Legs of Iron and Feet of Clay. Was this the Roman Empire?
What were the legs of iron and feet of clay? The prophet Daniel interpreted King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in chapter two of the Book of Daniel. The king saw a statue that represented four great empires. Later, Daniel had his own vision in which he saw four beasts that coincided with the four kingdoms. There is a controversy over the identity of the fourth kingdom. Most scholars believe it was Rome. I think that idea is wrong, short-sighted, or incomplete. It is my opinion that the prophecy included Rome but continues unfilled to this day. The complete realization of the dream and visions will find fulfillment in another end-of-days empire. That last day’s empire will consist of ten nations. Those ten nations will match the mixed iron and clay imagery of the dream. And they will also match the terrible fourth beast seen by Daniel.
The King’s Dream
31
“You, O king, were looking and behold, there was a single great statue; that statue, which was large and of extraordinary splendor, was standing in front of you, and its appearance was awesome.
32
“The head of that statue was made of fine gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze,
33
its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.
34
“You continued looking until a stone was cut out without hands, and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and crushed them.
35
“Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed all at the same time and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away so that not a trace of them was found. But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
The Interpretation—Babylon the First Kingdom
36“This was the dream; now we will tell its interpretation before the king. 37“You, O king, are the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, the strength, and the glory; 38and wherever the sons of men dwell, or the beasts of the field, or the birds of the sky, He has given them into your hand and has caused you to rule over them all. You are the head of gold.
Babylon was the first kingdom. I discussed that in a previous article as well as several others. Babylon and its rise and fall is a common topic of discussion among the prophets.
Medo-Persia and Greece
39“After you, there will arise another kingdom inferior to you, then another third kingdom of bronze, which will rule over all the earth.
The other kingdoms Daniel mentioned in verse thirty-nine were inferior to Babylon. The first mentioned was the Medo-Persian Kingdom. The one that followed and conquered the Medo-Persian kingdom was Alexander the Great’s Grecian Empire.
Notice that in this Roman Empire snap-shot, the kingdom was predominantly in Europe, not the Middle East. The biblical focus is the Middle East, not Europe. So the legs of the iron empire of the last days should be centered in the Middle East.
The Historical and Biblical Background of the legs of iron kingdom
- Most biblical scholars agree that the fourth kingdom in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream is the Roman empire.
- But, there is a short-sighted aspect to that interpretation. The Bible does not identify this kingdom as Rome, so perhaps there is more to it.
- In the year 63 BC, the Roman General Pompey conquered Jerusalem.
- On March 15, 44 BC, Julius Caesar was assassinated by Brutus and Cassius.
- Herod the Great, an important biblical character, was appointed king of Judea in 37 BC.
- But it was several years later when Caesar Augustus became the first Roman Emperor. That was in 27 BC.
- It was during the reign of Herod the Great that the refurbishing of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem began.
- That was the temple where many of the New Testament stories took place.
Did the legs of iron rise during the time of Jesus?
- The date of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem is still debated but is commonly accepted to be between 6 and 4 BC.
- In AD 6, Judea became an official Roman province which necessitated that a governor should be assigned to the area.
- Jesus Christ was crucified by one of those governors. The infamous Pontius Pilate washed his hands to declare his innocence while the truly innocent Son of Man died on the cross.
- In the year AD 70, the Romans attempted to squash a rebellion and in turn destroyed the Jewish temple and Jerusalem.
- Many biblical scholars suggest this was the end of the Jews forever. And they say the Kingdom of Christ is currently ruling on earth.
- The Roman Empire weakened over the next few centuries due to internal strife.
- Invading attackers took advantage and the Roman Empire fell in the year AD 476.
- But was that the end of this prophecy? No, it wasn’t.
Notice the dates on this map. In 1923 the Ottoman Empire fell to European demands and disbanded. Turkey, the central country of this empire has openly stated their desire to restore the fallen empire. They expect to restore the Ottoman Empire by the date of 2023. That’s not too long from now. If they succeed, I believe this will begin the rebuilding of the legs of the iron empire. They will have ten prominent nations under the rule of a Turkish leader.
Daniel’s Statue and the legs of iron and feet of clay — Daniel two
- We know that the thighs were bronze. That was the third kingdom.
- So, the legs of iron refer to the calf portion of the leg.
- And we need to understand there are two parts to this fourth kingdom. There is the iron and also clay, but it’s the toes that have the clay.
- The iron came first. That was probably the Roman portion of the statue. Then the mixed iron and clay would follow.
