The Method in the King's Madness (Part 2)

We have covered a couple of points in my multiple point lesson from this chapter.

The king's public declaration. That was the first point.

You remember chapter 4. I mentioned this last week. Very possibly the only chapter in the Bible that was written by a Gentile king.

And some would even say not just a Gentile but a pagan. And it's interesting because that would be included in scripture.

But it basically is I think. Though there would be those who would debate it. I think it is basically Nebuchadnezzar's testimony of coming to faith.

And how God brought him to believing in the one true God. And so I really think that the encounter that Nebuchadnezzar had with the Lord was a saving encounter.

Now there are a lot of pretty notable and high powered and high profile and much respected theologians on the other side of that issue.

And I guess really we can't be dogmatic about it. Because the Bible isn't dogmatic or very specific about it. Explicit about it.

But I just. That's what I believe. So here we have a chapter that was written by a Gentile king at the very least. About his experience and encounter with Yahweh God.

With God. The one true God. And it kind of comes in the form or begins with a dream that he had. That God allowed him to have.

And of course then who was there to interpret the dream? Daniel. Daniel. And all right. So that was the first point. The king's public declaration.

And that's what this whole chapter basically is. And then the king's dream. We looked at the king's puzzling dream. That was point number two. And that's as far as we got last week.

And so now we're ready. Number three for the king's prideful demeanor. Now remember he's telling a story. So he starts out by telling you what this chapter is about.

And really he starts out by giving God glory. And then he digresses. He goes back in time to this encounter he had with God that began with a dream.

And then it's interpretation. And then the actual fulfillment of the prophecy that basically the dream was. It was a prophecy of what would happen to King Nebuchadnezzar and how God would deal with him.

And then how God would restore him. All right. So then we're going. Nebuchadnezzar taking us all the way back to how this all began. The dream. And then his prideful demeanor.

Verse 28. All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. What came upon him? Everything God said would come upon him. It all came upon King Nebuchadnezzar.

Nothing could stop it. God said it. And it would be done. And so as you kind of read further. Verse 29. At the end of the 12 months he was walking about the royal palace of Babylon.

The king spoke saying. Is not this. I'm kind of inflecting my voice so we can maybe get an idea of how he might have been thinking or talking.

He spoke. Is not this great Babylon. All right. So he's on the top of his palace. On the roof of his palace. And he's looking out. You know. Out on this great city of Babylon.

And so he says. Is not this great Babylon. This great Babylon. That I have built for a royal dwelling. By my mighty power.

And for the honor of my majesty. I mean it's just. You know. It's just. Obvious. How prideful. The king is.

And. And so he called it. Great Babylon. Now he's not wrong about that. All right. Now. Just as a matter of fact.

It was. A great city. It was. I think. Without argument. The greatest city. That had ever existed. On planet earth.

At that time. From really before that. To that time. Great. The great Babylon. It was the largest city. Best we can tell. From archaeology.

Largest city. In the world. This time. Of course. It was the. Center. The capital. Of the great Babylonian empire. Which. Spread out over.

Pretty much. All of the civilized world. Of the day. The known world. Of the day. And so he's not wrong about that. Is he? In fact. I want to read to you. Don't always. Like to read.

Things. But. I got a really good commentary. This is the. New American. Commentary. About Southern Baptist. It's Broadman. Matter of fact. The author. Dr. Stephen Miller.

Was a professor of mine. At. Mid-America. I want you to listen to his description. Babylon was a. Rectangularly. Shaped city. Surrounded by.

Broad. And deep. Water filled. Moat. You can picture that. Can't you? I mean. Every. Every. Castle. Needs to have a moat. Around it. Doesn't it? But this is around the entire city.

Water filled moat. And then by. An intricate system. Of double walls. Not just one wall. But. Double walls. The first. Double wall.

System. Encompassed. The main city. Main part of the city. Its inner wall. Was. Twenty. One. Feet. Thick. And reinforced.

With. Defense towers. At. Sixty foot. Intervals. While the outer wall. Was eleven feet. In. In thickness. And also. Had. Watchtowers.

