In case you aren’t familiar with the game of Chess, “checkmate” is what occurs when one player traps the other player’s king so that there is no possible move he can make to avoid capture. At this point, the game is over. In Daniel 4, which is the last chapter where Nebuchadnezzar appears as a character in the book of Daniel, we see this king put into checkmate. It is interesting to note how each chapter to this point has shown Nebuchadnezzar respond in a different way to the events have occurred. In chapter 1, after Daniel and his three friends have shown themselves to be the most capable young men in the royal academy, Nebuchadnezzar responds by being impressed with them. In chapter 2, after the revelation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream about the statue and its interpretation to Daniel, the king burns incense to Daniel and speaks highly of Daniel’s God. In chapter 3, after the deliverance of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace, Nebuchadnezzar issues a decree that no one may speak a word against the God of Israel. We notice a progression across these three chapters, as Nebuchadnezzar gradually grows more and more impressed with the God he supposedly defeated when he conquered Jerusalem.
But it is here in chapter 4 that Nebuchadnezzar acknowledges that he has been defeated. Checkmate, game over. But the king who has just surrendered does not hang his head in shame. Instead, he rejoices in this God who has beaten him and publicly proclaims his praise. When God is your opponent, surrender is your surest path to joy. And we see the joy reflected in Nebuchadnezzar’s letter, the only portion of Scripture written by a pagan, which the author of Daniel apparently chose to include as part of his book.
But I have wondered: where do we stand with respect to this story? Does the author intend us to see ourselves in the place of Nebuchadnezzar, so that we might humble ourselves, repent, and surrender while we still have time? I think that is certainly a legitimate application of this text, and I will say more about that later. But I think the author is writing primarily for an audience of Jewish worshipers of the God of Israel who are standing on the other side of the exile under the rule of a pagan power. In all of the stories of the first half of the book, the author is writing to encourage his readers to remain faithful to their God in difficult circumstances. And the reason they should do so is this: in spite of all appearances to the contrary, the God of Israel is sovereign over all.
Why should that message matter for our lives? It should matter not least because we are watching Western culture decay before our eyes, leaving a great deal of uncertainty about what kind of society we will have in the coming years. This week I saw a video released by the Family Policy Institute of Washington. In it a man interviewed several college students at Seattle University and asked them, among other things, the simple question, “Is there a difference between men and women?” Not one of the students featured in the video gave a straightforward, positive answer, an answer that has been self-evident to rational people since the dawn of time. At the conclusion of the video, the man speaks to the camera and says, “There may be nothing more self-evident in the natural universe than the fact that every animal species is divided into two halves: male and female. Yet the most intelligent of those species seems to be wrestling with whether ‘male’ or ‘female’ are actually real things. Have we discovered something new, or have we become too clever for our own good?” Now, it would be one thing if gender confusion were only a campus movement. All kinds of crazy things happen on college campuses, right? But the kind of thinking on display in that video is not isolated to college campuses. It has reached into the highest offices of our government. Just this week the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the state of North Carolina in response to that state’s new law regarding gender and bathroom facilities. In a public statement about the state law, Attorney General Loretta Lynch implied that the distinction between male and female is “a distinction without a difference.” This action was promptly followed by the godless Obama administration’s executive order requiring all public schools in the country to fall in line with the sexual revolution or face the loss of federal funds. When this kind of thinking has taken over a culture, we who seek to adhere to the truth that God has revealed about male and female in nature and in Scripture will find ourselves in difficult situations. The future of religious liberty in particular seems to be very much in jeopardy at this point, since it is our religious views that put us out of step with cultural elites who are seeking to transform our society.
In a setting like this, we need the book of Daniel and its life-giving message of the sovereignty of our God over all things. We need to be reminded over and over again that nothing that the powers of this age can do to us could possibly justify compromising our obedience to our God. He has not lost control of this world, he will not lose control of it, and in the end his victory—and ours!—is assured. So press on, trusting in this sovereign God.
This story is another account about a dream, much like that in chapter 2. Like last time, the wise men of Babylon are unable to make any sense of it (way to go guys! You have one job!), but then Nebuchadnezzar gives Daniel a crack at it. In this dream Nebuchadnezzar saw a great tree, one that provided abundant fruit and protection to all the beasts and birds of the earth. And then a watcher, an angel, came and commanded that it be cut down, but with a protective fence left around the stump (to indicate that the destruction will not be total). Daniel, alarmed at what he understands, hesitates to tell the king what it means at first, but when pressed he discloses that the tree is Nebuchadnezzar himself. He is the one who has become great and has prospered and whose kingdom gives life and protection to so many people. But because of his pride, Daniel warns him that the day is coming when he will be cut down.
