Continued: Chapter I-The Chronological Suspension Bridge

We see from this lengthy quotation the full force of predictive prophecy. No man by human sagacity, insight, or profound study can forecast what will come in the future. If anyone thinks he can, let him try his hand on telling us what the map of Europe will be five years hence. Let him also give us a full picture, in detail, of the political situation which will exist there. As was stated in the quotation above, an impenetrable wall separates us from the future. No one can see through it except as he is enabled by the Spirit of God. Some, however, by the aid of the devil or evil spirits, can forecast, in a vague and distorted manner, certain things in the immediate future. But only men of God aided by the Holy Spirit and speaking in the name of the Lord God of Israel could reveal things in the distant future.

With these general statements before our minds, let us examine some of the predictions made by Daniel and ascertain whether or not his forecasts stand the acid test as set by Moses.

In Daniel 2 we have a record of a vision, given in a dream to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. When this monarch attempted to recall what he had seen, he was unable to do so. Hence he called in the Chaldeans and enchanters to reproduce the revelation and to interpret it for him. In their desperation they, being unable to make the vision known to the king, insisted that he was demanding of them things such as had never been required by any monarch. Thereupon the despot began to question their ability to do the things for which they made claims. Nevertheless, they protested the more vigorously against his exacting demands, for they declared there was "not a man upon the earth who could show the king the matter." Furthermore, they asserted that only the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh, could reveal the secret. In a fit of rage Nebuchadnezzar dismissed them and immediately issued an edict that all the wise men should be slain. Since Daniel had been educated as one of them, naturally he was sought as a victim of the decree.

When the proclamation was made known to Daniel, he, in the boldness of faith, went into the king's presence and asked that he be permitted to interpret the dream. This request being granted and a time being appointed for him to appear in the royal presence, he called a prayer meeting of his most intimate companions who sought most earnestly divine guidance. The Lord heard their cry and inspired Daniel to reveal to the king what had already been made known to him.

At the appointed time Daniel appeared before Nebuchadnezzar, reproduced the vision, and gave its interpretation (Dan. 2:31-45) :

"Thou, 0 king, sawest, and, behold, a great image. This image, which was mighty, and whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the aspect thereof was terrible. 32 As for this image, its head was of fine gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of brass, 33 its legs of iron, its 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 its feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them in pieces. 35 Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken in pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so 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, 0 king, art king of kings, unto whom the God of heaven hath given the kingdom, the power, and the strength, and the glory; 38 and wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the birds of the heavens hath he given into thy hand, and hath made thee to rule over them all: thou art the 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 crusheth all these, shall it break in pieces and crush. 41 And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom; 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 the 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 doth not mingle with clay. 44 And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall the sovereignty thereof be left to another people; but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. 45 Forasmuch as thou sawest that a 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."

According to verses 37 and 38 the head of gold of the image symbolized the Babylonian empire, of which Nebuchadnezzar was king. "Thou art the head of gold," said Daniel to the proud monarch. This statement is similar to the one made by Louis XIV, who declared, "I am the State"--he was the life of the empire. That this is the correct interpretation is seen from verse 39 which declares that "after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee." In the light of this fact it becomes apparent that the king and kingdom are here used interchangeably. In one instance, figuratively speaking, the spotlight is focused upon the sovereign, whereas in the other it is flashed over the entire realm.

To Nebuchadnezzar as king of Babylon the God of Heaven granted "the kingdom, the power, the strength, and the glory; and wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beast of the field and the birds of the heavens hath he given into thy hand, and hath made thee to rule over them all." This language can mean only one thing; namely, that God granted to Nebuchadnezzar authority over the entire world. "Did he ever take possession of his possession?" A glance at any reliable map of the ancient world for that period will show that he did not; but his failure along this line did not make null and void the grant which was made to him. In the spiritual realm God offers to every man peace and joy, comfort and freedom from worry, and deliverance from the ills of life; but how few men accept God and His gracious provisions in their fullest extent! The number is, I may say, infinitesimally small. But our lack of appropriating His gifts does not make null and void the fact of His having put them at our disposal. Such was the case with Nebuchadnezzar.

According to verse 39 there was to arise another kingdom inferior to Babylon. This was symbolized by the chest and arms of silver. As silver is of less value than gold, so the second empire was to be of an order lower than Babylon.