Later. Nebuchadnezzar. Added. Added. Another. Defensive. Double wall. System. So. That gets us up to four. An outer wall. Twenty. Five. Feet. Thick.

And an inner wall. Twenty. Three. Feet. Thick. East of the Euphrates. So the Euphrates. Goes right beside. The city. This. Second. Set.

Of walls. The. Double wall. System. Twenty. Five. Feet. Thick. And the inner wall. Twenty. Three. Feet. Thick. East of the Euphrates. That ran the.

Incredible distance. Of seventeen. Miles. And was wide enough. At the top. For chariots. To pass. The height of the wall.

Not known. Exactly. I mean. Because they don't exist. Today. Okay. Not known. But the. Ishtar gate was. Forty feet high. And the walls.

Would have approximated. This size. So the gate. Ishtar gate. Ishtar gate. It would have been. It would have been. It would have been. It would have been. It would have been. It would have been. And then. Of course. The wall would be. Taller than that. A forty foot.

Wall. Would have been. A formidable barrier. For enemy soldiers. Eight gates. Provided access. To the city. The most celebrated. Which was.

I mentioned this one. The Ishtar gate. Ishtar gate. On the north side. This was a massive. Double tower. Rising. To a height. Of forty feet.

Decorated with dragons. Of Marduk. That was a. One of their chief gods. And bulls of the Hedad. Another god. According to Whitcomb.

That was an archaeologist. There were. Five hundred and fifty seven. Of these animals. In bright colors. Against a glazed blue background. Another archaeology.

Relates that the Ishtar gate. Led to the sacred. Procession. Way. One thousand yards. Long. Leading south.

To the citadel. Of Isagila. The temple. Of Marduk. And the adjacent. Ziggurat. Ediminaki. This huge.

Seven level. Ziggurat. Towered. Two hundred and eighty. Eight feet. Into the air. A bridge. Four hundred feet. Long. Spanned. The Euphrates River.

And connected. The east. And west parts. Of the city. Fifty three. Temples. Are said. To have been present. Within Babylon. Each temple. Would be. To a different god.

Ishtar. Would be. One of the gods. Nebuchadnezzar. Had at least. Three palaces. At Babylon. The principal. Residents. Being located. In the southern.

Citadel. And covering. About. Three hundred. Fifty. By. Two hundred. Yards. This palace. Included. A beautiful. Decorated. Throne room. Babylon. Also. Boasted.

The famous. Hanging garden. Some of you. Have heard. Of that. Which the ancient. Greeks. Considered. One of the seven. Wonders. Of the world. According to. The Babylonian. Historian.

Barossus. Nebuchadnezzar. Constructed. These. For his wife. Who had left. The mountains. Of her native. Media. For the plains. Of Babylon. Her husband. In effect.

Built a mountain. In the city. To remind. His wife. Of her homeland. And these. Were elevated. Gardens. High enough. To be seen. Beyond the city. Walls. They.

Boasted. Many different. Kinds of plants. And palm trees. It was a. Great city. Here's Nebuchadnezzar. And he's. Standing on.

The roof. Of his palace. And he's just. Kind of looking. You can imagine. Just what we. Kind of seen. The rendering. Of what it may have. Looked like. It may have been. Even grander.

Than that. And to stand there. And look out. Over this huge city. And say. Oh great. Great Babylon. You know. Think of the pride.

That was welling up. Inside of. Nebuchadnezzar. You know. I've. I've thought about that. Sometimes. After I. Get done with my yard work. And. Sit on the front porch.

And look out. Isn't this beautiful. Hopefully. God will make me. Jump out there. Start eating grass. But. But. What he said.

Verse 3. He said. I. Have built. This is the great Babylon. I have built. And I think I. Put it. Parenthetically. There. In the verse. There. Literally.

It is. I myself. And no one else. It's emphatic. It's emphatic. In the language. I. Myself. Have built. By my. Mighty power.

