Civil Government: Magistracy, Authority, and Romans 13: Authority

Who is That God Part 2 of 2

Transcript: AI Transcript

Professor: John Weaver

Subject: Civil Government

Genre: Sermon

Dictation Name:

Date: 2012-02-13

Synopsis: In this sermon, Pastor John Weaver examines Daniel 4 to show how God humbled the proud King Nebuchadnezzar, teaching him that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men. The message emphasizes God's absolute sovereignty over all civil rulers, the war over sovereignty that began at the Fall, and the certainty that God will abase the proud. Applications include thanking God for our minds, seeing the vanity of materialism, and praying for God to humble wicked rulers.

[John Weaver] Let's open our Bible's day to the book of Daniel chapter 4, Daniel chapter 4.

[John Weaver] Let's open our Bible's day to the book of Daniel chapter four, Daniel chapter four. And this is the second message on who is that God notice. If you would Daniel chapter four, beginning there with verse 24, Daniel four, verse 24, and we shall read through verse 37. Daniel four, verse 24. This is the interpretational King, and this is the decree of the most high, which has come upon my Lord, the King.

[John Weaver] Now they shall drive thee from men and by dwelling shall be with the beast of the field, and they shall make the grasses oxen and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven and seven times shall pass over thee till thou know that the most high rule within the kingdom of men and give it to whomsoever he will. And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots, thy kingdom shall be sure to thee after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule. Wherefore king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee and break off thy sins by righteousness and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor, if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility. All this came upon king Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of 12 months, he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon. The King spake and said, is not this great Babylon that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty.

[John Weaver] While the word was in the King's mouth, their fellow voice from heaven saying, Oh, King Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken. The kingdom is departed from thee and they shall drive thee from men and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field and they shall make thee grasses oxen and seven times shall pass over thee. until thou know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and he was driven from men, and he grazed his oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws. And at the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up mine eyes into heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, And I blessed the most high and I praised and honored him that live with forever. Whose dominion is an everlasting dominion and his kingdom is from generation to generation.

[John Weaver] And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing. And he do it according to his will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth. And none can stay his hand or Sandy on what do is now at the same time, my reason returned unto me. And for my, for the glory of my kingdom, my honor, my brightness returned into me and my counselors and my Lord sought into me. And I was established in my kingdom and excellent majesty was added unto me.

[John Weaver] Now I, Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the king of heaven, all whose works are truth and his ways judgment and those that walk in pride. He is able to a base. Last week we looked at the first message, who is that God? And we showed from the scripture, when Nebuchadnezzar asked that question, it was a question that he asked not only in his ignorance, but also in his arrogance as well.

[John Weaver] I pointed out other rulers like Sennacherib and Pharaoh basically asked the same thing because they were essentially claiming sovereignty for themselves. They thought themselves as God and that no one was higher or more supreme or more sovereign than they were. One of the main points that I want to emphasize from last week's message is just simply this. I pointed out that if we genuinely believe in God's sovereignty, as did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, it simply means this, that we obey Him at all times under every circumstance and every situation, and we leave the results and the consequences of our obedience in His hands. Nebuchadnezzar threatened them. They said, Our God can deliver us, but whether He delivers us or not, it doesn't matter. We're not going to obey you. So Nebuchadnezzar asked, Who is that God that can deliver you out of my hands? Nebuchadnezzar received his answer. Because he found out that it is indeed the sovereign, eternal, immutable, infinite, omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent God of heaven and earth, who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, who can and did deliver out of Nebuchadnezzar's hand.

[John Weaver] He has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, and he is the same God that delivered in those days. He's the same God that delivers today. And he will be the same God who delivers tomorrow. And may I point out that he is indeed in the same delivering business. You and I may not be delivered as dramatically as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were delivered. But the fact is that we're being constantly and continually protected and delivered from death and destruction is still no less marvelous and no less miraculous.

[John Weaver] You and I receive protection and deliverance on a daily, I would add, even hourly basis. You know what we're told in Lamentations 3, verses 22 and 23? Listen, it is of the Lord's mercies that we're not consumed. Because His compassions, they fail not. They're new every morning. Great is thy faithfulness. So the question has to be asked, have you praised God? for his deliverance of you during the night, who allowed you to awaken this morning. And when you go to bed at night, do you praise God for allowing you to live through the day? God has sovereignly, miraculously, and marvelously delivered you through each day and through each night. And you should learn to give God daily and nightly praise as well. Since Nebuchadnezzar asked this question, And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?

[John Weaver] He certainly received his answer. God showed him. Yet Nebuchadnezzar's arrogance remained and he presumed to ignore the truth of God's sovereignty.

[John Weaver] Now what happened in Daniel 4 is intimately connected with what happened in Daniel chapter 3. Nebuchadnezzar made some startling confessions in Daniel chapter 4. For instance, look at the first three verses. Daniel 4, beginning there of verse 1. Nebuchadnezzar, the king, unto all people, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth, peace be multiplied unto you. I thought it good to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God hath brought toward me. How great are his signs, and how mighty are his wonders.

[John Weaver] His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and His dominion is from generation to generation. Now, although Nebuchadnezzar has made this confession, he is still arrogant and full of self and pride. Nebuchadnezzar had a problem with the truth that God had set him up and that God had made him king. Nebuchadnezzar still believed that everything revolved around him He still believed that everything that he had and everything that he was was a product of his work, his power, and for his honor and his glory.

[John Weaver] Just skip down to verse 30. Look in Daniel 4 and verse 30. Nebuchadnezzar said it very plainly. Then the king spake and said, is not this great Babylon that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty. You see everything according to Nebuchadnezzar had to be about Nebuchadnezzar. If you look back in Daniel 2 and verse 37 Daniel chapter 2 and verse 37 Daniel had told Nebuchadnezzar Thou, O King, art a King of kings. For the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, strength, and glory. So Daniel had told him, Yes, you're a mighty king. Yes, you're a great king. But the only reason you're mighty, the only reason you're great, the only reason you're powerful, the only reason you have a kingdom is because God made you that. So Nebuchadnezzar, when you get to Daniel chapter 4, is still having a problem acknowledging God's sovereignty and God's supremacy. Now Nebuchadnezzar was like most politicians.

[John Weaver] He wanted to say one thing and act entirely differently. He may have said with his mouth, yes, he has a kingdom that's an everlasting kingdom and his kingdom is from generation to generation. He may have said that. but his actions demonstrated that he really genuinely did not believe that. He still thought in some way that he was supreme. So the message today, the real full title is this.

[John Weaver] Who is that God that humbles civil rulers? Nebuchadnezzar found out exactly who he was. He is the same God that has humbled civil rulers in times past, is still humbling them today, and shall humble them in the future. And I want to submit to you, especially in light of everything that's happening in our country, it is high time that all of our civil rulers really and truly find out who is in charge and who is sovereign, and I can assure you it is not a human, finite, civil ruler. It is only the sovereign God of heaven and earth.

[John Weaver] They need to understand and recognize that. But I want you to comprehend the fact that this war that raged between Nebuchadnezzar and God is a war that basically has raged ever since the fall of man, not just between civil rulers and God, but between men and God as well, and the war is indeed a war over sovereignty. You see, before the fall, Adam, who was created in original righteousness, holiness, and dominion, Adam was willing for God to be God. But when Adam sinned, he tried to usurp the authority and the position of God. In essence, he tried to dethrone God and enthrone himself. Now listen carefully.

[John Weaver] In Genesis 3 and verse 5, here's what the serpent told Eve. For God doth know that in the day that you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as God's, knowing good and evil.

[John Weaver] Now listen to what he said. And you shall be as God's, knowing good and evil. The Hebrew word for knowing has the force of determining. So literally what he said is this, you shall be as God's, determining good and evil. In other words, here's the temptation. You don't need God to tell you what's right and what's wrong. You don't need God to tell you what to do. You eat this fruit, you will become your own God and you will determine for yourself what is good and evil. You'll determine for yourself what is right and wrong.

[John Weaver] Let me spell it out for you. You can make your own law. You can be your own God. Thus when Adam took that fruit and when Eve took that fruit, They both were attempting to dethrone God and enthrone themselves. You have to remember this, that it is a sovereign who establishes law. A king rules by his law. In Isaiah 33 and verse 22 we are told this, For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king, He will save us. Notice if you would please, king, lawgiver, and judge are all rolled up in the sovereignty of God. And so what has happened ever since the fall of man is this war has been raging and it is a war over sovereignty. Who is sovereign? Who is supreme?

[John Weaver] You want to know why men usurp authority? steal authority, abuse authority? The answer is this, because they like to play God. They like to believe somehow that they can make their own law and do their own thing. Nebuchadnezzar was such a civil ruler. Now let me point out again, I've already hit it, but I'm going to point out again, it is not just pagan or apostate civil rulers who like to play God, although Nebuchadnezzar is the example that we're using in Daniel chapter 4. It is not just the multitudinous civil rulers in times past, in times present, and those who are yet to come to power who like to play God. No, every man in some degree wants to play God. He wants to be his own sovereign. He wants to make his own law. Anytime anyone refuses to bow to the one sovereign God who has revealed Himself in Jesus Christ and obey His Word, he is waging war against God and is attempting to become his own God and establish his own law.

[John Weaver] It doesn't matter what people say in one sense of the word. I know and I've heard plenty of Christians who say, the Lord Jesus Christ is God. They acknowledge that. And then they live their lives as if He was not God. I want you to stop. You remember what our Lord said? I may have quoted it last week. In Luke 6, He said, Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say unto you? If He is our God, if He is our Sovereign, we should obey Him. So it is our lives, it is our sins, it is our rebellions that deny our professions. I think it was Paul who wrote in Titus 1 in verse 16, they profess that they know Him, but in works They deny him being reprobate to every good work.

[John Weaver] So it's not just civil rulers, it's man as well. It is true that the tendency to play God is more easily and more readily seen in civil rulers. Why? Because they have the opportunity, they have the platform, and they have the available resources to exercise absolute power. So since God is sovereign, and he has all power. When a civil ruler then tries to usurp that power or that position and tries to become sovereign, he has to demonstrate his sovereignty through tyranny, totalitarianism, and despotism. Why? Well, because you really cannot disobey God in one sense of the word you can when you go against his revealed will but then God also has a secretive will according to Deuteronomy 29 verse 29 and the Lord is able to work everything out man is not like that and so man then says this is what I want this is what my will is and you will do it or I will make you do it so if they claim to be God then They have to exercise their sovereignty through totalitarianism, tyranny, and despotism.

[John Weaver] You remember the passage we read it last week from Psalm 2 verses 1 through 3. Let me read it again. Listen carefully because Psalm 2 explains it. Why do the heathen rage and the people imagine a vain thing, by the way, the word vain means something that is useless and worthless. So why do the people imagine a useless, worthless thing? Now listen carefully. The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His anointed saying, let us break their bands of sunder and cast away their cords from us. In other words, the civil rulers say, in essence, we don't like God's limitations. We don't like God being God. We do not like God's boundaries. We do not like God's law. We want to establish our own boundaries, our own limitations. We want to establish our own law.

[John Weaver] That's why in Hosea 5 and verse 10, God said this, The princes of Judah were like them that removed the bound, therefore I will pour out my wrath upon them like water. Now listen carefully, the princes of Judah were like them that removed the bound, that is the boundaries. They did not like to be confined. They did not like to obey God. God says, because they've removed my boundaries, therefore I'll pour my wrath out upon them like water. They demonstrate their contempt for God by refusing to recognize Him, to bow to Him, or serve Him. They demonstrate their contempt for God by refusing to obey His laws, seeking to abrogate them, to nullify them, to overthrow them, and to establish their own laws.

[John Weaver] I can quote this but I do want you to turn. Hold Daniel 4. Turn back in your Bible to Psalm 94 verse 20. I've shared this verse with you many times. It is one of my favorite verses and it is so clear and it explains so well what I'm talking about. Look in Psalm 94 verse 20. Here's a question that is asked. Psalm 94 verse 20. Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee which frameth mischief by law? Now I want you to look at the verse. Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee which frameth mischief by law? Before we answer the question, let's analyze the verse. Shall the throne, so a throne speaks of government, it speaks of power, it speaks of a king. But note if you would, it's a throne of iniquity. Which means it is a wicked king or a wicked civil government. Now watch, shall the throne of iniquity, shall a wicked civil government have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by law. Now mischief in the Bible is another word for sin.

[John Weaver] So here it is, shall a wicked civil government have fellowship with thee which makes sin legal? Well, what's the answer? Shall a wicked civil government that tries to overthrow God, dethrone God, enthrone itself, violate God's law, make its own law in opposition To God's law, shall that wicked civil government have fellowship with God? What's the answer? No. No. In other words, God is not going to bless or support or count on such governments. God's not going to honor a government that tries to overthrow His law. What did God say in Isaiah 42 and verse 8? Listen.