God withdrew the authority and power which He gave to Nebuchadnezzar when Babylon could no longer serve his purpose and conferred it upon another kingdom which was inferior to it. This government incorporated all the territory which Babylon had occupied and appropriated its civilization. Not only did its kings do this, but they extended the borders of their empire far beyond that of Babylon. In the process of time this second kingdom ceased to function in a way that it could advance God's plan of the ages. Hence in due process of time He withdrew this delegated authority from it and, as is also indicated in verse 39, transferred it to a third kingdom.

This empire was symbolized by the belly of brass. To it the Lord, in like manner, gave authority to rule over all the earth. When it ceased to be usable in advancing the divine plan among men, He set it aside. Withdrawing this authority, He conferred it upon a fourth race of peoples. This is seen in verses 40 and 41. The same world dominion was granted to them, which had been given at first to Babylon; but they, like their predecessors, did not appropriate the full grant of power which had been put at their disposal. This fourth kingdom was symbolized by the legs, feet, and toes of the image. Just as the arms and the chest indicated the dual nature of the second empire, thus the two legs signified the twofold division of the fourth kingdom. According to verse 41 we see that the ten toes signified a further division of this last empire into ten sections at the end of its career.

Unlike the three former metals, the legs were of iron, whereas the feet and the toes were of iron and miry or brittle clay. The iron, according to Daniel's interpretation, signified strength and power such as none of the preceding empires enjoyed. In the foot-and-toe stage, however, there is an element of weakness, which is indicated by the miry or brittle clay.

King Nebuchadnezzar had a right to understand from Daniel's interpretation of the dream that the fourth kingdom would be divided as indicated by the legs, and that it would continue in this dual form throughout its entire existence until it reached the stage signified by the ten toes. There was no break in the legs; they continued from the torso downward to the feet. The only logical conclusion which Nebuchadnezzar or any of his contemporaries could gather from such a presentation was that this kingdom would continue to exist in this dual form from the time of its division until it reaches the ten-toe stage. They would reason something like this: The head of gold signifies a real visible, tangible, organic empire. The same is to be true of the second and third kingdoms. Accepting the revelation of God at its face value, they would also conclude that the same thing would be true with reference to the fourth. It would, according to the representation, arise after the third, separate into two sections, and finally in its last stage subdivide into ten parts.

Thus far in this discussion we have seen the divine interpretation of the facts of the vision. It is now for us to trace its historical fulfilment.

All conservative scholars, so far as I know, are agreed in understanding that the head of gold symbolized the Babylonian kingdom, of which Nebuchadnezzar was the absolute sovereign. This vision was granted to him in the second year of his reign, which was 603 B.C.E. The Babylonian exile of the Hebrews, as we shall see later, began the year before Nebuchadnezzar came to power and continued for 70 years. At the expiration of that period the Medes and the Persians overthrew the Babylonian empire and incorporated it into their expanding kingdom. As was indicated by the arms, the second empire was of a dual form. At the beginning the Median element seemed to be predominant, but, upon the death of Darius the Mede, Cyrus the Persian gained the ascendancy. Nevertheless, it was still a dual monarchy. It held sway under God as long as it fitted into and carried forward the plans of the Almighty. When, however, it abused its power, God withdrew this authority and transferred it to the Greeks, who in turn fitted into the divine plan and extended their borders far beyond those of the Medes and the Persians. Like their predecessors they finally began to abuse these divinely bestowed prerogatives. Thereupon God, in the due process of time, withdrew this delegated authority and conferred it upon the Romans.

Rome, according to the usual reckoning, was founded in 754 or 753 B.C.E. and gradually grew into a world empire. At the proper time, she overcame the Greeks and swallowed up their civilization. The world-wide authority which was first conferred upon Nebuchadnezzar was at last passed on to the Romans. Like their predecessors in receiving this divine authority of universal dominion, they failed signally in appropriating all that was granted them. Nevertheless, they extended their boundaries beyond that of any of the former kingdoms.

According to the metallic image the fourth kingdom was to be divided as indicated by the legs. Rome entered this stage of her career in 285 C.E. when Diocletian divided the empire into the two sections--the eastern and the western--and appointed a colleague in the administration of the empire. The capital in the West was at Rome on the Tiber, and that of the eastern division was at Byzantium on the Bosphorus, which was later re-named Constantinople. This dual political set-up, as we shall see, has continued through the centuries to the present day.

