The Four Gospels and Daniel's Four Beasts

[Victor]

Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. - Daniel 7:2,3

The four Gospels are a thematic template that structures the body of Scripture in many ways. In this thread we’ll find that there is a one-to-one thematic correspondence between the distinctive characteristics of four beasts envisioned by Daniel in chapter 7 of his book and the four Gospels together with the four corresponding Spokes on the Bible Wheel. (Spokes 18-21, Tzaddi to Shin) The following is a summary of the evidence.


Lion – Matthew
Dan 7:4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.

The link between the first Gospel and the first beast seems very obvious. In the correlation between the four Gospels and the four cherubim, Matthew is represented by the first living creature, the one with the face of a lion! No wonder then that this very animal is used to symbolize the first beast in Daniel 7!

Please compare Daniel 7:4 and Revelation 4:7.

Dan 7:4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.

Rev 4:7 And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.

There is, in fact, a real KeyLink between these verses. The phrase 'the first [beast] was like a lion' is found nowhere else in all Scripture. It is like a shining pointer that draws our attention to the correlation between the Gospels and the beasts.

But there’s more to it: we know that in the structure of Scripture the first element of a set often contains the seed plot of the entire set. Case in point: the verse that describes the first beast links to the group of cherubim as a whole. Please now consider the following common elements:

Dan 7:4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.

Rev 4:7 And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.

Three out of four living creatures are represented in the description of the first beast of Daniel. Only the calf is missing, but the fact that these three appear together only in these verses (along with the parallel passages of Ezekiel’s cherubim in Ezekiel 1:10; 10:14) cannot be ignored. They seem to represent the whole set, since the four cherubim are patterned after (1) the land animals (symbolized by the lion and the calf), (2) the man as the crown of creation and (3) the flying creatures (symbolized by the eagle). So the lion is functioning as a representative of the lion-calf pair (which in turn represents the land animals).


Bear – Mark
Dan 7:5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh.

The bear, like the calf, is not as elegant as the lion, but is very powerful. This links to the Gospel of Mark since it is the Gospel of Power. The Gospel of Mark has the greatest number of hits and specially the greatest density of both the word Dunamos (Power) and its cognate Dunamai in all four Gospels.

The word for 'bear' in Hebrew and Aramaic comes from a root that means 'to be sluggish, to move slowly.' This also links to the Gospel of Mark, but by way of contrast, since Mark is the Gospel of Action! (See also His Narrative Runs)

But there is yet more. Mark is governed by the Hebrew letter Quph, and a fundamental Quph KeyWord is Qum, which means 'to arise.' This word appears twice in the description of the second beast:

Dan 7:5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up [qum!] itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise [qum!], devour much flesh.

The beast has three ribs in the mouth, and the Hebrew word for Rib has a gematria of 190, which coheres with the fact that Quph is the 19th Letter of the alphabet! And the sum of the 19 first positive numbers is 190 as well.

The letter Quph also bears a strong symbolic meaning linked to the theme of 'Flesh,' according to Rabbinic Tradition. The gematria of the word flesh is 361 = 19 x 19! So it is amazing that the second beast receives the command: 'Devour much flesh!'


Leopard – Luke
Dan 7:6 After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it.

The most amazing and shocking feature of this animal is that it has four heads. This coheres with the fact that the Gospel of Luke is governed by the letter Resh, which signifies Head!


The Fourth Beast - John
Dan 7:7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns.

The four Cherubim are naturally grouped into 3 + 1: three creatures bound to earth (lion, ox, man) and one 'heavenly' creature (eagle). The Gospels follow the same pattern: three Synoptics (Matthew, Mark, Luke) and one different from all the others (John).

It is amazing to note that the four beasts in Daniel are grouped in the same way: three are specifically described in the likeness of known animals (lion, bear, leopard) and one is monstrous and impossible to compare to; 'it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it.' It stands on a class by itself, like the Gospel of John.

The great connection here lies in the fact that the fourth beast had 'great iron teeth.' John is governed by the letter Shin and this letter literally means 'teeth'! We thus have leading features of two consecutive beasts linking to the literal meaning of two consecutive Hebrew letters! (Resh and Shin - Head and Teeth)

This is an impressive pattern that demonstrates the supernatural unity of Scripture. And probably there is much more going on with this pattern!

