10/10/21 – Daniel 2:46-49
Daniel 2:46 – Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face, and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odours unto him.
should offer – nᵉcak (Aramaic) (to
pour out; to offer a sacrifice)
an oblation – minchah (Aramaic) (gift;
offering; meal offering) An offering gift showing homage or respect.
sweet odours – niychowach
(Aramaic) (soothing; tranquilising) Literally the savour of contentment. A
calming odour, such as produced by incense.
All these clearly demonstrate that Nebuchadnezzar was treating Daniel as
an idol to be worshipped.
worshipped – cᵉgid (Aramaic) (to
prostrate oneself; do homage; worship) It is translated “worship”, “worshipped” or “worshippeth”
in each of its 12 uses in Daniel. It was typically used of people worshipping
an idol of some kind. Its Hebrew equivalent (cagad
– to prostrate oneself in worship) also is used to denote worship of an idol
in each of its 4 occurrences. Nebuchadnezzar must have realised that Daniel was
not God (se Vs 47 below) but he must have still regarded Daniel with having
some sort of supernatural ability that only gods were supposed to have. What
Daniel has just done (that is, accurately declaring the king’s dream and its
interpretation) must have been beyond the king’s comprehension. In spite of Nebuchadnezzar having threatened his wise men
with death if they couldn’t do the same, he now accords Daniel with special
powers or authority for being able to know the answers.
It is possible that Nebuchadnezzar had thought his wise men were
boasting too much of their powers and abilities, and therefore had decided put
them to the test by demanding answers that required special ability beyond
normal man. Perhaps his wise men had boasted of such powers in order to be seen
as important in the eyes of other, more common people. (The pharisees were also
very good at pretending to be much more religious than the rest of the common
people.) Maybe Nebuchadnezzar had decided to test their superior claims, to see
if they could deliver on what they seemed to be promising. Like the person who
boasts of his great ability to do something; then show us how you can do it and
let’s see if you are as good as you say you are. Or
the person who is selling a medicine that can “cure” everything; then let us
see people being healed by your medicine. (Of course, many of these snake-oil
salesmen of the past would have hired help in the crowd to come forward with
testimonies of its healing power!) So, when put to the test, these wise men are
forced to admit that it is actually beyond them to do
it, that only the gods themselves can do such things. It is likely that if any
survived the executions, they would be much more careful to only boast of those
things which they could actually do!
So, when Daniel delivers the goods, Nebuchadnezzar is apparently so
amazed that he accords Daniel with special powers that only gods are supposed
to have (Daniel 2:11). He worships
Daniel, maybe not as the God of gods, but as a special envoy of God who has
been given special powers above that of ordinary man.
It was common for people in the past to consider any unusual knowledge
as having spiritual connections. In the NT, a man named Simon had used sorcery
(probably by demonic power) that made people think he had powers beyond normal
man.
Acts 8:9-10 – 9But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the
people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one: 10To
whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.
Simon then asked Peter if he could have the powers
that Peter had, and even offered to pay for them. It appears that he considered
Peter’s power as superior to his own and thus he wanted a share of it as well.
Acts 8:18-20 – 18And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands
the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, 19Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he
may receive the Holy Ghost. 20But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that
the gift of God may be purchased with money.
It wasn’t all that many
centuries ago when the ability by an “unqualified” person to heal using natural
remedies could attract the charge of witchcraft, usually punishable by death.
Any person who was not “normal” could be seen as being demon-possessed. This wasn’t all that much different to Nebuchadnezzar seeing
Daniel as an idol to be worshipped because of his special knowledge. That which
they couldn’t comprehend they accorded to supernatural
or demonic powers.
After healing a crippled man, Paul and Barnabas
were declared to be gods in the likeness of men.
Acts 14:8-12 – 8And there sat a certain man at Lystra, impotent in his feet,
being a cripple from his mother’s womb, who never had walked: 9The
same heard Paul speak: who stedfastly beholding him,
and perceiving that he had faith to be healed, 10Said with a loud
voice, Stand upright on thy feet. And he leaped and walked. 11And
when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in
the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us
in the likeness of men. 12And they called Barnabas, Jupiter; and
Paul, Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker.
Daniel 2:47 – The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth [it is], that your God [is] a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret.
Of a truth – or “certainly” or “it is certain”. According to Nebuchadnezzar it is established beyond all reasonable doubt (that Daniel’s God is a God of gods and a Lord of kings).
a God of gods – The superiority of God above all other acknowledged gods. God’s supreme sovereignty acknowledged.
a Lord of kings – He is sovereign over all kings; all kings are therefore inferior to Daniel’s God.
