August 5, 2025 • 40 mins
Ever wondered what could bring the most powerful man in the ancient world to his knees? Daniel chapter 4 presents one of Scripture's most extraordinary accounts—the personal testimony of King Nebuchadnezzar's dramatic conversion.
At the height of his power, having conquered nations and rebuilt Babylon into a marvel of the ancient world, Nebuchadnezzar receives a disturbing dream. A magnificent tree reaching to heaven is suddenly cut down by divine decree. When Daniel reluctantly interprets this vision, he reveals a shocking truth: the king himself will lose his mind and live like a wild animal for seven years until he acknowledges God's sovereignty over all earthly kingdoms.
Despite this warning, Nebuchadnezzar's pride remains unchecked. Twelve months later, while admiring his architectural achievements from his palace rooftop and declaring "Is not this great Babylon which I have built," judgment falls. Immediately, he loses his sanity. The mighty conqueror is driven from human society, eats grass like an ox, and grows hair "as long as eagle's feathers" with nails "like birds' claws."
This episode unpacks this remarkable biblical account of divine humbling and restoration. We explore how after seven years of living as a beast, Nebuchadnezzar "lifted his eyes to heaven" and his reason returned. Most astonishingly, he was not only restored to sanity but reinstated to his throne with even greater honor than before.
The final words of this pagan king's testimony—"Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of Heaven"—reveal the ultimate purpose behind his humbling: that all might recognize who truly rules the kingdoms of men. This powerful message reminds us that even today, no human authority stands beyond God's sovereign rule, and that "those who walk in pride He is able to humble."
Join us for this profound exploration of pride, divine intervention, and the life-changing power of acknowledging the King of Heaven.
Email: nathan@nathandietsche.com
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord and
Savior, jesus Christ.
Thank you for joining me todayfor the Mysteries of God's Word.
Today we are in Daniel, chapter4, where we will read about
Nebuchadnezzar's testimony ofconversion and how the Lord
(00:22):
humbled him so that he mightdeclare the greatness of the one
true God.
We begin in verse 1.
King Nebuchadnezzar, to allpeoples, nations and languages
that dwell in all the earth,peace be multiplied to you.
It has seemed good to me toshow the signs and wonders that
(00:45):
the Most High God has done forme.
How great are his signs, howmighty are his wonders.
His kingdom is an everlastingkingdom and his dominion endures
from generation to generation.
Here, in our first three versesof chapter four, we find that
(01:08):
it opens with an edict from KingNebuchadnezzar, and it gives us
a glimpse into the very end ofthis chapter.
Daniel records this royaldecree in verses one through
three, as well as much ofchapter 4, as the personal
testimony of Nebuchadnezzar.
(01:29):
It's read as if Nebuchadnezzarhimself were speaking in the
first person, so that we, thereaders, understand that these
are the very words of KingNebuchadnezzar, words of King
Nebuchadnezzar as he describeshis conversion and how he came
(01:50):
to declare the greatness of theMost High God.
To set the stage a little bitfor this chapter, we need to
know that many years have passedsince Nebuchadnezzar had
commanded all the people of allthe nations and languages in his
empire to bow down to hisgolden idol.
And if you remember when he didthat, the god of Shadrach,
(02:13):
meshach and Abednego saved themfrom the fiery furnace because
they refused to bow down to hisgolden idol.
Bow down to his golden idol.
However, even after thatincredible miracle, king
Nebuchadnezzar simply viewed theLord God as just one more of
the many deities in the pantheonof deities he had in Babylon.
(02:38):
To King Nebuchadnezzar, theLord God was just the God of
Daniel, shadrach, meshach.
Nebuchadnezzar, the Lord Godwas just the God of Daniel,
shadrach, meshach and Abednego.
He wasn't the God ofNebuchadnezzar.
However, as we will find inchapter 4 and this personal
testimony of Nebuchadnezzar,he's going to do a 180 degree
(02:58):
turn and be converted.
In verse 2, nebuchadnezzar saysthat it seemed good to him to
show the signs and wonders thatthe Most High God had done for
him.
In other words, kingNebuchadnezzar sees these
supernatural miracles that Godhas been revealing to him and
(03:20):
now that we will see here inchapter 4, as miracles done for
him that he might know the onetrue God.
The works of God have becomemade evident to Nebuchadnezzar
so that he knows that the Lordand the Lord, god alone, is the
only one that rules the kingdomsof men, and he also rules over
(03:44):
Nebuchadnezzar.
Finally, in verse 3,nebuchadnezzar says the kingdom
of God is an everlasting kingdom, acknowledging that the kingdom
of God is eternal and it can'tbe defeated.
The Lord has power over allkingdoms on the earth, even
(04:05):
right in the middle of thisrebellious pagan and evil empire
of Babylon.
God's power was revealedthrough his servants Daniel,
shadrach, meshach and Abednego.
And the king realizes now,after the events we're about to
look at here in chapter 4, thatbecause of the Lord's mighty
(04:28):
power, his dominion will endurethroughout every generation of
mankind Until one day the God ofheaven will destroy all of
these earthly kingdoms, creatingan eternal kingdom, one in
which he and he alone will reignas king.
Picking up in verse 4, I,nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in
(04:51):
my house and prospering in mypalace.
I saw a dream that made meafraid.
As I lay in bed, the fanciesand the visions of my head
alarmed me.
As we look into the history ofNebuchadnezzar's kingdom and
deeper into these verses verses4 and 5, we come to realize that
(05:14):
the years of war were over forNebuchadnezzar.
He had conquered every majorcivilization in the known world
at this time within his reach,and Nebuchadnezzar was now
living at ease in his palace andhe had great prosperity in the
kingdom of Babylon.
By all accounts, the followingverses that we're about to read
(05:39):
will describe seven years towardthe very end of
Nebuchadnezzar's life.
James Usher's Annals of theWorld says Nebuchadnezzar's
second dream occurred in 570 BCand Nebuchadnezzar being
restored to his rightful mindand converted to give glory to
(06:00):
God was one year before hisdeath in 562 BC.
And in verse 6, we see thatNebuchadnezzar had a dream that
made him afraid, and this dreamterrified Nebuchadnezzar and he
awoke in bed thinking about thisvery disturbing dream.
(06:20):
Now this is the second timerecorded in Daniel that
Nebuchadnezzar has been sodeeply disturbed that he has
considered a dream a nationalemergency.
The first dream occurred in thesecond year of his reign, which
would have been 34 years priorto this Verse 6.
(06:42):
So I made a decree that all ofthe wise men of Babylon should
be brought before me that theymight make known to me the
interpretation of the dream.
Then the magicians, theenchanters, the Chaldeans and
the astrologers came in and Itold them the dream.
