Daniel 4:16–37

The word "beast" is used because of this king's destructive power. A beast's heart was given to Nebuchadnezzar. A man's heart looks upward to God; a beast's heart looks down and preys on others. A beast is a wild, hungry creature that devours everything below it.

He lost every thought of God. He had no more idea of God than an animal in the field. Even an ordinary man has a conscience in him. But Nebuchadnezzar lost all thought. He sank to the mindlessness of an animal. Man was made to be the one creature on earth who looked up to God and lived in dependence on Him. That is his glory.

Some people look like men on the outside, but "a man who is honoured yet has no understanding is like the animals that perish." Nebuchadnezzar is the most striking proof of this. Yet the same is true, in principle, of every man who has self and not God before his eyes. That was exactly true of the king of Babylon. He had no understanding. He credited everything to himself and not to God. So, by a terrible punishment, he is brought down to the lowest state of all.

He may reject the knowledge of the true God. He may become in spirit what Nebuchadnezzar became in body. That is, he too may be given a beast's heart. Of course this was a miraculous judgment carried out on that proud king of Babylon. But in moral terms it fits every man who turns away from God's testimony and gives himself up to the passing pleasures of the moment.

He imagined himself an animal, and for seven years he lived in the fields as one. We do not need to look outside Daniel's book to learn that Gentile rule is simply beastly in God's sight. The same powers appear to Nebuchadnezzar as metals in Daniel 2 and to Daniel as wild beasts in Daniel 7.

It does not say "years," but "times" — though the "times" might be years. The word "times" is vague, while the word "seven" makes it very precise. It means a complete period, a period covering the whole length of the times of the Gentiles… This shows that we should expect no improvement in the governments of the earth. So it is worse than useless for a Christian to launch out into political struggles, hoping to improve the state of things around him. It also sits badly with his heavenly calling.

The fact is that not one text of Scripture uses such a term as a prophecy. This chapter, which has it four times, uses it only of Nebuchadnezzar, in a literal and therefore quite different sense.

Nebuchadnezzar had credited all his glory to himself. So he was brought down to the state of a beast, as no one else ever has been, until "seven times" passed over him. After that he "lifted up his eyes to heaven" — a repentant and restored man who owned the Most High, no longer like an animal but with moral understanding.

As to the term "watcher," I do not think that knowing who brought the decree of judgment goes beyond Nebuchadnezzar's religious condition. Daniel traces it at once to the Most High. Angels may well be the intelligent instruments of that decree, and God may in some sense give them a part in carrying it out. That raises no difficulty. The letter to the Hebrews, and other scriptures too, teach us that God employs angels in this way.

The magicians were helpless as usual, so the king called in Daniel. Daniel told him that the tree stood for himself. Heaven had noted his ways, and God was about to visit him in judgment unless he repented. Men forget that there is a Watcher who sees their every act and hears their every word.

So all through Scripture, "the Most High" is a telling title of God as the Sovereign Ruler in the kingdom of men (Dan. 4:17). The demon-possessed man confessed Jesus as the Son of the absolute Lord of the universe. In the same way, the slave girl with a spirit of divination owned Paul and Silas as servants of the Most High God (Acts 16:17).

We also learn that God takes notice of the principles that guide the governments of the earth. They hold their power from God. His throne is not on the earth now, as it was in Israel. Yet God watches over all, and He judges the one He has given authority to. He does not rule Himself; He holds the ruler responsible, so that the ruler might own God's authority as supreme in this world.

What a poor, weak, foolish, conceited creature man is at his best state, altogether vanity (Ps. 39:5)! God does not always set the wise and noble of the earth over the kingdom of men. He gives it to whomever He will, and sets over it the lowest of men (chapter 4:17).

They represent Him in the way of government, little as they may realise it. Scripture even calls them His ministers, and He will hold them responsible for the way they use the power He has given them. Sometimes He allows this power to be in the hands of "the lowest of them" (Dan. 4:17). Every sort of man must be tested, so that all may know that Christ is the only hope of the world.

Put power into the hands of any fallen son of Adam and he will use it to exalt himself. He will even dare to use it against the saints of God and against God Himself. So came this stroke of chastisement on Nebuchadnezzar. It is a fitting picture of the turmoil among the nations today. What is God seeking to teach these men? "That the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will." When will they learn this lesson? When, like this king, they lift up their eyes to heaven.

We must recognise this and hold it without fear, doubt, or dodging, despite everything that looks the other way. Only then will we have confidence and rest of soul amid the flood of wickedness and the successes of the evil powers all around us. He is not stepping in openly at the moment. Still, He controls all things by His providence. GOD IS, and must ever be. This is the immovable anchor for our souls amid the threatening waves.

The king tells the story himself, and he tells it to show the mercy shown to him. Even so, his own account makes it plain: after all the remarkable events of the earlier chapters, Nebuchadnezzar was still the same man underneath. There was no real change in his soul, no bringing of his heart to God. He was at ease in his house and flourishing in his palace. As the man of the earth, everything God had put into his hands only fed his pride and self-satisfaction. In this condition God sends him a fresh testimony.

Nebuchadnezzar's wise men must first have a try at interpreting the dream, and only after their obvious failure does Daniel come into the king's mind. And in God's ways this strange oversight only makes a solemn truth stand out more. The God who put this monarch in such a position of power and splendour is the one true and living God. He raises up and casts down, and He does what He pleases in His own universe. Only when all human resources fail does God step in with deliverance for His fallen and devil-oppressed creature.

The men of this world will take all the help the man of God can give them in the things of earth. But with him they can never feel at home. A great gulf lies between the man of the world and the man of God, and neither is fully happy in the other's company. So the servant of the Lord may help in a moment of difficulty, and both he and his help are soon forgotten... You cannot bring the man of God to mind without bringing God Himself to mind too. That wakes the conscience and disturbs the peace of the soul. So the world appeals to the servant of the Lord only in its greatest need.

