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Nebuchadnezzar's Profile
Nebuchadnezzar was one world leader who decided he could
get more cooperation from the people he conquered by letting them keep their
gods. Their lands he took, their riches he robbed, their lives he controlled,
but their idols he allowed them to worship, sometimes even worshiping them
himself. Nebuchadnezzar's plan worked well, with one glaring exception. When he
conquered the little nation of Judah, he met a God who demanded exclusive
worship - not just his share among many gods. In a sense, Nebuchadnezzar had
always been able to rule the gods. This new God was different; this God dared to
claim that he had made Nebuchadnezzar all that he was. One of the great
conquerors in history was himself conquered by his Creator.
The Bible allows us to note the ways in which God worked on
Nebuchadnezzar. God allowed him victories, but he was accomplishing God's
purposes. God allowed him to deport the best young Jewish leaders as his palace
servants, while placing close to him a young man named Daniel, who would change
the king's life. God allowed Nebuchadnezzar to attempt to kill three of his
servants to teach the king that he did not really have power over life and
death. God warned him of the dangers in his pride, and then allowed
Nebuchadnezzar to live through seven years of insanity before restoring him to
the throne. God showed the king who was really in control!
These lessons are clear to us today because of our place in history.
When our attention shifts to our own lives, we find ourselves unable to see how
God is working. But we do have the advantage of God's Word as our guide for
today's challenges. We are commanded to obey God; we are also commanded to trust
him. Trusting him covers those times when we are not sure about the outcome. God
has entrusted us with this day; have we trusted him with our lives?
Nebuchadnezzar's Strengths and
Accomplishments
1. Greatest of the Babylon kings
2. Known as a builder of cities
3. Described in the Bible as one of the foreign rulers God used for his purpose
Nebuchadnezzar's Weaknesses and Mistakes
1. Thought of himself as a god and was persuaded
to build an image of gold that all were to worship
2. Became extremely proud, which led to a bout of insanity
3. Tended to forget the demonstrations of God's power he had witnessed
Lessons from Nebuchadnezzar's life
1. History records the actions of God's willing
servants and those who were his unwitting tool
2. A leader's greatness is affected by the quality of his advisers
3. Uncontrolled pride is self-destructive
Nebuchadnezzar's Vital Statistics
1. Where: Babylon
2. Occupation: King
3. Relatives: Father: Nabopolassar, Son; Evil-Merodach; Grandson: Belshazzar
4. Contemporaries: Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin
Key verse:
"Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and
glorify the King of Heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways
are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble" (Daniel 4:37).
Nebuchadnezzar's story is told in 2 Kings 24: 25;
2 Chronicles 36; Jeremiah 21-52; Daniel 1-4.
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