What does Daniel 2:28 mean?
This is the crucial second half of the statement Daniel began in the last verse (Daniel 2:27). King Nebuchadnezzar furiously ordered the deaths of all his advisors when court magicians could not tell him the contents of his own dream (Daniel 2:9–12). Daniel promised he could uncover the mystery, and God revealed the information to him in a vision (Daniel 2:16–19). And yet, when he first spoke to the king, he said the same thing as the sorcerers: that no human being could possibly know what the king was asking.Here, however, Daniel points out that the One True God can know this information. The king's necromancers and conjurers relied on deception or contact with demons and other spirits. Daniel, himself, is not the reason this secret is being revealed. Rather, it is the Lord who uncovers the truth.
In this way, Daniel's appearance before the king is a powerful testimony for the God of Israel. Nebuchadnezzar seems to have been suspicious of his magicians. This is likely because he inherited them from his father and did not trust them. Rather than merely telling his dream and asking what it meant, the king tested his occultists by asking them to tell him what he'd seen. If they couldn't divine the dream, it meant they had no real power (Daniel 2:1–9). When Daniel credits "a God in heaven" he distinguishes the true Lord from the false deities of Babylon and the lies of the sorcerers.
Although he was a captive in Babylon, Daniel recognized that he belonged to God and was privileged to make Him known to the king (Daniel 2:30). The term "the latter days" may refer to historic events that occur from Nebuchadnezzar's time to the coming of Christ to rule the earth. Or the expression may refer to Messianic conditions culminating in Christ's kingdom on earth.
This segment of Daniel is written in Aramaic (Daniel 2:4—7:28), which was the common language of Babylon at the time. This follows the purpose of the miracles and prophecies the passage contains. These are about, and spoken to, the non-Jewish peoples of the world (Daniel 2:29)
Daniel 2:24–30 records Daniel's initial statement to King Nebuchadnezzar regarding the king's disturbing dream (Daniel 2:1–3). God revealed the truth to Daniel in a vision (Daniel 2:17–19), and Daniel will credit God alone with the knowledge he is about to share. Humbly, Daniel agrees that what the king had demanded was impossible for any person (Daniel 2:10–11), but that nothing can be kept secret from the true God in heaven.
King Nebuchadnezzar tests his magicians, demanding they tell him what he has dreamed, rather than merely inventing an interpretation. When they fail, he prepares to execute the entire department of wise men. Daniel promises he can meet the king's request and is given a special vision from God. The king dreamed of a massive statue shattered into powder by a supernatural rock. Daniel accurately describes this and interprets it as a prophecy about kingdoms which would come after Babylon. The king appoints Daniel and his friends to positions of power and influence over Babylon.