[Richard Amiel McGough]

Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. - Daniel 7:2,3

The four Gospels are a thematic template that structures the body of Scripture in many ways. In this thread we’ll find that there is a one-to-one thematic correspondence between the distinctive characteristics of four beasts envisioned by Daniel in chapter 7 of his book and the four Gospels together with the four corresponding Spokes on the Bible Wheel. (Spokes 18-21, Tzaddi to Shin) The following is a summary of the evidence.

Outstanding post Victor!

You are absolutely correct, there is a lot more to discover here. You had noted the 4 beasts in Daniel fit the 3 + 1 pattern like the 4 Gospels. But you had not mentioned that this fact is explicitly stated in the text:

Daniel 7:19 Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet;

Thus we have an explicit statement of the 3 + 1 pattern!

Furthermore, the same pattern fits the four kingdoms of Daniel 2. The fourth beast is the fourth kingdom:

Daniel 7:23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

It seems pretty clear that we are given different symbolic representations of the course of history leading up to the Fifth Kingdom of Messiah here on Spoke 5. The 4 kingdoms represented by the Image in Daniel 2 (Gold, Silver, Brass, Iron) are represented again in the 4 Beasts of Daniel 7. Note that the first Kingdom is represented by a Gold (Dan 2) and a Lion (Dan 7). These naturally cohere. And the last kingdom/beast is associated with Iron in both cases.

And there is another very interesting fact I noticed while studying this. The metals representing the 4 earthly kingdoms are mentioned again in an entirely different context:

Daniel 5:2 Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein. 3 Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them. 4 They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

It seems impossible to miss the implications. The gods they worshiped correspond to the metals of the four earthly kingdoms.

These are just a few notes as I study the correlations with the Kingdoms, the Beasts, the Gospels, the Hebrew Alphabet, and the large-scale structure of God's Word. Thanks for leading the way on this!

Richard

[Victor]

Thank you for your review, Richard!

Outstanding post Victor!

You are absolutely correct, there is a lot more to discover here. You had noted the 4 beasts in Daniel fit the 3 + 1 pattern like the 4 Gospels. But you had not mentioned that this fact is explicitly stated in the text:

Daniel 7:19 Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet;

Thus we have an explicit statement of the 3 + 1 pattern!

Indeed! I should have made it more explicit, but I also guess your eyes covered the paragraph a little too quickly:

It is amazing to note that the four beasts in Daniel are grouped in the same way: three are specifically described in the likeness of known animals (lion, bear, leopard) and one is monstrous and impossible to compare to; 'it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it.' It stands on a class by itself, like the Gospel of John.

This 3 Synoptics + 1 Autoptic pattern is everywhere in Scripture!

Furthermore, the same pattern fits the four kingdoms of Daniel 2. The fourth beast is the fourth kingdom:

Daniel 7:23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

Exactly correct! And the description of the fourth kingdom in chapter 2 coheres with the description of the fourth beast.

Dan 2:40 And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

The fourth beast has "iron teeth" that 'breaks in pieces'. And it all integrates with the symbolic meaning of the 21st Letter Shin, as you wrote in the Bible Wheel Book (page 351):

Teeth frequently appear in Scripture as a natural symbol of things that bite, crush, and devour, as in Daniel's vision of the "dreadful and terrible" beast with "great iron teeth" that "devoured and brake in pieces" (Dan 7:7). This then links to another Shin KeyWord:

• AV Psalm 10:15 Break (shavar) thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man: seek out his wickedness till thou find none.

It seems pretty clear that we are given different symbolic representations of the course of history leading up to the Fifth Kingdom of Messiah here on Spoke 5.

Wonderful insight my friend!

The Fifth Kingdom is the Kingdom of God! It was established on earth with the birth of the Church on Pentecost. So if the four Gospels thematically integrate with the four kingdoms, the Kingdom of God links to the Acts of the Apostles, the fifth book of NT History and the work that records the birth of the Church/Kingdom!

Acts is Book 44 and it connects to Verse 44 of Daniel 2:

Dan 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.