Because Daniel could reveal this secret (dream) of Nebuchadnezzar by obtaining this knowledge from his God, then his God must be the ultimate revealer of secrets. Daniel knew because his God knew. Nebuchadnezzar also is pointing out that if a god might know such an answer, then Daniel’s God would know more, maybe all answers. Whatever knowledge a god might be expected to have, Daniel’s God would have more knowledge than any of the gods. Therefore, because of His omniscience (all-knowing), God can be acknowledged as the Lord of kings. If gods might know some things, then the God who knows more things, maybe all things, would know all things about all people, even kings. Knowledge is power as the saying goes, so all knowledge is all power, and all power is attributed to the God of gods and Lord of kings.
Hebrews 4:13 – Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things [are] naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
Nebuchadnezzar acknowledges that Daniel’s knowledge of this secret was dependent upon his God’s understanding of such things. Therefore, if Daniel is an idol or god worthy of worship, then his God is even more worthy of worship.
It is possible that at this point Daniel may have declared his God to be the “revealer of secrets” in order to deflect the king’s worship away from Daniel. He “answered” (responded or replied to) Daniel which suggests that Daniel may have said something about being worshipped as a god.
Daniel 2:48 – Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise [men] of Babylon.
great – rᵉbah (Aramaic) (to
grow great) It has the idea of being enlarged or multiplied. Thus
Daniel sees a huge increase in his official status. A significant climb up the
promotion ladder.
chief – rab (Aramaic) (captain;
chief)
The Hebrew equivalent rab is translated “the
master”
in Daniel 1:3 – And
the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master (rab) of his eunuchs, that he should bring [certain]
of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed, and of the princes;
Notice that Daniel is selected by Ashpenaz the
master (rab) and brought back to Babylon
to be trained to stand before the king. Ashpenaz is rab
and rules over many others. Daniel 1:7 also declares Ashpenaz to be “the prince of the eunuchs”.
No longer now is Daniel one of those ruled; he has now become one of the rulers
like Ashpenaz. This was certainly a huge increase in his official status,
especially noting that he was a slave to begin with.
In similar fashion, Joseph was sold by his brothers to the Midianites who then sold him as a slave to Potiphar, an officer and captain of Pharoah’s guard (Genesis 37:36). Note that Potiphar’s position may have been similar in importance to that of Ashpenaz of Babylon. Joseph was wrongly accused of attacking Potiphar’s wife and thrown into prison where he eventually successfully interpreted the dreams of two of Pharoah’s officials, the chief butler and the chief baker. As a result of this, Joseph was taken from prison in order to interpret two dreams of Pharaoh, one about cows, and the other about ears of wheat. His interpretations catapulted Joseph into the second-highest position in all of Egypt, second only to Pharaoh himself. From condemnation in prison to second highest in the land! And likewise Daniel is placed in charge of Babylon, chief of all governors. Both Joseph and Daniel came from the unfair suffering of being condemned men to become leaders of the country they lived in.
Genesis 41:37-44 – 37And the thing was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his servants. 38And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find [such a one] as this [is], a man in whom the Spirit of God [is]? 39And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, [there is] none so discreet and wise as thou [art]: 40Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou. 41And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. 42And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; 43And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him [ruler] over all the land of Egypt. 44And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I [am] Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.
(Keep in mind that to the Egyptians, Pharaoh himself was one of the gods. It took Joseph’s God’s omniscience to establish His superiority over Pharaoh’s “godhood”.)
Daniel is now “ruler over the whole province of Babylon”. Nebuchadnezzar’s empire covered many provinces, one of which was Babylon (probably the most important province of all). As a VIP now, Daniel now gets special invitations to all the Babylonian social events; this included an invitation to the dedication of the great image that the king had set up, much like attending a Premiere event such as the first showing of a movie etc.
Daniel 3:2 – Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the princes, the governors, and the captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
God has taken a captured slave, effectively a nobody, and turned him into a somebody. And all, it seems, because God honoured Daniel’s commitment to serve Him by establishing Daniel (and his three companions) high above their humble beginnings. While our faith may be determined by our works (for faith without works is dead), our commitment to ministry may be determined by our willingness to suffer for the sake of that ministry.
God’s people can suffer simply because they are God’s people, not because God wishes to torment His people, but because so often unfair suffering is the cost of victory for God’s people.
Genesis 50:20 – But as for you, ye thought evil against me; [but] God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as [it is] this day, to save much people alive.
