The Everlasting Dominion (Daniel 4:1–37)

You have heard of Iron Man, and Batman, and Spider-man, and Superman, but have you heard of GoatMan?

Thomas Thwaites is a British designer and writer who, in 2016, spent time in the Alps living as a goat. Using prosthetic goat-like legs, and eating grass like a goat, he spent the time exploring the life of goats. This resulted in the publication of GoatMan: How I Took a Holiday from Being Human and earned him an IgNobel prize, which is a satirical award recognising trivial scientific achievements “that first make people laugh, and then make them think.” (Honestly, I’m not sure that many people have moved past the laughing stage of GoatMan’s experiment!)

When asked by BBC’s Science Focus magazine why he wanted to live like a goat, he replied,

Humans have been thinking about what it would be like to be an animal for thousands of years. There are cave paintings depicting creatures that are half animal, half human. I wanted to see how close science and technology could take us towards fulfilling this ancient human dream. I wanted to take a holiday from being human and see the world through animal eyes.

Fair enough, but why, specifically, a goat? Thwaites replied, “Goats were one of the earliest species to be domesticated. They’re independent, curious creatures that like climbing. I like climbing, so it seemed like the perfect fit. I also visited a shaman, and she told me to become a goat.”

Though he had his prosthetics specially designed, Thwaites recalls that trotting on a flat surface was fine “but it was terrifying going down steep slopes.” While preparing for this experiment, he learned that goats have no episodic memory but live in the here and now. He sought a neuroscientist to meddle with his memory. Happily, he could not find such a mad scientist, but he did eventually use transcranial magnetic stimulation to temporarily interfere with the Broca’s area of his brain. “It made it hard to get my words out. It was a weird sensation.”

It gets stranger. When asked about what he ate, he replied, “My goal was to just eat grass, so I wore an artificial rumen, the stomach-like bag used by ruminants to partially digest their food. I’d pick grass with my mouth, chew it then spit it into the silicon bag where it would ferment. Then I’d suck some out through a straw.” Unfortunately, this provided insufficient nutrients for a human—even GoatMan—“so I had to eat the odd Mars bar from my friend’s outstretched hand.”

What was it like to live with goats?

It was a visceral experience. At first, they were nervous of me, but then they got curious and came up and started sniffing my beard. I slept in the shed with them at night and hung out with them in the fields during the day. After a few days, the goatherd said he thought they’d accepted me as one of their own, and gave me an honorary goat bell.

Did he feel as if he had made any goat friends? “Yes. I noticed I was hanging out with one goat more than the others. We followed each other around. It was nice.”

The experiment lasted a week. And “it was nice.” There is another story of a man who lived like a goat, but it lasted much longer, and it certainly wasn’t “nice.” To hear that man’s story, we turn not to Science Focus magazine, but to the Bible—specifically to Daniel 4.

As we have worked our way through the book of Daniel, we have witnessed Nebuchadnezzar slowly moving toward recognition of Yahweh’s utter sovereignty. Chapter 4 is a breaking point, however. In this chapter, the proud king would be finally humbled to recognise and bow to the all-encompassing sovereignty of Daniel’s God.

The chapter can be divided into three broad sections—Nebuchadnezzar’s declaration (vv. 1–3); Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (vv. 4–33); and Nebuchadnezzar’s doxology (vv. 34–37). The second section can be further subdivided into three parts: the dream revealed (vv. 4–18); the dream interpreted (vv. 19–27); and the dream fulfilled (vv. 28–33).

Let’s walk through the chapter together as we seek to understand its purpose and draw some lessons from it.

Nebuchadnezzar’s Declaration

The opening verses set the stage for a proper interpretation of the chapter:

King Nebuchadnezzar to all peoples, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you! It has seemed good to me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God has done for me.

 

How great are his signs,

how mighty his wonders!

His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,

and his dominion endures from generation to generation.

(Daniel 4:1–3)

The writer’s burden, as it has been throughout Daniel, and will continue to be in the remaining chapters, is to highlight Yahweh’s sovereignty. In this chapter, that sovereignty is set against human pride (v. 37), but we must not miss the overriding theme of sovereignty as we seek to apply the truths of the chapter: “His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion endures from generation to generation.”

It may be helpful to address one matter up front. One of the primary sceptical objections to the events recorded in this chapter is that no Babylonian record exists to corroborate the Bible’s claim to Nebuchadnezzar’s insanity.

Apologists have proposed at least three solutions to this problem.

First, some have suggested that the Nebuchadnezzar of this chapter was not the Nebuchadnezzar of the earlier chapters. There is some evidence that Nabonidus, who ruled Babylon some six years after Nebuchadnezzar’s death, also referred to himself by the title Nebuchadnezzar. Nabonidus was not biologically related to Nebuchadnezzar but seemingly adopted the title to maintain continuity with earlier Babylonian kings. Babylonian records record a period of seven years in which Nabonidus fell ill and was unable to continue governing Babylon. If we identify Nabonidus as the Nebuchadnezzar of this chapter, his seven years of illness might refer to the events recorded here.

