Codes for Christian Living

The Dream Is Certain

In Daniel’s own words, “The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure” (Daniel 2:45). When this confederation of nations arising primarily out of the old Roman Empire emerges on the world scene, this stone—“cut out... without hands” (v. 45)—from Daniel’s interpretation of the king’s dream comes out of heaven and strikes the statue at its feet, bringing it to the ground. The statue crumbles, indicating the virtual end of the world as we know it. Then the stone grows into a great mountain and fills the earth, representing the coming kingdom of our Lord that will be universal and will stand forever!

Who is represented by this stone? On this point the Scriptures speak clearly. The psalmist wrote, “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone” (Psalm 118:22). The prophet Isaiah said, “He will be as a sanctuary, but a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel” (Isaiah 8:14). To Israel, the Lord Jesus Christ was a “stone of stumbling.” Israel was looking for a political messiah to free them from Roman rule and oppression, but Jesus came the first time as a suffering Servant and riding on a donkey, not a white stallion. The cornerstone of God’s plan for salvation, Jesus was outright rejected by the Jewish builders. Matthew recorded Jesus’ repetition of the words of the psalmist: “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone” (Matthew 21:42). Then Jesus Himself prophesied, “On whomever this stone falls it will grind him to powder” (v. 44). Who is this stone in Daniel 2:34? It is none other than Jesus Christ Himself.

Then Daniel got specific: this stone was “cut out without hands” (Daniel 2:34). That is, it was supernatural in its origin. Neither human hands nor human means brought it into existence. We New Testament believers know that Jesus was there before “the beginning” (John 1:1–2, 14) and that when He came to earth, He clothed Himself in human flesh. No human made that happen: Jesus was miraculously born of a virgin. This stone in the king’s dream is the Lord Jesus—and He is the only hope of all of human history.

Content drawn from The Daniel Code: Living Out Truth in a Culture That Is Losing Its Way.