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Chapter after chapter Daniel has brought us face to face with the sovereignty and omnipotence of God Almighty – like a towering mountain over man’s little ant hills. King Nebuchadnezzar has had firsthand experience. In chapter one God is able to give extraordinary health and wisdom to His own, those four Hebrew youths. In chapter two God is able to reveal the future, kingdom after kingdom right to the end when that Messianic stone crushes all human kingdoms and becomes a world-wide kingdom. In chapter three Nebuchanezzar witnessed Almighty God deliver His own people from an impossible situation, that fiery furnace. Now in chapter four he will experience the sovereign God make this proud and arrogant human potentate eat grass like an ox until he acknowledges who truly rules the universe. God is able to humble the proud.
Nebuchadnezzar has something to teach our arrogant generation who demand their rights to happiness and fulfillment, who proudly march asserting, “Be who you are,” or “My body, my choice,” and who reject any moral standard outside of their own feelings. Author David Wells describes it as “the sovereignty of the self.” Michael Horton wrote three decades ago, “We have forgotten that God is a monarch. He is the king by whom and for whom all things were made, and by whose sovereign power they are sustained. We exist for his pleasure, not he for ours.” (The Shaping of Modern American Evangelicalism).
Daniel chapter four is a correction of all this. God and His authority take center stage, and Nebuchadnezzar ends up knowing it up close and personally. This is his testimony to the world. Did he write this chapter? Maybe. Daniel certainly included it in his inspired book. According to Leon Wood, this all took place 25-30 years after the fiery furnace miracle. Daniel is now close to 50 years old.
The chapter has two parts. Verses 1-27 is God’s warning of judgment on pride. Verses 28-37 is God’s fulfillment of His warning. This morning we’re going to look at the first part and then
draw several spiritual truths for our own walk with God.
Nebuchanezzar’s God-centered testimony.
Daniel 4:1-3, Nebuchadnezzar the king to all the peoples, nations, and men of every language that live in all the earth: “May your peace abound! 2 “It has seemed good to me to declare the signs and wonders which the Most High God has done for me. 3 “How great are His signs And how mighty are His wonders! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom And His dominion is from generation to generation.
Nebuchadnezzar’s words here are speaking of the time after he recovers from God’s judgment, a judgment we’ll study in two weeks. He focuses completely on God being the Most High who rules over all mankind and whose kingdom never comes to an end, unlike every human kingdom in all history. He extols God’s great signs and wonders which he had personally seen God do in his life. Every one of us who have been regenerated by the grace and power of God through faith in Christ ought to be just as ready and eager to proclaim the glory and power of our Lord. If a Gentile king like Nebuchadnezzar isn’t ashamed to declare God’s works in his life, neither should we be ashamed! Wouldn’t it be great if President Biden gave this kind of proclamation on the evening news?
Nebuchadnezzar’s alarming dream and need for the interpretation.
Daniel 4:4-5, I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and flourishing in my palace. 5 I saw a dream and it made me fearful; and these fantasies as I lay on my bed and the visions in my mind kept alarming me.
His dream alarmed him out of his carnal security. Life was good – he was at ease and flourishing, no enemies threatening his empire, he had all the wealth he could use, his wife was treating him well and his kids were behaving themselves. Everything was hunky dory. But God has a message for him. He’s like that farmer in Luke 12 whose fields were super productive and he said to his soul, “Take your ease, eat, drink, and be merry.” But God had a message for him too: “Thou fool! This night your soul is required of you.” We are never safe in this world apart from Christ. You never know what is going to happen next. We do know that God knows how to get our attention.
Daniel 4:6-7 So I gave orders to bring into my presence all the wise men of Babylon, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream. 7 Then the magicians, the conjurers, the Chaldeans and the diviners came in and I related the dream to them, but they could not make its interpretation known to me.
You would think he would have called on Daniel first. But he calls these royal advisors, readers of the stars and omens, and diviners trying to tell the future. Here they come, parading in again, and unable or more likely unwilling to interpret Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. Despots like Neb don’t like to hear bad news. The bearer of bad news to the king might not survive.
Daniel 4:8-9, But finally Daniel came in before me, whose name is Belteshazzar according to the name of my god, and in whom is a spirit of the holy gods; and I related the dream to him, saying, 9 ‘O Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, since I know that a spirit of the holy gods is in you and no mystery baffles you, tell me the visions of my dream which I have seen, along with its interpretation.
