Tuesday, June 26: Daniel 4 - An open hand of hope.

What a fascinating account… I saw the hand of God reaching to Nebuchadnezzar as never before.

After Daniel interprets the dream, Daniel says: O king, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue" (27). Daniel immediately extends to the king an opportunity to avert the disaster foretold in the dream by immediately turning to the Lord. And then God withholds the consequences in the dream for 12 months. Nebuchadnezzar had one full year to turn to the Lord. Sadly, he did not. And the account continues…

Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, he said, "Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?" The words were still on his lips when a voice came from heaven, "This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like cattle.… Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled.… (29-33).

God gave King Nebuchadnezzar twelve months to repent before the Lord unleashed what He said He would do.

I pondered the many ‘judgment-words’ in Scripture and thought, “Hmm, did God place them in Scripture as a warning so that people would take them to heart and be saved by confessing the Lord to be their God? The more I thought, the more I think so…

God tells what is to come as a hand of hope extended so that people will grab hold of God and be saved.

Do I tell God’s story in ways that people feel as if they can reach out to God and be saved,  or do I tell them with harsh tones that drive people away? Such was the prick of the Holy Spirit as I meditated on this chapter.

Oh, God, may I be a Daniel… a man of faith and character; a man who when given a hard word delivers it dripping with grace and an invitation to turn to the Lord and renounce sin seeking the grace of Jesus. Amen.