What Significance does a Reborn Israel play in Bible Prophecy?
The Prophetic Dream of Nebuchadnezzar, Chaldean King of Babylon
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Understanding Bible Prophecy - Daniel Chapter 2
The Times of the Gentiles - Certain Rulers of the Nation of Israel
March 31, 2018
"... but the wise shall understand" (Daniel 12:10 KJV)
"For I would
not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be
wise in your own conceits;
that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles
be come in" (Romans
11:25 KJV)
The year is 604 B.C. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon awakens after a disturbing dream. The dream was so disturbing that he hardly slept during the night. So he calls on his astrologers and demands that they not only interpret the dream but they are to tell him what the dream was! And if they can't tell him the dream and its interpretation, King Nebuchadnezzar is going to have them killed! Nebuchadnezzar wants to make sure that they tell him the truth and demonstrate proof of their powers by identifying the dream.
Certainly Nebuchadnezzar's demand was humanly impossible. But what is impossible with man is possible with God. Daniel inquires of God what the dream was and the interpretation thereof. Nebuchadnezzar grants Daniel an audience with the King and hears an amazing story.
God has chosen to reveal a staggering mystery to Nebuchadnezzar: God is showing him the future starting from the then-present time (604 B.C.) unto the End of the Age (the not-too-distant future). Now it is important to note that God does not reveal all nations that will exist throughout history. Rather, He reveals those nations significant in His plans for Israel, the Messiah Jesus Christ, and the final battle of the Ages known as Armageddon.
Here again, God is revealing and authenticating His Deity by revealing the future accurately before the future occurs. In fact, the events recorded in Daniel as so accurate that many non-believers have tried to date the Book of Daniel over 400 years later, after the events took place! This of course is incorrect and negates the startling and 100% accurate prophecies given by the Almighty God through His angels to Daniel.
Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar that his dream was that of a metal man. The metal man had a head of GOLD, chest and arms of SILVER, waist and thighs of BRONZE, legs of IRON, and feet of IRON and CLAY. Notice that the metals decrease in value from precious, expensive and rare to ordinary, cheap and plentiful. Notice also that the metals increase in hardness from soft and malleable to hard and brittle.
The five partitions of metal represented are very significant to Bible prophecy. God is revealing that there are five Gentile Kingdoms that will rule over Israel. At least two important lessons are to be learned by this prophecy: 1) Israel can expect to be ruled by several kingdoms and 2) the world can gauge "what time it is" in God's prophetic clock by observing the Nation of Israel.
Of extreme significance is the absence of any reference to the Christian Church. Why? Because the Christian Church was a mystery not to be revealed to the Nation of Israel until a later date. This is reinforced later in Daniel when an Angel of God confirms that the prophecies are for Daniel's people (the Jews) and Daniel's Holy City (Jerusalem). Therefore, it is very important to understand these prophecies in the context of the Nation of Israel.
What are the five Gentile kingdoms that have ruled / will rule the Nation of Israel? They are easy to identify:
| # | Gentile Kingdom | Image Symbol | Reign over Israel |  |
| 1 | Babylon* | Head of GOLD | 625 B.C. TO 539 B.C. | |
| 2 | Medo-Persia* | Chest and Arms of SILVER | 539 B.C. TO 331 B.C. | |
| 3 | Greece | Waist and Thighs of BRONZE | 331 B.C. TO 164 B.C.* | |
| 4 | Rome | Legs of IRON | 164 B.C. - 70 A.D. | |
| Rise
of Church,
Decline of Israel |
(Not represented in image) | 32 A.D. - 70 A.D.* | ||
| (Church Age) | (Not represented in image) | 32 A.D. - Present* | ||
| Rise
of Israel,
Decline of Church |
(Not represented in image) | 1948 - Future* | ||
| 5 | Antichrist | Feet of IRON and CLAY | 7 Future Years* |
| Notes |
| *Ancient Babylon was located where modern-day Iraq is now |
| *Medo-Persian empire ruled by Darius the Mede / Cyrus of Persia |
| *Alexander the Great's general's (Ptolemy, Lysimachus, Cassander and Seleucus) descendants Reign |
| *Israel's temporary blindness to Gospel of Jesus Christ will cease at end of Church Age (Romans 11:25-29) |
| *The Church, beginning at the Resurrection of Christ in 32 A.D., does NOT reign over Israel |
| *The 7 Future Years do not begin until after the Church Age has ended and the focus is on Israel |
As we now know, four of these kingdoms have come and gone. And we know that Israel was destroyed by the Roman Emperor Titus Vespasian in 70 A.D. Israel was scattered to all the nations of the world; just as prophesied by God. And now, in the 20th century, we have seen the rebirth of Israel as an independent nation in 1948. This is highly significant in light of Romans 11:25-29. Israel had not been in control of their Holy City Jerusalem, as an independent nation, since 586 B.C. After 2552 years, Israel recaptured the city of Jerusalem in 1967 during the Six-Day War. The Vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is fertile again and the Fig Tree is putting forth her leaves.
What application does this have to modern man? We must recognize that the Church Age is winding down. Soon, the fifth and final Gentile kingdom to rule over the Nation of Israel will arise. It is this fifth and final Gentile kingdom that Jesus Christ destroys when He returns to Earth at the Battle of Armageddon.
Click Here for More Information - "Babylon in Bible Prophecy is Not Iraq"
Click Here for More Information - "Iraq, World Events and Armageddon"
Click Here for More Information - "The Beast of Revelation 13"
Click Here for More Information - "Petra: Israel's Great Tribulation Refuge"
Nebuchadnezzar Dream images courtesy of artist Duncan Long - Used by Permission
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