Please take your copy of God's Word and turn to Daniel chapter 4.
!
The second theme is the immovable sovereignty of God.
And this is often seen in juxtaposition to the rise and the fall of man, and it is seen by God's hand.
We will see today that it is God who does the raising up and the bringing low.
And thirdly, we'll see time and time again the resilient faith of Daniel and his friends in a hostile culture.
Now, I'll say this theme is not well developed in this chapter of the book.
It's a lesser theme, but we will see that Daniel is still serving in the court, and he is still willing to speak on behalf of God.
So Daniel chapter 4, beginning at verse 1, before I read, beloved, let me remind you that this is God's Word to us.
It's inspired, it's authoritative, it's sufficient.
And it was written for his glory and our good.
And so we would all do well to listen to it in order to believe its promises and obey its commands.
Daniel chapter 4, beginning in verse 1.
King Nebuchadnezzar, to all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth, peace be multiplied to you.
It has seemed good to me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God has done for me.
How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders.
His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion endures from generation to generation.
I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and prospering in my palace.
I saw a dream that made me afraid.
As I lay in bed, the fancies and the visions of my head alarmed me.
So I made a decree that all the wise men of Babylon should be brought before me,
and that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream.
Then the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers came in.
And I told them the dream, but they could not make known to me its interpretation.
At last Daniel came in before me.
He who was named Beltegazar after the name of my God, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods.
And I told him the dream, saying,
O Beltegazar, chief of the magicians,
because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and that no mystery is too difficult for you.
Tell me the visions of my dream that I saw and their interpretation.
The visions of my head as I lay in bed were these.
I saw and behold a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great.
The tree grew and became strong, and its top reached to heaven,
and it was visible to the end of the whole earth.
Its leaves were beautiful, and its fruit abundant, and in it was food for all.
The beasts of the field found shade under it,
and the birds of the heavens lived in its branches, and all flesh was spread from it.
I saw in the visions of my head as I lay in bed, and behold, a watcher, a holy one, came down from heaven.
He proclaimed aloud and said thus,
Chop down the tree and top off its branches.
Strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit.
Let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches.
But leave the stump of its roots in the earth,
bound with a band of iron and bronze amid the tender grass of the field.
Let him be wet with the dew of heaven.
Let his portion be with the beasts in the grass of the earth.
Let his mind be changed from man's, and let a beast's mind be given to him,
and let seven periods of time pass over him.
The sentence is by the decree of the watchers,
the decision by the word of the holy ones,
to the end that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men,
and gives it to whom he will, and sets over it the lowliest of men.
This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, saw.
And you, O Beltegazar, tell me the interpretation,
because all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me the interpretation.
But you are able, for the spirit of the holy gods is in you.
Then Daniel, whose name was Beltegazar, was dismayed for a while,
and his thoughts alarmed him.
The king answered and said,
Beltegazar, let not the dream or the interpretation alarm you.
Beltegazar answered and said,
My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you,
and its interpretation for your enemies.
The tree you saw, which grew and became strong,
so that its top reached to heaven,
and it was visible to the end of the whole earth,
whose leaves were beautiful, and its fruit abundant,
and which was food for all,
under which beasts of the field found shade,
and whose branches the birds of the heavens lived.
It is you, O king, who have grown and become strong.
Your greatness has grown and reaches to heaven,
and your dominion to the ends of the earth.
And because the king saw a watcher,
a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying,
Chop down the tree and destroy it,
but leave the stump of its roots in the earth,
bound with a band of iron and bronze,
in the tender grass of the field,
and let him be wet with the dew of heaven,
and let his portion be with the beasts of the field,
till seven periods of time pass over him.
This is the interpretation, O king.
It is a decree of the Most High,
which has come upon my lord, the king,
that you shall be driven from among men,
and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field.
You shall be made to eat grass like an ox,
and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven,
and seven periods of time shall pass over you,
till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men,
and gives it to whom he will.
And as it was commanded to leave the stump of the roots of the tree,
your kingdom shall be confirmed for you
from the time that you know that heaven rules.
Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you.