The 4 kingdoms represented by the Image in Daniel 2 (Gold, Silver, Brass, Iron) are represented again in the 4 Beasts of Daniel 7. Note that the first Kingdom is represented by a Gold (Dan 2) and a Lion (Dan 7). These naturally cohere. And the last kingdom/beast is associated with Iron in both cases.

The coherence between Gold and Lion seems to relate to the fact that one is the first and noblest among the metals while the other is the most noble among the animals, the "king of the forest".

This reminds me that early on in the Gospel of the Lion the child Jesus receives gold as a gift from the "wise men from the east." (Matthew 2:1,11)

And there is another very interesting fact I noticed while studying this. The metals representing the 4 earthly kingdoms are mentioned again in an entirely different context:

Daniel 5:2 Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein. 3 Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them. 4 They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

It seems impossible to miss the implications. The gods they worshiped correspond to the metals of the four earthly kingdoms.

That's very nice! The connection between idols, gold and the first kingdom relates to the "image of gold" that the king of Babylon made for worship. (Daniel 3:1)

These four metals often appear together throughout Scripture. And the first three, the "synoptic" metals, appear in Matthew in the context of the preaching of God's Kingdom:

Mat 10:7,9 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. ... Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses.

These are just a few notes as I study the correlations with the Kingdoms, the Beasts, the Gospels, the Hebrew Alphabet, and the large-scale structure of God's Word. Thanks for leading the way on this!

Richard

Let's post on this thread any findings concerning this topic of the four beasts and the structure of the Bible!

[Richard Amiel McGough]

Indeed! I should have made it more explicit, but I also guess your eyes covered the paragraph a little too quickly:

It is amazing to note that the four beasts in Daniel are grouped in the same way: three are specifically described in the likeness of known animals (lion, bear, leopard) and one is monstrous and impossible to compare to; 'it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it.' It stands on a class by itself, like the Gospel of John.

This 3 Synoptics + 1 Autoptic pattern is everywhere in Scripture!

Yes, I should have realized that an explicit confirmation like would not have missed your eagle eye!

Exactly correct! And the description of the fourth kingdom in chapter 2 coheres with the description of the fourth beast.

Dan 2:40 And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

The fourth beast has "iron teeth" that 'breaks in pieces'. And it all integrates with the symbolic meaning of the 21st Letter Shin, as you wrote in the Bible Wheel Book (page 351):

Teeth frequently appear in Scripture as a natural symbol of things that bite, crush, and devour, as in Daniel's vision of the "dreadful and terrible" beast with "great iron teeth" that "devoured and brake in pieces" (Dan 7:7). This then links to another Shin KeyWord:

• AV Psalm 10:15 Break (shavar) thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man: seek out his wickedness till thou find none.

Wonderful insight my friend!

This is the depth of detailed confirmation that establishes the patterns upon the ROCK. The Alphabetic Verses are an independent witness to the patterns established by God in Scripture!

The Fifth Kingdom is the Kingdom of God! It was established on earth with the birth of the Church on Pentecost. So if the four Gospels thematically integrate with the four kingdoms, the Kingdom of God links to the Acts of the Apostles, the fifth book of NT History and the work that records the birth of the Church/Kingdom!

Acts is Book 44 and it connects to Verse 44 of Daniel 2:

Dan 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.

The coherence between Gold and Lion seems to relate to the fact that one is the first and noblest among the metals while the other is the most noble among the animals, the "king of the forest".

Wow! Now that's a powerful insight. We have the coordinated sequence of the Five Historical Books of the NT (Gospels to Acts) linked to the prophetic sequence of the History of the Five Kingdoms in Daniel on Spoke 5! And when did the Kingdom really manifest on Earth? At Pentecost in Acts! This is getting very deep.

Let's post on this thread any findings concerning this topic of the four beasts and the structure of the Bible!

Yes indeed, that is the plan. I'm quite "stoked" to look more at the "Big Picture" that links all these pieces together. I've seen enough to know that we have stumbled upon a gold mine of insight.

Richard

[Richard Amiel McGough]

The Book of Daniel on Spoke 5 contains two detailed visions of Five Kingdoms. The sequence of Kingdoms in both visions is divided into Four Earthly Kingdoms that are defeated and replaced by the Fifth Kingdom, which is the Kingdom of Heaven. The sequence of Kingdoms ends with a revelation of God on His Throne in both visions of Daniel 2 and Daniel 7.

