Julius Caesar, Genghis Khan and Alexander the Great are universally known as world changers.  But who would suspect that the ancient King of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, would be ranked as the fourth most powerful leader in all of history?

Yes, Nebuchadnezzar had it all. . .  Money, fame, prestige, control and a 43-year reign.  He was a heathen king who conquered the known world, destroyed Jerusalem and is a prominent figure in five books of the Bible.

It would be easy to imagine this conquering king, strolling through his palace, basking in all the grandeur and saying, “I built great Babylon as my royal dwelling by my own mighty power to honor myself!”  Puffed with pride, the Book of Daniel says, “While these words were still in the king’s mouth, a voice fell from heaven: “The kingdom has departed from you. . .  Your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. . .  and seven years shall pass, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.” ^{Daniel 4}

So, Nebuchadnezzar lost his sanity and his palace, and lived like an animal for seven years.  When he finally proclaimed God’s greatness as the one and only true God, everything he had lost was restored to him.

Our takeaway?   How about if we replace all of our pride with humble thankfulness praise.  After all, we don’t control where and when we are born, who our parents are, who has influenced us, or how smart we are.  Even if we are blessed with enormous intellect, courage or character, those are still gifts from God Almighty.

Yes, we can learn from Nebuchadnezzar’s 3000-year-old story, that we always do well to humbly and sincerely be thankful to God.

Let’s pray, “We praise you, Jesus, for all of the blessings we have.  These are gifts from you.  But most of all, we thank you for taking our deserved punishment, for dying for us and rising from the dead.  Thank you for your amazing love and grace.”