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The student should be informed as to the occurrences of these expressions, "latter
days" and "hereafter" in the book of Daniel, and we therefore give them:--
Hereafter.
"What should come to pass hereafter" (2: 29).
"What shall come to pass hereafter" (2: 45).
"Another shall come after them" (7: 24).
Latter days.
"What shall be in the latter days" (2: 28).
"What shall be in the last end of the indignation" (8: 19).
"In the latter time of their kingdom" (8: 23).
"What shall befall thy people in the latter days" (10: 14).
"What shall be the end of these things?" (12: 8).
Daniel stood at the end of a long line of prophets, and the expressions "latter days"
and "last days" had a very clear meaning. Their use can be studied in Gen. 49: 1,
Numb. 24: 14, Deut. 4: 30, 8: 16, 31: 29, 32: 20, 29, Isa. 2: 2, Micah 4: 1,
and other passages.
Gentile dominion.
The succeeding kingdoms symbolized in the great image of Dan. 2: show a marked
depreciation. Gold gives place to silver, silver to brass (or copper), brass to iron, iron to
clay. Because we are far more likely to have handled a solid piece of lead than a bar of
gold, many of us would place lead as the heaviest of metals. This, however, would be
inaccurate, the specific gravity of lead being 11.4, whereas that of gold is as high as 19.3.
Gold is the heaviest metal mentioned in Dan. 2:, and it is of that metal that the head is
constructed, so that the image of Gentile dominion is top-heavy from the commencement.
This can be seen by observing the relative specific gravity of each material:--
Gold . . . . .
19.3
Silver . . . . .
10.51
Brass . . . . .
8.5 (Copper 8.78)
Iron . . . . .
7.6
Clay . . . . .
1.9
The arrangement of these metals in the structure of the image indicates depreciation
not only in weight, but also in the characteristics of the kingdom. The kingdom of which
Nebuchadnezzar was the head of gold was an absolute monarchy. Of him it could be
said, "Whom he would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive". The Medo-Persia
kingdom, represented by silver, was not absolute, as was Nebuchadnezzar's. Darius was
limited by the presidents and princes, and by his own laws "that could not be broken".
The Grecian kingdom of brass was a military kingdom, and consequently lower still in
the scale. We will not here speak of Rome, as we have not yet dealt with the question of
the fourth kingdom. We see enough, however, to realize that this prophetic image