Year 9, Day 338: Daniel 4

Theological Commentary: Click Here

In Daniel 4, Nebuchadnezzar has another dream.  As with before, there is no person in Babylon capable of interpreting the dream except for Daniel.  As with before, the message involves King Nebuchadnezzar.  Daniel gives the interpretation, which comes true.

Nebuchadnezzar loses his mind.  He goes insane, living like a beast of burden in a field.  After a certain amount of time, God allows Nebuchadnezzar to regain his mental faculties.  Nebuchadnezzar becomes king once more.  He takes control of his kingdom back.  In the end, he praises the greatness of God.

What’s sad about this story is that it is all reasonably avoidable.  God has been trying to get Nebuchadnezzar’s attention.  God is the one behind Nebuchadnezzar’s rise to power.  God is the one who deserves the praise.  However, Nebuchadnezzar has been ignoring God, making false images, trying to destroy those whom God sends to bring him into the light, and doing his own thing.  Daniel even warns him to give up his sinful ways.  Nebuchadnezzar refuses to listen until he has no choice.  He refuses to listen until God literally strips him of everything, including his sanity.

So often, this is the case with us.  When life is going fine, we ignore the signs God sends to us.  When life is well, we think we have everything under control.  We look at the construction of our own hands and get caught up in its greatness.  We forget God.

Like Nebuchadnezzar, we sometimes need to be humbled.  Hopefully we don’t let it get to the point that Nebuchadnezzar does to where we lose our minds!  Often, though, we need a little humbling to get us to remember God is the center and we are not. 

That’s what is going on with Nebuchadnezzar.  God isn’t trying to judge him.  If He were, God could simply have killed him and been done with it.  Being humbled isn’t about judgment, it is about perspective.  God humbles us to get our attention and to bring our perspective back around.  The sooner we listen to the signs that God sends us, the easier the lesson is to learn.

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