Then Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to execute the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, “Do not execute the wise men of Babylon. Take me to the king, and I will interpret his dream for him.”
Arioch took Daniel to the king at once and said, “I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can tell the king what his dream means.” Daniel 2:24-25
Arioch did not execute the wise men of Babylon, but immediately took Daniel before the king.
DANIEL STANDS BEFORE NEBUCHADNEZZAR
The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar), “Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and interpret it?”
Daniel replied, “No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come. Daniel 2:26-28a
No nation in ancient times was so obsessed with the study of the stars of heaven and to the prediction of the future as were the Chaldeans. Daniel gives all the glory to God who has revealed the future to King Nebuchadnezzar in a dream.
WHAT WENT THROUGH THE KING’S MIND
Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind as you were lying in bed are these:
“As Your Majesty was lying there, your mind turned to things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed you what is going to happen. As for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because I have greater wisdom than anyone else alive, but so that Your Majesty may know the interpretation and that you may understand what went through your mind. Daniel 2:28b-30
Daniel’s righteous character is evidenced as he explains that, it is not because of his wisdom that he knows and can interpret the king’s dream, but because God the revealer of mysteries wants the king to know the interpretation.
AN ENORMOUS , DAZZLING STATUE
“Your Majesty looked, and there before you stood a large statue—an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were all broken to pieces and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth. Daniel 2:31-35
The enormous and dazzling statue that the king saw in his dream was made of four metals from its gold head to its feet of mingled iron and clay. The head of gold was the most valuable of the metals followed by silver, bronze and iron which decreased in value. A rock that was cut out supernaturally (not by human hands) broke the statue into pieces that were swept away by the wind. The rock that struck the statue became a mountain that filled the entire earth.