Daniel Chapter 4 Verses 28-30

28 All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 At the end of twelve months he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 and the king said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?”

Verse 28 gives us the sad news. Everything in the vision came true because Nebuchadnezzar refused to change his ways.

Notice that the account changes from the first person to the third person. This makes sense since the king could not have been a sane witness of his own insanity!

What was the straw that broke the camel’s back? The king looked out over his kingdom and said “Look what I have done!”

Herod suffered a similar fate in Acts 12:21–23.

Acts 12:21-23 On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and made an oration to them. 22 And the people shouted, "The voice of a god, and not of man!" 23 Immediately an angel of the Lord smote him, because he did not give God the glory; and he was eaten by worms and died.

Nebuchadnezzar, like Herod, was filled with pride at his own achievements. He had not given glory to God.

This is a lesson for us in the church. Often we are tempted to boast about all that we have done and all that we have built in God’s kingdom.

This church is not “our church” – it is the Lord’s church (it is the church of Christ!), and any building that goes on is done by him. (“Look at the great church we have built!”) He adds people to his church – we don’t add people to our church. He deserves all of the glory.

The Bible has much to say about the sin of pride, and we will not repeat it all here. However, it is useful to note that when God listed seven things that he hates, pride was at the top of the list. (Proverbs 6:17) Also, recall what Jesus said:

Luke 16:14-15 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this, and they scoffed at him. 15 But he said to them, "You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts; for what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

The first step toward overcoming pride is to learn to see things the way that God sees them. What is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

An inscription has been found in which Nebuchadnezzar boasted “The fortifications of [the temple of Marduk] and Babylon I strengthened, and established the name of my reign forever.”

How do you suppose the author of Daniel knew about Nebuchadnezzar’s extreme pride if he wrote the book 400 years after the fact?

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