At The End

Daniel 4:29-37

At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon.The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?

See in Isaiah 14:12-14 the sin of pride is recorded and likened unto what Satan, son of the morning, had done. If you are the Lord himself such an attitude is ok for then equality with God is not robbery as Philippians 2:6 states. If you are the Lord, then take your rightful place. If you are not, then I would say that it is best to save that place for God himself. You might be saying to yourself, 'what are you going on about?' Now, King Nebuchadnezzar was not known in history as being a builder. King Cyrus of Persia was known for single-handedly building his own capital city himself; he was also a foremost architect of that day even unto this. You might be saying, 'but I thought you said King Nebuchadnezzar had died and is alive again telling his testimony.' I did. How many of you know that God holds you responsible for what you lay your mouth on. King Nebuchadnezzar claimed building and kingdom equality with that of Cyrus of Persia in this section here. Isaiah 14 notes that the son of the morning had claimed to wish to ascend to the throne of Heaven itself. It may be of a different sort, but it is still disorder all the same. Disorder among other people always extends towards the holy even if not made manifested yet. Look at this thing here. One thing can extend to another if it is not checked early enough. All these preachers today wish to lay their mouth upon the suffering of Jesus every Easter. However, they do not seem to realize that God holds them responsible for what they are talking about.

While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.

Look back at Isaiah 14, since this prophecy concerns the king of Babylon which took the people captive, destroyed his own homeland, and would not let the people go home. Verses nine through eleven speak of the other kings in their graves rising up at his coming asking him how he came down to be like them. But he was as one alive cast out of his own tomb in verse nineteen though twenty. See, there was an enemy in Heaven. This enemy came against the people and the throne of God himself as we will see later to worry them. Belshazzar has already said this dream's interpretation is unto the king's enemies and those who hate him. I believe upon closer examination of the prophecy of Isaiah you will also see the same. If the cup of the Lord is mixed, so is there blessing and cursing found therein. We know Satan entered the heart of even the Judas, a disciple, to devour those he could as the roaring lion seeking their souls as recorded in 1 Peter 5:8. This one here is the archenemy of the saints and even God himself. Because King Nebuchadnezzar had followed the command of the Lord by bringing down the tall tree kingdom of Assyria, even if they were his own people, God favored him.

This decree is done until seven times pass over. Could not this be a picture of the time of Jacob's trouble. How many of you know that the source of Jacob's trouble is that he wrestled with God himself and thus was made lame as a result. Leaning upon his staff he had to go for the rest of his days as told by Genesis 32:22-31. Wrestling with God does not end well for those who know and love him not. For those who are doing what they are supposed to, he will cause even their troubles to work out in their favor. This king will continue in this manner until he resembles the four faces the living creatures of Revelation 4:6-8. This is done so that all men can see the glory of God upon this king for themselves. There are some things you might go through in this life. They may not seem to have much purpose for them. They might be very difficult to go through. But at the end when he appears, we will be just like him as in 1 John 3:2. God has not left you all by yourself. He has not turned you over to the congregation of Satan yet. If there is still breath in your body, you have the Lord. History tells us what came next. King Nebuchadnezzar's son took over the kingdom until God judged him according to verses twenty-one through twenty-two with the words written upon the wall at his hand. Then, Darius the Mede and royal bodyguard took over the kingdom at age sixty-two. He reigned for several years only to be followed by King Cyrus of Persia who let the captives go home in the first year of his reign. Look at this praise and testimony service here.

And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation:And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

We hear from the king again "at the end of days." Look at this testimony here. God can keep you no matter what your closet looks like, how old you get, or even what you go through. You might be very old indeed before you see the salvation of the Lord but is he not the Ancient of Days. He has been waiting for his kingdom to come on earth for even longer. How much more will not God do this thing. If we must wait on him and he must wait for himself, how much more can we be sure of his promises. I have said before, his dominion is everlasting. Of his kingdom there is no end as told by Isaiah 9:7. It does not matter if king A, B, or C is on the throne. If that is the Lord, it is the Lord. If it is his servant, it is his servant. If it is not, he will make them to be so. You might be confused by the state of your own closet, but God is able to keep your mind. The king could not see this because his reason had not been returned to him yet. This sounds like how some of us do. We get up in the morning, go to work, and come home but cannot remember how we even got there. Some of you need the Lord to restore your reason. The reason for why we are here and do what we do is Christ. He did so much for us, how much more should we not do for him. Look at the end of the prophecy in Isaiah 14:32: "what shall one then answer the messengers of the nation? That the Lord hath founded Zion, and the poor of his people shall trust in it."

God has established this king because his trust was not found in man. Look at this last point King Nebuchadnezzar makes. Man means nothing in the sight of God. How many of you know that man also means everything to him. He does whatever he pleases in the armies of Heaven and earth because they all obey him even to the fallen. No one will be able to say unto him what are you doing. When I look at history and I hear about stories, I see the goodness of God. I see his footsteps littering the pages. There is not a place I can go in the books written by man that do not contain him in some form or another. There is not a locked place in this world that does not contain him. I have a feeling that when we get to Heaven, we will be in awe of everything he has done. Imagine King Cyrus looking back through the years telling everyone how good God has been to him. For back when he was King Nebuchadnezzar, the breaker of the nations, God kept him. Do not get all holy now. You all know about the option to go to work with a different name and some of you use it rather liberally I must say. How much more will not God use his option to rule in the affairs of men and of Heaven for our good and for his glory. Daniel must have been very concerned about this turn of events. Belshazzar is not for he knows it is in God's nature. Sometimes we get the focus very much distorted because of our humanity.

At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

How long does he rule? How long will he walk among men? Forever. The king praised God for his sanity had been restored. Notice how he does not say the kingdom but his sanity. The king has always had his power. The king has always had the possession of the kingdom. Remember in Revelation 5:6-7 where the Lamb who had been slain approached the One seated on the throne. The Lord's place is the Lord's place. He reigns among men until the fullness of time has come. We see the characteristics of his rule. There is a disregard for the people of the earth or the things of this earth. Yet at the same time he cares enough for the Son of God to rule among men. I suspect when all is revealed in Heaven, we will be speechless for a time. This is done so that the people of the earth may know. I am beginning to at least suspect this is the case.

You might be the Lord himself made flesh and dwelling among men, but do not forget to give God glory. We give the One that sits on the throne glory for otherwise we would be like the angels who had rebelled. What brought down one-third of Heaven was the sin of pride. I do not know how it is possible to sit in the highest place and still be proud, but nevertheless it is. This thing is by decree of the watchers and demand of the word of the Holy Ones. What God has demanded and decreed it will come to pass. The message of this book and of all of history is so that all man will know who reigns. Such is done so you may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men. He gives it to whom he will. He sets up on the throne even the basest of men. You might be no one and nothing, but in the Lord's hands he has made you to be someone. In the name of the Lord, forever and ever world without end, it is so. Jude 1:24-25 is to him who "is able to keep" us "from falling" may his peace and favor rest upon us now and forever, amen.