And then we have a report that this actually happened. One day, while walking on the roof of his palace and looking over the massive city of Babylon, perhaps admiring its thick, intricate system of protective walls, or perhaps gazing at the famous Hanging Gardens (one of the seven wonders of the ancient world), Nebuchadnezzar was musing on the glory of his accomplishment and putting himself in the place of God. But suddenly a voice from heaven addressed him, pronounced a judgment on him, and through the very speaking of those words made the judgment a reality. Nebuchadnezzar was afflicted with a disorder that sent him from the most powerful throne in the world to the status of an animal. He began acting like a cow or a bull. He roamed around the fields, away from civilization, and ate grass for his food. His hair and fingernails grew out. It may be that Nebuchadnezzar had a rare condition that today is known as “boanthropy.” The Old Testament scholar R. K. Harrison once had the opportunity to observe a patient who had this disorder in a British mental institution in 1946. Harrison wrote that the patient was physically healthy, but he spent all of his time wandering around the lawns of the hospital, occasionally picking up handfuls of grass and eating them. The hospital staff provided bowls of water outside for him to drink from so that he would not have to drink muddy water from puddles. Although his behavior was strange, his appearance was normal, except for two things: his hair and fingernails.
Nebuchadnezzar continued in this condition for “seven periods of time,” which may indicate seven years, though we can’t be sure about that. However long it was, it was long enough to get the point across. Nebuchadnezzar learned his lesson, and his reason was restored to him.
That is a basic overview of the story, but if we look closely we can see where the author is trying to focus our attention. Notice first that this account is bookended by two sections of poetry: verse 3 and verses 34-35. Both poems praise God for his sovereign rule. And second, in between these two bookend sections of praise from Nebuchadnezzar, we have three sections of reports of what happened: the dream (vv. 4-18), Daniel’s interpretation of the dream (vv. 19-27), and the fulfillment of the dream (vv. 28-33). Notice that toward the end of each section we have similar statements.
oward the end of verse 17 we read, “…to the end that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets over it the lowliest of men.” Toward the end of verse 25 we read, “…till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” And then toward the end of 32 we read, “…until you know that the Most High rules over the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” The threefold repetition of this statement about the sovereignty of God indicates that this is the point the author wants us to get: the God of Israel is sovereign over all. As we reflect on this biblical teaching today as an encouragement for us to remain faithful to him through strange and difficult times, I want to draw out three aspects of God’s sovereignty from this text, not just for us to think about, but to savor and rejoice in, just as Nebuchadnezzar does in this text. After all, this is our God we’re talking about here! So what do we note about God’s sovereign lordship over all in this story?
First,
Every time a major disaster occurs, whether that be a natural disaster such as a hurricane, earthquake, or tsunami, or a man-made disaster such as a major terrorist attack, people begin asking questions about God’s role in it. Often times, in an effort to justify God in the face of suffering and evil, people will argue that he had no role in these disastrous events. There must be some kind of limitation on his power, whether that be a self-imposed limitation or simply a natural limitation, that kept God from intervening to stop the event. If that were not the case, so we think, we would end up with an intolerable situation, one in which God could have prevented suffering but chose not to do so. This is the premise of Harold Kushner’s famous book When Bad Things Happen to Good People. Kushner is not a Christian; he is a Jewish rabbi. But a number of Christians seem to follow the same logic when it comes to thinking about God: if we can only somehow minimize God’s power in this situation, we can get him off the hook for it.
That is not a view of God that comes from the biblical text, because the Bible shows absolutely no interest in getting God off the hook. From Genesis to Revelation, we see the story of a God whose power over this world is unlimited and whose plans therefore cannot be thwarted. Nebuchadnezzar’s purpose in writing this letter is to celebrate this unlimited power. Notice how he begins the letter in verse 2: “It has seemed good to me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God has done for me.” Of course, he is referring here to the power of God demonstrated in the narrative that follows: power even to humble the most powerful man in the world by giving him the mind of an animal for a time! A God who can merely speak a word that transforms the commander of armies and the ruler of an empire into a man who thinks he is a cow is a God who can do anything.
And the narrative brings this out in other ways. I have already made reference to verses 17, 25, and 32, all of which declare that “the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” There is no authority on earth that has not been granted by the sovereign hand of God. Paul says so in Romans 13:1: “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.” In the context of this story, that would mean preeminently Nebuchadnezzar himself. Though he had conquered the kingdom of Judah, toppled the temple of Israel’s God to the ground, and removed the Davidic king from the throne, he did so only because it had been granted to him by Israel’s God.
God places men and women in positions of authority on earth according to his will. Does that mean he put the Pharaoh of Egypt who murdered the male children of the Hebrews into power? Yes. Does it mean he put King Herod, who murdered the children of Bethlehem, into power? Yes. Does it mean he put Pontius Pilate, who crucified an innocent man, the very Son of God, into power? Yes. God does not approve of the wicked actions of the rulers of this age, but that does not mean he is “hands off” when it comes to their exercise of authority. He gives the kingdoms of this world to whomever he wills, and he does so in wisdom for the fulfillment of his plan.
