The king said to Daniel, "Your God is truly the God of gods and Lord of kings, the Revealer of Mysteries, since you were able to reveal this mystery." The king said to DanielThis phrase introduces us to the speaker, King Nebuchadnezzar, a powerful ruler of Babylon. Historically, Nebuchadnezzar was known for his military conquests and the grandeur of his empire. His acknowledgment of Daniel is significant, as it shows a moment of humility and recognition of divine intervention. In the context of the ancient Near East, where kings were often seen as divine or semi-divine, for Nebuchadnezzar to address Daniel in this manner underscores the impact of Daniel's revelation. Truly your God
The word "truly" indicates a sincere acknowledgment from Nebuchadnezzar. The phrase "your God" is personal, recognizing the God of Daniel specifically. In the polytheistic context of Babylon, where many gods were worshiped, this statement is profound. It suggests a recognition of the uniqueness and supremacy of the God of Israel, whom Daniel serves. is the God of gods
This phrase elevates the God of Israel above all other deities. In the ancient world, gods were often seen as having limited power, confined to specific regions or aspects of life. By declaring Daniel's God as the "God of gods," Nebuchadnezzar is acknowledging His supreme authority over all spiritual beings. This echoes the biblical theme of monotheism, where the God of Israel is the one true God, sovereign over all creation. and Lord of kings
Here, Nebuchadnezzar recognizes the sovereignty of Daniel's God over earthly rulers, including himself. The term "Lord" implies authority and control, suggesting that all kings are subject to the divine will. This is a powerful admission from a king who wielded immense power, highlighting the biblical truth that all authority ultimately belongs to God. and a revealer of mysteries
This phrase speaks to the divine attribute of omniscience. In the context of Daniel 2, where the king's dream and its interpretation were unknown to all but Daniel, it underscores God's ability to reveal hidden truths. The term "mysteries" refers to things beyond human understanding, emphasizing God's wisdom and knowledge. This aligns with the biblical portrayal of God as the source of all truth and revelation. since you were able to reveal this mystery
The word "since" indicates causation, linking Daniel's ability to reveal the dream to the power of his God. This acknowledgment by Nebuchadnezzar serves as a testament to the divine empowerment of Daniel. It highlights the biblical theme of God working through His chosen servants to accomplish His purposes. Daniel's faithfulness and reliance on God are rewarded with divine insight, serving as an inspiration for believers to trust in God's wisdom and guidance. Persons / Places / Events 1. King NebuchadnezzarThe ruler of Babylon who had a troubling dream that none of his wise men could interpret, leading him to seek Daniel's God-given insight. 2. DanielA Hebrew prophet and captive in Babylon who, through divine revelation, interprets Nebuchadnezzar's dream, demonstrating the power and wisdom of God. 3. BabylonThe empire ruled by Nebuchadnezzar, known for its grandeur and as a place of exile for the Israelites. 4. The DreamA prophetic vision given to Nebuchadnezzar, revealing the rise and fall of empires, which Daniel interprets, showcasing God's sovereignty over history. 5. The God of DanielRecognized by Nebuchadnezzar as the "God of gods and Lord of kings" after Daniel interprets the dream, highlighting God's supreme authority. Teaching Points God's SovereigntyDaniel 2:47 highlights God's ultimate authority over earthly rulers and kingdoms. Believers can trust in God's control over world events and personal circumstances. Divine RevelationThe passage underscores the importance of seeking God's wisdom and understanding, as He alone can reveal the mysteries of life. Witness through FaithfulnessDaniel's faithfulness and reliance on God serve as a powerful witness to Nebuchadnezzar, encouraging believers to live out their faith boldly. Recognition of God's PowerNebuchadnezzar's acknowledgment of God challenges us to recognize and proclaim God's power and authority in our own lives. God's Plan in HistoryThe interpretation of the dream reveals God's plan for the future, reminding us that history is under His control and unfolds according to His purpose. Bible Study Questions 1. How does Nebuchadnezzar's response in Daniel 2:47 demonstrate a change in his understanding of God, and what can we learn from this about sharing our faith with others? 2. In what ways does Daniel's interpretation of the dream reflect God's sovereignty, and how can this assurance impact our response to current world events? 3. How does the account of Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar parallel the account of Joseph and Pharaoh in Genesis 41, and what does this teach us about God's use of His people in foreign lands? 4. What practical steps can we take to seek God's wisdom and understanding in our daily lives, as Daniel did? 5. How can we apply the recognition of God's power and authority in Daniel 2:47 to our personal challenges and decisions? Connections to Other Scriptures Genesis 41Joseph interprets Pharaoh's dreams, similar to Daniel's role with Nebuchadnezzar, showing God's ability to reveal mysteries through His chosen servants. Isaiah 45:1-7God's sovereignty over nations and rulers is affirmed, paralleling the acknowledgment of God's power in Daniel 2:47. Acts 17:24-28Paul's sermon at the Areopagus emphasizes God's control over history and nations, echoing the themes in Daniel's interpretation. People Abednego, Arioch, Azariah, Belteshazzar, Daniel, Hananiah, Meshach, Mishael, Nebuchadnezzar, ShadrachPlaces Babylon, ShinarTopics Able, Clear, Couldest, Couldst, Daniel, Gods, Hast, Kings, Mysteries, Mystery, Reveal, Revealer, Secret, Secrets, Seeing, Spoke, Surely, Truly, Truth, Unveiler, WastDictionary of Bible Themes Daniel 2:47 1130 God, sovereignty
1230 God, the Lord
1403 God, revelation
5370 kingship, human
5395 lordship, human and divine Daniel 2:17-49 6694 mystery Daniel 2:44-47 7949 mission, of Israel Daniel 2:46-47 5366 king Daniel 2:46-48 8369 worthiness Daniel 2:46-49 5501 reward, human Library The Image and the Stone
'This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king. 37. Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory. 38. And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath He given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold. 39. And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureBook and Tract Catalogue.
THE PLAN OF REDEMPTION. BY I. C. WELLCOME AND C. GOUD. "The Plan of Redemption is an earnest book, evidently prepared after no little study, and with a conscientious desire to advance the cause of Christ. The Bible is made the basis of argument; it contains many fresh and well considered suggestions. The careful reader will find much that is valuable."--Watchman and Reflector. "This treatise aims to serve up the gospel scheme in a compact form. It states the plan and work well, and usually correctly. …
Dwight L. Moody—That Gospel Sermon on the Blessed Hope Editor's Preface
Professor Maspero does not need to be introduced to us. His name is well known in England and America as that of one of the chief masters of Egyptian science as well as of ancient Oriental history and archaeology. Alike as a philologist, a historian, and an archaeologist, he occupies a foremost place in the annals of modern knowledge and research. He possesses that quick apprehension and fertility of resource without which the decipherment of ancient texts is impossible, and he also possesses a sympathy …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 1 The Scattering of the People
[Illustration: (drop cap A) The Fish-god of Assyria and Babylonia] At last the full punishment for their many sins fell upon God's chosen people. The words of warning written in the fifth book of Moses had told them plainly that if they turned aside and worshipped the wicked idol-gods of Canaan, the Lord would take their country from them and drive them out into strange lands. Yet again and again they had yielded to temptation. And now the day of reckoning had come. Nebuchadnezzar, the great king …
Mildred Duff—The Bible in its Making That Gospel Sermon on the Blessed Hope
In 2 Timothy, 3:16, Paul declares: "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness;" but there are some people who tell us when we take up prophecy that it is all very well to be believed, but that there is no use in one trying to understand it; these future events are things that the church does not agree about, and it is better to let them alone, and deal only with those prophecies which have already been …
Dwight L. Moody—That Gospel Sermon on the Blessed Hope Epistle Xliii. To Eulogius and Anastasius, Bishops.
To Eulogius and Anastasius, Bishops. Gregory to Eulogius, Bishop of Alexandria, and Anastasius, Bishop of Antioch. When the excellent preacher says, As long as I am the apostle of the Gentiles I will honour my ministry (Rom. xi. 13); saying again in another place, We became as babes among you (1 Thess. ii. 7), he undoubtedly shews an example to us who come after him, that we should retain humility in our minds, and yet keep in honour the dignity of our order, so that neither should our humility be …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great A Description of Heart-Purity
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8 The holy God, who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity' calls here for heart-purity, and to such as are adorned with this jewel, he promises a glorious and beatifical vision of himself: they shall see God'. Two things are to be explained the nature of purity; the subject of purity. 1 The nature of purity. Purity is a sacred refined thing. It stands diametrically opposed to whatsoever defiles. We must distinguish the various kinds …
Thomas Watson—The Beatitudes: An Exposition of Matthew 5:1-12 The Wisdom of God
The next attribute is God's wisdom, which is one of the brightest beams of the Godhead. He is wise in heart.' Job 9:9. The heart is the seat of wisdom. Cor in Hebraeo sumitur pro judicio. Pineda. Among the Hebrews, the heart is put for wisdom.' Let men of understanding tell me:' Job 34:44: in the Hebrew, Let men of heart tell me.' God is wise in heart, that is, he is most wise. God only is wise; he solely and wholly possesses all wisdom; therefore he is called, the only wise God.' I Tim 1:17. All …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity The Wicked Husbandmen.
"Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country: and when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it. And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another. Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto …
William Arnot—The Parables of Our Lord The First Great Group of Parables.
(Beside the Sea of Galilee.) Subdivision B. Parable of the Sower. ^A Matt. XIII. 3-23; ^B Mark IV. 3-25; ^C Luke VIII. 5-18. ^a Behold, ^c 5 The sower went forth to sow his seed [Orientals live in cities and towns. Isolated farmhouses are practically unknown. A farmer may therefore live several miles from his field, in which case he literally "goes forth" to it]: ^b 4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, some seed { ^a seeds } fell by the way side, ^c and it was trodden under foot, and the birds of …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel The Necessity of Regeneration, Argued from the Immutable Constitution of God.
John III. 3. John III. 3. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. WHILE the ministers of Christ are discoursing of such a subject, as I have before me in the course of these Lectures, and particularly in this branch of them which I am now entering upon, we may surely, with the utmost reason, address our hearers in those words of Moses to Israel, in the conclusion of his dying discourse: Set your hearts unto all …
Philip Doddridge—Practical Discourses on Regeneration Letters of St. Bernard
I To Malachy. 1141.[924] (Epistle 341.) To the venerable lord and most blessed father, Malachy, by the grace of God archbishop of the Irish, legate of the Apostolic See, Brother Bernard called to be abbot of Clairvaux, [desiring] to find grace with the Lord. 1. Amid the manifold anxieties and cares of my heart,[925] by the multitude of which my soul is sore vexed,[926] the brothers coming from a far country[927] that they may serve the Lord,[928] thy letter, and thy staff, they comfort …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh Lii. Concerning Hypocrisy, Worldly Anxiety, Watchfulness, and his Approaching Passion.
(Galilee.) ^C Luke XII. 1-59. ^c 1 In the meantime [that is, while these things were occurring in the Pharisee's house], when the many thousands of the multitude were gathered together, insomuch that they trod one upon another [in their eagerness to get near enough to Jesus to see and hear] , he began to say unto his disciples first of all [that is, as the first or most appropriate lesson], Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. [This admonition is the key to the understanding …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel Annunciation of the Birth of Jesus.
(at Nazareth, b.c. 5.) ^C Luke I. 26-38. ^c 26 Now in the sixth month [this is the passage from which we learn that John was six months older than Jesus] the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth [Luke alone tells us where Mary lived before the birth of Jesus. That Nazareth was an unimportant town is shown by the fact that it is mentioned nowhere in the Old Testament, nor in the Talmud, nor in Josephus, who mentions two hundred four towns and cities of Galilee. The …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel The First Sayings of Jesus --His Ideas of a Divine Father and of a Pure Religion --First Disciples.
Joseph died before his son had taken any public part. Mary remained, in a manner, the head of the family, and this explains why her son, when it was wished to distinguish him from others of the same name, was most frequently called the "son of Mary."[1] It seems that having, by the death of her husband, been left friendless at Nazareth, she withdrew to Cana,[2] from which she may have come originally. Cana[3] was a little town at from two to two and a half hours' journey from Nazareth, at the foot …
Ernest Renan—The Life of Jesus The Gospel of the Kingdom.
"This is He whom Seers in old time Chanted of with one accord; Whom the voices of the Prophets Promised in their faithful word." We have seen that, in the providence of God, John the Baptist was sent to proclaim to the world that "The Kingdom of Heaven" was at hand, and to point out the King. And as soon as the Herald had raised the expectation of men by the proclamation of the coming Kingdom, our Lord began His public ministry, the great object of which was the founding of His Kingdom for the salvation …
Edward Burbidge—The Kingdom of Heaven; What is it? Daniel
Daniel is called a prophet in the New Testament (Matt. xxiv. 15). In the Hebrew Bible, however, the book called by his name appears not among the prophets, but among "the writings," between Esther and Ezra. The Greek version placed it between the major and the minor prophets, and this has determined its position in modern versions. The book is both like and unlike the prophetic books. It is like them in its passionate belief in the overruling Providence of God and in the sure consummation of His …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Daniel 2:47 NIVDaniel 2:47 NLTDaniel 2:47 ESVDaniel 2:47 NASBDaniel 2:47 KJV
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