For the. Honor. Of my. Majesty. Whose honor. His majesty. And so. It could not be. Worded. Any better. To reveal.

The pride. Of his heart. Archaeologists. By the way. Have excavated. Like I said. They. Rebuilding. Babylon. Or. Had started it. And rebuilding.

Right at. The very sites. Over top. Of where it. Once existed. Of course. Archaeologists. Have. Unearthed. A great. Bit. Of the. City. And they.

Discovered. That most. Of the. Bricks. And blocks. That were used. In Nebuchadnezzar's. Building program. And it was extensive. I mean. You kind of see. And they've.

Unearthed. So many of these. Bricks. And blocks. And many of them. Have his name. Inscribed on them. On the very bricks. I read a little article. About Saddam Hussein.

That he was doing. Doing the same thing. When he was rebuilding. Babylon. Putting. Inscribing. Having his name. Inscribed on the bricks. And blocks.

Well. You know. He would. He never did. Rise to the level. Of King Nebuchadnezzar. Did he? But. All right. So. Interesting.

And in an ancient document. That has been a. Discovered. By archaeologists. We have these words. Of King Nebuchadnezzar. And see if it doesn't sound. Very much like. What we have here.

In the biblical record. He. Wrote. The fortifications. Of. Asagillah. That's the. Temple to Marduk. And Babylon.

The Babylon. The city of Babylon. I strengthened. And established. The name. Of my reign. Forever. All right. Sounds very much. Exactly like.

What we have. In the biblical record. So. So. What's the problem? Nebuchadnezzar. Took for himself. The glory. That rightfully. Belonged to Yahweh God. God had raised him. To that place.

And allowed him. To be the great king. Over. This vast empire. And to be. The builder. Of. Palaces. And. And.

All kinds of things. And. And so. He took for himself. What. Belonged to God. So the king's. Prideful demeanor. And he invite. He really invited. God's divine judgment.

Upon himself. Didn't he? I mean. He really did. In fact. You know. It seems. As though. He had completely forgotten. About that dream. And maybe this is part of his testimony.

I mean. The chapter is. Kind of an account. His own personal testimony. Of his encounter with God. The dream. And everything that came after that. But it's almost inconceivable.

That he could have forgotten. About the dream. And more importantly. The interpretation. Of the dream. That predicted his pride. And.

God's judgment. Because of his pride. He forgot all about that. But then the Bible. That's pretty clear. About. What God does. To those who are prideful. And.

A lot of times. We've forgotten. What God's word says. About that. So. The king's prideful demeanor. And that leads. To. A fourth point. The king's. Prompt.

Discipline. The king's prompt. Discipline. I mean. Immediately. In fact. I like the way it's written there. In verse 31. And following. Let me just read. Those few verses. While the word was still in the king's mouth.

I mean. He's saying. And. Great Babylon. Look. He said. I have built. For my majesty. And my glory. And. No sooner had the words. In fact. He. Really. The words hadn't.

No telling what else. He was going to say. While the words were still in his mouth. A voice fell from heaven. King Nebuchadnezzar. To you it is spoken.

The kingdom has departed from you. And they shall drive you from men. And your dwelling shall be with the beast of the field. They shall make you eat grass. Like oxen.

And seven times shall pass over you. Until you know. That the most high rules in the kingdom of men. And gives it to whomever he chooses. That very hour.

The word was fulfilled concerning Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from men. And ate grass like oxen. His body was wet with the dew of heaven. Till his hair had grown like eagles feathers.

And his nails like birds claws. So. Just immediately. Before the words got out of his mouth. This voice. The voice of God speaks from heaven.

And within the hour. Everything God had predicted comes to pass. Alright. Let me just pick this apart. These verses apart. And. First of all.

I mean this is all about God's judgment. Judgment upon. Nebuchadnezzar's pride. So. First of all. The judgment was audible. It was audible.

This was. This was not an impression he had in his heart. Not a still small voice. You know. Speaking behind him. Or some thought he had in his mind.

