Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 2 · Questions · Question 49
Quest. 49. vers. 40. Whether this fourth kingdome must be vnderstoode to be the Romane Empire.
There are here two opinions: some take the Romane Empire to be vnderstood by this fourth kingdome, which is compared to yron, and the same to continue after the comming of Christ to the ende of the world, as Lyranus interpreteth the two legges of the diuision of the Romane Empire into the Occidentall and Orientall at Constantinople: of the same opinion are Rupertius, Hugo Cardinal. Pintus, and of our writers, Bullinger, Pellican, Geneuens. Caluin, Melancthon, Osiand. Some doe here comprehend the Romane Empire, but vntill the comming of Christ, as Pererius in vers. 32. We will examine their reasons.
1. Vers. 28. Daniel saith that the Lord shewed the king what should come to passe in the latter dayes, therefore all the Monarchies to the ende of the world are here signified.
Contra. The word acharith as is before shewed, doth not onelyonly signifie the latter or extreme dayes, but the time following, as it is taken, Gen. 49. 1. and the Prophet expoundeth himselfe, vers. 29. what is meant by the latter dayes, that which should come to passe hereafter.
2. It is not like, that the Lord would conceale this thing from his Prophet, and that Daniel speaking of three of the Monarchies, should omit the fourth, which was the greatest of all: neither would the Lord leaue his Church without comfort herein.
Contra. 1. As God reuealed not his whole minde vntounto the rest of the Prophets, so neither had Daniel a cleare vision of all, which should happen in the world. 2. he toucheth all these foure kingdomes and gouernments, which should be the chiefe oppressors and afflictors of his people vntill the rising of Christs kingdome; vntill which time they had not endured much at the Romanes hands, but by their owne procurement: Daniel therefore speaketh of those kingdomes onelyonly, which medled most with the people of God then; it much belonged not to their present comfort to heare of those kingdomes which should come afterward.
3. Daniel prophesieth of the kingdome of Christ, which should still encrease vntounto the ende of the world, vers. 44. And cap. 12. 2. he euidently speaketh of euerlasting life, and of the resurrection.
Contra. 1. The Prophet doth but touch that by occasion in a word, to shewe the perfection and consummation of Christs kingdome: it followeth not, that therefore he should describe all the Monarchies to the ende of the world.
4. But the euent of things answering to this prophesie, sheweth that it is most fitly applyed to the Romane Empire.
1. Because as yron the Romane Empire subdued all other kingdomes: for whereas Alexanders kingdome was diuided into foure, Prolome had Egypt, Seleucus Syria, Antigonus Asia the lesse, and Antipater Macedonia, who also obtained Antigonus regiment; all these foure dominions were dissolued and dissipated by the Romanes. Paulus Aemilius ouercame Perseus king of Macedonia, and led him with his two sonnes, Philippui, and Alexander in triumph: Lucullus and Pompeius subdued Mithridates and Tygranes, and brought vnderunder the Syrian kingdome: and Augustus Caesar ouercame Antonie with Cleopatra his wife, and made a Prouince of Egypt: And all the East countries Pompey the great subdued, and ioyned to the Romane Empire, as Asia, Pontus, Armenia, Paphlagonia, Cappadocia, Cilicia, Syria, with others, waging battell with them 30. yeares together, hauing slaine, put to flight, or taken an 121. thousand, and 83. thousand, and taken 846. shippes, and a 1538. cities and castles: Plin. lib. 7. cap. 26. Bulling. Pap. and Lyranus sheweth 3. wayes whereby they became such conquerours, sapientia, exercitio armorum, bon… regimine, by their wisedome, exercise of warlike feates, and good discipline and gouernement.
2. The two legges doe signifie the diuersitie of gouernement, which was euidently seene in the Romane common wealth: first, they were gouerned by Kings, then by Consuls, afterward by Tribunes, they had their decemviri, their Dictators for a time, then they came to their triumviri, when three did beare the greatest sway; as Augustus, Antonie, Lepidus: and then the gouernement fell to dunmviri, into the hands of two, Augustus, and Antonie, and at the last one had the Soueraigntie, and so it continued vnderunder one Emperour, vntill Marcus Antonius Verus, then there began to be associates, and diuers Emperours at once. Perer.
