“You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. This image, mighty and of exceeding brightness, stood before you, and its appearance was frightening. The head of this image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.” Daniel 2:31-33
Daniel is ready to share the dream with King Nebuchadnezzar. Read this verse from the king’s perspective. He does not yet know what the dream means. Daniel will give him the interpretation from God shortly. First he reveals the terrifying dream which God removed from his memory. Now Daniel reminds him of what God showed him in the
darkness of the night.
You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. Daniel recounts the dream the Chaldeans could not share. He describes to the king how God showed him one, single figure or statute standing alone. The word image refers often to an idolatrous figure. This image, mighty and of exceeding brightness The image was large and commanding. It
was extremely bright indicating that the king’s attention should be on this figure.
Stood before you The king stood in front of this stature dwarfed by its appearance. The face each other alone, man to statue. He looked at this statute and could see its every feature in stunning detail. It was all coming back to him now.
Its appearance was frightening. Then Daniel reminds the king that seeing this stature was not a pleasant experience. In fact to look at it brought terror to the king’s heart. It was horrid; the image, being gigantic, struck the king with the terror that arbitrary and despotic kings created in their citizens and captives. (We know the reason why. This reflects the culmination of all the evil world kingdoms from Nebuchadnezzar’s time to the Antichrist. This godless system is horrid and terrifying for it rejects God and does not lead to God but to hell.)
The head of this image was of fine gold Daniel begins to describe the statute as Nebuchadnezzar saw it. It was these details that created the horror in his heart.. The head is made of brilliant pure gold.
Its chest and arms of silver Daniel notes that as one looks on the torso of the image the composition changes. The gold of the head turns into two arms and a chest of silver. The image is still brilliant but it lacks the brilliance of the head.
Its middle and thighs of bronze Daniel continues. This horrible image changes again. The core of the body deteriorates from silver
to bronze. The luster and brilliance of the head and shoulders dulls. Despite its overall brightness the core of the image takes on
a duller and less attractive appearance. Something about the statue seems to be deteriorating.
Its legs of iron Daniel notes the the legs of the image are made iron. The dull gray legs are a far cry from the brilliance of the head yet there is something fearsome about them.
Its feet partly of iron and partly of clay Finally Daniel describes the last detail– the statue’s feet are made of iron and clay. The deterioration in the image from top to bottom is striking. The clay makes it appear that the image is on a shaky foundation. How can it stand built like this.
What can we learn? Seeing mankind’s future without God is indeed a terrifying experience. God shows believers prophecy but he shows Nebuchadnezzar his need to know God.