Title: The Watcher's Cry (Daniel 4:13-16)
Contents
Lesson 38 The Ranger's Cry (Daniel 4:13-16)
4:13-16
And in the visions I had received in my brain from the bed, I saw a watcher, a holy man, coming down from heaven, and he cried out, saying, Cut down the tree, chop down its branches, tremble its leaves, scatter its fruit, and let the beasts depart from under it. And drive the birds out of its branches, but leave the stump of its roots on the ground, and tie it with iron and brass cords, and let it be in the grass of the field; it shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and equal in proportion with the beasts in the grass of the earth. Their hearts will change, and they will not be like the hearts of men; they will receive the heart of an animal, and seven times will pass.
Please see verse 13. "And I saw in the visions that I had received in my brain in bed," he said. The same word is already used in verse 10.
“These are the visions that I received into my brain on the bed, as I saw.”
The same rush was repeated once again. Why would you? Because the scene you saw in your dream unfolds anew. Up until now, the scene King Nebuchadnezzar had seen in his dream had nothing to fear. There was a tree standing in the middle of the ground, and it grew and became strong, beautiful leaves, many fruits, and birds nesting in its branches. What a peaceful sight.
However, a new scene, the second scene, unfolds. This scene caused King Nebuchadnezzar to have a dream, fear, and deep anguish. Let's see which scene has just started to unfold.
“And I saw in the visions that I had received in my brain while on the bed.” King Nebuchadnezzar is constantly alert and watching in his dream. "A watcher and a holy one came down from heaven." By patrol, I mean someone who doesn't sleep and wanders around, paying attention to everything people do.
But the patrolman is not human. It is said that a holy man came down from heaven. Just as God neither sleeps nor sleeps, the angels sent by God do not sleep nor doze, and you can see them fulfilling the mission God has given them. So, a watcher, a holy person, here is an angel of God sent down from heaven.
Let's look at verse 14. "He cried out and cried out, saying thus." How many times have you used the same word? First, "shout," second, "shout," and third, "say." It's been used three times over and over, so it's a clear and resolute cry.
Who is shouting? Rangers, angels of God. Who are you shouting to? Are you shouting to King Nebuchadnezzar? You can see it that way, but look at verse 17. "This is at the command of the watchers, and the words of the holy ones." If you look here, the word "watchers" is used in the plural of rangers. An angel is shouting and other angels are listening around him. The tree I saw in my dream is being cut down, but will King Nebuchadnezzar not cut himself down? So the angel sent by God must have cut down the tree. So it can be seen that a patrolman is shouting to the patrolman who came with him.
The patrolman shouted. “Cut down the tree, cut down its branches, tremble its leaves, scatter its fruit, and let the beasts depart from under it and drive the birds out of its branches. What did the rangers shout to do? First, he told them to cut down the strong tree. Second, he told them to cut off countless branches. Third, they shouted to drop the beautiful leaves. Fourth, he told them to dig out all the many fruits. Fifth, let the beasts depart from under it, and sixth, drive the birds out of their branches.
What are you commanding now? It symbolizes that King Nebuchadnezzar will no longer remain influential and will be ousted from his throne. And in the past, King Nebuchadnezzar's servants were protected under King Nebuchadnezzar, but now that is no longer the case and they all leave.
But look at verse 15. "But he left the stump of its roots in the ground." So even though King Nebuchadnezzar will step down from his throne, life will remain. If a tree is cut down and the stump remains, the tree is alive. Also, if the stump remains, it will sprout and sprout and the tree will grow. This means that one day his country will be restored again. See verse 26.
“And they said, ‘Leave the stump at the root of the tree. Only after you know that God reigns will your kingdom be established.’”
It tells you that you will recover.
Let's look again at verse 15. "Leave the stump of its root in the ground, and tie it with iron and brass cords." what do you mean? Two interpretations are possible. Ladies and gentlemen, when you go to a mental hospital, don't you tie up severely mentally ill patients with an iron cord? It could mean that King Nebuchadnezzar's spirit was not sound, or the word "cuppet" could be translated as "wrapped with iron and brass cords." That is, to protect the stump, a fence is built around it with iron and brass cords. Although King Nebuchadnezzar lost his mind and went crazy, he is still a king and will recover in the future, so it can be interpreted as meaning that he sends soldiers to guard and protect the animals from harm.
Let's see what follows. “Let it be in the midst of the field and grass,” he said. to dwell among the grass of the field. King Nebuchadnezzar went out of his mind and did not dwell in his own house or in the royal palace, but in the midst of the grass of the field.
"It is wet with the dew of heaven. Because we live in the fields, we cannot help but get wet with dew. He also said, “I will share his portion with the beast among the grass of the earth.” What does it mean? It means that we eat grass together with the beasts in the grass like animals and share the same amount. Animals eat grass to live. King Nebuchadnezzar also lost his mind and had to eat the good food the king eats, but he grazes on grass like animals.
Why? It appears in verse 16. Let's look at verse 16. “And his heart changed, and he received the heart of an animal, not the heart of a human being.” The mind becomes a beast. Have you ever seen the movie "Were Wolf" on TV? A wolf is a wolf. Were is the past tense of the verb be. He thinks he is a wolf. It usually takes the form of a human, but when the full moon comes up, it thinks it is a wolf and kills people and sucks people's blood. In fact, there is such a disease. However, King Nebuchadnezzar also considers himself an ox. Since he has no human heart and thinks he is an ox, he eats grass in the middle of the grass. In fact, history often records people who have suffered from such diseases.
Let's look at the last part of verse 16. “You will receive the heart of the beast, and seven times will pass. The "time" here is that it could be seven days, it could be seven weeks, it could be seven seasons, it could be seven years. In any case, it means that your mind will not be complete until the time that God has set has passed. Seven days or seven months seems too short. Would it be possible to be cured from such a serious illness in seven months? So most of them are interpreted as seven years. For a long period of seven years, I was in a state of mind. However, when God's appointed time has passed, a tree sprouts from a stump and grows, so King Nebuchadnezzar will recover again.
I'll ask. Why did God give King Nebuchadnezzar this dream? In Daniel 2, King Nebuchadnezzar had already had a dream. I saw a giant statue in my dream. He had golden hair. What happened to the cut stone, which was not made by human hands? The gods have been destroyed. No matter how golden the hair, no matter how great it was, it was broken by stones that were not made by human hands. Through this, King Nebuchadnezzar should have realized that no matter how powerful and precious I was, that there was a God of absolute power over me, he should have repented completely.
Also in chapter 3, he made a golden image and threw it into the furnace because Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did not bow down, but God saved him. Then I should have humbly repented completely before God and surrendered with both hands up, but King Nebuchadnezzar did not do that. I have forgotten God.
We humans say that forgetfulness is severe, but I think about what is the most severe forgetfulness. It is forgetting God and living. But God never forgets. What is said in Isaiah 49:15?
“How can a woman forget her suckling child, and will she not have pity on the son of her womb? Even if they forget, I will not forget you.”
God has promised not to forget us. God neither sleeps nor sleeps, and He cares for us like the pupil of the eye, but we forget Him too often. Even when difficulties arise, they complain and grumble just like the Israelites did in the wilderness.
Let's not forget God. It is God's grace that I have lived up to now, and it is God's grace that I am living in the future. We always live by the grace of God. Thank you for remembering God's grace today. No matter where God leads us, I pray in the name of Jesus that you will all receive God's wonderful blessings by acknowledging the Lord and living with a heart that puts the Lord first.