V RaptureChrist Newsletter
Nov-Dec 2005

In the Book of Daniel we can read about a dream which Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylon, had and which the prophet Daniel was given its interpretation.
 

The King had dreamed of a statue with a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, legs of iron, and feet made up of a mix of iron and clay.

Daniel 2:32-33
This image's head was of pure gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of bronze, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.

First Kingdom - GOLD
The head, symbolizing the FIRST and most important part, was made of pure GOLD.  Gold is a precious metal, shiny, and with a pretty color.  It is expensive ($480 an ounce); it can not corrode (rust); it can only be dissolved by aqua regia. Gold is very malleable (easy to work with), ductile (easy to pull into wires), therefore easily worked into jewels and other objects of art.

This first kingdom represented by gold was Babylon.

Second Kingdom - SILVER
The SECOND part of the image which was made of SILVER consisted of the chest and the arms.  Silver is also a metal, but not as valuable as gold; silver is ($8 an ounce).  It is shiny, but it can  tarnish or corrode.   That is why golden coins from sunken ships are still recoverable, but silver coins quickly dissolve in the saline waters of the sea.  Unlike gold, silver needs to be cleaned and polished periodically.  Still silver has a few very special qualities: it is the best conductor of heat and electricity; like gold, silver is heavy, shiny, almost as malleable as gold and easily worked into jewels.

The second kingdom represented by silver was Medo-Persia.  There were two arms in the statue, much in the same way the kingdom consisted of two groups: the Medes and the Persians.  As sterling silver is stronger than pure gold so also the Medo-Persians were stronger than the Babylonians and conquered them.  According to the Bible this kingdom was inferior in quality to Babylon.

Daniel 2:39
And after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to you, and another third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.

Third Kingdom - BRONZE
The THIRD part of the image was made of BRONZE.  Bronze is an alloy of two metals -- copper and tin. This mix is stronger than copper or tin alone.  The mixture has to be just a little tin, because if too much is added then it loses its cohesiveness.  Solid solution strengthening of copper is a common strengthening method. Small amounts of an alloying element added to molten copper will completely dissolve and form a homogeneous microstructure (a single phase). At some point, additional amounts of the alloying element will not dissolve; the exact amount is dependent on the solid solubility of the particular element in copper. http://www.matweb.com/reference/copper-alloys.asp

Bronze will corrode with mossy green verdigris, especially if left outside.  It is pretty, shiny, and tries to imitate gold in its color and luster. Bronze is strong enough to make swords and shields. It is not as soft and malleable as gold or silver; still bronze, because it is 98% copper, is a good conductor of heat.

As for the value of the three metals {gold, silver, and bronze}, let me give you an idea of their relative worth in the 1800's: gold was used in 20 dollar gold pieces, silver was used in silver dollars, and copper was used in pennies. That is why in the Olympics the medals are: gold for 1^st prize, silver for 2^nd prize, and bronze for 3^rd prize.

The third part of the image represented by bronze was Greece.

Under Alexander the Great, Greece conquered much of the known world. The influence of the Greeks continued for many years. In fact, the New Testament was written in Greek.

Fourth Kingdom - IRON
The FOURTH part of the image was made of IRON. This metal has very little value and it easily rusts and decays.

Whereas gold is a precious metal, iron is a base metal. Iron has so little value that it is not considered a coin metal; in other words, the three previous empires used coin metals:  gold is used to symbolize Babylon, silver is used to symbolize Persia, and bronze, which is mostly copper, is used to symbolize Greece.

The fourth kingdom was not as beautiful and refined as the other previous three, but what it lacked in luxury it made up for in brute power. The Bible says that it bruised and crushed the other kingdoms.  The new empire was more practical and less idealistic.

Daniel 2:40
And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and subdues all things: and as iron that breaks all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

Iron has not the splendor of the previous metals. The quality that identifies iron is its strength.  The fourth part of the image represented by iron was Rome.  It was a very powerful kingdom.