Break off your sins by practicing righteousness,
and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed,
that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your prosperity.
All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar.
At the end of twelve months,
he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon,
and the king answered and said,
Is not this great Babylon which I have built by my mighty power
as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?
While the words were still in the king's mouth,
there fell a voice from heaven,
O king Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken.
The kingdom has departed from you,
and you shall be driven from among men,
and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field.
You shall be made to eat grass like an ox,
and seven periods of time shall pass over you,
until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men,
and gives it to whom he will.
Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar.
He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox,
and his body was wet with the dew of heaven,
till his hair grew as long as an eagle's feathers,
and his nails were like bird's claws.
At the end of the days,
I, Nebuchadnezzar,
lifted my eyes to heaven,
and my reason returned to me.
And I blessed the Most High
and praised and honored him who lives forever,
for his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
and his kingdom endures from generation to generation.
All the inhabitants of the earth
are accounted as nothing,
and he does according to his will
among the host of heaven
and among the inhabitants of the earth.
And none can stay his hand
or say to him,
What have you done?
At the same time,
my reason returned to me,
and for the glory of my kingdom,
my majesty and splendor returned to me.
My counselors and my lords sought me,
and I was established in my kingdom,
and still more greatness was added to me.
Now I, Nebuchadnezzar,
praise and extol and honor the King of heaven,
for all his works are right
and his ways are just,
and those who walk in pride
he is able to humble.
All right.
We have about 30 minutes to cover the content.
Of this text.
Before we do,
before we get into the meat of it
and the driving point of it,
I want to deal with the first three verses
and consider how they relate to the last 34.
Now there's two explanations of this.
I'm going to give you the first one,
which I think is a probable explanation of it,
and that is that it's a precursor,
it's an introduction to the rest of the story
that he's in advance saying,
here's the thing I intend to tell you,
and then he launches into this story.
It's very possible that this is the meaning of it.
However, I'd like to suggest to you
the more unpopular opinion,
which I always hate when I hold the more unpopular opinion,
and that is that the first three verses of chapter four
actually belong with the end of chapter three,
which is the story that we studied last week there,
and I'm going to do that for a couple of reasons.
Number one, the medieval translation places these verses,
verses one through three, at the end of chapter three.
So once upon a time, this was the case.
They were chapter three, verse 31 through 34,
and it was Martin Luther who changed the chapter
and verse break to have chapter three end with verse 30.
Now we know that chapter and verse breaks are not inspired.
There's a good example of that.
It was changed, so we're left with the task
of figuring out how these stories carry along together.
But I think it belongs with the story
at the end of chapter three,
the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
the great idol in the plain that they were asked to worship
and thrown into the fiery furnace as a result,
because it contains in it a familiar phrase
found in the beginning of chapter three.
You see this in chapter three, verse four,
people's nations and languages.
So part of the command to bow down to this idol
was that the people's nations and languages would do so.
And then this to me seems to kind of cap off
what happens there.
First, he gives a decree, verse 29 of chapter three,
that no one would speak against the God of Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego.
And then I suggest to you that he speaks
in favor of that God.
He says to all peoples, nations, and languages
that dwell in all the earth,
peace be multiplied to you.
It has seemed good to me to show the signs and wonders
the most high God has done for me.
How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders.
His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and his dominion endures from generation
to generation, right?
So placing these three verses
at the beginning of chapter four
connects it to the rest of chapter four,
and I think it makes Nebuchadnezzar
seem a bit like a crazy person.
You may have experienced this
in your reading of the book of Daniel,
that he just seems so back and forth.
But I think what we see
at the very beginning of chapter four,
and I'm arguing should be the end of chapter three,
I think we're actually witnessing
Nebuchadnezzar's conversion.
Notice the progression of things
that he has said about Yahweh,
about our God, the God of Daniel
and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
In chapter two and verse 47,
he says to Daniel,
truly your God is God of gods
and Lord of kings
and a revealer of mysteries,
for you have been able to reveal
this mystery he's talking about
the interpretation of his dream.
So your God is God of gods
and Lord of kings.
