Daniel 4:28-33

f. DESPOT'S DERANGEMENT

TEXT: Daniel 4:28-33

28

All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar.

29

At the end of twelve months he was walking in the royal palace of Babylon.

30

The king spake and said, Is not this great Babylon, which I have built for the royal dwelling-place, by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?

31

While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken: The kingdom is departed from thee:

32

and thou shalt be driven from men; and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field; thou shalt be made to eat grass as oxen; and seven times shall pass over thee; until thou know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.

33

The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hair was grown like eagles-' feathers, and his nails like birds-' claws.

QUERIES

a.

Why the mention of the end of twelve months?

b.

Why was Nebuchadnezzar so proud of Babylon?

c.

How was his hair like eagles-' feathers?

PARAPHRASE

And all that Daniel predicted in his interpretation of the dream happened to Nebuchadnezzar. One year after the king had the dream, he was strolling on the roof of the royal palace in Babylon, and remarking proudly, Behold my great city of Babylonthe city I have built by my own skill, power and ingenuity. I built it as my royal residence and a monument to my own greatness. It is still standing and I still rule over it! Does this not prove how omnipotent I am? But as he was in the very act of speaking a voice from heaven said to him, O king Nebuchadnezzar, this message is for you: The rule of this kingdom is now going to be taken from you. You are about to be driven out of your glorious palace to live with the animals of the fields, and to eat grass like the oxen for a certain period of time, until, that is, you finally realize that God rules in the affairs of men and that it is by His sovereign power and decision that men are providentially allowed to rule the kingdoms of the earth. That very hour this prophecy was fulfilled. Nebuchadnezzar became insane and was hidden somewhere in his palace and he lived like the animals of the field, ate grass like an ox, slept out in the open; and his hair grew, became unkempt and as long as eagles feathers; his fingernails and toenails grew long like birds-' claws.

COMMENT

Daniel 4:28-30. IS NOT THIS GREAT BABYLON. The fulfillment of the predicted judgment verifies with finality the prophetic commission of Daniel. There can be no question in the mind of Nebuchadnezzar after this. Neither should there be any doubt in the minds of the Jewish nation in captivity that Daniel was God's spokesman and that God was active, providentially overruling all the seemingly omnipotent machinations of pagan world power to preserve His covenant people.

The accuracy of Nebuchadnezzar's boast has been remarkably confirmed. Ancient historians, Josephus (quoting Berosus) and Eusebius (quoting Abydenus), wax eloquent about the grandeur of old Babylon. The East India House inscription, now in London, has six columns of Babylonian writing telling of the stupendous building operations which the king carried on in enlarging and beautifying Babylon. He rebuilt more than twenty temples and directed construction work on the docks and defenses of the city. Most of the bricks taken out of Babylon in the archaeological excavations bear the name and inscription of Nebuchadnezzar stamped thereon. One of the records of Nebuchadnezzar sounds almost like the boast which Daniel recorded in Daniel 4:30; it reads, The fortifications of Esagila and Babylon I strengthened and established the name of my reign forever.

Many critical scholars hold that the book of Daniel was not written in the time of Daniel (600 B.C. ff) but that it was composed some four hundred years later, about 168-165 B.C. However, on the basis of the critical view, it is difficult to explain how the supposed late writer of the book of Daniel knew that the glories of Babylon were due to Nebuchadnezzar's building activities. One higher critic, Pfeiffer, sweeps the problem under the rug by simply making the arbitrary statement, we shall presumably never know how the writer of Daniel knew that Babylon was the result of Nebuchadnezzar's building projects, as the excavations have proved. This is a very handy, but unscientific, method of dispensing with facts!
The king's last statement shows that his ultimate objective was the glorification of his own namefor the glory of my majesty.

Daniel 4:31-32 WHILE THE WORD WAS IN THE KING'S MOUTH. The king had not even finished boasting about himself and he was interrupted by a voice from heaven pronouncing execution of the judgment upon him. The administration of the kingdom which he considered to be his exclusive prerogative, was taken from him and he was driven to live and act like the beasts of the field. See our comments earlier on the dream, (Daniel 4:15-16).

Daniel 4:33. HIS HAIR. LIKE EAGLE'S FEATHERS. HIS NAILS LIKE BIRD'S CLAWS. This is an additional description of the king's physical state during his insanity. His hair was left to grow naturally, untrimmed, and is aptly described as growing long like eagles-' feathers. His fingernails and toenails, uncared for, would also grow to great lengths. This is only natural if he actually lived as the beasts of the field.

Although he was insane and physically grotesque, he was not exposed to the curious gaze of the multitudes, or to harsh treatment, or derision. He did not, evidently, become the gazing stock of all that passed by but was, no doubt, confined in the precincts of the royal palace. There he acted like an animal, eating grass, sleeping out on the ground, etc. The affairs of state were, no doubt, carefully taken in hand by his wisemen, princes, and probably by the establishment of a kind of council of ministersexpecting him to return to sanity and resume control of the government. One commentator cites a number of historical parallels to such temporary measures.

QUIZ

1.

What would the fulfillment of the dream mean to the Jews?

2.

How great and glorious was the city of Babylon?

3.

Is there any way to confirm the greatness of Babylon?

4.

How are the opinions of the destructive critics proved false by archaeology?

5.

What do you suppose Nebuchadnezzar looked like in his state of insanity?

6.

Where do you suppose he was confined in his insanity?