This was. A voice that spoke to him. It was audible. He could hear it. Verse 31 says. While the word was still in the king's mouth. A voice fell from heaven.

Came down from heaven. So this was. The judgment that was issued here. Was audible. There was no mistaking it. And I kind of imagine. That Nebuchadnezzar.

As soon as he heard. This. He remembered that dream he had. And it hadn't been that long ago. You know. Twelve months. But just a year later. He remembered that dream.

And Daniel's interpretation. And oh. Here comes. Here. The root. It's come to roost. All right. So the judgment was audible. Second. The judgment was infallible.

It was infallible. Why? Because it came from heaven. Verse 31. A voice fell from heaven. Now was it God himself speaking? I think so.

Or maybe it was an angel. I read some other commentators. And they think it was probably an angel. Like Gabriel. Someone like that. But I believe it was God himself.

Spoke. All right. So it was. The judgment was audible. It was issued audibly. The judgment was infallible. Because God is infallible.

His word is infallible. What he says. Will come to pass. And the judgment was tangible. It was a tangible thing. It was a real thing.

Verse 31. King Nebuchadnezzar. This is what God said to him. To you it is spoken. The kingdom has departed from you.

This is a very tangible judgment. His rule. His reign. Is taken from him. Or really he's taken from it. Made so that he can't rule.

And they shall drive you from men. And your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. They shall make you eat grass like oxen.

And seven times shall pass over you. Very specific. Very tangible. Points of judgment. The kingdom will be taken away. Be driven out. Outside of the palace.

Where the grass is. Where animals live. And he'll stay out there. Living just like an animal. The judgment was tangible. Not just simply a judgment on his heart.

Or thinking. I mean it involves some of that. Not some symbolic thing. Not some future kind of condition. That may come upon you.

Or something he may miss out on. This is a tangible judgment upon the king. Next. The judgment was valuable. I mean judgment.

God's judgment is a valuable thing. Verse 32. Until you know. Alright. So. All this is going to happen to you. For this purpose. Until you know.

Here's the whole purpose behind this judgment. It's going to be very valuable to you. I'm going to. Judge you. Until you know. That the most high rules. In the kingdom of men. And gives it to whomever he chooses.

And so. Then the judgment was unavoidable. Alright. So. So far. It's just the voice of God. Saying this is going to happen. And then verse 33. That very hour. The word was fulfilled.

Concerning Nebuchadnezzar. No time. Was given. For reflection. Yeah. He didn't say to Nebuchadnezzar. Now you just think about this for a moment. See if you can.

Make some changes here. No time. No opportunity. Given for repentance. You know. It's unavoidable.

This is going to happen. You can't escape it. There's no. You know. Door number two. You can choose. There's no way out of this. This is what's going to happen.

And then. The judgment was horrible. It was horrible. This is a horrifying judgment. When you think about it. And we have. You know. A description of this.

But. We need to go beyond. Just the description. And imagine ourselves. In this position. And all that would. Have to be true. Of Nebuchadnezzar. For this kind of thing.

To happen to him. Verse 33. He was driven from men. Just like. The dream said. It. Would happen. And the interpretation. Revealed to him.

And just like God. Just said to him. So he was driven from men. And ate grass like oxen. His body was wet. With the dew of heaven. Till his hair had grown. Like eagles feathers.

And his nails. Like birds claws. It's a horrible judgment. You know. The description is. Pretty vivid. Nebuchadnezzar.

First of all. Says he was driven. From men. Why? Because he suddenly. Became an animal. I mean. Animals can't. Live with men. I say. Can't. Can't live in the palace.

He was driven from men. Because he became. A wild animal. He. Became like. An ox. Or a cow. Some. Versions.

Translate. It. He ate grass. That's what cows do. They eat grass. Because he was exposed. To the weather.

What? His body was wet. With the dew of heaven. He was. Exposed. To the elements. And. Because.

His hair. Became matted. I think that's the description. The eagle's feathers. The eagle's feathers. You know. You know. Ever had a. Dog. Or maybe even. One of your children.

