“The King of Heaven” [Matt's Messages]

“The King of Heaven”

The King of Kingdoms - The Book of Daniel

Lanse Evangelical Free Church

February 16, 2025 :: Daniel 4:1-37  

Daniel chapter 4 is about “The King of Heaven.”

The King Who reigns from heaven, above all things. And that is, of course, our Lord God.

In the very last verse of this chapter, verse 37, our God is called “The King of Heaven,” and this is, amazingly, the only time in the Bible that He is given that particular name! If you do a search for “The King of Heaven,” Daniel 4:37 is what comes up in the results.

In chapter 2, He was called “The God of Heaven.” And He is! And here in chapter 4, He’s also called “The Most High God” (6 times!). And he is. But in the very last verse, He is called “The King of Heaven,” and that’s really important because that Who He really is. And that’s what Daniel chapter 4 is all about.

One of the biggest mistakes we could make in reading Daniel chapter 4 is missing that it is about the King of Heaven.

Daniel chapter 4 is not primarily about Daniel. Daniel shows back up in chapter 4. He plays a major role from which we can learn a lot. He’s a great example, once again. Dare to be a Daniel! But Daniel chapter 4 is not about Daniel.

Daniel chapter 4 is not about his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, otherwise known as “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.” They do not show up in chapter 4. In fact, they don’t show up again, by name, in the whole book of Daniel! They had an amazing role to play in chapter 3, standing up to the king and being rescued from the burning furnace (without even smelling of smoke!), but Daniel chapter 4 is not about them.

And Daniel chapter 4 is not about King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. It would be easy to think that it is. It would be easy to make that mistake. Nebuchadnezzar certainly made that mistake himself! He thinks that everything is about him! And Nebuchadnezzar is one of the central characters of the story in Daniel chapter 4.

In fact, King Nebuchadnezzar actually wrote most of Daniel chapter 4!!! You probably caught that as Keagan read the first five verses? Surprise! The main narrator of this chapter is King Nebuchadnezzar himself!

But he has come to learn that his story is not primarily about him. It’s about the King of Heaven. And we need to keep that front and center as we study it together. Let’s dive in. Daniel chapter 4, verse 1. It comes in the form of a letter or a royal decree.

“King Nebuchadnezzar, To the peoples, nations and men of every language, who live in all the world: May you prosper greatly!”

King Nebuchadnezzar is writing to absolutely everyone. He wants everybody on God’s green earth to hear this message. Last time that Nebuchadnezzar used those words “people, nations, and men of every language,” he was calling them all to bow to his golden statue. 

But now he has another goal. He wants to give his testimony! This is an introduction to telling his story of God’s grace in His life. Look at verse 2.

“It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me. How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an eternal kingdom; his dominion endures from generation to generation” (vv.2-3).

That will get your attention, won’t it? King Nebuchadnezzar has a story to tell about the King of Heaven. Nebuchadnezzar says that the Most High God has performed great miraculous signs and mighty wonders for him. And I think he’s talking about more than just witnessing the Jews’ escape from the fiery furnace. 

He’s talking about what happened to him in this chapter. And he knows Who did it. It was the King of Heaven.

I have three points this morning to summarize what chapter 4 teaches us, and here’s number one. It’s super-obvious and also so easy to miss:

#1. THE KING OF HEAVEN RULES.

The King of Heaven rules over every human kingdom. And He will rule over every human kingdom forever. See what Nebuchadnezzar says in verse 3?

“His kingdom is an eternal kingdom; his dominion endures from generation to generation.” That’s like the point of this whole book! Our God is the King of Kingdoms!         

And Nebuchadnezzar has finally come to see that. He’s been growing in his understanding of Who God is all along, but the penny finally seems to drop here in chapter 4. That’s the story that he is so eager to tell. And it began, once again, with a bad dream. Look at verse 4.

“I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at home in my palace, contented and prosperous. I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying in my bed, the images and visions that passed through my mind terrified me.”

Now, we don’t know exactly when this dream happened. It’s almost certainly after the events of chapters 1, 2, and 3, but it could be a good long time afterwards.

Nebuchadnezzar presents himself as happy, contented, and prosperous. So it might be towards the end of his long reign as king? He reigned for about 43 years, and he led some amazing building projects and fought a lot of wars.

But here he seems to be sitting back and chilling and just enjoying where he’s at. The wars have died down. Everybody is subjugated. He’s built the hanging gardens of Babylon (one of the seven wonders of the ancient world). He’s built a giant double wall around his rectangular city whose inner wall is 25 feet thick, and the outer wall 11 feet thick. And he’s built another double-wall system east of the Euphrates that is 17 miles long and wide enough at the top that a chariot powered by four horses can run along the top of it and turn around on! We don’t know how tall that was, but the Ishtar Gate was 35 feet tall. If the wall went up to that, you’re looking at a 35 foot wall!

He’s built temples to his gods all over the city. He’s built three giant palaces for himself. His Babylon is 2000 acres of city. 

And I was wrong last week to say that the golden statue was the tallest building on earth. It was tall! Ninety feet tall and covered with gold! But I read this week that there was a seven-story ziggurat, like a stair-step sky-scraper in Babylon that was 288 feet high! Inside the city!

And at the center of all was Nebuchadnezzar just sitting back and loving it.

Everything is going great. He’s on top of the world.

And then he had another nightmare. Verse 5.

“I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying in my bed, the images and visions that passed through my mind terrified me.”

“What could it mean?! I’m afraid of what it could mean.” The most powerful man in the world was shaking in his boots once again. So, he calls in the “Dream Team.” Verse 6.

“So I commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be brought before me to interpret the dream for me. When the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners came, I told them the dream, but they could not interpret it for me.” (vv.6-7).

That’s interesting, isn’t it? It’s not that surprising to us. We’ve come to expect the wisdom of Babylon to be underwhelming. And we have to chuckle because of the long list once again: “magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners.” And for all their fancy credentials, they all come up empty.

He even told them the dream this time! But they could not satisfy the king that they knew what the dream meant. Perhaps they said something from their dream interpretation books. But they probably didn’t want to anger him, so whatever they said was vague and hedging their bets. Or maybe they just had nothing. But at the tail end of the parade, in comes Daniel. Verse 8.

“Finally, Daniel came into my presence and I told him the dream. (He is called Belteshazzar, after the name of my god, and the spirit of the holy gods is in him.) [He’s special!] I said, ‘Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and no mystery is too difficult for you. Here is my dream; interpret it for me” (vv.8-9). 

Again, we don’t know when this happened. It could have been thirty years or more since chapter 2. Daniel could be a middle-aged guy by now. But Nebuchadnezzar has not forgotten Daniel’s God-given ability to explain a disturbing dream. The King of Heaven is a revealer of mysteries. He knows all things and tell us some of them. He knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with Him (2:22). And it’s NOT the spirit of Marduk or Bel that dwells within Daniel. It’s the LORD.

And so Nebuchadnezzar presents his dream. Verse 10.

“These are the visions I saw while lying in my bed: I looked, and there before me stood a tree in the middle of the land. Its height was enormous. The tree grew large and strong and its top touched the sky; it was visible to the ends of the earth. Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit abundant, and on it was food for all. Under it the beasts of the field found shelter, and the birds of the air lived in its branches; from it every creature was fed.”

Wow! Can you see it in your mind's eye? This gorgeous beautiful tree. Majestic. Flourishing. The whole ecosystem dependent upon it. Do you see it? This beautiful enormous tree, but... Verse 13.

“‘In the visions I saw while lying in my bed, I looked, and there before me was a messenger, a holy one, coming down from heaven. [An angel.] He called in a loud voice: 'Cut down the tree and trim off its branches; strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the animals flee from under it and the birds from its branches. But let the stump and its roots, bound with iron and bronze, remain in the ground, in the grass of the field. ‘

'Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live with the animals among the plants of the earth. Let his mind be changed from that of a man and let him be given the mind of an animal, till seven times pass by for him.

‘The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of men.'

‘This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, had. Now, Belteshazzar, tell me what it means, for none of the wise men in my kingdom can interpret it for me. But you can, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you’” (vv.13-19).

“I saw this beautiful tree, and then this angel came said it needed to be cut down. What does it mean?!”

