1 Peter 2:4-10, Nebuchadnezzar Predicted Christ

 We see Jesus Christ in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.  The Stone is cut out of a mountain, as Christ came from the mass of humanity.  The Stone crushes the nations, as Christ shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel (Psa. 2:9).  The Stone becomes a great mountain that fills the earth, which is true of Jesus’ earthly kingdom.  Jesus is, of course, the stone the builders rejected which became the chief cornerstone (Ps. 118:22; Mt. 21:42; Acts 4:11; Eph. 2:20). 

The stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, indicating it is God’s doing.  Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation’ (Isa. 28:16). This stone is a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel (Isa. 8:14).  Peter brings all these important prophecies together in 1 Peter 2:6-8.

There are many attacks on the truth of this prophecy.  Some hold that the eternal kingdom that is established is the Church, or that it is a “spiritual” kingdom.  They also suggest that the image represents the evil world system in which we live, and that the system is gradually falling apart and that the church will become dominant.  But these views do not fit the dream of Nebuchadnezzar.  The dream uses much symbolism.  But the symbolism (e.g. the gold head) speaks of very real, earthly entities (e.g. the empire of Babylon).  And the stone cut out of the mountain does not eat away at the image; it suddenly and completely crushes it.  The future, final fulfillment of the prophecy must fit the various fulfillments that are already past.  As Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome were historical entities, so the future earthly reign of Christ will be an actual, earthly entity.

Some have questioned Daniel’s authenticity.  Some point to the supposed inaccuracy of the date in Dan. 2:1. We dealt with this previously (Day 3), showing that Daniel’s third year of training in Babylon was also Nebuchadnezzar’s second year as king.  Still others hold that the differing languages of Daniel (Hebrew and Aramaic) show that there were different authors.  Their ultimate purpose is to show that the prophecies of the coming kingdoms were the writing of a later author, one who was writing history rather than predicting where history would go.  The different languages actually confirm that Daniel was the human author.  He was a man who knew Hebrew, and who had a concern for his Israelite brethren; yet, he was a man who knew well the language of Nebuchadnezzar. 

This prophecy, and the others to come in Daniel, reveal to us the future plan of God for Israel and for the world.  They provide a powerful confirmation of the character of God, the word of God, and the Son of God.  As Isaiah spoke of God: Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure (Isa. 46:10).