Chapter three, verse 29,
I mentioned,
therefore I make a decree,
any people, nation, or language
that speaks anything against
the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
shall be torn limb from limb
and their houses laid in ruins.
For there is no other God
who is able to rescue in this way.
So again, the God of Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego.
But then in chapter four, verse two,
he says,
it has seemed good to me
to show the signs and wonders
that the most high God
has done for me.
It seems that he has come to know
this God.
And I'm suggesting to you
that it's because of the occasion
that happened on the plain of Dura
with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
Again, that we are observing
the conversion of Nebuchadnezzar II.
Now, quite frankly,
either way you argue it,
it's okay with me.
But let me go a little further.
Note that I referred to him
as Nebuchadnezzar II.
This is the Nebuchadnezzar the Great,
who is the prominent historical Nebuchadnezzar.
He was named after his grandfather
and was the ruler under which Babylon
became a great empire.
Typically, when you hear
Nebuchadnezzar reference,
this is the Nebuchadnezzar
that's being referred to.
Upon his death,
he was succeeded by his son,
Amel Marduk,
who was such a terrible ruler
that he was murdered
by his brother-in-law,
Negal Sherazer,
who ruled four years
before his death.
He was succeeded by his son,
Labashi Marduk,
who was another inept ruler.
So he was assassinated
after a nine-month rule
and replaced with a man named Nabonidus.
Now, this is extra-biblical
but historical fact
as far as history can be understood
as factual.
The Babylonians kept
great historical records
and this is the record
that we're shown.
Now, Nabonidus,
in order to establish
some sense of legitimacy,
renamed himself
Nebuchadnezzar III.
He took on that name.
Of interesting historical note,
this is an aside,
but when Saddam Hussein
invaded Kuwait,
he referred to himself
as Nebuchadnezzar II
simply because he didn't know
his history well enough
to know that Nebuchadnezzar II
was not Nebuchadnezzar I.
He was actually Nebuchadnezzar IV
in that case.
But in order to establish legitimacy,
he was hearkening back
to that Babylonian king
the same way
that Nabonidus was doing.
Now, Nabonidus was succeeded
by his son
whose name was
Balthazar.
Nope.
His name was Balthazar
of chapter 5.
There's no historical record
that Nebuchadnezzar II
had a son named Belshazzar.
But there is a record
that Nebuchadnezzar III
had a son named Belshazzar.
Now, Daniel 5, 2a reads,
Belshazzar, when he tasted the wine,
commanded that the vessels of gold
and of silver
that Nebuchadnezzar, his father,
had taken out of the temple
in Jerusalem be brought.
And this has confused many people.
And there's a lot of criticism
of the book of Daniel
because it doesn't line up
with the historical record.
Critics of the scripture
used this argument to say
this is not inspired.
How could it be?
It doesn't reconcile
with the historical record.
But the word translated
his father
in our English translations
could also be translated
his predecessor.
So the Nebuchadnezzar
that came before him.
And that's very easily resolved.
So this brings me
to my second unpopular opinion.
I don't know how many of you
listen to podcasts
or audio books,
but do you ever listen to it
at like one and a half speed?
I feel like that's what I'm doing
right now.
For the sake of time.
I hope you're hanging with me.
My second unpopular opinion
is this.
That the Nebuchadnezzar
of chapter 4
verses 4 through 37
is Nebuchadnezzar the third,
not Nebuchadnezzar the second.
Different Nebuchadnezzars.
I'm going to give you
a couple of arguments
to this end
and then I'll tell you
why it matters at all.
Why it matters a little bit.
Number one,
I've been really geeking out
over the past two weeks
over this.
The Nebuchadnezzar
of 4, 4 through 37
has a dream, right?
We see him having a dream.
We know that Nebuchadnezzar
has had another dream
back in chapter 2.
But this time,
or this man,
doesn't call Daniel alone
to interpret the dream,
but instead issues a decree.
This is verse 6 and 7,
that the wise men of Babylon
should be brought before me,
that they would make known
the interpretation.
So verse 7 says,
the magicians,
the enchanters,
the Chaldeans,
the astrologers.
We've seen this happen
before in chapter 2.