And I told them the dream, butthey could not make known to me
(07:07):
its interpretation.
In verses 6 and 7, the fact thatwhen Nebuchadnezzar summons all
of these wise men, it wouldseem everyone except for Daniel
comes in to interpret the dream,is interesting.
34 years ago, daniel was placedby Nebuchadnezzar over all of
(07:30):
the wise men when he hadinterpreted his first dream
about the statue of many metals.
Yet Daniel is nowhere to befound when these wise men are
initially called before the king.
It seems, from what we see here, that after Daniel was exalted
over the other wise men thosemany years ago that the king
(07:51):
fell back into an old routine.
You might say he startedlistening again to many of these
dark art dealers the magicians,the enchanters, the astrologers
to advise him.
The enchanters, the astrologersto advise him.
These men are professionalliars.
They're manipulators, charmers,and they are trained to make a
(08:12):
living by using trickery, drugsand fear, all to bring about
their own selfish politicalagendas.
And once again their shallowdark arts are shown for what
they are when Nebuchadnezzarrequires something more than
just tickling his ears.
They cannot interpret thisdream when the king is very
(08:36):
afraid.
Verse 8.
At last, daniel came in beforeme.
At last, daniel came in beforeme, he whose name was
Belteshazzar, after the name ofmy God, and in whom is the
spirit of the holy gods.
And I told him the dream,saying O Belteshazzar, chief of
(09:02):
the magicians, because I knowthat the spirit of the holy gods
is in you and that no mysteryis too difficult for you, tell
me the visions of my dream thatI saw and their interpretation.
In verses 8 and 9, after thoseother so-called wise men were
given an opportunity tointerpret the king's dream and
shown they were completelyunable to do so, daniel comes in
(09:25):
before the king Again.
Daniel has been appointed chiefor head over all of the wise
men, but yet Daniel is the lastto speak, clearly waiting for
the Lord to create the rightopportunity.
In this pagan environment.
Nebuchadnezzar, in histestimony here, confesses how he
(09:48):
had given Daniel a name thatwas after his pagan god of
Babylon, belteshazzar.
And then Nebuchadnezzarcontinues in a confession
describing how he had poorlytreated Daniel, even calling him
chief of the magicians and onewho has the spirit of the most
high gods in him.
This title that Nebuchadnezzarused was just as much of a jab
(10:13):
at Daniel as an acknowledgementof Daniel's special gift.
The king doesn't believe in theGod of heaven as the one true
God, and he refuses toacknowledge the God of heaven.
So instead, here,nebuchadnezzar calls Daniel the
chief of the magicians, lumpingDaniel in with all of the
(10:34):
charlatan dark art dealers thatdo imitation miracles.
Additionally, the king callsDaniel's ability to interpret
dreams the spirit of the mostholy gods rather than the spirit
of the most high God.
Picking up again in verse 10,.
The visions of my head as I layin bed were these I saw, and
(10:59):
behold, a tree in the middle ofthe earth, and its height was
great.
The tree grew and became strong.
Behold, a tree in the middle ofthe earth and its height was
great.
The tree grew and became strongand its top reached to heaven
and it was visible to the end ofthe whole earth.
Its leaves were beautiful andits fruit abundant, and in it
was food for all.
(11:20):
The beasts of the field foundshade under it and the birds of
the heaven lived in its branchesand all flesh fed on it.
In verses 10 through 12, beforeDaniel can even reply to the
king's request, because the kinghad asked Daniel to both reveal
(11:42):
the dream and give itsinterpretation.
The king simply continuesdescribing his dream.
The king describes an enormoustree that grew so large it was
seen by the whole earth and itstop reached up into the heavens.
This description is actuallyquite interesting and
(12:04):
reminiscent of Genesis 11.4,which talked about when men
desired to build a tower thatreached to the heavens.
Nebuchadnezzar says that thistree was not only beautiful in
its appearance and its leaves,but it had fruit, so much fruit
that it was able to feed all ofthe earth.
(12:24):
And the tree not only providedfor all of mankind, but there
was an overflow so that thebeasts of the field and the
birds of the air had all theywanted.
(12:56):
Verse 13.
Strip off its leaves andscatter its fruit.
Let the beasts flee from underit and the birds from its
branches, but leave the stump ofits roots in the earth, bound
with a band of iron and bronze,amidst the tender grass of the
(13:17):
field.
Let him be wet with the dew ofheaven.
Let his portion be with thebeasts and the dew of heaven.
Let his portion be with thebeasts and the grass of the
earth.
Let his mind be changed from aman's and let a beast's mind be
given to him and let sevenperiods of time pass over him.
(13:44):
The sentence is by the decree ofthe watchers, the decision by
the word of the holy ones, tothe end, that the living may
know that the Most High rulesthe kingdom of men and gives it
to whom he will and sets over itthe lowliest of men, the
lowliest of men, as we examineverses 13 through 17,
(14:05):
nebuchadnezzar describes awatcher, a holy one, coming down
from heaven.
The word watcher here isanother word used in ancient
texts for angels, and we seehere, as well as other places in
scripture, that God givesspecific roles for angels to
(14:26):
administer authority andjudgment.
Other scriptural examples areDaniel 10.13 and Psalm 103.20
and 21.
In the case of this particularangel, he has authority over the
rise and fall of Babylon, andthe angel from heaven proclaims
(14:48):
that this great and mighty treethat feeds the whole earth is to
be chopped down, it's to bestripped of its leaves and its
fruit is to be scattered, andits fruit is to be scattered.
But the angel says when thetree is cut down, leave the
stump and bind that stump withan iron and a bronze band,
(15:11):
leaving it in the midst of thetender grass.
And then suddenly we see atransition here from the stump
to that of a man, and we seethat the man is going to be wet
with dew.
So this man doesn't come insideat night, the man remains
outdoors and he becomes wet withthe dew.
(15:32):
Additionally, this man dwellswith the beasts that live in the
grass of the earth.
And not only does he dwell withthe beasts, but his mind is
changed.
We see a change from having themind of a man to that of having
the mind of a beast.
Such a description, from thatof a rational human being to
(15:54):
that of an instinctual beast,clearly shows us that this will
be some form of mental illnessor condition.
And finally, we're told by theangel that this verdict, this
condition, is going to last forseven periods of time where this
man is afflicted with the mindof a beast.
(16:14):
And the angel says thissentence is by the decree of the
watchers.
What an incredible statement,and it gives us insight about
what the scripture teaches abouta spiritual battle that takes
place in the heavenlies, abattle that takes place for the
hearts and the minds of man.
In this dream, the angels aregiven authority by God to make
(16:39):
the mind of this man whom wewill later learn is the king
like that of a beast.
