Pride is a problem across the entire human race. In Scripture it was a problem for kings (Uzziah, 2 Chron. 26:16-21), even among those considered to be good kings in Israel (Asa, 2 Kings 16:7-12; Hezekiah, 2 Kings 20:12-19). As pervasive the problem of pride, equally as pervasive is the principle in Scripture that God humbles those who exalt themselves and exalts those who humble themselves. It’s a frequent progression. Deprive yourself and work hard to achieve something. Then settle back and contemplate how great you are. It happened to Nebuchadnezzar.
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The glory of Babylon (i.e. the great accomplishments
of Nebuchadnezzar). He was called by God
“the head of gold” back in Ch. 2. Neb
(pardon the abbreviation) “upgraded” Babylon by building new temples, erecting a
magnificent palace, repairing old temples, strengthening the walls and gates around
the city, and paving the processional streets.
Then, there’s the “hanging gardens of Babylon.” Considered one of the seven wonders of the ancient
world, he built them to please his wife and concubine (Amyitis) who had been
brought up in Media and had a passion for mountain surroundings. There were fruits and flowers, waterfalls,
gardens hanging from the palace terraces, and exotic animals. Here are a couple of descriptions from writers
of the time:
The approach to the Garden sloped like a hillside and the
several parts of the structure rose from one another tier on tier … On all this
the earth had been piled and was thickly planted with trees of every kind that,
bu their great size and other charm, gave pleasure to the beholder … The water
machines [raised] the water in great abundance from the river, although no one
outside could see it. (The Greek, Diodorus
Siculus)
The hanging Garden has plants cultivated above ground level,
and the roots of the trees are embedded in an upper terrace rather than in the
earth. The whole mass is supported on
stone columns. Streams of water emerging
from elevated sources flow down sloping channels… These waters irrigate the
whole garden saturating the roots of plants and keeping the whole area
moist. Hence the grass is permanently
green and the leaves of trees grow firmly attached to supple branches… This is work
of art of royal luxury and its most striking feature is that the labor of cultivation
is suspended above the heads of the spectators. (Philo of Byzantium)
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The testimony of Nebuchadnezzar. We are not accustomed to hearing our national
leaders describe their sins in public.
That’s why Daniel 4 is such an unusual story. The great, proud, powerful king of Babylon, writes
a letter to the world describing in detail how God humiliated him for seven
years and then graciously restored him. We
will consider this “testimony” in our next post.
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