This week, we will continue our journey through the book of Daniel. As Nathan told us a few weeks ago, the book of Daniel is set in Babylon shortly after the Babylonians had destroyed the southern kingdom of Judah – including Jerusalem and the temple. This was a catastrophic time for the people of God in which they were carried off to a distant land and forced to live in exile because of their repeated disobedience to God.
The book of Daniel focuses on a small group of these exiles consisting of Daniel and three of his friends: Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. As Nathan walked us through chapter 1, we got a feel for the environment in which Daniel and his friends lived. The Babylonians were systematically trying to reprogram them and change them from Israelites to Babylonians. But we also saw, in chapter 1, that God, in His sovereignty, ordained these events for a specific purpose. Even though His people were miles from their home, God was still in control. Moreover, there were still some within the people of God who desired to serve Him and were seeking to serve Him – such as Daniel and his friends.
With that setting, we can better understand this entire book. As Nathan made clear in chapter 1, Daniel and his friends were in Babylon for almost 70 years! And yet, the book of Daniel actually consists of a relatively small number of stories and visions. What is the reason for this? It seems that these particular stories and visions were recorded for the purpose of demonstrating the superior wisdom and power of God over all circumstances, including those which are utterly disastrous. These stories, involving all kinds of people, are primarily about God, and He is the main character in them. For God’s people suffering exile in Babylon, God wanted to be very clear that He was still in control. Moreover, he wanted to be clear that He would ultimately overcome all opposition and reign supreme over all things. The stories and visions of Daniel all contribute to make that point, including the story found in chapter 2.
The story found in this chapter centers around the king of Babylon’s dream as well as the meaning of that dream. As we will see, the chapter is essentially historical in nature, but as we will also see, that history is intended to make some very weighty theological points. In short, though the king’s dream is the driving force of the story and carries a vitally important message, the central point of the story is the superiority of God over the so-called gods of the Babylonians. The central point of the story is that only God is all-wise and all-powerful. Further, God is all-wise and all-powerful at all times and in all places. This is the point of the chapter, and even the dream itself only serves to make this point more explicit and emphatic. So let us walk through the various scenes of this story, and see what lessons they teach us about God and ourselves.
This story begins by telling us about a problem that arose in the life of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon: “In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his spirit was troubled, and his sleep left him” (2:1). So, the king begins to have dreams that are unsettling, and, as a result, he is unable to sleep. Because of this, the king tells his magicians, enchanters and sorcerers about the dreams, and they vow to give them the interpretation (2:2-4). These people were essentially “wise men” who studied extensively in the art of dream interpretation, using books as well as numerous other resources. It was their job to hear the contents of a dream and give the meaning of that dream. However, in this story, Nebuchadnezzar adds a more difficult element by asking the interpreters to not only tell him the interpretation but the dream itself. Moreover, the king declares that if they are unable to tell him both the dream and its interpretation, they will be killed and their houses will be destroyed (2:5-9). In response, the interpreters declare that this is an impossible task because only the gods give dreams and those gods do not dwell with humans. This response angers Nebuchadnezzar, and he orders that all the “wise men” be destroyed – including, as verse 13 finally makes clear, Daniel and his friends (2:10-13). Because of their inability to tell not only the interpretation of the dream but the dream itself, they are all going to die.
This first part of chapter 2 sets the stage for what is to follow. At this point in the story, there is a feeling of utter despair because it seems that the interpreters are all going to die because they cannot perform a seemingly impossible task. Moreover, this is even going to result in the deaths of some of God’s people – Daniel and his friends. This is a terrible circumstance that no doubt resulted in great fear and anxiety for a large number of people.