Perhaps the most revealingstatement that this angel makes
is when he says that the livingmay know that the Most High
rules the kingdom of men andgives it to whom he will and
(17:02):
sets over it the lowliest of men.
The angel here reveals to usthe very purpose of why this is
all happening.
God reveals to Nebuchadnezzarin this dream that the very
reason this is happening is sothat all people that live on the
(17:22):
earth will know that the MostHigh God, the Lord, god of
Heaven, rules over the kingdomsof man.
What is about to happen willdemonstrate for all of the world
that human government exercisesits authority only at the
permission of God.
It's not because they've pulledup their bootstraps and it's
(17:45):
not because they're captains oftheir own fate.
Nebuchadnezzar, who is nowtoward the end of his reign,
having defeated all of hisenemies and creating a new city
a new Babylon, is very pridefuland arrogant.
City.
(18:08):
A new Babylon is very pridefuland arrogant.
His new Babylon will have 350foot walls.
This wall will be 87 feet thick.
There will be 25 bronze gateson every side In this incredible
city, surrounded by thismassive wall which runs 15
square miles, nebuchadnezzarbelieves is beyond any attack.
(18:28):
Yet, after acquiring all ofthis power, all of this wealth
and all of the greatest earthlysecurity possible,
nebuchadnezzar is about to beconquered and humiliated by the
very hand of God.
The paradoxes and lessons thatare about to be taught to all of
(18:51):
the earth are profound.
The prideful king with all ofthe earth's securities will be
removed from power and humbled.
The humiliation of this kingwill also show the world that
the Lord can even set a greatfool like Nebuchadnezzar, who
(19:12):
now acts like an animal as aking over the earth.
But the greatest lesson here isthat God is sovereign over the
affairs of men.
There's no one that's above hislordship.
He is the king of kings, he isthe lord of lords.
(19:33):
Verse 18.
This dream I, nebuchadnezzar,saw, and you, o Belteshazzar,
(19:55):
tell me the last verse spoken inthe first person by
Nebuchadnezzar, until verse 34.
Verse spoken in the firstperson by Nebuchadnezzar until
verse 34.
And in verse 18, the king againmakes it clear that no one in
his kingdom, no other wise men,was able to make known to him
the interpretation of this dream.
And once again Nebuchadnezzarconfesses how he treated Daniel,
(20:18):
saying Daniel was able to makethe interpretation known because
he had the spirit of the holygods A further acknowledgement
of how the king had rejected theGod of heaven as the one true
God.
As he jests to Daniel that hehas the spirit of the holy gods
Plural, picking up in verse 19.
(20:41):
Then Daniel, whose name wasBelteshazzar, was dismayed for a
while and his thoughts alarmedhim.
The king answered and saidBelteshazzar, let not the dream
or the interpretation alarm you.
Belteshazzar answered and saidmy lord, may the dream be for
(21:04):
those who hate you and itsinterpretation for your enemies.
In verse 19, the narrative picksup, not in the first person of
Nebuchadnezzar, but now as if itis being written by Daniel
himself.
And Daniel describes that,after hearing the king's dream,
he was troubled.
His thoughts alarmed him.
(21:24):
As Daniel meditated on thisdream and prayed in his thoughts
for understanding from the Lord, daniel realized the meaning of
the dream and he became afraidof what it was going to mean.
When he revealed it to the king, and in his fear he paused for
a moment.
And Nebuchadnezzar, seeing thatDaniel was visibly shaken,
(21:49):
encourages him not to be afraidto speak it.
And Daniel begins by lettingthe king know that this dream
speaks of things he's not goingto like, things that he would
wish only on his enemies.
Picking up, in verse 20, thetree you saw which grew and
(22:10):
became strong so that its topreached to heaven and it was
visible to the ends of the wholeearth, whose leaves were
beautiful and its fruit abundantand in which was food for all.
Verse 20-22, daniel describesthe tree as being Nebuchadnezzar
King.
(22:52):
Nebuchadnezzar, at this point,has accomplished what every
mighty king dreams of.
He has conquered every majorcivilization in the known world,
bringing them all togetherunder his banner of Babylon.
He had finished off theAssyrian empire.
He had captured all of Syria,all of Palestine, all of Judah
(23:16):
and even Egypt.
The kingdom of Babylon wasknown throughout all of the
earth, even in areas beyond hisreach.
In Europe and in China, theyknew of the empire of Babylon.
The kingdom of Babylon, underNebuchadnezzar's tyrannical hand
(23:36):
, was actually very prosperous.
It had enough food and shelterto care for everyone in the
kingdom, while it also displayedmagnificent wonders of
construction, engineering andart throughout all of the
kingdom.
Babylon had become what manymen might consider an earthly
(23:58):
utopia, embracing every majorreligion on earth, while it used
the greatest of men from everyculture to provide prosperity
for its citizens.
However, what may seem like autopia from fallen man's
perspective is actually theoasis of the Antichrist from
(24:20):
God's perspective.
By rejecting the one true Godand accepting all forms of gods,
nebuchadnezzar's Babylon beganwhat we might today call the
first pluralistic culture, andthrough this pluralistic culture
, nebuchadnezzar was able tofocus on his primary goal, which
(24:43):
was to exalt himself above allmen through global dominance and
global power.
This is the spirit of theAntichrist, and it continues to
persist even to today.
One day, this spirit of theAntichrist will be empowered and
(25:06):
embodied by the devil himselfinto one man, and he will be
known as the man of lawlessness,or what we commonly call the
Antichrist.
This final embodiment of thespirit of the Antichrist will
bring about the final worlddomination, or what we might
(25:28):
also refer to as a final Babylon, or what Revelation refers to
as Babylon the Great, picking upin verse 23,.
And because the king saw awatcher, a holy one, coming down
from heaven and saying Pickingup in verse 23,.
And let him be wet with the dewof heaven and let his portion
(25:52):
be with the beasts of the fieldtill seven periods of time pass
over him.
This is the interpretation, oking.
It is a decree from the MostHigh which has come upon my lord
(26:16):
, the king, that you shall bedriven from among men and your
dwelling shall be with thebeasts of the field.
Verse 2.
(26:45):
In verses 23 through 25, danielrecognized that the decree of a
watcher was the decree of themost high God and that this
judgment from the Lord God hadcome down upon the king
Nebuchadnezzar.
And Daniel begins theinterpretation by telling
(27:05):
Nebuchadnezzar he's going to bedriven from men and dwell with
the beasts of the field.
Daniel is warning the king thatnot only will he lose his
throne, but he will lose hismind.
He'll be chopped down from hisauthority over Babylon and he'll
be driven out into the fieldsby the very men who serve him
(27:28):
now and there he will come tolive like a beast.
Some form of mental disease,like clinical lycanthropy, is
going to come upon the king.