[John Weaver] He said, I am the Lord, that is my name. I will not give my glory to another. nor my praise to graven images. God is not going to honor a wicked civil ruler. God is not going to honor a wicked civil government. Please understand the word sovereign is an exclusive word. There can only be one sovereign, only one ultimate, only one supreme, And that one ultimate, that one absolute, that one supreme, that one sovereign can never ever be a finite human civil ruler. It can only be the one true and the living God. And God is not going to share his sovereignty. Just stop and think. This one concept ought to throw the divine right of kings into absolute turmoil. God is not going to share His sovereignty. If God shared His sovereignty, He would not be sovereign.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to go back to Daniel chapter 4. I want you to see this whole passage in the term of sovereignty. In Daniel chapter four, Daniel is speaking to King Nebuchadnezzar. And look what he tells him in verse 27. He says, wherefore O King, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee and break off thy sins by righteousness and not iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. If it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility. Now, what is David? What is David? What is Daniel? counseling Nebuchadnezzar to do. He is counseling Nebuchadnezzar to repent, to break off his sins, and to replace those sins with deeds of righteousness. He says, break off my sins by righteousness, and mine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Now wait a minute. If Daniel is counseling Nebuchadnezzar to break off his sins by righteousness, Who is it that defines righteousness? And where do we find righteousness? In God's Law. In God's Word. So here is Daniel's counsel. You repent. You submit to God and to His Law.

[John Weaver] You do what He tells you to do. You obey Him. If it may be a lengthening of my tranquility. In other words, Nebuchadnezzar, if you want peace, if you want long life, if you want a long-lasting kingdom, you repent and you obey God. Wow. That's essentially what he was telling me. Now, Nebuchadnezzar refused to repent and obey. In fact, God was gracious to Nebuchadnezzar in that He gave him 12 months to turn from his wickedness.

[John Weaver] Skip down to verse 29. At the end of 12 months, he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon. Isn't that amazing? For 12 months after Daniel had counseled him to break off his sins by repentance and obey God, he had thrown away and wasted 12 months. A whole year had gone by His mind was unchanged. His sins were unrepented of. And look in verse 28.

[John Weaver] All this came upon Nebuchadnezzar. Well, what was it that came upon him? Listen carefully. He lost his kingdom. And he lost his mind. Go down to verse 30. The king spake and said, is not this great Babylon that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty? While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken. The kingdom is departed from thee. There's the laws of his kingdom. And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen. And seven times shall pass over thee until thou know that the most high rule within the kingdom of men and give it to whomsoever he will. There's the loss of his mind. Hmm. So what did Nebuchadnezzar lose? His kingdom and his mind. Now, listen to me. There's a lesson that needs to be learned.

[John Weaver] A truth that needs to be emphasized. And that is this. Mark it down. Sooner or later, all wicked rulers will learn one truth and that it is God that rules in the kingdom of men and He gives the kingdom to whomsoever He wills.

[John Weaver] I don't get bent out of shape over the Illuminati. The new world order, council of 13 club of Rome, committee of 300. I don't get bent out of shape over those things. You know why? Because God is on the throne and God is going to bring them down. They're going to learn a lesson just like Nebuchadnezzar. They're going to learn it very clearly. And they're going to learn it very distinctly that God is sovereign. And they're going to find that out either in salvation or condemnation, but they will find it out. Now, do you realize Nebuchadnezzar lost his mind? Those who refused to bow to Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him and His sovereignty and His law have already lost their minds. It's just going to be a matter of time. And just as soon as God permits, they're going to lose their power and their kingdom as well.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to note what the Bible says. Look in verse 32. He said,"...and they shall drive thee from Men and by dwelling shall be with the beast of the field and they shall make the grasses oxen and seven times shall pass over thee Seven times seven times is just simply the chaldean way of saying seven years So for seven years now nebuchadnezzar will not have a kingdom and for seven years He's going to be insane Now I want you to notice what the Bible says. In verse 33, The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and he was driven from men, and he ate grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagle's feathers, and his nails like bird's claws.

[John Weaver] Now this is a condition that is known as Boanthropy. Boanthropy is a form of madness, insanity, and which the victim imagines himself to be an ox or more specifically a bovine, a cow. That's how you get the word boanthropy. Anthropos is the word man, bo from bovine, so it's a man living like a cow is what it amounts to.

[John Weaver] Now this is not the only incident that has been recorded in history. There were a number of others. I did not choose to share them with you, but John Gill in his commentary quotes Eben Ezra and he says this Eben Ezra reports on one of the islands in Sardinia about a man who fled from his parents and lost his reason and lived among deer for many years and went upon his hands and feet like them and the king of the island going hunting one day caught many deer among them this man that was taken for one his parents came and owned him and spoke to him But he answered not.

[John Weaver] They set before him bread and wine to eat and drink, but he refused. Then they gave him grass with the deer, and he ate that. And in the middle of the night made his escape to the deer of the field again." What can you say? He was insane. The same thing happened to Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar is going to learn the hard way. He's going to suffer madness. He's going to suffer Insanity. He's going to live like an animal. Now, I want you to note that Nebuchadnezzar has been given the heart of a beast. I want you to go back in your Bibles to Daniel 4 and verse 16. Daniel 4 verse 16.

[John Weaver] And look at what the Bible says. Let his heart be changed from man's and let a beast's heart be given unto him, and let seven times pass over him. So for seven years, he will not have the heart of a man, he will have the heart of a beast.

[John Weaver] Now skip down to verse 23. Daniel 4 verse 23. And whereas the king saw a watcher and a holy one, that would be an angel, coming down from heaven and saying, Hew the tree down and destroy it, yet leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with the band of iron and brass, and the tender grass of the field, and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beast of the field, till seven times pass over him." So here again, seven years.

[John Weaver] But I want you to note, God says specifically, let his heart be changed from a man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto Him. Now, there's a message that I've preached for many years entitled, Keeping the Heart, from Proverbs 4, verse 23. I'll be absolutely honest with you, it's a message that I preach to myself every day. I think it's one of the most fundamental, elementary, and necessary messages of this day and time. But in that message, I demonstrate that the heart is the mind. You know, we say, as a man thinketh in his heart, what? So is he. But notice, as he thinketh in his heart, so is he. That's based on Proverbs 23 verse 7 where we're told, for as he thinketh in his heart, so is he. But if you will turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 15, I'm not going to take time today to re-preach that message. But I do want to emphasize the fact that the heart is indeed the mind. It is our reasoning. It is our understanding.

[John Weaver] Look in Matthew chapter 15 and notice if you would please their verse 19, our Lord has been teaching and he is now explaining to his disciples. In fact, let's begin with verse 15. Matthew 15 in verse 15, then answered Peter and said unto him, declare and does this parable. And Jesus said, are you also yet without understanding? Do you not yet understand that whatsoever entereth into the mouth goeth into the belly and is cast out of the draw.

[John Weaver] But those things which proceed out of a heart. Now watch those things which proceed out of a heart. Those things which proceed out of the mouth cometh from the heart, and they defile the man. Those things which proceed out of the mouth cometh from the heart, and defile the man. Note what comes from the heart. For out of the heart proceed what's first? Evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man, but eat with unwashing hands, defileth not a man. Now, our Lord said in verse 19, for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders. Do you realize you cannot commit any sin until you first think about it? I don't care if you're talking about adultery, murder, fornication, theft, you have to first think about it. So he says, out of the heart proceed all of these evil thoughts.

[John Weaver] Now, go back in your Bibles, if you would, to Daniel chapter 4. You've got to remember now that the heart is the mind. It is the reason. It is the understanding. That is where all sin begins. You cannot act until you first think. And you do what you do because you think the way you think. As the man thinketh in his heart, so is he. Now, we're specifically told in Daniel chapter 4 that the heart is the mind and the reasoning. For instance, go back to verse 16 again. Daniel 4 verse 16, Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him. So it is his heart that was changed, Now go down to Daniel 4 and verse 34.

[John Weaver] After seven years, at the end of the days, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine what? Understanding returned unto me. Well, I thought it was his heart that was changed. Well, it was. It was his understanding, or his mind, or his reasoning ability. Skip down to verse 36. He says it again. At the same time, my reason returned unto me. So what two things did Nebuchadnezzar lose? He lost his kingdom and he lost his mind.

[John Weaver] He began to think like an ox. He began to act like an ox. He ate like an ox. He believed himself to be an ox. He crawled around on all fours. His hair grew long, became matted like bird's feathers. His fingernails grew like bird's claws. Verse 33, The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and he was driven from men, and he ate grasses oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagle's feathers, and his nails like bird's claws.

[John Weaver] Thus the proud, arrogant, ignorant, pompous monarch was wholly and completely deprived of his reasoning ability, and he was now governed by the mind of an animal. Question. What good was his kingdom now? What good were all of his riches? Where was all of his greatness? Where are all of his courtiers? Where are all of his servants? Mighty Babylon was now no more than a stone wall or a fence to a cow. Can you imagine that? Here's the man that said, is not this mighty Babylon which I have built by the might of my power and for my honor and my glory? And now he sees that nothing What a fence.

[John Weaver] You can't get over it. He roamed in the woods. He lived in the woods. God had deprived him, not only of his kingdom and his mind, but of his honor and his power. And it was done instantly. Instantly. I want you to turn to Psalm 49, whole Daniel 4, but turn to Psalm 94 and look, if you would please, at verse 20. Psalm 49, I'm sorry, Psalm 49 and verse 20. Psalm 49, verse 20.

[John Weaver] You know, we have a lot of civil rulers like Nebuchadnezzar. They've lost their minds.

[John Weaver] Now don't you notice what God says, Psalm 49 verse 20, Man that is in honor and understandeth not is like the beast that perish. Isn't that amazing? Civil rulers, anyone in a position of power and honor who does not understand God and the things of God is no more than a beast that perish. He's foolish. He's senseless. He's mindless. He has no reasoning. He has no understanding. Totally devoid. Now, I want you to go back to Daniel 4 and verse 33.

[John Weaver] There's another word here that merits our attention. Daniel 4 verse 33. The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar. Watch. And he was driven from men. Ah. Nebuchadnezzar not only wanted to get away, they wanted him to get away. They drove him like a cow. Get out. Stay away. Don't come back. He may have hastened to get away since he had the mind of a beast. He didn't want to be around, but no one else wanted him around them as well. So they drove him away as an animal that is driven away his trusted counselors lords and diplomats were anger to get rid of him And nebuchadnezzar with the mind of an animal wanted to go and those around him were more than willing to let him go Now I want you to understand God did restore nebuchadnezzar And when god gave him back his mind and his kingdom Nebuchadnezzar learned some of the most important and valuable lessons of his life. After God restored him, the men who drove him away sought for him again.

[John Weaver] Go back down to verse 36. At the same time, my reason returned into me and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor and my brightness returned into me and my counselors and my Lord sought into me And I was established in my kingdom and excellent majesty was added unto me." In other words, Nebuchadnezzar has pretty well learned his lesson that God is in charge, that God is in control, that God rules in the kingdom of men and he gives it to whomsoever he will. What were the lessons that Nebuchadnezzar learned? He learned that God was sovereign. He learned that God was in control. He learned that he was nothing and that God could do anything and everything that he pleased. Look at verse 35. Look what he said.

[John Weaver] All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing, and he, that is God, doeth according to his will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay his hand or say unto him, What doest thou? He learned that only God had an everlasting kingdom. He learned that God ruled in the kingdom of men and gave it to whomsoever He willed. He learned that He only had a kingdom because of God's divine providence. He learned a hard lesson of Psalm 75, 6 and 7. Listen carefully.

[John Weaver] For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge. He putteth up one, and he taketh down another. You know what else Nebuchadnezzar learned? He learned that he was disposable. You know, sometimes we think, boy, God just couldn't get along without us. Or the world couldn't get along without us. I got news for you folks. He can. He can. The fact that God uses us is only by His grace. Each of us are disposable. And I've got news for you. If everyone in this room died today, the world would go on tomorrow. Just like we had never been born. Nebuchadnezzar learned he was disposable. He also learned that those that walked in pride, that God was able to abase.

[John Weaver] Well, let's go back to verse 34. Here's Nebuchadnezzar's own words. And at the end of the days, I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes into heaven. Mine understanding returned to me watch. And I have blessed the most high and I have praised and honored him that live with forever. Whose dominion is everlasting dominion. His kingdom is from generation to generation. And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing. And he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou? At the same time my reason returneth unto me for the glory of my kingdom. mine honor and your brightness returned unto me, and my counselors and my Lord sought unto me, and I was established in my kingdom with excellent majesty added unto me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are truth and His ways judgment, and those that walk in pride He is able to abase."

[John Weaver] And I do pray it is time for God to do some more abasing. It is time for the rulers in our country and in this world to realize that God is sovereign, God is supreme, and they are only His vassals. It is time for our civil rules to realize they are delegated authorities, and they do not have the right to steal, nor usurp authority, nor to lord it over God's heritage. They do not have the right to change, or alter, or supplant God's law. God put them there to enforce His law, and to execute His righteousness, not to destroy it.

[John Weaver] They are to be His ministers of justice. His executors of righteousness. And those who fail to do so, He shall abase. Nebuchadnezzar said, I learned one thing. Those that walk in pride, He's quite able to abase.

[John Weaver] Now let me make some applications and try to tie this together for us. First of all, we should learn to thank God daily for the simple fact that we're still in possession of our minds, our reasoning, and our understanding. Do you realize God does not have to strike us instantly with judgment the way he did Nebuchadnezzar to take away our minds. A little virus or an accident can handle that. We need to learn the value of our minds.

[John Weaver] I've told Alice, if it were my choice, and it's not my choice, but if it were my choice, if the Lord lets me live to a ripe old age, I believe I'd rather lose my body than my mind. I really do. I probably told you this, but Rusty was a dear friend. And Alice and I would go out to see him every year when I was out there preaching. And the last summer that we were there before he died, he told me, he said, John, he said, my body's deteriorating.

[John Weaver] He said, I can barely do this. I have this, I have this, I have that. He said, but thank God. He said, my mind is still as sound as it ever was. He said, you know, Just this week, he said, I was thinking about a quote that I read in a book in 1935.

[John Weaver] Now, I couldn't even remember, you know, we're talking about, you know, 2000. So, he's remembering a quote that he read nearly 70 years ago. He said, I remembered the quote in that book. He said, would you believe, he said, I went to my library, he said, I pulled the book down, and he said, I opened it to the very page the quote was on. Here was a man who died at 83 and yet in perfect possession of his mind. His body deteriorated. You've got to stop and think, what good is your body if you don't have the mind? You can have all the physical health in the world, but if you don't have the mind to use it.

[John Weaver] We need to learn to think God, that we have the understanding that we have, we have the reasoning ability that we have. Some have more than others, I understand that, but at least we have some! And I'm thankful for every little bit that God has given me. And what I would want is to have a single, undivided, devoted mind for His honor and His glory. So we need to learn to thank God for our minds.

[John Weaver] Secondly, we must also see the vanity of materialism, pride, arrogance, and human glory and greatness. I hope you understand that he was known as Nebuchadnezzar the great. Where in the world was his greatness for seven years? Where was the gloriousness of his throne for seven years? Here was the mighty warrior so formidable in the camp, the conqueror, the mighty one running around on all fours, eating grass like an ox.

[John Weaver] Didn't have enough sense to keep his clothes on his back. Didn't have enough sense to comb his hair, trim his fingernails. Do you realize all of our earthly fame, all of our earthly glory, all of our earthly possessions will vanish in a moment. I don't know if you've seen the pictures. If you haven't, you need to go online and type in Nashville, Tennessee, the flood. Oh, Lord have mercy.

[John Weaver] I'm just simply saying, practically speaking, it's all gone. And it went in a day. What good is a multi-million dollar building once it's full of water and mud? I'm just simply saying, folks, here's the vanity of materialism. In Jeremiah 9, verse 24, let me just quote it. Here's what God says, listen carefully. But let him that gloryeth, glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me.

[John Weaver] that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things do I delight, saith the Lord." God said, if you're going to glory, glory in me. Don't glory in your gold, in your possessions, in your kingdom, in your power, in your mind. All that's going to leave. Glory in me. The third application is this. We must learn that God resists the proud.

[John Weaver] That is, he fights against them. God, listen carefully, God places contempt upon those who only have contempt for Him. Nebuchadnezzar would be more than a man, he would be God. So God made him less than a man, He made him an animal. We're told in 1 Peter 5 and verse 5, God resisted the proud, but he gave the grace to the humble. And the verse that everyone can quote in Proverbs 16 and verse 18, pride goeth before destruction and a haughty spirit before all. If we would be holy, we must also be humble. Fourthly, God is the just God. He loves justice. In fact, we're told that justice is the habitation of his throne, which means this. We may lawfully pray that God will deal with ignorant, arrogant, proud, boastful tyrants and despots. And those who abuse His people and refuse to magnify His name, we may lawfully pray that God will abase them and bring them down. Why? Let me just give you one scripture. Psalm 58 verse 11, So that a man shall say, Verily, there is a reward for the righteous.

[John Weaver] Verily, He is a God that judgeth in the earth. And when God brings the wicked down, they will know, as well as everyone else, there is a reward for the righteous and God judges the wicked. May I point out, they're going to know who God is. Everyone will know who He is, either in salvation or condemnation. But men will know. But we may lawfully and biblically and righteously pray that God would bring down and abase and destroy those who are contrary to Him and contrary to His Word. Who is that God that humbles civil rulers?

[John Weaver] Ask Nebuchadnezzar, he can tell you. He's the sovereign God of heaven and earth. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee, we praise Thee, we give Thee honor and glory, we acknowledge Thou art the only God and besides Thee there is none other. Thou art the Sovereign, the Supreme, the Ultimate, the Absolute. And we bow before Thee as Thou hast revealed Thyself in Jesus Christ, our Lord. And we give Thee honor and glory. And we pray, Lord, that Thou wouldst indeed abase those that walk in pride And Lord, honor those and exalt those that walk in humility, who worship Thee in spirit and in truth, and who seek to glorify Thy name and obey Thy word. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen and amen.

Who Is That God That Humbles Civil Rulers?

John Weaver | YouTube

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	YouTube
Media ID	d-9p18MFX4Y
Subject	Civil Government
Course	Civil Government: Magistracy, Authority, and Romans 13: Authority
Genre	Sermon
Date	2012-02-13
Dictation Name
Book	Book 130: Who is That God — Chapter 2
Source Timed Segments	68

Formatted Transcript

Opening

Let's open our Bibles today to the book of Daniel chapter 4, Daniel chapter 4.

Let's open our Bibles today to the book of Daniel chapter four, Daniel chapter four. And this is the second message on "Who Is That God?" Notice, if you would, Daniel chapter four, beginning there with verse 24, Daniel four, verse 24, and we shall read through verse 37. Daniel four, verse 24. "This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the most high, which has come upon my lord the king."

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"Now they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the most high ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots, thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule. Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility."

All this came upon king Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of twelve months, he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon. The king spake and said,

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?"

While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying,

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee. And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will."

The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws. And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most high, and I praised and honored him that liveth forever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation.

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?"

At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honor and brightness returned unto me; and my counselors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase."

Last week we looked at the first message, "Who Is That God?" And we showed from the scripture, when Nebuchadnezzar asked that question, it was a question that he asked not only in his ignorance, but also in his arrogance as well.

Introduction and Review

Recap of Part 1: Nebuchadnezzar's arrogant question 'Who is that God?' and the faithful response of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. God's sovereignty means we obey and leave results to Him.

I pointed out other rulers like Sennacherib and Pharaoh basically asked the same thing because they were essentially claiming sovereignty for themselves. They thought themselves as God and that no one was higher or more supreme or more sovereign than they were. One of the main points that I want to emphasize from last week's message is just simply this. I pointed out that if we genuinely believe in God's sovereignty, as did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, it simply means this, that we obey Him at all times under every circumstance and every situation, and we leave the results and the consequences of our obedience in His hands. Nebuchadnezzar threatened them. They said, "Our God can deliver us, but whether He delivers us or not, it doesn't matter. We're not going to obey you." So Nebuchadnezzar asked, "Who is that God that can deliver you out of my hands?" Nebuchadnezzar received his answer. Because he found out that it is indeed the sovereign, eternal, immutable, infinite, omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent God of heaven and earth, who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, who can and did deliver out of Nebuchadnezzar's hand.

He has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, and he is the same God that delivered in those days. He's the same God that delivers today. And he will be the same God who delivers tomorrow. And may I point out that he is indeed in the same delivering business. You and I may not be delivered as dramatically as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were delivered. But the fact is that we're being constantly and continually protected and delivered from death and destruction is still no less marvelous and no less miraculous.

Daily Deliverance and God's Faithfulness

God delivers us daily, even hourly, and we should praise Him for each day and night. Lamentations 3:22-23 underscores His mercies.

You and I receive protection and deliverance on a daily, I would add, even hourly basis. You know what we're told in Lamentations 3, verses 22 and 23? Listen,

Scripture Reading — Lamentations 3:22-23

"It is of the Lord's mercies that we're not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness."

So the question has to be asked, have you praised God for his deliverance of you during the night, who allowed you to awaken this morning? And when you go to bed at night, do you praise God for allowing you to live through the day? God has sovereignly, miraculously, and marvelously delivered you through each day and through each night. And you should learn to give God daily and nightly praise as well. Since Nebuchadnezzar asked this question, "And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?"

He certainly received his answer. God showed him. Yet Nebuchadnezzar's arrogance remained and he presumed to ignore the truth of God's sovereignty.

Nebuchadnezzar's Confession and Lingering Pride

Though Nebuchadnezzar confessed God's greatness in Daniel 4:1-3, his pride remained, as seen in his boast about Babylon in verse 30.

Now what happened in Daniel 4 is intimately connected with what happened in Daniel chapter 3. Nebuchadnezzar made some startling confessions in Daniel chapter 4. For instance, look at the first three verses. Daniel 4, beginning there of verse 1. "Nebuchadnezzar the king, unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you. I thought it good to show the signs and wonders that the most high God hath wrought toward me. How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders!"

"His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation." Now, although Nebuchadnezzar has made this confession, he is still arrogant and full of self and pride. Nebuchadnezzar had a problem with the truth that God had set him up and that God had made him king. Nebuchadnezzar still believed that everything revolved around him. He still believed that everything that he had and everything that he was was a product of his work, his power, and for his honor and his glory. Just skip down to verse 30. Look in Daniel 4 and verse 30. Nebuchadnezzar said it very plainly.

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:30

"The king spake and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?"

You see everything according to Nebuchadnezzar had to be about Nebuchadnezzar. If you look back in Daniel 2 and verse 37, Daniel chapter 2 and verse 37, Daniel had told Nebuchadnezzar, "Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory." So Daniel had told him, "Yes, you're a mighty king. Yes, you're a great king. But the only reason you're mighty, the only reason you're great, the only reason you're powerful, the only reason you have a kingdom is because God made you that." So Nebuchadnezzar, when you get to Daniel chapter 4, is still having a problem acknowledging God's sovereignty and God's supremacy. Now Nebuchadnezzar was like most politicians.

The War Over Sovereignty Since the Fall

The conflict between God and rulers mirrors the Fall, where Adam and Eve sought to be as gods, determining good and evil for themselves.

They need to understand and recognize that. But I want you to comprehend the fact that this war that raged between Nebuchadnezzar and God is a war that basically has raged ever since the fall of man, not just between civil rulers and God, but between men and God as well, and the war is indeed a war over sovereignty. You see, before the fall, Adam, who was created in original righteousness, holiness, and dominion, Adam was willing for God to be God. But when Adam sinned, he tried to usurp the authority and the position of God. In essence, he tried to dethrone God and enthrone himself. Now listen carefully. In Genesis 3 and verse 5, here's what the serpent told Eve. "For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."

Now listen to what he said. "And ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." The Hebrew word for "knowing" has the force of "determining." So literally what he said is this, "You shall be as gods, determining good and evil." In other words, here's the temptation. You don't need God to tell you what's right and what's wrong. You don't need God to tell you what to do. You eat this fruit, you will become your own god and you will determine for yourself what is good and evil. You'll determine for yourself what is right and wrong. Let me spell it out for you. You can make your own law. You can be your own god. Thus when Adam took that fruit and when Eve took that fruit, they both were attempting to dethrone God and enthrone themselves. You have to remember this, that it is a sovereign who establishes law. A king rules by his law. In Isaiah 33 and verse 22 we are told this,

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 33:22

"For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us."

Notice if you would please, king, lawgiver, and judge are all rolled up in the sovereignty of God. And so what has happened ever since the fall of man is this war has been raging and it is a war over sovereignty. Who is sovereign? Who is supreme?

Civil Rulers and the Rejection of God's Law

Psalm 2 and Psalm 94:20 show rulers conspiring against God and framing mischief by law. God will not share His sovereignty or honor wicked governments.

You remember the passage we read it last week from Psalm 2 verses 1 through 3. Let me read it again. Listen carefully because Psalm 2 explains it. "Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?" By the way, the word "vain" means something that is useless and worthless. So why do the people imagine a useless, worthless thing? Now listen carefully. "The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us." In other words, the civil rulers say, in essence, "We don't like God's limitations. We don't like God being God. We do not like God's boundaries. We do not like God's law. We want to establish our own boundaries, our own limitations. We want to establish our own law."

That's why in Hosea 5 and verse 10, God said this, "The princes of Judah were like them that remove the bound: therefore I will pour out my wrath upon them like water." Now listen carefully, "The princes of Judah were like them that remove the bound," that is the boundaries. They did not like to be confined. They did not like to obey God. God says, "Because they've removed my boundaries, therefore I'll pour my wrath out upon them like water." They demonstrate their contempt for God by refusing to recognize Him, to bow to Him, or serve Him. They demonstrate their contempt for God by refusing to obey His laws, seeking to abrogate them, to nullify them, to overthrow them, and to establish their own laws. I can quote this but I do want you to turn. Hold Daniel 4. Turn back in your Bible to Psalm 94 verse 20. I've shared this verse with you many times. It is one of my favorite verses and it is so clear and it explains so well what I'm talking about. Look in Psalm 94 verse 20. Here's a question that is asked. Psalm 94 verse 20.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 94:20

"Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?"

Now I want you to look at the verse.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 94:20

"Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?"

Before we answer the question, let's analyze the verse. "Shall the throne"—so a throne speaks of government, it speaks of power, it speaks of a king. But note if you would, it's a throne of iniquity. Which means it is a wicked king or a wicked civil government. Now watch, "Shall the throne of iniquity," shall a wicked civil government, "have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?" Now mischief in the Bible is another word for sin.

So here it is, "Shall a wicked civil government have fellowship with thee which makes sin legal?" Well, what's the answer? Shall a wicked civil government that tries to overthrow God, dethrone God, enthrone itself, violate God's law, make its own law in opposition to God's law, shall that wicked civil government have fellowship with God? What's the answer? No. No. In other words, God is not going to bless or support or countenance such governments. God's not going to honor a government that tries to overthrow His law. What did God say in Isaiah 42 and verse 8? Listen.

He said, "I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images." God is not going to honor a wicked civil ruler. God is not going to honor a wicked civil government. Please understand the word sovereign is an exclusive word. There can only be one sovereign, only one ultimate, only one supreme. And that one ultimate, that one absolute, that one supreme, that one sovereign can never ever be a finite human civil ruler. It can only be the one true and the living God. And God is not going to share his sovereignty. Just stop and think. This one concept ought to throw the divine right of kings into absolute turmoil. God is not going to share His sovereignty. If God shared His sovereignty, He would not be sovereign.

Daniel's Counsel and Nebuchadnezzar's Judgment

Daniel urged repentance and righteousness (v. 27), but after 12 months of grace, Nebuchadnezzar boasted and was struck with madness, losing his kingdom and mind.

Now, I want you to go back to Daniel chapter 4. I want you to see this whole passage in the term of sovereignty. In Daniel chapter four, Daniel is speaking to King Nebuchadnezzar. And look what he tells him in verse 27. He says,

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:27

"Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility."

Now, what is Daniel counseling Nebuchadnezzar to do? He is counseling Nebuchadnezzar to repent, to break off his sins, and to replace those sins with deeds of righteousness. He says,

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:27

"Break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor."

Now wait a minute. If Daniel is counseling Nebuchadnezzar to break off his sins by righteousness, who is it that defines righteousness? And where do we find righteousness? In God's Law. In God's Word. So here is Daniel's counsel. You repent. You submit to God and to His Law.

You do what He tells you to do. You obey Him. "If it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility." In other words, Nebuchadnezzar, if you want peace, if you want long life, if you want a long-lasting kingdom, you repent and you obey God. Wow. That's essentially what he was telling him. Now, Nebuchadnezzar refused to repent and obey. In fact, God was gracious to Nebuchadnezzar in that He gave him 12 months to turn from his wickedness.

Skip down to verse 29. "At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon." Isn't that amazing? For 12 months after Daniel had counseled him to break off his sins by repentance and obey God, he had thrown away and wasted 12 months. A whole year had gone by. His mind was unchanged. His sins were unrepented of. And look in verse 28.

"All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar." Well, what was it that came upon him? Listen carefully. He lost his kingdom. And he lost his mind. Go down to verse 30. "The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty? While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee." There's the loss of his kingdom. "And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most high ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will." There's the loss of his mind. Hmm. So what did Nebuchadnezzar lose? His kingdom and his mind. Now, listen to me. There's a lesson that needs to be learned.

A truth that needs to be emphasized. And that is this. Mark it down. Sooner or later, all wicked rulers will learn one truth and that it is God that rules in the kingdom of men and He gives the kingdom to whomsoever He wills.

The Nature of Nebuchadnezzar's Madness

His heart (mind) was changed to that of a beast (boanthropy). He lived like an ox for seven years, illustrating the fate of those who reject God.

I don't get bent out of shape over the Illuminati, the new world order, council of 13, club of Rome, committee of 300. I don't get bent out of shape over those things. You know why? Because God is on the throne and God is going to bring them down. They're going to learn a lesson just like Nebuchadnezzar. They're going to learn it very clearly. And they're going to learn it very distinctly that God is sovereign. And they're going to find that out either in salvation or condemnation, but they will find it out. Now, do you realize Nebuchadnezzar lost his mind? Those who refuse to bow to Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him and His sovereignty and His law have already lost their minds. It's just going to be a matter of time. And just as soon as God permits, they're going to lose their power and their kingdom as well.

Now, I want you to note what the Bible says. Look in verse 32. He said, "...and they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee." Seven times—seven times is just simply the Chaldean way of saying seven years. So for seven years now Nebuchadnezzar will not have a kingdom and for seven years he's going to be insane. Now I want you to notice what the Bible says. In verse 33, "The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws."

Now this is a condition that is known as boanthropy. Boanthropy is a form of madness, insanity, in which the victim imagines himself to be an ox or more specifically a bovine, a cow. That's how you get the word boanthropy. Anthropos is the word man, bo from bovine, so it's a man living like a cow is what it amounts to.

Now this is not the only incident that has been recorded in history. There were a number of others. I did not choose to share them with you, but John Gill in his commentary quotes Eben Ezra and he says this: Eben Ezra reports on one of the islands in Sardinia about a man who fled from his parents and lost his reason and lived among deer for many years and went upon his hands and feet like them and the king of the island going hunting one day caught many deer among them this man that was taken for one his parents came and owned him and spoke to him but he answered not. They set before him bread and wine to eat and drink, but he refused. Then they gave him grass with the deer, and he ate that. And in the middle of the night made his escape to the deer of the field again. What can you say? He was insane. The same thing happened to Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar is going to learn the hard way. He's going to suffer madness. He's going to suffer insanity. He's going to live like an animal. Now, I want you to note that Nebuchadnezzar has been given the heart of a beast. I want you to go back in your Bibles to Daniel 4 and verse 16. Daniel 4 verse 16.

And look at what the Bible says.

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:16

"Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him."

So for seven years, he will not have the heart of a man, he will have the heart of a beast. Now skip down to verse 23. Daniel 4 verse 23. "And whereas the king saw a watcher and an holy one"—that would be an angel—

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:16

"coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew the tree down, and destroy it; yet leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over him."

So here again, seven years.

The Heart as the Mind

Using Matthew 15:19 and Daniel 4, the sermon shows that the heart is the mind/reasoning. Sin begins in the mind, and Nebuchadnezzar lost his understanding.

But I want you to note, God says specifically, "Let his heart be changed from a man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him." Now, there's a message that I've preached for many years entitled, "Keeping the Heart," from Proverbs 4, verse 23. I'll be absolutely honest with you, it's a message that I preach to myself every day. I think it's one of the most fundamental, elementary, and necessary messages of this day and time. But in that message, I demonstrate that the heart is the mind. You know, we say, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." But notice, "As he thinketh in his heart, so is he." That's based on Proverbs 23 verse 7 where we're told, "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he." But if you will turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 15, I'm not going to take time today to re-preach that message. But I do want to emphasize the fact that the heart is indeed the mind. It is our reasoning. It is our understanding.

Look in Matthew chapter 15 and notice if you would please there verse 19, our Lord has been teaching and he is now explaining to his disciples. In fact, let's begin with verse 15. Matthew 15 in verse 15, "Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable. And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding? Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught?"

Scripture Reading — Matthew 15:19

"But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man."

Now, our Lord said in verse 19,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 15:19

"For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders."

Do you realize you cannot commit any sin until you first think about it? I don't care if you're talking about adultery, murder, fornication, theft, you have to first think about it. So he says,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 15:19

"Out of the heart proceed all of these evil thoughts."

Now, go back in your Bibles, if you would, to Daniel chapter 4. You've got to remember now that the heart is the mind. It is the reason. It is the understanding. That is where all sin begins. You cannot act until you first think. And you do what you do because you think the way you think. "As the man thinketh in his heart, so is he." Now, we're specifically told in Daniel chapter 4 that the heart is the mind and the reasoning. For instance, go back to verse 16 again. Daniel 4 verse 16, "Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him." So it is his heart that was changed. Now go down to Daniel 4 and verse 34.

After seven years, "At the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me." Well, I thought it was his heart that was changed. Well, it was. It was his understanding, or his mind, or his reasoning ability. Skip down to verse 36. He says it again. "At the same time my reason returned unto me." So what two things did Nebuchadnezzar lose? He lost his kingdom and he lost his mind.

The Vanity of Earthly Greatness

Nebuchadnezzar's riches and kingdom meant nothing when he was insane. Psalm 49:20 says a man in honor without understanding is like a beast.

He began to think like an ox. He began to act like an ox. He ate like an ox. He believed himself to be an ox. He crawled around on all fours. His hair grew long, became matted like bird's feathers. His fingernails grew like bird's claws. Verse 33, "The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws."

Thus the proud, arrogant, ignorant, pompous monarch was wholly and completely deprived of his reasoning ability, and he was now governed by the mind of an animal. Question. What good was his kingdom now? What good were all of his riches? Where was all of his greatness? Where are all of his courtiers? Where are all of his servants? Mighty Babylon was now no more than a stone wall or a fence to a cow. Can you imagine that? Here's the man that said, "Is not this mighty Babylon which I have built by the might of my power and for my honor and my glory?" And now he sees that nothing. What a fence.

You can't get over it. He roamed in the woods. He lived in the woods. God had deprived him, not only of his kingdom and his mind, but of his honor and his power. And it was done instantly. Instantly. I want you to turn to Psalm 49, hold Daniel 4, but turn to Psalm 49 and look, if you would please, at verse 20. Psalm 49, verse 20.

You know, we have a lot of civil rulers like Nebuchadnezzar. They've lost their minds. Now don't you notice what God says, Psalm 49 verse 20,

Scripture Reading — Psalm 49:20

"Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish."

Isn't that amazing? Civil rulers, anyone in a position of power and honor who does not understand God and the things of God is no more than a beast that perish. He's foolish. He's senseless. He's mindless. He has no reasoning. He has no understanding. Totally devoid. Now, I want you to go back to Daniel 4 and verse 33.

There's another word here that merits our attention. Daniel 4 verse 33. "The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar." Watch. "And he was driven from men." Ah. Nebuchadnezzar not only wanted to get away, they wanted him to get away. They drove him like a cow. Get out. Stay away. Don't come back. He may have hastened to get away since he had the mind of a beast. He didn't want to be around, but no one else wanted him around them as well. So they drove him away as an animal that is driven away. His trusted counselors, lords, and diplomats were eager to get rid of him. And Nebuchadnezzar with the mind of an animal wanted to go and those around him were more than willing to let him go. Now I want you to understand God did restore Nebuchadnezzar. And when God gave him back his mind and his kingdom, Nebuchadnezzar learned some of the most important and valuable lessons of his life. After God restored him, the men who drove him away sought for him again.

Restoration and Lessons Learned

After seven years, Nebuchadnezzar's reason returned. He praised God, acknowledging His sovereignty, that all inhabitants are nothing, and that God abases the proud.

Go back down to verse 36. "At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honor and brightness returned unto me; and my counselors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me." In other words, Nebuchadnezzar has pretty well learned his lesson that God is in charge, that God is in control, that God rules in the kingdom of men and he gives it to whomsoever he will. What were the lessons that Nebuchadnezzar learned? He learned that God was sovereign. He learned that God was in control. He learned that he was nothing and that God could do anything and everything that he pleased. Look at verse 35. Look what he said.

"All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?" He learned that only God had an everlasting kingdom. He learned that God ruled in the kingdom of men and gave it to whomsoever He willed. He learned that He only had a kingdom because of God's divine providence. He learned a hard lesson of Psalm 75, 6 and 7. Listen carefully. "For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another." You know what else Nebuchadnezzar learned? He learned that he was disposable. You know, sometimes we think, "Boy, God just couldn't get along without us." Or "The world couldn't get along without us." I got news for you folks. He can. He can. The fact that God uses us is only by His grace. Each of us are disposable. And I've got news for you. If everyone in this room died today, the world would go on tomorrow. Just like we had never been born. Nebuchadnezzar learned he was disposable. He also learned that those that walk in pride, that God was able to abase.

Applications for Believers

Thank God for our minds, see the vanity of materialism, remember God resists the proud, and pray for God to humble wicked rulers.

Now let me make some applications and try to tie this together for us. First of all, we should learn to thank God daily for the simple fact that we're still in possession of our minds, our reasoning, and our understanding. Do you realize God does not have to strike us instantly with judgment the way he did Nebuchadnezzar to take away our minds. A little virus or an accident can handle that. We need to learn the value of our minds. I've told Alice, if it were my choice, and it's not my choice, but if it were my choice, if the Lord lets me live to a ripe old age, I believe I'd rather lose my body than my mind. I really do. I probably told you this, but Rusty was a dear friend. And Alice and I would go out to see him every year when I was out there preaching. And the last summer that we were there before he died, he told me, he said, "John," he said, "my body's deteriorating."

He said, "I can barely do this. I have this, I have this, I have that." He said, "But thank God." He said, "My mind is still as sound as it ever was." He said, "You know, just this week," he said, "I was thinking about a quote that I read in a book in 1935." Now, I couldn't even remember, you know, we're talking about, you know, 2000. So, he's remembering a quote that he read nearly 70 years ago. He said, "I remembered the quote in that book." He said, "Would you believe," he said, "I went to my library," he said, "I pulled the book down," and he said, "I opened it to the very page the quote was on." Here was a man who died at 83 and yet in perfect possession of his mind. His body deteriorated. You've got to stop and think, what good is your body if you don't have the mind? You can have all the physical health in the world, but if you don't have the mind to use it.

We need to learn to thank God, that we have the understanding that we have, we have the reasoning ability that we have. Some have more than others, I understand that, but at least we have some! And I'm thankful for every little bit that God has given me. And what I would want is to have a single, undivided, devoted mind for His honor and His glory. So we need to learn to thank God for our minds. Secondly, we must also see the vanity of materialism, pride, arrogance, and human glory and greatness. I hope you understand that he was known as Nebuchadnezzar the great. Where in the world was his greatness for seven years? Where was the gloriousness of his throne for seven years? Here was the mighty warrior so formidable in the camp, the conqueror, the mighty one running around on all fours, eating grass like an ox.

Didn't have enough sense to keep his clothes on his back. Didn't have enough sense to comb his hair, trim his fingernails. Do you realize all of our earthly fame, all of our earthly glory, all of our earthly possessions will vanish in a moment. I don't know if you've seen the pictures. If you haven't, you need to go online and type in Nashville, Tennessee, the flood. Oh, Lord have mercy. I'm just simply saying, practically speaking, it's all gone. And it went in a day. What good is a multi-million dollar building once it's full of water and mud? I'm just simply saying, folks, here's the vanity of materialism. In Jeremiah 9, verse 24, let me just quote it. Here's what God says, listen carefully. "But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me."

"That I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord." God said, "If you're going to glory, glory in me. Don't glory in your gold, in your possessions, in your kingdom, in your power, in your mind. All that's going to leave. Glory in me." The third application is this. We must learn that God resists the proud. That is, he fights against them. God, listen carefully, God places contempt upon those who only have contempt for Him. Nebuchadnezzar would be more than a man, he would be God. So God made him less than a man, He made him an animal. We're told in 1 Peter 5 and verse 5,

Scripture Reading — 1 Peter 5:5

"God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble."

And the verse that everyone can quote in Proverbs 16 and verse 18, "Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall." If we would be holy, we must also be humble. Fourthly, God is the just God. He loves justice. In fact, we're told that justice is the habitation of his throne, which means this. We may lawfully pray that God will deal with ignorant, arrogant, proud, boastful tyrants and despots. And those who abuse His people and refuse to magnify His name, we may lawfully pray that God will abase them and bring them down. Why? Let me just give you one scripture. Psalm 58 verse 11, "So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous."

"Verily he is a God that judgeth in the earth." And when God brings the wicked down, they will know, as well as everyone else, there is a reward for the righteous and God judges the wicked. May I point out, they're going to know who God is. Everyone will know who He is, either in salvation or condemnation. But men will know. But we may lawfully and biblically and righteously pray that God would bring down and abase and destroy those who are contrary to Him and contrary to His Word. Who is that God that humbles civil rulers?

Closing Prayer

A prayer acknowledging God's sovereignty and asking Him to abase the proud and exalt the humble.

Ask Nebuchadnezzar, he can tell you. He's the sovereign God of heaven and earth. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee, we praise Thee, we give Thee honor and glory, we acknowledge Thou art the only God and besides Thee there is none other. Thou art the Sovereign, the Supreme, the Ultimate, the Absolute. And we bow before Thee as Thou hast revealed Thyself in Jesus Christ, our Lord. And we give Thee honor and glory. And we pray, Lord, that Thou wouldst indeed abase those that walk in pride. And Lord, honor those and exalt those that walk in humility, who worship Thee in spirit and in truth, and who seek to glorify Thy name and obey Thy word. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen and amen.

Study Guide

Major Themes

God's Absolute Sovereignty

Summary: God rules in the kingdom of men and gives power to whomever He wills. No human ruler can usurp His ultimate authority.

Evidence: Daniel 4:17, 25, 32, 35 are cited to show that the Most High rules and none can stay His hand.

The War Over Sovereignty

Summary: Since the Fall, man has attempted to dethrone God and become his own god, determining good and evil for himself.

Evidence: Genesis 3:5 is explained: 'ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil' means determining right and wrong.

Pride and Its Consequences

Summary: Pride leads to destruction. Nebuchadnezzar's boastful pride resulted in losing his kingdom and his sanity.

Evidence: Nebuchadnezzar's words in Daniel 4:30 and the immediate judgment in verses 31-33.

The Mind and Understanding

Summary: The heart is the mind; sin originates in our thinking. Nebuchadnezzar lost his reason and became like a beast.

Evidence: Daniel 4:16, 34, 36 show the heart changed and understanding returning; Matthew 15:19 shows evil thoughts from the heart.

God's Judgment on Wicked Rulers

Summary: God will abase proud rulers who reject His law. Believers may pray for God to humble tyrants.

Evidence: Psalm 94:20, Psalm 2:1-3, and Nebuchadnezzar's testimony in Daniel 4:37.

The Vanity of Earthly Glory

Summary: Material possessions and human greatness are fleeting and worthless without God.

Evidence: Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom meant nothing during his madness; Psalm 49:20 compares the ununderstanding man to beasts.

Key Arguments

God's sovereignty demands our obedience regardless of consequences.

Summary: If we truly believe God is sovereign, we obey Him in all circumstances and leave the results to Him, as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did.

Evidence: Reference to Daniel 3 and the statement: 'Our God can deliver us, but whether He delivers us or not, it doesn't matter. We're not going to obey you.'

All men, not just rulers, wage war against God's sovereignty.

Summary: Every person who refuses to bow to God and obey His Word is attempting to be his own god and establish his own law.

Evidence: The explanation of the Fall in Genesis 3:5 and the application that anytime we disobey, we deny God's sovereignty.

Civil rulers demonstrate their rebellion by making laws contrary to God's law.

Summary: Psalm 94:20 describes a 'throne of iniquity' that frames mischief by law, showing that wicked governments legalize sin.

Evidence: Direct quotation and analysis of Psalm 94:20.

God will not share His sovereignty or honor wicked rulers.

Summary: Sovereignty is exclusive; God will not give His glory to another. He will not bless governments that overthrow His law.

Evidence: Isaiah 42:8 and the statement that God is not going to honor a wicked civil government.

Nebuchadnezzar's madness illustrates the loss of mind that comes from rejecting God.

Summary: Those who refuse to acknowledge God have already lost their minds, and eventually they will lose their power.

Evidence: The description of boanthropy and the statement: 'Those who refuse to bow to Jesus Christ... have already lost their minds.'

God's restoration of Nebuchadnezzar teaches that He alone is sovereign and abases the proud.

Summary: After his reason returned, Nebuchadnezzar praised God and acknowledged that all inhabitants are nothing and God does according to His will.

Evidence: Daniel 4:34-37, especially verse 35: 'none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?'

Scripture References

Daniel 4:24-37

Context: The entire passage read and expounded, detailing Nebuchadnezzar's dream, Daniel's interpretation, the king's pride, judgment, and restoration.

Daniel 3

Context: Referenced as the background where Nebuchadnezzar asked 'Who is that God?' and the three Hebrews refused to bow.

Lamentations 3:22-23

Context: Quoted to show God's mercies are new every morning and we are not consumed because of His faithfulness.

Daniel 4:1-3

Context: Nebuchadnezzar's opening confession of God's signs and wonders, yet his pride remained.

Daniel 4:30

Context: Nebuchadnezzar's boast: 'Is not this great Babylon, that I have built... for the honor of my majesty?'

Daniel 2:37

Context: Daniel had told Nebuchadnezzar that God gave him his kingdom, power, and glory.

Genesis 3:5

Context: The serpent's temptation: 'ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil,' explained as determining good and evil.

Isaiah 33:22

Context: The Lord is our judge, lawgiver, and king; He will save us.

Luke 6:46

Context: Jesus asked, 'Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?'

Titus 1:16

Context: They profess to know God but in works deny Him.

Psalm 2:1-3

Context: The kings and rulers take counsel against the Lord, saying 'Let us break their bands asunder.'

Hosea 5:10

Context: The princes of Judah were like them that remove the bound; therefore God will pour out wrath.

Psalm 94:20

Context: Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?

Isaiah 42:8

Context: I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another.

Daniel 4:27

Context: Daniel's counsel to break off sins by righteousness and show mercy to the poor.

Daniel 4:16

Context: Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him.

Matthew 15:19

Context: Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, etc.

Psalm 49:20

Context: Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.

Psalm 75:6-7

Context: Promotion comes neither from east, west, nor south; God puts down one and sets up another.

1 Peter 5:5

Context: God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

Historical References

Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon

Context: The central figure of Daniel 4, a proud monarch who was humbled by God through seven years of madness.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego

Context: The three Hebrews who refused to bow to Nebuchadnezzar's image in Daniel 3, demonstrating faith in God's sovereignty.

Sennacherib and Pharaoh

Context: Mentioned as other rulers who essentially claimed sovereignty for themselves, like Nebuchadnezzar.

John Gill's commentary citing Eben Ezra

Context: Gill reports a story of a man on Sardinia who lost his reason and lived among deer, similar to Nebuchadnezzar's boanthropy.

Rusty (a friend of the speaker)

Context: An elderly friend who retained a sharp mind despite bodily deterioration, illustrating the value of the mind.

Nashville, Tennessee flood

Context: Referenced as an example of how quickly material possessions can be destroyed, illustrating the vanity of materialism.

Important Quotes

Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?

Significance: This quote captures Nebuchadnezzar's pride and self-glorification, which directly preceded God's judgment.

The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws.

Significance: Shows the immediate and humiliating judgment of God upon the proud king.

All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

Significance: Nebuchadnezzar's confession of God's absolute sovereignty after his restoration.

Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

Significance: The humbled king's final testimony that God abases the proud.

Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?

Significance: Key verse used to argue that wicked governments legalize sin and cannot have fellowship with God.

Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.

Significance: Summarizes the fate of those who, like Nebuchadnezzar, have earthly honor but lack understanding of God.

Discussion Questions

How does the example of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego challenge our willingness to obey God regardless of the consequences?

Context: The sermon emphasized that true belief in God's sovereignty means obeying Him and leaving results in His hands.

In what ways do we, like Nebuchadnezzar, struggle to acknowledge that everything we have comes from God?

Context: Nebuchadnezzar boasted about building Babylon by his own power, forgetting God's role.

How does the war over sovereignty manifest in our personal lives and in society today?

Context: The sermon traced the war back to the Fall, where man sought to determine good and evil for himself.

What does Psalm 94:20 teach us about the relationship between civil government and God's law?

Context: The verse describes a 'throne of iniquity' that frames mischief by law, showing governments can legalize sin.

Why is the mind (heart) so central to sin and obedience, and how can we guard it?

Context: The sermon explained that sin begins in the mind, and Nebuchadnezzar lost his mind as judgment.

How should the vanity of earthly glory affect our priorities and values?

Context: Nebuchadnezzar's riches meant nothing when he was insane; Psalm 49:20 warns that honor without understanding is beastly.

Is it biblical to pray for God to humble or abase wicked rulers? Why or why not?

Context: The sermon argued that we may lawfully pray for God to bring down tyrants, citing Psalm 58:11.

Applications

Thank God daily for our minds and reasoning.

Summary: We should thank God that we still possess our minds, understanding that a virus or accident could take them away instantly.

Evidence: The speaker said, 'We should learn to thank God daily for the simple fact that we're still in possession of our minds, our reasoning, and our understanding.'

See the vanity of materialism and human glory.

Summary: Earthly fame, possessions, and power can vanish in a moment; we should glory only in knowing God.

Evidence: The example of the Nashville flood and Jeremiah 9:24: 'let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me.'

Remember that God resists the proud.

Summary: Pride leads to destruction; we must be humble to receive God's grace.

Evidence: 1 Peter 5:5 and Proverbs 16:18 are cited, and Nebuchadnezzar's humbling is the prime example.

Pray for God to humble wicked rulers.

Summary: Believers may lawfully pray that God will abase proud, tyrannical rulers who oppose His law and people.

Evidence: Psalm 58:11 is referenced: 'Verily he is a God that judgeth in the earth.'

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T14:17:49Z

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T02:32:21Z

Clean Transcript

Who Is That God That Humbles Civil Rulers?

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

Let's open our Bibles today to the book of Daniel chapter 4, Daniel chapter 4.
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Let's open our Bibles today to the book of Daniel chapter four, Daniel chapter four. And this is the second message on "Who Is That God?" Notice, if you would, Daniel chapter four, beginning there with verse 24, Daniel four, verse 24, and we shall read through verse 37. Daniel four, verse 24. "This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the most high, which has come upon my lord the king."
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"Now they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the most high ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots, thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule. Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility." All this came upon king Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of twelve months, he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon. The king spake and said, "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?"
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While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, "O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee. And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will." The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws. And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most high, and I praised and honored him that liveth forever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation.
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"And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?" At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honor and brightness returned unto me; and my counselors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.
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"Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase." Last week we looked at the first message, "Who Is That God?" And we showed from the scripture, when Nebuchadnezzar asked that question, it was a question that he asked not only in his ignorance, but also in his arrogance as well.
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I pointed out other rulers like Sennacherib and Pharaoh basically asked the same thing because they were essentially claiming sovereignty for themselves. They thought themselves as God and that no one was higher or more supreme or more sovereign than they were. One of the main points that I want to emphasize from last week's message is just simply this. I pointed out that if we genuinely believe in God's sovereignty, as did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, it simply means this, that we obey Him at all times under every circumstance and every situation, and we leave the results and the consequences of our obedience in His hands. Nebuchadnezzar threatened them. They said, "Our God can deliver us, but whether He delivers us or not, it doesn't matter. We're not going to obey you." So Nebuchadnezzar asked, "Who is that God that can deliver you out of my hands?" Nebuchadnezzar received his answer. Because he found out that it is indeed the sovereign, eternal, immutable, infinite, omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent God of heaven and earth, who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, who can and did deliver out of Nebuchadnezzar's hand.
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He has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, and he is the same God that delivered in those days. He's the same God that delivers today. And he will be the same God who delivers tomorrow. And may I point out that he is indeed in the same delivering business. You and I may not be delivered as dramatically as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were delivered. But the fact is that we're being constantly and continually protected and delivered from death and destruction is still no less marvelous and no less miraculous.
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You and I receive protection and deliverance on a daily, I would add, even hourly basis. You know what we're told in Lamentations 3, verses 22 and 23? Listen, "It is of the Lord's mercies that we're not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness." So the question has to be asked, have you praised God for his deliverance of you during the night, who allowed you to awaken this morning? And when you go to bed at night, do you praise God for allowing you to live through the day? God has sovereignly, miraculously, and marvelously delivered you through each day and through each night. And you should learn to give God daily and nightly praise as well. Since Nebuchadnezzar asked this question, "And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?"
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He certainly received his answer. God showed him. Yet Nebuchadnezzar's arrogance remained and he presumed to ignore the truth of God's sovereignty.
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Now what happened in Daniel 4 is intimately connected with what happened in Daniel chapter 3. Nebuchadnezzar made some startling confessions in Daniel chapter 4. For instance, look at the first three verses. Daniel 4, beginning there of verse 1. "Nebuchadnezzar the king, unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you. I thought it good to show the signs and wonders that the most high God hath wrought toward me. How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders!"
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"His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation." Now, although Nebuchadnezzar has made this confession, he is still arrogant and full of self and pride. Nebuchadnezzar had a problem with the truth that God had set him up and that God had made him king. Nebuchadnezzar still believed that everything revolved around him. He still believed that everything that he had and everything that he was was a product of his work, his power, and for his honor and his glory.
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Just skip down to verse 30. Look in Daniel 4 and verse 30. Nebuchadnezzar said it very plainly. "The king spake and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?" You see everything according to Nebuchadnezzar had to be about Nebuchadnezzar. If you look back in Daniel 2 and verse 37, Daniel chapter 2 and verse 37, Daniel had told Nebuchadnezzar, "Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory." So Daniel had told him, "Yes, you're a mighty king. Yes, you're a great king. But the only reason you're mighty, the only reason you're great, the only reason you're powerful, the only reason you have a kingdom is because God made you that." So Nebuchadnezzar, when you get to Daniel chapter 4, is still having a problem acknowledging God's sovereignty and God's supremacy. Now Nebuchadnezzar was like most politicians.
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He wanted to say one thing and act entirely differently. He may have said with his mouth, "Yes, he has a kingdom that's an everlasting kingdom and his kingdom is from generation to generation." He may have said that. But his actions demonstrated that he really genuinely did not believe that. He still thought in some way that he was supreme. So the message today, the real full title is this.
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"Who Is That God That Humbles Civil Rulers?" Nebuchadnezzar found out exactly who he was. He is the same God that has humbled civil rulers in times past, is still humbling them today, and shall humble them in the future. And I want to submit to you, especially in light of everything that's happening in our country, it is high time that all of our civil rulers really and truly find out who is in charge and who is sovereign, and I can assure you it is not a human, finite, civil ruler. It is only the sovereign God of heaven and earth.
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They need to understand and recognize that. But I want you to comprehend the fact that this war that raged between Nebuchadnezzar and God is a war that basically has raged ever since the fall of man, not just between civil rulers and God, but between men and God as well, and the war is indeed a war over sovereignty. You see, before the fall, Adam, who was created in original righteousness, holiness, and dominion, Adam was willing for God to be God. But when Adam sinned, he tried to usurp the authority and the position of God. In essence, he tried to dethrone God and enthrone himself. Now listen carefully.
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In Genesis 3 and verse 5, here's what the serpent told Eve. "For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."
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Now listen to what he said. "And ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." The Hebrew word for "knowing" has the force of "determining." So literally what he said is this, "You shall be as gods, determining good and evil." In other words, here's the temptation. You don't need God to tell you what's right and what's wrong. You don't need God to tell you what to do. You eat this fruit, you will become your own god and you will determine for yourself what is good and evil. You'll determine for yourself what is right and wrong.
#18 | 12:57 to 13:33 | cleaned
Let me spell it out for you. You can make your own law. You can be your own god. Thus when Adam took that fruit and when Eve took that fruit, they both were attempting to dethrone God and enthrone themselves. You have to remember this, that it is a sovereign who establishes law. A king rules by his law. In Isaiah 33 and verse 22 we are told this, "For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us." Notice if you would please, king, lawgiver, and judge are all rolled up in the sovereignty of God. And so what has happened ever since the fall of man is this war has been raging and it is a war over sovereignty. Who is sovereign? Who is supreme?
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You want to know why men usurp authority, steal authority, abuse authority? The answer is this, because they like to play God. They like to believe somehow that they can make their own law and do their own thing. Nebuchadnezzar was such a civil ruler. Now let me point out again, I've already hit it, but I'm going to point out again, it is not just pagan or apostate civil rulers who like to play God, although Nebuchadnezzar is the example that we're using in Daniel chapter 4. It is not just the multitudinous civil rulers in times past, in times present, and those who are yet to come to power who like to play God. No, every man in some degree wants to play God. He wants to be his own sovereign. He wants to make his own law. Anytime anyone refuses to bow to the one sovereign God who has revealed Himself in Jesus Christ and obey His Word, he is waging war against God and is attempting to become his own god and establish his own law.
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It doesn't matter what people say in one sense of the word. I know and I've heard plenty of Christians who say, "The Lord Jesus Christ is God." They acknowledge that. And then they live their lives as if He was not God. I want you to stop. You remember what our Lord said? I may have quoted it last week. In Luke 6, He said, "Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say unto you?" If He is our God, if He is our Sovereign, we should obey Him. So it is our lives, it is our sins, it is our rebellions that deny our professions. I think it was Paul who wrote in Titus 1 in verse 16, "They profess that they know Him, but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate."
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So it's not just civil rulers, it's man as well. It is true that the tendency to play God is more easily and more readily seen in civil rulers. Why? Because they have the opportunity, they have the platform, and they have the available resources to exercise absolute power. So since God is sovereign, and he has all power, when a civil ruler then tries to usurp that power or that position and tries to become sovereign, he has to demonstrate his sovereignty through tyranny, totalitarianism, and despotism. Why? Well, because you really cannot disobey God in one sense of the word—you can when you go against his revealed will—but then God also has a secretive will according to Deuteronomy 29 verse 29, and the Lord is able to work everything out. Man is not like that. And so man then says, "This is what I want, this is what my will is, and you will do it or I will make you do it." So if they claim to be God, then they have to exercise their sovereignty through totalitarianism, tyranny, and despotism.
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You remember the passage we read it last week from Psalm 2 verses 1 through 3. Let me read it again. Listen carefully because Psalm 2 explains it. "Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?" By the way, the word "vain" means something that is useless and worthless. So why do the people imagine a useless, worthless thing? Now listen carefully. "The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us." In other words, the civil rulers say, in essence, "We don't like God's limitations. We don't like God being God. We do not like God's boundaries. We do not like God's law. We want to establish our own boundaries, our own limitations. We want to establish our own law."
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That's why in Hosea 5 and verse 10, God said this, "The princes of Judah were like them that remove the bound: therefore I will pour out my wrath upon them like water." Now listen carefully, "The princes of Judah were like them that remove the bound," that is the boundaries. They did not like to be confined. They did not like to obey God. God says, "Because they've removed my boundaries, therefore I'll pour my wrath out upon them like water." They demonstrate their contempt for God by refusing to recognize Him, to bow to Him, or serve Him. They demonstrate their contempt for God by refusing to obey His laws, seeking to abrogate them, to nullify them, to overthrow them, and to establish their own laws.
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I can quote this but I do want you to turn. Hold Daniel 4. Turn back in your Bible to Psalm 94 verse 20. I've shared this verse with you many times. It is one of my favorite verses and it is so clear and it explains so well what I'm talking about. Look in Psalm 94 verse 20. Here's a question that is asked. Psalm 94 verse 20. "Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?" Now I want you to look at the verse. "Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?" Before we answer the question, let's analyze the verse. "Shall the throne"—so a throne speaks of government, it speaks of power, it speaks of a king. But note if you would, it's a throne of iniquity. Which means it is a wicked king or a wicked civil government. Now watch, "Shall the throne of iniquity," shall a wicked civil government, "have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?" Now mischief in the Bible is another word for sin.
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So here it is, "Shall a wicked civil government have fellowship with thee which makes sin legal?" Well, what's the answer? Shall a wicked civil government that tries to overthrow God, dethrone God, enthrone itself, violate God's law, make its own law in opposition to God's law, shall that wicked civil government have fellowship with God? What's the answer? No. No. In other words, God is not going to bless or support or countenance such governments. God's not going to honor a government that tries to overthrow His law. What did God say in Isaiah 42 and verse 8? Listen.
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He said, "I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images." God is not going to honor a wicked civil ruler. God is not going to honor a wicked civil government. Please understand the word sovereign is an exclusive word. There can only be one sovereign, only one ultimate, only one supreme. And that one ultimate, that one absolute, that one supreme, that one sovereign can never ever be a finite human civil ruler. It can only be the one true and the living God. And God is not going to share his sovereignty. Just stop and think. This one concept ought to throw the divine right of kings into absolute turmoil. God is not going to share His sovereignty. If God shared His sovereignty, He would not be sovereign.
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Now, I want you to go back to Daniel chapter 4. I want you to see this whole passage in the term of sovereignty. In Daniel chapter four, Daniel is speaking to King Nebuchadnezzar. And look what he tells him in verse 27. He says, "Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility." Now, what is Daniel counseling Nebuchadnezzar to do? He is counseling Nebuchadnezzar to repent, to break off his sins, and to replace those sins with deeds of righteousness. He says, "Break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor." Now wait a minute. If Daniel is counseling Nebuchadnezzar to break off his sins by righteousness, who is it that defines righteousness? And where do we find righteousness? In God's Law. In God's Word. So here is Daniel's counsel. You repent. You submit to God and to His Law.
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You do what He tells you to do. You obey Him. "If it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility." In other words, Nebuchadnezzar, if you want peace, if you want long life, if you want a long-lasting kingdom, you repent and you obey God. Wow. That's essentially what he was telling him. Now, Nebuchadnezzar refused to repent and obey. In fact, God was gracious to Nebuchadnezzar in that He gave him 12 months to turn from his wickedness.
#29 | 25:32 to 26:12 | cleaned
Skip down to verse 29. "At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon." Isn't that amazing? For 12 months after Daniel had counseled him to break off his sins by repentance and obey God, he had thrown away and wasted 12 months. A whole year had gone by. His mind was unchanged. His sins were unrepented of. And look in verse 28.
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"All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar." Well, what was it that came upon him? Listen carefully. He lost his kingdom. And he lost his mind. Go down to verse 30. "The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty? While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee." There's the loss of his kingdom. "And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most high ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will." There's the loss of his mind. Hmm. So what did Nebuchadnezzar lose? His kingdom and his mind. Now, listen to me. There's a lesson that needs to be learned.
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A truth that needs to be emphasized. And that is this. Mark it down. Sooner or later, all wicked rulers will learn one truth and that it is God that rules in the kingdom of men and He gives the kingdom to whomsoever He wills.
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I don't get bent out of shape over the Illuminati, the new world order, council of 13, club of Rome, committee of 300. I don't get bent out of shape over those things. You know why? Because God is on the throne and God is going to bring them down. They're going to learn a lesson just like Nebuchadnezzar. They're going to learn it very clearly. And they're going to learn it very distinctly that God is sovereign. And they're going to find that out either in salvation or condemnation, but they will find it out. Now, do you realize Nebuchadnezzar lost his mind? Those who refuse to bow to Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him and His sovereignty and His law have already lost their minds. It's just going to be a matter of time. And just as soon as God permits, they're going to lose their power and their kingdom as well.
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Now, I want you to note what the Bible says. Look in verse 32. He said, "...and they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee." Seven times—seven times is just simply the Chaldean way of saying seven years. So for seven years now Nebuchadnezzar will not have a kingdom and for seven years he's going to be insane. Now I want you to notice what the Bible says. In verse 33, "The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws."
#34 | 30:00 to 30:54 | cleaned
Now this is a condition that is known as boanthropy. Boanthropy is a form of madness, insanity, in which the victim imagines himself to be an ox or more specifically a bovine, a cow. That's how you get the word boanthropy. Anthropos is the word man, bo from bovine, so it's a man living like a cow is what it amounts to.
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Now this is not the only incident that has been recorded in history. There were a number of others. I did not choose to share them with you, but John Gill in his commentary quotes Eben Ezra and he says this: Eben Ezra reports on one of the islands in Sardinia about a man who fled from his parents and lost his reason and lived among deer for many years and went upon his hands and feet like them and the king of the island going hunting one day caught many deer among them this man that was taken for one his parents came and owned him and spoke to him but he answered not.
#36 | 31:23 to 32:06 | cleaned
They set before him bread and wine to eat and drink, but he refused. Then they gave him grass with the deer, and he ate that. And in the middle of the night made his escape to the deer of the field again. What can you say? He was insane. The same thing happened to Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar is going to learn the hard way. He's going to suffer madness. He's going to suffer insanity. He's going to live like an animal. Now, I want you to note that Nebuchadnezzar has been given the heart of a beast. I want you to go back in your Bibles to Daniel 4 and verse 16. Daniel 4 verse 16.
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And look at what the Bible says. "Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him." So for seven years, he will not have the heart of a man, he will have the heart of a beast.
#38 | 32:55 to 33:18 | cleaned
Now skip down to verse 23. Daniel 4 verse 23. "And whereas the king saw a watcher and an holy one"—that would be an angel—"coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew the tree down, and destroy it; yet leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over him." So here again, seven years.
#39 | 33:19 to 33:53 | cleaned
But I want you to note, God says specifically, "Let his heart be changed from a man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him." Now, there's a message that I've preached for many years entitled, "Keeping the Heart," from Proverbs 4, verse 23. I'll be absolutely honest with you, it's a message that I preach to myself every day. I think it's one of the most fundamental, elementary, and necessary messages of this day and time. But in that message, I demonstrate that the heart is the mind. You know, we say, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." But notice, "As he thinketh in his heart, so is he." That's based on Proverbs 23 verse 7 where we're told, "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he." But if you will turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 15, I'm not going to take time today to re-preach that message. But I do want to emphasize the fact that the heart is indeed the mind. It is our reasoning. It is our understanding.
#40 | 33:54 to 35:12 | cleaned
Look in Matthew chapter 15 and notice if you would please there verse 19, our Lord has been teaching and he is now explaining to his disciples. In fact, let's begin with verse 15. Matthew 15 in verse 15, "Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable. And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding? Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught?"
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"But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man." Now, our Lord said in verse 19, "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders." Do you realize you cannot commit any sin until you first think about it? I don't care if you're talking about adultery, murder, fornication, theft, you have to first think about it. So he says, "Out of the heart proceed all of these evil thoughts."
#42 | 35:46 to 36:54 | cleaned
Now, go back in your Bibles, if you would, to Daniel chapter 4. You've got to remember now that the heart is the mind. It is the reason. It is the understanding. That is where all sin begins. You cannot act until you first think. And you do what you do because you think the way you think. "As the man thinketh in his heart, so is he." Now, we're specifically told in Daniel chapter 4 that the heart is the mind and the reasoning. For instance, go back to verse 16 again. Daniel 4 verse 16, "Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him." So it is his heart that was changed. Now go down to Daniel 4 and verse 34.
#43 | 36:56 to 37:49 | cleaned
After seven years, "At the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me." Well, I thought it was his heart that was changed. Well, it was. It was his understanding, or his mind, or his reasoning ability. Skip down to verse 36. He says it again. "At the same time my reason returned unto me." So what two things did Nebuchadnezzar lose? He lost his kingdom and he lost his mind.
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He began to think like an ox. He began to act like an ox. He ate like an ox. He believed himself to be an ox. He crawled around on all fours. His hair grew long, became matted like bird's feathers. His fingernails grew like bird's claws. Verse 33, "The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws."
#45 | 38:30 to 39:14 | cleaned
Thus the proud, arrogant, ignorant, pompous monarch was wholly and completely deprived of his reasoning ability, and he was now governed by the mind of an animal. Question. What good was his kingdom now? What good were all of his riches? Where was all of his greatness? Where are all of his courtiers? Where are all of his servants? Mighty Babylon was now no more than a stone wall or a fence to a cow. Can you imagine that? Here's the man that said, "Is not this mighty Babylon which I have built by the might of my power and for my honor and my glory?" And now he sees that nothing. What a fence.
#46 | 39:20 to 40:34 | cleaned
You can't get over it. He roamed in the woods. He lived in the woods. God had deprived him, not only of his kingdom and his mind, but of his honor and his power. And it was done instantly. Instantly. I want you to turn to Psalm 49, hold Daniel 4, but turn to Psalm 49 and look, if you would please, at verse 20. Psalm 49, verse 20.
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You know, we have a lot of civil rulers like Nebuchadnezzar. They've lost their minds.
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Now don't you notice what God says, Psalm 49 verse 20, "Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish." Isn't that amazing? Civil rulers, anyone in a position of power and honor who does not understand God and the things of God is no more than a beast that perish. He's foolish. He's senseless. He's mindless. He has no reasoning. He has no understanding. Totally devoid. Now, I want you to go back to Daniel 4 and verse 33.
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There's another word here that merits our attention. Daniel 4 verse 33. "The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar." Watch. "And he was driven from men." Ah. Nebuchadnezzar not only wanted to get away, they wanted him to get away. They drove him like a cow. Get out. Stay away. Don't come back. He may have hastened to get away since he had the mind of a beast. He didn't want to be around, but no one else wanted him around them as well. So they drove him away as an animal that is driven away. His trusted counselors, lords, and diplomats were eager to get rid of him. And Nebuchadnezzar with the mind of an animal wanted to go and those around him were more than willing to let him go. Now I want you to understand God did restore Nebuchadnezzar. And when God gave him back his mind and his kingdom, Nebuchadnezzar learned some of the most important and valuable lessons of his life. After God restored him, the men who drove him away sought for him again.
#50 | 42:16 to 43:45 | cleaned
Go back down to verse 36. "At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honor and brightness returned unto me; and my counselors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me." In other words, Nebuchadnezzar has pretty well learned his lesson that God is in charge, that God is in control, that God rules in the kingdom of men and he gives it to whomsoever he will. What were the lessons that Nebuchadnezzar learned? He learned that God was sovereign. He learned that God was in control. He learned that he was nothing and that God could do anything and everything that he pleased. Look at verse 35. Look what he said.
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"All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?" He learned that only God had an everlasting kingdom. He learned that God ruled in the kingdom of men and gave it to whomsoever He willed. He learned that He only had a kingdom because of God's divine providence. He learned a hard lesson of Psalm 75, 6 and 7. Listen carefully.
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"For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another." You know what else Nebuchadnezzar learned? He learned that he was disposable. You know, sometimes we think, "Boy, God just couldn't get along without us." Or "The world couldn't get along without us." I got news for you folks. He can. He can. The fact that God uses us is only by His grace. Each of us are disposable. And I've got news for you. If everyone in this room died today, the world would go on tomorrow. Just like we had never been born. Nebuchadnezzar learned he was disposable. He also learned that those that walk in pride, that God was able to abase.
#53 | 45:20 to 46:40 | cleaned
Well, let's go back to verse 34. Here's Nebuchadnezzar's own words. "And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most high, and I praised and honored him that liveth forever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou? At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honor and brightness returned unto me; and my counselors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me. Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase."
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And I do pray it is time for God to do some more abasing. It is time for the rulers in our country and in this world to realize that God is sovereign, God is supreme, and they are only His vassals. It is time for our civil rulers to realize they are delegated authorities, and they do not have the right to steal, nor usurp authority, nor to lord it over God's heritage. They do not have the right to change, or alter, or supplant God's law. God put them there to enforce His law, and to execute His righteousness, not to destroy it.
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They are to be His ministers of justice. His executors of righteousness. And those who fail to do so, He shall abase. Nebuchadnezzar said, "I learned one thing. Those that walk in pride, He's quite able to abase."
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Now let me make some applications and try to tie this together for us. First of all, we should learn to thank God daily for the simple fact that we're still in possession of our minds, our reasoning, and our understanding. Do you realize God does not have to strike us instantly with judgment the way he did Nebuchadnezzar to take away our minds. A little virus or an accident can handle that. We need to learn the value of our minds.
#57 | 48:58 to 49:41 | cleaned
I've told Alice, if it were my choice, and it's not my choice, but if it were my choice, if the Lord lets me live to a ripe old age, I believe I'd rather lose my body than my mind. I really do. I probably told you this, but Rusty was a dear friend. And Alice and I would go out to see him every year when I was out there preaching. And the last summer that we were there before he died, he told me, he said, "John," he said, "my body's deteriorating."
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He said, "I can barely do this. I have this, I have this, I have that." He said, "But thank God." He said, "My mind is still as sound as it ever was." He said, "You know, just this week," he said, "I was thinking about a quote that I read in a book in 1935."
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Now, I couldn't even remember, you know, we're talking about, you know, 2000. So, he's remembering a quote that he read nearly 70 years ago. He said, "I remembered the quote in that book." He said, "Would you believe," he said, "I went to my library," he said, "I pulled the book down," and he said, "I opened it to the very page the quote was on." Here was a man who died at 83 and yet in perfect possession of his mind. His body deteriorated. You've got to stop and think, what good is your body if you don't have the mind? You can have all the physical health in the world, but if you don't have the mind to use it.
#60 | 50:45 to 51:30 | cleaned
We need to learn to thank God, that we have the understanding that we have, we have the reasoning ability that we have. Some have more than others, I understand that, but at least we have some! And I'm thankful for every little bit that God has given me. And what I would want is to have a single, undivided, devoted mind for His honor and His glory. So we need to learn to thank God for our minds.
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Secondly, we must also see the vanity of materialism, pride, arrogance, and human glory and greatness. I hope you understand that he was known as Nebuchadnezzar the great. Where in the world was his greatness for seven years? Where was the gloriousness of his throne for seven years? Here was the mighty warrior so formidable in the camp, the conqueror, the mighty one running around on all fours, eating grass like an ox.
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Didn't have enough sense to keep his clothes on his back. Didn't have enough sense to comb his hair, trim his fingernails. Do you realize all of our earthly fame, all of our earthly glory, all of our earthly possessions will vanish in a moment. I don't know if you've seen the pictures. If you haven't, you need to go online and type in Nashville, Tennessee, the flood. Oh, Lord have mercy.
#63 | 52:43 to 53:18 | cleaned
I'm just simply saying, practically speaking, it's all gone. And it went in a day. What good is a multi-million dollar building once it's full of water and mud? I'm just simply saying, folks, here's the vanity of materialism. In Jeremiah 9, verse 24, let me just quote it. Here's what God says, listen carefully. "But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me."
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"That I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord." God said, "If you're going to glory, glory in me. Don't glory in your gold, in your possessions, in your kingdom, in your power, in your mind. All that's going to leave. Glory in me." The third application is this. We must learn that God resists the proud.
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That is, he fights against them. God, listen carefully, God places contempt upon those who only have contempt for Him. Nebuchadnezzar would be more than a man, he would be God. So God made him less than a man, He made him an animal. We're told in 1 Peter 5 and verse 5, "God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble." And the verse that everyone can quote in Proverbs 16 and verse 18, "Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall." If we would be holy, we must also be humble. Fourthly, God is the just God. He loves justice. In fact, we're told that justice is the habitation of his throne, which means this. We may lawfully pray that God will deal with ignorant, arrogant, proud, boastful tyrants and despots. And those who abuse His people and refuse to magnify His name, we may lawfully pray that God will abase them and bring them down. Why? Let me just give you one scripture. Psalm 58 verse 11, "So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous."
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"Verily he is a God that judgeth in the earth." And when God brings the wicked down, they will know, as well as everyone else, there is a reward for the righteous and God judges the wicked. May I point out, they're going to know who God is. Everyone will know who He is, either in salvation or condemnation. But men will know. But we may lawfully and biblically and righteously pray that God would bring down and abase and destroy those who are contrary to Him and contrary to His Word. Who is that God that humbles civil rulers?
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Ask Nebuchadnezzar, he can tell you. He's the sovereign God of heaven and earth. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to Thee, we praise Thee, we give Thee honor and glory, we acknowledge Thou art the only God and besides Thee there is none other. Thou art the Sovereign, the Supreme, the Ultimate, the Absolute. And we bow before Thee as Thou hast revealed Thyself in Jesus Christ, our Lord. And we give Thee honor and glory. And we pray, Lord, that Thou wouldst indeed abase those that walk in pride. And Lord, honor those and exalt those that walk in humility, who worship Thee in spirit and in truth, and who seek to glorify Thy name and obey Thy word. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen and amen.
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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T14:17:49Z

Who Is That God That Humbles Civil Rulers?

