Chapter 40—Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream of World Empires
This chapter is based on Daniel 2.
(SS 255)
Soon after Daniel and his companions entered Nebuchadnezzar’s service, events occurred that revealed to an idolatrous nation the power of God. Nebuchadnezzar had a dream by which “his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him.” But the king found it impossible, when he awoke, to recall the particulars.
(SS 255.1)
In his perplexity Nebuchadnezzar assembled his wise men—“the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers”—and requested them to reveal to him that which would bring relief to his mind.
(SS 255.2)
The wise men responded, “Tell thy servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.” Dissatisfied with their evasive answer, the king commanded his wise men to tell him not only the interpretation but the dream itself. “If ye will not make known unto me the dream, with its interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces ... . But if ye show the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honor.”
(SS 255.3)
Still the wise men answered, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation of it.”
(SS 255.4)
Nebuchadnezzar, now thoroughly angered by the apparent perfidy of those whom he had trusted, declared, “Ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can show me the interpretation thereof.”
(SS 255.5)
The magicians endeavored to show the king that his request was unreasonable. “There is no king, lord, nor ruler, that asked such things at any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean ... . And there is none other that can show it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”
(SS 256.1)
Then “the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.”
(SS 256.2)
When told that according to the decree Daniel and his friends also must die, “with counsel and wisdom” Daniel inquired of Arioch, the captain of the king’s guard, “Why is the decree so hasty from the king?” Arioch told him the story of the king’s failure to secure help. Upon hearing this, Daniel, taking his life in his hands, ventured into the king’s presence and begged for time that he might petition his God to reveal to him the dream and its interpretation.
(SS 256.3)
To this request the monarch acceded. “Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions.” Together they sought wisdom from the Source of knowledge. Their faith was strong that God had placed them where they were, that they were doing His work. In times of perplexity they had always turned to Him for guidance; now they submitted themselves anew to the Judge of the earth, pleading that He would grant deliverance. And the God whom they had honored, now honored them. To Daniel “in a night vision” was revealed the king’s dream and its meaning.
(SS 256.4)
“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,” Daniel exclaimed. “He revealeth the deep and secret things ... . I thank Thee, and praise Thee, O Thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of Thee: for Thou hast now made known unto us the king’s matter.”
(SS 256.5)
Going immediately to Arioch, Daniel said, “Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and I will show unto the king the interpretation.” Quickly the officer ushered Daniel in before the king, with the words, “I have found a man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation.”
(SS 256.6)
In his first words the Jewish captive disclaimed honor for himself and exalted God as the source of all wisdom. To the inquiry of the king, “Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?” he replied: “There is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days ... . As for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but ... that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart.”
(SS 257.1)
“Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.”
(SS 257.2)
“Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.”
(SS 257.3)
“This is the dream,” confidently declared Daniel; and the king, listening with closest attention, knew it was the very dream which had troubled him. Thus his mind was prepared to receive with favor the interpretation. He was to be awakened, if possible, to a sense of his responsibility to Heaven. The events of the future down to the end of time were to be opened before him.
(SS 257.4)
“Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory ... . Thou art this head of gold.”
(SS 258.1)
“And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.”
(SS 258.2)
“And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.”
(SS 258.3)
“And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters’ clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken. And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.”
(SS 258.4)
“In the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever ... . The dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.”
(SS 258.5)
The king was convinced. In humility he “fell upon his face, and worshiped,” saying, “Your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret.”
(SS 258.6)
Nebuchadnezzar revoked the decree for the destruction of the wise men. Their lives were spared because of Daniel’s connection with the Revealer of secrets. And “the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon ... . Then Daniel requested of the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon: but Daniel sat in the gate of the king.”
(SS 258.7)
In history, the growth of nations, the rise and fall of empires, appear as if dependent on the will and prowess of man. But in the Word of God the curtain is drawn aside, and we behold the agencies of the All-merciful One, silently, patiently working out the counsels of His own will.
(SS 259.1)
Hundreds of years before certain nations came on the stage of action, the Omniscient One looked down the ages and predicted the rise and fall of the universal kingdoms. God declared to Nebuchadnezzar that Babylon should fall and a second kingdom would arise. Failing to exalt the true God, its glory would fade. A third kingdom also would pass away; and a fourth, strong as iron, would subdue the nations of the world.
(SS 259.2)
Had the rulers of Babylon kept always before them the fear of the Lord, they would have been given wisdom and power which would have kept them strong. But they made God their refuge only when perplexed. At such times, failing to find help in their great men, they sought it from men like Daniel who honored the living God and were honored by Him. Though the rulers of proud Babylon were of the highest intellect, they had separated themselves so far from God that they could not understand the revelations and warnings given them concerning the future.
(SS 259.3)
Babylon, shattered and broken at last, passed away because in prosperity its rulers regarded themselves as independent of God and ascribed the glory of their kingdom to human achievement. The Medo-Persian realm was visited by the wrath of Heaven because in it God’s law had been trampled underfoot. The fear of the Lord found no place in the hearts of the vast majority of people. Wickedness and corruption prevailed. The kingdoms that followed were even more base and corrupt; and these sank lower and still lower in the scale of moral worth.
(SS 259.4)
The power exercised by every ruler on earth is Heaven-imparted, and upon his use of this power his success depends. To each the word is “I girded thee, though thou hast not known Me.” Isaiah 45:5.
(SS 260.1)
In the Word of God only is it shown that the strength of nations, as of individuals, is not found in the opportunity or facilities that appear to make them invincible; it is not found in their boasted greatness. It is measured by the fidelity with which they fulfill God’s purpose.
(SS 260.2)