Daniel 4: 4-9
King Nebuchadnezzar has just given honor and praise to the Most High God over all the other gods they worshiped in Babylon, acknowledging that His power is over all nature and government, and will last forever.
Now we will see why he came to this paeon of praise for this mighty God.
(4) "I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and flourishing in my palace.
He states that he was just minding his own business, on just another ordinary day.
(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.
Then he had a dream out of nowhere, and it scared him out of his wits.
(6) "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.
So he called all the wise men in his realm to set his mind at ease about this scary dream, to tell him what it meant.
(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.
But even when he told them what the dream was, they had no idea how to figure out what it meant. He may have called them one or two at a time, to question them.
(8) "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.'"
After all these other conjurers and magicians and diviners gave up on trying to figure out what it might mean, then Daniel was called in. The king called him by his Hebrew name, then mentioned that his official Babylonian court name honored the king's patron god, Nebo, suggesting that Belteshazzar (Protect His Life) might be an abbreviation of "Nebo-belteshazzar" (Nebo, Protect His Life), as the king's own name was "Nebu-chadnezzer.
The king knew that he was truly inspired with a spirit of the holy gods in him to show him what dreams meant, so I don't know why he didn't just call him first. At any rate, he will tell his dream again. And we will get to hear it, too. Tomorrow.
O my Father, thank You for this story of Daniel, showing us how You revealed Yourself to this pagan king little by little, and how he finally got that You are the Supreme God over all other gods and men.
And we also submit to Your authority over us as our Creator and our Father. You truly are magnificent in Your majesty and holiness. And You want us to know You. So You have revealed and manifested Yourself to us in Your Son and in Your written word. And in Your own Holy Spirit in us to teach us.
O Father, open our eyes to see, open our ears to hear, open our minds to understand how wonderful and powerful You are. And how much You Love us!
Father, send out Your children to broadcast to the whole world, to every nation, to every tribe, to every family, Your Good News. Let every living person see and hear and understand enough to be born into Your own family as Your children, or to have no excuse for rejecting Your generous and gracious offer.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!
Monday, April 20, 2020
Sunday, April 19, 2020
Nebuchadnezzar's Realization
Daniel 4: 1-3
(1) Nebuchadnezzar the king to all the peoples, nations, and men of every language that live in all the Earth. "May your peace abound!
The feature that makes this chapter unique in the whole Bible is that it is the only chapter that is composed under the authority of a pagan.
But from what he proclaims here for the world to hear, my question is whether this king actually put his faith in the Lord God of the Jews, and is no longer a pagan, but a believer.
(2) "It has seemed good to me to declare the signs and wonders which the Most High God has done for me.
"It is my pleasure," he wants everyone everywhere to know about the wonderful things this Most High God is able to do, and has done, even for him.
The signs (ahoti) are "attesting miracles," natural phenomena that because of their magnitude or timing decisively give evidence of God's intervention.
The wonders (timhoti) are supernatural manifestations of divine intervention in the course of nature.
(3) "How great are His signs and how mighty are His wonders!
His praise for the greatness of these signs, and the mightiness of these wonders, indicate that he is astounded and dumbfounded with the immensity of the revelation he has been given of who this Most High God is. He has finally realized that God alone is the source of power, in both nature and mankind, and that neither he as the king nor any other earthly ruler had any authority except by God's permission.
His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and His dominion is from generation to generation.
And that, unlike human rulers, the unlimited authority of God as Sovereign over the universe goes on forever and ever, with no end.
Next we will see what it is that has capped this king's knowledge of this Almighty God, after all the other revelations we have seen Him give to him.
O my Father, You are not willing that any would perish, because You have made this whole race of humankind to be Your own family. And You are working in the life of this king in this pagan land to show him who You are, and he is finally getting the picture.
O Father, You are using this time at the beginning of Your chosen Israelites' period of slavery in this far country to lay the foundation for the working out of this nation's future king to allow them to return to their own nation after the 70 years that You have set them aside.
Father, You always do everything You want to do, and You have planned out the whole course of this human era on this Earth. Your great Plan of the Ages is working out before our eyes, when we just open our eyes to see!
Everything that is going on around us today in this time and place in history is playing out just as You have planned and told us about in Your written word, so we can expect it, and trust You through it all. We know that the wrath that You pour out on the world of men will not affect Your children. You have already poured out the wrath we deserve on Your Son Jesus on the cross in our place. There is no double -indemnity with You, what He paid for us is paid in full forever.
Even if there are thousands who fall by our side, and ten thousands at our right hand, it will not touch us; we will simply stand at ease and see the destruction of the wicked and evil around us (Psalm 91: 7-8). We need only to stand still and see how God is exalted as He judges the heathen in the Earth (Psalm 46: 10). Just as You told King Jehoshaphat, Father, we are also to realize that the battle is not ours but the Lord's and we do not need to fight it; we are simply to set ourselves, to stand still and fear not nor be worried; the Lord is with us, and He will win the war (II Chronicles 20: 17).
My Father, continue to use us Your children to broadcast Your Good News to the whole world, to draw all Your children to the birth into Your family, and let no rebel have any excuse for refusing Your generous and gracious provision.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting Glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, please come, Lord Jesus!
(1) Nebuchadnezzar the king to all the peoples, nations, and men of every language that live in all the Earth. "May your peace abound!
The feature that makes this chapter unique in the whole Bible is that it is the only chapter that is composed under the authority of a pagan.
But from what he proclaims here for the world to hear, my question is whether this king actually put his faith in the Lord God of the Jews, and is no longer a pagan, but a believer.
(2) "It has seemed good to me to declare the signs and wonders which the Most High God has done for me.
"It is my pleasure," he wants everyone everywhere to know about the wonderful things this Most High God is able to do, and has done, even for him.
The signs (ahoti) are "attesting miracles," natural phenomena that because of their magnitude or timing decisively give evidence of God's intervention.
The wonders (timhoti) are supernatural manifestations of divine intervention in the course of nature.
(3) "How great are His signs and how mighty are His wonders!
His praise for the greatness of these signs, and the mightiness of these wonders, indicate that he is astounded and dumbfounded with the immensity of the revelation he has been given of who this Most High God is. He has finally realized that God alone is the source of power, in both nature and mankind, and that neither he as the king nor any other earthly ruler had any authority except by God's permission.
His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and His dominion is from generation to generation.
And that, unlike human rulers, the unlimited authority of God as Sovereign over the universe goes on forever and ever, with no end.
Next we will see what it is that has capped this king's knowledge of this Almighty God, after all the other revelations we have seen Him give to him.
O my Father, You are not willing that any would perish, because You have made this whole race of humankind to be Your own family. And You are working in the life of this king in this pagan land to show him who You are, and he is finally getting the picture.
O Father, You are using this time at the beginning of Your chosen Israelites' period of slavery in this far country to lay the foundation for the working out of this nation's future king to allow them to return to their own nation after the 70 years that You have set them aside.