Did you notice that the stump and roots are bound with iron and bronze and remain in the ground? There is some hope there.

And did you notice that the subject changed from the tree to a person in verse 15?

“Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live with the animals among the plants of the earth. Let his mind be changed from that of a man and let him be given the mind of an animal, till seven times pass by for him.” 

What does it mean? I can just imagine Nebuchadnezzar sitting up straight in bed. Hearing the tree fall and the prophetic words “let him be given the mind of an animal” echoing in his ears. 

But did you notice what the point of the dream was? The point was in the dream itself. That part doesn’t need interpreting. Look at verse 17.

“The holy ones declare the verdict so that the living [that’s us!] may know that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of men.”

The King of Heaven rules. We’ll see how this dream teaches that to Nebuchadnezzar in a second, but let’s just dwell on the main idea.

The King of Heaven rules.

The Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men.

Do you need to hear that this morning?  I know I do. Our God is on the throne, and nothing can shake it. Amen? 

When we read the Book of Daniel, we need to think about the original readers and how they would have heard this story. Especially the Jews who were either living in exile when they experienced this story or were returning from exile when they were reading it soon after. Their lives were at the mercy of these kings, these authorities. Like Nebuchadnezzar.

And they were “uprooted.” Remember that word from the Prophecy of Jeremiah? They were uprooted and unsettled. And they didn’t have that much control or power over their lives.

Nebuchadnezzar seemed to have all the power! But the stories of the Book of Daniel reminded the Jews Who had the real power. Who was the real authority. Who was the real king. The King of Heaven rules.

I think about many people in our area who were shaken this week by the Governor’s proposal to close Rockview and the Boot Camp. Unsettling! That affects so many people right here that we know and love. Remember the King of Heaven rules.

Similarly, I talked with a friend at this conference who pastors a church in Washington, D.C. Lots of civil servants in his congregation. So many affected by the upheaval of the new presidential administration. “Do I still have a job? Does our department still exist? What’s going to happen next?” And they were also directly affected by the plane and helicopter crash a couple of weeks ago.

I prayed Psalm 46 over my friend and his church family. “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging” (vv.1-2). Remember the King of Heaven rules.

One of you sent me a text this week, “A lot of the stuff I see in the news feels surreal. Trying to focus on right things.” That’s right! We need to remember that the King of Heaven rules. That doesn’t take away how hard it is to live in unsettling times. It doesn’t make it all better. But it can settle our minds and hearts as we wait for God to work out His wise plan. We have nothing to fear if we belong to King of Heaven.

Now, let’s see how this strange dream leads to that conclusion. There’s a beautiful tree, and it’s slated to be chopped down. By an angel! And the stump remains. And someone is going to be living “with the animals among the plants of the earth” (v.15). What does that mean? That was Nebuchadnezzar’s question for Daniel.

And Daniel was very perplexed about how to answer it. Look at verse 19. Everybody is looking at Daniel, especially the most powerful man on the planet. “What does it mean?” Verse 19.

“Then Daniel (also called Belteshazzar) was greatly perplexed for a time, and his thoughts terrified him. So the king said, ‘Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its meaning alarm you.’ [The king reassures Daniel!] Belteshazzar answered, ‘My lord, if only the dream applied to your enemies and its meaning to your adversaries!” (V.19).

Daniel is so upset, not because he doesn’t know what the dream means, but because he DOES know what the dream means! "How do I handle this one?" Daniel is probably scared that he’s going to die. Just like the last time. Nebuchadnezzar kills people. He tried to kill Daniel’s friends! 

And what Daniel has to tell him is bad news. And even if he doesn’t get killed, there could be all kind of negative ramifications for the kingdom and for the Jewish people. But nothing stops Daniel from doing the right thing! Dare to be a Daniel and speak the truth even if your voice trembles when you do.

“My lord, if only the dream applied to your enemies and its meaning to your adversaries!” (v.19).

What a thing to say, isn’t it? I mean Daniel could have gloated here, right? He’s got some bad news to deliver to the king, but he could have celebrated that. I mean this is the king who drug him here to Babylon against his will. This is the king who keeps calling him by this ugly named based on a false god, a demon. This is the king who tried to burn up his friends!

But look how respectful he is! Look how compassionate, even, he is. "My lord, if only the dream applied to your enemies and its meaning to your adversaries!" (v.19). That’s a class act! Dare to be a Daniel and speak respectfully even to your enemies in authority over you. Dare to be a Daniel and love your enemies in authority over you, just like Jesus taught us to.

In verse 20, Daniel uses his gift to interpret the dream for Nebuchadnezzar. V.20

“The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, with its top touching the sky, visible to the whole earth, with beautiful leaves and abundant fruit, providing food for all, giving shelter to the beasts of the field, and having nesting places in its branches for the birds of the air–you, O king, are that tree! You have become great and strong; your greatness has grown until it reaches the sky, and your dominion extends to distant parts of the earth” (vv.10-22).

You saw that coming, didn’t you? Nebuchadnezzar was the head of gold in his first dream (2:38). Nebuchadnezzar is the tall tree in his second dream (4:22). He has grown large and strong. He is the king of kings in this world at this time. And so many people are dependent on him. And just like the statue of the first dream was going fall, so this tree is also going to fall, fall, fall. Look at verse 23.

“‘You, O king, saw a messenger, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, 'Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump, bound with iron and bronze, in the grass of the field, while its roots remain in the ground. Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven; let him live like the wild animals, until seven times pass by for him.'

‘This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree the Most High has issued against my lord the king: You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes.

The command to leave the stump of the tree with its roots means that your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge that Heaven rules.

Therefore, O king, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue” (vv.23-27).

Now we can see why Daniel was so reticent to explain the dream to the king. It meant the king was going down. And going mad. This was a judgment on Nebuchadnezzar. 

And what a gift that was, wasn’t it? God didn’t need to tell Nebuchadnezzar that this was going to happen to him. But here He is warning him through his dream and through Daniel.

Daniel says that Nebuchadnezzar is going to go crazy and for seven times (maybe seven weeks, seven months, or even seven years) “until” (v.25) Nebuchadnezzar acknowledges “that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes.”

Or in the words of verse 26, until Nebuchadnezzar acknowledges “that Heaven rules.”

How’s that for a hashtag? #HeavenRules That’s the point of this whole chapter. He said it in verse 17, then again in verse 25, and then verse 26, and it’s going to keep coming up. The King of Heaven Rules.

And Nebuchadnezzar needs to get it through his thick skull. And so do we.

Why is it hard for Nebuchadnezzar to see this? It’s because he’s on top of everything! Because he is the king of kings. And he doesn’t recognize that this is a gift from God. Point number two this morning:

#2. THE KING OF HEAVEN GIVES.

The King of Heaven rules over all of the human kingdoms, but He also gives kingdom authority to those humans for a time and a season and for various reasons.

Nebuchadnezzar really was the tree! And it really had some majesty and some authority. But that majesty and authority didn’t come from Nebuchadnezzar. It came from the King of Heaven. Look again at verse 25. 

“Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and [what?] gives them to anyone he wishes.” 

And that means that He can take those kingdoms from anyone He wishes, as well. 

We saw this just a few months ago when King Jesus was on trial before Pontius Pilate. Remember that in John chapter 19?

Jesus refused to answer some of Pilate’s questions, and Pilate said, “Don't you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?” And “Jesus answered, ‘You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.’” (Jn. 19:10-11).

So God delegates kingdom authority and power to humans. And when He does, we become accountable for what we do with that authority.

What authority have you been given? And how are you stewarding it? How are you using it? Our authority might be over something relatively small. A home? A family? A class? A team at work. Or it might be something larger.  None of us are Nebuchadnezzar here, but we all have, for a time, been given some kingdom authority to exercise.

How are we doing with that? Maybe a make a list of all of the domains where you have sway.

And ask yourself how you are doing at ruling righteously and compassionately in those domains. Or if you are really brave, ask someone else! A Daniel in your life.

Because we will all have to give an account. And Nebuchadnezzar was failing with his! Look at what Daniel had to say to him in verse 27. He gives him earnest counsel.

“Therefore, O king, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue” (vv.23-27).

We say that “Nebuchadnezzar built up Babylon,” but it was really his slaves that did. He had thousands of oppressed workers which he treated ruthlessly.               

Daniel is giving him earnest counsel. I’m sure that Nebuchadnezzar didn’t want to hear this. But Daniel was faithful to deliver the message anyway. Dare to be a Daniel and give a gentle, loving rebuke to someone who needs to hear it even if they don’t want to.

“King Nebuchadnezzar, you’ve been given so many people to lead. Are you caring for them or just using them? Is it all about the kingdom that you’ve been entrusted with or just all about you?”

“Rencounce your sins by doing what is right...It may be then your prosperity will continue.” What a gracious gift to hold out that possibility of restoration following repentance. Because, make no mistake, Nebuchadnezzar was going down. Look at verse 28.

“All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, he said, ‘Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?’

The words were still on his lips when a voice came from heaven, ‘This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like cattle. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes.’

Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like cattle. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird” (vv.28-33).

Wow! What great stories we have in Daniel, aren’t they?!

In verse 28, the story switches to third person. The king isn’t telling this part of the story. Perhaps because he had gone loco for this part. Daniel tells us a year has gone by since the dream, and probably Nebuchadnezzar has kind of forgotten about it. It’s not scaring him anymore.

And he is so proud! He’s so narcissistic. So boastful.

You see that in verse 30? Three things: He calls the city his royal residence. Like the whole city exists for him. And he’s built it by his mighty power and for his glory and majesty!

He thinks he’s god! He’s taking all of the credit and patting himself on the back.

And, of course, we do the same thing, right? We think everything is about us. “Me, me, me, me.”

Pride shows up in so many ways. Even in our worry, right? Because worry says, “It’s all up to me.”  Which is another way of making everything about me, as well.

Nebuchadnezzar looked out at the greatness of Babylon and thought it was all about him. He didn’t recognize that it was all a gift.

The Bible says, “What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1 Cor. 4:7).

Brothers and sisters, God is God and we are not. It’s not all about us. Our very lives are not about us. They are about the King of Heaven.

And just as the King can give kingdom authority, He can take it away. And that’s what He did to Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar thought he was more than a man. So God made him, for a time, less than a man. He made him like an animal. For seven periods of time, perhaps seven whole years, Nebuchadnezzar went insane.

He thought he was a beast. Perhaps an ox. He lived outside in the fields.

In the morning, he was all wet from the dew. He ate grass. His hair grew all long and matted so that he looked like an eagle. He didn’t trim his nails so that his hands began to look like claws.

He refused to humble himself, so the Lord humbled him. The tree fell and fell hard. 

I can’t imagine what that was like. I wonder how the kingdom survived that time. Perhaps his son ruled in his place. Perhaps they hushed it all up. There are no historical records of this this period of his life outside of the Bible, and that’s not surprising. You don’t tend to put the ugly stuff out there on display.

But Nebuchadnezzar did here. Probably with Daniels’ help. In verse 34, he starts up again as the first person narrator of the story. Look at verse 34.

“At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation.

All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: ‘What have you done?’

At the same time that my sanity was restored, my honor and splendor were returned to me for the glory of my kingdom. My advisers and nobles sought me out, and I was restored to my throne and became even greater than before.

Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble” (vv.34-37).

That’s point number three and last.

#3. THE KING OF HEAVEN HUMBLES.

The King of Heaven humbles the proud. Nebuchadnezzar learned that one firsthand. God may wait a long time. He gave Nebuchadnezzar twelve months. He doesn’t say when it’s going to happen, just that it will. 

The Bible says in more than one place: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (See Jas. 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5, Proverbs 3:34). Opposes! If we will not humble ourselves, God will do it for us. Maybe not as spectacularly as He did for Nebuchadnezzar. But I don’t want to find out.

The obvious application of this point is to humble ourselves. Because God gives grace to the humble. He only opposes those who “walk in pride.” 

How can we humble ourselves? I think that verse 34 gives us one good key. The king says, “I raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored.”

He stopped looking inward and outward and started looking upward. And that was sanity. Pride is insanity. Humility is what is actually sane. 

Humility is not thinking less of yourself. Putting yourself down. It’s thinking about yourself less. (Insight gained from Timothy Keller.) And thinking more about the King of Heaven.

How is sinful pride showing up in your life these days?

For me, I can get to thinking that our various successes as a church are because I’m so great. I would never say that. I don’t sit back in my office and say, “Is this not the great Lanse Free Church I have built by my mighty power?!”

Not out loud. And not when I’m sane. When I’m sane, I know that any victory we celebrate is from the Lord.

How about you? Where is pride showing its ugly face? Perhaps it’s worry. You’ve decided that everything is up to you. That’s pride, too. Take your eyes off yourself and raise them toward heaven.

Perhaps it’s boasting. Thinking your little kingdom, your family, your company, your denomination, your country is the greatest thing since sliced bread, and it is in no small part due to how great you are. Take your eyes off yourself and raise them toward heaven.

Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. Humility is the path to greatness.

And you know Who walked that path perfectly?

King Jesus did. He humbled Himself even to dying on the Cross for our sins as as servant, and God raised Him to the highest place (Philippians 2:5-11). And His Kingdom is also tree that is growing, growing, growing so that the birds of the air will come and perch in its branches (like that stone turning into a mountain in chapter 2), it’s growing and growing and growing and will never be cut down (see Matthew 13:31-32)!

“His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation” (Daniel 4:34).

Isn’t it amazing that the Lord restored the kingdom to Nebuchadnezzar when he repented? His kingdom got even better! 

And I think it’s possible, maybe even likely, that this marks the conversion of Nebuchadnezzar to genuine faith in the Lord! I don’t know, but we may actually see this once evil king in heaven. I mean, look at how he talks in verse 37.

“Now, I Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven.”

And so should we! Because that’s Whom this story is all about.

***

Messages in This Series:

01. The King's Service - Daniel 1:1-21
02. The God of Heaven - Daniel 2:1-49
Bonus Message: "No Matter What" - Daniel 3:1-30 from Family Bible Week 2012
03. The God We Serve - Daniel 3:1-30

Read More

“The God We Serve” [Matt's Messages]

“The God We Serve”

The King of Kingdoms - The Book of Daniel

Lanse Evangelical Free Church

February 2, 2025 :: Daniel 3:1-30  

Daniel chapter 3 is about “The God We Serve.”

Last week, we said the same thing about Daniel chapter 2 and that this is obvious but it’s also easy to forget!

Daniel chapter 3 is not about Daniel. Daniel actually, surprisingly, does not appear in this chapter himself! So it’s not about him.

But it’s also not about his friends. Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. I mean, it is kind of about them. They are in the story. They aren’t called Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. They are called by the ugly names that their overlord captors have slapped on them.

And Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah say some amazing things in this story and they do some amazing things in this story. And some amazing things happen to them in this story! But the story is not, ultimately, about Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

And it’s not about King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon–as much as he tries to make the story all about him! King Nebuchadnezzar has conquered Judah and taken these young men hostage and tried to reprogram them into being Babylonians, and King Nebuchadnezzar has had a wild and wonderful dream that we studied last week, and he does crazy things in this story! But this story is not, ultimately, about him.

This story is about God. The God of Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The God of Judah. The God of the Old Covenant and the God of the New Testament. The God of the Bible. 

The God Who is! The God we are here to worship today. That’s Whom this story is all about. And at every amazing step in the story, we need to keep that in mind. Especially at the very beginning. Chapter 3, verse 1.

Let me ask you a couple questions before we read it. See what we’ve learned so far.

Here’s an easier one. How many chapters in the Book of Daniel? There are twelve. After today, we will be one quarter of the way through the chapters.

Next question. How many languages was this book written in? Two languages. Hebrew and Aramaic.

What language was this chapter written in? It was written in Aramaic, the international language spoken at court during the seventh and sixth century before Christ.

This is one of 6 chapters in the whole Bible written in the language of Aramaic. And many people could read it throughout the ancient world. It’s got an international feel and an international message to it.

Alright, here’s a harder question. According to what we read last week in Daniel chapter 2, who is the king of kings at this time? Yes, that’s a trick question. There are two right answers. The bigger answer is that God is the King of Kings. He is the King of Kingdoms! That’s the name of our series so beautifully rendered in Jeff’s graphic design.