Before moving on from this part of the story, however, I think we should ask a crucial question: why did this happen? Why would this circumstance come about? Interestingly, the text itself answers this question for us, and it makes clear that the dreams of Nebuchadnezzar were not just chance happenings but messages from God. Daniel himself declares later in the text, “…there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days” (2:28). After interpreting the dream, Daniel also declares, “A great God has made known to the king what shall be after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure” (2:45). It is clear from these statements that the ultimate cause of this entire scenario is God himself. But, we could ask, why would God initiate a scenario that would result in Nebuchadnezzar threatening to kill all of these people? It is because God knew His intention to reveal the dream to Daniel and make His wisdom and power known. In actuality, what looks like a terrible scenario that is snowballing toward disaster is actually the sovereign work of God in setting the stage for an amazing demonstration of His power and might.
This is a crucial point for us that we might easily miss. It is easy for us to ignore the fear and anxiety that the interpreters felt in the midst of this scenario because we know how the story turned out. But in our own situations of great tribulation and distress, we are gripped by fear and anxiety. We must understand that the same God who was orchestrating this circumstance is also orchestrating ours. The God who was setting the stage to prove His great wisdom and power is still setting the stage to prove those same things. We must use stories like this to bolster our faith in the midst of our own struggles. The God who promised Israel that He would deliver them and be with them was faithful to His promises – even when they were exiled because of their own sin. Routinely God brought His people into dire circumstances so that His power and might would be clearly seen. They were under the oppressive hand of Pharaoh before God mightily delivered them. They were pinned against the Red Sea before God parted the waters. They were confronted with gigantic walled cities and overwhelming enemy forces in the Promised Land before God gave the land into their hand. In the same way, God has promised that those of us who are in Christ will be delivered. Will he fail? Dare we doubt His promises because of our circumstances? God is always at work, and He often orchestrates terrible circumstances – like those of Daniel 2 – in order to more clearly demonstrate His power and might and wisdom.
The next scene of the story shifts attention from Nebuchadnezzar and his decree to the response of Daniel upon hearing of the decree. After hearing this news, Daniel goes to the very man instructed to kill him – Arioch, the king’s captain – and receives an explanation. Upon hearing the details, Daniel goes to the king and sets a time at which he can make known the dream to him (2:14-16). Here we see an interesting juxtaposition: the other wise men of Babylon despaired upon hearing Nebuchadnezzar’s demands because they assumed them impossible to fulfill, but Daniel actually responds as if the request can be fulfilled. What gives Daniel such confidence in this situation? The text makes clear that it is his trust in God as we read, “Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon” (2:17-18). Here is Daniel’s response and the reason for his confidence: he trusts that his God is able to solve the mystery for him. Rather than trusting in his own wisdom or the wisdom of the divination books and methods of the wise men of Babylon, Daniel is putting his trust in the incredible wisdom of God. In the midst of this disastrous situation, Daniel turns his attention to the Lord and pleads for mercy, and he asks his friends to do the same. And the text makes clear that Daniel’s faith is not in vain as it declares, “Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven” (2:19). In response to Daniel’s pleading, God shows mercy and tells Daniel the dream as well as its interpretation.
First, as we look at this part of the story, we must recognize the sheer superiority of God in this situation. God did the very thing that the Babylonian wise men said was impossible. In this contest, God showed his vast superiority over all other gods, triumphing over them. In a stunning reversal, God was able to do what all of the learning and instruction in the Babylonian literature and language was unable to do: impart true wisdom. This is the central point of this chapter, and it is a theological point rather than an ethical point: there is one God and it is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It is the God of Israel. It is the God of the Bible. God is all-wise, and He is all-powerful. We cannot meditate on these realities enough because truly understanding them will guard us, not from experiencing suffering or difficulty or tribulation, but from fear and anxiety. God alone reigns supreme.