Laying outside. Hair gets wet. And dirty. And matted. And it kind of looks like. You know. How it. How it looks. It was. So. It was matted.

And coarse. Like eagle's feathers. And because. In the. Wild. His fingers. His finger. And toenails. So. They would never be cut. Never be trimmed.

And what happens. If you never. Cut your fingernails. And toenails. Well. It. Become like claws. And that's exactly what happened. To Nebuchadnezzar. And.

You know. It's ironic. Really. When we think about it. Nebuchadnezzar. Thought of himself. As superhuman. Above all humans. In that sense. Of superhuman. Above all men.

Superhuman man. But God suddenly. Reduced him to. Subhuman. He became. Like an animal. All right. So the kings. Prompt discipline. Next. The kings.

Prophesied. Deliverance. Because the prophecy. Not only. Revealed. That he would be. Judged. In this way. It also. Revealed.

That he would be. Restored. He would be. Restored. He would be. Delivered. From this. So. First of all. We see. The accomplishment. Of a prophecy. This prophecy.

Is fulfilled. It's accomplished. Verse 34. And at the end. Of the time. What does that mean? Well. It was an appointed time. We know.

Specifically. It was seven years. So. Seven years. Seven years. Out there. Acting like a cow. Not even. Thinking like a human. Not acting like a human.

Under the elements. Hair growing out. And matted. And fingers. And toenails. Becoming like. Bird's claws. But it had limited time.

It was a prophecy. Concerning. When this was in. So at the end. Of the time. And this is. Nebuchadnezzar. Speaking again. We go back to. First person.

I. Nebuchadnezzar. Lifted my eyes. To heaven. And my understanding. Returned to me. All right. So you see. The dream revealed. That. All.

Of this. Would happen. Every. Every bit of it. You can go back. And read the dream again. About. Chopping the tree down.

But leaving the stump. And then. Daniel gives the interpretation. You're that tree. And you're going to be chopped down. But the stump will remain.

That means. You'll get the kingdom back. And you can read. Read that. In verses 13 through 20. All right. So the accomplishment. Prophecy. Then. Next.

The achievement. Of a purpose. God's purpose. What was it? Well. It was to humble. Nebuchadnezzar. To humble him. To a place of submission. To him.

As God. It was also. To open his mind. To the truth. About God. About Yahweh God. The one true God. And it was. The purpose. Was to.

Then do those things. And then restore the kingdom. His kingdom to him. And his reign. For a short time. He didn't live a long time. After this. Wouldn't reign a long time. After this. But just. Look at.

At all of that. Those three things. As you find them. In the passage. In verse 34. At the end of the time. I Nebuchadnezzar. Lifted my eyes. To heaven. Those are words. That suggest.

That he. He became humble. And submitted to God. He looked up to God. And. And then. It says. In my understanding. Returned to me.

And then verse 35. At the same time. My reason. Returned to me. And for the glory. Of my kingdom. My honor. And splendor. Returned to me. My counselors. And nobles.

Restored. To me. I was restored. To my kingdom. An excellent majesty. Was added to me. Now he's not talking about. A prideful kind of majesty. He was restored. Back to his place.

Of being the. The king. And all that goes with the king. Of being a king. And all that is rightfully deserved. About him. All that was restored to him.

All right. Now. What was the understanding. That was returned to him. Well. Not just simply. A sound mind. So that he was thinking correctly. Not like a cow. Now like a man.

And like a king. But I think it was what Nebuchadnezzar wrote. At the beginning of chapter. Of this chapter. In verse three. This was his thinking. How great are his.

The most high God. How great are his signs. And how mighty his wonders. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. And his dominion. Is from generation to generation.

That was his thinking. After all this happened. And God. God gave him that understanding. And then finally. There. The acknowledgement of a priority.

Verse thirty five. All the inhabitants of the earth. Are reputed as nothing. He. He. That is. God. Does according to his will. In the army of heaven.

And among the inhabitants of the earth. No one. Can restrain. His hand. Or say to him. What have you done? Suddenly. Yahweh God.

