Everything is symbolic in Daniel 2: the gold, the silver, the bronze, the iron, the Stone and the mountain.
Daniel Chapter 2 verse 31 to 43
31 Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible.
32 This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass,
33 His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.
34 Thou 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.
35 Then 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.
36 This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king.
37 Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.
38 And 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.
39 And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.
40 And 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.
41 And 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.
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.
43 And 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.
🔹The image
•The head was made of gold
•The chest and arms of silver
•Belly and thighs of brass
•Legs of iron
•Feet part of iron and part of clay
The image at the feet was then struck by a stone that had been cut out without using hands; all the other metals were then smashed along with the iron and clay. They turned into the summertime threshing floor's chaff, then the wind arrived and carried them away. They were unable to find a space, and the stone expanded to fill the entire land as a massive mountain.
A few points to note are that while the value of each metal is lower than the other's, each one is nonetheless stronger than the one before it.
🔹The Meaning of the Dream
The image indicates the different kingdoms that will rule the world.
✖️Head of gold - Daniel 2:37, 38: Babylon is the head of gold. It ruled from 605 to 539 BC.
✖️Chest and arms of silver - Daniel 2:39: The next kingdom was Medo-Persia which ruled from 539 to 331 BC. Daniel 5 clearly points out the fact that the kingdom of Babylon was followed by the Medes and Persians.
✖️Belly and thighs of brass - The third kingdom was Greece. This kingdom ruled from 331 to 168 BC. Daniel 8 makes it clear that the kingdom that followed the Medes and Persians was Greece.
✖️Legs of iron - Daniel 2:40: The fourth kingdom was the Roman Empire and Rome ruled from 168 BC to 476 AD. That Rome was the fourth power is clearly seen in Revelation 12.
✖️Feet part of iron and part of clay - Daniel 2:41: 168BC-476 AD The Roman Empire was divided into Ten kingdoms as a result of the barbarian invasions. Still iron in the feet but a different kind of Rome. Same territory but different type of kingdom.
🔹The feet
The iron that existed in the legs continues in the feet. This indicates that Rome continues its existence in the feet but it is a different kind of Rome, an amalgamated Rome with two elements that do not belong together.
The feet of the image take us all the way from the year 476 AD to the second coming of Christ so they cannot represent merely the nations of Western Europe.
The papacy has two stages of dominion, one in Europe during the 1260 years and the other in the whole world when the deadly wound is healed. The final fulfillment of the feet stage of the image is foretold in Revelation 17 when the kings of the earth will be of one mind for a short period of time.
The ten toes of the image reappear again in Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 but with a different symbolism. While in Daniel 2 the clay is added to the iron in the ten toes of the feet, in Daniel 7 the little horn arises among the ten horns of the fourth beast:
Ten toes ➡️Clay (religious power)
Ten horns ➡️Little horn (religious power)
The legs of iron and the ten toes of the image and the dragon beast and its ten horns represent the same political kingdoms. As the clay was radically different than the metals that preceded it, so this horn is radically different than the beasts and the horns that preceded it. The text clearly indicates that this horn leaned on the political power of the fourth beast to carry on activities that were religious in character.
🔹The Feet and Revelation 13
In Revelation 13 we once again see how the little horn combined the political power of Rome with religious activities. In Revelation 13:2 we are told that the dragon beast (the fourth beast of Daniel 7, the legs of iron in Daniel 2) gave its authority, throne and power to the beast (the little horn, the clay). The beast then carried on a religious warfare against God by blaspheming his name, His tabernacle and those who dwell in heaven. The beast also persecutes the saints. It is obvious that this was a religio-political power.
🔹The Feet and Revelation 17 and Daniel 7
The final fulfillment of the feet of the image is found in Revelation 17. In this chapter we once again encounter a beast that has ten horns. The ten horns are parallel the ten toes of the image and the ten horns of the beast in Daniel 7. But the ten horns in Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 represent the history of the church during the 1260 years (as denoted by the time periods in Daniel 7:25 and Revelation 13:5). The ten horns in Revelation 17 on the other hand will be fulfilled when the deadly wound of the beast is healed. In Revelation 17 the ten horns are universalized to include the kings of the earth and the whole world (Revelation 16:13, 14, 16; 17:2, 12, 13, 17; 13:3).
Revelation 17:1, 2: Presents the same mixture but with different symbols. The great harlot represents an apostate church. How did she become apostate? The answer is: By fornicating with the kings of the earth. Thus the mixture of the iron with the clay represents the same truth as the harlot fornicating with the kings of the earth.
🔹The Stone made without hands
A comparison of Daniel 2:34; 8:25 and 11:45 indicate that the expression ‘without hands’ means ‘without human intervention.’ In other words, the end of human history will be brought about by the supernatural irruption of God into human history.
1 Peter 2:6 says, "Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded."
Hebrews 9:11 says, "But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building."
Daniel Chapter 2 verse 44 to 49
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.
45 Forasmuch 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.
46 Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face, and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odours unto him.
47 The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret.
48 Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon.
49 Then Daniel requested of the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon: but Daniel sat in the gate of the king.
🔹God of heaven set up a kingdom
According to Daniel 7:14–27, this kingdom that God is about to establish is the eternal kingdom that the saints will rule over throughout the endless eras of eternity, not something that will be entrusted to other people. In the same way that the image is broken into pieces and consumed by a stone cut out without hands, so too does God wipe out the wicked from the face of the earth, and His dominion will eventually engulf the entire planet. Because of this, the wicked will be like chaff that the wind gathers to burn (Psalms 1:4, Matthew 3:12).
🔹King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face, and worshipped Daniel
The accuracy with which Daniel had described the dream and its interpretation astounded the king. Because his God could reveal this matter to him, he declares that the God of Daniel is a God of gods, a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets. Nebuchadnezzar experiences a brief period of conversion, but as we shall see in the following chapter, the seed that was sown in his heart will be choked by his own ego and ambition.
Daniel had numerous extraordinary gifts and was elevated to the position of ruler over the entire province of Babylon and all of the wise men living there. At the youthful age of 22, this occurred. However, take note that Daniel remembers his friends. He asks the monarch to put them in charge of the Babylonian kingdom's affairs. This demonstrates once more the selflessness of Daniel's virtuous existence.
Daniel's experience and Joseph's share several similarities. (Psalms 105:17–22)
Daniel's life demonstrates to us the value of standing up for what is right and frequently seeking the Lord's will in all that concerns us. Those who walk in obedience to God and submit to Him can receive blessings. Let us make an effort to walk closer to the Lord and humbly pursue His counsel.