But in chapter 2, Daniel revealed that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was the king of kings in the world at that time.

Do you remember the disturbing dream that Nebuchadnezzar had in chapter 2? And nobody could tell Nebuchadnezzar what was in his dream. And he wouldn’t let anybody tell what his dream meant until they told him what was in it?

And even Daniel couldn’t do it! But the God of Heaven could and did through Daniel.

What was the dream about?

It was about “a large statue–an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance” (Daniel 2:31). And constructed of different materials each of which stood for a successive kingdom to come. And then the statue was knocked down by a hurtling rock hurled by God Himself which becomes the final kingdom, the kingdom of kingdoms. Remember that? We said that we’d come back to it as we go through Daniel.

Anybody remember what metal the head of that statue was made of? It was gold! And the head was the only kingdom that was identified in chapter 2. What or who was the head of gold?

King Nebuchadnezzar, the king of kings at that moment, was the head of gold. And now let’s read chapter 3, verse 1.  

“King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, ninety feet high and nine feet wide, and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.”

Something tells me that this has something to do with his dream. Do you think?

I think it has gone to his head!

We don’t know exactly when this story took place. It doesn’t have a date stamp on it like chapter 1 and chapter 2 did. It’s clearly after the events of chapter 2, but we don’t know how long after. It could actually be decades. Or it could have been very soon after. 

Either way, King Nebuchadnezzar has gotten it into his head to build a gigantic statue and to cover it with gold. It can’t be pure gold all the way through. There isn’t that much gold in the world! So it’s gold-plated. 

But this is a lot of gold on a giant statue! It’s 60 cubits high and 6 cubits wide. That’s really really tall and really really skinny. Perhaps some of the height is a base for the statue to sit on. We don’t know.

If the statue is supposed to look something like a human, it’s going to be really distorted. Tall and skinny. 

But shining! And imposing! And daunting! And dominating!

There are no skyscrapers at this time. This is the tallest man-made object in the world at that time. The Colossus of Rhodes will be taller when it is made a few hundred years later. One of the seven wonders of the ancient world. And this one shines in the sun! 

We don’t know what this statute looked like. It’s going to be used for worship, so we can call it an idol. But we don’t know if it’s standing for Nabu (the god that Nebuchadnezzar is named for) or Marduk also named Bel (the god that Daniel was renamed Belteshazzar after). 

Or maybe this statute looks a lot like a certain king we have heard of?! A king that has been told that he is “the king of kings” and “the head of gold.” I wouldn’t put it past him. This king is a total narcissist.

Maybe he’s built this statue to fight the dream! Maybe he’s saying, “I’m not just the head of gold. I’m gold from top to bottom! And nothing is going to topple me!” I wouldn’t be surprised.

Nebuchadnezzar has it set up outside of town in the plain of Dura. We’re not 100% sure where that was, but it sounds a lot like the plain where a few thousand years before they built the tower of Babel?

And it’s not just a feat of engineering. It’s an object of worship and national unity. Nebuchadnezzar wants to use this statue to bring his kingdom together in unity. And loyalty and allegiance. And so he invites all of his administration to the dedication on “opening night.” Verse 2.

“He then summoned the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials to come to the dedication of the image he had set up. So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials assembled for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, and they stood before it.

Then the herald loudly proclaimed, ‘This is what you are commanded to do, O peoples, nations and men of every language: As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace” (vv.2-7).

Now there is a lot of repetition in this story, and that’s on purpose. And it’s not just to emphasize the points of the story. 

I think it’s supposed to be funny! I think it’s supposed to be comical. Kind of farcical. There’s a kind of mocking of pomposity in this story. Every time you read it, you have to chuckle, right?

The “satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials...”

The “sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music...”

Everybody who ever read this story chuckled at those parts.

And it would be really funny if it were not so deadly serious. If it were not life and death. But the rule is: you fall down and worship the image of gold or you fall down and be burned to death.

There’s a giant furnace nearby. Maybe for refining the gold that has plated this statue. I read this week that this fire could reach 1000 degrees Celsius.

And King Nebuchadnezzar has a simple rule. When the funny band plays, you worship the statue or be burnt to death. You choose.

And he’s not afraid to burn people to death. A couple of years ago, we read about some false prophets that Nebuchadnezzar had burned to death in Jeremiah chapter 29. He does this sort of thing. He’s the king of kings, and he can kill whom he wants. The threat is real. The pressure is real. And it works! Look at verse 7.

“Therefore, as soon as they heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp and all kinds of music, all the peoples, nations and men of every language fell down and worshiped the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.”

You know, it’s not asking that much. Nebuchadnezzar doesn’t say that you can’t worship your god at home. “Sure! You can have that god, too. And it won’t take that long. Just bow down and worship and then you can go about your business. And it will be good for the nation. It will bring us all together.” Never mind that it’s stilted and pretentious and pompous.

I would imagine that it was very tempting to go along with the crowd on this one even if you were rolling your eyes at how insecure it made the king look, even if you didn’t believe in what the statue represented. Even if you thought it was ridiculous to worship something that somebody had made!

It was easy. Everybody was doing it. “Whatever.” It was meaningless. And if you did not do it, the consequences were dreadful.

So they all did it.

Well, not all of them. Look at verse 8.

“At this time some astrologers [literally Chaldeans] came forward and denounced the Jews. They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, ‘O king, live forever! [As if.] You have issued a decree, O king, that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the image of gold, and that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing furnace.

But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon–Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego–who pay no attention to you, O king. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up” (vv.8-12).

Why are these guys narcing on them?

Well, for one, they emphasize that they are Jews. So there’s probably some antisemitism here. And maybe just some old-fashioned racism and hateful anti-immigrant mentality. “Those guys are not from here. I know we brought them here and gave them their names, but they are just not fitting in. They are different from us. And you can’t trust them, O king! You’ve put them in charge of things, and they aren’t listening.”

Of course, I think they are also jealous. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were promoted over them at the end of chapter 2. 

They (and Daniel) actually saved their bacon in chapter 2 with that prayer meeting and that dream miracle, but the astrologers are not returning the favor. They are turning them in.

It’s interesting to me that the king had to be told that the Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had not bowed. I had it in my mind that they might have made a big show of it. Put out a press release. Posted their protest on social media. Stood in the front of the pack and while there’s hundreds of people bowing, they are standing there with their arms crossed.

But they were not making a big show of it. And Daniel wasn’t even there. We don’t know why. Maybe he was away in the king’s service. I’m sure, knowing Daniel, that he would not have bowed either. But he isn’t singled out.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are. They were just quietly disobeying and, all of a sudden, they were in big trouble.

That’s often how persecution comes. You’re trying to mind your own business. You’re trying to live a quiet and godly life and trying to get along with your neighbors and do all the things that your conscience will allow.

Many things you would never choose to do on your own. But you can do them in good conscience while you are living here as a foreigner and an exile in this world.

And then comes a command you cannot do in good conscience.

And you have to obey God rather than man.

God rather than the government.

God rather than America.

God rather than your boss.

God rather than the king.

And you have to choose.

I feel so bad for these three guys! Everything bad keeps happening to them. And now they are in really bad trouble, again. The king is really mad. Look at verse 13.

“Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, ‘Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? [He doesn’t give them a chance to answer. But he does give them a second chance to prove their allegiance.] Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?’ (vv.13-15).

The king’s anger is about as hot as the furnace. He’s almost out of control. He feels mocked. He chose these guys! He said that they were the best in their class. He promoted them. He likes them! And now they are stabbing him in the back. 

You can just feel the rage, can’t you? And at the back of it, the fear? If he can’t control these guys, then can he keep control of his kingdom? He’s losing face. But he gives them a second chance.

“When you hear the national worship anthem, you get on your face and you get your rear end up in the air or you burn!”

“And if you don’t, what god can rescue you from my hand?”

He should know, right? He’s already forgotten what he learned in chapter 2? He’s only remembered the parts that he wanted to about his dream. And he’s forgotten what he’d learned about the God of Heaven.

Have you remembered what this story is about?

Have you remembered WHOM this story is about?

Thankfully, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego knew what this story is about! They knew what story they were living in.

Do you know what story you are living in?

They only speak for three verses in this whole chapter, but what they say is awesome! Look at verse 16.

“Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up’” (vv.16-18).

Isn’t that awesome?! What remarkable courage!

What remarkable calm. No panic. Just like Daniel last week, these guys are not driven by fear. They are self-possessed, articulate, and clear. 

And they are courteous! They are respectful. I’m amazed at that. I might be tempted to taunt the king. If I’m going to die, I might as well get some shots in as I go. But these guys are model citizens. No apologies. No compromise. But a class act.

And they refuse to bow down.

Why? Well, this is a no-brainer for them. This is the first and second commandments. They are to have no other gods before the LORD and they are not to bow down and worship an idol that has been made.

It’s very simple. There are tricky ones, and there are simple ones, and this one is simple. “We are not allowed to comply.”

The deeper question I have is not WHY did they refuse to bow down but HOW?

How did they find the courage to keep standing?

Because I will often fold when something much less than my life is at stake. I don’t like to be burnt. 

I don’t play with fire. I wouldn’t naturally do anything that would put me in danger of getting burnt?!

My son is a firefighter. He hikes towards the fire with his chainsaw and his friends to put the fire out.

But he’s covered in protective gear and isn’t choosing to be tossed into it to die! He doesn’t jump into the heart of the fire. He doesn’t get into the furnace.

I have furnace at home. It heats the water around it to 185 degrees. I don't climb into it. These guys were choosing to be thrown into 1000 degrees. That’s 1832 degrees Fahrenheit.

These guys were choosing a fiery death rather than participating in false worship.

How do you get there? Just because it’s simple, doesn’t mean it’s easy. How did they do this?

Well, they told us in verse 17 and verse 18.

It’s “The God We Serve.” 

They knew their God in such a way that they would not disobey Him in this way.

And I see at least four things they knew about the God we serve that put this steel in their spines. 

#1. THE GOD WE SERVE IS ABLE.

Look again at verse 17.

“If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king.”

Now, there is some debate about the best way to translate that verse from the Aramaic, but every way that you do it, it always comes out in the end that God is able to save these three men from the flames.

They’re not actually saying that God will do it for sure. They’re not “naming and claiming” a rescue from the fire. There are no promises that God’s people will always escape death. In fact, aside from Enoch and Elijah and the generation alive when Christ returns, all of God’s people have died or will die. And some by terrible means.

We must recognize that these guys expected to die. That’s what makes it courageous, what they do!

But they also know that their God is powerful enough to save them if in His  infinite wisdom that is what is best. They know that God has given Nebuchadnezzar the power he has. He’s the head of gold because God made him the head of gold. And they know what God has done for their people for generations and generations and generations! They know their Old Testaments.

And not just what God did for their ancestors but for them personally. They know that God did the miracle of the vegetables. They got fat on water and veggies! They know that God did the miracle of the dream. The God of heaven reveals mysteries. He is able to save us.

But they also knew this:

#2. THE GOD WE SERVE IS WORTHY.

Verse 18.

“[T]he God we serve is able to save us...O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

“Our God is worthy of obedience even if he does not save us from your anger.”

He is worthy of our complete trust.

He is worthy of our unending worship.

He is worthy of our steadfast loyalty.

He is worthy of our unswerving allegiance.

He is worthy of our risk.

He is worthy of our lives.

He is worthy of our deaths.

Do you believe that?

Do you believe both of those? That He is able to save and He is worthy no matter what?

Regardless. Either way. No matter what!

The key to obedience in the face of persecution is not so much being brave. It’s being focused on the worthiness of our God. The braveness comes from that.

Sometimes I worry that if true persecution came for me, I would fold up like a cheap lawn chair.

We have had it so easy in America, as Christians. Especially those of us Christians who are white. We have had it so easy in America, as Christians. And I’m grateful for that! I’m not looking for persecution, but neither were  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. It came looking for them. And I want to be ready.

And here’s how to get ready. Fill your heart with Who your God really is. He is able. And He is worthy.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego know it! And they say it. And they act on it. They will not bow down.

So they will be sent into the fire. Verse 19.

“Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. The king's command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace” (vv.19-23).

That’s as terrible as it sounds.

And so glorious! The story could end there, you know? The story could end with the faithful obedience of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. What an example for all of us!

Dare to be a Shadrach!

Dare to be a Meshach!

Dare to be an Abednego!

It doesn’t sound as good as “Dare to be a Daniel,” but it is the same good advice.

Even if this was the end of the story, it would be a good story because it would tell how worthy the God they served is.

And how sad for those soldiers? They had bowed down, and what they did get for it? They died in the fire anyway.

But that is NOT the end of the story! Look at verse 24.

“Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, ‘Weren't there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?’ They replied, ‘Certainly, O king.’

He said, ‘Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.’”

They’re not dead!

They’re walking around in the fire untied and unharmed. Not just from the flames but from the fumes! Unharmed from asphyxiation and carbon monoxide poisoning and whatever other chemicals the fire is putting out.

They aren’t dead.

And they aren’t alone!

The king is like, “Weren’t there 3 of them?

Well, now they’re 4 and it’s not Daniel, its like a divine person in there. An angel or a son of the gods. Something. I don’t know what He is.” But they aren’t alone. Let’s put it this way. 

#3. THE GOD WE SERVE IS PRESENT.

We don’t who know that fourth person is either.

Definitely could be an angel.

Could be the angel of the LORD.

Might even be God Himself in what we call a "theophany."

Or even Jesus Himself in pre-incarnate form, what we call a "Christophany."

We don’t know. It’s a miracle, and it’s a mystery. What we do know is that they were not alone.

This fourth person meant that God was present and sending them and keeping them company! What a miracle! He is more than able.

And Nebuchadnezzar is amazed. Verse 26.

“Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, ‘Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!’ So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them” (vv.26-27).

What a great story! And it’s even greater because it’s true.

What a picture of salvation?!

What a picture of resurrection!

They went down into Hell and come back up un-scorched.

And that impressed Nebuchadnezzar.

The king does a total turnaround. Look at verse 28.

“Then Nebuchadnezzar said, ‘Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king's command [my command!] and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.

Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.’ Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.”

Again, he goes too far. Nebuchadnezzar goes overboard with his reaction just like he did in chapter 2.

But he’s getting the point.

He’s getting the answer right to his question from verse 15.

“What god will be able to rescue you from my hand?”

It’s the God we serve!

He is able.

He is worthy.

They were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any God but this one. 

He is so worthy!

And He is present. And He is (number four and last) active.

#4. THE GOD WE SERVE IS ACTIVE.

He’s alive! He has His fingerprints all over this story. He has been with His people, and He’s doing stuff, often in ways we never expected and never saw coming.

These guys thought, once again, that they were going to die at the hands of the Babylonians. And here they are promoted to an even higher degree! God is active. He’s doing stuff. And they have another chance to live to serve Him.

What is the application of these truths to our lives today? I think it’s pretty obvious:

Dare to be a Shadrach.

Dare to be a Meshach.

Dare to be an Abednego.

Because you know the God you serve.

This story is about Him. We need to know Him and trust Him and love Him in such a way that when the temptation comes to disown Him and disobey Him, we have the courage to refuse.

Especially when it’s simple. Especially when it’s a no-brainer.

There are times when it’s tricky. Sometimes we don’t realize that we are bowing down to an idol.

But other times, it’s obvious, but it’s not easy to refuse. Everybody is doing it. It’s easy to go along. It doesn’t feel that bad. But we know it is. What feels bad are the consequences. We don’t want to get burnt. It feels so risky. It seems so scary. We’re afraid of what might happen to us. We’ll get burnt.

In those times, we need to know the God we serve.

***

Messages in This Series:

01. The King's Service - Daniel 1:1-21

02. The God of Heaven - Daniel 2:1-49

Bonus Message: "No Matter What" -Daniel 3:1-30 from Family Bible Week 2012 

Read More

“The God of Heaven” [Matt's Messages]

“The God of Heaven”

The King of Kingdoms - The Book of Daniel

Lanse Evangelical Free Church

January 26, 2025 :: Daniel 2:1-49  

Daniel chapter 2 is about “The God of Heaven.”

I know that’s kind of obvious, and yet it’s also quite easy to miss.

It’s easy to think that Daniel chapter 2 is about Daniel. And it is, and we need to dare to be like him. But it’s really not about Daniel.

