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“Then
Daniel, whose name is Belteshazzar, was appalled for a while
as his thoughts alarmed him. The king responded and said, ‘Belteshazzar,
do not let the dream or its interpretation alarm you.’“
. . . (NASB) Dan. 4:19a-27 |
The king understood that the message was bad and encouraged Daniel
to proceed anyway.
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“Belteshazzar
answered and said, ‘My lord, if only the dream applied
to those who hate you, and its interpretation to your adversaries!
The tree that you saw, which became large and grew strong, whose
height reached to the sky and was visible to all the earth,
and whose foliage was beautiful and its fruit abundant, and
in which was food for all, under which the beasts of the field
dwelt and in whose branches the birds of the sky lodged-- it
is you, O king; for you have become great and grown strong,
and your majesty has become great and reached to the sky and
your dominion to the end of the earth. And in that the king
saw an angelic watcher, a holy one, descending from heaven and
saying, ‘Chop down the tree and destroy it; yet leave the
stump with its roots in the ground, but with a band of iron
and bronze around it in the new grass of the field, and let
him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him share with
the beasts of the field until seven periods of time pass over
him; this is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree
of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king; that
you be driven away from mankind, and your dwelling place be
with the beasts of the field, and you be given grass to eat
like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven; and seven
periods of time will pass over you, until you recognize that
the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, and bestows
it on whomever He wishes. And in that it was commanded to leave
the stump with the roots of the tree, your kingdom will be assured
to you after you recognize that it is Heaven that rules. Therefore,
O king, may my advice be pleasing to you: break away now from
your sins by doing righteousness, and from your iniquities by
showing mercy to the poor, in case there may be a prolonging
of your prosperity.’ (NASB) Dan. 4:19b-27 |
Daniel
sent the message loudly and clearly. God is in control of even our
successes. He was in control of Nebuchadnezzar’s successes, wealth,
and fame. God had been trying since chapter two to move the king’s
heart from his idols to the true God and now God must use suffering
and humiliation to do it. Sometimes God must use suffering and pain
to change us because we will not change on our own. What a warning
for us! When we face a trial of suffering, we usually want to know
why it is happening and how long it will last. I believe that God
usually gives us warnings before discipline comes - just as He did
the king. But even with suffering staring the king in the face, God
showed the king mercy by predicting that he would finally yield and
humble himself. But it took him seven years.
Daniel again showed his heart for the
king and suggested that he pursue holiness and care for the poor.
Maybe God would not cause him to suffer.
His Humiliation.
But the king did not listen. Today God warns us with His Word and
by His Holy Spirit Who speaks to us in our spirit. Have you ever had
a sense or a nagging conviction that you should do something or that
you should not commit a certain sin? The Holy Spirit may be warning
you. For this king, God spoke directly to him through Daniel. Sometimes
we do not listen - the king did not listen. So he will suffer - sometimes
we do!
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“All
this happened to Nebuchadnezzar the king. Twelve months later
he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon. The
king reflected and said, ‘Is this not Babylon the great,
which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might
of my power and for the glory of my majesty?’ While the
word was in the king’s mouth, a voice came from heaven,
saying, ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is declared: sovereignty
has been removed from you, and you will be driven away from
mankind, and your dwelling place will be with the beasts of
the field. You will be given grass to eat like cattle, and seven
periods of time will pass over you, until you recognize that
the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, and bestows
it on whomever He wishes.’ Immediately the word concerning
Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled; and he was driven away from mankind
and began eating grass like cattle, and his body was drenched
with the dew of heaven, until his hair had grown like eagles’
feathers and his nails like birds’ claws.” (NASB)
Dan. 4:28-33 |
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