Daniel 2:46-49 Video Devotional

Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face and paid homage to Daniel, and commanded that an offering and incense be offered up to him. 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.” 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. 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. – Daniel 2:46-49

Here we have the payoff to Daniel’s suffering over the dream and its interpretation. Daniel’s direct and respectful response to Arioch, prayer and trust in God, and boldness in front of Nebuchadnezzar was met with nothing else than spiritual fruit!

I am sure Daniel was much happier about it than Jonah, but just as surprised. Nebuchadnezzar repented! Though it initially seems like the king was giving glory to Daniel, he recognized Daniel’s God as the One with the power and Daniel as the recipient. This led to Daniel being given real influence and leadership over the kingdom, which would be huge, but lead to more opportunities to suffer. Daniel’s trust in God and obedience saved the day and put a target on his back.

This ending to the story tells us a few things: 1) Daniel’s way of interacting with non-believers is correct, and 2) influence leads to opportunity and suffering. We can learn today from how Daniel treated those who could be considered enemies. This matches with 1 Corinthians 13 – without love, our truth is useless. We have got to put that back at the forefront of our actions; everything we do must be filtered through loving actions and a respectful attitude! If we do that, our opportunities will only increase.

What Daniel did accomplished a lot for the kingdom of God. People were saved and influence was gained. But we need to be prepared as we work (or rush) for our chances to gain that kind of leadership; it will lead to suffering. I have had a few experiences lately of opportunities to have influence and lead, but they both quickly lead to me suffering emotional pain over the outcome of those circumstances. It was great to experience God using me, but in the end it hurt. That’s ok – even good, but we need to be ready for it. Again, obey God and trust Him to take care of the consequences – that’s our only chance for real success.



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