That said, it is also important that we notice, and imitate, Daniel’s response: in a time of great distress, he sought the wisdom and counsel of the Lord! The reason he did this is because he truly understood the nature of God that we just discussed as he declares in his prayer of thanksgiving in 2:20-23, “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might. He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding; he reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him. To you, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, for you have given me wisdom and might, and have now made known to me what we asked of you, for you have made known to us the king’s matter.” Daniel turned to the Lord because he knew that the Lord was the source of all wisdom. Daniel knew that if a person possessed wisdom, it came from the Lord. He knew that if a person possessed knowledge, it came from the Lord. He knew that it was only the Lord who knows all things and possesses all wisdom. And he knew that if God possessed all wisdom and he needed wisdom, he ought to go to the source.
We must not miss this point, because it is crucial for us: God is ultimately in control of all things and possesses all power. He was wiser and more powerful than the Babylonian gods, and He is wiser and more powerful than anyone or anything that existed before Daniel’s time or has existed since Daniel’s time. God is sovereign over times and seasons and over the rise and fall of kings. God gives wisdom and knowledge and reveals difficult mysteries. God knows what is in the darkness because He is pure light. And just like Daniel, we ought to praise and exalt Him for this. And just like Daniel, we should seek wisdom and strength in the sovereign Lord and not in the false pretenders of this world. Daniel understood that true wisdom was found only in a relationship with the truly wise One, and it is the same today. As Proverbs says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
Moreover, we have a more precise understanding of this reality than Daniel because we understand that true wisdom comes only from a rightly submissive relationship to Jesus Christ, “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3). If we want to be truly wise – not by the world’s standards but in the ultimate way that rightly understands that all knowledge and wisdom is found in exalting Christ and glorifying God – then we must know Jesus Christ. Paul even calls Jesus “the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 1:24). Once we are rightly related to Jesus by repenting of our sins and believing in Him, Paul declares, “…you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord” (1 Cor. 1:30-31). Because of our new birth through faith in Christ, we understand the true nature of reality – that it exists to glorify God and exalt Jesus. Because of the work of our great high priest, we have access to the court of the almighty God so that we can seek His wisdom and help. As James declares, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him” (James 1:5). True wisdom comes only through a proper relation to the source of all wisdom – this was the case for Daniel and it is the case for us.
But, no doubt, many probably feel – even though they do trust in Christ – that they lack such wisdom. Oftentimes, we feel like ships without an anchor wandering through the many decisions of life and hoping that we have chosen rightly without any real faith or confidence. How do we gain assurance of this wisdom? Where does it come from? It comes from things that we already possess and have within our grasp. First, it comes from the presence of the Holy Spirit who is given to those who repent and believe in Jesus Christ. After highlighting Christ as the wisdom of God, Paul spends an entire chapter highlighting that those who are in Christ possess the incredible wisdom found in Him because they possess His Spirit. He declares, “For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God” (1 Cor. 2:11-12). He even closes the chapter by declaring, “'For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?' But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16). We do not overtake God in His possession of utmost wisdom and power, but we do possess His Spirit – the Spirit given to teach us all things remind us of everything Jesus said (John 14:26).
Moreover, we have the Scriptures which Paul tells Timothy “are able to make you wise for salvation thorugh faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:15). But the Scriptures are good not only for leading us to salvation but “for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16). As we immerse ourselves in the Scriptures, we will find ourselves becoming more and more wise because we will grow closer and closer to God and to the Savior, Jesus Christ. True wisdom is not an end in itself but the product of a relationship with the supremely wise One. If you want to be wise, know Christ and know the Scriptures. Pray that the Spirit of Christ who lives in you, and inspired the Scriptures, will teach you and guide you into all truth. Or more particularly, walk with the Wise and you will become wise. Walk with the Lord Jesus Christ, abide in Him, and you will be wise. You will bear much fruit.
After receiving the dream and its interpretation from the Lord, Daniel goes to Arioch, the king's captain, and sets up an audience with the king so that he might give the king the information. As Daniel comes before the king, there is an interesting exchange between Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar in which Daniel gives all praise and honor and glory to God rather than putting the attention on himself (2:24-30). He declares to the king, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, but here is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days” (2:27-28). Daniel is emphatic about taking this opportunity to highlight the greatness of his God, particularly in opposition to the other “wise men” of Babylon who were unable to do what was asked. In contrast to those who declared that the gods do not dwell with flesh (2:11), Daniel is clear that there is a God who reveals mysteries to people – the true God.