This mental illness that comesupon the king will be such that
he will live with the beasts,eating right alongside them, as
if he were an ox grazing in thefield.
(27:51):
His whole life will be consumedby this 24-7, and he'll find
himself covered with the dewfrom the heavens as he lives in
the grassy fields, and thiscurse upon the king will persist
.
It'll persist until the kingknows that the Most High God
rules the kingdom of men.
(28:13):
The most common understanding ofseven periods here is that this
is seven years, as this sameword for periods or times in
some translations is also usedin Daniel, chapter 7, verse 25,
where in fact it does refer toyears.
And once again the purpose ofthis long period of time is so
(28:39):
that there's no question inNebuchadnezzar's mind that the
Most High indeed rules thekingdoms of men, and he gives it
to whom he pleases Verse 26.
And as it was commanded toleave the stump of the roots of
the tree, your kingdom shall beconfirmed for you from the time
(29:02):
that you know that heaven rules.
Therefore, o king, let mycounsel be acceptable to you
Break off your sins bypracticing righteousness and
your iniquities by showing mercyto the oppressed, that there
may perhaps be a lengthening ofyour prosperity.
Here, in verses 26 and 27,daniel clarifies for King
(29:28):
Nebuchadnezzar that the stump isnot in fact the king after he
loses his mind, but rather thestump represents the kingdom of
Babylon that he built.
The bands of iron and bronzethat are clasped onto this stump
symbolize how God will securethis kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar's
(29:48):
until Nebuchadnezzar repentsand declares that God is the God
of heaven and rules over thekingdoms of men.
And finally, in verse 27,daniel calls Nebuchadnezzar to
repent of his sin and to trustin the Most High God, to stop
(30:09):
being so cruel in reaching hisobjectives, but rather to show
mercy to the oppressed, so thatGod might show mercy on him and
thereby lengthen his reign ofprosperity.
Verse 28.
All this came upon KingNebuchadnezzar At the end of
(30:46):
twelve months Verse 28.
Verses 28 and 29, we leapforward in time one year, twelve
months.
It tells us from the time thatDaniel had interpreted the dream
to the events that are nowtaking place.
And King Nebuchadnezzar iswalking on the roof of his royal
(31:07):
palace.
And as the king is overlookingall of his kingdom from the roof
of his palace, in his newBabylon that he had just built
by what he believed was hisgreat power and his abilities,
and as he was basking in thesight of his kingdom, while
(31:27):
rejecting the warning of Daniel,he said Is not this great
Babylon which I have built by mymight and power as a royal
residence and for the glory ofmy majesty, and we can truly see
from the king's question herethat his ultimate motivation and
(31:48):
his quest for world dominancehas always been to glorify
himself.
Verse 31,.
While the words were still inthe king's mouth, there fell a
voice from heaven.
Oh, king Nebuchadnezzar, to youit is spoken, the kingdom has
(32:08):
departed from you and you shallbe driven from among men and
your dwelling shall be with thebeasts of the field and you
shall be made to eat grass likean ox, and seven periods of time
shall pass over you until youknow that the Most High rules
the kingdoms of men and gives itto whom he will.
(32:31):
Immediately, the word wasfulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar
.
He was driven from among menand ate grass like an ox, and
his body was wet with the dew ofheaven till his hair grew as
long as an eagle's feather andhis nails were like birds' claws
.
(32:53):
In verses 31 and 32, whileNebuchadnezzar was finishing his
words of self-adoration andself-exaltation, a voice comes
from the sky.
And this voice from heaven isyet another testimony of the
Lord, god's, power and authorityover Nebuchadnezzar.
(33:14):
This voice declared once againthe curse of the dream that the
king was already warned about.
And the very moment that thisword of the Lord had finished
speaking, nebuchadnezzar losthis mind and he became like a
wild beast, and when thishappened, he was driven out of
(33:37):
the palace.
He was driven out of the greatwalled city that he had just
built and he was driven into thefields, far away from any other
man, and there he dwelt andlived like an ox, eating the
grass and sleeping in the grass,so that he became wet with the
dew of heaven.
(33:58):
Nebuchadnezzar had lost all ofhis faculties, to the point
where he was unable to even cuthis hair or trim his nails.
His hair became as long as aneagle's feather, which is over
two feet long, and his nailsgrew to be like the claws of a
bird Picking up.
In verse 34, at the end of thedays, I, nebuchadnezzar, lifted
(34:24):
my eyes to heaven and my reasonreturned to me, and I blessed
the Most High and praised andhonored him, who lives forever,
for his dominion is aneverlasting dominion and his
kingdom endures from generationto generation.
All the inhabitants of theearth are accounted as nothing.
(34:47):
In verses 34 and 35, we seethat at the end of those seven
(35:09):
years that were ordained by God,the Most High, nebuchadnezzar
lifted up his eyes to heaven.
This tells us that the natureof Nebuchadnezzar's mental
illness or disease was such thathe could still understand to
some degree what was happeningcould still understand to some
degree what was happening.
Therefore, when the time was up, he raised his eyes in
(35:33):
repentance towards heaven,seeking the mercy of the Most
High God, and his mind wasrestored.
Through this, the Lorddemonstrates that he is able to
humble the most proud man and heis able to exalt the most
humbled man.
Proverbs 3.34 reads.
(36:03):
Matthew 23.12 readsNebuchadnezzar, now, thankful
for what God has done, begins toworship God by blessing him,
(36:24):
praising him and honoring theLord's name.
And now this restored kingrecognizes that God is the
everlasting God, that his domainendures forever through every
generation of man.
Nebuchadnezzar now recognizesthat all of the people of earth
(36:45):
have no power without the God ofheaven.
They are nothing without theMost High, and that the Lord God
sits sovereign over all ofcreation.
The Lord God has power to do ashe wills, both in heaven and on
earth.
And now the king recognizesthere's no one in all of heaven,
(37:10):
there's no one on all of theearth that has power to sway the
character or the will of theMost High.
There's no one that can bring acharge against his integrity.
The Lord does according to hiswill and according to his
perfect character.
(37:32):
Daniel 4, 36 continues.
At the same time, my reasonreturned to me and for the glory
of my kingdom, my majesty andsplendor returned to me.
My counselors and my lordssought me and I was established
in my kingdom.
And still more greatness wasadded to me.
(38:16):
In verse 36, we see that at thesame time, nebuchadnezzar had
regained his right mind, god hadplaced it on the hearts of his
royal counselors and his lordsto come search for him.
And when they were reunited,the king was returned to the
glory of his throne and he wasre-established as the ruler over
Babylon.
Furthermore, nebuchadnezzar wasgiven even greater honors in
(38:39):
his own kingdom of Babylon thanhe had before.
