Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.
Break them with a rod of iron. Whichsoever of the pagan nations will not obey thee willingly as their rightful King, shall be broken by thee with a sceptre, not of ivory, silver, or gold, the ordinary materials, but of iron, crushing the anti-Christian faction (Psalms 2:2-3) with ponderous force. Compare Matt. 20:44 , "Whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder;" also, the kingdom of the great mountain issuing from the stone, which smote the image on the feet-namely, the fourth or iron kingdom "breaking in pieces," and consuming it and all other kingdoms, but itself standing "forever" (Daniel 2:34-35; Daniel 2:44). The iron kingdom shall be broken as clay before Christ's iron sceptre. [The Septuagint, Syriac, and the Vulgate, etc., read tir`eem, from raa`ah (H7462), to feed or tend, 'rule' (cf. Micah 7:14, "Feed thy people with thy rod"). So Revelation 2:27; Revelation 19:15, quotes the passage. Here, however, the parallelism to "dash in piece" requires the reading tªro`eem (H7489), from raa`a` (H7489), 'break.' I think the Spirit designed in allusion to raa`aah (H7451), 'feed,' or 'rule' as a shepherd.] Christ, who would have ruled therewith the pastoral staff as the good shepherd, if they had been obedient, will break them to pieces with the sceptre of iron, because refractory.