Daniel didn’t come with them for some reason, even though he’s chief of the magicians, or scholars as one author puts it. But now here he comes, good old faithful and reliable Daniel, a top advisor to the king. What a blessing to have a good friend like Daniel who will tell you the truth. The king is fond of him and had great confidence in his God-given skill to interpret dreams. “No mystery baffles you.”
Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.
Daniel 4:10-18, ‘Now these were the visions in my mind as I lay on my bed: I was looking, and behold, there was a tree in the midst of the earth and its height was great. 11 ‘The tree grew large and became strong And its height reached to the sky, And it was visible to the end of the whole earth. 12 ‘Its foliage was beautiful and its fruit abundant, And in it was food for all. The beasts of the field found shade under it, And the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches, And all living creatures fed themselves from it. 13 ‘I was looking in the visions in my mind as I lay on my bed, and behold, an angelic watcher, a holy one, descended from heaven. 14 ‘He shouted out and spoke as follows: “Chop down the tree and cut off its branches, Strip off its foliage and scatter its fruit; Let the beasts flee from under it And the birds from its branches. 15 “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 in the grass of the earth. 16 “Let his mind be changed from that of a man And let a beast’s mind be given to him, And let seven periods of time pass over him. 17 “This sentence is by the decree of the angelic watchers And the decision is a command of the holy ones, In order that the living may know That the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, And bestows it on whom He wishes And sets over it the lowliest of men.” 18 ‘This is the dream which I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen. Now you, Belteshazzar, tell me its interpretation, inasmuch as none of the wise men of my kingdom is able to make known to me the interpretation; but you are able, for a spirit of the holy gods is in you.’
The symbol of a tree is used to represent Nebuchadnezzar’s great and vast kingdom. A few years ago my granddaughter and I visited the Muir Woods National Monument near San Francisco which has 400-800 year old Redwoods that grow up to 250 feet high. Quite impressive. This tree was huge, fruitful, and provided for beasts and birds everywhere, much like America that has been a blessing to the world. In the king’s dream, the tree was visible everywhere in the known Middle Eastern world.
Don’t miss verse 16. It tells us that God has sovereignty over the minds of men – “Let his mind be changed.” God could change a mind of a man to a mind of a beast. God can change your mind too. God can give you a new mind when you trust in Him or according to Romans 1, He can turn you over to a reprobate mind.
Nebuchadnezzar knew Daniel had a special divine spirit within him that connected with God Who revealed dreams to him. We’ll let Daniel interpret it for us.
Daniel’s interpretation of the dream.
Daniel 4:19-21, “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.’ Belteshazzar replied, ‘My lord, if only the dream applied to those who hate you and its interpretation to your adversaries! 20 ‘The tree that you saw, which became large and grew strong, whose height reached to the sky and was visible to all the earth 21 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–
Daniel liked King Nebuchadnezzar and hated to bring him bad news, but Daniel had to tell him the truth. Commentator Leon Wood says Daniel surely wanted Nebuchadnezzar to trust in the one true God. But his concern for the king didn’t lead him to soften or downplay the strength of the message. It took Daniel a little while to bring it out, but he had to tell the truth. That’s why we come to church, to hear the truth, not just to hear nice things and have our ears tickled.
Daniel 4:22-26, 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. 23 ‘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,” 24 this is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king: 25 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. 26 ‘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.
We get to verse 22 with “it is you, O king” and we remember faithful preachers in the Bible like Nathan who brought to David God’s message of judgment and said, “You are the man.” John the Baptist rebuked Herod for his incest and it cost him his head. Those holy watchers were God’s angels that He uses to carry out certain missions. In this case it was a message of judgment on Nebuchadnezzar decreed from Almighty God, meaning there is no question that it is coming. The stump and band assure Nebuchnezzar that his kingdom will not be destroyed at this time. The seven periods of time are seven years of seasons. That’s a good long time, but nothing compared to eternity. By the end of the seven periods of time he will be humbled and confess who is really the great Ruler of the heavens and the earth. “It is Heaven that rules.”