Why would the Nebuchadnezzar
of chapter 2
call the same people
who were unable to help him
with that dream?
If you recall in chapter 2,
he wasn't even willing
to tell them the dream
because he thought
they would just trick him.
They would come up
with some interpretation
and it may or may not be.
He wanted them to tell him
the dream
and they couldn't.
And Daniel comes on the scene
and is able to do so.
So why would this Nebuchadnezzar
do what he did?
It doesn't make any sense
that he has forgotten
everything that happened
the last time he had a dream
and doesn't just call Daniel.
Like, hey, Daniel,
you're still in my court.
You're the guy
that interprets dreams.
Secondly,
the Nebuchadnezzar of 4,
4 through 37
does not seem to know
the God of Daniel.
We've seen in chapter 2
and in chapter 3,
I'm arguing the beginning
of chapter 4,
some expression that he does know
this God of Daniel.
He knows that Daniel
worships a single God.
in verses 8 and 9
of chapter 4,
this Nebuchadnezzar
refers to
the spirit
of the holy gods
that he believes
are in Daniel.
It's like he's heard
a rumor
that Daniel
has this spirit
and this ability,
but he doesn't actually know
where to locate
its source.
It doesn't make
a lot of sense.
How do we reconcile
this with the Nebuchadnezzar
of chapter 2's statement,
verse 47?
Again,
truly your God
is God of gods
and Lord of kings,
a revealer of mysteries,
for you have been able
to reveal this mystery.
He goes from
that grand statement
in chapter 2
to I've heard
you have these
holy gods
that dwell in you.
Third,
in chapter 4
in verse 30,
this Nebuchadnezzar says,
is not this great Babylon
which I have built
by my piety power
as a royal residence
and for the glory
of my majesty.
Right?
So many argue
that this must be
Nebuchadnezzar II,
but Nebuchadnezzar II
didn't build Babylon.
He just built it
to its prominence.
He built it up
so possibly
this is what he's saying.
I have made it
what it now is.
However,
when Nebuchadnezzar III
took the throne,
he decided to build
a new palace
and a new capital city
in a place called Temmah.
If my memory is
serving me right,
about 60 miles south
of the prominent
Nebuchadnezzar II,
Babylon,
and it was renamed
Babylon.
It became the new Babylon
there.
fourth,
there's no historical record
of Nebuchadnezzar II
disappearing for seven years.
Seven periods,
the text says.
In fact,
there are many records
indicating that he was
present and active
for the entirety
of his reign.
There's documentation
that is still
in the account.
Now,
it's possible
that that was
fabricated,
that it's kind of
a cover-up.
We don't want anybody
to think that our king
was insane for seven years.
Very possible
explanation to that.
But,
this doesn't reconcile
with the attitude
of the Nebuchadnezzar
of chapter 4.
The very last verse,
he says,
Now I,
Nebuchadnezzar,
praise and extol
and honor the king
of heaven,
for all his works
are right
and his ways
are just,
and those who walk
in pride
he is able
to humble.
It would seem
that he would want
it to be known
of this God.
This God
had humbled him
and in this way.
When Nebuchadnezzar III
moved the capital
to Timah
and called it Babylon,
he left
at the old capital
his son,
Belshazzar.
He was left behind
in Belshazzar
to kind of co-rule
with him.
And we have records
of communication
between him
and his son,
except for a gap
in time.
Guess how long
the gap in time is?
Seven years.
There's a silence.
And it could be
for any other reason.
Maybe it was lost,
burned up,
dropped on a river.
I mean,
there could be
some other reason,
but it's so interesting
that for seven years
there appears
to be a silence
between Nebuchadnezzar III,
Nabodidus,
and his son,
Belshazzar.
So I think
that this Nebuchadnezzar
is different
from that Nebuchadnezzar
of chapters 1
through chapter 4
and verse 3.
And so I'm going
to call him
Nabodidus
from now on.
But why does this matter?
Okay, so why?
Why did I just spend
the first 15 minutes
of this
in one and a half speed
telling you this?
I don't think
it matters ultimately,
right?
So you could just
flatly disagree with me
and go,
not a chance.