Think about that for a moment. If that is true, it must mean that God rules over all of the complex events that lead to a particular person being exalted to a position of authority. How many things have to happen in a certain way for a particular person to become President of the United States? How many millions of people are involved, making countless personal decisions that lead to the election and installation of a new President? And yet, God is sovereign over every part of that process. This brings me great comfort, especially this year, because I have to be honest with you: I am not particularly encouraged by the leading candidates for President that have been set before us from both parties. I say this, not to tell you how to vote, for that is a complex decision you have to make that involves many factors, and I don’t have pastoral authority to tell you what to do in that regard. But I do have pastoral authority to tell you that I see terrible moral flaws in both candidates who are currently leading the race for President. If one of them becomes President, as it seems will happen, it is possible that he or she may lead this country even further into the moral decadence that we are now experiencing, and the consequences may be even more painful, especially for faithful Christian believers, than they are now. And yet, I still trust, because God has made it clear in his Word, that if that day comes, it will be because God has willed it for some good purpose. Even the worst atrocities committed by the most godless rulers of this world do not threaten in the least the sovereignty of God over the affairs of men.
Nebuchadnezzar speaks again of the unlimited power of God in the closing poetic section, particularly in verse 35: “all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’” Whether we’re talking about heavenly, angelic powers or earthly, human powers, none can thwart God’s purpose or call him to account for what he has done. As Paul notes in passing in Ephesians 1:11, God “works all things according to the counsel of his will.” Let this be an encouragement to you, no matter how much difficulty we face for following Christ in this world, God’s power over creation is absolutely unlimited.
That is one aspect of his sovereignty that Daniel 4 brings out. A second aspect is this:
Here I am making reference to two verses that are part of the two bookends of the chapter: verses 3 and 34. In verse 3, Nebuchadnezzar declares of God, “How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion endures from generation to generation.” Then, echoing the same thought in verse 34, he says, “for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation.”
But what is the kingdom of God to which Nebuchadnezzar is referring? It is the same kingdom that he saw in his previous dream, represented by a stone that smashed the feet of a giant statue representing the kingdom of man and toppled it to the ground. Then the stone grew into a great mountain that filled the earth. It is the same kingdom that will be represented in chapter 7 by “one like a son of man” who receives authority from the Ancient of Days and replaces the kingdom of the beast. I would define the kingdom of God this way: God’s rule, mediated through his Messiah, over his covenant people in a renewed creation. This kingdom began when Jesus was raised from the dead, for it was just after his resurrection that Jesus declared, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me,” indicating his enthronement as the Davidic King. The kingdom of God is not merely a reference to God’s general sovereignty over all things. It is a specific reference to the rule he will exercise over his redeemed people, for their eternal good.
It is important to grasp that point, because it helps us understand that God’s unlimited power over creation is oriented toward a specific goal, and that goal is a kingdom of righteousness and blessing. If that were not the case, then there would be no comfort to take in the fact that God is sovereign. If his sovereignty is not exercised for his glory and our good, then it is no comfort to say God is sovereign. A sovereign God who is forever against us is actually terrifying to contemplate! But thanks be to God: he exercises his sovereign rule for the glory of his name and the good of his covenant people to be experienced in the eternal kingdom that has come in Jesus Christ and will come in its fullness one day.
And Nebuchadnezzar’s point is that God’s kingdom is everlasting. Long after all the kingdoms of this world have fallen, the kingdom of God will remain. Though Babylon was, in its day, the greatest empire the world had ever seen, Nebuchadnezzar proclaims to his subjects throughout his own empire: “Buy stock in the kingdom of Israel’s God! It will be worth far more than stock in my kingdom in the coming days.” And what a timely word for us as well. You could find any number of ways to advance yourself in American society by compromising your convictions. Hunter Baker has recently written this: “An aggressive secularism is developing among elites in American society, and it’s ultimately hostile to the Christian faith and fiercely protective of the new sexual orthodoxy it is bringing into being. Something like a Fortune 500/Beltway/ Hollywood nexus is forming around this orthodoxy and a new view of human beings.” This alliance between big business, politicians, and the entertainment industry has become one of the major power brokers of our society. It is tempting to want to appease the alliance by doing whatever it asks, just so that it will leave you alone. But don’t ever forget this: thousands of years after this Fortune 500/Beltway/Hollywood alliance has fallen into the dustbin of history, the kingdom of God will still be standing. We must seek first this kingdom, knowing that our sovereign God will not fail to give us all the blessings he has promised, and that they will far surpass the sufferings we will face in this age.