3. The feete partly of yron, partly of clay, signifie the diuision and dissention of the kingdome, which is manifest in the Romane gouernment: for there were foure notable diuisions among them: first betweene the Senatours, and ordinem Equestrem, the gentrie of Rome, concerning the authoritie and power in matters of iudgement: there was also bellum sociale, the sociall warre, or of confederates, whereof Drusus was the author; and bellum seruile, whereof Seriorius was the beginner: then followed the most deadly ciuill warres betweene Sylla and Marius, Caesar and Pompey, betweene Octavius with Mar. Antonius, and Brutus and Cassius, and betweene Octavius and Antonie.
4. Whereas the feete were partly of yron, partly of clay, which is expounded to signifie that the kingdome should be partly strong and partly broken: this also is thus applyed to the Romane state: because they were sometimes conquerers, sometime they were conquered: As the French brake in to the verie Capitall: Pyrrhus king of Epyrus did afflict the Romanes with fierce warre, and ouercame them at Trebia, and Trasimenum: Hannibal made a great slaughter of them at Cannas: Crassus was ouercome of the Parthians, and the Romane ensignes taken: Bullinger. Some vnderstand the yron and clay feete, of the kingdomes, which did spring out of the Romane Empire, as of France, Spaine, Germanie, the Turkes, whereof some were more victiorious, warlike, and yron-like then others: Melancthon. Some apply it to the Emperours of Rome, whereof some were valiant, some cowardly and slouthfull. Osian.
5. Whereas the mingling and tempering of the yron and clay together is expounded of their mariages; they shewe likewise how this was accomplished and fulfilled in the Romane Empire: for Pompey tooke to wife Iulia daughter to Iulius Caesar, and Antonie married Octauia Augustus Caesars sister, whom he did afterward repudiate, and married Cleopatra Queene of Egypt: so that those coniunctions did not hold: Bullinger. Pere. Pin.
Contra. 1. True it is, that the Romanes did subdue vntounto their Empire all other nations of any fame or power: but it is not so much to be considered, how they were yron-like towards other nations, but how they were affected towards the people of God, toward the comming of the Messiah: But vntill then the Iewes had not felt such hard seruice vnderunder the Romanes, as they had vnderunder other cruell Lords: for the innouations which were made in the Iewish state by Crassus and Pompey, were done rather by the consent of the Iewes themselues, and their kings striuing about the kingdome, then by conquest: and the interest that Antonie had there, was by the right and title of the Ptolomies, whose daughter and heyre Cleopatra he married: But of all other the Syrian tyrannie vnderunder Antiochus was most cruell and yronlike towards the Iewes, and therefore to that state this description rather agreeth, as shall afterward be shewed.
2. The diuision of the kingdome, signified by the two legges, cannot be vnderstood of the diuerse regiments and gouernements, one succeeding another: for it was still the same kingdome; and beeing the same, it cannot be said to be diuided into two diuerse parts, as the legges are perpetually diuided, and are not ioyned together againe.
3. And for the same reason the diuision of the kingdome cannot be vnderstood of the Ciuill and domesticall dissentions: for there was a reuniting of it againe, after these sturres and tumults were appeased, but these kingdomes here spoken of, as two legges, were diuided and kept a sunder still.
4. The yron and clay signified, that the kingdome should be partly strong and partly weake: but this respect of their strength and weakenesse must not hauehave reference to other forren nations, but to the people of God, for whose comfort, this propheticall vision was sent: But toward the Iewes the Romane state was not partly strong, partly weake, vntill the comming of Christ; that sometime the one had the better, sometime the other: But thus the case stood betweene them, and the Seleucians in Syria, and Ptolomies in Egypt, that sometime they preuailed against the people of God; sometime God gaue them victorie against their enemies, as is euident in the storie of the Macchabees.
