Daniel 2:34
in Daniel 2As you watched, a stone was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay, and crushed them.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
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.
KJV
Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.
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This verse in Daniel 2
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThe thing is, I think, a dark saying, a shadow of what should come. For what is the stone that is laid but Christ Himself? for of Him Isaiah says, "And I will lay in the foundations of Sion a costly stone, precious, elect:" and Daniel likewise, "A stone was cut out without hands," that is, Christ was born without a man.
This site's exposition
a stone was cut out without hands
on Daniel 2:34-36
The stone cut out without hands strikes precisely where the image is weakest, the feet of iron and clay, and the whole structure breaks together and blows away like chaff, no trace remaining, while the stone itself becomes a great mountain and fills the whole earth. The older writers, Henry among them, read the stone Christologically, a kingdom not built by any human hand set against every kingdom that is; the reading is carried here with its holders rather than pressed as the only one the verse allows, though the site's own tradition stands with it. The totality of the image's destruction, no place was found for them, is the detail the bench marks against every reading that would let one of the old empires simply continue under a new name.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands,.... Or, "wast seeing" (e); the king continued looking upon the image that stood before him, as he thought, as long as he could see it, till he saw a "stone": an emblem of the Messiah, as it often is in Scripture, Gen 49:24, because of his strength, firmness, and duration; and so it is interpreted here by many Jewish writers, ancient and modern, as well as by Christians; and also of his kingdom, or of him in his kingly office; see Dan 2:
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A stone was cut out - The fifth monarchy; the spiritual kingdom of the Lord Jesus, which is to last for ever, and diffuse itself over the whole earth.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
As the fourth kingdom, or Rome, was represented in a twofold state, first strong, with legs of iron, then weak, with toes part of iron, part of clay; so this fifth kingdom, that of Christ, is seen conversely, first insignificant as a "stone," then as a "mountain" filling the whole earth.
The words behind it
18 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| חָזֵ֣ה | chazeh | seeing | H2370 → | 31 times |
| הֲוַ֗יְתָ | havayta | you were | H1934 → | 71 times |
| עַ֠ד | ʾad | until | H5705 → | 35 times |
| דִּ֣י | di | that | H1768 → | 345 times |
| הִתְגְּזֶ֤רֶת | hitgezeret | it was cut out | H1505 → | 6 times |
| אֶ֙בֶן֙ | ʾeven | a stone | H69 → | 8 times |
| דִּי־ | di- | which | H1768 → | 345 times |
| לָ֣א | la' | not | H3809 → | 82 times |
| בִידַ֔יִן | vidayin | [was] by hands | H3028 → | 17 times |
| וּמְחָ֤ת | umechat | and it struck | H4223 → | 4 times |
| לְצַלְמָא֙ | letzalma' | <obj.> image the | H6755 → | 17 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5922 → | 104 times |
| רַגְל֔וֹהִי | raglohi | feet its | H7271 → | 7 times |
| דִּ֥י | di | of | H1768 → | 345 times |
| פַרְזְלָ֖א | farzela' | iron the | H6523 → | 20 times |
| וְחַסְפָּ֑א | vechaspa' | and clay the | H2635 → | 9 times |
| וְהַדֵּ֖קֶת | vehadeket | and it shattered | H1855 → | 10 times |
| הִמּֽוֹן׃ | himon | them | H1994 → | 12 times |
חָזֵ֣הseeing
chazehH2370 →31 times
הֲוַ֗יְתָyou were
havaytaH1934 →71 times
עַ֠דuntil
ʾadH5705 →35 times
דִּ֣יthat
diH1768 →345 times
הִתְגְּזֶ֤רֶתit was cut out
hitgezeretH1505 →6 times
אֶ֙בֶן֙a stone
ʾevenH69 →8 times
דִּי־which
di-H1768 →345 times
לָ֣אnot
la'H3809 →82 times
בִידַ֔יִן[was] by hands
vidayinH3028 →17 times
וּמְחָ֤תand it struck
umechatH4223 →4 times
לְצַלְמָא֙<obj.> image the
letzalma'H6755 →17 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5922 →104 times
רַגְל֔וֹהִיfeet its
raglohiH7271 →7 times
דִּ֥יof
diH1768 →345 times
פַרְזְלָ֖אiron the
farzela'H6523 →20 times
וְחַסְפָּ֑אand clay the
vechaspa'H2635 →9 times
וְהַדֵּ֖קֶתand it shattered
vehadeketH1855 →10 times
הִמּֽוֹן׃them
himonH1994 →12 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Zechariah 4:6So he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of Hosts.
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 32:7–8
“Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged before the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater One with us than with him.
- 2 Corinthians 10:4–5
The weapons of our warfare are not the weapons of the world. Instead, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
- 1 Corinthians 2:4–5
My message and my preaching were not with persuasive words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power,
- Psalms 33:16
No king is saved by his vast army; no warrior is delivered by his great strength.
- Isaiah 11:2–4
The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and strength, the Spirit of knowledge and fear of the LORD.
- 2 Chronicles 32:7–8
Through
Daniel 7:27Then the sovereignty, dominion, and greatness of the kingdoms under all of heaven will be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all…
it leads to
- Psalms 72:11
May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him.
- Revelation 11:15
Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and loud voices called out in heaven: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign…
- Luke 1:33
and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end!”
- Psalms 72:11
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Daniel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Daniel; Gregory of Nyssa, ON THE BAPTISM OF CHRIST; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.