Father, You always do everything You want to do, and You have planned out the whole course of this human era on this Earth. Your great Plan of the Ages is working out before our eyes, when we just open our eyes to see!
Everything that is going on around us today in this time and place in history is playing out just as You have planned and told us about in Your written word, so we can expect it, and trust You through it all. We know that the wrath that You pour out on the world of men will not affect Your children. You have already poured out the wrath we deserve on Your Son Jesus on the cross in our place. There is no double -indemnity with You, what He paid for us is paid in full forever.
Even if there are thousands who fall by our side, and ten thousands at our right hand, it will not touch us; we will simply stand at ease and see the destruction of the wicked and evil around us (Psalm 91: 7-8). We need only to stand still and see how God is exalted as He judges the heathen in the Earth (Psalm 46: 10). Just as You told King Jehoshaphat, Father, we are also to realize that the battle is not ours but the Lord's and we do not need to fight it; we are simply to set ourselves, to stand still and fear not nor be worried; the Lord is with us, and He will win the war (II Chronicles 20: 17).
My Father, continue to use us Your children to broadcast Your Good News to the whole world, to draw all Your children to the birth into Your family, and let no rebel have any excuse for refusing Your generous and gracious provision.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting Glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, please come, Lord Jesus!
Saturday, April 18, 2020
The Three (Or Four) In The Fire
Daniel 3: 8-30
This pagan king had made a golden statue and invited all of his governmental employees to come worship it under pain of death, as a pledge of allegiance to him as their king. So everyone in the whole throng all bowed down, except for three men.
(8) For this reason at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and brought charges against the Jews.
These certain Chaldeans are not only "wise men" that the king depends on to advise him, but were nobles in the "master race" who despised these "lesser nation" people and are brown-nosing the king. They are only too glad to denounce these three who were still standing while the foreheads of everyone else were on the ground.
(9) They responded and said to Nebuchadnezzar the king: "O king, live forever!
(10) You, O king, have made a decree that every man who hears the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery, and bagpipe and all kinds of music, is to fall down and worship the golden image.
(11) "But whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire.
They got the orders right, they were paying attention. Now they'll bring up the charges.
(12) "There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the administration of the province of Babylon, namely Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego. These men, O king, have disregarded you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image which you have set up."
They've accused them of being disloyal to the king, a treasonous offense.
Why was Daniel not also accused here? Where was he? There are several ideas put forth by theologians to account for his absence here. The main ones are: that he may have been out-of-town on the king's business; or that he may have been on the dais with the king instead of in the crowd; or that the "wise men" of whom he had been appointed head were not included in the list of leaders required to attend.
At any rate, I think that God wanted to show that the other three had their own strong faith and trust in God, and were not dependent on Daniel's leadership.
(13) Then Nebuchadnezzar in rage and anger gave orders to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego; then these men were brought before the king.
How dare these men defy the orders of the king!
(14) Nebuchadnezzar responded and said to them, "Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up?
(15) "Now if you are ready, at the moment you hear the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery and bagpipe and all kinds of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, very well. But if you do not worship, you will immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire; and what god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?"
In essence, the king was giving them another chance, to think about what they were doing, and to assess their actions in the light of his authority over life and death. And also, he didn't think any deity could overrule his power as king.
(16) Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter.
This was not disrespectful to the king. The word order they used in the Aramaic places the emphasis on the pronoun "we," implying that it is the Lord Himself who will deal with this situation.
(17) "If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king.
(18) "But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up."
Then they politely let him know that the Lord God who they worship has authority even over this king who thinks he is sovereign; and they acknowledge that it is the Lord God's choice whether to save them or not. So they really were putting their lives on the line here.
(19) Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with wrath, and his facial expression was altered toward Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego. He answered by giving orders to heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated.
(20) He commanded certain valiant warriors who were in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in order to cast them into the furnace of blazing fire.
(21) Then these men were tied up in their trousers, their coats, their caps and their other clothes, and were cast into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire.
(22) For this reason, because the king's command was urgent and the furnace had been made extremely hot, the flame of the fire slew those men who carried up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego.
(23) But these three men, Shadrach, Mechach, and Abed-Nego, fell into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire still tied up.
This king was furious. He couldn't let these guys get away with this! He had to make them an example. So he super-heated the furnace and had them trussed up in all their clothes, so that they would be enveloped in flames immediately. Even the soldiers who tossed them in like logs were burned up by the great heat.
(24) Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astounded and stood up in haste; he said to his high officials, "Was it not three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?" They replied to the king, "Certainly, O king."
The king had been seated on his dais overlooking the whole scenario, and as he looked down into this open furnace, he was flabbergasted! He would never have imagined to see the scene he witnessed. He knew, and got confirmation that there were only three men thrown into the furnace, and they were tied up!
(25) He said, "Look! I see four men loosed and walking about in the midst of the fire without harm, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!"
He could hardly believe his eyes. There were not three, but four men, and they weren't tied up, but walking around freely, and were not even hurt by the extreme heat of the flames! And the fourth person looked like deity!
(26) Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the furnace of blazing fire; he responded and said, "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, come out, you servants of the Most High God, and come here!" Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego came out of the midst of the fire.
So the king approached as close as he could and shouted above the roar of the furnace to come out, and the three climbed out of the fire. The fourth disappeared as mysteriously as he had appeared.
(27) The satraps, the prefects, the governors and the king's high officials gathered around and saw in regard to these men that the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men nor was the hair of their head singed, nor were their trousers damaged, nor had the smell of fire even come upon them.
All the highest officials who had access gathered around these three to examine them, and found that neither the fire nor the heat had had any effect on them at all. Not a hair was singed, not even the smell of smoke was on their clothes, and only the ropes that had bound them had burned.
They were witnessing a bona-fide miracle!
(28) Nebuchadnezzar responded and said, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who has sent His angel and delivered His servants who put their trust in Him, violating the king's command, and yielded up their bodies so as not to serve or worship any god except their own God.
Nebuchadnezzar is learning more about this God. This Lord God is even more powerful than even his own sovereign authority over life and death in this whole world that he governs! And His worshipers trust Him so much that they are willing to give up their very lives to be loyal to Him and Him alone.
(29) "Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation or tongue that speaks anything offensive against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be torn limb from limb and their houses reduced to a rubbish heap, inasmuch as there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way."
Every law or rule must have a serious enough consequence to be obeyed. So he decrees that this God is so powerful that there must be serious consequences for speaking against Him, so no one will be permitted to disparage this God of these Jews. He realized that this God is more powerful than any of the other gods he has been worshiping, because none of them has enough power to rescue like this.
(30) Then the king caused Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego to prosper in the province of Babylon.
Then he honored Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah and their God by giving them a raise in pay and authority in his kingdom. This was the most he was able to do.
This king is realizing more and more, a little at a time, who the Jews' Lord God is, but he has yet to come to a full realization of His power and authority over him.