Though the king consulted Daniel, he called him by the heathen name given to him. In both verses 8 and 9 we find "Belteshazzar." The king says this name was "according to the name of my god," for Bel was one of the great gods of Babylon. And in keeping with the heathen name he used, he recognised only that Daniel had "the spirit of the holy gods." He still did not know the true God — "the God of Heaven" — who had given him his great dominion.

He may speak to Daniel in a heathen style. He may credit the wisdom of the Most High God in Daniel to his own gods. But he still acknowledges that there is something special and unusual in Daniel.

The world's greatness and glory not only come to an end. Its wisdom fails completely, as the day now fast approaching will surely show. When God is acting, the world's wisdom is folly and thick darkness. It takes someone entirely outside its course and ways to make known the mind of God, whether in grace or in judgment.

No wonder Daniel seemed to be struck dumb when the royal dreamer had set before him the visions of his head. For one hour he was astonished, and his thoughts troubled him. How was he to tell this proud ruler of the evil and degradation that was ready to fall on his crowned head?

Before hearing the interpretation of the dream we learn the effect it produced on Daniel. He was a captive in a strange land under the yoke of a foreign king; but it was no pleasure to Daniel to know that judgment and disaster were coming on the king.

In verse 19 we see that Daniel himself, to whom the meaning of the dream was at once revealed, was also afraid and troubled, for he realised it warned the king of coming chastisement from the hand of God — a blow of the severest kind.

The meaning of the dream unfolded to his soul as he heard it. He understood what it meant for the king. Filled with amazement and troubled, he appears to have been reluctant to tell him what the dream meant. Nebuchadnezzar saw this and told him not to let the dream or its interpretation trouble him. … We may ask whether Daniel, in answering as he did, kept the level of his prophetic office as a messenger from God. He had the interpretation straight from God. Notice too that in the record of this sentence the name Daniel is dropped. For the first and only time it is Belteshazzar — not "Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar," but simply Belteshazzar — who answers the king.

The king could only turn to Daniel, addressing him as Belteshazzar, "according to the name of my god." … He hoped for light from a man who had "the spirit of the holy gods" in him. Yet we are not surprised that before the Most High he was afraid.

We can now understand why Daniel was tempted to say, "May the dream be for those who hate you," as the judgment hanging over the king rose up before him. Only the courage that came from knowing his mission was from God let him unroll the scroll of the king's future without flinching. It took courage for the Jewish captive-prophet to stand before the ruler of the world and describe such an overwhelming disaster.

The king has to encourage him before he will open his mouth and tell his unhappy listener the doom that awaited him from the hand of God. But he was there as the mouthpiece of God. He had to translate God's words to the king faithfully, whatever the result might be.

Nebuchadnezzar tells this story himself, to show the mercy shown to him. Yet his own account makes it plain. After all the remarkable events of the previous chapters, he was still the same man underneath. There was no thorough change in his soul, nothing that brought his heart to God. He was at ease in his house and flourishing in his palace. As a man of the earth, everything God had put into his hands only fed his pride and self-satisfaction. In this condition God sends him a fresh testimony.

Notice a difference between the head of gold in chapter 2 and the tree here, in what each one pictures. Both concern Nebuchadnezzar, as the text plainly says. But the head of gold takes in his dynasty too, since the second of the four prophetic kingdoms does not appear until his dynasty ends. The tree is a symbol of Nebuchadnezzar himself, as the judgment carried out shows. One more thing: his degradation is really a picture of what Gentile power in government is like, right up to its replacement, when Christ appears to set up His kingdom.

These passages show what the symbol of a tree points to: greatness in the earth, unless fruit is the object. It holds in every case — an individual who stands for power, like Nebuchadnezzar, or a nation that rises to the top, or a system of religion, as in Matthew 13. That is its consistent teaching… In Daniel the tree clearly means earthly power. This tree was the admiration of men. It had everything that pleased the heart: its own magnificent size, the beauty of its boughs and leaves, the plentiful sweet fruit, and the kind shade where all these creatures, the beasts of the field and the birds of the sky, found protection.

The prophets often use the figure of a tree for men in their earthly greatness. Ezekiel says: "Behold, Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon… of towering height." He goes on: "All the birds of the heavens made their nests in its boughs; under its branches all the beasts of the field gave birth to their young, and under its shadow lived all great nations" (Ezek. 31:3-9). This striking match helps us a great deal with the symbols in Nebuchadnezzar's dreams. It shows how fitting the picture is for a man lifted high in the government of the earth, giving far-reaching, wide-spreading shelter to people of every rank and condition. The beasts of the field and the birds of the sky come into the picture because God had given both alike into his hand (see Dan. 2:38).

Not long after, heaven visited it. In heaven's judgment it was a completely different thing. The Watcher and the Holy One came down, as the Lord Himself had done in the earlier days of Babel and of Sodom. This visitor from heaven inspected the tree of beautiful, astonishing growth. But to Him it was no object of admiration or worship. He was not moved to desire its beauty. All flesh thought it good for food, pleasant to the eye, and desirable for every purpose. In His thoughts it was none of these. He looked at it as something ripe for righteous judgment.

This was solemn. Everyone was celebrating together — the beasts of the field, the birds of the sky and all flesh were glorying in the very thing heaven was condemning to destruction. But Daniel had the mind of heaven about this tree, the mind of the Watcher and the Holy One. Among the men of that day, only men like him had it. For the saint on earth has the mind of heaven within him. This is our place. All flesh may feed on a thing while faith, the mind of Christ in us, sees its end under the sure judgment of God.

Nebuchadnezzar on the throne was a tree (see Dan. 4:22), but his leaf faded. For a brief moment prosperity shone on him; where is he now, and his glory?

The symbol of a tree points to greatness in the earth, unless fruit is the object. That holds in every case: an individual who expresses power, like Nebuchadnezzar, or a nation that rises to the top, or a system of religion, as in Matthew 13. That is its universal teaching… This tree was the admiration of men. It had everything that pleases the heart: its own great size, the beauty of its branches and leaves, the abundance and sweetness of its fruit. Under its kind shade all these creatures, the beasts of the field and the birds of the air, found protection.

