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Context No. 4064 of 4322 · Daniel (Greek)

Context · Reflection

Daniel (Greek) 4:9-16: in context

9“Belteshazzar, master of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you, and no secret troubles you, tell me the visions of my dream that I have seen, and its interpretation. 10These were the visions of my head on my bed: I saw, and behold, a tree in the middle of the earth; and its height was great. 11The tree grew, and was strong, and its height reached to the sky, and its sight to the end of all the earth. 12Its leaves were beautiful, and it had much fruit, and in it was food for all. The animals of the field had shade under it, and the birds of the sky lived in its branches, and all flesh was fed from it. 13“I saw in the visions of my head on my bed, and behold, a watcher and a holy one came down from the sky. 14He cried aloud, and said this, ‘Cut down the tree and cut off its branches! Shake off its leaves and scatter its fruit! Let the animals get away from under it, and the fowls from its branches. 15Nevertheless leave the stump of its roots in the earth, even with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be wet with the dew of the sky. Let his portion be with the animals in the grass of the earth. 16Let his heart be changed from man’s, and let an animal’s heart be given to him. Then let seven times pass over him.

King Nebuchadnezzar dreams of a great tree, immense, reaching to the sky, seen to the ends of the earth, giving shade and food to all. It is a picture of his own greatness and dominion. But then a heavenly watcher commands: cut down the tree, strip its branches, scatter its fruit; yet leave the stump in the ground.

The towering tree, symbol of the proud king's power, is to be brought low, and the king himself humbled until he learns that God rules. Two things stand out. God humbles the proud. Nebuchadnezzar had grown great and, as the story shows, proud of his own achievement, taking to himself the glory that belonged to God. And so the great tree would be cut down. But notice the mercy in the sentence: leave the stump. The tree was cut down but not uprooted; a stump remained, a promise that after the humbling, there could be restoration. God's humbling of the proud is not always his final word; often it is meant to bring them to their senses and back to himself. His purpose in humbling us is often our restoration.

Is there pride in me that takes God's glory for myself, and will I humble myself before he must bring me low, trusting that even his humbling of the proud is often aimed, like the stump left in the ground, at bringing us back to himself?

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