O my Father, You go to extraordinary lengths to show people who You are. You did not write off this pagan king, but progressively worked to teach him who You are, and began to prepare this whole kingdom for the fulfillment of Your prophesy to release the Judean Jews from this captivity after 70 years of slavery (Jeremiah 25: 11-12; 29: 10).
Father, You always fulfill Your word, and You will do everything possible and impossible to draw people to yourself. You still are drawing people to Yourself, in every age and every day. Even today, You are bringing more people than ever into Your own family, even through the technology You have allowed us to devise.
Everything that happens and everything we do, You use for Your own purposes. You use every choice and decision we make to further Your plans, both Your plan for each of us, and Your great Plan of the Ages for all of us.
Just as You prepared the stage for the return of Your people Israel back to their own land, You are now preparing the world stage for the return of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the King. Everything that is happening now has been prophesied; and after it is done, we will be able to look back and say, "Yes, that happened just as You said it would!"
While we're in the middle of the mess, we can't see the whole picture; but we know that we can trust You, my Father, to work it all out for our benefit and Your glory.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
This pagan king had made a golden statue and invited all of his governmental employees to come worship it under pain of death, as a pledge of allegiance to him as their king. So everyone in the whole throng all bowed down, except for three men.
(8) For this reason at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and brought charges against the Jews.
These certain Chaldeans are not only "wise men" that the king depends on to advise him, but were nobles in the "master race" who despised these "lesser nation" people and are brown-nosing the king. They are only too glad to denounce these three who were still standing while the foreheads of everyone else were on the ground.
(9) They responded and said to Nebuchadnezzar the king: "O king, live forever!
(10) You, O king, have made a decree that every man who hears the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery, and bagpipe and all kinds of music, is to fall down and worship the golden image.
(11) "But whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire.
They got the orders right, they were paying attention. Now they'll bring up the charges.
(12) "There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the administration of the province of Babylon, namely Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego. These men, O king, have disregarded you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image which you have set up."
They've accused them of being disloyal to the king, a treasonous offense.
Why was Daniel not also accused here? Where was he? There are several ideas put forth by theologians to account for his absence here. The main ones are: that he may have been out-of-town on the king's business; or that he may have been on the dais with the king instead of in the crowd; or that the "wise men" of whom he had been appointed head were not included in the list of leaders required to attend.
At any rate, I think that God wanted to show that the other three had their own strong faith and trust in God, and were not dependent on Daniel's leadership.
(13) Then Nebuchadnezzar in rage and anger gave orders to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego; then these men were brought before the king.
How dare these men defy the orders of the king!
(14) Nebuchadnezzar responded and said to them, "Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up?
(15) "Now if you are ready, at the moment you hear the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery and bagpipe and all kinds of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, very well. But if you do not worship, you will immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire; and what god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?"
In essence, the king was giving them another chance, to think about what they were doing, and to assess their actions in the light of his authority over life and death. And also, he didn't think any deity could overrule his power as king.
(16) Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter.
This was not disrespectful to the king. The word order they used in the Aramaic places the emphasis on the pronoun "we," implying that it is the Lord Himself who will deal with this situation.
(17) "If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king.
(18) "But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up."
Then they politely let him know that the Lord God who they worship has authority even over this king who thinks he is sovereign; and they acknowledge that it is the Lord God's choice whether to save them or not. So they really were putting their lives on the line here.
(19) Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with wrath, and his facial expression was altered toward Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego. He answered by giving orders to heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated.
(20) He commanded certain valiant warriors who were in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in order to cast them into the furnace of blazing fire.
(21) Then these men were tied up in their trousers, their coats, their caps and their other clothes, and were cast into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire.
(22) For this reason, because the king's command was urgent and the furnace had been made extremely hot, the flame of the fire slew those men who carried up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego.
(23) But these three men, Shadrach, Mechach, and Abed-Nego, fell into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire still tied up.
This king was furious. He couldn't let these guys get away with this! He had to make them an example. So he super-heated the furnace and had them trussed up in all their clothes, so that they would be enveloped in flames immediately. Even the soldiers who tossed them in like logs were burned up by the great heat.
(24) Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astounded and stood up in haste; he said to his high officials, "Was it not three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?" They replied to the king, "Certainly, O king."
The king had been seated on his dais overlooking the whole scenario, and as he looked down into this open furnace, he was flabbergasted! He would never have imagined to see the scene he witnessed. He knew, and got confirmation that there were only three men thrown into the furnace, and they were tied up!
(25) He said, "Look! I see four men loosed and walking about in the midst of the fire without harm, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!"
He could hardly believe his eyes. There were not three, but four men, and they weren't tied up, but walking around freely, and were not even hurt by the extreme heat of the flames! And the fourth person looked like deity!
(26) Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the furnace of blazing fire; he responded and said, "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, come out, you servants of the Most High God, and come here!" Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego came out of the midst of the fire.
So the king approached as close as he could and shouted above the roar of the furnace to come out, and the three climbed out of the fire. The fourth disappeared as mysteriously as he had appeared.
(27) The satraps, the prefects, the governors and the king's high officials gathered around and saw in regard to these men that the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men nor was the hair of their head singed, nor were their trousers damaged, nor had the smell of fire even come upon them.
All the highest officials who had access gathered around these three to examine them, and found that neither the fire nor the heat had had any effect on them at all. Not a hair was singed, not even the smell of smoke was on their clothes, and only the ropes that had bound them had burned.
They were witnessing a bona-fide miracle!
(28) Nebuchadnezzar responded and said, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who has sent His angel and delivered His servants who put their trust in Him, violating the king's command, and yielded up their bodies so as not to serve or worship any god except their own God.
Nebuchadnezzar is learning more about this God. This Lord God is even more powerful than even his own sovereign authority over life and death in this whole world that he governs! And His worshipers trust Him so much that they are willing to give up their very lives to be loyal to Him and Him alone.
(29) "Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation or tongue that speaks anything offensive against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be torn limb from limb and their houses reduced to a rubbish heap, inasmuch as there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way."
Every law or rule must have a serious enough consequence to be obeyed. So he decrees that this God is so powerful that there must be serious consequences for speaking against Him, so no one will be permitted to disparage this God of these Jews. He realized that this God is more powerful than any of the other gods he has been worshiping, because none of them has enough power to rescue like this.
(30) Then the king caused Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego to prosper in the province of Babylon.
Then he honored Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah and their God by giving them a raise in pay and authority in his kingdom. This was the most he was able to do.
This king is realizing more and more, a little at a time, who the Jews' Lord God is, but he has yet to come to a full realization of His power and authority over him.
O my Father, You go to extraordinary lengths to show people who You are. You did not write off this pagan king, but progressively worked to teach him who You are, and began to prepare this whole kingdom for the fulfillment of Your prophesy to release the Judean Jews from this captivity after 70 years of slavery (Jeremiah 25: 11-12; 29: 10).
