THE TWO LEGS AND THE TEN TOES - Out of the DUAL PLAN
Out of the DUAL PLAN - THE TWO LEGS AND THE TEN TOES
In this fourth state, the two legs and the ten toes of the image
appeared. There developed in that kingdom two rival cities—the cities
of Rome and Constantinople. Through their influences the kingdom split
in two —the eastern and western empires.
Taken from below
4. "And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron. And whereas, thou
sawest the feet and toes, part of potter's clay, and part of iron, the
kingdom shall be divided."
Now came the fourth and last universal mould. Rome war, here the main
actor. That kingdom was founded by Romulus about 763 B. C., and from a
small colony it finally became the fourth universal monarchy of the
world: i. e., it brought under its wings the descendants of both Ham
and Shem. About 161 B. C., it had conquered the nations around it, and
at the birth of the Messiah it ruled also over the land of Palestine.
In this fourth state, the two legs and the ten toes of the image
appeared. There developed in that kingdom two rival cities—the cities
of Rome and Constantinople. Through their influences the kingdom split
in two —the eastern and western empires. The great depression the
human works inflicted on the people, while the rulers continually
rivalled to enlarge their dominions, made the people rebellions, and
they finally revolted against their depressive rulers and chose their
own kings. Between the years 356 and 4£i3 A. D., ten such divisions
sprang up. They were the Huns, Ostroroths, Westrogoths, Francs,
Wandals, Sueves, Bergundians, Herulians, Anglo Saxons and the
Lombards; thus the formation of the ten toes. followed the development
of the two legs.
5. These ten toes or divisions of the universal rule consisted of a
mixture of iron and clay. No other figure could express so cleverly
this situation in the fourth divided universal kingdom. These
divisions exist to-day in Europe, and the general laws governing
those states, are enacted with an object of keeping together iron and
clay. The Cain-nature now for ages, has had free exercise in building
cities, and in inventing new methods to increase their greatness and
value so as to enslave under its power so much more of the class that
is doomed to bear all of it on its shoulders. The laboring class has
been lowered so far beneath these objects, that they depend wholly
upon them for their existence. But there seems to be danger ahead, for
iron and clay cannot mix. A terrible crash seems inevitable.
"And whereas, thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle
themselves with the seed of man; but they shall not cleave one to
another, even as iron is not mixed with clay."
The two nations—the descendants of Shem and Ham, except the Jews—have
been intermingled through marriage and thereby have lost their
original identity. Still there is a chasm between them that increases
with time. The class above the human inventions (the Nimrodians) and
the class beneath those inventions, stand today almost like two giants
ready for a bloody conflict with each other. Yes, even blood has begun
to flow. They- can hang together no longer. In spite of kings' and
princes' intermarrying for the purpose of uniting states, the kingdom
remains divided.
6. The stone cut loose from the mountain without hands. This is a
wonderful process. The mountain turns out a stone that has constituted
a solid part of it for the last 2,600 years: the hand of man put it
there in the first place and then continued to fasten it more solidly
from time to time, so that it never should separate from the great
mountain. And now at last, all at once, without any apparent force, it
is cut out from the mountain.
7. The seventh point in this prophetic chain denotes that a change
takes place in the mountain. The king saw the stone entirely
separated from the mountain. Then began a most terrible scene. The
stone commenced to smite the great image upon its feet—the kingdoms in
the divided state—and as a consequence, it broke them to pieces. But
was that all Oh, no! The brass, the silver and the gold were
simultaneously broken to pieces, "together" with the clay and iron
feet.
Daniel explains the wonderful process in the following words: that all
the different metals, representing the development of Nimrod's
kingdom, "became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; 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." The case is plainly this: that as a result of the
stone's hammering on the ten kingdoms, the whole mountain heaped up by
Nimrod and those that have continued after him, is entirely removed
from Elohim's creation, and the class represented by the stone, which
during thousands of years has served the builders of said mountain, by
the power of God is established instead into an everlasting kingdom
upon the face of the earth. It is a most wonderful act and above
everything else is worthy of admiration. The 44th verse gives further
explanation.