This is a bit of a side point, but we should take note of the sheer humility evidenced by Daniel in this instance. Here is a man who possesses a bit of knowledge that numerous other people wished they had and would have loved to have, but Daniel is faithful to turn the attention away from himself (even declaring, “this mystery has been revealed to me, not because of any wisdom that I have more than all the living” - 2:30) and direct it to God who had done this miracle. We should heed such wisdom. When God grants us grace and wisdom and deliverance, we should exalt Him for that. We should take note of the fact that before Daniel rushed off to tell the king the dream, he took time to thank God. And we should take note of the fact that when before the king, he pointed attention to God. God desires that He be known and worshiped and glorified and not that we be known and applauded. This should be our heart as well.
Once Daniel has come before the king, he proceeds to describe the dream to the king (2:31-35). In the dream, Nebuchadnezzar saw a huge statue made of various ingredients. The head was made of gold, the torso and arms of silver, the middle of bronze and the legs of iron. The feet were a mixture of iron and clay. Then, suddenly, a stone that was not made with human hands smashed into the statue and obliterated the various metals. The pieces were broken so small that they are like chaff and the wind blew them away so that none was left. Then, the stone that struck the statue turned into a great mountain and grew until it filled the whole earth. This was the dream that Nebuchadnezzar had seen.
After telling the king the dream, Daniel proceeds to interpret the dream for him (2:36-45). God sent the dream to Nebuchadnezzar to let him know what would happen in the future. It turns out that Nebuchadnezzar, and his kingdom, is the head of gold. The bronze torso represented an inferior kingdom that would overcome Babylon. The bronze middle signified yet another kingdom, and the iron pointed to a fourth kingdom that would overpower all the other kingdoms. However, this kingdom would be a divided kingdom that would not hold together because of weakness brought about through intermarriage. And in the midst of that fourth kingdom, Daniel made clear that God would set up a kingdom of His own – signified by the stone that was not made with human hands. Unlike the other kingdoms, this kingdom would fully crush all other kingdoms, bring them to an end, and last forever itself – never to be replaced by another. In short, this dream was God revealing the future to Nebuchadnezzar and letting him know that there would be a Kingdom of God that obliterated all other kingdoms and lasted forever.
With this understanding of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, we can understand the point of this story for us so many years later. All those many years ago, God was revealing His plan to Nebuchadnezzar, and the plan was to set up a Kingdom that would start small and expand until it filled the whole earth. This sort of imagery is found elsewhere in the Old Testament as Isaiah declares, “It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it, and many peoples shall come, and say: ‘come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths’” (Isa. 2:2-3). These sorts of pictures point to a mighty work of God that will grow larger and larger until it fills the earth – also echoing the mandate given to Adam in the garden (and reiterated to Noah after the flood) to fill the earth and subdue it. But the question remains: when and how will this kingdom come?
The answer to that question is found in the person and work of Jesus Christ. In short, the kingdom spoken about in this passage is the same Kingdom spoken about in the New Testament, and the ultimate bringer of this Kingdom is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Put even more clearly, the rock that appears in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel 2 points us to Christ. It is Christ who was given all authority in heaven and on earth because of his death and resurrection (Matt. 20:18) – truly making him King of Kings and Lord of Lords. It is Christ who served to bring the Kingdom of God (Matt. 3:2; Luke 17:21). More explicitly, in the parable of the tenants, Jesus speaks about the stone that the builders rejected which will crush those upon whom it falls and break in pieces those who stumble over it (Luke 20:9-18) – a very explicit reference to both Psalm 118:22 and the stone found in the dream of Daniel 2. In Acts 4:11, Peter clearly declares that the stone of Psalm 118 is Jesus Christ, implicitly linking Christ with Daniel 2 as well. The stone that destroys every other power is Christ, and Paul explicitly says that when he was raised from the dead, God seated him “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion” (Eph. 2:21). The ultimate kingdom described in Daniel 2 is the Kingdom of God, the Kingdom of Christ.