Clearly, his people weregrateful to have their king back
, and now a king that honoredthe Lord Most High.
And in our final verse for theday, nebuchadnezzar says Now I,
nebuchadnezzar, praise and extoland honor the King of Heaven.
(39:06):
Nebuchadnezzar only has one moreyear of his life left to live,
but for this last year of hislife he will worship the King of
Heaven.
He will recognize that there'san eternal King that rules over
the affairs and the kings of theearth.
He will praise the King ofHeaven for the righteousness of
(39:30):
his works and the justice of hisways.
He will praise the king ofheaven because it was the Lord
that humbled him when he wasproud.
Why would Nebuchadnezzar praiseGod for humbling him?
Because the king of Babylon nowknows that through his humility
(39:51):
he came into a personalrelationship with the king of
kings, the one true God, who isLord over all.
Thank you for joining me forDaniel, chapter 4.
And God bless you this week.
Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord and
Savior, jesus Christ.
Thank you for joining me todayfor the Mysteries of God's Word.
Today we are in Daniel, chapter4, where we will read about
Nebuchadnezzar's testimony ofconversion and how the Lord
(00:22):
humbled him so that he mightdeclare the greatness of the one
true God.
We begin in verse 1.
King Nebuchadnezzar, to allpeoples, nations and languages
that dwell in all the earth,peace be multiplied to you.
It has seemed good to me toshow the signs and wonders that
(00:45):
the Most High God has done forme.
How great are his signs, howmighty are his wonders.
His kingdom is an everlastingkingdom and his dominion endures
from generation to generation.
Here, in our first three versesof chapter four, we find that
(01:08):
it opens with an edict from KingNebuchadnezzar, and it gives us
a glimpse into the very end ofthis chapter.
Daniel records this royaldecree in verses one through
three, as well as much ofchapter 4, as the personal
testimony of Nebuchadnezzar.
(01:29):
It's read as if Nebuchadnezzarhimself were speaking in the
first person, so that we, thereaders, understand that these
are the very words of KingNebuchadnezzar, words of King
Nebuchadnezzar as he describeshis conversion and how he came
(01:50):
to declare the greatness of theMost High God.
To set the stage a little bitfor this chapter, we need to
know that many years have passedsince Nebuchadnezzar had
commanded all the people of allthe nations and languages in his
empire to bow down to hisgolden idol.
And if you remember when he didthat, the god of Shadrach,
(02:13):
meshach and Abednego saved themfrom the fiery furnace because
they refused to bow down to hisgolden idol.
Bow down to his golden idol.
However, even after thatincredible miracle, king
Nebuchadnezzar simply viewed theLord God as just one more of
the many deities in the pantheonof deities he had in Babylon.
(02:38):
To King Nebuchadnezzar, theLord God was just the God of
Daniel, shadrach, meshach.
Nebuchadnezzar, the Lord Godwas just the God of Daniel,
shadrach, meshach and Abednego.
He wasn't the God ofNebuchadnezzar.
However, as we will find inchapter 4 and this personal
testimony of Nebuchadnezzar,he's going to do a 180 degree
(02:58):
turn and be converted.
In verse 2, nebuchadnezzar saysthat it seemed good to him to
show the signs and wonders thatthe Most High God had done for
him.
In other words, kingNebuchadnezzar sees these
supernatural miracles that Godhas been revealing to him and
(03:20):
now that we will see here inchapter 4, as miracles done for
him that he might know the onetrue God.
The works of God have becomemade evident to Nebuchadnezzar
so that he knows that the Lordand the Lord, god alone, is the
only one that rules the kingdomsof men, and he also rules over
(03:44):
Nebuchadnezzar.
Finally, in verse 3,nebuchadnezzar says the kingdom
of God is an everlasting kingdom, acknowledging that the kingdom
of God is eternal and it can'tbe defeated.
The Lord has power over allkingdoms on the earth, even
(04:05):
right in the middle of thisrebellious pagan and evil empire
of Babylon.
God's power was revealedthrough his servants Daniel,
shadrach, meshach and Abednego.
And the king realizes now,after the events we're about to
look at here in chapter 4, thatbecause of the Lord's mighty
(04:28):
power, his dominion will endurethroughout every generation of
mankind Until one day the God ofheaven will destroy all of
these earthly kingdoms, creatingan eternal kingdom, one in
which he and he alone will reignas king.
Picking up in verse 4, I,nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in
(04:51):
my house and prospering in mypalace.
I saw a dream that made meafraid.
As I lay in bed, the fanciesand the visions of my head
alarmed me.
As we look into the history ofNebuchadnezzar's kingdom and
deeper into these verses verses4 and 5, we come to realize that
(05:14):
the years of war were over forNebuchadnezzar.
He had conquered every majorcivilization in the known world
at this time within his reach,and Nebuchadnezzar was now
living at ease in his palace andhe had great prosperity in the
kingdom of Babylon.
By all accounts, the followingverses that we're about to read
(05:39):
will describe seven years towardthe very end of
Nebuchadnezzar's life.
James Usher's Annals of theWorld says Nebuchadnezzar's
second dream occurred in 570 BCand Nebuchadnezzar being
restored to his rightful mindand converted to give glory to
(06:00):
God was one year before hisdeath in 562 BC.
And in verse 6, we see thatNebuchadnezzar had a dream that
made him afraid, and this dreamterrified Nebuchadnezzar and he
awoke in bed thinking about thisvery disturbing dream.
(06:20):
Now this is the second timerecorded in Daniel that
Nebuchadnezzar has been sodeeply disturbed that he has
considered a dream a nationalemergency.
The first dream occurred in thesecond year of his reign, which
would have been 34 years priorto this Verse 6.
(06:42):
So I made a decree that all ofthe wise men of Babylon should
be brought before me that theymight make known to me the
interpretation of the dream.
Then the magicians, theenchanters, the Chaldeans and
the astrologers came in and Itold them the dream.
And I told them the dream, butthey could not make known to me
(07:07):
its interpretation.
In verses 6 and 7, the fact thatwhen Nebuchadnezzar summons all
of these wise men, it wouldseem everyone except for Daniel
comes in to interpret the dream,is interesting.
34 years ago, daniel was placedby Nebuchadnezzar over all of
(07:30):
the wise men when he hadinterpreted his first dream
about the statue of many metals.
Yet Daniel is nowhere to befound when these wise men are
initially called before the king.
It seems, from what we see here, that after Daniel was exalted
over the other wise men thosemany years ago that the king
(07:51):
fell back into an old routine.
You might say he startedlistening again to many of these
dark art dealers the magicians,the enchanters, the astrologers
to advise him.
The enchanters, the astrologersto advise him.
These men are professionalliars.
They're manipulators, charmers,and they are trained to make a
(08:12):
living by using trickery, drugsand fear, all to bring about
their own selfish politicalagendas.