As I stated,
it's the more
unpopular opinion
of the text.
You can still learn
the prominent point
of chapter 4
and disagree with me
on this matter.
But two possible reasons
I think it does matter.
I mentioned to you already
the scholarly argument
against the veracity
of the Old Testament.
This is one of those.
Daniel is historically
inaccurate.
It's very confusing
as you try to parse
through all of that.
How is it that
there's a Belshazzar?
We have no record
of a son named Belshazzar,
etc.
Those things become
problematic in believing
that this is in fact
the Word of God.
And the Word of God
is both inspired
and it's an accurate history.
So I think it's helpful
for us to reconcile
these types of things.
The other,
and I think more important
reason that I'm making
this case,
is that I think
it displays for us
kind of the manifold
mercy of God.
It seems to me,
in my estimation,
that it's not just
one proud king,
one idolatrous king,
one oppressive king
that God is merciful to,
brings to humility,
I think brings to salvation,
but it's actually two.
That God uses Daniel
and his friends
and their perseverance,
or faithful perseverance,
in a hostile culture,
to display his grace
and mercy.
I think that it's
a reverberation
of the promise
made to Abraham
in Genesis chapter 22
and verse 18,
in your offspring
shall all the nations
of the earth
be blessed.
So that's how
it warms my heart
to think,
I think this is
a different guy,
another guy
that God
is merciful to,
another proud man
that deserves
the condemnation
of God
and yet is shown
his mercy.
So,
here's the outline
for our study
this morning.
Three points
to develop
the last one
very brief.
First,
the prideful rise
of Nabonidus.
You'll have to guess
on the spelling.
Second,
the humbling fall
of Nabonidus.
And third,
the humbling rise.
of Nabonidus.
First,
the prideful rise.
This whole episode
in the book of Daniel,
all of that language,
the repetition
is meant to make
the point
that Nabonidus
is told in this dream,
this is the point,
to the end,
this is the last part
of verse 17,
to the end
that the living
may know
that the Most High
rules the kingdom
of men
and gives it
to whom he will
and sets over it
the lowliest
of men.
This is the point
of all
of chapter
four,
right?
Nabonidus
is going to be
humbled
because
God
is to be known.
Nabonidus
had yet
to understand
that while
he was a ruler,
his rule
was subject
to the King
of Kings
and the Lord
of Lords.
he did not
know
the Most High
God
and he did not
know
of his
absolute
reign.
He was
very
proud.
Recall
verses 29
and 30.
At the end
of 12 months
he was walking
on the roof
of the royal palace
of Babylon
and the king
answered and said,
is not this
great Babylon
which I have built
by my mighty power
and as a royal residence
and for the glory
of my majesty.
So a full
year later,
maybe he even
tried to keep
the pride in check
for a little while
after Daniel's
interpretation,
but a full year later
he has this moment
of great pride.
Look at what
I have done.
Look at my
power.
Look at my
majesty.
We can't be sure
if anyone was with him
on the roof.
Perhaps
somebody was.
Whether he actually
said this out loud
or not,
but it makes
no difference
because this
was the posture
of his
heart.
He thought
that it was
by his might,
by his power,
by his majesty
that he had
accomplished
these
things.
You wouldn't
say or think
such a thing
if you did not
believe it
to be true.
Now it may be
easy for us
to not find
ourselves in the text
at this point.
None of us
are kings.
I'm quite sure
of that.
None of us
have built
a city.
I'm quite sure
a palace.
I'm quite sure
of that.
Some of our homes
are bigger than
others,
but no palaces.
I'm fairly
confident.
But we should be
so careful
at this point
because we
have all
been proud
like Nabonidus.
Every one
of us.
We have all
given ourselves
credit for
things that
the Lord
accomplished.
We have said
in our hearts,
many of us
have said
out loud,
look at my
accomplishments.
Look at the
game I won.
Look at the
grades I
achieved.
Look at the
house that I
built.
Look at the
promotion that I
earned.
Look at the
way I
look.
Look at the
sermon I
preach.
Look at my
power.
Look at my
majesty.
We have all
done this
in various
ways.
