Daniel 4

God Humbles Kings (4:1 – 5:31)

In chapter four, King Nebuchadnezzar relates another of his dreams, and we see that once more Daniel is brought in to give the interpretation. This time the king had dreamed of a tree whose height was enormous, and the tree was visible to the ends of the earth (4:11). He saw in his dream how the tree was cut down and its beautiful branches and fruit stripped off (4:14).

When Daniel heard about this dream he was perplexed for a time and even alarmed (4:19). Daniel wished the interpretation applied to the king’s enemies and not to the king, but he went on with the interpretation. He saw that the king was the tree and that he would be cut down and driven away from his kingdom. He would live like a wild animal until he could bring himself to acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men (4:25).

Apparently, God in his mercy gave the king twelve months to repent and accept the preaching of Daniel but he did not do so. [7] Sure enough, about a year later the king was strolling on the roof of his royal palace and praising himself for all of his glory and majesty. He might have even been admiring his famous hanging gardens which were one of the wonders of the ancient world. It was then that he heard a voice informing him that his royal authority had been stripped away (4:31).

The great king Nebuchadnezzar then apparently lost his mind and was driven away from the kingdom to live like a wild animal. He remained in this condition for some time until he finally raised his eyes toward heaven and praised the Most High (4:34). Immediately his sanity and his kingdom were restored. He learned that those who walk in pride are humbled (4:37). He also learned what the author of Proverbs had perceived: “ by me princes govern, and all nobles who rule on earth” (Prov. 8:16). The older commentator, Adam Clark, remarks here: “It is very probable that Nebuchadnezzar was a true convert; that he relapsed no more into idolatry, and died in the faith of the God of Israel.” [8]

Unfortunately, sons do not usually retain the wisdom that their fathers and grandfathers learned the hard way. In time, Nebuchadnezzar died. Then after some palace intrigues and kings who reigned for short periods, Belshazzar, grandson of Nebuchadnezzar, came to the throne. He was co-regent with his father Nabonidas who was officially the king from 555-538 B.C. It appears that Nabonidas did not wish to remain in the kingly office.

Belshazzar soon gave a great banquet but he made the dreadful mistake of ordering that the holy vessels taken from the Temple of God in Jerusalem be brought in for the celebration (5:2). That fateful night he and his nobles, wives and concubines dared drink wine from these vessels, as they praised their gods of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood and stone (5:4).

As they drank and adored their gods, the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall near the lamp stand (5:5). Upon seeing this, the king turned pale with fear, his knees knocked together and his legs gave way (5:6). Like Nebuchadnezzar, he called for the sorcerers and astrologers. By now these people must have been some of the most nervous folks in Babylon. So far, they had batted a big zero in interpreting king’s visions and dreams. Their score was to remain unchanged.

It was at this point that Daniel was remembered and called in. The king promised many gifts if Daniel could interpret the handwriting. He even promised him the third position in the kingdom (after himself and his father Nabonidas). Daniel wisely declined the king’s gifts, since he probably realized that the kingdom could last only for a few hours. How true it is of this world in which we live. Satan promises us wealth and fame, but alas, it can only last for an hour and then it is gone forever.

Daniel boldly rebuked Belshazzar, charging him that he had ignored the lessons learned from his father (grandfather) Nebuchadnezzar (5:22). Then to a trembling king, Daniel interpreted the writing on the wall. It was “ MENE, MENE, TEKEL, PARSIN ” (5:25). It meant that God had numbered the days of Belshazzar’s reign and brought them to an end. It meant that he was weighed in God’s balances and found wanting, and that his kingdom was divided and given to the Medes and Persians (5:26-28). That very night Darius the Mede and his army crept into Babylon. He did so as a result of a wise plan of diverting the Euphrates river, thus allowing his secret entrance (cf. Isa. 13:17; Jer. 51:11-13). God’s judgment was speedily executed as Belshazzar lost his life and his kingdom. The date was 539 B.C.

Historians and theologians have long speculated about the origins and even the authenticity of Darius the Mede (5:31). We do know from history that Cyrus II (the Great) was king of Persia at this time. He reigned from 559 to 530 B.C., and he was the very same Cyrus who gave the decree of return mentioned in 2 Chronicles 36:22 and other places.

In this period of history the Medes and Persians apparently worked closely together (cf. Esth. 1:19). Some historians now feel that a Median figure Ugbaru, (Gubaru or Gobryas) was one and the same with Darius the Mede who is mentioned here as conquering Babylon. The Nabonidus Chronicle confirms that Gubaru took the city without a battle. A few months later Cyrus actually entered Babylon to claim his victory as recorded on the famous Cyrus Cylinder. [9] Thus it seems that the Medes and Persians worked together like two arms of one body to defeat Babylon, according to the sure prophetic word given to Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 2.32, 39). The scholar, Yamauchi, notes that Cyrus II (the Great) was actually the son of Cambyses I (a Persian) and Mandane, the daughter of the Median king Astyages. [10]

Beginning with Cyrus II, Persian kings would now take preeminence in the area of Babylon, and for that matter throughout the whole Middle East. The most famous Persian kings of the biblical era are as follows:

Cyrus II (the Great) 559-530 B.C. He conquered areas as far west as the kingdom of Lydia. In 538 he issued the decree that the Jews could return to the land of Israel (2 Chron. 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-4; 6:3-5).

Cambyses II 530-522 B.C. He conquered Egypt, but in his reign, work was stopped on the Temple in Jerusalem.

Darius I (the Great) 522-486 B.C. Under his rule Haggai and Zechariah prophesied (Ezra 4-6; Hag.1:1, 14-15; Zech. 1:1-7:1), and the Temple was finished (516 B.C.). The Persians under Darius were defeated by the Greeks at the crucial battle of Marathon in 490 B.C.

Xerxes I 486-465 B.C. He again attacked Greece and was defeated at the famous naval battle of Salamis in 480 B.C., thus halting the Persian westward expansion. He is thought to be the Ahasuerus of the book of Esther.

Artaxerxes I 465-424 B.C. Under his rule, Ezra (458), and Nehemiah (444) began their work in Israel. Nehemiah, prior to his work in Israel, was actually the king’s cup bearer (Neh. 1:11).

It is not unusual to find that the chronology of Persian kings varies slightly from one source to another. Also, “Dairus” and “Artaxerxes” may have been common titles applied to kings, much like the title “Pharaoh” was applied to many kings in Egypt.

Footnotes

7. Guzik, comment on Daniel 4:28-34.

8. Adam Clark. The Adam Clark Commentary; The Book of the Prophet Daniel, Study Light.org., comment on Daniel 4:37.

9. Edwin M. Yamauchi, Persia and the Bible, Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 1990, 1996) pp 86-89

10. Yamauchi, p 79.