The Four Earthly Kingdoms are subdivided into a pattern of 3 + 1 just like the Cherubim in Revelation 4 and the Four Gospels.

The Five Kingdoms match the pattern of the Five NT Historical Books which are consummated in Acts which also reveals Christ on His Throne and the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven at Pentecost.

The same pattern is seen in the last Five Letters on Cycle 3 of the Bible Wheel, with the ultimate consummation in Revelation where the Kingdoms of this world become the Kingdoms of God and His Christ, and again Christ is revealed seated on His Throne.

Special attention should be given to the themes revealed on Spoke 22 in the table.

Consider what we are witnessing here: The sequences of the Kingdoms in the text of Daniel 2 & 7 cohere with the the large-scale pattern of the books of the Bible and their integration with the sequence of the Hebrew Alphabet!

The correlations listed in this table are just an outline. It will take weeks to document the fullness of the patterns it reveals.

[Victor]

The Book of Daniel on Spoke 5 contains two detailed visions of Five Kingdoms. The sequence of Kingdoms in both visions is divided into Four Earthly Kingdoms that are defeated and replaced by the Fifth Kingdom, which is the Kingdom of Heaven. The sequence of Kingdoms ends with a revelation of God on His Throne in both visions of Daniel 2 and Daniel 7.

The Four Earthly Kingdoms are subdivided into a pattern of 3 + 1 just like the Cherubim in Revelation 4 and the Four Gospels.

The Five Kingdoms match the pattern of the Five NT Historical Books which are consummated in Acts which also reveals Christ on His Throne and the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven at Pentecost.

The same pattern is seen in the last Five Letters on Cycle 3 of the Bible Wheel, with the ultimate consummation in Revelation where the Kingdoms of this world become the Kingdoms of God and His Christ, and again Christ is revealed seated on His Throne.

Special attention should be given to the themes revealed on Spoke 22 in the table.

Excellent job Richard! Thank you for putting up that table to make things easier to see in a glance.

And you are right on target: it is a sequence of five elements that culminates in the Kingdom of God! The four cherubim are four "visions" of Christ, but He is ultimately the Great King sitting on His Throne. That's why it is so common to find icons of Christ the Living Being enthroned surrounded by four living creatures! They are depictions based on Revelation and Ezekiel.

The same goes for the four Gospels: four views of the Incarnation, but in Acts Christ goes to His Throne in Heaven. He becomes the King and His Kingdom on earth is the Church. This doctrine is antecipated in Daniel 7: four earthly kingdoms are allowed into existance by God, but then comes the "Son of Man" who receives authority from Him. This is explained in terms of the "saints" receiving the kingdom!!! That's precisely what is found in Acts!

Consider what we are witnessing here: The sequences of the Kingdoms in the text of Daniel 2 & 7 cohere with the the large-scale pattern of the books of the Bible and their integration with the sequence of the Hebrew Alphabet!

The correlations listed in this table are just an outline. It will take weeks to document the fullness of the patterns it reveals.

Take weeks? Wow!

Let God bless this documentation!

[Rose]

The Book of Daniel on Spoke 5 contains two detailed visions of Five Kingdoms. The sequence of Kingdoms in both visions is divided into Four Earthly Kingdoms that are defeated and replaced by the Fifth Kingdom, which is the Kingdom of Heaven. The sequence of Kingdoms ends with a revelation of God on His Throne in both visions of Daniel 2 and Daniel 7.

The Four Earthly Kingdoms are subdivided into a pattern of 3 + 1 just like the Cherubim in Revelation 4 and the Four Gospels.

The Five Kingdoms match the pattern of the Five NT Historical Books which are consummated in Acts which also reveals Christ on His Throne and the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven at Pentecost.

The same pattern is seen in the last Five Letters on Cycle 3 of the Bible Wheel, with the ultimate consummation in Revelation where the Kingdoms of this world become the Kingdoms of God and His Christ, and again Christ is revealed seated on His Throne.

Special attention should be given to the themes revealed on Spoke 22 in the table.