And once again their shallowdark arts are shown for what
they are when Nebuchadnezzarrequires something more than
just tickling his ears.
They cannot interpret thisdream when the king is very
(08:36):
afraid.
Verse 8.
At last, daniel came in beforeme.
At last, daniel came in beforeme, he whose name was
Belteshazzar, after the name ofmy God, and in whom is the
spirit of the holy gods.
And I told him the dream,saying O Belteshazzar, chief of
(09:02):
the magicians, because I knowthat the spirit of the holy gods
is in you and that no mysteryis too difficult for you, tell
me the visions of my dream thatI saw and their interpretation.
In verses 8 and 9, after thoseother so-called wise men were
given an opportunity tointerpret the king's dream and
shown they were completelyunable to do so, daniel comes in
(09:25):
before the king Again.
Daniel has been appointed chiefor head over all of the wise
men, but yet Daniel is the lastto speak, clearly waiting for
the Lord to create the rightopportunity.
In this pagan environment.
Nebuchadnezzar, in histestimony here, confesses how he
(09:48):
had given Daniel a name thatwas after his pagan god of
Babylon, belteshazzar.
And then Nebuchadnezzarcontinues in a confession
describing how he had poorlytreated Daniel, even calling him
chief of the magicians and onewho has the spirit of the most
high gods in him.
This title that Nebuchadnezzarused was just as much of a jab
(10:13):
at Daniel as an acknowledgementof Daniel's special gift.
The king doesn't believe in theGod of heaven as the one true
God, and he refuses toacknowledge the God of heaven.
So instead, here,nebuchadnezzar calls Daniel the
chief of the magicians, lumpingDaniel in with all of the
(10:34):
charlatan dark art dealers thatdo imitation miracles.
Additionally, the king callsDaniel's ability to interpret
dreams the spirit of the mostholy gods rather than the spirit
of the most high God.
Picking up again in verse 10,.
The visions of my head as I layin bed were these I saw, and
(10:59):
behold, a tree in the middle ofthe earth, and its height was
great.
The tree grew and became strong.
Behold, a tree in the middle ofthe earth and its height was
great.
The tree grew and became strongand its top reached to heaven
and it was visible to the end ofthe whole earth.
Its leaves were beautiful andits fruit abundant, and in it
was food for all.
(11:20):
The beasts of the field foundshade under it and the birds of
the heaven lived in its branchesand all flesh fed on it.
In verses 10 through 12, beforeDaniel can even reply to the
king's request, because the kinghad asked Daniel to both reveal
(11:42):
the dream and give itsinterpretation.
The king simply continuesdescribing his dream.
The king describes an enormoustree that grew so large it was
seen by the whole earth and itstop reached up into the heavens.
This description is actuallyquite interesting and
(12:04):
reminiscent of Genesis 11.4,which talked about when men
desired to build a tower thatreached to the heavens.
Nebuchadnezzar says that thistree was not only beautiful in
its appearance and its leaves,but it had fruit, so much fruit
that it was able to feed all ofthe earth.
(12:24):
And the tree not only providedfor all of mankind, but there
was an overflow so that thebeasts of the field and the
birds of the air had all theywanted.
(12:56):
Verse 13.
Strip off its leaves andscatter its fruit.
Let the beasts flee from underit and the birds from its
branches, but leave the stump ofits roots in the earth, bound
with a band of iron and bronze,amidst the tender grass of the
(13:17):
field.
Let him be wet with the dew ofheaven.
Let his portion be with thebeasts and the dew of heaven.
Let his portion be with thebeasts and the grass of the
earth.
Let his mind be changed from aman's and let a beast's mind be
given to him and let sevenperiods of time pass over him.
(13:44):
The sentence is by the decree ofthe watchers, the decision by
the word of the holy ones, tothe end, that the living may
know that the Most High rulesthe kingdom of men and gives it
to whom he will and sets over itthe lowliest of men, the
lowliest of men, as we examineverses 13 through 17,
(14:05):
nebuchadnezzar describes awatcher, a holy one, coming down
from heaven.
The word watcher here isanother word used in ancient
texts for angels, and we seehere, as well as other places in
scripture, that God givesspecific roles for angels to
(14:26):
administer authority andjudgment.
Other scriptural examples areDaniel 10.13 and Psalm 103.20
and 21.
In the case of this particularangel, he has authority over the
rise and fall of Babylon, andthe angel from heaven proclaims
(14:48):
that this great and mighty treethat feeds the whole earth is to
be chopped down, it's to bestripped of its leaves and its
fruit is to be scattered, andits fruit is to be scattered.
But the angel says when thetree is cut down, leave the
stump and bind that stump withan iron and a bronze band,
(15:11):
leaving it in the midst of thetender grass.
And then suddenly we see atransition here from the stump
to that of a man, and we seethat the man is going to be wet
with dew.
So this man doesn't come insideat night, the man remains
outdoors and he becomes wet withthe dew.
(15:32):
Additionally, this man dwellswith the beasts that live in the
grass of the earth.
And not only does he dwell withthe beasts, but his mind is
changed.
We see a change from having themind of a man to that of having
the mind of a beast.
Such a description, from thatof a rational human being to
(15:54):
that of an instinctual beast,clearly shows us that this will
be some form of mental illnessor condition.
And finally, we're told by theangel that this verdict, this
condition, is going to last forseven periods of time where this
man is afflicted with the mindof a beast.
(16:14):
And the angel says thissentence is by the decree of the
watchers.
What an incredible statement,and it gives us insight about
what the scripture teaches abouta spiritual battle that takes
place in the heavenlies, abattle that takes place for the
hearts and the minds of man.
In this dream, the angels aregiven authority by God to make
(16:39):
the mind of this man whom wewill later learn is the king
like that of a beast.
Perhaps the most revealingstatement that this angel makes
is when he says that the livingmay know that the Most High
rules the kingdom of men andgives it to whom he will and
(17:02):
sets over it the lowliest of men.
The angel here reveals to usthe very purpose of why this is
all happening.
God reveals to Nebuchadnezzarin this dream that the very
reason this is happening is sothat all people that live on the
(17:22):
earth will know that the MostHigh God, the Lord, god of
Heaven, rules over the kingdomsof man.
What is about to happen willdemonstrate for all of the world
that human government exercisesits authority only at the
permission of God.
It's not because they've pulledup their bootstraps and it's
(17:45):
not because they're captains oftheir own fate.
Nebuchadnezzar, who is nowtoward the end of his reign,
having defeated all of hisenemies and creating a new city
a new Babylon, is very pridefuland arrogant.
City.
(18:08):
A new Babylon is very pridefuland arrogant.
His new Babylon will have 350foot walls.