- Iron in the calf muscles suggests that this kingdom would be strong.
- but unlike the three prior kingdoms and especially the first, the kingdom would be remarkably divided.
- The famous assassination of Julius Ceaser was an example of the boldness of the opposition within the empire.
- Clay is brittle. We see clay mixed with iron in the toes. Weakness and strength will rule together. (Daniel 2:41-43; Daniel 7:23)
This was the land the legs of the iron empire once controlled after the time of Jesus. This area encompasses all the regions of the four kingdoms of Daniel’s statue. I think it’s very likely that the last day’s kingdom will control at least this much territory when Jesus returns.
The vision of the legs of iron Beast — A Terrifying Beast described in Daniel 7
- In Chapter Two, we had the King’s dream which Daniel interpreted.
- And in Daniel seven, we have the prophet’s vision of beasts that correspond to the four empires of chapter two.
- The fourth beast was described as a terrifying beast with ten horns and iron teeth.
- The ten horns of the beast are ten kings that would come to power within this kingdom.
- Toes and horns: The toes and the horns represent the same thing.
- Both the toes and horns will exist together at the same time and share strength and weakness.
- From out of the ten toes, another horn (a new leader) would rise to power. That “little horn” would end up controlling all of the ten.
- One thing the horn will do is speak against God and persecute God’s people.
- The little horn was typified by Antiochus Epiphanes. But he was a sign of the future.
- In the future, the world will see the true Antichrist rise to power and rule over ten horns of the final world kingdom.
- Three of the horns, or kings, will be uprooted.
- Eventually, the beast of iron and clay will be thrown into the fire of God’s judgment.
Don’t settle for bad theories, but go deeper in your study
There are two predominant theories of interpretation regarding the fourth kingdom.
The first is that most of the prophecies were fulfilled when Rome destroyed the Jewish nation. And the Kingdom of Christ is currently on the earth and ruling. With all due respect, I find that absurd to suggest that this crazy messed-up world as we now see it, is under the rule of Christ, and Satan is now bound and in hades awaiting punishment. The god of this world is still in charge down here. But that will soon end. The idea that Christ is now ruling is the preterist version of Daniel’s vision.
The dreams and visions are still waiting for an actual fulfillment, not the fantasy fulfillment of the preterist.
And a second popular theory of interpretation is this — Rome is the fourth beast. Rome will re-emerge as a great power, take control of the world and fulfill all the still unfinished prophecies. I see this interpretation as short-sighted and missing in key aspects. In this theory, it’s proposed that a United States of Europe will step into the role of the terrifying beast that Daniel saw.
Many prominent Bible scholars have seen the holes in this second theory and have written and taught extensively on the subject. But it’s hard for many Christians to break away from long-established traditions. We should remind ourselves of how the Lord Jesus dealt with those of his day who preferred tradition over the Word of God.
The Revived Roman Empire idea will die a slow death, but it will die.
Is it just Rome or is there more to the vision?
40“Then there will be a fourth kingdom as strong as iron; inasmuch as iron crushes and shatters all things, so, like iron that breaks in pieces, it will crush and break all these in pieces. 41“In that, you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have in it the toughness of iron, inasmuch as you saw the iron mixed with common clay. 42“As the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of pottery, so part of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will be brittle. 43“And in that, you saw the iron mixed with common clay, they will combine with one another in the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, even as iron does not combine with pottery.
The Kingdom of Christ
44“In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever. 45“Inasmuch as you saw that a stone was cut out of the mountain without hands and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold, the great God has made known to the king what will take place in the future; so the dream is true and its interpretation is trustworthy.”
The ten toes of clay and iron are the same as the ten horns. Those ten horns will rule together and see another leader rise to rule over them. That’s the little horn. The little horn or Antichrist will subdue three leaders among the ten. And the remaining seven will fall in line. In the days of those ten horns, God will set up His kingdom. Also, it’s important to notice that the entire statue will fall at the same time. All of the nations in the same geographic regions of the four prior kingdoms will fall when Christ destroys the final beast.
We are still waiting for the final ten horns to come into power. Where did we see the other kingdoms rule? They ruled in the Middle East. That is where the last kingdom will rise to power.
Brussels will not be included. I mention Brussels because for decades that city was suggested as the future capital of the coming Antichrist.
Nope, not gonna happen.
I expect the legs of the iron kingdom to begin rising in the coming years. Are we ready for what will follow?
And here’s another great video from the folks at “The Bible Project.”
What did this Church Father find in the scriptures regarding the Antichrist?
Let me know what you think.