Our God rules over creation with unlimited power, and his kingdom is everlasting. We come now to a third aspect of his sovereignty in this text:
Is it right to say that God’s grace is an aspect of his sovereignty? Absolutely. Grace, by definition, is something that is undeserved. It is God’s favor to those who do not deserve it. As such, it is something that God must give freely and not under compulsion. That means that all grace is sovereign grace: a free gift of a loving God to undeserving sinners.
In his grace, God reconciles his enemies to himself, and it is an astounding thing to consider. Notice the grace displayed to Nebuchadnezzar in this story. After interpreting his dream, Daniel gives Nebuchadnezzar counsel in verse 27: “Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you: break off your sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed, that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your prosperity.” The message of judgment includes a call to repentance, with the door left open that Nebuchadnezzar could, in fact, escape the coming judgment if he would turn from his sinful ways toward the oppressed people in his kingdom (perhaps a reference to Daniel’s own people of Judah). An entire year passes, during which time God in his patience offers Nebuchadnezzar time to repent.
When repentance is not forthcoming, God acts in judgment against Nebuchadnezzar, and the judgment is painful. But in fulfillment of the dream, where some kind of protective fence is put around the stump of the tree after it is cut down, God does not take away Nebuchadnezzar’s life or kingdom completely. After the time of the judgment has been completed, God restores his sanity and his kingdom. God does not destroy King Nebuchadnezzar; instead, he humbles him.
And notice, as I said earlier, that Nebuchadnezzar is not hanging his head in shame here. He is singing the praises of the God who has put him into checkmate. Notice again the way he opens the letter in verse 2: “It has seemed good to me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God has done for me.” The painful, humiliating ordeal that he endured, Nebuchadnezzar now recognizes was for his good. And he rejoices in the God who laid him low for a time. As he declares in verse 37, “Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, for all his works are right and his ways are just; and those who walk in pride he is able to humble.” In his sovereign grace, God humbles his enemies in their pride and turns them into worshipers.
Now perhaps some of you could be cast in the role of Nebuchadnezzar this morning. By that I mean you don’t rule over an empire, but you do regard yourself as lord of your own life. If you probe your heart deep enough and look at yourself honestly, is it fair to say that you are living for yourself first and foremost? I have news for you: you are going to be humbled at some point. It may be on the Day of Judgment, when every knee bows and every tongue confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord. But if you wait until then to be humbled, then you will be humbled as a defeated enemy whose mouth will be shut and who will have no defense as you are sentenced to an eternity in Hell, cut off from the blessings of the only kingdom that will last. I plead with you to humble yourself now, the way Nebuchadnezzar humbled himself, and acknowledge the lordship of the God of Israel. He is the God who, in love for his enemies, sent his own Son into the world to die on the cross in order to answer for sins, not his own sins, but our sins, so that we could escape the judgment to come. And not only that, he raised his Son Jesus Christ from the dead and enthroned him over creation, so that one day he will come again in glory to exercise his rule over the Kingdom of God. And Paul tells us in Romans 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. So believe in him, and confess with your mouth publicly by submitting to baptism.
I also want to speak to those of you who are believers today, but I want to speak first to believers who either are not members of a church or who may have church membership at a church where you don’t attend anymore. If you are in that category, and you don’t have plans to either join this church or some other church where you will be actively involved, I want to urge you to reconsider, for this reason: Jesus Christ, through whom God’s sovereignty is mediated in his kingdom, has delegated his authority in this present age to local congregations. In Matthew 18 he gave the power of the keys to his disciples as representatives of the many local churches that would be planted in the future, and he said, “Wherever two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them” (Matt. 18:20). In context, Jesus is speaking there of the exercise of his authority in the local gatherings of his followers. What that means for you is this: the way you submit to the authority of Jesus Christ is by submitting to a local church to which he has delegated a measure of his own authority. That is what it means to join a local church: submitting to its authority as an expression of your submission to Christ. As a member of a church, you are overseen by that church and its leaders, and its leaders become accountable for your soul. God did not design us to dabble in church while living the Christian life more or less on our own. He instituted the church as the agent of Christ’s authority in this present age. So I urge you to consider joining this church or another church where you will be actively involved as an expression of your submission to God’s lordship over you.
And if you are a believer in Christ who is a member in good standing with a local church, I invite you to eat and drink the Lord’s Supper with us today. If you are walking in faithfulness to God in these strange times, I want to encourage you with this reminder from Daniel 4 that our God is sovereign. So we eat and drink in celebration of his unlimited power over creation, in spite of all appearances to the contrary. We eat and drink in celebration of the everlasting kingdom that we will inherit when all the kingdoms of this world have crumbled. We eat and drink in celebration of the fact that we, who were once his enemies, have been put into checkmate. We have been beaten by this God, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. Amen.