Consider what we are witnessing here: The sequences of the Kingdoms in the text of Daniel 2 & 7 cohere with the the large-scale pattern of the books of the Bible and their integration with the sequence of the Hebrew Alphabet!

The correlations listed in this table are just an outline. It will take weeks to document the fullness of the patterns it reveals.

Another interesting connection with "Gold" and the Gospel of Matthew is in the story of the gifts of the wise men. In this account (which is unique to Matthew), one of the gifts given to the baby Jesus is Gold. Also the Gospel of Matthew is the only Gospel to mention the word Gold, and does so 4 times!

Matthew is the only Gospel that calls Jesus "King of the Jews" at His birth.
.

Matt.2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him....11)And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.
.

More food for thought....


Rose

P.S. Also the prophecy in Isaiah that Matthew's account is a fulfillment of mentions the gift of Gold that is to be given the Lord.

Isa.60:6 The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD.

[gilgal]

Thank you for your review, Richard! :signthankspin:



Indeed! I should have made it more explicit, but I also guess your eyes covered the paragraph a little too quickly:

It is amazing to note that the four beasts in Daniel are grouped in the same way: three are specifically described in the likeness of known animals (lion, bear, leopard) and one is monstrous and impossible to compare to; 'it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it.' It stands on a class by itself, like the Gospel of John.

This 3 Synoptics + 1 Autoptic pattern is everywhere in Scripture!



Exactly correct! And the description of the fourth kingdom in chapter 2 coheres with the description of the fourth beast.

Dan 2:40 And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

The fourth beast has "iron teeth" that 'breaks in pieces'. And it all integrates with the symbolic meaning of the 21st Letter Shin, as you wrote in the Bible Wheel Book (page 351):

Teeth frequently appear in Scripture as a natural symbol of things that bite, crush, and devour, as in Daniel's vision of the "dreadful and terrible" beast with "great iron teeth" that "devoured and brake in pieces" (Dan 7:7). This then links to another Shin KeyWord:

• AV Psalm 10:15 Break (shavar) thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man: seek out his wickedness till thou find none.

Wonderful insight my friend! :applause: :anim_32:

The Fifth Kingdom is the Kingdom of God! It was established on earth with the birth of the Church on Pentecost. So if the four Gospels thematically integrate with the four kingdoms, the Kingdom of God links to the Acts of the Apostles, the fifth book of NT History and the work that records the birth of the Church/Kingdom!

Acts is Book 44 and it connects to Verse 44 of Daniel 2:

Dan 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.

The coherence between Gold and Lion seems to relate to the fact that one is the first and noblest among the metals while the other is the most noble among the animals, the "king of the forest".

This reminds me that early on in the Gospel of the Lion the child Jesus receives gold as a gift from the "wise men from the east." (Matthew 2:1,11)



That's very nice! The connection between idols, gold and the first kingdom relates to the "image of gold" that the king of Babylon made for worship. (Daniel 3:1)

These four metals often appear together throughout Scripture. And the first three, the "synoptic" metals, appear in Matthew in the context of the preaching of God's Kingdom:

Mat 10:7,9 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. ... Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses.

Let's post on this thread any findings concerning this topic of the four beasts and the structure of the Bible!

Daniel 2
40And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

41And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.

42And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.

43And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.

44And 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.

The mentioning of the 4th Kingdom does line up with Matthew Spoke 40

45Forasmuch 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.

I think the mountain is referring to Mount Zion (or what was the name of the mount where Jesus was crucified?). In any case Jesus commanded his disciples to go wait in Jerusalem (Mount Zion) until the Holy Ghost had come down:

Acts 1
4And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.

And as the hymn We've a story to tell to the nations song says that will shatter the spear and sword, the Gospel.

But I don't understand the term without hands?

[CWH]

"without hands" suggest it is not made from man. Therefore, the stone that was cut from the mountain without hands mean that Jesus ( sometimes also known as the rock) who came from God the Father ( the mountain) and not from humans (without hands).

Hope this helps.

Many Blessings.

[gilgal]

Why is it that Jesus spoke of the mysteries of the Kingdom of God or heaven when Israel was under Roman domination?

I think the answer is that he was setting up the Kingdom at that point.