John Weaver | Freedom Ministries

In this sermon, Pastor John Weaver examines Daniel 4 to show how God humbled the proud King Nebuchadnezzar, teaching him that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men. The message emphasizes God's absolute sovereignty over all civil rulers, the war over sovereignty that began at the Fall, and the certainty that God will abase the proud. Applications include thanking God for our minds, seeing the vanity of materialism, and praying for God to humble wicked rulers.

Opening

Let's open our Bibles today to the book of Daniel chapter 4, Daniel chapter 4.

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"Now they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the most high ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots, thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule. Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility."

All this came upon king Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of twelve months, he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon. The king spake and said,

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?"

While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying,

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee. And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will."

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?"

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:24-37

"Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase."

Introduction and Review

Recap of Part 1: Nebuchadnezzar's arrogant question 'Who is that God?' and the faithful response of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. God's sovereignty means we obey and leave results to Him.

Daily Deliverance and God's Faithfulness

God delivers us daily, even hourly, and we should praise Him for each day and night. Lamentations 3:22-23 underscores His mercies.

You and I receive protection and deliverance on a daily, I would add, even hourly basis. You know what we're told in Lamentations 3, verses 22 and 23? Listen,

Scripture Reading — Lamentations 3:22-23

"It is of the Lord's mercies that we're not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness."

He certainly received his answer. God showed him. Yet Nebuchadnezzar's arrogance remained and he presumed to ignore the truth of God's sovereignty.

Nebuchadnezzar's Confession and Lingering Pride

Though Nebuchadnezzar confessed God's greatness in Daniel 4:1-3, his pride remained, as seen in his boast about Babylon in verse 30.

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:30

"The king spake and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?"

The War Over Sovereignty Since the Fall

The conflict between God and rulers mirrors the Fall, where Adam and Eve sought to be as gods, determining good and evil for themselves.

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 33:22

"For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us."

Civil Rulers and the Rejection of God's Law

Psalm 2 and Psalm 94:20 show rulers conspiring against God and framing mischief by law. God will not share His sovereignty or honor wicked governments.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 94:20

"Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?"

Now I want you to look at the verse.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 94:20

"Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?"

Daniel's Counsel and Nebuchadnezzar's Judgment

Daniel urged repentance and righteousness (v. 27), but after 12 months of grace, Nebuchadnezzar boasted and was struck with madness, losing his kingdom and mind.

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:27

"Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor; if it may be a lengthening of thy tranquility."

Now, what is Daniel counseling Nebuchadnezzar to do? He is counseling Nebuchadnezzar to repent, to break off his sins, and to replace those sins with deeds of righteousness. He says,

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:27

"Break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor."

The Nature of Nebuchadnezzar's Madness

His heart (mind) was changed to that of a beast (boanthropy). He lived like an ox for seven years, illustrating the fate of those who reject God.

And look at what the Bible says.

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:16

"Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him."

Scripture Reading — Daniel 4:16

"coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew the tree down, and destroy it; yet leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over him."

So here again, seven years.

The Heart as the Mind

Using Matthew 15:19 and Daniel 4, the sermon shows that the heart is the mind/reasoning. Sin begins in the mind, and Nebuchadnezzar lost his understanding.

Scripture Reading — Matthew 15:19

"But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man."

Now, our Lord said in verse 19,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 15:19

"For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders."

Do you realize you cannot commit any sin until you first think about it? I don't care if you're talking about adultery, murder, fornication, theft, you have to first think about it. So he says,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 15:19

"Out of the heart proceed all of these evil thoughts."

The Vanity of Earthly Greatness

Nebuchadnezzar's riches and kingdom meant nothing when he was insane. Psalm 49:20 says a man in honor without understanding is like a beast.

You know, we have a lot of civil rulers like Nebuchadnezzar. They've lost their minds. Now don't you notice what God says, Psalm 49 verse 20,

Scripture Reading — Psalm 49:20

"Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish."

Restoration and Lessons Learned

After seven years, Nebuchadnezzar's reason returned. He praised God, acknowledging His sovereignty, that all inhabitants are nothing, and that God abases the proud.

Applications for Believers

Thank God for our minds, see the vanity of materialism, remember God resists the proud, and pray for God to humble wicked rulers.

Scripture Reading — 1 Peter 5:5

"God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble."

Closing Prayer

A prayer acknowledging God's sovereignty and asking Him to abase the proud and exalt the humble.

Who Is That God That Humbles Civil Rulers?

John Weaver | YouTube

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	YouTube
Media ID	d-9p18MFX4Y
Subject	Civil Government
Course	Civil Government: Magistracy, Authority, and Romans 13: Authority
Genre	Sermon
Date	2012-02-13
Dictation Name
Book	Book 130: Who is That God — Chapter 2
Source Timed Segments	68

Lecture Guide

Outline

Introduction and Review: Recap of Part 1: Nebuchadnezzar's arrogant question 'Who is that God?' and the faithful response of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. God's sovereignty means we obey and leave results to Him.
Daily Deliverance and God's Faithfulness: God delivers us daily, even hourly, and we should praise Him for each day and night. Lamentations 3:22-23 underscores His mercies.
Nebuchadnezzar's Confession and Lingering Pride: Though Nebuchadnezzar confessed God's greatness in Daniel 4:1-3, his pride remained, as seen in his boast about Babylon in verse 30.
The War Over Sovereignty Since the Fall: The conflict between God and rulers mirrors the Fall, where Adam and Eve sought to be as gods, determining good and evil for themselves.
Civil Rulers and the Rejection of God's Law: Psalm 2 and Psalm 94:20 show rulers conspiring against God and framing mischief by law. God will not share His sovereignty or honor wicked governments.
Daniel's Counsel and Nebuchadnezzar's Judgment: Daniel urged repentance and righteousness (v. 27), but after 12 months of grace, Nebuchadnezzar boasted and was struck with madness, losing his kingdom and mind.
The Nature of Nebuchadnezzar's Madness: His heart (mind) was changed to that of a beast (boanthropy). He lived like an ox for seven years, illustrating the fate of those who reject God.
The Heart as the Mind: Using Matthew 15:19 and Daniel 4, the sermon shows that the heart is the mind/reasoning. Sin begins in the mind, and Nebuchadnezzar lost his understanding.
The Vanity of Earthly Greatness: Nebuchadnezzar's riches and kingdom meant nothing when he was insane. Psalm 49:20 says a man in honor without understanding is like a beast.
Restoration and Lessons Learned: After seven years, Nebuchadnezzar's reason returned. He praised God, acknowledging His sovereignty, that all inhabitants are nothing, and that God abases the proud.
Applications for Believers: Thank God for our minds, see the vanity of materialism, remember God resists the proud, and pray for God to humble wicked rulers.
Closing Prayer: A prayer acknowledging God's sovereignty and asking Him to abase the proud and exalt the humble.

Major Themes

Key Arguments

God's sovereignty demands our obedience regardless of consequences.

If we truly believe God is sovereign, we obey Him in all circumstances and leave the results to Him, as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did.

Reference to Daniel 3 and the statement: 'Our God can deliver us, but whether He delivers us or not, it doesn't matter. We're not going to obey you.'

All men, not just rulers, wage war against God's sovereignty.

Every person who refuses to bow to God and obey His Word is attempting to be his own god and establish his own law.

The explanation of the Fall in Genesis 3:5 and the application that anytime we disobey, we deny God's sovereignty.

Civil rulers demonstrate their rebellion by making laws contrary to God's law.

Psalm 94:20 describes a 'throne of iniquity' that frames mischief by law, showing that wicked governments legalize sin.

Direct quotation and analysis of Psalm 94:20.

God will not share His sovereignty or honor wicked rulers.

Sovereignty is exclusive; God will not give His glory to another. He will not bless governments that overthrow His law.

Isaiah 42:8 and the statement that God is not going to honor a wicked civil government.

Nebuchadnezzar's madness illustrates the loss of mind that comes from rejecting God.

Those who refuse to acknowledge God have already lost their minds, and eventually they will lose their power.

The description of boanthropy and the statement: 'Those who refuse to bow to Jesus Christ... have already lost their minds.'

God's restoration of Nebuchadnezzar teaches that He alone is sovereign and abases the proud.

After his reason returned, Nebuchadnezzar praised God and acknowledged that all inhabitants are nothing and God does according to His will.

Daniel 4:34-37, especially verse 35: 'none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?'

Scripture References

Daniel 4:24-37: The entire passage read and expounded, detailing Nebuchadnezzar's dream, Daniel's interpretation, the king's pride, judgment, and restoration.
Daniel 3: Referenced as the background where Nebuchadnezzar asked 'Who is that God?' and the three Hebrews refused to bow.
Lamentations 3:22-23: Quoted to show God's mercies are new every morning and we are not consumed because of His faithfulness.
Daniel 4:1-3: Nebuchadnezzar's opening confession of God's signs and wonders, yet his pride remained.
Daniel 4:30: Nebuchadnezzar's boast: 'Is not this great Babylon, that I have built... for the honor of my majesty?'
Daniel 2:37: Daniel had told Nebuchadnezzar that God gave him his kingdom, power, and glory.
Genesis 3:5: The serpent's temptation: 'ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil,' explained as determining good and evil.
Isaiah 33:22: The Lord is our judge, lawgiver, and king; He will save us.
Luke 6:46: Jesus asked, 'Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?'
Titus 1:16: They profess to know God but in works deny Him.
Psalm 2:1-3: The kings and rulers take counsel against the Lord, saying 'Let us break their bands asunder.'
Hosea 5:10: The princes of Judah were like them that remove the bound; therefore God will pour out wrath.
Psalm 94:20: Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?
Isaiah 42:8: I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another.
Daniel 4:27: Daniel's counsel to break off sins by righteousness and show mercy to the poor.
Daniel 4:16: Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him.
Matthew 15:19: Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, etc.
Psalm 49:20: Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.
Psalm 75:6-7: Promotion comes neither from east, west, nor south; God puts down one and sets up another.
1 Peter 5:5: God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

Historical References

Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon: The central figure of Daniel 4, a proud monarch who was humbled by God through seven years of madness.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: The three Hebrews who refused to bow to Nebuchadnezzar's image in Daniel 3, demonstrating faith in God's sovereignty.
Sennacherib and Pharaoh: Mentioned as other rulers who essentially claimed sovereignty for themselves, like Nebuchadnezzar.
John Gill's commentary citing Eben Ezra: Gill reports a story of a man on Sardinia who lost his reason and lived among deer, similar to Nebuchadnezzar's boanthropy.
Rusty (a friend of the speaker): An elderly friend who retained a sharp mind despite bodily deterioration, illustrating the value of the mind.
Nashville, Tennessee flood: Referenced as an example of how quickly material possessions can be destroyed, illustrating the vanity of materialism.

Important Quotes

Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?

This quote captures Nebuchadnezzar's pride and self-glorification, which directly preceded God's judgment.

The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws.

Shows the immediate and humiliating judgment of God upon the proud king.

All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

Nebuchadnezzar's confession of God's absolute sovereignty after his restoration.

Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

The humbled king's final testimony that God abases the proud.

Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?

Key verse used to argue that wicked governments legalize sin and cannot have fellowship with God.

Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.

Summarizes the fate of those who, like Nebuchadnezzar, have earthly honor but lack understanding of God.

Discussion Questions

[Question]

How does the example of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego challenge our willingness to obey God regardless of the consequences?

[Context]

The sermon emphasized that true belief in God's sovereignty means obeying Him and leaving results in His hands.

[Question]

In what ways do we, like Nebuchadnezzar, struggle to acknowledge that everything we have comes from God?

[Context]

Nebuchadnezzar boasted about building Babylon by his own power, forgetting God's role.

[Question]

How does the war over sovereignty manifest in our personal lives and in society today?

[Context]

The sermon traced the war back to the Fall, where man sought to determine good and evil for himself.

[Question]

What does Psalm 94:20 teach us about the relationship between civil government and God's law?

[Context]

The verse describes a 'throne of iniquity' that frames mischief by law, showing governments can legalize sin.

[Question]

Why is the mind (heart) so central to sin and obedience, and how can we guard it?

[Context]

The sermon explained that sin begins in the mind, and Nebuchadnezzar lost his mind as judgment.

[Question]

How should the vanity of earthly glory affect our priorities and values?

[Context]

Nebuchadnezzar's riches meant nothing when he was insane; Psalm 49:20 warns that honor without understanding is beastly.

[Question]

Is it biblical to pray for God to humble or abase wicked rulers? Why or why not?

[Context]

The sermon argued that we may lawfully pray for God to bring down tyrants, citing Psalm 58:11.

Applications

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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T02:32:21Z