Let鈥檚 Look Closer: To better understand the situation, it鈥檚 helpful to know the culture. The Babylonians believed that the gods chose their kings. So the king鈥檚 dream was supposed to be a message from the gods for the people and nation. The message was supposed to guide avoiding the negative outcomes predicted in the dream. That鈥檚 why the king felt so strongly about wanting to know what his dream meant. If he couldn鈥檛 figure out the dream, he couldn鈥檛 take action to react to the message.
Daniel鈥檚 interpretation affirmed some of Nebuchadnezzar鈥檚 beliefs but contradicted others. Daniel confirmed that God had chosen him but said it was Daniel鈥檚 God who had done the choosing, not the Babylonian ones. The king probably enjoyed hearing that he was the greatest of all kings, but not that he would be replaced. Most importantly, God would eventually destroy all human kingdoms and replace them with one created by God that would last forever. Daniel states quite firmly that the things being predicted will happen. There doesn鈥檛 seem to be anything the king can do to avoid the outcome.
The king had to have had mixed emotions. He has just been told you are nothing compared to Daniel鈥檚 God. However, Daniel has revealed to the king in detail precisely what he had dreamed. There was no denying God鈥檚 knowledge and power.
The previous readings showed that God was in control of the past and present. Today, we see that God will also be in control in the future. God will not only direct the future, but we will also see the destruction of human kingdoms and the establishment of God鈥檚 eternal kingdom.
Takeaway: Regardless of Daniel鈥檚 and our current political situation, God is still in charge. When we side with God, we are siding with the winner regarding ultimate power and the story's ending. Like Daniel, we are only experiencing temporary and feeble political powers. We need to stay focused on God鈥檚 power.