Be very
careful to
not be
dismissive of
these types
of attitudes
in your
heart.
The Lord
takes this
kind of thing
seriously.
In Proverbs
16, 5,
we read,
everyone who
is arrogant
in heart
is an
abomination
to the
Lord.
Be assured
he will
not go
unpunished.
This
attitude of
heart of
Nabonidus
was before
he was
humbled.
It was
before he
knew the
Lord.
In the
last part of
verse 32,
God tells
Nabonidus
that he
will punish
him until
you know
that the
Most High
rules the
kingdom of
men and
gives it to
whom he
will.
God in
his great
mercy does
something
severe to
Nabonidus so
that Nabonidus
will know
him.
He makes
him crazy,
drives him
mad for
seven periods,
I believe,
because of the
historical text,
seven years.
If you are
proud this
morning,
know that
God has the
power to
drive you
mad.
He could
turn you
into a
cow so
that you
might know
him.
And it's
very possible
that he
may just
do so,
but know
also that
he may
have brought
you to
church,
something much
more kind,
at least I
hope you
experience it
that way,
so that you
can hear about
the madness
of Nabonidus,
that you will
see your own
pride and that
you will throw
yourself on the
mercy of God
as found in
the person and
work of
Jesus Christ.
Don't be so
proud that
God has to
drive you mad
to bring you
to him.
Know that he
may already
be at work
in your heart
even now to
bring you to
humility that
you might know
him.
God in his
great mercy
did something
severe to
Jesus Christ
by punishing
him on the
cross so
that we can
know him,
so that we
to be brought
to God
in Christ.
And be
assured,
if you are
not humble
now,
you will
one day
be humbled.
Jesus,
in speaking of
the final
judgment in
Matthew chapter
23,
says,
whoever exalts
himself will
be humbled,
and whoever
humbles himself
will be
exalted.
Beloved,
those of us
who know the
Lord have all
the more reason
to not be
proud.
All the more.
we can't
hardly blame
Nabonidus for
being proud.
He didn't
know the
Lord.
He didn't
understand God's
majesty,
but we do.
If we are ever
proud, it is
because we have
forgotten who we
once were and
what we deserved.
I ask my boys
quite often,
what do you
deserve?
And the answer
is death and
hell.
That's the answer.
We should make
us so very
thankful for
the burned
grilled cheese.
Right?
Praise the
Lord.
This is not
death and
hell.
It's just
slightly burned
grilled cheese.
We have to
have a
perspective to
understand.
When we are
proud, we
have forgotten
who we once
were and what
we deserve.
We have
forgotten that
we were wretched
rebels and that
it would be
just, it would
be right for
God to punish
us forever.
If we are
ever proud,
beloved, we
should only be
proud in our
God.
This is the
place of
boasting for
the Christian.
Listen to
Jeremiah chapter
9 verse 23
and following.
Thus says the
Lord, let not
the wise man
boast in his
wisdom.
Let not the
mighty man
boast in his
might.
Let not the
rich man
boast in his
riches.
But let him
who boasts
boast in
this.
This is so
good.
That he
understands and
knows me.
That I am the
Lord who
practices steadfast
love, justice,
and righteousness
in the earth.
For in these
things I
delight, declares
the Lord.
And I think you
could track that
backwards.
God delights in
being steadfast in
his love, his
justice, and his
righteousness.
Right?
And it's that that
we're supposed to
understand and
to know.
This is the
reason for our
boasting and
nothing else.
So that's the
prideful rise of
Nabonidus.
We also can
observe the
humbling fall of
Nabonidus.
Nabonidus loses
his mind.
Right?
And note, it's
important for us to
see that God is
sovereign even over
the mind of man.
Nabonidus.
The first part of
verse 34, at the
end of the days, I
Nebuchadnezzar lifted
my eyes to heaven and
my reason returned to
me.
That is to say, he
was able to think
rightly.
And what is it that
he thinks?
What is it that he
now knows that he's
able to think rightly?
He says in the rest of
verse 34 and
following, and I
blessed the Most
High and praised
and honored him
who lives forever.
For his dominion is
an everlasting
dominion and his
kingdom endures from
generation to
generation.