Assuming that the image was facing northward, we would say that the right leg symbolized the eastern half of the empire, and the left, the western. The right remained intact and functioned properly until 1453 C.E. At that time it was overrun by the Ottoman Turks. Constantinople was captured. The government collapsed and the empire fell into the hands of its conquerors, who reared upon its ruins a vast and mighty kingdom, which shone forth in splendor for about a century.

Frequently that which seems to be a calamity proves to be otherwise. There is seldom an unmitigated evil. In many instances, however, the bad results overshadow the good. Frequently losses in a certain realm are sustained and at the same time gains are made in others. Thus by the fall of the eastern half of the empire the great culture and civilization that had centered in Constantinople were scattered throughout western Europe. The fleeing exiles, therefore, carried their culture, civilization, ideals, religion, and institutions with them. They could not overthrow the established order, but they did wield a mighty influence. That which seemed to be a great calamity proved in many ways to be a real blessing, so far as the West was concerned. Seeds were sown which grew and developed into the Renaissance and Reformation.

The continuity of any variety of plant is carried in the seed. Everything produces after its kind. If one should compare the Byzantine Empire to a tree yielding its fruit according to its kind, he might think of the refugees--especially the outstanding leaders--as the seed of the fruit borne by this tree. After its destruction the most virile seed was borne northward--the leaders went into Russia. They carried with them their civilization, culture, and ideals together with their religion and finally influenced the native population who adopted this type of civilization--political, religious, and cultural. Thus there sprang up on Russian soil an empire that was the duplicate of that which had existed at Constantinople for about eleven centuries. A close study of the old Byzantine regime and a comparison of it with the Russian political institutions reveal the fact that they were similar. They were related as father and son. During the Czaristic regime the Russians, being more or less largely under the influence of the Church, accepted the authority of the Patriarch at Constantinople. They, recognizing the continuity binding the modern state with the Byzantine Empire, called their ruler "Czar," which is "Caesar" spelled in Russian. Thus the empire which collapsed in Constantinople in 1453 came up again in renewed vigor and power on Russian soil. This is what one would expect; that is, the continuity of the type of government, culture, and civilization.

The legs of the image, presented to Nebuchadnezzar and Daniel, continued from the trunk to the feet and toes. This fact, as has already been noted, indicated the existence of the two divisions of the Roman Empire through the centuries. The continuity depended not upon territorial boundaries, but upon the persistency of the type of government, culture, and civilization--a species of the Caesarian imperialism with mastery over its subjects in all departments of life. From these facts we have a right to believe that Rome in the East would continue through the centuries.

With the shifting of the center of political gravity from time to time there were sometimes the contraction and at others the expansion of borders. Nevertheless, during the time of these multitudinous changes, the original type of imperialism with its special culture and civilization has stubbornly persisted. This is that which was symbolized by the iron constituting the legs.

On the other hand, the fortunes of the empire in the West have been somewhat different. Nevertheless there is a great similarity, because history repeats itself. Under the great avalanche of the Teutonic hordes the western division went down in 476 C.E. Chaos was the order of the day. Although there was no central government as had existed prior to that crisis, nevertheless the same type of civilization, culture, institutions, ideals, and outlook prevailed in the midst of all of the wreckage.

"When the storm was over and the various German tribes had settled down, they began to build up smaller national governments on the ruins of the old imperial government. The Franks took over Gaul and ultimately gave their name to the country of France. The West Goths set up an extensive kingdom in Spain, the Vandals in North Africa and the islands of the western Mediterranean, the Lombards in northern Italy and less important tribes in other sections.

"The first effects of this great invasion seemed to be disastrous, but the German masters soon began to accept from their conquered subjects both civilization and religion. The subjects conquered their masters in an intellectual and spiritual way, and a process of assimilation soon began which ultimately formed a new basis for the life of all western Europe."

The same historian, in speaking of the events of the eighth century as they transpired in the West, summed up the situation in the following words: "After a time the Franks began to unite the political fragments of the West again by extending their sway over much of the territory that had once composed the western part of the Roman empire. As their dominions extended dreams of reviving the empire began to haunt the Frankish mind. These ambitions embodied themselves in Charlemagne. To his title as King of the Franks he added King of Italy in 773 when he overthrew the Lombards and established his own sway over northern Italy as far south as the Papal State. Finally on Christmas day 800, while he was kneeling in worship at the grave of St. Peter in Rome the pope suddenly advanced and placed upon his head the imperial crown, thus restoring the empire in the West and constituting Charlemagne emperor."