Father, You always fulfill Your word, and You will do everything possible and impossible to draw people to yourself. You still are drawing people to Yourself, in every age and every day. Even today, You are bringing more people than ever into Your own family, even through the technology You have allowed us to devise.
Everything that happens and everything we do, You use for Your own purposes. You use every choice and decision we make to further Your plans, both Your plan for each of us, and Your great Plan of the Ages for all of us.
Just as You prepared the stage for the return of Your people Israel back to their own land, You are now preparing the world stage for the return of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the King. Everything that is happening now has been prophesied; and after it is done, we will be able to look back and say, "Yes, that happened just as You said it would!"
While we're in the middle of the mess, we can't see the whole picture; but we know that we can trust You, my Father, to work it all out for our benefit and Your glory.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Friday, April 17, 2020
Nebuchadnezzar's Golden Statue
Daniel 3: 1-7
King Nebuchadnezzar was really impressed with how Daniel could have the insight to explain his dream statue to him, but then his focus settled on the dream statue itself. So he apparently made a replica of it, and since he was the "head of gold," he went ahead and covered the whole statue with gold leaf.
(1) Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, the height of which was sixty cubits and its width six cubits; he set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
He made this huge idol, ninety feet high and nine feet wide. He set it up on a large flat plain, that had plenty of room around it to fill with people, and it must have gleamed so beautifully in the sunlight.
(2) Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent word to assemble the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all the rulers of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
Then he invited everyone who was anyone to the party.
The titles of the various ranks of officials show us that the king had a well-organized bureaucracy:
A satrap (from Old Persian, khshstrapawan) was a "realm protector," a despotic governor of a province under the king.
A prefect (borrowed from Akkad, saknu), is "appointed" to a position of authority, possibly military, but more likely a lieutenant governor.
A governor (pehah) was a "lord of an administrative district," indicating a smaller territory such as the province of Judah which was administered by a pehah at this time.
A counselor (dargazar) was a "counsel-giver," an advisor.
A treasurer (from ganzabara) "treasure-bearer" was a financial officer, an accountant.
A judge (from Old Persian, databara), literally, "law-bearer," a judge.
A magistrate (tiptaye) was an "over-chief," a sheriff.
The rulers (siltone) "to have dominion over" was a general term for governmental executives, which covered all the rest of the officers.
(3) Then the satraps, the prefects and the governors the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all the rulers of the provinces were assembled for the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
So everyone was there, filling the whole plain.
(4) Then the herald loudly proclaimed: "To you the command is given, O peoples, nations and men of every language,
(5) "that at the moment you hear the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon (or triangular lyre), psaltery, bagpipe (or Pan's pipes) and all kinds of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up.
All the instruments that were available to Nebuchadnezzar were in his orchestra to provide the musical backdrop for this great worship service.
(6) "But whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire."
Since this was a worship service, everyone was expected to honor this idol, which was probably an image of Nebo, or Nabu, Nebuchadnezzar' patron god.
Prostration before Nebo would amount to a pledge of allegiance to his viceroy, "Nabu-Kudurriusur" = Nebuchadnezzar.
From the king's standpoint, no government employee in his realm could refuse to demonstrate his loyalty to his sovereign and his government. It was appropriate for Nebuchadnezzar to assemble all the provincial leaders from every part of his domain and extract from them a solemn oath of loyalty, certified with a religious sanction by this ceremony of adoration of Babylon's god. Anyone who refused to comply would be committing treason against the king, and be immediately executed.
(7) Therefore at that time, when all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery, bagpipe and all kinds of music, all the peoples, nations and men of every language fell down and worshiped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
With the nearby roaring furnace as a grim reminder of the alternative to compliance, the official leadership of every nation and district under Nebuchadnezzar's rule had to join in this act of worship under pain of death. When the orchestra began to play, all the foreheads in the great multitude touched the ground at the same time. There was, needless to say, universal compliance.
Except for three men.
O my Father, even though You let him know that You are above all other gods, this king still doesn't seem to realize that You alone are to be worshiped and adored. He must still think it's all right to honor a multitude of deities, as is prevalent in his culture.
He is like many of us today, we also need to "unlearn" some things, and get out of some habits we've developed over the years, that work against and rebel against Your ways, and Your ways for us.
O Father, teach us Your ways. Thank You for Your patience with us, as You demonstrated in Your working with this pagan king. We also must expect to take time to grow, just as a small child takes years to grow to adulthood, we also must take the time to work on what You bring to our attention one thing at a time.
Father, You don't overwhelm us, but when we see enemies attacking from several directions all at the same time, we can trust that You will fight the battles for us, to just rest in You and see Your victories over all our troubles and sorrows and concerns. And whatever looks to harm us, You will make good for us, just as You turned the tables for numerous men of God we read about in Your word.
You always allow in our lives only what You will use to strengthen us to endure and triumph over it, and come out on the other side even better!
Father, this school of life we are in will never be easy, but every test we pass will qualify us for a higher grade of learning, with progressively tougher tests, because we are being prepared for the culmination of this whole Time Line.
Our Era of Time is almost at its end, and You are preparing Your children to gain the victory through the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony, not loving our own mortal lives more than the reward of Your presence (Revelation 12: 11).
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Authority in all of Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come swiftly, Lord Jesus!
King Nebuchadnezzar was really impressed with how Daniel could have the insight to explain his dream statue to him, but then his focus settled on the dream statue itself. So he apparently made a replica of it, and since he was the "head of gold," he went ahead and covered the whole statue with gold leaf.
(1) Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, the height of which was sixty cubits and its width six cubits; he set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
He made this huge idol, ninety feet high and nine feet wide. He set it up on a large flat plain, that had plenty of room around it to fill with people, and it must have gleamed so beautifully in the sunlight.
(2) Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent word to assemble the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all the rulers of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
Then he invited everyone who was anyone to the party.
The titles of the various ranks of officials show us that the king had a well-organized bureaucracy:
A satrap (from Old Persian, khshstrapawan) was a "realm protector," a despotic governor of a province under the king.
A prefect (borrowed from Akkad, saknu), is "appointed" to a position of authority, possibly military, but more likely a lieutenant governor.
A governor (pehah) was a "lord of an administrative district," indicating a smaller territory such as the province of Judah which was administered by a pehah at this time.
A counselor (dargazar) was a "counsel-giver," an advisor.
A treasurer (from ganzabara) "treasure-bearer" was a financial officer, an accountant.
A judge (from Old Persian, databara), literally, "law-bearer," a judge.
A magistrate (tiptaye) was an "over-chief," a sheriff.
The rulers (siltone) "to have dominion over" was a general term for governmental executives, which covered all the rest of the officers.
(3) Then the satraps, the prefects and the governors the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all the rulers of the provinces were assembled for the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
So everyone was there, filling the whole plain.