The Greeks claimed that the Romans lacked culture and refinement, and that they were a militaristic people given to wars and conquests and not to building beautiful monuments.

It was the Roman Empire that was in power when Christ lived on Earth.

The two iron legs of the Roman Empire represented two separate governments: the first government which was the eastern part had the capital in Constantinople, the second  government, which was the western part, had the capital in Rome.  While the western part of the Roman Empire fell first, the eastern part, also known as the Byzantine Empire, went on for hundreds of years.

Finally, the last part of the statue represented by iron and clay is not even a metal, but a conglomerate of the base metal iron mixed with miry clay.

Each alone has valuable properties; for example, clay will not rust, and can last thousands of years.  However, clay is very brittle.  Once it is fired, no one can change or alter its shape.  Iron, on the other hand, can be melted down and reused. You can change the shape of iron objects, but  in order to do so, it is necessary to first heat the iron to a high temperature, and then hit it with a heavy hammer.  Iron has a very valuable quality - it is very strong.  However, by mixing iron with clay the good qualities of both materials cancel out.

I bought a patio bench made of cast iron that was broken -- thinking I could fix it by soldering together the broken pieces.  After having it soldered, as I was assembling the bench, when I put the seat down, it snapped -- but in a different place.  I realized that this iron had a lot of clay in it.  The iron was very brittle. It did not have any strength, but broke before I could sit on it.  I had to take it back to be soldered again.  It was worthless.  I have it as a decoration piece.  People cannot sit on it. 

The statue has a gradient where you go from something extremely valuable (head of gold) to something that is worthless (feet of iron with clay).

You cannot hit iron mixed with clay with a hammer. It will shatter. Unlike any of the other parts: gold, silver, bronze, or iron, the combination of iron and clay has zero malleability - you cannot work with it.

It is believed that the final government or fifth kingdom represented by two feet of iron and clay is United Europe with one foot being Eastern Europe and the other foot being Western Europe -- a continuation of the two legs of iron that represented the Roman Empire.  Five of the toes are part of Western Europe, and five of the toes are part of Eastern Europe.  The fifth government has a capital in Brussels, a constitution, and a common currency; but multiple languages, different religions, and different ethnicities.

The recent riots in France point to a problem that France as a nation, as well as the whole of the European Union now face: the immigrant population in cities such as London, Paris, Rome, Frankfurt, Brussels, and other cities is rising at an accelerated pace.

According to the Caleb Project, the question is:

"Will they (the immigrants) adapt to become like us," many Londoners wonder, "or will they change the face of our city forever?"

What does the Bible say? 

Daniel 2:41
And whereas you saw 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 you saw the iron mixed with miry clay.

Daniel 2:42
And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.

This kingdom will be composed of iron and clay.  We know that the iron was the Roman Empire, but what is the clay?  It is a group of people who do not wish to become part of the iron and by moving into the last empire they weaken it and make it fragile.

The main elements that make a government brittle and lack cohesiveness are: different races, different religions, and different languages.  We find these three elements in Europe at the moment.

The recent riots in France are a symptom that the kingdom is being broken.  It is filled with division and it is not cohesive.

Daniel 2:43
And whereas you saw 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.

As the Bible states in the previous verse, these immigrants will not marry with the original population of Europe. This is probably due to a difference in religion and culture, and it only tends to make the kingdom more brittle.

These illegal immigrants have few skills. They do not contribute in a positive way to the health of the nation, instead they are the recipients of many social programs.

To stop the flow of illegal immigrants who are causing riots, the government of Europe could implement a mandatory ID.  This ID will be compulsory on every citizen to avoid charges of discrimination.

This last government represented by the two feet of the statue will be destroyed by God.

Daniel 2:34
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.

Daniel 2:44
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.

In the Book of Revelation, the big leader is the Leopard Beast who is thrown into the lake of fire at the return of Christ.

Revelation 19:20
And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought the signs in his sight, wherewith he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast and them that worshipped his image: they two were cast alive into the lake of fire that burns with brimstone: