And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever: For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom is from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He 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?” 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 resorted to me, I was restored to my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added to me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down. Daniel 4: 34-37, NKJV.
Merciful God, today we continue to look at Your mercy and patience in dealing with the children of humankind. Please help us as we seek to do Your will, O God of our salvation. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
As we continue our study today, I ask you the question: Could the message have been any clearer? In other words, “Unless you give the glory to God, to whom it is rightly due, and allow justice to reign within your kingdom – your lot will be to graze with the wild beasts of the field, for “seven seasons.” God’s patience offered him an entire year to get his house in order! In his memoirs Nebuchadnezzar obviously acknowledged the pride that led to his downfall, “I 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“ (29, 30, emphasis supplied)? He realized that it was when he thought that the greatness of Babylon was the work of his hands, that God wrested the kingdom from him, and allowed him to see what humankind can become when it is void of God.
Mercy. But God did not leave him alone. Two circumstances bear witness to that, 1)During his insanity God Himself safeguarded his kingdom. It was a vulnerable time for the kingdom and its inhabitants. Their king, because of illness, was incapable of doing his duties. Any of the neighboring nations could have decided to invade them at that time, but I believe that God overruled. He had promised to give the kingdom back to Nebuchadnezzar after a certain period of time – and during his illness, God kept watch over it.
2) “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 resorted to me, I was restored to my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added to me. “In the fullness of time” (Galatians 4: 4), God restored his kingdom, his honor, his splendor, and his sanity! And the record shows that God added, excellent majesty! You just cannot out-give God, can you?
All heaven is interested in seeing the human race set free from from all the circumstantial chains that have bound us since the entrance of sin. The Godhead works incessantly to restore the image of God in us. The Son came to die that we might gain the victory over sin, and to restore what the devil stole from us!
Faithful to His Word, at the end of seven seasons, God, in divine fashion, that only He is capable of, made Nebuchadnezzar “lift [his] eyes to heaven,” and in that moment, his “understanding returned to [him!]” Every affected part of his brain received a direct message from the Creator, and immediately began to function optimally! I wonder if the first thought that came to him that day was the last thought he had just before he lost his mind. I imagine he must have looked into the mirror and stared in horror at what he had become – looking like a beast, but now, with the restored reasoning of a man. Perhaps in that moment, it all came rushing back to him, in rapid succession, all the actions that had led to his downfall. Then, in slower motion – the moments just before he came to himself, as he walked into the light of God’s infinite love and mercy – and back to sanity!
What we do know, is that, in gratitude for his restored mind, and in acknowledgment of the sovereignty of God, and God’s faithfulness, he “blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever[.]”
Beloved, you may be afflicted today; and there might be circumstances that have you feeling beat up, cast down, and trampled underfoot of others. Nevertheless, by God’s grace, look up, and remember, “in whom [you] have believed! Our God is the same God as in the days of Nebuchadnezzar. So be faithful and courageous, take heart! For, at God’s appointed time, “this too shall pass!”