(4) Then the herald loudly proclaimed: "To you the command is given, O peoples, nations and men of every language,
(5) "that at the moment you hear the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon (or triangular lyre), psaltery, bagpipe (or Pan's pipes) and all kinds of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up.
All the instruments that were available to Nebuchadnezzar were in his orchestra to provide the musical backdrop for this great worship service.
(6) "But whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire."
Since this was a worship service, everyone was expected to honor this idol, which was probably an image of Nebo, or Nabu, Nebuchadnezzar' patron god.
Prostration before Nebo would amount to a pledge of allegiance to his viceroy, "Nabu-Kudurriusur" = Nebuchadnezzar.
From the king's standpoint, no government employee in his realm could refuse to demonstrate his loyalty to his sovereign and his government. It was appropriate for Nebuchadnezzar to assemble all the provincial leaders from every part of his domain and extract from them a solemn oath of loyalty, certified with a religious sanction by this ceremony of adoration of Babylon's god. Anyone who refused to comply would be committing treason against the king, and be immediately executed.
(7) Therefore at that time, when all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery, bagpipe and all kinds of music, all the peoples, nations and men of every language fell down and worshiped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
With the nearby roaring furnace as a grim reminder of the alternative to compliance, the official leadership of every nation and district under Nebuchadnezzar's rule had to join in this act of worship under pain of death. When the orchestra began to play, all the foreheads in the great multitude touched the ground at the same time. There was, needless to say, universal compliance.
Except for three men.
O my Father, even though You let him know that You are above all other gods, this king still doesn't seem to realize that You alone are to be worshiped and adored. He must still think it's all right to honor a multitude of deities, as is prevalent in his culture.
He is like many of us today, we also need to "unlearn" some things, and get out of some habits we've developed over the years, that work against and rebel against Your ways, and Your ways for us.
O Father, teach us Your ways. Thank You for Your patience with us, as You demonstrated in Your working with this pagan king. We also must expect to take time to grow, just as a small child takes years to grow to adulthood, we also must take the time to work on what You bring to our attention one thing at a time.
Father, You don't overwhelm us, but when we see enemies attacking from several directions all at the same time, we can trust that You will fight the battles for us, to just rest in You and see Your victories over all our troubles and sorrows and concerns. And whatever looks to harm us, You will make good for us, just as You turned the tables for numerous men of God we read about in Your word.
You always allow in our lives only what You will use to strengthen us to endure and triumph over it, and come out on the other side even better!
Father, this school of life we are in will never be easy, but every test we pass will qualify us for a higher grade of learning, with progressively tougher tests, because we are being prepared for the culmination of this whole Time Line.
Our Era of Time is almost at its end, and You are preparing Your children to gain the victory through the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony, not loving our own mortal lives more than the reward of Your presence (Revelation 12: 11).
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Authority in all of Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come swiftly, Lord Jesus!
Thursday, April 16, 2020
Daniel's Promotion
Daniel 2: 46-49
Daniel has just explained to the king that he had dreamed of a statue, and that the statue's varied composition represented the future kingdoms of the world, that would all be done away when the Eternal Kingdom will come to this Earth.
This so impressed the king, that he did the only thing he could:
(46) Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and did homage to Daniel,
The king recognized that this God was not like any of the idols he had ever known, and was overcome with awe that Daniel would let this God work through him this way.
and gave orders to present to him an offering and fragrant incense.
The offering or oblation is the word maccekah, which is used only here in the whole Old Testament, and refers to a "pouring over" or "pouring out," like a libation as to a deity.
And the incense is also connected to worship of a deity. King Nebuchadnezzar is overcome by this revelation, and is responding in the only way he knows, how he has honored his idols.
He doesn't know how else to act toward Daniel, who is representing this great God that he's never known before.
(47) The king answered Daniel and said, "Surely your God is a God of gods and a Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, since you have been able to reveal this mystery."
This shows that the king was honoring Daniel's God by these offerings of oblation and incense, acknowledging that this God is greater than all the other idols that he's known, and has political authority over all earthly rulers.
(48) Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts, and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.
Now, since Daniel had so decisively proved himself a true prophet with access to the great God he worshiped, it was only logical for Nebuchadnezzar to put him in charge of all the diviners at the court of Babylon. Hence he officially became "ruler" or "appointed one" over the whole bureau of "wise men."
The king also fulfilled his original promise (in 2: 6) and loaded him with gifts and royal honors.
Then he went on, and even appointed Daniel civil governor of the entire capital province of Babylon; a post of highest importance in the political structure. This was indeed noteworthy, as normally this would be reserved for a Chaldean nobleman, a member of the Master Race, like Nebuchadnezzar. For a Jew who had been captured as a slave to be so honored was unprecedented, and shows how deeply his intelligence and integrity had impressed the king.
(49) And Daniel made request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego over the administration of the province of Babylon, while Daniel was at the king's court.
Daniel's loyalty to his friends was shown by his request that they too be given high appointments. This was a wise move, for it also strengthened Daniel's hand to have his three trusted friends help him in his administrative duties.
God had placed Daniel in this place at this time for His purposes. God wanted to use Daniel to show Nebuchadnezzar who He is, and there will be other times when God is shown further to him. God is already laying the groundwork at the beginning of their captivity for bringing them back to their own land after the 70 years, just as He had planned.
And Daniel's faith and the faith of Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah was strong and was not diminished even through their immersion into this new pagan culture. They got along with their neighbors and coworkers, but we will see, when they could not compromise a basic premise, they stood their ground. But only when it was a foundational principle. They had wisdom and discernment in where they drew the line.
We also, as royal sons and daughters of the King living in the godless and wicked cultures and societies of the world need to have wisdom and discernment to distinguish where to draw our lines, also.
There is so much going on around us all the time, it's easy to pick at and complain about everything we don't approve of, and lose our focus on what's important. We can go along to get along, but we still need to know where to stand our ground.
And where we need to stand our ground, God will be with us, just as He was with Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. God is the same God, and His love and care for His own has not changed.
They were willing to give their lives to the fire or the lions rather than give worship to any other god. This was their standard, and should also be ours. But they also got along and went along with whatever other stuff that was going on around them.
When they came down to the wire, they knew God could rescue them, but were in His hand to save them or let them die. We need to have the same mind-set. He also may or may not miraculously save us from the violent deaths others desire for us, as He did them, but whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.
O my Father, You are great. You are good. You are the same, yesterday, today, and forever. Your faithfulness does not waver. Your compassion never wanes. Your strength never weakens. Your great Plan of the Ages is marching on, every moment closer to the denouement when our King returns to conquer all His enemies and rule the world with His iron scepter, in absolute righteousness.
O Father, send out Your children as Your messengers and missionaries, to broadcast Your good news to every living creature in all nations. Draw all of Your chosen ones to the birth into Your family, and leave the rest with no excuse for their rebellion.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!
Daniel has just explained to the king that he had dreamed of a statue, and that the statue's varied composition represented the future kingdoms of the world, that would all be done away when the Eternal Kingdom will come to this Earth.