It is possible that the man of chapter 4 was not the same man as in the opening three chapters, but I don’t find the argument too compelling.

A second solution asks whether it is really all that surprising that Babylonian records would exclude events that humiliate their greatest king. Records of royal greatness were zealously guarded, and perhaps even exaggerated, by ancient peoples, but most historians (the biblical authors excepted) were not commonly known to include the failures of their heroes. It would not be out of the ordinary for Babylonian scribes to completely sweep Nebuchadnezzar’s insanity under the carpet.

Third, the events recorded here may be attested by silence. Nebuchadnezzar II—beyond dispute, the Nebuchadnezzar of chapters 1–3—mysteriously, and without explanation, disappeared from Babylonian records from 582 BC to 575 BC, a period of seven years. Ancient records show no governmental record whatsoever on his part during these seven years, though such activity resumes after 575 BC. It is possible that those seven years of silence coincide with his insanity revealed in this chapter.

However we answer that sceptical objection, we must remember that Daniel 4 is a Babylonian record of these events. Nebuchadnezzar himself recorded the words of this chapter. For sceptics to claim that there is no Babylonian record of these events is to dismiss the testimony here without giving it a fair hearing.

Leaving these sceptical considerations aside, the purpose of this chapter is to reveal to us the greatness, might, and everlasting kingdom of Yahweh. This is not primarily a chapter about Nebuchadnezzar. Its intent is that we will ourselves bow to the great King of the ages; that we will recognise that “his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion endures from generation to generation.”

Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream

The bulk of the chapter is taken with the revelation, interpretation, and fulfilment of Nebuchadnezzar’s God-given dream.

The Dream Revealed

The dream is revealed in vv. 4–18.

I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and prospering in my palace. I saw a dream that made me afraid. As I lay in bed the fancies and the visions of my head alarmed me. So I made a decree that all the wise men of Babylon should be brought before me, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream. Then the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers came in, and I told them the dream, but they could not make known to me its interpretation. At last Daniel came in before me—he who was named Belteshazzar after the name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods—and I told him the dream, saying, “O Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that no mystery is too difficult for you, tell me the visions of my dream that I saw and their interpretation. The visions of my head as I lay in bed were these: I saw, and behold, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great. The tree grew and became strong, and its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth. Its leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in it was food for all. The beasts of the field found shade under it, and the birds of the heavens lived in its branches, and all flesh was fed from it.

 

“I saw in the visions of my head as I lay in bed, and behold, a watcher, a holy one, came down from heaven. He proclaimed aloud and said thus: ‘Chop down the tree and lop off its branches, strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches. But leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, amid the tender grass of the field. Let him be wet with the dew of heaven. Let his portion be with the beasts in the grass of the earth. Let his mind be changed from a man’s, and let a beast’s mind be given to him; and let seven periods of time pass over him. The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, the decision by the word of the holy ones, 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.’ This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, saw. And you, O Belteshazzar, tell me the interpretation, because all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me the interpretation, but you are able, for the spirit of the holy gods is in you.”

(Daniel 4:4–18)

Nebuchadnezzar recalls a particularly troubling dream that came to him during a time of great ease and prosperity. He quickly summonsed all the wise men—“the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers”—to interpret the dream for him. Those who think that the Nebuchadnezzar of this chapter was different to the Nebuchadnezzar of earlier chapters suggest that Nebuchadnezzar’s summons supports their claim. Why would Nebuchadnezzar not immediately call for Daniel, given his experience with Daniel in chapter 2?

In response, we might think of our own spiritual amnesia. How quick we are to forget God’s providence in our past. God does great things for us, and we promise ourselves that we will never forget, but before long his past kindnesses become a haze we can barely remember.

The disciples offer us a perfect illustration of this truth. When Jesus warned them to be careful of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees, they thought he was angry with them for forgetting to bring bread. Jesus replied, “Do you not yet perceive? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread?” (Matthew 16:9–11). It should not surprise us that Nebuchadnezzar would forget Daniel despite his earlier ministry in the king’s presence.

When Daniel eventually came before the king, the king revealed the dream to him and asked for its interpretation. The dream centred on a colossal tree, which stood in the middle of the land, providing shade and food for the animals of the land. Before long, a watcher—some sort of angelic being—commanded that the tree be cut down but that its stump be “bound with a band of iron and bronze.” Nobody is entirely sure of the purpose of the band of iron and bronze, though it presumably served as some sort of protection against the tree being entirely uprooted.

