Paragraph # 1 Study # 1
November 6, 2022
Broadlands, Louisiana
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Thesis: The promise was, again, validated as trustworthy and the king was, again, moved to recognize the superiority of Yahweh.
Introduction: In our last study we considered how Nebuchadnezzar was moved to acknowledge Yahweh as a God of gods and a Lord of kings on the basis of His ability to reveal mysteries, rather than the military might of a people who claimed a lesser "god".
However, as we shall see in this chapter, the king was not at all willing for Yahweh to be "his" king...even though he acknowledged Him to be "a Lord of kings", and this resistance to "the Lord of kings" was the fruit of a deeper root.
- I. The Opening Statement.
- A. Nebuchadnezzar the king set up a massive "god" (3:12-13) on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
- 1. It was all of gold.
- 2. It was sixty cubits tall and six cubits wide.
- 3. It was also a not-even-subtle declaration that he was attempting to alter the decreed outcome of his vision.
- a. It did not seem to matter that his action was totally inane: even Nebuchadnezzar knew that all men die.
- b. It was an outlandish act of grandstanding with the intention of forcing everyone to accept his rule as permanent.
- B. This response by Nebuchadnezzar reveals how little regard he had for "gods" and their "words".
- 1. He was used to "oracles" that were either completely false, or they were so full of possible interpretations that no one could be sure what they meant.
- 2. It did not matter to this king that Daniel's interpretation was not ambiguous at all.
- II. The King's Requirement Of "Over-the-top" Displays.
- A. A repetitious list of the required attendees.
- B. A repetitious list of the king's decree regarding the musical instruments to be played.
- C. A doubling-down on the reason for the charges to be lodged against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego.
- III. The Crisis In The King's Court.
- A. The king gives the three a "second chance" to submit.
- B. He challenges the ability of their "God" to deliver them from him.
- C. The three flatly reject his demand in no uncertain terms "even if" their God did not deliver them.
- IV. The King's Reaction.
- A. He was in a rage of anger and went into another exercise of "over-the-top" behavior.
- B. But he was totally frustrated by Yahweh as He kept even the smell of fire from touching them.
- V. The Outcome.
- A. The king decided to promote himself as one capable of pronouncing a blessing upon Yahweh and becoming His guardian from "insult".
- B. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were caused to prosper in the province of Babylon.
- VI. Daniel's Point.
- A. There was a long distance between the king's actual "heart" and the words of his "mouth".
- B. And Yahweh was in the process of humiliating him.