This so impressed the king, that he did the only thing he could:
(46) Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and did homage to Daniel,
The king recognized that this God was not like any of the idols he had ever known, and was overcome with awe that Daniel would let this God work through him this way.
and gave orders to present to him an offering and fragrant incense.
The offering or oblation is the word maccekah, which is used only here in the whole Old Testament, and refers to a "pouring over" or "pouring out," like a libation as to a deity.
And the incense is also connected to worship of a deity. King Nebuchadnezzar is overcome by this revelation, and is responding in the only way he knows, how he has honored his idols.
He doesn't know how else to act toward Daniel, who is representing this great God that he's never known before.
(47) The king answered Daniel and said, "Surely your God is a God of gods and a Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, since you have been able to reveal this mystery."
This shows that the king was honoring Daniel's God by these offerings of oblation and incense, acknowledging that this God is greater than all the other idols that he's known, and has political authority over all earthly rulers.
(48) Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts, and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.
This means that Daniel and his friends were coming to the end of their schooling, or may have even just passed their Final Exam (1: 18-21), but still not actually assigned their full duties, but had "entered the king's personal service.""It should be noted that the Babylonian method of accession-year dating made 602 B. C. (the spring of 602) the end of Nebuchadnezzar's second regnal year, even though he may have captured Daniel and his three companions in the Palestinian campaign of 605 and had them enrolled in the Royal Academy before that year was out. Thus 602 would have been their third year of schooling, even though it was [considered] his second full year of reign." -- Gleason L. Archer, Jr: The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Frank E. Gaebelein, General Editor, Volume 7, pages 41-42.
Now, since Daniel had so decisively proved himself a true prophet with access to the great God he worshiped, it was only logical for Nebuchadnezzar to put him in charge of all the diviners at the court of Babylon. Hence he officially became "ruler" or "appointed one" over the whole bureau of "wise men."
The king also fulfilled his original promise (in 2: 6) and loaded him with gifts and royal honors.
Then he went on, and even appointed Daniel civil governor of the entire capital province of Babylon; a post of highest importance in the political structure. This was indeed noteworthy, as normally this would be reserved for a Chaldean nobleman, a member of the Master Race, like Nebuchadnezzar. For a Jew who had been captured as a slave to be so honored was unprecedented, and shows how deeply his intelligence and integrity had impressed the king.
(49) And Daniel made request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego over the administration of the province of Babylon, while Daniel was at the king's court.
Daniel's loyalty to his friends was shown by his request that they too be given high appointments. This was a wise move, for it also strengthened Daniel's hand to have his three trusted friends help him in his administrative duties.
God had placed Daniel in this place at this time for His purposes. God wanted to use Daniel to show Nebuchadnezzar who He is, and there will be other times when God is shown further to him. God is already laying the groundwork at the beginning of their captivity for bringing them back to their own land after the 70 years, just as He had planned.
And Daniel's faith and the faith of Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah was strong and was not diminished even through their immersion into this new pagan culture. They got along with their neighbors and coworkers, but we will see, when they could not compromise a basic premise, they stood their ground. But only when it was a foundational principle. They had wisdom and discernment in where they drew the line.
We also, as royal sons and daughters of the King living in the godless and wicked cultures and societies of the world need to have wisdom and discernment to distinguish where to draw our lines, also.
There is so much going on around us all the time, it's easy to pick at and complain about everything we don't approve of, and lose our focus on what's important. We can go along to get along, but we still need to know where to stand our ground.
And where we need to stand our ground, God will be with us, just as He was with Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. God is the same God, and His love and care for His own has not changed.
They were willing to give their lives to the fire or the lions rather than give worship to any other god. This was their standard, and should also be ours. But they also got along and went along with whatever other stuff that was going on around them.
When they came down to the wire, they knew God could rescue them, but were in His hand to save them or let them die. We need to have the same mind-set. He also may or may not miraculously save us from the violent deaths others desire for us, as He did them, but whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.
O my Father, You are great. You are good. You are the same, yesterday, today, and forever. Your faithfulness does not waver. Your compassion never wanes. Your strength never weakens. Your great Plan of the Ages is marching on, every moment closer to the denouement when our King returns to conquer all His enemies and rule the world with His iron scepter, in absolute righteousness.
O Father, send out Your children as Your messengers and missionaries, to broadcast Your good news to every living creature in all nations. Draw all of Your chosen ones to the birth into Your family, and leave the rest with no excuse for their rebellion.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!
Wednesday, April 15, 2020
To be Used By God
Daniel 2: 25-30
Daniel had "taken a chance" and told Arioch to hold off on the executions, because he would tell the king what he was asking (yesterday). This was a very dangerous step, but it shows that he trusted that God would answer his prayer.
Then when God gave him the same dream, he had the commander bring him to the king.
(25) Then Arioch hurriedly brought Daniel into the king's presence
This Chief over the king's body-guards was in a hurry to bring Daniel in, so he wouldn't be accused of delaying his obedience to the king's order.
and spoke to him as follows: "I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can make the interpretation known to the king!"
Then he took credit for finding this lad who could give an answer!
(26) The king said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, "Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen and its interpretation?"
The king was probably surprised first thing in the morning to meet this boy and he asked him if he really could tell him what he dreamed and what it meant.
(27) Daniel answered before the king and said, "As for the mystery about which the king has inquired, neither wise men, conjurers, magicians, nor diviners are able to declare it to the king.
Daniel was quick to deny credit, because no human person could answer what the king asked.
(28) "However, there is a God in Heaven who reveals mysteries, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the latter days.
He made sure the king would know it was the Lord God, not any of the idols in Babylon, who was able to reveal mysteries. Because He is the only God.
This was your dream and the visions in your mind while on your bed.
(29) As for you, O king, while on your bed your thoughts turned to what would take place in the future; and He who reveals mysteries has made known to you what will take place.
Only God is the One who reveals mysteries, like this dream the king had. And He alone can reveal what will happen in the future.
The king had gone to bed thinking about what would happen in the future, so God told him in this dream. That's why the king was so anxious to find out what it means.
(30) But as for me, this mystery has not been revealed to me for any wisdom residing in me more than in any other living man, but for the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king, and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind."
Daniel again makes sure that the king knows it isn't Daniel who has this wisdom, but only the Lord God of Israel. And He is the One who decided to reveal to the king what would happen in the future, to understand what he had been thinking about as he laid down.
Daniel was only the channel through which God would give this information to the king. God was revealing Himself to King Nebuchadnezzar, and it will take a few more times dealing with him for this king to honor God. This is only the first.
Because Daniel was committed to the Lord, he was used of the Lord in the king's life, even as a mere student.
I think that God gave this dream to Nebuchadnezzar and caused him to forget it just so He would learn about the Lord God of Israel. Why else would He have done so? This way, He could have a good influence in the whole society, and prepare the way for a future Cyrus to allow the Jews to go beck home.