At this point, the dream’s imagery changes. The tree becomes a man, whose sanity is removed and replaced with the mind of an animal for “seven periods of time” (presumably seven years). The purpose of this period of insanity is clearly stated: “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.” The purpose of the chapter is again reiterated. We are meant to walk away from this chapter impressed by divine sovereignty.

We must pause to reflect on the purpose of this chapter. We live in a time of great political turmoil. The uncertainties of the unjust war waged in eastern Europe leave us all a little unsettled. Are we headed for World War III? Will fuel prices indeed rise to R40 a litre, as some economists have predicted? With fuel prices rising, will Eskom run out of funds to purchase fuel to keep its electrical generators running? Are we in for a dark, cold winter? Should we join the panic buying sprees as we anticipate prices of basic necessities skyrocketing in months to come? We simply don’t know.

But we do know one thing. We 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.” God can humble and remove Vladimir Putin tomorrow because God, not Vladimir Putin, rules the kingdom of men. Our trust is not in the UN or NATO or in the military might of powerful nations but in the God who gives the kingdom of men to whomever he chooses.

We sometimes give far too much credit to political authorities. We are tempted at election time to vote pragmatically rather than principally because the only hope for our country is the political party of our choosing. Or so we think. We forget that God is on his throne ordering the events of world history, calling us to trust him even when things don’t immediately make sense.

The Dream Interpreted

Nebuchadnezzar pleaded with Daniel to interpret the dream, which he did in vv. 19–27:

Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was dismayed for a while, and his thoughts alarmed him. The king answered and said, “Belteshazzar, let not the dream or the interpretation alarm you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you and its interpretation for your enemies! The tree you saw, which grew and became strong, so that its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth, whose leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in which was food for all, under which beasts of the field found shade, and in whose branches the birds of the heavens lived—it is you, O king, who have grown and become strong. Your greatness has grown and reaches to heaven, and your dominion to the ends of the earth. And because the king saw a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Chop down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field, and let him be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven periods of time pass over him,’ this is the interpretation, O king: It is a decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king, that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. And as it was commanded to leave the stump of the roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be confirmed for you from the time that you know that Heaven rules. 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.”

(Daniel 4:19–27)

Daniel had been captive in the land of Babylon for decades. He and his friends had faced all manner of threat from the powers that be. We might forgive him for eagerly anticipating Babylon’s downfall. But that’s not who he was.

When Daniel heard the dream, he was disturbed—not because of what it meant to his beloved Israelites but because of what it meant for King Nebuchadnezzar. He “was dismayed for a while, and his thoughts alarmed him.” So obvious was his dismay that the king was alarmed: “Belteshazzar, let not the dream or the interpretation alarm you.” “Forget it, Daniel! I didn’t know how upsetting this would be for you. We’ll find another way of interpreting the dream.” Daniel responded with great humility: “My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you and its interpretation for your enemies!” Daniel could not bear the thought of God’s judgement falling on Nebuchadnezzar.

Daniel is a good example to us in this regard. We should never take delight in the thought of God’s judgement falling on people—even on those who oppress us. I remember, as a far younger Christian, watching Disney’s The Prince of Egyptwhen it was released in theatres. I walked in with the specific goal of spotting all the biblical errors in the films. One of the most glaring was Moses’s shock to learn that he was an Israelite and his gut-wrenching sorrow at seeing God’s judgement fall on his beloved home. The Bible teaches, of course, that Moses knew he was an Israelite and, refusing to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, chose to suffer affliction as an Israelite rather than enjoying the pleasures of sin for a season (Hebrews 11:24–26). I imagined Moses gloating over the Egyptian overlords as plague after plague assaulted the nation. In retrospect, however, I imagine that the filmmakers captured his emotions more accurately than I first thought. Once God had humbled him in the wilderness for forty years, I imagine he returned to Egypt a changed man, saddened to witness God’s devastation befall those who would not believe. That was certainly Daniel’s attitude. It should be ours.

We should long to see God’s enemies delivered from his judgement and boldly preach to them that deliverance is possible through Christ. After Daniel had interpreted the dream, he pleaded with Nebuchadnezzar to repent (v. 27). His passion was to see sinners bow to Christ and he boldly preached accordingly.

The interpretation itself was straightforward. The tree represented Nebuchadnezzar. As the tree was cut down, Nebuchadnezzar would be dethroned. The roots were preserved because his removal would not be final. The specific judgement would be a form of insanity by which he would become like an animal for “seven periods of time.” At the end of that time, he would acknowledge Yahweh’s rule and would be restored.

The Dream Fulfilled

For a year, the dream remained unfulfilled—either due to the Lord’s patience or because Nebuchadnezzar temporarily heeded Daniel’s warning. But the reprieve didn’t last.

All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of twelve months he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, and the king answered and said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” While the words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles’ feathers, and his nails were like birds’ claws.