We also see this connection demonstrated in Jesus’ own description about the Kingdom of God. Just as the stone in Daniel 2 grew into a great mountain that filled the earth, Jesus described the Kingdom of God that he brought as being like a mustard seed that starts as a tiny seed before growing into a large tree. He also described the kingdom as being like a tiny bit of yeast put in a large batch of flour that spreads until the whole batch is leavened. Both of these images mirror the growth of the stone in Daniel 2. In short, we live in the fulfillment of this text in Daniel 2. The Kingdom to end all Kingdoms has come and is growing in the midst of us. If you repent of our sins and believe in Christ as our Savior, we will be part of this glorious Kingdom forever. If you do not repent and submit to Jesus Christ as King, then you will become like the statue described in Daniel 2 – crushed beneath the sovereign power of the One you rejected. In this way, the dream of Daniel 2 is extremely relevant for us today, and we are faced with the same decision Nebuchadnezzar faced. After hearing the dream and its interpretation, the text tells us that Nebuchadnezzar paid great homage to Daniel and Daniel’s God (2:46-49). He worshiped Daniel’s God as “God of gods and Lord of kings, and a revealer of mysteries” (2:47). Though it is clear from the events of Daniel 3 that Nebuchadnezzar’s actions did not spring from a changed heart but rather from an amazed mind, nevertheless the king does serve as a picture of the future day when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:10-11).
So, for those of us who are here, this passage from Daniel 2 is extremely relevant. God has kept the promise he made to Nebuchadnezzar in this chapter by bringing a Kingdom that will never end and that is growing to fill the whole earth. The only way to enter this Kingdom is by the narrow gate (Matt. 7:13), and Jesus is that gate. No one comes to Father except through Him (John 14:6). If you have never submitted yourself to Jesus Christ as Lord, repent and believe and you will be saved. If you do not, you will b crushed under the wrath of God.
Moreover, for those who have repented and trusted in Christ, this news about the Kingdom is relevant for our everyday lives. If you are in the midst of difficulty and suffering and tribulation, you can place your hope in the coming Kingdom that will ultimately destroy every other kingdom and do away with suffering and sin and death. If things are going well for us in this physical world, it reminds us that the kingdom of this world is passing away. We should not store up treasures here on earth but rather in heaven. It causes us to examine our allegiances and passions. Does our heart hunger and thirst for righteousness or do we ache for another taste of this world of shifting sand (Todd Agnew)? Does our time and our money show an allegiance to a kingdom that is being blown away like chaff or to a kingdom that is solid and enduring? We must remember that whoever builds his house on the sand will lose it in the storm, but whoever builds his house on the rock will stand firm. Children, you need to know that all kinds of people and things will try to convince you that they are the greatest thing in the world, but you need to remember that only the Kingdom of God will last forever. Parents, teach and show your children that the Kingdom of God endures forever and is more valuable than the kingdoms of this world.
In short, Daniel 2 is a reminder to us, in the form of a story, that God is all-powerful and all-wise, sovereign over all things. Moreover, as sovereign ruler of all things, He has made clear that He is going to establish a Kingdom that will last forever. This Kingdom has come in the person of Jesus Christ. Daniel 2 also points us forward to Him. As we come to the table, we are remembering the Rock who has been given all authority because of His sacrificial death in our place. His body was broken and His blood was shed so that the Kingdom of God would be inhabited by people from every tongue, tribe and nation. Let us celebrate the work of our Rock this morning and rejoice in the grace and mercy we have received through Him. Amen.