Reading: Daniel 4:34-37

Daniel 4:37 – “All his [God’s] works are truth, all his paths are justice, and he is able to humble all who walk in pride.”

At the start of Daniel 4 King Nebuchadnezzar praises God as powerful and everlasting. God has just rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace. Yes, they were thrown into the furnace because they refused to worship the 90′ statue made in the king’s likeness. God then brings Nebuchadnezzar a dream. None of the king’s sages, diviners… can interpret it. But Daniel can – “because the breath of the holy gods is in you.” The dream reveals that God will drive the king into the wilderness, living as an animal. He will live in this state until he acknowledges that “heaven rules all” – including him.

A year later the king is walking in the palace roof. He says to himself, ‘Isn’t Babylon great… this city built by MY mighty strength and by MY majestic glory?’ The words hadn’t left his mouth before God pronounced judgment on him. We see here how pride is ever there, often just below the surface. There are times when we’ll think how talented or beautiful we are or how wonderful that thing I did was or ___. You fill in the blank. We all can, many times over. Pride is something almost all of us battle with. And thinking too highly of oneself is not the only way pride is revealed.

Nebuchadnezzar’s sentence is immediately carried out. He lives as an animal in the wild for “seven periods of time.” We don’t know how long this was but we do know it was long enough for Nebuchadnezzar to acknowledge God’s authority. In humility he says, “All his [God’s] works are truth, all his paths are justice, and he is able to humble all who walk in pride.” When we get too full of ourselves, when we start judging and playing the comparison game, when we refuse to do a menial task, when we… we too will get a reality check. It might not be immediately, but it will come. The way to avoid this? Walk humbly with God each and every day, acknowledging God’s power and strength over all things. May it be so.

Prayer: Lord God, how often we see pride leading to words, actions, and behaviors that are far less than you call us to be. When we fall into the sun of pride, open our eyes as we look in the mirror. Humble us when needed, returning us to the worship of you instead of self. To you, O God, is all the glory, honor, and praise. Amen.