Daniel 2:46 (ESV)

Daniel Is Promoted

[46] Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face and paid homage to Daniel, and commanded that an offering and incense be offered up to him. [47] The king answered and said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings, and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.” [48] Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. [49] Daniel made a request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon. But Daniel remained at the king’s court.

This is not the behavior of a king. In these verses the king falls on his face and showed honor and respect to Daniel. The word translated “homage” is sometimes translated worship. It is the same word used in the next chapter when Daniel’s friends are instructed to worship the golden image. Here is a king on his face before Daniel. This is behavior fitting only for a king or a god, yet the king falls before Daniel.

The wise men and magicians had told the king that, “The thing that the king asks is difficult, and no one can show it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh” (Dan 2:11). Yet here is Daniel, a man who apparently hears directly from the gods. Or, as Daniel would say, “There is a God in Heaven who reveals mysteries” (Dan 2:28). God in Heaven is a God who “changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise  and knowledge to those who have understanding” (Dan 2:21).

We celebrate those words: God is a God who “changes times and seasons, he removes kings and sets up kings,” (Dan 2:21). We swear that we believe those words. We cling to those words, yet we often act as though they are not true. We wring our hands at every election. We are filled with anxiety because of the Muslim immigrants moving to our country. We are dazed with fear because of the church shootings. We are an anxious people talking about God, but living as though he did not exist.

Daniel and his friends watched their homes destroyed, and their family and friends killed, and their temple raided. They were dragged off to a foreign country where people speak a foreign language and practice foreign customs. They were threatened, and then trained in a foreign culture. Their names where changed. Their identity was robbed. Their system of worship made impossible. Yet they lived as though they truly believed that God is God of gods, and Lord of kings. We sit in relative peace and prosperity. Even those living in poverty in America are the envy of many in the world. Still, we wring our hands and live as though God were dead, all the while singing, “King of kings and Lord of lords; Glory, Alleluia.” Our words do not match the anxiety of our emotions. There is a disconnect between our tongue and our heart.

It is convicting that a Babylonian king gets that truth better than we do. God is working his purpose and will. He sets up kings and brings them down. The Apostle Paul reminds us that, “There is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” (Rom 13:1). Daniel understood and believed that. Daniel’s friends understood and believed that. King Nebuchadnezzar understood and believed that. Why don’t we?