You can read about the statue in the dream here, and the kingdoms it represents here. Then the end of the dream, and the end of these kingdoms here.
This is a most fascinating story! Let's see what the king did for Daniel for telling him. Tomorrow.
O my Father, please let us trust You as Daniel did, and to rely on You and be used of You, as Daniel did. And his friends, too. They did not know you as we do today, after You revealed Yourself to human-kind through the years, and in Your Son, Jesus. Thank You, Father, for Your written Word, also, to describe and explain so much of Your ways.
These four lads had a very strong faith and trusted You with their lives. And we know so much more, and even have Your own Spirit living in us to teach us. May we depend on You even more.
O Father, as we find ourselves going through the times we are in, let us lean on You, trusting that the wrath You pour out on the world will not touch Your children; because what we are due was already poured out on Jesus as the Lamb of God on our behalf. Even though a thousand fall at our side, ten thousand at our right hand, it will not approach us; we will only see with our eyes what the wicked people have called upon themselves (Psalm 91: 7-8).
Father, thank You for Your greatness, Your goodness, Your love for us all, and Your grief over the deaths of the wicked, because they refused Your generous, gracious gift. Thank You for Your compassion to have Your messengers share Your wonderful good news to every living person.
Send us out, Father, as Your missionaries, to our families, our co-workers, our neighbors, our neighborhoods and cities and nations. Send us out to every nation, Father, to broadcast the good seed of Your Gospel, so that all Your children will be brought to the birth into Your family, and no one else will have any excuse.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come soon, Lord Jesus!
Daniel had "taken a chance" and told Arioch to hold off on the executions, because he would tell the king what he was asking (yesterday). This was a very dangerous step, but it shows that he trusted that God would answer his prayer.
Then when God gave him the same dream, he had the commander bring him to the king.
(25) Then Arioch hurriedly brought Daniel into the king's presence
This Chief over the king's body-guards was in a hurry to bring Daniel in, so he wouldn't be accused of delaying his obedience to the king's order.
and spoke to him as follows: "I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can make the interpretation known to the king!"
Then he took credit for finding this lad who could give an answer!
(26) The king said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, "Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen and its interpretation?"
The king was probably surprised first thing in the morning to meet this boy and he asked him if he really could tell him what he dreamed and what it meant.
(27) Daniel answered before the king and said, "As for the mystery about which the king has inquired, neither wise men, conjurers, magicians, nor diviners are able to declare it to the king.
Daniel was quick to deny credit, because no human person could answer what the king asked.
(28) "However, there is a God in Heaven who reveals mysteries, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the latter days.
He made sure the king would know it was the Lord God, not any of the idols in Babylon, who was able to reveal mysteries. Because He is the only God.
This was your dream and the visions in your mind while on your bed.
(29) As for you, O king, while on your bed your thoughts turned to what would take place in the future; and He who reveals mysteries has made known to you what will take place.
Only God is the One who reveals mysteries, like this dream the king had. And He alone can reveal what will happen in the future.
The king had gone to bed thinking about what would happen in the future, so God told him in this dream. That's why the king was so anxious to find out what it means.
(30) But as for me, this mystery has not been revealed to me for any wisdom residing in me more than in any other living man, but for the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king, and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind."
Daniel again makes sure that the king knows it isn't Daniel who has this wisdom, but only the Lord God of Israel. And He is the One who decided to reveal to the king what would happen in the future, to understand what he had been thinking about as he laid down.
Daniel was only the channel through which God would give this information to the king. God was revealing Himself to King Nebuchadnezzar, and it will take a few more times dealing with him for this king to honor God. This is only the first.
Because Daniel was committed to the Lord, he was used of the Lord in the king's life, even as a mere student.
I think that God gave this dream to Nebuchadnezzar and caused him to forget it just so He would learn about the Lord God of Israel. Why else would He have done so? This way, He could have a good influence in the whole society, and prepare the way for a future Cyrus to allow the Jews to go beck home.
You can read about the statue in the dream here, and the kingdoms it represents here. Then the end of the dream, and the end of these kingdoms here.
This is a most fascinating story! Let's see what the king did for Daniel for telling him. Tomorrow.
O my Father, please let us trust You as Daniel did, and to rely on You and be used of You, as Daniel did. And his friends, too. They did not know you as we do today, after You revealed Yourself to human-kind through the years, and in Your Son, Jesus. Thank You, Father, for Your written Word, also, to describe and explain so much of Your ways.
These four lads had a very strong faith and trusted You with their lives. And we know so much more, and even have Your own Spirit living in us to teach us. May we depend on You even more.
O Father, as we find ourselves going through the times we are in, let us lean on You, trusting that the wrath You pour out on the world will not touch Your children; because what we are due was already poured out on Jesus as the Lamb of God on our behalf. Even though a thousand fall at our side, ten thousand at our right hand, it will not approach us; we will only see with our eyes what the wicked people have called upon themselves (Psalm 91: 7-8).
Father, thank You for Your greatness, Your goodness, Your love for us all, and Your grief over the deaths of the wicked, because they refused Your generous, gracious gift. Thank You for Your compassion to have Your messengers share Your wonderful good news to every living person.
Send us out, Father, as Your missionaries, to our families, our co-workers, our neighbors, our neighborhoods and cities and nations. Send us out to every nation, Father, to broadcast the good seed of Your Gospel, so that all Your children will be brought to the birth into Your family, and no one else will have any excuse.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come soon, Lord Jesus!
Tuesday, April 14, 2020
Bold Trust In God
Daniel 2: 13-24
King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that upset him, but he couldn't remember the dream; and he asked his wise men to do the impossible.
(13) So the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they looked for Daniel and his friends to kill them.
Daniel and his friends were still in the Royal Academy, so they weren't among the wise men who were called to the king, they were still in training.
(14) Then Daniel replied with discretion and discernment to Arioch, the captain of the king's bodyguard, who had gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon;
(15) he said to the king's commander, "For what reason is the decree from the king so urgent?" Then Arioch informed Daniel about the matter.
So Daniel found out what was going on with the king. Then he was able to formulate a plan of action. This was a very wise response, instead of just reacting to the crisis.
(16) So Daniel went in and requested of the king that he would give him time, in order that he might declare the interpretation to the king.
The first thing he did was to put in a request for a continuance, to put off the executions; for the reason he boldly declared, that he would give the interpretation the king was asking for.
(17) Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, about the matter,
(18) so that they might request compassion from the God of Heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his friends would not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
The next step was to enlist his friends in prayer and fasting, no doubt, because only God would be able to help him do what he proposed. They probably had an intense prayer meeting that night, as their lives depended on God.
(19) Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a night vision.
They didn't stay up all night in prayer, they trusted God enough go to bed to rest. And while he slept, God gave Daniel the same dream, so he could face the king with the answer!
Then Daniel blessed the God of Heaven;
And the first thing he did in the morning was to give praise to God! During his quiet time he journaled his prayer of thanksgiving and praise to God.
