"But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory."
{Daniel 5:20} (NIV 1984)
The Bible tells us that there has never been a king on earth as powerful as king Nebuchadnezzar. Yet God broke him lower than a human, and made him become like an animal.
God has complete control over kings and dictators. Lord Acton in 1887 wrote, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." People become prideful, arrogant and wicked when they have absolute power over other people. They imagine that they are in control, and that they decide the future. They imagine that within themselves is all that they need. God laughs and scoffs at them (Ps 2:1-4).
We struggle to understand why God would raise up such wicked rulers, and yet the Bible clearly teaches His sovereignty over all rulers (Rom 13:1). God has His purposes and we will trust Him, for He knows the end from the beginning. Wicked kings can kill us and many other people. They cause disaster and hardship, sometimes even worldwide, and yet they serve the purposes of a good God, who does whatever He wants with them, whenever He wants, and He holds the power of life and death over them. (Isa 14:9,10)
Let us join Paul in praise of our God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen. (1 Tim 6:15,16)
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