And it’s easy to think that Daniel chapter 2 is about King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. And it is, and we can learn a lot from watching him in this story. But it’s really not about King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.

And it’s easy to think that Daniel chapter 2 is about King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and what it means. And it is, and we need to give it our attention today. But it’s not even really about this dream. 

It’s about the God of heaven. He exists, and He is the point of this whole story.

I noticed this as I read it and re-read and re-read it over and over again this week. This name for God jumped out. It’s in verse 18, 19, 37, and 44. And it’s not a name for God that is used a whole lot of other places in the Bible. Especially up to this point in the story. Just a handful of times. And then it shows up around the exile and after the exile: Ezra, Nehemiah, and Daniel chapter 2.

“The God of Heaven.” Or some of your Bibles might say, “The God of the Heavens” (plural). That’s a legitimate translation, too. The God who is up there and above all the heavens. Even above the stars!

That’s Whom this story is all about. And therefore He’s Whom we should focus our attention on the most as we read Daniel chapter 2.

Last week, we jumped feet first into the wild and wonderful Book of Daniel. A daunting book like no other! Six wild and wonderful chapters of dangerous contests in the courts of Babylon and six wild and wonderful chapters of apocalyptic visions of the future. In two ancient languages. Six chapters of Hebrew and six chapters of Aramaic, though not necessarily the six you might expect of each. History, prophecy, and wisdom all in one book. Nothing quite like it!

Last week, we learned how the God of Judah gave the King of Judah to the King of Babylon. Do you remember this? Some of you had to miss it last week because of the weather or because you were “under the weather.” The LORD, the God of Judah gave the King of Judah (bad king Jehoiakim) into the hands of the King of Babylon, the fascinating King Nebuchadnezzar in 605BC.

And because of that, Judah had to give up some of the gold stuff in the temple of the LORD to rest in the temple of Marduk (or Bel) the God of Nebuchadnezzar. Not because Marduk had beaten Adonai! No. But because Adonai had said, “That’s enough.” Judah had broken the covenant with the LORD, and the LORD was bringing the punishments He had promised.

And that discipline included the deportation of the cream of the crop of the nobility in Judah to travel 600 miles away and be forced to attend Babylon University.

Including four young men, probably in the early teens, and their names were, what? Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Sweet young men. Forced to learn the language and literature of the Babylonians. And to take on Babylonian names based on the gods of their enemy who had just beaten them. Basically to become Babylonians in the service of the king of Babylon.

Last week, we read about the “Miracle of the Vegetables,” right? The original Veggi-Tale? Daniel quietly asked if he and his friends while they were in the three years of training could skip all the good stuff at the king’s table all the meat and wine and just eat vegetables and drink water. Probably to keep from becoming Babylonians in their hearts.

And somehow in God’s power they got fat on that! And they graduated at the top of their class. They were wiseman-in-training. Apprentice wisemen in the service of the king of Babylon.

That’s what we learned last week. We learned a lot more than that, but that’s the basic story.

The story that Kyla just began to read to us happens either just after that or even during that period of training. I think it’s just after their graduation. It happens in the second year of King Nebuchadnezzar’s reign. And I think that’s second year in the Babylonian way of reckoning which makes this about 602 BC.

Daniel and his friends are still very young. And they are very in trouble for no fault of their own.

The story begins in the royal bedroom of the most powerful man on the planet. Look again at chapter 2, verse 1.

“In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his mind was troubled and he could not sleep. So the king summoned the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers to tell him what he had dreamed. When they came in and stood before the king, he said to them, ‘I have had a dream that troubles me and I want to know what it means’” (vv.1-3). Stop there for a second.

Now, we’ve all had bad dreams, right? But most of us don’t call in the experts to explain them after we do. Nebuchadnezzar had some dreams so bad that he wanted help in understanding them.

In the ancient world, bad dreams were seen as bad omens. And if the most powerful man in the world was having nightmares, then maybe something terrible was going to happen.

You can just feel the fear coming off of him, can’t you? Maybe he’s had the same dream several nights in row. It’s always the same. It’s always the same. And it’s scary. “What does it mean?!” Maybe he’s been waking up in a sweat. His heart pounding. “What does it mean?!”

It’s gotten so that he can’t sleep. Maybe he doesn’t want to sleep because there’s that dream again. “What does it mean?!”

Well, when you are the most powerful man on the planet, you have a team for that. You have a team for everything! You have a set of specialists who are experts in understanding explaining the world. The top guys in their field. We could call them the “Magi.” Or the team of wisemen.

Verse 2 calls them “the magicians, the enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers.” That last one is literally the “Chaldeans” who were the leading ethnic group know for their grasp of astrology.

Is Daniel in this room? No, he’s not. That’s because he’s not the top guy. He’s just a Hebrew teenager who is at the top of his game. But he’s not here. These are all Babylonians. The cream of their crop. But we’re going to soon find out that their best is not even close to good enough.

The king says, “I have had a dream that troubles me and I want to know what it means.”

And they say, “No problem! That’s why we are here.” Verse 4.

“Then the astrologers answered the king in Aramaic [CSB: “Aramaic begins here:”], ‘O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it.’”

Note that in verse 4 we begin our second language for this book. The first chapter was in Hebrew. Chapters 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 are going to be in Aramaic which was becoming the world language of the day. Like English is around the world right now. And these chapters will be about the whole world in some ways. 

Your Bible might say the language starting in verse 4 is “Syriac” because the Greeks called the land of Aram, “Syria” so their language was called Syriac by some. Some of your Bibles may call it the language of the “Chaldees” which was Aramaic. After the exile, Aramaic became the leading language of the Israelites. Many forgot their Hebrew altogether. That’s what most Israelites spoke in Jesus’ day, including Jesus!

The wisemen say, “No problem with this request, O king, live forever!” (Which is interesting. Because the king is, of course, not going to live forever. But nobody wants to say that around the most powerful man on the planet.)

They say, “No problem. Tell us the dream, and we will consult our books.”

You see it’s not necessarily that they were fakers. They probably weren’t going to just make something up. They had these extensive manuals full of dreams recorded by men and what happened after the dreams so that if someone had a dream, they had these experts in dreamology who could give an expert interpretation. So, “Lay it on us, O king. We’ll get you fixed up.”

But here’s where Nebuchadnezzar throws a wrench into the works and makes this little crisis into a matter of life and death. Look at verse 5.

“The king replied to the astrologers, ‘This is what I have firmly decided: If you do not tell me what my dream was and interpret it, I will have you cut into pieces and your houses turned into piles of rubble. But if you tell me the dream and explain it, you will receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. So tell me the dream and interpret it for me’” (vv.5-6).

Oh. That’s a lot harder, isn’t it? He wants them to tell him what his dream was and then what it means. Or else.

Notice the brutality here. Nebuchadnezzar is scared. So he wants everyone else to feel scared. And it’s no empty threat. This guy kills people every day. Sometimes probably just for kicks.

“So here’s the deal. If you tell me what I dreamed and get it right and explain to me what it is and get that right, then you get to live and be showered with gifts and rewards and honors.

And if you don’t, then you get dismembered and have your houses demolished. That’s the deal.”

They don’t like that deal. Not one bit. Verse 7.

“Once more they replied, ‘Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will interpret it.’”

You know this story is almost funny but it’s not funny. Because it’s true. "O king, we are interpreters not prophets. I hope you’re joking here.”  Nebuchadnezzar says, “No joke. And don’t joke with me.” Verse 8.

“Then the king answered, ‘I am certain that you are trying to gain time, because you realize that this is what I have firmly decided: If you do not tell me the dream, there is just one penalty for you. You have conspired to tell me misleading and wicked things, hoping the situation will change. So then, tell me the dream, and I will know that you can interpret it for me’” (vv.8-9).

I think he may be onto them. He’s suspicious at least. He’s not sure that they have any real wisdom! They’re just stalling for time and hoping that he’ll change his mind.

“I’m not going to change my mind. Tell me my dream, or else.”

I think it’s interesting that if they can tell him what the dream was, then he’ll believe whatever they say it means. “If you can do the hard part of telling me what’s in my head, then I’ll trust you to tell me what it all meant.”

And they say, “We can’t do that. Nobody can do that.” verse 10.