This wall will be 87 feet thick.
There will be 25 bronze gateson every side In this incredible
city, surrounded by thismassive wall which runs 15
square miles, nebuchadnezzarbelieves is beyond any attack.
(18:28):
Yet, after acquiring all ofthis power, all of this wealth
and all of the greatest earthlysecurity possible,
nebuchadnezzar is about to beconquered and humiliated by the
very hand of God.
The paradoxes and lessons thatare about to be taught to all of
(18:51):
the earth are profound.
The prideful king with all ofthe earth's securities will be
removed from power and humbled.
The humiliation of this kingwill also show the world that
the Lord can even set a greatfool like Nebuchadnezzar, who
(19:12):
now acts like an animal as aking over the earth.
But the greatest lesson here isthat God is sovereign over the
affairs of men.
There's no one that's above hislordship.
He is the king of kings, he isthe lord of lords.
(19:33):
Verse 18.
This dream I, nebuchadnezzar,saw, and you, o Belteshazzar,
(19:55):
tell me the last verse spoken inthe first person by
Nebuchadnezzar, until verse 34.
Verse spoken in the firstperson by Nebuchadnezzar until
verse 34.
And in verse 18, the king againmakes it clear that no one in
his kingdom, no other wise men,was able to make known to him
the interpretation of this dream.
And once again Nebuchadnezzarconfesses how he treated Daniel,
(20:18):
saying Daniel was able to makethe interpretation known because
he had the spirit of the holygods A further acknowledgement
of how the king had rejected theGod of heaven as the one true
God.
As he jests to Daniel that hehas the spirit of the holy gods
Plural, picking up in verse 19.
(20:41):
Then Daniel, whose name wasBelteshazzar, was dismayed for a
while and his thoughts alarmedhim.
The king answered and saidBelteshazzar, let not the dream
or the interpretation alarm you.
Belteshazzar answered and saidmy lord, may the dream be for
(21:04):
those who hate you and itsinterpretation for your enemies.
In verse 19, the narrative picksup, not in the first person of
Nebuchadnezzar, but now as if itis being written by Daniel
himself.
And Daniel describes that,after hearing the king's dream,
he was troubled.
His thoughts alarmed him.
(21:24):
As Daniel meditated on thisdream and prayed in his thoughts
for understanding from the Lord, daniel realized the meaning of
the dream and he became afraidof what it was going to mean.
When he revealed it to the king, and in his fear he paused for
a moment.
And Nebuchadnezzar, seeing thatDaniel was visibly shaken,
(21:49):
encourages him not to be afraidto speak it.
And Daniel begins by lettingthe king know that this dream
speaks of things he's not goingto like, things that he would
wish only on his enemies.
Picking up, in verse 20, thetree you saw which grew and
(22:10):
became strong so that its topreached to heaven and it was
visible to the ends of the wholeearth, whose leaves were
beautiful and its fruit abundantand in which was food for all.
Verse 20-22, daniel describesthe tree as being Nebuchadnezzar
King.
(22:52):
Nebuchadnezzar, at this point,has accomplished what every
mighty king dreams of.
He has conquered every majorcivilization in the known world,
bringing them all togetherunder his banner of Babylon.
He had finished off theAssyrian empire.
He had captured all of Syria,all of Palestine, all of Judah
(23:16):
and even Egypt.
The kingdom of Babylon wasknown throughout all of the
earth, even in areas beyond hisreach.
In Europe and in China, theyknew of the empire of Babylon.
The kingdom of Babylon, underNebuchadnezzar's tyrannical hand
(23:36):
, was actually very prosperous.
It had enough food and shelterto care for everyone in the
kingdom, while it also displayedmagnificent wonders of
construction, engineering andart throughout all of the
kingdom.
Babylon had become what manymen might consider an earthly
(23:58):
utopia, embracing every majorreligion on earth, while it used
the greatest of men from everyculture to provide prosperity
for its citizens.
However, what may seem like autopia from fallen man's
perspective is actually theoasis of the Antichrist from
(24:20):
God's perspective.
By rejecting the one true Godand accepting all forms of gods,
nebuchadnezzar's Babylon beganwhat we might today call the
first pluralistic culture, andthrough this pluralistic culture
, nebuchadnezzar was able tofocus on his primary goal, which
(24:43):
was to exalt himself above allmen through global dominance and
global power.
This is the spirit of theAntichrist, and it continues to
persist even to today.
One day, this spirit of theAntichrist will be empowered and
(25:06):
embodied by the devil himselfinto one man, and he will be
known as the man of lawlessness,or what we commonly call the
Antichrist.
This final embodiment of thespirit of the Antichrist will
bring about the final worlddomination, or what we might
(25:28):
also refer to as a final Babylon, or what Revelation refers to
as Babylon the Great, picking upin verse 23,.
And because the king saw awatcher, a holy one, coming down
from heaven and saying Pickingup in verse 23,.
And let him be wet with the dewof heaven and let his portion
(25:52):
be with the beasts of the fieldtill seven periods of time pass
over him.
This is the interpretation, oking.
It is a decree from the MostHigh which has come upon my lord
(26:16):
, the king, that you shall bedriven from among men and your
dwelling shall be with thebeasts of the field.
Verse 2.
(26:45):
In verses 23 through 25, danielrecognized that the decree of a
watcher was the decree of themost high God and that this
judgment from the Lord God hadcome down upon the king
Nebuchadnezzar.
And Daniel begins theinterpretation by telling
(27:05):
Nebuchadnezzar he's going to bedriven from men and dwell with
the beasts of the field.
Daniel is warning the king thatnot only will he lose his
throne, but he will lose hismind.
He'll be chopped down from hisauthority over Babylon and he'll
be driven out into the fieldsby the very men who serve him
(27:28):
now and there he will come tolive like a beast.
Some form of mental disease,like clinical lycanthropy, is
going to come upon the king.
This mental illness that comesupon the king will be such that
he will live with the beasts,eating right alongside them, as
if he were an ox grazing in thefield.
(27:51):
His whole life will be consumedby this 24-7, and he'll find
himself covered with the dewfrom the heavens as he lives in
the grassy fields, and thiscurse upon the king will persist
.
It'll persist until the kingknows that the Most High God
rules the kingdom of men.
(28:13):
The most common understanding ofseven periods here is that this
is seven years, as this sameword for periods or times in
some translations is also usedin Daniel, chapter 7, verse 25,
where in fact it does refer toyears.
And once again the purpose ofthis long period of time is so
(28:39):
that there's no question inNebuchadnezzar's mind that the
Most High indeed rules thekingdoms of men, and he gives it
to whom he pleases Verse 26.
And as it was commanded toleave the stump of the roots of
the tree, your kingdom shall beconfirmed for you from the time
(29:02):
that you know that heaven rules.
