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Nebuchadnezzar

the king of Babylon

Who was Nebuchadnezzar?

The name
His Babylonian name asks the god Nabu to protect his crown or his kingdom. Catholic Encyclopedia (1911), “Nabuchodonosor”
Occupation
King of Babylon Daniel 1:1
Nebuchadnezzar, an artistic recreation

What the Bible says

2 Kings 24:10-16

10At that time the servants of Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was surrounded with their forts. 11And Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon came to the city with his servants to assault it. 12And Joachin king of Juda went out to the king of Babylon, he and his mother, and his servants, and his nobles, and his eunuchs: and the king of Babylon received him in the eighth year of his reign. 13And he brought out from thence all the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king’s house: and he cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the Lord, according to the word of the Lord. 14And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the valiant men of the army, to the number of ten thousand into captivity: and every artificer and smith: and none were left, but the poor sort of the people of the land. 15And he carried away Joachin into Babylon, and the king’s mother, and the king’s wives, and his eunuchs: and the judges of the land he carried into captivity from Jerusalem into Babylon. 16And all the strong men, seven thousand, and the artificers, and the smiths a thousand, all that were valiant men and fit for war: and the king of Babylon led them captives into Babylon.

Daniel 2:47

And the king spoke to Daniel, and said: Verily your God is the God of gods, and Lord of kings, and a revealer of hidden things: seeing thou couldst discover this secret.

Daniel 3:19-20; Daniel 4:30-34

19Then was Nabuchodonosor filled with fury: and the countenance of his face was changed against Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, and he commanded that the furnace should be heated seven times more than it had been accustomed to be heated. 20And he commanded the strongest men that were in his army, to bind the feet of Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, and to cast them into the furnace of burning fire.

Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner revision), public domain.

The path of Nebuchadnezzar

  1. Before Jesus. As king of Babylon, he besieged Jerusalem. The Lord handed over to him the king of Judah and some of the vessels of the Temple. Daniel 1:1-2
  2. Before Jesus. In the days of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar came up against him. Jehoiakim served him for three years and then rebelled. 2 Kings 24:1
  3. Before Jesus. He took King Jehoiachin and many people of Jerusalem captive to Babylon. Years later, his troops burned the Temple. 2 Kings 24:12-16; 2 Kings 25:8-9
  4. Before Jesus. Nebuchadnezzar ordered Nebuzaradan, the commander of his army, to look after the prophet Jeremiah and do him no harm. Jeremiah 39:11-12
  5. Before Jesus. He had young men of Judah trained for his service. Among them were Daniel and his three companions. Daniel 1:3-6
  6. With Jesus. He had a dream that would not let him sleep. His wise men could not tell it to him, and Daniel explained it. Daniel 2:1, 10-11, 27-28
  7. With Jesus. After hearing Daniel, the king gave him many gifts. He put him in charge of the province of Babylon and of all its wise men. Daniel 2:48
  8. With Jesus. He made a golden statue and ordered everyone to worship it. He had the three young men who would not worship it thrown into the furnace. Daniel 3:1, 5-6, 19-20
  9. With Jesus. When he saw that the fire did not touch them, he blessed their God, who had sent his angel. Daniel 3:91-95
  10. Afterward. He had another dream: a huge tree that reached the sky, and a messenger from heaven ordered it cut down. Daniel told him that the tree was the king himself. Daniel 4:7-11, 19
  11. Afterward. One day he praised himself for the greatness of Babylon. At once he lost his reason and lived with the animals of the field. Daniel 4:26-30
  12. Afterward. When that time was over, he raised his eyes to heaven and his reason came back. Then he praised and glorified the King of heaven. Daniel 4:31-34
  13. Afterward. Nebuchadnezzar also got his kingdom back. The nobles of his court came looking for him, and his greatness became even greater. Daniel 4:33

Words of Nebuchadnezzar

“Verily your God is the God of gods, and Lord of kings, and a revealer of hidden things: seeing thou couldst discover this secret.” Daniel 2:47

To Daniel, when he explained his dream.

“Behold I see four men loose, and walking in the midst of the fire, and there is no hurt in them, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.” Daniel 3:92

To his counselors, looking into the furnace.

“Blessed be the God of them, … who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that believed in him…” Daniel 3:95

When the three young men came out of the furnace unharmed.

“Therefore I Nabuchodonosor do now praise, and magnify, and glorify the King of heaven: because all his works are true, and his ways judgments, and them that walk in pride he is able to abase.” Daniel 4:34

When his reason and his kingdom were restored.

What they were like

The greatest thing they did

Not to be confused with

What people ask

Did Nebuchadnezzar destroy the Temple in Jerusalem?

Yes. In the nineteenth year of his reign, the captain of his guard burned the Temple and the city. 2 Kings 25:8-9

What did he dream about the statue?

A statue of gold, silver, bronze, iron and clay. A stone shattered it, and that stone became a great mountain. Daniel 2:31-35

What happened to him when he lost his reason?

He lived with the animals and ate grass like an ox. It went on until he acknowledged that the Most High rules over the kingdoms. Daniel 4:29-31

Was he converted in the end?

The Book of Daniel closes his story with his praise of the King of heaven. The Bible does not say whether he left the gods of Babylon completely. Daniel 4:34

How big was the golden statue he had made?

It was sixty cubits high and six cubits wide. He set it up on the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. Daniel 3:1

In the dream of the tree, why were the stump and the roots left in the ground?

Daniel explained that his kingdom would be kept for him. He would get it back once he learned that it is heaven that rules. Daniel 4:23

His pride He praised himself for the greatness of Babylon. Daniel 4:27 He bowed down before Daniel and ordered sacrifices to be offered to him. Daniel 2:46 Little known Daniel…

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