Daniel 2:40

Daniel 2:40 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.
• New International Version (NIV)Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters all things. And like iron that crushes, it shall break and crush all these.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others.

Context of Daniel 2:40

38Wherever the sons of men or beasts of the field or birds of the air dwell, He has given them into your hand and has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold. 39But after you, there will arise another kingdom, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule the whole earth. Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom as strong as iron; for iron shatters and crushes all things, and like iron that crushes all things, it will shatter and crush all the others. 41And just as you saw that the feet and toes were made partly of fired clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom, yet some of the strength of iron will be in it—just as you saw the iron mixed with clay. 42And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle.

Daniel 2:40 word by word

וּמַלְכוּ֙ רְבִ֣יעָאָ֔ה תֶּהֱוֵ֥א תַקִּיפָ֖ה כְּפַרְזְלָ֑א כָּל־קֳבֵ֗ל דִּ֤י פַרְזְלָא֙ מְהַדֵּ֤ק וְחָשֵׁל֙ כֹּ֔לָּא וּֽכְפַרְזְלָ֛א דִּֽי־מְרָעַ֥ע כָּל־אִלֵּ֖ין תַּדִּ֥ק וְתֵרֹֽעַ׃Read the interlinear

• Finally, there will beהֲוָאhâvâ' hâvâh · to beH1934
• a fourthרְבִיעִיrebîy‛ay · fourthH7244
• kingdomמַלְכוּmalkû · kingdomH4437
• as strongתַּקִּיףtaqqîyph · strongH8624
• as ironפַּרְזֶלparzel · ironH6523
• ·כֹּלkôl · allH3606
• forקֳבֵלqebêl qŏbêl · before: becauseH6903
• forדִּיdîy · thatH1768
• shattersדְּקַקdeqaq · to break upH1855
• and crushesחֲשַׁלchăshal · to shatterH2827
• crushesרְעַעre‛a‛ · to breakH7490
• all the othersאִלֵּין'illêyn 'illên · theseH459

Cross-references for Daniel 2:40

• Daniel 2:33its legs were iron, and its feet were part iron and part clay.
• Daniel 7:19Then I wanted to know the true meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others—extremely terrifying—devouring and crushing with iron teeth and bronze claws, then trampling underfoot whatever was left.
• Daniel 8:24His power will be great, but it will not be his own. He will cause terrible destruction and succeed in whatever he does. He will destroy the mighty men along with the holy people.
• Daniel 9:26Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and will have nothing. Then the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood, and until the end there will be war; desolations have been decreed.
• Daniel 11:36Then the king will do as he pleases and will exalt and magnify himself above every god, and he will speak monstrous things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been decreed must be accomplished.
• John 11:48If we let Him go on like this, everyone will believe in Him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”
• Daniel 7:7After this, as I watched in my vision in the night, suddenly a fourth beast appeared, and it was terrifying—dreadful and extremely strong—with large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed; then it trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the beasts before it, and it had ten horns.
• Jeremiah 15:12Can anyone smash iron— iron from the north—or bronze?
• Amos 1:3This is what the LORD says: “For three transgressions of Damascus, even four, I will not revoke My judgment, because they threshed Gilead with sledges of iron.

Commentaries on Daniel 2:40

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 40And the fourth kingdom - Represented in the image by the legs of iron, and the feet “part of iron, and part of clay,” Daniel 2:33. The first question which arises here is, what kingdom is referred to by this? In regard to this, there have been two leading opinions: one, that it refers to the Roman empire; the other, that it refers to the kingdoms or dynasties that immediately succeeded the reign of Alexander the Great; embracing the kingdoms of the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 31-45Verses 31-45 This image represented the kingdoms of the earth, that should successively rule the nations, and influence the affairs of the Jewish church. 1. The head of gold signified the Chaldean empire, then in being. 2. The breast and arms of silver signified the empire of the Medes and Persians. 3. The belly and thighs of brass signified the Grecian empire, founded by Alexander. 4. The legs and feet of iron signified the Roman empire. The Roman empire…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-49God gave a dream that showed the course of world history over the centuries, and Daniel explained its mysterious images. This dream and its interpretation highlight a key theme of the book—the certain final establishment of the kingdom of God as the ultimate goal of history (Daniel 2:44–45; 7:9–14, 26–27). This chapter also shows that paganism cannot understand the actions and plans of Israel’s God.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4040. iron--This vision sets forth the character of the Roman power, rather than its territorial extent [Tregelles]. breaketh in pieces--So, in righteous retribution, itself will at last be broken in pieces (Da 2:44) by the kingdom of God (Re 13:10).Read the comment

Topics related to Daniel 2:40

• Clay
• Gold
• Persia

In the dictionaries

• Ask
• Iron
• Prophecy
• Terrible
• Abed-Nego
• Aramaic; Aramaic Language
• Bible, the
• Daniel
• Daniel, Book of
• Divination

Commentaries on Daniel 2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings