The four kingdoms prophesied by the four parts of the great statue in Nebuchadnezzar's dream are fairly easy to identify. You [Nebuchadnezzar] watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet . King Nebuchadnezzar`s Dream Statue Daniel`s Prophecies Antique Black and White Design Illustration. When the furnace, reached its proper heat, the king demanded immediate execution of his orders. He was driven away from people and ate grass like the ox. The basis of his decree is the simple statement, because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort. It is clear at this point that though Nebuchadnezzar is greatly impressed, he has not yet been brought to the place where he is willing to put his trust in the God of Israel. In it, he does not deprecate his own gods but recognizes the fact of the power of the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego. Their explanation leaves no question as to the answer. Leupold, p. 143; also the discussion on The Greek Words in Daniel in Edwin M. Yamauchis, Greece and Babylon, pp. This is also the case for prophecies of things to come. Are there also hints in the historical record? The text goes on to say that Nebuchadnezzar commanded all the leaders, magistrates and important personages of his kingdom to come to a special service for the idol. 3:28-30 Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the kings word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. - Daniel 3:1-6: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refuses to pay homage to Nebuchadnezzar's golden statue. 2 Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. Accordingly, they confront the king with their confidence in God to such an extent that they say, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. Such an answer by itself might be considered arrogant and disrespectful to the king; but coupled with the explanation, it is clear that they feel their case is not in their hands anyway. These men ask for no miracle; they expect none. Although Nebuchadnezzar did not do this intentionally, the dimensions of six cubits wide and sixty cubits high introduces the number six which is prominent in the Bible as the number of man (cf. 25:6, 9. The Hebrew Bible is an incredible document, not only for the faithful, but for historians like Frahm. Page of 11 Next Page. Eight years later another Jewish rebellion broke out; this time Jerusalem was razed and the population carried into captivity. The threat of being executed by being burned alive was sufficient to cause the entire group to fall down and worship when the music sounded. We know from the archaeological record that Nebuchadnezzar was a master builder, raising Babylon to a grandeur unmatched in the ancient Near East. The ration list specifically mentions Jehoiachin, other Judean dignitaries and Jehoiachin's five sons. As Young states, The name Dura has occurred in classical sources; Polybius 5:48, Amm. What language did Nebuchadnezzar speak? Instead of giving Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego another opportunity to refuse to bow before the image as Nebuchadnezzar had originally proposed, he now immediately commands their execution. Therefore, the kingdom with legs of iron will reemerge in the 'latter . The fact that Daniel was so familiar with these offices is another evidence that he lived in the sixth century B.C.. That statue was 90 feet high and 9 feet wide. The Hebrew word for image implies, as Leupold says, An image in the very broadest sense, probably in human form although the proportions are far too narrow for a normal figure.176 Scripture does not solve this problem, but most commentators agree that images of this kind in antiquity frequently varied from ordinary human proportions. The expression the Son of God (3:25) is a translation of the Aramaic bar elahin, which means a divine being. Nebuchadnezzar interprets this in verse 28 as a malak, meaning, an angel. The alternative that God sent a mighty angel to protect them is, of course, also plausible and in keeping with other Scripture. Along with the young king and his extended royal family, thousands of Jerusalem's elites officials, priests, warriors, artisans were all marched to Babylon. In 601 B.C. He recognizes the superior obligation of the men not to worship any deity except their own. It likely featured a large base to support the massive structure. As Nebuchadnezzar observes the statue it is destroyed by a stone "not cut by human hands" which strikes the feet, the obvious weak point. 172 S. P. Tregelles, Remarks on the Prophetic Visions in the Book of Daniel. The image of gold is described as being sixty cubits (90 ft.) high and six cubits (9 ft.) broad, a very impressive sight erected in the plain of Dura. The king looks down at North, Fox, and Burke, saying, "I command you . This. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. And most of us know who those kingdoms are, because in Daniel 2:38 God revealed that Nebuchadnezzar, representing Babylon, was that head of gold. 24, 84. and even in the Babylonian army of Nebuchadnezzar.191 Not only did the Greeks affect the Semitic world but also influences of Assyria and Babylonia appear in the Greek language as well.192, Recent studies on the musical instruments mentioned in Daniel 3 conducted by T. C. Mitchell and R. Joyce have given support to the authenticity of these instruments in the sixth century b.c.193 Further studies by Yamauchi support the conclusion that Greek words in Daniel are not to be unexpected and in fact refer to the interchange of cultures in the ancient world.194. The second accusation that they do not serve Nebuchadnezzars gods is more than merely a religious difference. Highly enraged, he commanded to bring the men before him. The sheriffs were judges in a stricter sense of the term, that is, magistrates who gave a just sentence. Montgomery observes, Its construction of gold has also given rise to extensive argument, with charge of absurdity on one side, e. g., JDMich [J. D. Michaelis], with defence based on the fabulous riches of the East on the other. Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof six cubits: he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon (Dan 3:1). Scholars differ on the proper reading here and resulting translation, but Montgomery and Rosenthal support the King James Version translation, Is it true.200. Even in ordinary narrative important facts are sometimes repeated more than once. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. 