©Michael Player
Chapter 4:1-9 (ESV) - 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, 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 Belteshazzar after the name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods—and I told him the dream, saying, “O Belteshazzar, 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.”
Question to consider: Why do you think the magicians, the enchanters, and Chaldeans, and the astrologers did not interpret the dream for the king despite being given the details? They seemed so confident they could do so if given the details of the first dream.
In yesterday’s study, I asked the question of whether Nebuchadnezzar was making a statement of faith in his decree which made speaking out against the LORD a crime worthy of a brutal death. It is interesting that this testimonial from king Nebuchadnezzar was included in the prophet’s writings as it gives us some insight into his thoughts at the time and his ultimate conclusion about the LORD.
From the last part of the chapter, it appears that he wrote this towards the end of his life after being restored from madness and regaining his throne for several more years. It certainly seems that his ultimate conclusion was that the God of Daniel was the Most High God and worthy to be praised. The fact that the description “Most High God” allows for there to be other, less powerful gods doesn’t concern me. We can recognize that there are forces beyond our plane of existence which we do not understand. Even though idols are made from earthly materials, Paul was pretty clear that “what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God.” (1 Corinthians 10:20) Whether someone calls supernatural beings gods or demons is irrelevant. The point is that they are nothing when compared with the one true God who made the heavens and the earth.
At the point in which Nebuchadnezzar had witnessed the deliverance of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace and then subsequently had his second dream, it would seem that he still recognized Bel as his god and considered Daniel to have some spirit which could interpret messages from the celestial realm.
For this dream, Nebuchadnezzar didn’t require the counselors of the nations to provide the details before giving their interpretation. I believe after the first dream’s interpretation, Nebuchadnezzar was satisfied that none of these other nations were going to rise up against him in his lifetime so he was back to merely asking for an interpretation.
We’ll get into the content of the dream tomorrow, but I find it interesting that they “could not” make known to him its interpretation. I have to wonder if it was more like “would not” than “could not”. I’ve noticed that false prophets and psychics tend to shy away from giving bad news to paying customers. Nebuchadnezzar had already demonstrated a murderous rage, and they may have avoided answering for fear that it would be directed towards them.
Almighty God, maker of heaven and earth, please give us the courage to be truthful in difficult circumstances. May we so love our neighbor that we are willing to face his scorn by discussing our need for Christ Jesus. May the Holy Spirit convict the world of sin so that people will rejoice at the good news of Your great salvation. Amen.