Charlemagne advanced in power, extended his borders, and finally incorporated much of that which had formerly been the empire in the West. He called his government the Holy Roman Empire of the Frankish Nation. This was the correct title, because it was but the old type of civilization and imperialism which had been destroyed in 476.

The Holy Roman Empire of the Frankish Nation was short-lived, for, about 963 C. E., Ottho the Great with his Germanic hordes overran and conquered it. They immediately adopted the culture of their victims and romanized their own civilization, annexing the territory of the vanquished. From that time forward the leading prince among the Germanic states thought of himself as the successor of the ancient Caesars; hence, he became known as Kaiser (Caesar spelled in German). A study of the institutions, culture, and civilization of the Germans and a comparison of them with that of the ancient Roman Empire reveal the fact that they also are two of a kind. They, likewise, stand in their relations as a father does to the son; hence there was a perpetuity of the type of government and civilization. In this instance, therefore, history was in conformity with that which was signified by the legs of the image.

From this rather rough and brief, yet accurate, survey of the political fortunes which overtook the two divisions of the Roman empire during the centuries, we can see that the historical facts correspond exactly to that which was foreshadowed by the legs of the metallic image. Speaking in a figure I would say that the right leg of the image was broken in 1453 C.E., but was healed when the same type of government, which had been at Constantinople, sprang up on Russian soil. Through the vicissitudes of time many changes have taken place. Choosing a figure drawn from the physical realm, I would say that the center of political gravity, which had been at Constantinople, was first shifted to Kief, then to Moscow, next to Leningrad, and finally back to Moscow. Nevertheless, the same type of imperialism has continued through the centuries as manifested in the government functioning in these various places. The same thing was true with reference to the fortunes and vicissitudes of the Empire in the West. The center of political gravity was, as seen above, centered at Rome on the Tiber; next, it was shifted to Frankish territory; and finally to Germanic soil, where it has persisted until the present time.

To show that Rome has continued through the centuries as signified by the legs of the image, I wish to draw a parallel between this situation and the United States of America. Today if one is asked, "Who was the first president of the "United States?", he replies, "George Washington." To the question, "What is the capital of the United States?" the answer is, "Washington, D.C." If one is asked if California is a part of the United States, he answers in the affirmative. All of these replies are absolutely correct, and yet an explanation must be made in order to set forth the truth as it has been. Washington, D. C., is the present capital, but it was not the original one. As we know from history, the first capital was in New Amsterdam, which is the present city of New York. Later the center of political gravity was shifted from there to Philadelphia and still later to the site upon the Potomac now known as Washington, D. C.

George Washington was the first president of the thirteen original colonies on the Atlantic seaboard, but he was not the chief executive of America as it how is. Since his day there has been an enormous expansion of this country until it has extended its borders to the Pacific. In addition to this it has several island possessions. Franklin D. Roosevelt is the president of America as it is today.

We shall imagine something that every true American would hate to see. I am using this simple illustration, however, to set forth a point that is vital to the understanding of this prophecy. Let us suppose that some European power should attack the Atlantic seaboard of the United States. Needless to say the government would send its forces there to oppose the invader. But in this hypothetical war we will assume that the aggressor is victorious on all battlefields and pushes our armies backward into the interior. Before their advancing march, the capital would be moved westward. All government documents and appurtenances would be carried to the new capital. Further, let us suppose that the enemy pushes our forces beyond the western boundaries of the thirteen original colonies. Under those conditions the capital would be moved still farther westward. Finally, it would become apparent that our forces could not check the enemy's onward march. In this crisis the government calls for an armistice. Hostilities cease. A conference is arranged. Delegates gather around the table for the discussion of peace. The enemy demands as an indemnity of the war, we shall say, all the territory that constituted the thirteen original colonies. Being vanquished, our government accepts the terms and surrenders the territory demanded. The officials of the government continue to function in the new capital, which, for clearness, let us suppose, is Kansas City, Mo. This country and government would still be known by all as the United States of America, although it would not hold one foot of the original soil where it came into being. It would truly be the United States of America because it had an unbroken connection with the past. It would consist of people of the same stock and race, with the same constitution, type of government, culture, ideals, and outlook upon life. No one can fail to see the correctness of this statement. In the language used above, the center of political gravity which was first located at New Amsterdam was later shifted to Philadelphia, next to Washington and gradually westward until it would be headed up at Kansas City. From this illustration we can see that the continuity of the government is not conditioned upon locality, but simply upon the type of administration, institutions, culture, and civilization. This illustration may be used as parallel to that of Rome, both in the East and the West. The type persisted, as was foreshadowed by the legs, although the center of political gravity was shifted northward in both cases with varying changes of borders--sometimes contraction and sometimes expansion.

