Diving into Daniel: Daniel Describes the Dream
Daniel 2:25-35; Many other passages - Throughout scripture, there has been a clear identification of Jesus as the Stone.
“Then Arioch hurriedly brought Daniel into the king’s presence and spoke to him as follows: “I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can make the interpretation known to the king!” The king said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen and its interpretation?”
Daniel answered before the king and said, “As for the mystery about which the king has inquired, neither wise men, conjurers, magicians nor diviners are able to declare it to the king. However, there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the latter days. This was your dream and the visions in your mind while on your bed. As for you, O king, while on your bed your thoughts turned to what would take place in the future; and He who reveals mysteries has made known to you what will take place. But as for me, this mystery has not been revealed to me for any wisdom residing in me more than in any other living man, but for the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king, and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind.
“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. The head of that statue was made of fine gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 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. 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.”
Daniel 2:25-35 NASB1995
Arioch hurries and brings Daniel before the king. He declares to the king that this man, an exile from Judah, can describe the dream and interpret it. The king looks at Daniel (Belteshazzar) and questions him about if he is able to tell the king the content of the dream and then interpret it.
Daniel waits until the king addresses him and he tells the king that no wise man, conjurer, magician or diviner could declare the answer to this mystery. Only God in heaven can reveal these mysteries and He has chosen to make known to Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the latter days (in the future). God saw that Nebuchadnezzar was trying to look into the future with his thoughts as he was lying on his bed before going to sleep.
Daniel’s humility is on display here, when he says that the mystery was not revealed to him due to any wisdom residing in himself that is more than any other man, but was revealed for the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king so that the king could understand his own thoughts. According to Bible scholar Donald Campbell, quoted in Precept Austin, the supernatural character of the Bible has a great deal to say about the future to believers:
Because the Bible is a supernatural book, it can, and does, have a great deal to say about the future. And this should give comfort and security to the believer in contrast to the unbeliever who "bites his nails" and wonders how things will turn out. Two men were listening to a delayed broadcast of their school's crucial basketball game against a rival university. Suddenly one of them said, "Why am I so nervous? I know how it comes out." To which his friend replied, "Now you know how God must feel when we fret and get so depressed." After all, He knows how it comes out!
We know the ending of the book because of Him and believers should be joyful and anticipatory, as the ending (and eternity) is good!
Drawing of the statue and the stone found in an internet search - artist unknown.
Daniel now describes the dream.
The king saw (beheld) a splendid statue of a man. The statue was right in front of the king and had a head that was made of fine gold, its chest and arms were made of silver, the belly and thighs were made of bronze, the legs were made of iron, and the feet were made of a mixture of iron and clay. While the king is viewing this statue, a stone not cut with human hands struck the statue on the feet of iron and clay and crushed them. The rest of the statue is also crushed and becomes like chaff from the threshing floors of wheat. These particles are carried away so that not a trace is found, but the stone then becomes a great mountain that fills the earth. Note that the most fragile material in the statue is in the part that should be the strongest (the feet).
The main interpretation of this dream provided to Daniel is the subject of the next devotional, but there’s a lot to discuss in this symbolism even before we get to that next part. Most of that symbolism is about the stone itself. Most Biblical scholars agree that the stone is the Messiah (it is not the church). This is an abrupt, destructive process from the stone in the dream that requires more analysis as part of the interpretation, but the reference to the Stone is embedded in scripture everywhere. I found an interesting list in Precept Austin of the various ways Christ is described as a Stone, so here are the Biblical passages that are referenced in that source:
Christ as the Stone Filled with the Spiritual Water of Life
“Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.”
Exodus 17:6 NASB1995
“and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.”
1 Corinthians 10:4 NASB1995
“Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.””
John 4:13-14 NASB1995
“Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’ ””
John 7:37-38 NASB1995
“The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.”
Revelation 22:17 NASB1995
Christ as the Stumbling Stone
“and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense”; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.”
1 Peter 2:8 NASB1995
“Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written, “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.””
Romans 9:32-33 NASB1995
“but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
1 Corinthians 1:23-24 NASB1995
Christ as the Cornerstone
“For this is contained in Scripture: “Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious corner stone, And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.””
1 Peter 2:6 NASB1995
“having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord,”
Ephesians 2:20-21 NASB1995
“According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work.”
1 Corinthians 3:10-13 NASB1995
Christ as the Stone Cut Without Hands
“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 2:34 NASB1995
Christ as the Capstone
“‘What are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become a plain; and he will bring forth the top stone with shouts of “Grace, grace to it!” ’ ””
Zechariah 4:7 NASB1995
Christ as the Crushing Stone of Judgment
“Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it. And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.””
Matthew 21:43-44 NASB1995
Enduring Word references four other OT scriptures describing Christ as the Stone:
“The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief corner stone.”
Psalms 118:22 NASB1995
“Then He shall become a sanctuary; But to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over, And a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”
Isaiah 8:14 NASB1995
“Therefore thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed.”
Isaiah 28:16 NASB1995
“For behold, the stone that I have set before Joshua; on one stone are seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave an inscription on it,’ declares the Lord of hosts, ‘and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.”
Zechariah 3:9 NASB1995
So how does this stone that was not cut with hands relate to the various parts of the statue that Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream? My next devotional examines Daniel’s God-provided interpretation of the dream; this results in great humility (for the moment) by Nebuchadnezzar and great rewards for Daniel (Daniel 2:36-49).
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - Only through careful study of Your Word can we begin to see the threads and patterns and common references (like stones) that permeate that beautiful Word. Jesus is the cornerstone! Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Precept Austin was accessed on 3/25/2025 to review commentary for Daniel 2:25-35.
Commentary from Enduring Word by David Guzik is used with written permission.