Don’t
Be a Spectator (Part one)
In
the last number of weeks we have studied the life of Daniel and his three
friends; Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.
Throughout each chapter they showed resilient character coupled with a sincere
devotion to God. In each chapter Nebuchadnezzar the king is exposed to their
faith and the courage they displayed, and each time he makes bold statements in
recognition of the way God helped them in wisdom or preserved them from fatal
consequences. The curious thing is that although throughout these chapters King
Nebuchadnezzar’s admiration and appreciation for their faith is sincere, he
always looked upon their belief system as something that was for the Hebrew
people and not applicable to himself. The way Nebuchadnezzar approached true
faith in the living God is truly a picture of how many see God today. They
prefer to be spectators rather than truly become engaged in a living
relationship that would cause a change in heart, perspective, and lifestyle. In
chapter 2:46-449, it shows how he honored Daniel with incense, honor, gifts and
a promotion but never applied the God of Daniel to his own life. In chapter
3:29 he passed a decree that would encourage all peoples in his kingdom to
respect the Hebrew God but once again he dismissed that it was not for him.
Some of the main sin issues in the existence of
mankind through the ages is the sin of idolatry and
the sin of pride. In chapter 3 we see a combination of the two with
Nebuchadnezzar building a 90 foot statue to honor himself and his kingdom. The
Babylonian kingdom under his rule truly was successful in military might,
technology and cultural advancements. In chapter 4 the writing is expressed in
a testimonial tone from King Nebuchadnezzar himself.
The beginning three verses he declares God’s goodness
in his life and then he begins to tell us his story. He tells us how he saw a
dream (beginning in verse 4) which describes his life, contented and prosperous
yet the visions and images of the dream disturbed him to the point of being
terrified. He once again returns to the well of wisdom that he is comfortable
with; his own wise men in
In verse 19, Daniel begins to answer with fear in his
own heart and tells the king he is the tree described! The ensuing explanation
showed how the king himself would be that individual that would live and be
like a wild animal, his nails and hair would grow and he would live like a wild
beast in the field and seven years would pass by in that state. In verse 27 of
chapter 4, Daniel gives him the only way he could avoid this happening to him.
“Therefore, O king, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing
what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be
that then your prosperity will continue”. Nebuchadnezzar did not listen and one
year later as he walked on the roof of his palace in his pride he completely
lost his mind in a condition known as Boanthropy.
Nebuchadnezzar states that his hair grew long like eagles
feathers and his nails like the claws of a bird. There is an illness called Boanthropy in which a man's mind sinks into insanity and he
thinks that he is an animal and begins to live like one. Medically, the disease
of Boanthropy is a condition where the sufferer
believes that they are an ox. The disease displays itself first by a tendency
toward green vegetables and is therefore indistinguishable from vegetarianism.
However, the next stage (which occurs about five months after symptoms first
appear) is unique to this particular mental condition where the sufferer will
develop a liking for grass and some species of wild flowers. At this stage the
condition is irreversible. The third stage, characterized by mooing and
snorting and the deep urge to plow fields, occurs only two months after
symptoms first appear. This stage can last up to five years but always results
in coma and death, therefore it is not an affliction
to be taken lightly.
As we have run out of space we will continue next
week and apply how Nebuchadnezzar’s behaviour and our
own refusal to accept God’s voice speaking to us, can truly take our lives in
the wrong direction.
By:
Pastor David Jones