Deeper ReflectionAs we live in a world that is hostile to God’s ways, we will face
stress daily. In Daniel 2, we see two people who faced stress
in totally opposite ways: Nebuchadnezzar with
consuming
wrath (vv.12-13) and Daniel with
calm wisdom (vv.14-18). As for God, His wrath is the wrath of the only wise God (Rom 1:18; 16:27).Nebuchadnezzar, together with the wise men in his court, symbolise
the power of the mightiest human being and the wisdom of the
smartest humans. But all this crumbles just because of a dream. Unable
to know the meaning of the dream, the most powerful man became
utterly powerless and helpless, and all he can do is be angry and
destructive (v.12). But one who is “slow to anger” “rules his spirit”, and
is “better than the mighty” and “captures a city” (Prov 16:32). Patience
is power.Daniel responded to the difficult and dangerous situation with
“discretion and discernment” (v.14). We do not know what Daniel
said and how he spoke to Nebuchadnezzar such that he was willing
“to give him time” to declare his dreams and interpretation (v.16).
It was an act of wisdom. However, this act of wisdom of Daniel was
inadequate. It did not have the answer to Nebuchadnezzar’s problem.
At times, wisdom enables us to see the big picture; sometimes, it is
step by step. Having “the ability to keep calm under severe shock
and pressure, to think quickly and exercise faith in a moment of
crisis”
10 , Daniel moved from discretion before the king (vv.14-16) to
dependence on God (vv.17-18).
8 Proverbs 2:6
9 James 3:13; Matthew 11:29
10 Joyce G. Baldwin, Daniel, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (IVP, 1978), 89
