How Kings Are Humbled
- Randall Brewer
- Mar 24
- 5 min read
‘Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like an ox. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird’
- Daniel 4:33 -
God showed Nebuchadnezzar in a dream that he was about to be severely judged for his rebellious pride and his “there is no god besides me” arrogance. But God is merciful. He had Daniel tell the king that the right reaction to this threat was humble repentance. The king would repent or be chopped down like the mighty tree in his dream. Daniel said: “Break away from your sins by being righteous, and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor” (Dan. 4:27). Nebuchadnezzar was counseled to stop sinning and to practice righteousness and generosity. If he would do this, Daniel was hopeful that “perhaps there may be a lengthening of your prosperity” (4:27).
Nebuchadnezzar didn’t need to wait to go insane to make things right with God. He could repent right then and flee the coming judgment. Recall how God promised to wipe out Nineveh due to her abundant wickedness, but first He sent Jonah to preach repentance. Jonah 3:10 says: ‘Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way, and God relented from the disaster that He said He would bring upon them.’ The same grace would befall King Nebuchadnezzar if he only followed suit and sought the Lord. He could cast off pride and do in seven minutes what would take seven years if he didn’t repent.
Tragically, Nebuchadnezzar ignored God’s warning and went on with business as usual. Time passed, and twelve months later, while walking on the roof of his royal palace, he admired the splendor of his kingdom spread out before him. Babylon was a spectacular city with its famous Hanging Gardens built during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar. God had given the king a full year to repent but he forgot all about the dream in that time. When God was gracious and delayed judgment, the king returned to his arrogant ways.
These prideful words spilled from the king as he beheld the city: “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” (Dan. 4:30). What self-centered affirmation! Here was mere man boasting in what he thought he had done independent of God. As the words left his lips, a heavenly voice said: “King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: your royal authority has been taken from you…Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like an ox. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird” (4:31-33). How fast the king was humbled!
Nebuchadnezzar wasn’t in a good place. Nor is anyone who ignores God. Nothing the devil offers leads to good. There is only sadness and confusion when you cast off light to walk in darkness. You look for solutions in all the wrong places. Thankfully, there is a way to get back on track and the king records it: “At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified Him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; His kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as He pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back His hand” (Dan. 4:34-35).
The humbled king acknowledged God and wrote: “At the same time that my sanity was restored, my honor and splendor were returned to me for the glory of my kingdom” (Dan. 4:36). What many don’t know about God is that if you repent and turn from sin, He will lead you to a better place than before. All He asks is that we give Him all the glory. After his humiliation, Nebuchadnezzar’s nobles sought him out and he reclaimed an even greater kingdom. God gave him a second chance. If you too have strayed from God, do what Nebuchadnezzar did and our gracious God will give you a second chance too.
Finally, Nebuchadnezzar said: “I 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” (Dan. 4:37). This was learned from seven years of living like a beast. If you want your wayward mind restored and your life stripped of confusion, know that it only happens when you exalt the King of heaven. Not only do men of excellence exalt God as God, but they exalt Him as King! His kingdom is not a democracy. We are ruled by the King of kings and our vote doesn’t count. It’s only His perfect will and purpose that matters, and thank God for that!
When we understand this, we happily submit to His rule, gracious that God will raise us into His royal family. This is why David said: ‘I will exalt You, my God the King; every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever’ (Ps. 145:1-2). Kingdoms don’t have opinions, they have absolutes. Many people love God’s attributes but not His absolutes, unaware that God doesn’t give a choice in the matter. If that describes you, submit to the One of grace and goodness while He may be found! Bow to Him and offer yourself as ‘a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God’ (Rom. 12:1). Honor the One who warrants all honor. Find freedom in saying: ‘Not my will but Your will be done’ (Luke 22:42).
You regain your sanity when you declare that God is right and all His ways just. That includes the parts you don’t like or understand. Some will say: “I don't know if I agree with that.” Nebuchadnezzar felt that way and look what happened to him! Realize that truth is what God calls true and sin is what God calls sin! Isaiah 55:7-9 says: ‘Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord and He will have mercy on them...For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways above your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.’ Pastor Tim Keller once said: “If your God never disagrees with you, you might just be worshiping an idealized version of yourself.” Hear this warning and act accordingly!
Finally, walk in humility. You get your sanity back by realizing life isn’t all about you. Follow God as the Lord of your life. John the Baptist said it best: “I must decrease and He must increase” (John 3:30). Selfishness is abandoned when God rules and reigns in your life. Pride says: “I don’t need God. I am God.” Humility says: “I need God. I am nothing without Him.” Paul says in Acts 17:28: “In Him I live and move and have my being.” Fear God and tremble before Him. God told Isaiah: “This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at My word” (66:2). You either seek humility or suffer humiliation as Nebuchadnezzar did by eating grass like an ox. Don’t let that happen to you. Be humble at all times and seek the face of your gracious God.
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