Daniel 4:1-37

Please take your copy of God's Word and turn to Daniel chapter 4.

Daniel 4 · chapter mention

!

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.

Daniel 4 · chapter mention

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.

Daniel 4 · chapter mention

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

Genesis 22 · chapter mention

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

Matthew 23 · chapter mention

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

Jeremiah 9:23

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

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

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