5. The coniunctions in marriage must be of diuerse kings betweene themselues after the diuision of the kingdome, not of the same kingdome within it selfe: and therefore that interpretation of the mutuall mariages betweene Caesar and Pompey, Octauian and Antonie, can here hauehave no place: for it is euident, vers. 44. that diuerse kings, and at the same instant, are vnderstood, who ioyned in mariage.
Reasons shewing that the Romane Empire cannot be here vnderstood.
1. In the ende of this fourth yronlike Monarchie the Messiah should come, and his kingdome be set vp; but Christ came not in the ende, but in the beginning of the Romane Monarchie. Polan.
2. At the comming of the Messiah all these kingdomes must be dissolued, and broken in peices, vers. 44. Now the Romane Empire ended not at Christs comming: But it will be answered, that Daniel speaketh of the second comming of Christ, when all these kingdomes should be destroyed. Contra. That cannot be, for after the dissolution of these kingdomes, that stone which dashed them in peices, shall growe into a mountaine, and fill all the earth, ver. 35. which cannot be otherwise vnderstood, then of the propagation of Christs kingdome, which must be before his second comming.
3. This kingdome here spoken of was diuided into two, signified by the two legges: but the Romane Empire continued one vntill the time of Constantine, after whom it was diuided among his three sonnes, bot into two, but three parts.
4. They cannot shew in the Romane state, such coniunction in mariage betweene diuerse kings, and kingdomes: but they of whom they giuegive instance for such matrimonill coniunctions, were of one and the same kingdome.
5. That fourth kingdome must continue vntill the comming of Christ; but if they vnderstand this prophesie of Christs second comming, the Romane Empire hath beene dissolued long since.
6. These kingdomes were one to succeede another, and to possesse the others dominions: the Persian obtayned all, that was vnderunder Babylon, Alexander gained all, which the Persian had: but the Romanes had onelyonly Syria and Egypt of the Babylonian Empire, and onelyonly Asia minor of the Persian Monarchie, whereas there were vnderunder the Persians an 127 prouinces from India to Aethiopia, Ester 1. therefore this last ktngdome cannot be the Romane state, for it must make one bodie with the rest, as in the image of a mans bodie is represented. Polanus.
7. In this vision the speciall intention of the Prophet is to describe such kingdomes, as were aduersaries to the Iewes, and pressed them most, but the Iewes endured not much affliction vnderunder the Romanes till the comming of Christ: they endured more vnderunder the kings of Syria, and Egypt, especially the first, as is euident in the bookes of the Machabees: that kingdome which was most cruell and yron-like toward the Iewes is here vnderstood: but so was not the Romane Empire; therefore that is not here comprehended: Iun. annot.
Pappus answereth, 1. that it is false, Iudaici tantum populi conditionem hac visione describi, that the condition onelyonly of the people of the Iewes is described in this vision. 2. he saith it is likewise false, à Romanis Iudaeos nihil passos, that the Iewes suffered nothing at the Romanes hands.
Contra. 1. But seeing that the ende and vse of this prophesie, was for the comfort of Gods people; it must needs follow, that such alterations and changes of kingdomes are here described, which most nearely concerned the people of God: thus then we may reason, The end of these prophesies, as also of all Scripture, is for the comfort of Gods people, Rom. 15. 3. but the prophesie of such things, as concerned not the people of God, was not for their vse and comfort; therefore such prophesies are not contained here.
2. It is not affirmed, that the Iewes endured nothing of the Romanes, but that their gouernement was nothing so hard and yron-like as was the tyrrannie of the kings of Syria.
8. The vision of an humane image signified one vnited bodie, consisting of diuerse kingdomes one succeding another, as the parts of the bodie doe one ioyne vntounto another; the beginning and head of which bodie was in Babylon: but the Romane Monarchie beeing distant at the least a 1200. miles from Babylon, could not make one vnited bodie with it: therefore that Monarchie cannot here fitly be vnderstood. Polan.