3:1 Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof six cubits: he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of . A golden Trump statue is displayed at the 2021 Conservative Political Action Conference The more than 6-foot-tall statue turned heads as it was wheeled into the Hyatt Regency Thursday evening. Constructed in 575 BC by the order of King Nebuchadnezzar II, the Ishtar Gate was one of the many thresholds that surrounded and protected Babylonia from outside forces. The captains seemed to refer to presidents or governors of civil government. Daniel 2:32-33 (NASB) Now it is important to understand that the head is gold. Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold - The time when he did this is not mentioned; nor is it stated in whose honor, or for what design, this colossal image was erected. In that storehouse were more clay tablets, mostly records of the day-to-day affairs of the palace. The image was set up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. The expression Dura, as Leupold states, is a rather common name in Mesopotamia, being a name that is applicable to any place which is enclosed by a wall, and a number of locations bear this title as Keil points out.179 Both Keil and Young mention two possible locations which seem to be eliminated by being too far from Babylon. The question is: Did any of this really happen? The fire was seven times hotter than ever and yet a fourth person showed up to save them and make sure they did not burn up. Either Daniel considered this a political act which did not violate his conscience, or Daniel did not worship and his high office prevented his enemies from accusing him, or more probably, Daniel for some reason was absent. King Nebuchadnezzar II ordered his workers to build temples and other buildings using tough kiln-fired bricks to protect Babylon from intruders and make the city magnificent.. His hope and goal was that palaces, temples, and walls would last longer if they were constructed with such building . Samsung vs. Apple Blog Comparisons. Archaeologists have recovered tens of thousands of clay tablets and other inscribed objects from sites across the ancient Babylonian Empire, which stretched from the Mediterranean Sea (modern-day Egypt and Israel) to the Persian Gulf (Iraq, Iran and Kuwait). It may have been in honor of the god of Babylon, either Bel or Marduk, but in this case it would have been natural to mention the name of the god. Therefore, it is desirable on this ground to seek the original of such verses (and hence of the narratives of which they are an integral part) much earlier than this date, preferably within memory of the Persian rulei. Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, shall fall down and worship the golden image: And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth, that he should be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. 201 Cf. The Septuagint and Theodotion connect the event with the destruction of Jerusalem, which, according to 2 Kings 25:8-10 and Jeremiah 52:12, places this event in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, came forth of the midst of the fire. At least one of them was so disturbing that the king called for his advisers to tell him his dream and to interpret it. At the end of three years, the four young men joined the royal court. Which four kingdoms are represented in the statue . The statue is composed of four different materials: gold, silver, bronze and iron. In the early 20th century, archaeologists excavating beneath the ruins of an ancient Babylonian palace found 14 vaulted rooms they first believed to be part of the legendary Hanging Gardens of Babylon, but later figured out were part of a royal storehouse. A. Montgomery, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Daniel, p. 195. (There's no evidence that Nabonidus ate grass.). 205-7; F. Rosenthal, A Grammar of Biblical Aramaic, p. 40. Daniel Chapter 3 Explained Verse by Verse - Fall Down and Worship, Nebuchadnezzar's Golden Statue - Part 1The past provides the pattern for the future. E. J. Nebuchadnezzar is notorious for decimating the Jewish presence in the Land of Israel, exiling the vast majority of its denizens to Babylon, and destroying the first Holy Temple. What he saw, however, brought him to complete astonishment. He then dwelled the next 10 years in the Arabian city of Tayma. In the deliverance of the three faithful companions of Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar is confronted by the superior power of God which can nullify Nebuchadnezzars commandment to execute the three men. 83-85; and Keil, pp. 3:1-7 Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof six cubits: he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. But what proof do we have that King Jehoiachin and thousands more Judeans were in fact hauled off to Babylon? They take into consideration that sometimes it is not in the purpose of God to deliver faithful ones from martyrdom. For centuries, historians and biblical scholars have searched for clues about the real-life Nebuchadnezzar II, who ruled the Babylonian Empire at the peak of its power from 605 to 562 B.C.E. What happened to this pro 2 Then the king gave orders for all his officials to come togetherthe princes, governors, lieutenant governors, commissioners, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the other officials of the The use of the golden metal for the image may have been derived from Nebuchadnezzars previous experience with the image of chapter 2 where Daniel informed him that he, Nebuchadnezzar, was the head of gold. Icas94/De Agostini Picture Library via Getty Images. e. c. 539 (max.) 2 Chronicles 36:6 chapter context similar meaning copy save. Nebuchadnezzar is the Hebrew form of an Akkadian name, which translates to "May Nebo protect the crown.". 208-9; and Rosenthal, pp. to c. 280 BC (allowing about fifty years lapse from the fall of Persia to Macedon).185. KINGDOMS OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S IMAGE. The Medes took the city of Babylon in one day without a fight. It would be natural for Daniel, who may have written or at least edited this passage after the Persian government had come to power, to bring the various offices up-to-date by using current expressions. "A sequel to British Museum Satires no. In this chapter we see for the last time Daniels three companions, and no further reference is made to their subsequent experiences. Darius hurries to the lion's den the following day to see what happened to Daniel and learns to his astonishment that Daniel is . Even if God does not deliver them, however, this will not change their decision in which they refuse to worship the gods of Babylon as well as the golden image. 2 Then he sent messages to the high officers, officials, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the provincial officials to come to the dedication of the statue he had set up. You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox. 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