The Lord does not delay and is not tardy or slow about what He promises, according to some people’s conception of slowness, but He is long-suffering (extraordinarily patient) toward you, not desiring that any should perish, but that all should turn to repentance. – 2 Peter 3:9, Amplified Bible (AMP)

Prior to salvation, many of us fight God. He shows Himself to us time and again, and for a time we may acknowledge His power. Yet, because of our desire to hold on to our idols, we resist. It is only because of His mercy that we are not consumed, and it is only because of His long-suffering that any of us become saved.

King Nebuchadnezzar was no different. God repeatedly proved Himself to Nebuchadnezzar, but the King of Babylon repeatedly turned to his own idols after his encounters with the Creator. After Daniel interpreted the dream of Daniel 2, Nebuchadnezzar proclaimed God as the “God of gods.”  Yet, the next thing we see Nebuchadnezzar doing is building a huge, golden idol rather than worshipping The Lord. In Daniel 3 after God delivered Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace, Nebuchadnezzar called God “the Most High God” and made it a matter of law that no one should speak amiss about Him. However, Nebuchanezzar still didn’t get that The Lord was the ONLY God. In Daniel 4, he turned his attention to that most destructive of idols – self – as he glorified his own power and might.

Thankfully, after a seven-year spanking during which time Nebuchadnezzar was deprived of his kingdom and of his humanity, God restored Nebuchadnezzar, both to his kingdom and to his humanity. Now, full of humility rather than pride, Nebuchadnezzar claimed God as his own in Daniel 4:37 (AMP), stating:

Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, Whose works are all faithful and right and Whose ways are just. And those who walk in pride He is able to abase and humble.

God transformed Nebuchadnezzar from a wicked, pagan conqueror into a humble servant, and before He was done with him, God used Nebuchadnezzar to pen the fourth chapter of Daniel.

When someone wrongs us, how do we feel? We become offended, and sometimes the animosity is so bad that we have no desire to continue a relationship with that person. God will eventually reach that same point with everyone who refuses to trust His Son as Savior, but isn’t it wonderful to know that the same long-suffering God who didn’t give up on Nebuchadnezzr didn’t give up on us, either? And, He doesn’t want to give up on those unsaved around you. Keep witnessing. Keep praying. Your witness might be the last straw that breaks a hard heart for Christ.

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