Daniel Chapter 4, Part 1
The Most High is Sovereign over the kingdoms of men
15th March 2007
This chapter is unusual, in that it takes the form of a letter. It was written by King Nebuchadnezzar, and addressed to all his subjects, in all the lands he controlled. The stamps must have cost a few quid :-)
The letter starts like this:
Daniel 4:1-3
King Nebuchadnezzar, To the peoples, nations and men of every language, who live in all the
world: May you prosper greatly!
It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me.
How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an eternal kingdom; his dominion
endures from generation to generation.
Nebuchadnezzar had had experiences of God before, but now he was ready to confess Him as "the Most High God" and to say that "His kingdom is an eternal kingdom". What had happened to bring Nebuchadnezzar to this realisation?
Daniel 4:4-8
I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at home in my palace, contented and prosperous.
I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying in my bed, the images and visions that passed
through my mind terrified me.
So I commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be brought before me to interpret the dream for me.
When the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners came, I told them the dream, but they could
not interpret it for me.
Finally, Daniel came into my presence and I told him the dream. (He is called Belteshazzar, after
the name of my god, and the spirit of the holy gods is in him.)
Nebuchadnezzar was contented and prosperous. Things were going well. But he'd had another dream. Unlike his dream in Chapter 2, this one terrified him.
Just as in Chapter, 2, he turned to his "wise men" - the educated ones, the civil service, the philosophers and scientists and thinkers of their age. And, again, they were completely unable to help. And once again. finally, the king turned to Daniel. So often we'll look anywhere for an answer to our problems, and only turn to God's church as a last resort. Finally we accept that the people who follow the Bible might have some wisdom to offer us. Nothing really changes much, does it?
Daniel 4:9-18
I said, "Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and
no mystery is too difficult for you. Here is my dream; interpret it for me.
These are the visions I saw while lying in my bed:
I looked, and there before me stood a tree in
the middle of the land. Its height was enormous.
The tree grew large and strong and its top touched the sky; it was visible to the ends of the earth.
Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit abundant, and on it was food for all. Under it the beasts of
the field found shelter, and the birds of the air lived in its branches; from it every creature was fed.
"In the visions I saw while lying in my bed, I looked, and there before me was a messenger, a holy
one, coming down from heaven.
He called in a loud voice: 'Cut down the tree and trim off its branches; strip off its leaves and
scatter its fruit. Let the animals flee from under it and the birds from its branches.
But let the stump and its roots, bound with iron and bronze, remain in the ground, in the grass of
the field.
'Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live with the animals among the plants of the earth.
Let his mind be changed from that of a man and let him be given the mind of an animal, till seven
times pass by for him.
"'The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living
may know that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the
lowliest of men.'
"This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, had. Now, Belteshazzar, tell me what it means, for
none of the wise men in my kingdom can interpret it for me. But you can, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you."
Nebuchadnezzar must have thought long and hard about this dream before he summoned Daniel. He must have been alarmed at the vision of desolation - the strong, beautiful, fruitful tree was to be cut down and become totally barren. He must (I think) have realised that the tree was symbolic of a man, and the man was going to suffer insanity. And he must have wondered how this could demonstrate that "the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes". Did he realise that the dream was about him? After all, it was his dream. And he was the king. He wrote that the wise men "could not interpret it" - I wonder if they were just too afraid to do so.
Daniel 4:19
Then Daniel (also called Belteshazzar) was greatly perplexed for a time, and his thoughts terrified him.
So the king said, "Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its meaning alarm you." Belteshazzar answered, "My lord, if only the
dream applied to your enemies and its meaning to your adversaries!"
I'm sure Daniel was afraid, too. It was going to take a brave man to tell the king of kings (see Daniel 2:37) that he was going to lose everything he had - including his sanity. But Daniel (and his friends) had learned to trust God and to act with integrity. So he told the king what the dream meant.
Daniel 4:20-22
The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, with its top touching the sky, visible to the whole earth,
with beautiful leaves and abundant fruit, providing food for all, giving shelter to the beasts of
the field, and having nesting places in its branches for the birds of the air -
you, O king, are that tree! You have become great and strong; your greatness has grown until it
reaches the sky, and your dominion extends to distant parts of the earth.
That was OK. Nebuchadnezzar knew all that. But he must have begun to guess what was coming:
Daniel 4:23-26
"You, O king, saw a messenger, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, 'Cut down the tree
and destroy it, but leave the stump, bound with iron and bronze, in the grass of the field, while its roots remain in the
ground. Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven; let him live like the wild animals, until seven times pass by for him.'
"This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree the Most High has issued against my
lord the king:
You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like
cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High
is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes.
The command to leave the stump of the tree with its roots means that your kingdom will be restored
to you when you acknowledge that Heaven rules."
We see that:
- Firstly, his insanity was ordained by God; the command came through a messenger from heaven.
- Secondly, his insanity would result in him living quite literally like an animal: separated from society, living without shelter and eating grass.
- Thirdly, the event that would trigger the return of his sanity, his position and his property, would be when he acknowledges that the Most High is sovereign.
- Fourthly, God knows in advance how long this will take.
Are we willing to take this lesson for our own lives? (1) Bad things will happen. (2) God has decided to allow them to happen. (3) He knows how long they will last. (4) They will come to an end. And (5) they are opportunities for us to discover in a more complete way that God the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and, indeed, over the lives of those of us who are merely citizens and subjects of the powerful.
Daniel then offered the king some excellent advice:
Daniel 4:27
Therefore, O king, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being
kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue."
So here's our sixth lesson (a lot for one column): If we understand that god is in absolute control of our lives, then we should be motivated to renounce our sins, do what is right and be kind to all who are suffering.
Next week, we'll look at what happened to Nebuchadnezzar, and what it teaches us about ourselves.