“The astrologers answered the king, ‘There is not a man on earth who can do what the king asks! No king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or astrologer. What the king asks is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among men.’”

That’s very honest! And it’s devastating. They are scared stiff.

By the way, this is a picture of all of the wisdom of the world. There’s lots of knowledge out there. Lots of information. But there’s very little wisdom of real value. And those who claim to be wise are actually running scared. Those who claim to be powerful are quaking in their boots. And nobody really knows anything.

And it’s also a challenge, isn’t it?  When the astrologers go off saying, “No one can do this,” you know that Daniel’s going to pull it off somehow. That’s a great story!

And when they say, “No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among men,” our minds just run to John chapter 1, don’t they? John 1:14 about Christmas.

The Word [the Son of God] became flesh and made his dwelling among us...” But that’s getting way ahead of the story!

The wiseman say, “No can do.” And so the king says, “You all die.” V.12

“This made the king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the wise men of Babylon. [And that includes the wisemen who just graduated from college.] So the decree was issued to put the wise men to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put them to death” (vv.12-13). Verse 14.

“When Arioch, the commander of the king's guard, had gone out to put to death the wise men of Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with wisdom and tact.  He asked the king's officer, ‘Why did the king issue such a harsh decree?’ Arioch then explained the matter to Daniel. At this, Daniel went in to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him” (vv.14-16).

Remember, Daniel is still a very young man. But he’s an exceptionally wise and godly young man. He has resolved to not defile himself, and he’s been keeping his resolution.

And here, he does not panic. You see that? This is the only guy who speaks in this story who is not scared. Daniel is not afraid. Even though he just found out that he’s supposed to die today.

Dare to be a Daniel and not be driven by fear!

Daniel and his friends are in deep trouble, and they haven’t done anything. They are just in a class people who are getting swept up in the king’s anger and fear. But the Bible says that he spoke up with wisdom and tact.

Dare to be a Daniel and speak up with wisdom tact!

He listens the story and decides to act boldly. Verse 16 says that he went in to the king. Maybe in person. Maybe it means he sent a message asking for a stay on that ruling. He’s not stalling and hoping the problem will go away, he’s just asking for a little time to solve the problem. And he gets it.

We just saw two more little miracles here, by the way. Arioch was supposed to kill Daniel, not talk to him! And Daniel was supposed to be dead not getting an extension on their homework. I think that maybe God is at work?

By the way, if this was me, I would be so depressed. Here I had just lived for three years on vegetables and water and just went through this massive training course by my enemies that I hated so much. And at the end of all that, I’m going to be killed because their wisemen couldn’t tell the king what he dreamed last night?! Really?!

But instead of despair, Daniel got busy for the LORD.

Dare to be a Daniel and get busy for the LORD.

And call a prayer meeting.

Look at verse 17. This is what Daniel needed the extra time for. A prayer meeting. Verse 17.

“Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon” (Vv.17-18).

Dare to be a Daniel and take it to the Lord in prayer.

I have four points this morning about The God of Heaven. One for each time He is named that in this chapter. And here’s the first one.

#1. THE GOD OF HEAVEN GRANTS MERCY.

The God of Heaven dispenses mercy, that’s why Daniel and his friends are bold to pray for it!

They need help, and they need it bad! They can’t stop what is coming for them on their own.

That’s what mercy is. Mercy is doing something for someone that they couldn’t do on their own. For a bunch of different reasons. Because they don’t have the power. Because they don’t have the worthiness. Because they don’t have the ability. Because they are broken in some way. Mercy sees a problem and has compassion and does something about it. You’re merciful if you do something for someone that they need but maybe don’t deserve. 

And Daniel knows that His God, the God of Heaven is full of mercy.  He’s holy, holy, holy! And He is no pushover. He is not to be trifled with. But you can ask, and He may show favor. He may show compassion. He just may show mercy. The Apostle Paul said that our God is “rich in mercy.” 

And we know that, most of all, because of what God did for us on the Cross, what we could not do for ourselves.

And Daniel and his friends were so right to pray for that mercy. 

Perhaps you need mercy right now. The forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternal life? And perhaps something else. Some heavy, scary problem that you can run to with your friends.

Notice that Daniel is not alone. We say, “Dare to be a Daniel. Dare to stand alone.” And that’s right if you have to be alone. But right then Daniel was not alone. He was praying with his friends.

Dare to be a Daniel and have a prayer meeting with your friends.

Because the God of Heavens grants mercy. That’s exactly what He did. Look at verse 19.

“During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision.”

#2. THE GOD OF HEAVEN REVEALS MYSTERIES.

That night, God, in His mercy, showed Daniel what Nebuchadnezzar had dreamed and what it meant!

And that’s another miracle. The God of heaven reveals mysteries.

And I love what Daniel does right after this miracle! The first thing he does is not to run off to the king and try to save his life and friends’ lives. No, the first thing Daniel does is give praise to the God of Heaven! V.19 again.

“Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said: ‘Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him. I thank and praise you, O God of my fathers: You have given me wisdom and power, you have made known to me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the dream of the king’” (vv.19b-23).

Isn’t that beautiful? It’s like a psalm.

Dare to be a Daniel and hold off saving your life to sing God’s praises first.

Notice what Daniel says about Who God is. He’s the “God of heaven” (v.19) and He has wisdom and power. He has control over times and seasons (eras). He has control over politics. He sets up kings and deposes them. More on that in just a second. 

And He reveals mysteries. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. 

Which is a dig on the wisemen of Babylon, isn’t it? They don’t have it. Daniel and his friends do because of God’s mercy. Look closely at verse 22.

“He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.” Jenni put that on the cover of our worship bulletins today. This says that God knows all the things, and He tells us some of them.

God knows all the things, and He tells us some of them.

God knows all the secrets there are. “He knows what lies in the darkness.”

He knows your secrets and mine. He knows what we dreamed last night even if we don’t remember it! He knows what we were thinking in our deepest thoughts even if we haven’t told anyone.

He knows what’s going to happen! And He tells us some of it. “Light dwells with Him.” Illumination.

What does that mean for you and me today? It means that we should seek the LORD’s revelation. And, today, the clearest revelation of the LORD is right here in our hands! The Bible is special revelation from God! He’s told us what we need to know. He’s gotten it written down in this book! And it’s been translated into our own language. I barely can read Hebrew. I can’t read Aramaic. But this is written in English! And God’s revelation.

Are you reading your Bible in 2025? Are you asking the LORD to give you wisdom and knowledge and discernment? He’s got those things. The world does not! And He’s giving them to us if we seek Him.

Do you spend more time on Netflix than you do in your Bible?

Do you spend more time on YouTube than you do in your Bible?

Do you spend more time on TikTok than you do in your Bible?

Why in the world?! Is that where wisdom is?!

I know you can get Bible on Netflix and YouTube and TikTok. That’s not what I’m saying.

I’m saying are you seeking the wisdom of the world, the wisdom of Babylon which, in the end, is full of fear, anger, and brutality? Or are you seeking the God who “reveals deep and hidden things?” I don’t know about you, but I want the light that dwells with Him.

Then Daniel took this light to the king. Look at verse 24.

“Then Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to execute the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, ‘Do not execute the wise men of Babylon. Take me to the king, and I will interpret his dream for him.’”

Which is really gracious, isn’t it? He could have wiped out his entire competition in one fell swoop. They will not treat him with the same graciousness in the future. But he is trying to save the day for many and not just him and his friends. Almost unbelievably, young Daniel is granted an audience with the king. Verse 25.

“Arioch took Daniel to the king at once and said, ‘I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can tell the king what his dream means.’ [Which of course, he did no such thing. As if he was searching for this and not having it handed to him. But whatever, Arioch. V.26]

The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar), ‘Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and interpret it?’

Daniel replied, ‘No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about...but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come” (vv.26-28).

Dare to be a Daniel and speak up with courage even before the most powerful man in the world.

Courage and humility! Notice that Daniel says that he doesn’t have what it takes on his own to explain the mystery to the king. Unlike Arioch, Daniel does not take credit for what he’s about to say!

He says, “Your wisemen were right. They can’t do this. None of us can do this! But I know Someone who can. And it’s not Marduk. It’s not Bel, whom you have named me after. They are no help here." Verse 28 again.