When Rome reaches the foot-stage, a new element is introduced into it, which is symbolized by the non-cohesive, brittle clay. Undoubtedly the iron symbolizes a powerful government. Since the miry clay lacks cohesion, it evidently signifies the weaknesses of a degenerate democracy carried to the extreme of socialism, communism, and the like.

This fourth kingdom is to be in a tenfold form at the very end of its career, which fact is signified by the ten toes. Many commentators, ignoring the time element of the prediction, have sought to locate and to identify these political divisions. They hunt for five of them in the territory which constituted the western division of the empire and five in that of the East. Of course, the assumption is that the fourth kingdom has already reached the toe-stage. These commentators presume that the territory which was occupied by the two divisions of the empire in its palmy days of the past are signified by the ten toes. But none of these scholars are in perfect agreement. There is, in my judgment, a reason for these conflicting views, which is that Rome has never yet reached the toe-stage. Hence it is utterly impossible for one to identify them.

To show that Rome has never reached this development, may I call attention to our method of representing time? Speakers often compare it to a journey or a stream. In the figure of a journey, the beginning signifies the first part of the period; the middle represents the central portion; likewise the end corresponds to the close of the period. In comparing time to a stream, the source of the latter corresponds to the beginning of the period. The central part answers to the middle, and the mouth of the river, to the close of the epoch. Such are our usual representations. The Lord's symbolic presentation of a given era was this metallic image. In our imagination let us think in terms of these usual figures and at the same time place this image along beside the journey and the stream. The head of gold corresponds to the source of the river and the start of the journey. The hips and thighs answer to the middle point of the river and the halfway place in the journey. The toes, in like manner, correspond to the end of the journey and the mouth of the river. About this analogy there can be no question. To prophetic students it is evident that at the present time we have not reached the end of this period which is here set forth by the metallic image, the reason for this assertion being that at its close God, in a most catastrophic manner, sets up His glorious government which shall be an everlasting kingdom. In view of these cogent reasons I am bold to say that we have never yet reached the stage in the Roman empire symbolized by the toes. Hence, in my opinion, to attempt an identification of these ten political divisions is but speculation and guessing. Such is profitable for nothing; it causes confusion only.

At the end of this period of world governments symbolized by the image, God will establish the Messianic kingdom as set forth in Daniel 2:44. That event is indicated by the falling of the little stone, cut out from the mountains without hands, which, rolling down the mountainside, accelerates its speed and finally by a mighty impact with the image reduces it to mere bits like the chaff of the summer threshing floor. These fragments are removed as if by the wind. Then the little stone becomes a mountain that fills the whole earth.

According to this verse God establishes this glorious kingdom "in the days of those kings." An examination of the preceding verses shows that the kings of which he is speaking can be none other than those represented by the ten toes. We may, therefore, know of a certainty that it is impossible at this time to identify the political divisions signified by the toes.

In Daniel 2:1 we see that this vision was shown to Nebuchadnezzar in the second year of his reign. Since he reigned 43 years, he lived 41 after seeing this vision. Let us, at this stage of the investigation, accept the record at its face value. Daniel looked out into the future farther than "human eye could see" and observed all the wonders that would be. It was revealed to him that the Babylonian empire would continue for 68 more years and would be succeeded by a dual monarchy, the Medo-Persian empire. No living man at that time could have, by guessing and cold calculation, foretold this fact. There is but one explanation, which is that the writer was inspired by the Spirit to penetrate the wall separating him from the future and to reveal to him what would come to pass thereafter. As we have already seen, he was shown that another empire inferior to that of the Medes and the Persians would arise. After them there would appear another kingdom of iron symbolized by the legs of the image. Since we accept the face meaning of this passage, we see that Daniel looked out into the future from the years 603 B.C.E. to the year 285 C.E. and foretold the division of the Roman empire into the eastern and western sections. Was it possible by mere guessing to penetrate into the future and tell the world what would occur nearly 900 years in the distant future? Everyone will admit that such is unthinkable. Only by the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit could anyone thus see into the future and reveal accurately what would come to pass.

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