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Daniel's account gives us a fascinating glimpse into God's sovereignty. God has granted Nebuchadnezzar incredible power and majesty so that even the wild animals and birds of the air are under his control, yet the king is powerless over a simple dream, because he is unable to understand what it means. In this chapter we see a sharp contrast between the king's response to his dilemma and that of Daniel when told he would be executed. The king turns to his own resources and brute strength in an effort to solve his problem, while Daniel turns immediately to God in an attitude of humility and peace. Daniel 2:1-3 In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, the king dreamed dreams, and his spirit was troubled, and his sleep went from him. Then the king commanded to have the magicians, astrologers, sorcerers and Chaldeans called to show the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king. And the king said to them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the meaning of the dream. Nebuchadnezzar's "second year" of reign was actually the third since his crowning, because Babylonians did not count the year he became king. It is likely that as this event took place, Daniel had not yet completed his three-year training program. Daniel is not included among the wise men who are called before the king. However, later in the narrative we see that he is allowed to go in and see the king, which suggests a familiarity that may be the result of the interview with Nebuchadnezzar mentioned in chapter 1. Dreams were important to people of the Chaldean Empire, and still are today throughout the Middle Eastern world. People in those cultures have long considered them messages from the gods. The plurality of the term here suggests that the same dream was repeated over several nights, which would have indeed troubled the king greatly if he could not understand it. Daniel 2:4-6 Then the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic, "O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the meaning." The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, "The word from me is certain: if you will not make known to me the dream, with the meaning of it, you will be made into limbs, and your houses will be made a dunghill. But if you describe the dream, and the meaning of it, you will receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour. Therefore show me the dream, and the interpretation of it." From this point through the end of chapter 7, Daniel changes from the Hebrew language to the Gentile language of the day, Aramaic. This uses the same characters as Hebrew, just as Spanish uses the same characters as English. Chapters 2 through 7 of Daniel deal primarily with Gentile history, while chapter 1 and 8 through 12 deal primarily with Jewish issues and are thus written in Hebrew. Chapter 4 is not only written in Aramaic but is written by a Gentile! The term "live forever" is an early version of our modern day "long live the king." It doesn't refer to an immortal life but is meant to honor the length or scope of the kingdom the king has established or represents. Some English Bibles interpret verse 5 as "cut into pieces." There is in fact no reference to cutting instruments. The proper interpretation is "torn limb from limb" which refers to a common form of Babylonian torture in which the victim was tied to four trees bent towards each other, then the binding of the trees was cut so they sprang apart and literally tore the body into five parts. The phrase "the thing is gone from me" appears in the King James translation in verse 5. In fact, the Aramaic says something more akin to "the word from me is (assured or certain)" indicating that Nebuchadnezzar was referring to his own words as a command of authority. In that context, the KJV is a weak translation and the more modern Bibles are more accurate. It is still early in the king's reign. Nebuchadnezzar had inherited these advisors from his father. He probably despised them and saw them as little more than con artists. Chances are that as a crown prince he saw much corruption in their ranks. His unreasonable challenge was an opportunity to prove them as fakes and get rid of them. What a way to trim the royal payroll. Daniel 2:7-9 They answered again and said, "Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will explain the meaning of it." The king answered, "I know with certainty that you are only trying to gain time [because you see my word is gone forth from me]. But if you will not make known to me the dream, there is but one decree for you, for you have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, hoping to delay things. Therefore tell me the dream, and I will know that you can show me the meaning of it." Notice that the king says they have conspired to tell him misleading things. Clearly there is more to what they have claimed than we see in the text. They've obviously told him in the past that they are capable of things such as knowing what someone has dreamed. Perhaps even when first bringing them together he tested them by asking if they had such powers. In either case, they have placed their feet firmly in their mouths and are about to pay the ultimate penalty. Again the KJV Bible oddly interprets the king's reference to his own word of authority as "you see the thing is gone from me" which is quite a different meaning if one reads it as meaning he has forgotten the dream. Daniel 2:10-11 The Chaldeans answered the king, and said, "There is not a man upon the earth who can show the king's matter. Therefore there is no king, lord, nor ruler, that asked such things of any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean. And it is a rare thing that the king requires, and there is no one else who can show it before the king, except the gods, and they don't live among men." These men have no idea how true their statement is. They are merely trying to save their skins. Although they are probably quite devout, they likely don't have a deep conviction of faith in their gods. Yet what they say -- that only God can reveal such things -- is completely true and Daniel is about to bring that truth into the light. Daniel 2:12 This made the king angry and extremely furious, and he commanded to have all the wise men of Babylon destroyed. Why is the king's anger so aroused by their statement? These men are probably suggesting he is not tuned into the gods of the Babylonians. Their words are an insult to the king, because his role is traditionally seen as that of a servant managing the affairs of the gods on earth. He is supposed to be in touch with the gods. Their statement shows a lack of respect for his position and authority. Notice how impulsive Nebuchadnezzar is. When he has a problem, he resorts to brute strength to solve it. His rash solution will not actually solve his problem in any way. The only problem it does solve is to reduce the royal budget and rid him of corrupt advisors. Killing them won't explain the dream. |
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