Daniel 2:41

Old Testament Major Prophet ASV (1901)

What does Daniel 2:41 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters` clay, and part of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters` clay, and part of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.
Daniel 2:41 — American Standard Version

Context — Daniel 2

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
41And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters` clay, and part of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potter’s clay, and part of iron, etc.] That is, some of the toes of the feet were of iron, and others of them of clay: these toes, which are ten, as the toes of men are, design the ten kings or kingdoms, into which the western Roman empire was divided, by the coming in of the Goths, and Hunns, and Vandals, into it; and are the same with the ten horns of the beast, and the ten kings which gave their kingdoms to it, (<661301>Revelation 13:1 17:12,13,17), (see Gill on “<270724>Daniel 7:24”), some of which were strong like iron, and continued long; others were like clay, and of a less duration: the kingdom shall be divided; which some understand…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“feet . . . toes . . . part . . . clay . . . iron--explained presently, "the kingdom shall be partly strong, partly broken" (rather, "brittle," as earthenware); and Dan 2:43, "they shall mingle . . . with the seed of men," that is, there will be power (in its deteriorated form, iron) mixed up with that which is wholly of man, and therefore brittle; power in the hands of the people having no internal stability, though something is left of the strength of the iron [TREGELLES]. NEWTON, who understands the Roman empire to be parted into the ten kingdoms already (whereas TREGELLES makes them future), explains the "clay" mixture as the blending of barbarous nations with Rome by intermarriages and…”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters’ clay and part of iron - Daniel 2:33. The Chaldee is, “of them clay of the potter, and of them iron;” that is, part was composed of one material and part of the other. The sense is, not that the feet were composed entirely of one, and the toes of the other, but that they were intermingled. There was no homogeneousness of material; nothing in one that would coalesce with the other, or that could be permanently united to it, as two metals might be fused or welded together and form one solid compound. Iron and clay cannot be welded; and the idea here clearly is, that in the empire here referred to there would be two main elements which…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Divided - Partly strong, and partly weak; the Roman kingdom was divided, partly by their civil wars, partly when conquered provinces and kingdoms cast off the Roman yoke, and set up king's of their own, and so the empire was divided into ten kingdoms or toes. Daniel 2:42”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“2:41-42 as weak as clay: Feet are crucial to stability; the feet were brittle and illustrate how precarious the whole image—that is, earthly kingdoms and their power—would be.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“the feet: Dan 2:33-35, Dan 7:7, Dan 7:24; Rev 12:3, Rev 13:1, Rev 17:12 Daniel 2:42”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification