“Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay.” Daniel 2:41-43
Daniel foretells a time when the Roman Empire will consist of ten kingdoms or leaders. This is made much clearer in the seventh chapter, where Daniel expands on the ten-king coalition. Since the chronology of events is marked by a downward movement from one section of the statue to the next, the “feet and toes” stage must follow the “legs” stage. But when we look back at the history that followed Daniel’s prediction, we find nothing that even remotely corresponds to a tenfold Roman coalition. That shows us that this final stage of Daniel’s prophecy is yet to come—and yet to perform its prescribed role in human history. Daniel gives us one other piece of information that helps us understand the timing of the events conveyed in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. Daniel says that the final form of the Roman Empire will be on the earth when God sets up His earthly Kingdom. The old Roman Empire deteriorated by stages, but no other world empire has ever taken its place as a single ruler of its former territories. Daniel’s prophecy, however, makes it clear that in the last days, the Roman Empire, or some version of it, will be revived.
Speculation about the exact nature of the Revived Roman Empire can be interesting, but we must remember to keep the right perspective. Our primary focus as Christians is supposed to be spreading the gospel, not trying to identify the Antichrist. In particular, we should realize that what’s written about the Revived Roman Empire in the Bible is not very extensive, and we can’t go beyond what’s written. We know the Antichrist is coming, and we know he will have some connection to the ancient Roman Empire, possibly through ancestry, geography, or the structure of his government.