Key to the 1843 Prophetic Chart
then rich, then luxurious, then weak. It thus made itself a prey to the hardy barbarians of the north of Europe, who, inspired by the prospect of easy conquest and untold booty, overran the empire, and broke it up into ten kingdoms, corresponding to the ten toes of the image. These divisions were accomplished between the years A.D. 356 and 483, and they have continued to the present day. Though there may for short periods have been sometimes more and sometimes fewer divisions, still they have generally been known, and are still known, as "the ten kingdoms of western Europe." No efforts to make a permanent union among them have proved successful. Warriors have arisen and tried it by force of arms, statesmen have tried it by diplomacy, alliances, and intermarriages; but all have failed; for the prophecy had said that they should not cleave one to another; and thus they will remain in their divided state till the consummation.
In the great image, then, of Dan. ii (2), we have an epitome of the world's history from the days of Babylon down to the end. And we would ask the lover of history how the course of time, the rise and fall of four successive universal empires, and the leading features and characteristics of each, could be presented at one view, in a more expressive and condensed form? But this is not merely the object of the prophecy, to give an outline of the world's history; all this is but preparatory to the last great fact, namely, that in the days of these kings the God of Heaven is to set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed. A fifth universal kingdom, the kingdom of God, where righteousness shall reign, is to succeed all earthly misrule, and stand forever. It is to impart a knowledge of this great truth to the human race, and impress upon them the importance of preparing for that reign of righteousness, that the prophecy is given.
The earthly governments symbolized in this vision are all in the past. Their rise and fall may be easily traced by every lover of history. On these we shall not therefore dwell, but only inquire concerning that portion of the prophecy which yet alone remains to be fulfilled, namely, the setting up of the everlasting kingdom of God. Far too many, we are aware, will be ready to meet us here with the view that this kingdom of God is a spiritual kingdom, and was set up in the days of Christ and the apostles. Let us ask such, Must not the fifth universal kingdom be literally like the four which precede it? Is it at all admissible to suppose that the scene would suddenly shift, without the least intimation, from literal kingdom on this literal earth, to a spiritual kingdom in the hearts of men? Such kingdom as this, if the term is allowable, might exist without interfering with earthly governments; but the kingdom of God in Dan. ii (2), dashes in pieces all earthly governments ere it succeeds to their rule and absorbs their territory.
Another consideration more fatal still to this unscriptural, though popular, view of the kingdom, is found in the following: It was not till "the days of these kings" that the God of Heaven was to set up his kingdom. Dan. ii (2), 44. "These kings" can be no other than the ten which arose out of the Roman empire. Not till after this division of the empire, therefore, could the kingdom of God contemplated in this