“...but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come.”

King Nebuchadnezzar, in your dreams, God has shown you the future. 

Isn’t that wild that God did that?! He didn’t have to. There’s no rule that the most powerful person in the world gets a dream that explains the future from now to the end of history. But He did for Nebuchadnezzar! While the LORD was disciplining His people in exile, He made sure that the ruler of the world got this message and that a Hebrew got to interpret it and get it written down for the ages.

The God of Heaven reveals mysteries including what is going to happen in the future.

And now we know the future!

Daniel tells the king his own dream. Verse 28.

“Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind as you lay on your bed are these: 

‘As you were lying there, O king, your mind turned to things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed you what is going to happen.

As for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because I have greater wisdom than other living men, but so that you, O king, may know the interpretation and that you may understand what went through your mind.

‘You looked, O king, and there before you stood a large statue–an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance.

The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. 

While you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them.

Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were broken to pieces at the same time and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.

‘This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king” (vv.28-36).

Just pause there for a second and that let the picture of that dream soak in.

Wow, right?! Just, wow!

This is the first vision in the book and the only one really in the first half of the book (and the only on in Aramaic). And it’s similar to visions in the rest of the book, especially the one in chapter 7 where our memory verse comes from. And Daniel says it’s about the future.

I’m not going to put my picture of this statue up on the screen, but you might want to draw your own. 

There’s this colossal statue in the dream.

“Enormous, dazzling, awesome in appearance.” It’s probably bright and beautiful and imposing. Scary! Towering!

And it’s made different kinds of substances, mostly metal. There’s like 4 different parts to the statue.  

The head is gold.

The chest and arms are silver.

The belly and thighs are bronze. This is kind of going downhill isn’t it? Maybe each metal is stronger than the last but less valuable.

And the legs are iron and the feet with the legs are iron with some clay mixed in.

Clay?

Clay and iron mixed together? That’s not gonna work.

This is, by the way, where we get the phrase, “He has feet of clay.”

Crumbly. 

Because the king saw this rock.

It’s cut out of like a mountainside? But it’s not cut with human hands. This is out of this world. It’s not cut by us. It’s cut by God! And it’s gone flying. This rock is hurtling at the statue and hits the feet and smashes them. So much for the iron and the clay!

And the whole statue falls down and breaks into pieces! And then blows away.

So there’s no trace. Not a trace of any of the statue left. Not even gold dust.

Just the rock.

And the rock grows.

And the rock grows.

And the rock grows.

And the rock grows.

And it becomes a huge mountain that fills the whole earth!

No wonder Nebuchadnezzar was freaked out. "What does it mean?!"

And Daniel says, ‘This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king...” Verse 37.

“You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; in your hands he has placed mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold” (vv.37-38).

#3: THE GOD OF HEAVEN RAISES UP AND TAKES DOWN KINGS AND KINGDOMS.

Let me ask you a trick question. I was going to ask it at the beginning of this message, but then I decided to wait until the answer was a little bit more obvious.

Trick question: According to Daniel chapter 2 who is the king of kings?

It’s a trick question. There are two right answers. One more important than the other. But verse 37 says that Nebuchadnezzar was “the king of kings.” He truly was the most powerful man in the world at that time. All of the kingdoms nearby were under him. Even over the beasts of the field and birds of the air. He was the ruler. He was the top dog.

He was the head of gold!

Why? Because the God of Heaven had given him that dominion, power, might and glory. Not Marduk. Not Bel. Not Nabu.

The God of Heaven. Verse 22 told us that He sets up kings!

Ultimately, the only reason why Nebuchadnezzar sat on that throne in Babylon was that God had put him there. And that should make him humble and worried about accountability. With massive power comes massive responsibility. 

It doesn’t make him humble. Power is a heady drug. We’re going to see that again and again in this book. These kings are full of overweening pride. But their power comes from the God of Heaven. And so will their downfall. Verse 39.

“‘After you, another kingdom will rise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron–for iron breaks and smashes everything–and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others.

Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay” (vv.39-43).

Aha. So each of these parts of the statue are kingdoms. Not just a king (like Nebuchadnezzar) but a kingdom.

Each one less valuable but maybe more strong and lasting than the previous one. Gold, silver, bronze, iron (iron mixed with clay). That last one is incredibly destructive while still being incredible unstable.

Which kingdoms are these kingdoms?

That’s a good question! And it has kept Bible scholars busy for the last 2,600 years. 

Notice that Daniel does not say. The only identification that Daniel makes here in chapter 2 is the head of gold. That’s King Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon. The others are not identified.

You may have been taught that it is obvious. And I do think there are some good arguments for the leading options. I’m sure we’ll get into them in the days to come.

But what I want to emphasize today is that they keep going down.

King Nebuchadnezzar does not live forever! 

He’s not the King of Kings forever.

There’s a kingdom after him (v.39).

And a kingdom after that.

And a kingdom after that.

Next, next, next.

Kings and kingdoms rise and fall. And the God of Heaven is behind it all. These earthly kingdoms, as powerful as they are, are going to pass away. And that goes for the Kingdom of America, too.

And that should give us all humility and perspective about what’s important. Don’t be impressed with worldly power! (Or worried about it for that matter.)

The God of heaven raises up kings and kingdoms for a time and then He lays them down. And He lays them down flat!

And one day, He will smash them all to pieces. 

In the dream, the whole statue, even though it’s different kingdoms, is one statue. They are all tied together. The kingdoms of this world.

And what happens to the statue? Verse 44.

“‘In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.

This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands–a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces. The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and the interpretation is trustworthy’” (vv.44-45).

Last point and then we’ll get to eating and rejoicing over what the God of Heaven has done among us last year. Number four.

#4. THE GOD OF HEAVEN LAUNCHES HIS OWN KINGDOM OF KINGDOMS.

Verse 44 says that God will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. 

Unlike Babylon and all the other earthly kingdoms, there is no kingdom after this kingdom. Nobody else gets it. There are no successors. This kingdom is final. This kingdom lasts. This kingdom persists. This kingdom endures forever.

This kingdom is unstoppable. It’s unbeatable. It crushes all those other kingdoms and brings them to an end! 

How does this happen? When does this happen?

Those are good questions, and Christians disagree on the finer points. A lot of the timing depends on the answer to the question, “Which are ‘those kings’ in verse 44? Is there a difference between the legs and the toes?” And I’m sure we’ll get into that more as we go along.

What I want to emphasize today is that it will happen. Not when or how but that.

Daniel says in verse 45, “The great God has shown the king what WILL take place in the future.” This dream will come true.

This indestructible kingdom of kingdoms will come. Definitely. Guaranteed by the God of Heaven Himself!

Because it’s His kingdom!

That’s what it means that the rock is cut out but not by human hands. This kingdom is the kingdom of the God of Heaven!

And He’s the point of this story!

The God of Heaven launches His own kingdom at the other kingdoms so that they are crushed to pieces, and in the end, His kingdom is all that remains. That’s going to happen! The God of heaven has revealed it.

Probably in some ways He’s already started it. Because we know that the Ultimate King of Kingdoms has come and has received all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:19). And we pray that His kingdom comes and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10).

And one day soon, the mountain of the kingdom will come in all of its world-filling fullness!

“The dream is true and the interpretation is trustworthy.”

And what happened next? Remember, how this story started. What Kyla read to us? The story started with Daniel and his friends about to be killed. And here he is before his judge, jury, and executioner. The king has the all the power. And Daniel has poured out these words. Will the king now kill him? Verse 46.

“Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell prostrate before Daniel and paid him honor and ordered that an offering and incense be presented to him. [He goes too far overboard the other way.] The king said to Daniel, ‘Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you were able to reveal this mystery.’

Then the king placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on him. He made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men. Moreover, at Daniel's request the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego administrators over the province of Babylon, while Daniel himself remained at the royal court” (vv.46-49).

I don’t think that Nebuchadnezzar really listened very hard. After he heard Daniel recite his dream correctly and found out that he was the head of gold, I think he tuned out. I don’t think really came to love and trust in the LORD at this point.

But he gladly admits and acknowledges that the God of heaven is the King of Kingdoms.

And so must we!

***

Messages in This Series:

01. The King's Service - Daniel 1:1-21

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