Daniel Lesson 4

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Daniel Lesson 4

Daniel

Lesson 4

Text: Daniel 2:1-18 “And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him. 2 Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king. 3 And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream. 4 Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation. 5 The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream, with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill. 6 But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof. 7 They answered again and said, Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation of it. 8 The king answered and said, I know of certainty that ye would gain the time, because ye see the thing is gone from me. 9 But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof. 10 The Chaldeans answered before the king, and said, There is not a man upon the earth that can shew the king’s matter: therefore there is no king, lord, nor ruler, that asked such things at any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean. 11 And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh. 12 For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. 13 And the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain. 14 Then Daniel answered with counsel and wisdom to Arioch the captain of the king’s guard, which was gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon: 15 He answered and said to Arioch the king’s captain, Why is the decree so hasty from the king? Then Arioch made the thing known to Daniel. 16 Then Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would give him time, and that he would shew the king the interpretation. 17 Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions: 18 That they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.”

  1. The King Dreams a Dream, Vs.1-13,

    1. The Kings Distress,

      1. The Top of the Pyramid is Uncomfortable,

        1. vs.29 “As for thee, O king, thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter:….”

          • we cannot pretend to know the thoughts of Nebuchadnezzar, or any one other than our-self for that matter.

          • But, there are some things that are fairly common to man, one of them is worry,

            • especially for those in power and leadership roles.

            • Is it any surprise that our presidents age so much through their terms.

          • Ecclesiastes 5:12 “The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.”

        2. the king had a lot of responsibility under his control,

      2. The Lord Gave A Dream,

        1. this isn’t the first time God gave a pagan ruler a dream,

          • remember in Genesis 41, God gave Pharaoh a dream, and Joseph was given the interpretation of it.

          • So can God still give dreams?

            • He could, and no reason to say He can’t now, although I do not think it is the way he primarily deals with people.

            • Today we have the scriptures, and remember what Abraham told the rich man…

              • Luke 16:31 “…If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.”

        2. there is also a warning about dreams,

          • See Jeremiah 23:25-33

            • reading this passage, there are commentaries that believe this is dreams that were given by demonic forces, others because of the deception of the “false Prophets”. Either way, it shows that there needs to be great concern when trying to interpret dreams.

          • Warren Weirsby “It is dangerous to accept dreams as messengers form the Lord.”

        3. For what ever reason, perhaps this was a reoccurring dream, Nebuchadnezzar felt this was a dream he needed the interpretation of.

          • So he sent for his wise men to explain it to him.

    2. The Kings Disgust,

      1. The Kings Counselors,

        1. It is easy to assume the worst of people like Nebuchadnezzar.

          • Yet he did just what any good ruler would do, he assembled his advisers.

          • Proverbs 15:22 “Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established..”

          • Proverbs 11:14 “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.”

          • So he was trying to do the right thing.

        2. He was also wise enough to test his advisers,

      2. The wise men’s request, Vs.4

        1. Tell us the dream and we will show you the answer.

          • If a person wants they can make anything anything,

            • for instance, I can make the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, equal any number 1-10:

              • 1+2+3+4=10 — 1×2+3+4=9 — 4+3+2-1=8 — 4×3÷ 2+1=7 –1-2+3+4=6

              • 4×3÷ 2-1=5 — 1+2-3+4=4 — 1+2×3-4=3 — 1+2+3-4=2 – 1+2×3-4=1

          • There is a benefit in being able to give an answer and never having it questioned

            • they could have simply said what they thought would make the king happy.

        2. The added benefit to the wise men, was the king didn’t remember what he dreamed,

          • if he couldn’t remember, then we can say anything,

      3. The King Puts a Fly in the Ointment,

        1. it is time to earn your pay,

          • give me the answer, or:

            • “…ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill”

            • apparently this was a go to threat for Nebuchadnezzar,

              • Daniel 3:29, we see the same punishment.

          • The alternative was found in vs.6 “…ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour:”

            • this is the promise of the world, if you give us the answer we want, we will reward you, and if not, you will be punished.

        1. vs.9 “But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.”

      1. The Wise Men’s Dilemma,

        1. they were smart enough to know, that “no man” could answer.

          • This is the same thing Daniel would tell the King, vs. 27&28

        2. they basically call the King onto the carpet,

          • you ask sometime that is impossible, no man can do this,

          • not only that, no king or lord would even ask it,

    1. Nebuchadnezzar’s Wrath,

      1. The King was Angry, and Furious,

        1. This is another place where we can see that we often have to suffer for the actions of others,

          • How many “wise men” were in the empire?

            • It is doubtful to think they were all in front of the king, because in vs.13 they sought after Daniel and the others.

              • This brings to question something to me?

                • If the king saw Daniel 10 times better than the others, why wasn’t he there to answer the kings question?

      2. Daniel’s Request,

        1. this is a call back to when Daniel requested to have pulse in ch.1

          • It also speaks again to the fact Daniel must have been a likable person.

          • Proverbs 18:24 “A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly:…”

        2. He requested to go before the king and make his case,

          • Matthew 7:13&14 “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

          • Daniel used this principle that will enable us to share the gospel,

            • notice the last few words, few there be that find it, What dies that mean?

              • There are people looking,

          • Nebuchadnezzar was seeking an answer, and Daniel offered help

            • the other wise men said this is unfair, it is impossible,

            • Daniel said give me just a little time, and I will bring you an answer,

              • Proverbs 15:1 “A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. ”

      3. Daniel Shares With His Friends,

        1. keep in mind, this affected not only Daniel, but also the others.

        2. Daniel came to his friends and said we need to pray,

          • We should never be ashamed to ask our friends for prayer and help.

        3. But Daniel knew also it wouldn’t be his friends that gave the answer, it would be God.

        4. So They Prayed for Mercy

          • Philippians 4:6 “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”