Daniel 2:49 – Then Daniel requested of the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed–nego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon: but Daniel [sat] in the gate of the king.
Because Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego were an important part of Daniel’s ministry to Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel requests that they too be rewarded with authority along with Daniel. Note that credit must be given where it is due. To use someone else’s ministry work as if it were your own is to live a lie.
While Nebuchadnezzar may not have been totally aware of the input of these three companions, he apparently agreed with Daniel that they were worthy also of authority. It is likely that Daniel actually requested that they have authority “over the affairs of the province of Babylon” and Nebuchadnezzar has agreed, due to his now great respect for the wisdom of Daniel (wisdom that originated with the God of Daniel). This would have placed them under Daniel’s authority over the province of Babylon. This also makes it possible for Daniel to work together with those of like faith in God. The same should apply to Christians today.
Daniel himself sat “in the gate of the king”, a place of civil authority. It may have actually been in the gateway or entrance to the palace, or the gate may have symbolised Daniel’s position as advisor to the king.
To sit in the gate often referred to the place where civil judgments were made.
“Lot sat in the gate of Sodom” (Genesis 19:1) where “gate” can mean the actual gateway to the town or city, or the area just inside that gateway which was often used as a public meeting place, a market place, or a place where judgments might be made between men. Cambridge says: “in the gate of Sodom] The wide arches of ancient Oriental city gates, contained recesses which were the resort of leading citizens; and in which business was transacted, bargains made, and justice administered” Lot probably sat in the gateway to the city.
The gate was also the place where the king gave
audience to his people so that they might discuss grievances (or have
grievances judged) or come to hear the king’s words to his people. This gate
may have been the entrance to the king’s palace or throne-room, as it may have
meant in the following.
2 Samuel 19:7-8 – 7Now therefore arise, go forth, and speak comfortably unto thy servants: for I swear by the Lord, if thou go not forth, there will not tarry one with thee this night: and that will be worse unto thee than all the evil that befell thee from thy youth until now. 8Then the king arose, and sat in the gate. And they told unto all the people, saying, Behold, the king doth sit in the gate. And all the people came before the king: for Israel had fled every man to his tent.
Effectively the gate was a meeting place for the people for many reasons. Today we might meet in a public hall, but back then it was “in the gate”. Daniel may have sat in the gate of the city or he may have been in the entrance to the king’s court. Each of these implies Daniel’s authority as a ruler.
Note that it doesn’t actually say that Daniel “sat” in the gate, but that he was in the gate. However, being in the gate as a ruler would mean to sit in the gate. It’s a bit like a judge in court. If he is present he may be said to be “sitting” (perhaps in judgment), yet it actually means that he is present in the court, not that he is necessarily sitting. Therefore Daniel would have sat in the gate as the ruler of the people.
So much of ministry for God appears to commence in the midst of suffering, especially unfair suffering; note Joseph, Daniel, his three companions (Daniel 3:29-30) Just as it is your works that define your faith (James 2:17), it is suffering that defines your service or ministry for God.
We are called to suffer after the example of Christ.
1 Peter 2:19-24 – 19For this [is] thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. 20For what glory [is it], if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer [for it], ye take it patiently, this [is] acceptable with God. 21For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: 22Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: 23Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed [himself] to him that judgeth righteously: 24Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
It is the godly Christian who suffers.
2 Timothy 3:12 – Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
Taking up your cross signifies suffering.
Luke 9:23 – And he said to [them] all, If any [man] will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Those who do not take up their cross of suffering are not worthy of Christ.
Matthew 10:38 – And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
Lack of suffering can hinder the gospel.
1 Corinthians 9:12b – We …. suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ.
We suffer with Christ that we may be glorified with Him one day.
Romans 8:17 – And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with [him], that we may be also glorified together.
Suffering can be by the will of God.
1 Peter 4:19 – Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls [to him] in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.
Our suffering as Christians should bring glory to God.
1 Peter 4:16 – Yet if [any man suffer] as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf.
All things, including suffering, works together for good according to the will of God.
Romans 8:28 – And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose.
(Note that “all things” must include everything that comes our way that is not initiated by ourselves.)
If all things work together for good, then give thanks for all things.
Ephesians 5:20 – Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;
If we cannot thank God for something, then we are defining that thing as not working together for good! And, always, acknowledge the work of others where it exists. If God has done the work, then acknowledge Him. If other Christians have done the work, acknowledge them. We are all one body, we work together, we rejoice together, we suffer together.
1 Corinthians 12:26 – And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.
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