Warren Wiersbe writes, “The grand lesson God wanted the king to learn – and that we must learn today- is that God alone is sovereign and will not permit mortals to usurp His throne or take credit for His works…. When men and women refuse to submit themselves to God as creatures made in His image, they are in grave danger of descending to the level of animals.” That’s exactly what we see happening today! People are exchanging the truth of God for a lie and worshipping and serving the creature rather than God (Rom. 1:25).
Daniel’s counsel to the king.
Daniel 4:27, ‘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.’
Daniel ends by bringing his king a strong plea to repent and turn to God. He is guilty of all the sins of despots, of abusing the poor and needy, of forcing slaves to work beyond their capacity, of allowing corruption among his officials and worse. Notice, Daniel doesn’t just bring the message, but puts a “so what” on it. This message holds the king responsible, just like every message preached from God’s Word today! John Calvin said, “Every time the Gospel is preached, it is as if God Himself came in person, solemnly to summon us.”
Daniel didn’t shape his message to please the king, but gave him the truth. He didn’t say, “May I suggest we could all use a little more humility.” No, “Break away now from your sins.” At this point Nebuchadnezzar is going to ignore it for at least twelve more months (v. 29). He’s going to crow like a rooster and strut like a peacock about how great and mighty he is. But that’s next week.
This account in Daniel gives us four forgotten truths about God’s dealing with men souls.
First forgotten truth: God is sovereign in His dealing with the soul of man. He has a right to do whatever He pleases with us. Here’s Neb, minding his own selfish, proud business and feeling really good about himself, when suddenly God ruins it all with this dream. It is a blessing when God deals with us like He does with Neb. The worse thing of all is if you go through life without being troubled by your God about your eternal soul. To coast into hell, to live at ease and be able to continue in sin, continue on your own way without a sense of conviction that you are offending your Creator, is the worst thing that can happen to a sinner. Daniel called the king to “break away now” from his sins. Do you know God commands repentance immediately? We don’t come to God at our convenience, like we do for some surgeries – you can have it at your convenience. And we don’t say, “Well, not today, God. I want to have a little more fun before I repent.” No, the Bible says, “Today is the day, now is the time.” We have no assurance we’ll even be here tomorrow. God is sovereign over men’s souls.
Second forgotten truth: God’s greatest work in the soul is not to make you feel good or find personal fulfillment and happiness. His greatest work is to humble our sense of pride and self-sufficiency. The gospel doesn’t pump up our ego and self-esteem; it crushes it. God’s work is to wipe out our sense of natural sinful pride in our works and position and to realize we have no final power over our own existence. The evidence of a genuine work of God is a humbling of our hearts, coming to realize we have offended our holy and sustaining God.
Third forgotten truth: God’s goal in dealing with the soul is to bring us to submission to His authority over our lives. This is what He’s doing with Neb. Neb exists by the mere good pleasure of God. Everything you are or have, your life, your time in history, your family, your measure of health, opportunities to hear His word, your country, your eyeballs, your ability to think, to enjoy life – all comes from Him. He rules, and we are utterly dependent on Him.
The attitude that says, “I’m free to be whoever I want to be,” “I can choose my own identity,” “I can change my gender” is not from God and no you can’t. David Wells in God In the Wasteland writes, “Our culture stokes the fires of human pride.” God’s whole purpose with Neb is to wrestle him to his knees until he submits to God’s rule and authority over his life. That’s the attitude of submission to God’s authority required of all of us.
Fourth forgotten truth: God holds us responsible to deliver His message without changing it. Daniel was full of compassion and concern for his king in verse 19, but he didn’t tone down the message. He didn’t soften it or make it more palatable. He told Neb exactly what God said. That is our responsibility. We’re not here to tickle ears. We have a message about God’s love in Jesus Christ for sinners, but we also have a message that says God’s wrath abides on every soul outside of Christ. Our message is one of goodness and severity. Daniel teaches us how to deliver this message. Speak with compassion but speak the truth.
SO WHAT?
Has God broken down your pride? Has your heart been humbled? Do you freely and thankfully submit to God and His Word? Or do you feel secure on your own, at ease, and without concern? Are you willing to come to His cross by faith alone, acknowledging your pride and trusting in Christ who alone paid for your sins and offenses against your God? And do you acknowledge His right to rule over your life, to require your obedience, to command you to turn from sin and pursue holiness?