In Daniel 2:20-23, Daniel prays,
“Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him. I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors: You have given me wisdom and power, you have made known to me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the dream of the king.”
This is Daniels response to God answering his prayer. King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream but had no idea what it meant. This dream was no ordinary dream, it was God showing him what was to come. Nebuchadnezzar summoned all his wise men and demanded that they not only interpreted the dream but also describe the dream. This was the only way he could know that the interpretation was correct. This is what the wise men said back to the king,
“The astrologers answered the king, “There is no one on earth who can do what the king asks! No king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or astrologer. What the king asks is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among humans.”
This was the king’s response, “This made the king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the wise men of Babylon. So the decree was issued to put the wise men to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put them to death.”
What a response. This dream that God gave to the king rocked him to his core and he had to know what it meant. None of his wise man could describe the dream, so the logical thing to do was kill them all. Though Daniel didn’t feel like it was very logical. In his wisdom and understanding he went to the king and asked for time to be able to describe and interpret the dream.
The king and his wise men had a problem that they could not solve, and God gave them the problem. God also had the solution and it was in his people. Daniel and his companions prayed and God answers Daniel in a vision. Daniel goes to the king describes what the king saw and then told him what it all meant. The king responds like this,
“Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell prostrate before Daniel and paid him honor and ordered that an offering and incense be presented to him. The king said to Daniel, “Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you were able to reveal this mystery.”
The king’s conclusion after all of this is that Daniel’s God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings. Then the king promotes Daniel to a high position and puts him in charge of the wise men and Daniel gets his companions promoted with him.
God’s people solve problems that other people can’t and it proves that God is the one and only God. It’s through his people that he demonstrates to the world who He really is.