The stone that becomes a great mountain is Christ at His second coming, and the mountain is His worldwide kingdom.
In Daniel 2, a stone cut out without hands strikes and destroys the image of Gentile power, then becomes a great mountain. Les Feldick teaches that the stone is Christ and the mountain represents His kingdom. Daniel 2:35 says the stone that smote the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth, showing that Christ's return will establish a worldwide, God-given kingdom.
Daniel 2:34 — This verse introduces the stone cut out without hands and reveals its striking of the image at the feet.
Daniel 2:35 — This is the verse that directly answers the question: the stone becomes a great mountain and fills the whole earth.
Daniel 2:44 — This verse explains that the stone and mountain represent a kingdom set up by the God of heaven that will never be destroyed.
In Daniel 2, Nebuchadnezzar sees a great image made of gold, silver, brass, iron, and clay. Daniel 2:34 says, '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.' Then Daniel 2:35 describes the result: 'Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.' In Daniel 2:44, the God of heaven sets up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, and which 'shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms.' Daniel 2:45 confirms that the stone being cut out of the mountain without hands is part of a sure and certain divine revelation.
Les Feldick teaches that the stone in Daniel 2 is Christ. He notes that the phrase 'cut out without hands' means no human element is involved, so the stone must be divine. In his words, 'the stone cut out without hands is Christ' (Clip 6), and 'this is Christ in His second coming' (Clip 1). Les explains that when the stone strikes, it destroys not only the final empire but all the residue of the previous Gentile kingdoms represented by gold, silver, brass, iron, and clay; they all become like chaff that is blown away (Clip 4). For Les, the resulting mountain is not a literal mountain but a kingdom. He says that in Scripture, when a mountain is used symbolically, it is always a kingdom (Clip 2). Finally, Les stresses the words of Daniel 2:35 that the stone becomes a mountain that fills 'the whole earth,' not just the land of Israel (Clip 4). He also makes clear that this kingdom is not the church or the age of grace; it is the promised kingdom of the Messiah (Clip 0).
Les teaches that the phrase 'cut out without hands' means no human element is involved, so the stone must be a person of the Godhead. He says, 'whenever you have a reference to the rock of Scripture or the stone in Scripture, who is it? Well, it's always Christ' (Clip 6). In his comment on Daniel 2:35, he states plainly, 'this is Christ in His second coming' (Clip 1).
When the stone strikes the image, Daniel 2:35 says the iron, clay, brass, silver, and gold are broken to pieces together and become like chaff blown away. Les emphasizes that everything represented by these metals is 'just going to be blown away, be nothing left of it' (Clip 4). The stone's blow is therefore total; no trace of those Gentile powers remains.
Les explains that in biblical symbolism a mountain—when not naming a specific mountain such as Sinai—stands for a kingdom. He says, 'A mountain in Scripture... if the mountain is used like it is here, it's always a kingdom, most generally the kingdom' (Clip 2). Thus the great mountain in Daniel 2 is the great kingdom that Christ establishes.
Les repeatedly calls attention to the closing words of Daniel 2:35: the stone became a great mountain 'and filled the whole earth.' He asks, 'is that kingdom just going to be in the land of Israel? What does it say? The whole earth' (Clip 4). This language points to a worldwide earthly reign rather than a kingdom limited to one nation.
Les sets these verses in the prophetic line of the kingdom promised to the Messiah. After reading Psalm 2:8—'Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession'—he says, 'That's the kingdom. See? That's the kingdom. That's not talking about the church. That's not talking about the age of grace' (Clip 0). The stone-to-mountain prophecy belongs to that promised kingdom, not to the church.
Kingdom Promise, Not Church Age
Les explains that the kingdom promised to the Messiah is a kingdom and not the church or the age of grace, before moving into Daniel 2's image.
Stone as Christ at Second Coming
Les explicitly identifies the stone cut out without hands as Christ in His second coming and connects it to Daniel 2:35's kingdom filling the whole earth.
Mountain as Symbol of Kingdom
Les teaches that a mountain used symbolically in Scripture is a kingdom, and the stone becomes a great mountain—a great kingdom.
Daniel 2 Explained: The Stone Kingdom That Fills the Earth
And they became like…what?...chaff, powder, dust. So that the wind carried them away, and that no place was found for them. And the stone…Christ now remember…the stone that smote or destroyed this image became a great mountain. Now I always stress when we have our other classes, certain words of Scripture that are symbolic will maintain that symbolism almost all the way through from cover to cover…
Kingdom Fills Whole Earth
Les emphasizes that the stone becomes a kingdom and that Daniel 2:35 says it fills the whole earth, not just the land of Israel.
Why Is Nebuchadnezzar's Dream Still Relevant Today? Daniel 2
So the kingdom is all three wrapped up together, but it's still the one and only kingdom. All right, now then if you'll come back to Daniel with me. So as Christ the stone smites all these metals that make up this image, beginning with the feet, and they become like the dust or the chaff of a threshing floor that the wind can just blow away.
Stone Cut Without Hands Is Christ
Les explains that 'cut out without hands' means no human element is involved, so the stone must be Christ, the rock of Scripture.
Why Is Nebuchadnezzar's Dream Still Relevant Today? Daniel 2
Now I'll read on of Daniel's interpretation of the dream. He says, King, you saw this huge image made of all these metals, and again I like to think of them as out there on that Middle Eastern sun, just shimmering in the sunlight. And he said, all of a sudden you saw a stone cut out without hands, in other words no human element involved.
Daniel 2:34: 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.
This verse directly introduces the stone and its striking of the image.
Daniel 2:35: Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.
This is the verse that explicitly answers the question: the stone becomes a great mountain that fills the earth.
Daniel 2:44: And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
Daniel's interpretation identifies the outcome as an eternal kingdom set up by God.
Daniel 2:45: Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.
This verse confirms the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands and gives the prophecy divine certainty.
Psalm 2:8: Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
The Messiah is promised the nations as His inheritance and the whole earth as His possession.
No. Les Feldick explains that in prophetic symbolism a mountain normally stands for a kingdom. The stone that smites the image becomes a great mountain—that is, a great kingdom that fills the whole earth.
Les teaches that the stone is Christ. He bases this on the phrase 'cut out without hands,' which means no human element is involved, and on the Bible's consistent use of rock and stone as a picture of Christ. At His second coming, the stone destroys the image.
It means the kingdom Christ establishes is worldwide, not limited to the land of Israel. Les highlights Daniel 2:35's closing words: the stone became a great mountain 'and filled the whole earth.'
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