OUR FATHER WHO REVEALS DEEP AND HIDDEN THINGS FOR OUR GAIN AND PROTECTION

Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had a dream that kept him awake and so he summoned the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers and told them that he had been troubled because of this dream and that he wanted them to tell him what the dream was as well the interpretation.

The astrologers responded to the request as recorded in Daniel chapter 2 verses 4 - 5 and they received an unexpected reaction from the king.

Then the astrologers answered the king, “May the king live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it.”

The king replied to the astrologers, “This is what I have firmly decided: If you do not tell me what my dream was and interpret it, I will have you cut into pieces and your houses turned into piles of rubble.

The situation suddenly became very serious for the strata of the society involved in the work of providing spiritual guidance and insight to the ruling class of Babylon.

Nebuchadnezzar insisted that the proof that the spiritual advisors were worth anything at all was that they could first tell him what his dream was and then give him the interpretation.

The astrologers said to the king that such a thing could not be done which greatly angered him and he then decreed that the entire community of spiritual advisors be executed and this judgment included the prophet Daniel and his three companions from Judah,  Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.

The prophet Daniel, upon learning of the plan to execute them, interceded before the king to request time to get the dream and its interpretation. He then returned to his house and told his three friends to call on heaven for mercy so that they could be saved from the fate of death.

During the night, Daniel received the substance of Nebuchadnezzar's dream in the form of a vision and after asking the commander of the King's guard not to kill the rest of the spiritual advisors,  he requested an audience with the King.

When Nebuchadnezzar asked Daniel if he could tell him both his dream and its interpretation, Daniel replied that no wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner could do such a thing but that there was a God in heaven who revealed mysteries.

Daniel told the king that it was not by his own  wisdom that God had revealed the mystery of the king's dreams to him but rather it was shown to him so that the King would have an explanation for the things that passed through his mind.

Daniel then proceeded to tell Nebuchadnezzar his dream and its meaning and the lives of the spiritual advisors were spared.

Bless the Lord who can, for our benefit and protection, reveal mysteries of things that are deep and hidden beyond our reach.

Amen.