This
paper provides contrasts between the top and bottom of the great statue seen in
the prophetic vision by the Babylonian King Nubuchadnezzar about 575 BC and
subsequently interpreted by the Prophet Daniel (as described in Daniel Chapter
2).
|
Head of Statue |
Feet
of Statue |
|
Gold |
Iron
& Clay |
|
Highest Honor |
Least
Honor |
|
Short Duration |
Long
Duration |
|
Most noble - No decay |
Not
noble - most corruptible and decaying |
|
Highest weight -- specific gravity (19.32) |
Lowest
weight -- specific gravity (about 1.9) |
|
Most attractive |
Least
attractive |
|
Highest value substance |
Lowest
value substance |
|
Softest and most pliable |
Hardest
and most brittle |
|
Sunny and brightest color |
Darkest
and dullest color |
|
Great conductor of heat and electricity
(perhaps refers to ease by which God works through King's heart and mind as
well as that of the people.) |
Poor
conductor of heat and electricity.
Perhaps refers to relative difficulty encountered by evangelists proclaiming
the coming |
|
Intellect (instrument of thought and creativity--no
mobility), decision making being a very deliberate activity. |
Pedestrian
(instrument of mobility: the focus of action
that is automatic,) "many shall run
to and fro and knowledge shall be increased" Da 12:4) |
|
Driver of action |
Driven
as the means of locomotion |
|
Decorative |
Utilitarian
and toolish--implies usefulness in technology and in the cutting, grinding,
and shaping of other metals. |
|
Rule by unity |
Rule
by many |
|
Supported by body |
Supporter
for body |
|
Hoarded and guarded |
Wasted,
common and trivial |
|
Reflects light |
Absorbs
light |
|
Insoluble substance |
Soluble
substance |
|
Easy to harness substance |
Difficult
to harness and use |
|
Authority resides in one person. |
Authority
is distributed downward to common folks. |
|
|
|
GENERAL
OBSERVATIONS:
Progressive
degeneration of human governments in value, malleability, and substance.
Progression
of governmental types: monarchy (Babylon),
oligarchy (Medo-Persia), aristocracy (Greece), imperialism (Rome), combinations
of imperialism and democracy (U.N.)
Strong
centralized governmental system followed by weaker decentralized governmental
systems.
Humanoid
statue depicts inanimate (heartless and artificial) nature of human government.
Stone
"cut without hands" depicts the "Living Stone" of Christ.
Stone
completely destroys and replaces human governments with itself.
Stone
will expand to encompass not only human governments but all of God's earthly
creation.
Stone
is violent in destroying human governments.
Human
governments are pulverized before being swept away by a great wind. Depicts:
a) a probable reference
to the Campaign of Armageddon "come and behold what desolations God has
made in the earth" and, "He shall tred them in the winepress of the
fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God".
b) the angels gathering
of the wicked (tares) to the Great White Throne Judgment and the casting
of the wicked into the
As
gold is slow to change and iron and clay are quick to change so, monarchical
governments are slow to change while democracies are very quick to change
hence, are unstable.
Iron
refers to inflexibility and military strength and clay refers to fickleness of
humankind. The combination characterizes
end-time governments as having military strength but possessing very fickle
governmental systems.
Feet
of iron and clay are not truly a 5th government as viewed by Daniel but a
simple extension in time of the 4th (Roman) governmental system. Perhaps reflecting the senatorial (or
delegation) form of Government used by the United Nations.