Have you ever thought what a great novel some parts of the Bible would make? I was reading in Daniel this morning and came to the passage where Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar that he is going to lose his throne and live in the wilderness like a wild animal until he acknowledges that God is more powerful than he is.
Seriously?
Every time I read that passage I wonder the same things- how was this accomplished? and what went through Nebuchadnezzar’s mind when Daniel said that?
Nebuchadnezzar doesn’t seem to have taken Daniel seriously which is odd considering their history up to this point. The next section gives the fulfillment of the prophecy. Nebuchadnezzar’s disregard of Daniel’s advice has always seemed strange to me- after all by this point Daniel has quite a reputation as someone who knows what’s going to happen and who gives good advice, but Nebuchadnezzar appears to just continue on his way despite the warning of the prophet. He is human. How many people would actually change their lifestyle based on a dream?
That thought actually brings me to my point: It is important to remember that the people we speak of as “characters of the Bible” were in fact people with all of humanity’s foibles, feebleness, and capability. The people of the Old and New Testaments have very human reactions to circumstances.
David has a hot temper and shows it when Nabol crosses him. Joseph does forgive his brothers after humiliating them as they humiliated him, and Jonah faced with a task he does not want first runs away and then whines about the outcome.
We often forget this and think of these humans as somehow better than we. We would do well to remember that God has always worked in and through his creatures and he values their humanness even when they don’t.