The beasts of the field and the birds of the air appear here because both alike had been given into his hand (see Daniel 2:38). So they, like people, count as subject to his authority, sustained and protected by it.

We may notice the force of this symbol of a great tree. It is a mighty one of the earth, able to take others under its protection. In this case it was one in the highest position possible for man. The birds of the air had their home in it; that is to say, all classes of people sought shelter and protection in it. We learn also that God takes note of the principles that guide the governments of the earth. He sees them as holders of the power they have from God. His throne is not on the earth, as it was in Israel. Still, God watches over all, and judges the one to whom He has committed authority.

Notice a difference between the head of gold in chapter 2 and the tree here, in how each one applies. Both concern Nebuchadnezzar, as the text plainly says. But the head of gold takes in his dynasty as well, since the second of the four prophetic kingdoms does not appear until his dynasty ends. The tree is a symbol of Nebuchadnezzar himself, as the judgment carried out shows. We must add that his degradation pictures the character of Gentile power in government, right up to the moment Christ appears to set up His kingdom and replaces it.

This was solemn. At a moment when everyone alike was lifted high, the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and all flesh were glorying in the very thing heaven was dooming to destruction. But Daniel, among all the men of that day, was one who had the mind of heaven… For the saint on the earth has the mind of heaven in him. This is our place. All flesh may feed on that which faith, or the mind of Christ in us, sees is heading for the sure judgment of God.

God had entrusted this power to Nebuchadnezzar; He had blessed the king beyond measure in temporal things. As a result pride takes hold of him, even though the interpretation of the dream had warned him… It is this: if God, in His providence, lifts a man up, that man then lifts himself up. All is then lost… he cannot receive power without raising himself against the God who gave it. "Is not this great Babylon, which I have built?" He makes himself the centre instead of God.

Note a difference between the head of gold in chapter 2 and the tree here, in what each one stands for. Both concern Nebuchadnezzar, as the text says plainly. But the head of gold includes his dynasty, since the second of the four prophetic kingdoms only appears once his dynasty ends. The tree is a symbol of Nebuchadnezzar himself, as the judgment carried out on him shows.

This tree was the admiration of men. It had everything that pleases the heart. Its size was magnificent. Its boughs and leaves were beautiful. Its fruit was plentiful and sweet. Under its kindly shade all these creatures, the beasts of the field and the birds of the sky, found protection. It held all this and more, and these were man's thoughts about it. But what was God's estimate? "And the king saw a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, Cut the tree down and destroy it."

We may notice the force of this symbol of a great tree. It is a mighty one of the earth, able to take others under its protection. In this case it was one in the highest position possible for man. The birds of the sky had their home in it; that is to say, all classes of persons sought shelter and protection in it. We learn also that God takes notice of the principles that guide the governments of the earth. They hold their power from God… He does not rule directly. But He holds responsible the one to whom He has entrusted the rule.

Daniel interprets the tree of the king himself (v. 22): "It is you, O king, who have grown and become strong." So the figure stands for worldly power and greatness. We meet it elsewhere too, always with the same meaning (as Ezek. 17:5; Ezek. 31:3-6). But the strange thing in Matt. 13 is that "the smallest of all seeds" should grow into such a tree. For the seed, here as elsewhere, is "the word of the kingdom" (v. 19)… So how could a great worldly power come from sowing the gospel in the world?

Nebuchadnezzar on the throne was a tree (see Dan. 4:22), but his leaf faded. For a brief moment prosperity shone upon him; where is he now and his glory? "…but are like chaff that the wind drives away."

Earthly power is clearly meant by the tree in Daniel... This tree was the admiration of men. There was everything that pleased the heart: its own magnificent size, the beauty of its branches and leaves, the abundance and sweetness of its fruits. There was the pleasant shade where all these creatures, the beasts of the field and birds of heaven, found protection. It held all this and more, and such were man's thoughts about it. But what was God's estimate?... Observe, it is only a destruction for a time; there is no such thing as annihilation in anything in the mind of God.

As to the term "watcher," I do not think that knowing who brought the decree of judgment goes beyond Nebuchadnezzar's religious condition. Daniel ascribes it directly to the Most High. Angels may be its intelligent instruments, and its administration may in some way be entrusted to them. That presents no difficulty. The letter to the Hebrews, as well as other Scriptures, teaches us that God employs angels in this way.

Men forget that there is a Watcher who sees their every act and hears their every word... How would any of us stand if the word went out, "Chop down the tree"?

In His mercy God set a limit to his madness, and made his kingdom sure to him "with a band of iron and bronze." God had given him the kingdom at the beginning, and by His power He kept it safe for him. Meanwhile its degraded ruler, with a beast's heart given to him, herded with the cattle of the field, his hair like the feathers and his nails like the claws of a bird. So for seven years he went on, until he was ready to own that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will. God would restore the kingdom to him when he learned that the heavens rule.

He was driven from men and became like a beast of the earth, for he ate grass like oxen. In his bodily condition he was even worse than the beasts of the field. All this expresses his moral state, and the character of the power he wielded when separated from God... "The only true privilege of man, that which ennobles him, is that he can look up to God and acknowledge Him. Without this he looks downward, he is not enough for himself, he is degraded... Pride and independence separate man from God; he becomes a beast, without real intelligence."

The question is, what does it mean? Seven years, none need doubt... One can understand the further idea, drawn especially from Daniel 7 compared with chapter 12, that it covers the whole Gentile lease of power... But where is the proof?... The fact is that not a single text of Scripture applies such a term prophetically. This chapter uses the phrase four times, and always of Nebuchadnezzar himself, in a literal and therefore quite different sense.

"Most High" is always the name of God used to describe Him as supreme over the earth. See, for instance, what Melchizedek said to Abraham. He came out to meet him after the defeat of the kings who had carried off Lot: "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth" (Gen. 14:19). The name is used again in Daniel 4:24-25. There it presents God to Nebuchadnezzar as the One who governs the earth and was about to step in with judgment on him.

As for the term "watcher," I do not think that knowing who brought the decree of judgment goes beyond Nebuchadnezzar's own religious condition. Daniel credits it directly to the Most High. Angels may be its intelligent instruments, and God may in some way put its administration into their hands. That presents no difficulty. The letter to the Hebrews, and other Scriptures too, teach us that angels serve in this way.

The personal meaning is this: what happened to Nebuchadnezzar was a direct judgment from God for his personal pride — for what might be called making himself a god. Human pride is one of the special objects of God's hatred. It came out in an extreme form in the king of Babylon, and so he fell under God's judicial hand… God had entrusted him with the government of the earth, so He held him accountable and punished him. Yet He acted in grace as well as in righteousness, since the aim was to teach him "that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom He will."

Power sinks to the level of the beasts, which do not know God and lack man's understanding. The only true privilege of man, the thing that makes him noble, is that he can look up to God and acknowledge Him. Without this he looks downward; he cannot be enough for himself; he is degraded. Dependence is his glory, for it sets him before God and lets him know God… Pride and independence separate man from God. He becomes a beast, without real intelligence.

Nothing could be more precise than this interpretation… Only one thing let Daniel unroll the scroll of the king's future without fear: he knew God had sent him. It took courage for the Jewish captive prophet to stand before the ruler of the world and describe such an overwhelming disaster.

This chapter shows men turning all the power, authority and glory God gave them into a way of feeding their own pride. The result is that they would lose all understanding of God's mind… What was then literally true of Nebuchadnezzar himself was morally true of the Gentile powers as a whole. All through, the Gentile nations would have no understanding of God and no subjection to Him.

"Most High" is always the name of God used to denote Him as supreme over the earth. See what Melchizedek said when he came out to meet Abraham, after the defeat of the kings who had carried off Lot: "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth" (Gen. 14:19). In Daniel 4:24-25 this name presents God to Nebuchadnezzar as the One who governs the earth and was about to step in with judgment on him.

Reduced to the condition of a beast, he lost what characterises a man — all recognition of God. He had a beast's heart, as it says here. God has placed man here below as His image and glory. He is responsible to make God known, and he can only do it because he looks up to God… He credited everything to himself and not to God. A terrible punishment then brought him down to the lowest state.

God especially hates the pride of man. The king of Babylon showed that pride in an extreme form, so he fell under God's judicial hand. Some try to account for his condition in a natural way, calling it a special form of madness. Even so, the question returns: where did it come from? The Bible account answers, and the king himself recorded it — the condition came from the hand of God, as a just judgment on his towering pride and empty boasting. God threatened it a year before He sent it, giving him space for repentance. Then a voice from heaven recalled the very words of Daniel to his mind, at the very moment when the punishing stroke was about to fall. God had entrusted him with the government of the earth, so He held him accountable and punished him. Yet He acted in grace as well as in righteousness. His aim was to teach him that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men and gives it to whomever He will.

The kingdom of Judah fell apart and decayed. It passed into the hands of the first universal empire, under the renowned Nebuchadnezzar. This world-monarchy began the "times of the Gentiles," during which "the Most High rules over [not 'in', as in the older version] the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will" (Dan. 4:25) — at times setting up over it even "the lowliest of men". Since that day empire has replaced empire, dynasty has replaced dynasty, and king has followed king.

The question is, what does "seven times" mean? Seven years, none need doubt… The chapter uses the phrase four times, and always of Nebuchadnezzar, in a literal sense. That is quite different from a prophetic sense.

It does not say "years", though possibly the "times" might be years — it says "times". The expression is vague, but the word "seven" gives it a very precise meaning. It marks a perfect period, one taking in the whole duration of the times of the Gentiles… This shows that we can expect no improvement in the governments of the earth.

In His mercy God set a limit to his madness, and kept his kingdom secure for him "with a band of iron and bronze". God had given him the kingdom at the start, and God's power now held it safe for him. Meanwhile its ruler, brought low and given a beast's heart, lived among the cattle of the field… And so for seven years he continued to exist, until he was ready to own "that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will."

Notice, it is a destruction only for a time; in the mind of God nothing is ever wiped out for good. God leaves the stump of the roots in the earth, and He uses means to keep it alive.

In His mercy God set a limit to his madness, and made his kingdom sure to him with a band of iron and brass. God had given him that kingdom at the beginning, and by His power He held it safe for him. Meanwhile its degraded ruler, with a beast's heart given to him, herded with the cattle of the field, his hair like feathers and his nails like a bird's claws. So for seven years he went on existing, until he was ready to own that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom He will. God would give the kingdom back to him when he learned that heaven rules.

It is a great comfort that, despite man's pretension and disregard of the rights of God, "Heaven rules" (Daniel 4:26). Nebuchadnezzar had power and dominion greater than any man of today. His greatness reached to heaven and his dominion spread to the end of the earth. He had to learn this, and learning it broke his pride to pieces.

Man was formed to be the being on earth that looked up to God and stood in dependence on Him. That is his glory. A beast enjoys, so to speak, its own sphere of enjoyment, according to the capacity God has given it by nature. But it has no idea of the God that made it and all things. Man has. That is, recognising God is the great essential difference between a man and a beast.

If we read this history as a picture, it shows that the Gentile powers would give up the recognition of God in their government. They might use His name outwardly, but owning God as the source of all they had would pass completely from their minds; and so it has.

Heaven is the source of authority; it is a firmly fixed position. All spiritual, civil and political authority has its source above. "Heaven rules" (Daniel 4:26).

It is a principle from the very beginning that "Heaven rules" (Daniel 4:26). We cannot shape our course by events on earth. Events in heaven must control us.

It is the kingdom of Old Testament prophecy. But the name "kingdom of the heavens" (as it always reads in the original) gives it a character it hardly had in the Old Testament itself. An expression in Daniel 4:26, "after you have known that Heaven rules," may have prepared the way for its use. It implies that the seat of the authority of the kingdom, when set up, is in the heavens.

If he stands before the king in the place of God, he will faithfully present God to him in His true character: merciful and gracious, One who does not afflict willingly, and One who takes no pleasure in carrying out righteous wrath… We have no evidence that the king paid any attention to this faithful and friendly advice. It put Daniel's head in danger, for it questioned the way the king had used the power God gave him. Still, the king had to feel that the evil was coming on him because of his own conduct. He might yet escape it by softening his wilful and merciless ways, and by ruling with righteousness and kindness of heart.

Daniel himself seems to have been moved, for he begged the king in earnest words. Like Paul with Felix, Daniel reasoned with Nebuchadnezzar about righteousness, self-control, and judgment to come. But we do not read that the king trembled. Still, Daniel had delivered the message and made the appeal, and the great meeting between the prophet and the king was over.

It is useless to appeal to Daniel 4:27. There the prophet does not urge the vain and self-willed king to pay a ransom. He urges him to break off his sins by righteousness (the Greek version says "by alms"), and his iniquities by showing mercy to the poor (or afflicted), "that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your prosperity." How sober is the divine word, and how wild and false is man's!

Daniel says, "break off your sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed" — a passage badly twisted, but fully explained by this. It is the special nature of that corruption to put satisfying, redeeming conduct in the place of the fruits of a changed spirit. It copies the outward effects, and so shuts out and gets rid of the inward power that produced the things they are a bad imitation of.

Daniel 4:27 keeps mercy to the poor separate from righteousness. I know of no place in Scripture where the two are mixed up.

If God causes counsel like this to be given, we may be certain of one thing. He does not intend to carry out the threatened judgment if the sinner takes the counsel to heart and his ways become agreeable to His gracious mind.

Daniel begs the king to break off his sins by righteousness, and his iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Such repentance might lengthen his peace. But Daniel holds out no hope that the judgment will be avoided altogether.

Finally, Daniel closes the interview with a bold appeal to the king to break off his sins by doing righteousness, and to stop his oppression of the poor. This is a bold witness for a Jewish captive to bear before the world's greatest ruler. It means one thing: while these Gentile powers rule the world, God will have a faithful witness for Himself on the earth.

Most people today may ignore the warning, just as Nebuchadnezzar did. Daniel warned him boldly and even advised him to change his ways, as we see in verse 27. But the king did not heed the warning or follow the counsel. Even then, God waited twelve months before His judgment fell.

Nebuchadnezzar himself only showed what would become the general tendency of the Gentile nations, since God had given him his power. He would admire and exalt himself, turning all the greatness God had given him to his own credit. God showed him plainly the judgments that would come upon him, but he ignored the warning. Therefore, "All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar." Twelve months later he was walking in the royal palace of Babylon, and while the word was still in his mouth a voice fell from heaven. The sentence took effect. The Gentile powers have acted toward God in exactly the same way... those who have held the supreme power of the world, and the world's glory, have used it mainly for themselves.

God holds back the threatened blow for twelve months. Between announcing the judgment and carrying it out, He leaves room for repentance. Will the king take this mercy and humble himself before God? Sadly, at the end of twelve months the king's pride is as great as ever.

God always gives space for repentance before He carries out judgment. His judgment will certainly come, though in His goodness it may be delayed a long time. It was so in the days of Noah, when God waited a hundred and twenty years before sending the flood... How then does man treat this patience of God? Sadly, men despise the riches of His goodness. Because God holds back, men think He will never judge; because He is patient, men think He does not care about evil.

Twelve months had passed, and there is no record that the king had even been troubled by the warning he had received. The sky was still clear, with not a cloud on the distant horizon. This would astonish us, if we did not see the same thing every day: sinners untouched while eternal ruin stands right in front of them. Death must come, and judgment will follow, and yet men are careless and heedless.

All this was the glorifying of himself — the full-blown pride of the human heart, born out of his high position and prosperity, the pride that goes before destruction. God had made known to him where his power came from (Dan. 2), but he had completely forgotten it, and credited all the glory of his kingdom to himself.

This at once brings to mind the parable of the rich man whose land produced a large crop. While he was congratulating himself on his wealth, planning bigger barns, and looking forward to years of selfish enjoyment, the judgment came: "Fool! This night your soul is required of you" (Luke 12:16-20). In the same way, while Nebuchadnezzar was pouring out the pride of his heart in foolish boasting, a voice fell from heaven while the word was still in his mouth... When God speaks, it is done, and what He commands stands firm for ever.

Power sinks to the level of the beasts, which do not know God and have none of man's understanding. Man's one true privilege, the thing that lifts him up, is that he can look up to God and acknowledge Him. Without this he looks downward. He cannot be enough for himself, and he sinks low. Dependence is his glory, because it sets him in front of God and lets him know God... Pride and independence cut man off from God, and he becomes a beast, with no real understanding.

The threatened blow is held off for twelve months. Between the sentence and its carrying out, there is room to repent. Will the king take up this mercy and humble himself before God? Sadly, at the end of twelve months the king's pride is as great as ever.

Twelve months had passed. Nothing in the record shows that the warning had even troubled the king. The sky was still clear, with not a cloud on the distant horizon. This would astonish us beyond words, if we did not see it every day: sinners untroubled on the edge of eternal ruin. Death must come, and judgment will follow, and yet men are careless and heedless.

Perhaps he thought the results of his wicked life would never come. The dream and the prophet's explanation had warned him of them. It seems to have been delayed a long time; perhaps it will never come at all! God is infinitely patient, and He gives men time to repent. To take that as proof that He does not care about a life of evil dishonours the Lord and destroys our own souls. Yet this is often the natural thought: "Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil" (Eccl. 8:11).

So solemn a dream should have brought Nebuchadnezzar to his knees, but it did not. Yet God, who is patient with all, granted him twelve months' delay before the blow fell. At the end of that time the king walked on the roof of his palace, full of pride. His magnificent capital spread out before him, with its mighty walls and bronze gates. He exclaimed: "Is not this great Babylon, which I have built...?" While the words were still in his mouth, a voice from heaven said, "O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken; the kingdom has departed from you."

This chapter shows us, then, that men took all the power, authority and glory God gave them and turned it into a way of feeding their own pride. The consequence is that all understanding of God's mind would be taken from them... Twelve months passed. Then, in pride of heart, he credited all the greatness and splendour around him to himself and to the work of his own hands... At once the sentence takes effect on him. What was literally true of this one man was morally true of the Gentile powers as a whole.

It was God's solemn way of dealing with the pride and self-exaltation of man. When man gets into power, he exalts himself. There is only one Man who can really be trusted with power — the Lord Jesus Christ... Give any other man power, and what will he do with it? Give any other man riches, and what will he do with them?

Twelve months had passed. Nothing in the record shows that the warning had troubled the king at all. The sky was still clear, with not a cloud on the distant horizon. This would surprise us beyond words, if we did not see the same thing every day. Sinners stay unmoved on the edge of eternal ruin. Death must come, and judgment will follow, and yet men are careless and heedless.

At the end of twelve months the king's pride is as great as ever. In all this proud talk there is no recognition of God. As the king looks over the great city of Babylon, he claims that he has built it to establish the imperial line. He claims that everything has been achieved by his power and for his glory.

This king stands out as a fitting picture of the pride of the human heart. Man should thank God and glorify Him as the source of all power. Instead he boasts of that power as if it were his own doing, brought about by his own wisdom. Do we not still hear words much like these all around us?… Instead of ascribing glory to God, he credits it to himself.

Nebuchadnezzar had remarkable visions and revelations from God. But what did they achieve? He had had this warning, the most personal one of all… Twelve months passed. Then, in pride of heart, he credited all the greatness and splendour around him to himself and to the work of his own hands… At once the sentence takes effect on him. What was then literally true of him as a man was morally true of the Gentile powers as a whole.

Entrusted with the government of the earth, God held him accountable, and punished him accordingly, and yet in grace as well as in righteousness, since the object was to teach him "that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom He will" (v. 32)… The king's physical state is therefore a moral picture, and one that should often be thought over. It shows man's condition as God sees it, when he boasts of his own power, seeks his own glory, and claims to be independent.

A heart that is "lifted up" is in a dangerous state, and almost always on the eve of a fall.

Wherever we look at the Son — on earth, in heaven, or on the cross between earth and heaven — His first and great desire is to glorify the Father. Such purity of motive is beyond the imagination of fallen man. The natural thought is to use power, in whatever form it takes, to glorify self… All heaven may well unite to say, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power." This is because He alone uses power for the glory of God and the blessing of man.

There follows the account of the fulfilment of the dream. The threatened blow is held off for twelve months. Between the announcement of the judgment and its execution, there is room to repent. Will the king make use of this mercy and humble himself before God? Sadly, at the end of twelve months the king's pride is as great as ever.

Twelve months had passed, and there is no record that the warning ever troubled the king. The sky was still clear, with not a cloud on the distant horizon. This might surprise us beyond words. But we remember that the sight of sinners unmoved on the eve of eternal ruin greets our eyes every day.

All this was the glorification of himself. It was the full-blown pride of the human heart, born out of his exaltation and prosperity — the pride that goes before destruction. The source of his power had been given to him (Dan. 2); but he had entirely forgotten this when he attributed all the glory of his kingdom to himself.

This is very instructive, for this has been God's way, and is so still. The builders of the tower of Babel were allowed to go on with their work until they made it a wonder. Nebuchadnezzar was given time to finish his great city. The beast of Revelation will prosper until the whole world wonders after him. So here Haman is put up with, until he sits on the pinnacle. Then, in the moment of proudest elevation, the judgment of God visits all these.

There are those who try to account for his condition in a natural way by calling it a special form of madness. Even so, the question comes back: where did it come from? The Bible's account supplies the answer, and the king himself recorded it. It came from the hand of God as a just judgment on Nebuchadnezzar's overwhelming pride and vainglory. The blow was threatened a year before it fell, so there was space to repent. Then, at the very moment when the stroke was about to fall, a voice from heaven brought Daniel's own words back to his mind. Yet God punished him in grace as well as in righteousness, since the object was to teach him "that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will" (v. 32).

Power is reduced to the condition of the beasts that do not know God and lack man's understanding. The only true privilege of man, the thing that ennobles him, is that he can look up to God and acknowledge Him. Without this he looks downward, he is not enough on his own, he is degraded... Pride and independence separate man from God; he becomes a beast, without real intelligence.

Nebuchadnezzar had remarkable visions and revelations from God. But what did they achieve? He had had this warning, the most personal one of all... At once the sentence takes effect on him. What was then literally true of him as one man was morally true of the Gentile powers as a whole. Their character all through would be the same — no understanding of God, and no subjection to Him.

When man gets into power, he exalts himself. There is only one Man who can really be trusted with power — the Lord Jesus Christ... Give any other man power, and what will he do with it? Give any other man riches, and what will he do with them?

Nebuchadnezzar poured out the pride of his heart in foolish boasting. Even "while the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you." The voice repeats the judgment Daniel had already announced, and carries it out at once. It all happened to Nebuchadnezzar that same hour.

God had given the king "a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory." Despite those gifts, and despite the striking way God had borne witness to Himself, the king forgot God. He sat at ease in his palace at the height of his prosperity. He credits all his power and glory to himself, and uses his high position to exalt himself. Never was such great prosperity joined to such pride… As one has said, "He makes himself the centre instead of God. He becomes a beast and loses his reason entirely. A beast may be powerful, large, stronger than a man, and clever in its own way. But its look is downward. It has no exercise of conscience, and so no real relationship to God."

In His mercy God set a limit to the madness, and made his kingdom sure to him "with a band of iron and bronze." God, who had given him the kingdom at the start, held it safe for him by His own power. Meanwhile its degraded ruler, now with a beast's heart, herded with the cattle of the field, his hair like a bird's feathers and his nails like its claws. So for seven years he went on living, until he was ready to own "that the Most High rules the kingdom of men, and gives it to whom He will." The kingdom would be restored to him when he learned that the heavens rule.

Seen from the human side, men usually seize kingdoms by corruption, violence, bloodshed, and often murder. But behind the scenes, where no human eye can reach, God is accomplishing His purposes. He does it even through the wickedness of the ambitious creature, prompted by the devil. Neither the cunning and malice of Satan nor the guilty ambition of man can counteract the intention of God, but everything that they do must serve to bring it to pass.

Seven times pass, and then God is confessed. Seven times means a complete period of time. In prophecy it would cover the whole period of Gentile rule… During the period of Gentile power, men govern the world without reference to God and so without any understanding of His mind. At the end of this period, after judgment has done its work, the nations will confess God.

Put power into the hands of any fallen son of Adam and he will use it to exalt himself and dare to use it against the saints of God and even God Himself. So this stroke of discipline fell on Nebuchadnezzar… What is God seeking to teach these men? "That the Most High rules the kingdom of men, and gives it to whom He will." When will they learn this lesson? When, like this king, they lift up their eyes to heaven.

In the same hour of his boasting the judgment fell on him (see Dan. 4:25, 33), swift and unexpected. So it was with the people before the flood, so with Sodom; so it will be in the days of the Son of Man (Luke 17:26-30). Alarm and fear no doubt filled his court. This was no ordinary case of insanity, whatever unbelievers since have dared to say — as they also say of the people in the Gospels who had demons. The account is wonderful, but believers know it is true. The words of Scripture are far too precise to allow any meaning short of literal fact.

God is infinitely patient, and He gives men time to repent. To think this means He is indifferent to a life of evil-doing dishonours the Lord, and it destroys our own souls. Yet this is often the natural thought: "Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil" (Eccl. 8:11).

He lost every thought of God. He had no more idea about God than the beast of the field. Even a natural man has a conscience in him. But Nebuchadnezzar lost all thought. He sank to the non-intelligence of a beast... Recognition of God is the great essential difference between a man and a beast.

Man's one true privilege, the thing that ennobles him, is that he can look up to God and acknowledge Him. Without this he looks downward. He cannot be enough for himself; he is degraded. Dependence is his glory. It sets him before God and gives him to know God. His mind, joined with God, receives its measure and its knowledge from Him. Pride and independence separate man from God. He becomes a beast, with no real intelligence.

This judgment has a threefold significance — personal, moral, and prophetic... The physical state of this king is therefore a moral picture. It is worth pondering often, for it shows man's condition in God's estimate when he boasts of his own power, seeks his own glory, and asserts his own independence. But it goes further than the king himself. It takes in the character of his rule and of his kingdom. In Daniel 3 the first kingdom in man's hand becomes idolatrous. In Daniel 4 it becomes bestial — bestial in the sense that, cut off from God, it has no intelligence at all.

Judgment came on this great monarch at the beginning of the times of the Gentiles. In the same way judgment will yet fall on this proud and self-exalting age of the Gentiles... Some try to work out from this "seven times" how long the times of the Gentiles will last. That lacks the support of Scripture. The seven times mean seven years... There will be no more looking up to God. The attitude of the beast will be the attitude of the nations.

In His mercy God set a limit to his madness. He made his kingdom sure to him "with a band of iron and bronze." God had given him the kingdom at the beginning, and by His power He held it safe for him. Meanwhile its degraded ruler, with a beast's heart given to him, fed with the cattle of the field... So for seven years he went on existing, until he was ready to own "that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom He will."

"At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven." That was the first great sign that his mind was coming back. A beast looks downward. It never looks upward, in the moral sense of the expression. A man who acts as a true man owns in his conscience the One who gave him everything. He is bound to honour and obey Him. Nebuchadnezzar, when the term of the judgment had passed, lifted up his eyes to heaven. He is taking the true place of a man.

It is striking that the moment Nebuchadnezzar lifted his eyes to heaven, his understanding returned. It was the same with the prodigal son who had wandered off into a far country. His "coming to himself" and his turning back to his father's house go together. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the experience of the king of Babylon shows it. He turned upward to the hand that had struck him, and he began to understand. For the first time he learned that he was accountable to God.

The first thing he does with his newly-found understanding is to bless the Most High. He praises and honours Him as the eternal God, and as the Sovereign Ruler of both heaven and earth. This is very beautiful, and it is the sure evidence of what we know as a work of grace in the soul.

In the past he might have bowed down before the prophet and ordered incense to be offered to him. He might send out laws and decrees that all his subjects must honour the God of the Jews. But what does he do now? He drops all others for the moment, and bows before God.

"Most High" is always the name of God used to denote Him as supreme over the earth. See, for instance, what Melchizedek said to Abraham... "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth" (Gen. 14:19). It comes again in Daniel 4:24-25. There this name announces God to Nebuchadnezzar as the One who rules the earth and was about to step in and judge him... And God brought Nebuchadnezzar to own this same truth as the fruit of that dealing.

The sign and wonder Nebuchadnezzar is about to tell is very humbling to him. In one hour his mighty kingdom left him, though it was soon restored. In contrast to this, he confessed God's kingdom to be everlasting. He may not have realized this fully. Yet within two or three generations his own rule, pictured by gold, would fall before another rule, pictured by silver. God's kingdom, he acknowledged, lasts through all generations.

This king is a fitting picture of the pride of man's heart. God is the source of all power. Instead of thanking Him and giving Him the glory, man boasts of that power as though it were his own doing, won by his own wisdom... What is God seeking to teach these men? "That the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom He will." When will they learn this lesson? When, like this king, they lift up their eyes to heaven.

When the term of the judgment was past, Nebuchadnezzar lifted up his eyes to heaven. He is taking the true place of a man. "And my understanding returned to me." What was the result? "And I blessed the Most High, and I praised and honoured Him who lives for ever." Notice the difference. On earlier occasions he might have bowed down before the prophet... he might send out statutes and decrees that the God of the Jews should be honoured by all his subjects. But what does he do now? He drops all others for the moment, and bows before God.

Looking at himself, his might and his glory had led the king to become like a beast that looks down... Then he thinks of men. Compared with God, he owns that all the inhabitants of the earth — the greatest kings as well as the lowest subjects — are as nothing. The man who thought he was everything discovers that he is nothing — a wholesome lesson for us all to learn. He also owns the sovereignty of God. God is sovereign not only in the armies of heaven, but also among the inhabitants of the earth. None can stay His hand or question His ways.

This opened the king's eyes to the fact of his own nothingness, for he confessed that "all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing"; and if all, then himself among them.

We may note this title "Most High." It is the name given to Jehovah in the meeting between Melchizedek and Abraham. There the words "Possessor of heaven and earth" are added to it. This is, in fact, the character God will take when He gathers together in one all things in Christ, both in heaven and on earth. Christ shall be the true Melchizedek.

There are at least three factors to be recognised... the wrath of man; the working of Satan; and the over-ruling government of God. Do not take the last apart from the first two. And do not let those first two on their own — man's wrath and the great adversary's activity, large as they are — take over the whole field of vision. We do well to remember every agency at work, for without that no situation can be understood. Men certainly tend to forget everything except what they can see.

Kings and their advisers should remember that God knows every secret of the council chamber, however carefully they keep it from the people... These are lessons God would teach the leaders of men today. How good it would be for everyone if they would only learn them!

The thing formed is not to say to Him who formed it, "Why have you made me like this?" God, as the potter, can make one vessel to honour and another to dishonour out of one lump. If He does, no one can say to Him, "What have you done?"... The first of all righteousness is that God should have His place... God will judge man. It is not for man to judge God.

Daniel had told the king that his kingdom would be made secure for him, once he had learned that heaven rules. This prediction also came true... God kept His own word, spoken through His servant. Not the smallest part of it failed. Nebuchadnezzar confesses and records God's faithfulness with joy.

His reason came back as suddenly as it left. He tells of a miracle at his return to his kingdom as striking as when men drove him away. His lords and courtiers sought him out after seven years apart. He received still more greatness. Both facts mark the miraculous controlling power of Him who holds all things in His hand.

The one thing that lifts man up is submission — that is, submission to God. It assumes he can understand the will of God. Man bows to that will and honours God as One who is greater than himself. From the moment he says "I have built," he loses his moral relationship to God. All real dignity is lost. In this he becomes like one of the animals. I say it again: man's true superiority is his capacity to keep a relationship with God... Nebuchadnezzar became the companion of beasts — he had lost his proper understanding.

What a magnificent recovery! The hand that struck him hurled him from his proud position into the dust of degradation. That same hand now lifts him out of the animal state he had been made to sink into, and that sinking was for his eternal good. The same hand puts him back in his former glory on earth. But now he carries the light of the knowledge of the Most High in his heart. That light was worth more than all the riches of the universe, even if he could have owned them all.

This is the man whom God was about to bring down from such dizzy heights of earthly glory to a condition like that of the beasts. He did it so that He might make Himself known in some measure. The king, humbled in this way, would then publish His glory everywhere, and receive the kingdom back from His hand in a different way. Job may come to mind as an example of this way of dealing: his loss, his humbling, and his blessing at the end.

When he submits to God, the king's reason returns and he is once again established in his kingdom. So, in the days yet to come, after the judgment of the living nations, the Gentiles will be established in blessing under the rule of Christ.

Comparing the Nebuchadnezzar who gives this praise to God with the Nebuchadnezzar who said, as he surveyed the magnificence of his city, "Is not this great Babylon, which I have built?" we can only exclaim, "What has God wrought!" He had indeed shown His power to abase the man who was walking in pride. More than this: in abasing him He so changed the heart of the king that he turned in submission to the hand that had struck him. He confessed that all God's works are truth, and His ways judgment. So he justified God, a sure and unmistakable sign of conversion.

Now he says, "Those who walk in pride He is able to abase." He no longer talks about cutting people in pieces and making their houses a rubbish heap if they do not praise and bless the God of heaven. He will not intrude into God's domain, for God Himself knows how to humble the proud. He no longer tells others what they are to do, but he acknowledges what he himself does.

Notice this; it is a broad and bold confession of the judgment that had fallen on him because of his pride. He had passed through deep waters under God's correcting hand... Remember that this is the effect of personal humiliation — "toward me," said the once proud monarch. But he had been abased, emptied, brought to the dust, and now, visited again with mercy, his lips are full of the praise of his Corrector.

When the Lord had His throne in Jerusalem, He was God of the earth as well as of heaven. But He abandoned His throne there and handed world rule to the king of Babylon. From then on He would be known as the God of heaven... In taking this title, God did not give up His claims to the earth, or the present workings of His power in government.

We often dwell on the grace of Christ, as mentioned in the letter to the Hebrews. But let us not forget that He is not only able to sympathise, "able to help" and "able to save," but also "able to abase." He did it effectively with Nebuchadnezzar, and clearly for his spiritual good... Human pride, fed by scientific advances and the wonderful achievements that follow, is growing. It will reach its peak before long.

It is symbolic of the times of the Gentiles. After being like the beasts of the field, they will in the end be restored to "reason." Then, "clothed, and in their right mind," they will, like this king, praise and extol and honour the King of heaven.

Only let us remember that he did not live in New Testament times. The gospel now carries the knowledge of salvation, and makes that the basis of worship. But he had learned the wisdom of God from the lips of Daniel. He had seen the sympathy of God with His suffering people in the fiery furnace. And he had bowed to His will through seven years of deep humbling — three important lessons. Nor is he ashamed to publish it all, as with a trumpet, so that God might be glorified. This, at least, is no small evidence of what is called "conversion."