(Daniel 4:28–33)

Unlike GoatMan, this was not a “nice” experience for Nebuchadnezzar—nor was it a brief experiment. For seven years, he was driven into the fields and lived among the animals. His insanity was fully realised.

From a human perspective, everything that Nebuchadnezzar claimed was true. History recognises Nebuchadnezzar as a particularly gifted architect and Babylon was indeed a land of great beauty and wonder. The Hanging Gardens were one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The perimeter wall of Babylon was so thick that a four-horse chariot could easily perform a U-turn. Babylon was, indeed, an impressive sight. He failed to recognise, however, that all he had built came from Yahweh’s gracious hand and therefore failed to give Yahweh the honour that was due his name. His arrogance was his downfall.

Nebuchadnezzar believed that his authority was ultimate, but the text has reminded us, time and again, that Yahweh rules over the kingdom of men. Many politicians today share Nebuchadnezzar’s hubris. But it is not only kings and presidents who fall into this trap. Too often, we are guilty of the same pride in our own little kingdoms. We take the credit for the success of our business, or our family, or our education without giving a second thought to the God who grants our success. This is the sort of pride that angers God and we do well to be warned from this text against such arrogance. Ray Ortlund is correct: “Refusing to humble ourselves before God is the essence of sin. It spawns all the misguided, destructive attempts at self-salvation that make life so rotten.”

We are too easily attracted and impressed by power. We borderline idolise strong leaders who promise to deliver us from our problems and give us a life of comfort and ease. Politicians know this, which is why they so often (and so successfully) campaign on that platform. But Christianity should view the world differently. Christianity’s strength lies in its weakness. Christianity preaches the gospel of the God who humbled himself, took on human flesh, and became obedient to death on the cross. He serves as the model for the way that we should order our lives (Philippians 2:5–11).

Nebuchadnezzar’s Doxology

Insanity was not Nebuchadnezzar’s end.

At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honoured him who lives forever,

 

for his dominion is an everlasting dominion,

and his kingdom endures from generation to generation;

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?”

 

At the same time my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and splendour returned to me. My counsellors and my lords sought me, and I was established in my kingdom, and still more greatness was added to me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honour 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.

(Daniel 4:34–37)

God’s judgement had its desired effect. Nebuchadnezzar was duly humbled and, for the first time in the book, confessed his personal allegiance to Yahweh. This time, he did not reward Daniel. He did not command others to worship Daniel’s God. This time, it was personal. “I blessed the Most High.” “Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honour 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.”

As an aside, let me urge you that God wants to do business with you. It is insufficient that your parents are church members or that your children faithfully attend Sunday school. God is not interested in you having the right theological answers but in seeing you bow to him. He wants you to praise and extol and honour him. The gospel is about more than you and your personal relationship with Jesus, but it is not about less than that. It does no good for you to say the right words or have the right answers if you do not have the right disposition before him.

As we draw our time to a close, however, I want to zoom in on the primary focus of this text. Lessons about humility and personal confession before God are secondary, though not unimportant. The real lesson of the text, however, is that God is in control. Daniel’s original readers—exiles in Babylon—needed to learn to learn to root their confidence in Yahweh in the presence of a seemingly all-powerful human ruler. Nebuchadnezzar and Nabonidus and Belshazzar and Darius and Cyrus were all puppets in the true Sovereign’s hand.

Of course, while divine sovereignty is the overriding lesson we must learn, we acknowledge that its application will look different in our lives. We have not been abducted from our homes and forced into slave labour to an idolatrous despot. But if God could effortlessly reduce the most powerful man in the most sophisticated city in the world to a beast-like state in the wilderness (as Tremper Longman puts it), we should trust him when providence and the enemies of God’s truth seem to prevail against us.

Christians in North Korea and Afghanistan and Ukraine should find comfort in this text. They should trust that God is in control and is ordering world events for his good purposes. But so should we in the face of crippling disease or disability, psychological disorder, or terminal disease. We all live with the frustration and chaos of a sin-cursed world, and yet we must remember that “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?’”

If we are persuaded of this truth, we must pray in faith that God will humble the proud enemies that exalt themselves against his authority. We should pray for the overthrow of military despots who wage unjust wars against innocent people. Pray that God will humble your abusive spouse or your rebellious teenager. But pray also that he will help you to trust him in the face of your dread disease or psychological disorder. “His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation.”

At the same time, let us learn that shame can be redemptive. Nebuchadnezzar’s shame certainly was. We tend to think of shame as inherently evil, but God often lifts his people from the ash heap of shame to embrace them in his powerful and loving arms.

The God of the Bible can turn shame into rejoicing. He can do so because he subjected himself to the shame of the cross. He “endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2). Through Christ, our shame can be turned into eternal rejoicing, and we can live lives of deep trust in his sovereign rule over the kingdoms of men.

Will you ask God to help you rest in his sovereignty?

AMEN