All the inhabitants
of the earth are
accounted as
nothing.
And he does
according to his
will among the
hosts of heaven and
among the inhabitants
of the earth.
And none can stay
his hand or stop
what he's doing and
say to him, what
have you done?
What does
Nabonidus now know
rightly?
That God is worthy
of praise and honor
and not man.
That God is absolute
and forever the ruler
and not man.
That man is nothing
in comparison and is
subject to God's reign.
That God's sovereignty
is immovable.
And that man doesn't
even have the right
to question God's
rule.
What humility.
What an expression
of humility.
I wonder, are our
hearts marked with
this measure of
humility?
Nabonidus has been
driven mad.
Right?
He spent seven years.
He doesn't even seem
like he's recognizable
any longer.
Right?
He ate grass.
Just think about it.
For seven years he
lived outside and he
ate grass like an
ox.
But he does not
ask of God.
He's not concerned
about the quote
unquote wasted
years of his life.
He does not question
whether or not this
lesson could have been
learned in another
way.
He does not question
God's control or
God's goodness.
goodness.
And I just have to
confess, I think I
would have.
Really, Lord?
Seven years?
It took that?
It took me being
insane for this long
for you to teach me
this lesson?
Nabonidus accepts it.
Apparently it does
take this long to teach
me this lesson.
It does not question
God's control or his
goodness.
Listen to the final
verse of the chapter.
Now I, Nebuchadnezzar,
praise and extol and
honor the King of
Heaven.
For all his works
are right.
And his ways
are just.
And those who walk
in pride, he is
able to
humble.
He praises him
because he's good
and he's just
and he's in
control
and because
he humbled
Nabonidus.
And then we see a
restoration, thirdly.
The humbling rise
of
Nabonidus.
So now that he's
humble, God
gives back to him
the kingdom.
It's a worthy
note that God
is good to
his word.
It's what he saw
in the dreams.
What the Holy
One told him
would happen.
So upon his
humbling, his
kingdom is
restored.
Verse 36 says,
at the same time
my reason returned
to me and for
the glory of my
kingdom, my
majesty and
splendor returned
to me.
He even says
that more
greatness was
added to
him.
Now, we
live in a
different economy
of God's
grace.
Largely the
way that we
are blessed
now in Christ
is through
spiritual matters.
We are looking
to a heavenly
reward.
In these days,
often the way
God blessed
his people
and others
is that he
gave them
dominion.
He gave
them possession.
He showed
that he was
for them
in the things
that they had
and we should
be careful
that we
don't learn
that lesson
from Nabonidus.
Remember Jesus
again, Matthew
23 and
verse 12.
Speaking of
final judgment,
he says,
whoever exalts
himself will
be humbled
and whoever
humbles himself
will be
exalted.
He's talking
about future
glory.
The last
will be
first and
the first
will be
last.
I hope
that you'll
join with
me in
desiring to
be the
last so
that someday
I can be
the first
so that I
will have
exaltation
even as I
have humility
here.
And we
don't really
need to
look to
the life
of
Nabonidus
or
Nebuchadnezzar
if you
prefer.
We have
in the
Lord Jesus
Christ
the greatest
example
of humility.
And so
I'll close
with a reading
from Philippians
chapter 2.
This is
verse 3
and following.
Do nothing
from selfish
ambition
or conceit
but in
humility
count others
more significant
than yourselves.
Let each
of you
look not
only to
his own
interests
but also
to the
interests
of others.
Have this
mind among
yourself
which is
yours
in Christ
Jesus
who
though he
was in
the form
of God
did not
count
equality
with God
a thing
to be
grasped
but emptied
himself
by taking
the form
of a servant
being born
in the likeness
of men
and being
found in
human form
he humbled
himself
by becoming
obedient to
the point
of death
even death
on a cross
therefore
God has
highly exalted
him and bestowed
on him the name
that is above
every name
so that the name
of Jesus
every knee
should bow
in heaven
on earth
and under
the earth
and every
tongue
confess that
Jesus Christ
is Lord
to the glory
of God
the Father
let's pray
together
God