Therefore, o king, let mycounsel be acceptable to you
Break off your sins bypracticing righteousness and
your iniquities by showing mercyto the oppressed, that there
may perhaps be a lengthening ofyour prosperity.
Here, in verses 26 and 27,daniel clarifies for King
(29:28):
Nebuchadnezzar that the stump isnot in fact the king after he
loses his mind, but rather thestump represents the kingdom of
Babylon that he built.
The bands of iron and bronzethat are clasped onto this stump
symbolize how God will securethis kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar's
(29:48):
until Nebuchadnezzar repentsand declares that God is the God
of heaven and rules over thekingdoms of men.
And finally, in verse 27,daniel calls Nebuchadnezzar to
repent of his sin and to trustin the Most High God, to stop
(30:09):
being so cruel in reaching hisobjectives, but rather to show
mercy to the oppressed, so thatGod might show mercy on him and
thereby lengthen his reign ofprosperity.
Verse 28.
All this came upon KingNebuchadnezzar At the end of
(30:46):
twelve months Verse 28.
Verses 28 and 29, we leapforward in time one year, twelve
months.
It tells us from the time thatDaniel had interpreted the dream
to the events that are nowtaking place.
And King Nebuchadnezzar iswalking on the roof of his royal
(31:07):
palace.
And as the king is overlookingall of his kingdom from the roof
of his palace, in his newBabylon that he had just built
by what he believed was hisgreat power and his abilities,
and as he was basking in thesight of his kingdom, while
(31:27):
rejecting the warning of Daniel,he said Is not this great
Babylon which I have built by mymight and power as a royal
residence and for the glory ofmy majesty, and we can truly see
from the king's question herethat his ultimate motivation and
(31:48):
his quest for world dominancehas always been to glorify
himself.
Verse 31,.
While the words were still inthe king's mouth, there fell a
voice from heaven.
Oh, king Nebuchadnezzar, to youit is spoken, the kingdom has
(32:08):
departed from you and you shallbe driven from among men and
your dwelling shall be with thebeasts of the field and you
shall be made to eat grass likean ox, and seven periods of time
shall pass over you until youknow that the Most High rules
the kingdoms of men and gives itto whom he will.
(32:31):
Immediately, the word wasfulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar
.
He was driven from among menand ate grass like an ox, and
his body was wet with the dew ofheaven till his hair grew as
long as an eagle's feather andhis nails were like birds' claws
.
(32:53):
In verses 31 and 32, whileNebuchadnezzar was finishing his
words of self-adoration andself-exaltation, a voice comes
from the sky.
And this voice from heaven isyet another testimony of the
Lord, god's, power and authorityover Nebuchadnezzar.
(33:14):
This voice declared once againthe curse of the dream that the
king was already warned about.
And the very moment that thisword of the Lord had finished
speaking, nebuchadnezzar losthis mind and he became like a
wild beast, and when thishappened, he was driven out of
(33:37):
the palace.
He was driven out of the greatwalled city that he had just
built and he was driven into thefields, far away from any other
man, and there he dwelt andlived like an ox, eating the
grass and sleeping in the grass,so that he became wet with the
dew of heaven.
(33:58):
Nebuchadnezzar had lost all ofhis faculties, to the point
where he was unable to even cuthis hair or trim his nails.
His hair became as long as aneagle's feather, which is over
two feet long, and his nailsgrew to be like the claws of a
bird Picking up.
In verse 34, at the end of thedays, I, nebuchadnezzar, lifted
(34:24):
my eyes to heaven and my reasonreturned to me, and I blessed
the Most High and praised andhonored him, who lives forever,
for his dominion is aneverlasting dominion and his
kingdom endures from generationto generation.
All the inhabitants of theearth are accounted as nothing.
(34:47):
In verses 34 and 35, we seethat at the end of those seven
(35:09):
years that were ordained by God,the Most High, nebuchadnezzar
lifted up his eyes to heaven.
This tells us that the natureof Nebuchadnezzar's mental
illness or disease was such thathe could still understand to
some degree what was happeningcould still understand to some
degree what was happening.
Therefore, when the time was up, he raised his eyes in
(35:33):
repentance towards heaven,seeking the mercy of the Most
High God, and his mind wasrestored.
Through this, the Lorddemonstrates that he is able to
humble the most proud man and heis able to exalt the most
humbled man.
Proverbs 3.34 reads.
(36:03):
Matthew 23.12 readsNebuchadnezzar, now, thankful
for what God has done, begins toworship God by blessing him,
(36:24):
praising him and honoring theLord's name.
And now this restored kingrecognizes that God is the
everlasting God, that his domainendures forever through every
generation of man.
Nebuchadnezzar now recognizesthat all of the people of earth
(36:45):
have no power without the God ofheaven.
They are nothing without theMost High, and that the Lord God
sits sovereign over all ofcreation.
The Lord God has power to do ashe wills, both in heaven and on
earth.
And now the king recognizesthere's no one in all of heaven,
(37:10):
there's no one on all of theearth that has power to sway the
character or the will of theMost High.
There's no one that can bring acharge against his integrity.
The Lord does according to hiswill and according to his
perfect character.
(37:32):
Daniel 4, 36 continues.
At the same time, my reasonreturned to me and for the glory
of my kingdom, my majesty andsplendor returned to me.
My counselors and my lordssought me and I was established
in my kingdom.
And still more greatness wasadded to me.
(38:16):
In verse 36, we see that at thesame time, nebuchadnezzar had
regained his right mind, god hadplaced it on the hearts of his
royal counselors and his lordsto come search for him.
And when they were reunited,the king was returned to the
glory of his throne and he wasre-established as the ruler over
Babylon.
Furthermore, nebuchadnezzar wasgiven even greater honors in
(38:39):
his own kingdom of Babylon thanhe had before.
Clearly, his people weregrateful to have their king back
, and now a king that honoredthe Lord Most High.
And in our final verse for theday, nebuchadnezzar says Now I,
nebuchadnezzar, praise and extoland honor the King of Heaven.
(39:06):
Nebuchadnezzar only has one moreyear of his life left to live,
but for this last year of hislife he will worship the King of
Heaven.
He will recognize that there'san eternal King that rules over
the affairs and the kings of theearth.
He will praise the King ofHeaven for the righteousness of
(39:30):
his works and the justice of hisways.
He will praise the king ofheaven because it was the Lord
that humbled him when he wasproud.
Why would Nebuchadnezzar praiseGod for humbling him?
Because the king of Babylon nowknows that through his humility
(39:51):
he came into a personalrelationship with the king of
kings, the one true God, who isLord over all.
Thank you for joining me forDaniel, chapter 4.
And God bless you this week.
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