Good Morning Friends,
“Daniel said: ‘Praise be to the name of God
for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he sets
up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the
discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness,
and light dwells with him. I thank and praise you, O God of my fathers: You
have given me wisdom and power, you have made known to me what we asked of you,
you have made known to us the dream of the king.’” (Daniel 2:20-23)
King Nebuchadnezar had a troubling dream and
called for his wise men to interpret it. To be sure that they were not just
faking it, making up an interpretation, he gave them a test – before they
provided an interpretation they had to be able to tell him what the dream was. If
they knew what he dreamed without him telling them, he could be sure they had
special wisdom and would not be faking the interpretation.
The king’s wise men could not pass the test. They
had no idea what the dream was, much less any ability to accurately interpret
it. The punishment from the king was that all of his wise men were to be executed
– even those who were not involved in trying to interpret the dream. When they
came to take Daniel to be executed, he asked them to explain why and then asked
the king for time to be able to know what he dreamed and then interpret it.
Daniel returned to his quarters and offered
the prayer in today’s text as he asked God for the wisdom to know the dream and
to interpret it. Daniel relied on God to provide the wisdom that he needed. He
knew God was the source of all wisdom.
In our world, humans take credit for almost
everything. Men take credit for the political skill that results in electoral
victory. Men take credit for the intelligence that leads to scientific
discovery. Men take credit for the creativity to solve problems and invent new
products and services.
But Daniel knew the truth -- all wisdom and
knowledge and power come from God. Men rule by God’s choice. Men understand because
God allows them to do so. This is God’s world -- if men would only recognize
that!
His, by Grace,
Steve
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