He understood. Was. Was the priority. In fact. He is the. High king. The king. Yeah. He restored. My kingship.

To this. Little. You know. Puny little kingdom. Compared to his kingdom. And. And so. He acknowledged. God is the priority.

All right. So. The king's public declaration. That was number one. The king's puzzling dream. The king's. Prideful demeanor. The king's. Prompt discipline. The king's.

Prophesied deliverance. And then one more. The king's. Praise. Filled. Dedication. I'm just. Hopelessly. A slave. Deliteration. I'm sorry.

Verse 37. Now I. Nebuchadnezzar. Praise. And extol. And honor. The king of heaven. All of whose works. Are truth. And his ways.

Justice. Or just. And those. Who walk in pride. He is able to put down. What a testimony. What a conclusion.

To this interesting chapter. And. And really. What Nebuchadnezzar is doing. In this. Chapter. Is. He begins. Really. At this. Place.

You know. In the chapter. Acknowledging. One true God. And his kingdom. And it's everlasting. And so forth. And then he goes back. And tells the story. Of how.

He came to that conclusion. About God. His dream. The interpretation. Of that dream. The fulfillment. Of God's prophecy. As a result. Of the dream. God's restoration. Restoring.

His kingship. To him. And. And so. What a. What a conclusion. Now. There is. Of course. And I mentioned this. At the beginning. There's some debate. As to whether or not.

Nebuchadnezzar encountered. His encounter. With the living God. Was a saving encounter. And I just believe. That it was. And if you don't. Then you're okay. Because there's some.

Pretty good theologians. On your side. I can name. A couple. Of Walverd. I don't know. If you're familiar. With that name. Of Dallas.

Theological Seminary. Highly respected. Theologian. He believes. He's a saint. That this was a saving encounter. Go back. In history. Calvin. Believed it wasn't. So.

And there are. Some others. Alright. So let me look at this. Let's look at this last verse. Real quickly. And just notice. Four things. First. His praise. Is personal. Personal praise.

I. Nebuchadnezzar. Alright. I can't speak for you. But I can tell you. This is what I believe. This is his testimony.

And then second. His praise. Is continual. It's a continual thing. I. Nebuchadnezzar. Praise and extol. And honor. The king of heaven.

Those three words. Praise. Extol. And honor. In the language. Grammatically speaking. They are participle. So. We could say.

I am praising. Extoling. And honoring. The king. It's ongoing. This. This. This is not a ritual. It's. It's not. Some one. Time.

Thing. This way. I feel now. It's. It's ongoing. And I think. Was a testimony. To. The rest of his life. Praising. Extoling. And honoring. The king of heaven.

King of heaven. See. And it's interesting. The king of heaven. The language. That Nebuchadnezzar. Uses here. Is indicative. Of a man. Who is a king. He's king. Of Babylon.

And so. When he. References. Yahweh God. He reference. References him. As king. He. Because he is king. King over me. The king of heaven.

Third. His praise. Or see. His praise. Is confessional. It's a confession. All of whose works. Are truth. And his ways. Just. For justice.

And this. This was a confession. Of his. Of the person. Of Yahweh God. His way. His works. Are truth. His ways.

Just. And those. Also. Are words. That. Really. Fit. With the context. Of kingship.

As a king. Nebuchadnezzar. Should. His. His works. Should be true. That. They should be right. And his ways. Should always be just.

Those are two. Very important. Characteristics. Of. Of a worthy king. A good king. And. And so. He's giving testimony. That this is who God is.

And so. Maybe we could read between the lines. Say this is. What. Who I want to be. Well. And then. Finally. His praise. Is proverbial. He gives a proverb. And it's.

It's one you can find in scripture. As well. Though. Written. After Nebuchadnezzar. And those who walk in pride. He is able to put down. It's a proverb.

And. You know. You find it. Proverbs 16. 18. Pride goes before destruction. And a haughty spirit. Before a fall. So the king had learned. And he had learned a painful.

And yet. Obviously. A very valuable lesson. Thank you.