His prayer tells us some things about God.
(20) Daniel said,
"Let the Name of God be blessed forever and ever,
For wisdom and power belong to Him.
God is Almighty, all power belongs to Him. And He is all-wise in knowing how to apply His all-knowing (omniscience).
(21) It is He who changes the times and the epochs;
God has decided the tropical and ice ages; He has determined the climate changes that happen on our planet.
He removes kings and establishes kings;
God sets up governments and kings and rulers, and He will change them at His own discretion. He is the One who decides. He has already planned it all out ahead of time.
He gives wisdom to wise men
And knowledge to men of understanding.
God is the One who gives wisdom to those who seek Him, and He will teach those who search for His ways, how He has designed this world to work.
(22) It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things;
What God has hidden, only He can reveal; we cannot find out anything that He hasn't decided to show us. And He has decided to show Daniel the dream He gave to Nebuchadnezzar, to reveal ahead of time the future history of the governments of the world, as He has planned it out.
He knows what is in the darkness,
And the light dwells with Him.
God knows everything about everything. Daniel had read Psalm 139: 12 that says, Even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.
And all light comes from Him, because He is Light.
(23) To You, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise,
For You have given me wisdom and power;
Daniel gives all the credit to God, to praise and thank Him for granting their prayer to give him the wisdom and power to save them from the destruction decreed by the king.
Even now You have made known to me what we requested of You,
For You have made known to us the king's matter."
God gave Daniel the same dream he'd given the king, so that God would have the glory and honor, being the only God. He did this to begin to promote His own reputation among the population of this pagan nation.
(24) Therefore, Daniel went in to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and spoke to him as follows: "Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon! Take me into the king's presence, and I will declare the interpretation to the king."
So Daniel went back to the commander over the king's personal body-guard and asked him to take him to the king, to give the king the impossible information he had originally asked for.
This was very bold of Daniel. He had faith in God already, to even have suggested that he could answer the king; then he trusted God to show him, and enlisted his friends to pray together with him, to seek God. Then he went to bed, trusting God and expecting His answer. This increased his faith and trust even more.
So even while he was studying in depth all these pagan ideas and philosophies, he remained strong in his faith in the Lord God of his fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He never did relinquish his identity as a Hebrew Israelite Jew.
O my Father, may we also, no matter what is going on around us, or what books we are studying, retain our faith and trust in only You. Strengthen us, Father, through this time of enforced sequestration. Help us to not waste any moments of these re-arranged days You have granted us, but to use every minute to learn and grow, in every area we need more maturity: spiritual, intellectual, physical, emotional, relational, financial, and evangelical. And in every other way.
My Father, help us to grow up, to reach the maturity of the full stature of the Son of God, of whom we are the body.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, our Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!
King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that upset him, but he couldn't remember the dream; and he asked his wise men to do the impossible.
(13) So the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they looked for Daniel and his friends to kill them.
Daniel and his friends were still in the Royal Academy, so they weren't among the wise men who were called to the king, they were still in training.
(14) Then Daniel replied with discretion and discernment to Arioch, the captain of the king's bodyguard, who had gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon;
(15) he said to the king's commander, "For what reason is the decree from the king so urgent?" Then Arioch informed Daniel about the matter.
So Daniel found out what was going on with the king. Then he was able to formulate a plan of action. This was a very wise response, instead of just reacting to the crisis.
(16) So Daniel went in and requested of the king that he would give him time, in order that he might declare the interpretation to the king.
The first thing he did was to put in a request for a continuance, to put off the executions; for the reason he boldly declared, that he would give the interpretation the king was asking for.
(17) Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, about the matter,
(18) so that they might request compassion from the God of Heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his friends would not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
The next step was to enlist his friends in prayer and fasting, no doubt, because only God would be able to help him do what he proposed. They probably had an intense prayer meeting that night, as their lives depended on God.
(19) Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a night vision.
They didn't stay up all night in prayer, they trusted God enough go to bed to rest. And while he slept, God gave Daniel the same dream, so he could face the king with the answer!
Then Daniel blessed the God of Heaven;
And the first thing he did in the morning was to give praise to God! During his quiet time he journaled his prayer of thanksgiving and praise to God.
His prayer tells us some things about God.
(20) Daniel said,
"Let the Name of God be blessed forever and ever,
For wisdom and power belong to Him.
God is Almighty, all power belongs to Him. And He is all-wise in knowing how to apply His all-knowing (omniscience).
(21) It is He who changes the times and the epochs;
God has decided the tropical and ice ages; He has determined the climate changes that happen on our planet.
He removes kings and establishes kings;
God sets up governments and kings and rulers, and He will change them at His own discretion. He is the One who decides. He has already planned it all out ahead of time.
He gives wisdom to wise men
And knowledge to men of understanding.
God is the One who gives wisdom to those who seek Him, and He will teach those who search for His ways, how He has designed this world to work.
(22) It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things;
What God has hidden, only He can reveal; we cannot find out anything that He hasn't decided to show us. And He has decided to show Daniel the dream He gave to Nebuchadnezzar, to reveal ahead of time the future history of the governments of the world, as He has planned it out.
He knows what is in the darkness,
And the light dwells with Him.
God knows everything about everything. Daniel had read Psalm 139: 12 that says, Even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.
And all light comes from Him, because He is Light.
(23) To You, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise,
For You have given me wisdom and power;
Daniel gives all the credit to God, to praise and thank Him for granting their prayer to give him the wisdom and power to save them from the destruction decreed by the king.
Even now You have made known to me what we requested of You,
For You have made known to us the king's matter."
God gave Daniel the same dream he'd given the king, so that God would have the glory and honor, being the only God. He did this to begin to promote His own reputation among the population of this pagan nation.
(24) Therefore, Daniel went in to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and spoke to him as follows: "Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon! Take me into the king's presence, and I will declare the interpretation to the king."
So Daniel went back to the commander over the king's personal body-guard and asked him to take him to the king, to give the king the impossible information he had originally asked for.
This was very bold of Daniel. He had faith in God already, to even have suggested that he could answer the king; then he trusted God to show him, and enlisted his friends to pray together with him, to seek God. Then he went to bed, trusting God and expecting His answer. This increased his faith and trust even more.
So even while he was studying in depth all these pagan ideas and philosophies, he remained strong in his faith in the Lord God of his fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He never did relinquish his identity as a Hebrew Israelite Jew.
O my Father, may we also, no matter what is going on around us, or what books we are studying, retain our faith and trust in only You. Strengthen us, Father, through this time of enforced sequestration. Help us to not waste any moments of these re-arranged days You have granted us, but to use every minute to learn and grow, in every area we need more maturity: spiritual, intellectual, physical, emotional, relational, financial, and evangelical. And in every other way.
My Father, help us to grow up, to reach the maturity of the full stature of the Son of God, of whom we are the body.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, our Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!
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