Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.
Thou sawest till that a stone - Messiah and His kingdom (Genesis 49:24; Psalms 118:22; Isaiah 28:16). In its relation to Israel it is a "stone of stumbling" (Isaiah 8:14; Acts 4:11; 1 Peter 2:7-8), on which both houses of Israel are "broken," not destroyed, as Antichrist and his faction shall be (Matthew 21:42; Matthew 21:44, "Whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder"). In its relation to the Church, the same stone which destroys the image is the foundation of the Church (Ephesians 2:20). In its relation to the Gentile world-power, the stone is its destroyer (Daniel 2:35; Daniel 2:44: cf. Zechariah 12:3). Christ saith (Matthew 21:44, referring to Isaiah 8:14-15), "Whosoever shall fall on this stone (i:e., stumble and be offended at Him, as the Jews were, from whom, therefore, He says "the kingdom shall be taken") shall be broken:" "but (referring to Daniel 2:34-35) on whomsoever it shall fall" (namely, on the world-power, which had been the instrument of breaking the Jews), it shall not merely break, but "grind him to powder" (1 Corinthians 15:24). The falling of the stone on the feet of the image cannot refer to Christ at His first advent, because the fourth kingdom was not then as yet divided-no toes were in existence (see note, Daniel 2:44). Was cut out - namely, from "the mountain" (Daniel 2:45); namely, mount Zion (Isaiah 2:2, "the mountain of the Lord's house"), and, antitypically, the heavenly mount of the Father's glory, from whom Christ came.
Without hands - explained in Daniel 2:44, "The God of heaven shall set up a kingdom," as contrasted with the image which was made with hands of man. Messiah was not created by human agency, but conceived in the Virgin's womb by the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:20; Luke 1:35: cf. Zechariah 4:6; Mark 14:58; Hebrews 9:11; Hebrews 9:24). So "not made with hands" - i:e., heavenly, 2 Corinthians 5:1; spiritual, Colossians 2:11. The world-kingdom were reared by human ambition; but this is the "kingdom of heaven," "not of this world" (John 18:36). As the fourth kingdom, or Rome, was represented in a two-fold state, first strong, with legs of iron, then weak, with toes part of iron part of clay; so this fifth kingdom, that of Christ, is seen conversely, first insignificant as a "stone," then as a "mountain" filling the whole earth. The ten toes are the ten lesser kingdoms, into which the Roman kingdom was finally to be divided: this ten-fold division here hinted at is not specified in detail until the seventh chapter (Daniel 7:7, "a fourth beast ... it had ten horns").
The fourth empire originally was bounded in Europe pretty nearly by the line of the Rhine and Danube; in Asia by the Euphrates. In Africa it possessed Egypt and the north coasts; South Britain and Dacia were afterward added, but were ultimately. resigned. The ten kingdoms do not arise until a deterioration (by mixing clay with the iron) has takes place: they are in existence when Christ comes in glory, and then are broken in pieces. The ten have been sought for in the invading hosts of the fifth and sixth century. But though many provinces were then severed from Rome as independent kingdoms, the dignity of emperor still continued, and the imperial power was exercised over Rome itself for two centuries. So the ten fold division cannot be looked for before 731 AD But the east is not to be excluded, five toes being on each foot.
Thus, no point of time before the overthrow of the empire at the taking of Constantinople by the Turks (1453 AD) can be assigned for the division. It seems, therefore, that the definite ten kingdoms will be the ultimate development of the Roman empire just before the rise of Antichrist, who shall overthrow three of the kings (Daniel 7:8, "There came up among them (the ten horns) another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots"), and, after three and a half years ("a time and times, and the dividing of time," Daniel 7:25), he himself shall be overthrown by Christ in person. Some of the ten kingdoms will, doubtless, be the same as some past and present divisions of the old Roman empire, which accounts for the continuity of the connection between the toes and legs-a gap of centuries not being interposed, as is objected by opponents, of the futurist theory. The lists of the ten made by these opponents differ from another; and are set aside by the fact that they include countries which were never Roman, and exclude one whole section of the empire-namely, the east (Tregelles).
Which smote the image upon his feet - the last state of the Roman empire. Not 'upon his legs.' Compare "in the days of these kings" - namely, the last ten kingdoms, Daniel 7:24 (note, Daniel 2:44).