but for their sakes that shall make known the interpretation to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.
2:31Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible.
2:32This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,
2:33His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.
2:34Thou 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.
2:35Then 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.
2:36This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.
2:37Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.
2:38And 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.
2:39And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.
2:40And 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.
2:41And 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.
2:42And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.
2:43And 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.
2:44And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
2:45Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.
Study content, not yet reviewed.
Who
Who wrote the book? Daniel is the traditional author and the named recorder of the later visions. Jesus refers to Daniel the prophet; the date and compilation of the book are debated in historical scholarship. Biblical references: Daniel 7:1; Daniel 8:1; Daniel 12:4; Matthew 24:15. traditionally held
Who was present or being addressed in this passage? In the surrounding chapter context (Daniel 1:1–2:49): Daniel and his Judean companions live under Babylonian officials. Nebuchadnezzar, his wise men, and Daniel are central to the dream and its interpretation. stated in the text
Who was the book written to? God's people living under foreign empires and later faithful readers seeking understanding. Within the stories, messages are also delivered to particular Babylonian and Persian rulers. Biblical references: Daniel 1:6; Daniel 4:1; Daniel 12:4. book background
What
What is the topic of this reading unit? Daniel Interprets the Dream. Read Daniel 2:24 through Daniel 2:45 as a connected unit. interpretation
How does it contribute to the book? Dreams, deliverances, and judgments confront royal pride and show faithful witnesses living under successive rulers. interpretation
When
When are the events or message set? The narratives and visions name rulers of Babylon and succeeding powers. Dates of visions and periods represented by symbols are different kinds of information. book background
Where
What is the book’s geographic setting? The narratives are set in exile under foreign rulers, while visions portray additional realms and future conflicts. book background
Where does the context start?
This passage sits in Daniel Interprets the Dream (Daniel 2:24 to Daniel 2:45).
Start reading at Daniel 2:24. An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
How
How does this book connect with Jesus Christ? Jesus uses the title Son of man and refers to Daniel. The New Testament supplies connections to Daniel's visions; precise modern identifications and timetables still require careful argument. See Daniel 7:13, Matthew 24:15, Matthew 26:64. interpretation
How should this book guide our response? Remain faithful under pressure and reject confidence rooted in human power. Distinguish the book's supplied interpretations from later attempts to identify every symbol. interpretation
Cited: Daniel 2:24, Daniel 2:45, Daniel 7:13, Matthew 24:15, Matthew 26:64
Who wrote it, and how we know
DanielNamed in Scripture
What Scripture saysLarge sections are written in the first person by Daniel, and Jesus refers to Daniel the prophet. Daniel 7:2Daniel 8:1Matthew 24:15
Early traditionJewish and Christian tradition names Daniel in the sixth century B.C.
What is debatedMany critical scholars date the book to the second century B.C. because of its detailed prophecy of that period. Jesus naming Daniel as a prophet is a significant argument for the traditional view.
Cross references from CrossReferences-org (CC BY 4.0).
Macro-Structure
See how this passage fits the chapter and the book.
Macro-Structure of Daniel 2
Prefilled outline, not yet reviewed.
Daniel places its narratives and visions in the setting of foreign empires and exile. The book itself supplies some interpretations of symbols; further timetables and modern identifications require separate argument and should be labeled accordingly. Local headings and stanza divisions are editorial reading aids adapted from public-domain BSB headings; verse boundaries and Scripture links use the KJV. Connections describe the surrounding book movement.
Connection to the wholeThis opening unit introduces the chapter’s movement. Dreams, deliverances, and judgments confront royal pride and show faithful witnesses living under successive rulers.
Connection to the wholeThis unit closes the chapter’s selected reading divisions. Dreams, deliverances, and judgments confront royal pride and show faithful witnesses living under successive rulers.
interpretation
Suggested literary divisions. Headings summarize the passage; they are not part of the biblical text.
Macro-Structure of Daniel
Prefilled outline, not yet reviewed.
Daniel places its narratives and visions in the setting of foreign empires and exile. The book itself supplies some interpretations of symbols; further timetables and modern identifications require separate argument and should be labeled accordingly.