Authored By :
Bill Kochman
Published On :
June 29, 2002
Last Updated :
January 3, 2009
NOTE: This article or series has not been updated recently. As such, it may possibly contain some outdated information, and/or ideas and beliefs which I no longer embrace, or which have changed to some degree.
God Speaks Through Dreams, Profundity Of God's Ways, Jesus'
Parables Not Meant For Everyone, Jacob's Ladder And Dream Of
Speckled Cattle, Laban's Warning Dream, Abraham's Nightmare,
Joseph - Prolific Dreamer And Interpreter Of Dreams, Abraham
Exposed By A Dream, King Solomon's Dream And Gift Of Wisdom,
King Nebuchadnezzar's Dream, Daniel In The Court of The King
As I point out in several of my other articles, there is a
clear Biblical record to support the fact that God sometimes
chooses to reveal His Will to us by way of dreams, visions
and other methods. This is evident from the Book of Genesis,
all the way to the revelations which were given to John in
the Apocalypse; that is, the Book of Revelation. For example,
in the Book of Job, we find the following interesting verses:
"For God speaketh once, yea twice, yet man perceiveth it
not. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep
falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed; Then he
openeth the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction,"
Job 33:14-16, KJV
In the Book of Psalms, we also find mention of the fact that
God seals our instructions during the night season, as we
see in this verse taken from the sixteenth Psalm:
"I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins
also instruct me in the night seasons." Psalm 16:7, KJV
The Lord also spoke through the writings of the Prophet Joel
and foretold of a coming time when He would freely pour out
His Holy Spirit upon all flesh. Included in that prophecy,
is the promise that He would cause both men and women to
dream dreams, and see visions, as we see by the following
verses:
"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out
my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters
shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young
men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon
the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit."
Joel 2:28-29, KJV
A contemporary of Joel, the Prophet Amos, also had this to
say regarding how God sometimes chooses to reveal His Will,
and His Plans, to mortal men, before He actually carries
them out:
"Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his
secret unto his servants the prophets." Amos 3:7, KJV
Of course, God does not always work in this fashion. There
are times when He purposely chooses to conceal His Ways from
certain people, for whatever His reasons. Thus, we also find
it written in the Book of the Prophet Isaiah:
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your
ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher
than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my
thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9, KJV
When it came to discussing the Lord's Plans for the Jews,
the Apostle Paul likewise marvelled at the profundity of
God's Wisdom and Ways, and thus he was inspired to write:
"O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge
of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways
past finding out!" Romans 11:33, KJV
As I point out in the article "Oh Be Careful Little Eyes!",
during the course of His Earthly Ministry, there were times
when Jesus too said things, or did things, which were not
meant to be understood by everyone. This was particularly
true in regards to those men who sought to slay Him; that
is, the proud spiritually-blind Jewish Elders of Jerusalem.
Consider the following verses:
"And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest
thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them,
Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the
kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For
whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have
more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be
taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in
parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear
not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled
the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall
hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and
shall not perceive: For this people's heart is waxed gross,
and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have
closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears, and should understand with their
heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But
blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they
hear." Matthew 13:10-16, KJV
For the most part, however, God does desire for us to know
His Will for our lives, and He will sometimes go out of His
way in order to reveal it to us. As I noted a moment ago,
during Biblical times, the Lord sometimes chose to reveal
His Plans to His servants through the medium of dreams. Some
of my readers will already be familiar with some of the more
well-known dreamers of the Holy Bible. In the Old Testament,
for example, in the twenty-eighth chapter of the Book of
Genesis, we find Jacob's amazing dream of a ladder ascending
to Heaven, with some rather unusual beings making use of the
same. But it is Who was at the top of that ladder, and what
He had to say, which commanded the most attention, as we see
here:
"And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all
night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of
that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in
that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set
up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and
behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the
LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the
land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy
seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and
thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and
to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed
shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold,
I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither
thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I
will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have
spoken to thee of. And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he
said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.
And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place!
this is none other but the house of God, and this is the
gate of heaven." Genesis 28:11-17, KJV
As you can see by the previous verses, God used this dream
in order to reveal to Jacob how He was going to bless his
seed, by giving them the land which later became known as
Israel; so this was indeed a dream with a very meaningful
message. However, this was not the only dream that Jacob
had. According to Genesis chapter thirty-one, Jacob learned
the secret which would result in his herds multiplying, by
way of a dream which the Lord had given to him. Consider the
following verses where Jacob is discussing with his wives,
Rachel and Leah, how his father-in-law, Laban, had treated
him unjustly. In spite of Laban's shrewdness, God outsmarted
him, and Jacob ended up far wealthier in the end:
"And the LORD said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy
fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee. And
Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field unto his
flock, And said unto them, I see your father's countenance,
that it is not toward me as before; but the God of my father
hath been with me. And ye know that with all my power I have
served your father. And your father hath deceived me, and
changed my wages ten times; but God suffered him not to hurt
me. If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages; then
all the cattle bare speckled: and if he said thus, The
ringstraked shall be thy hire; then bare all the cattle
ringstraked. Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your
father, and given them to me. And it came to pass at the
time that the cattle conceived, that I lifted up mine eyes,
and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams which leaped upon
the cattle were ringstraked, speckled, and grisled. And the
angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I
said, Here am I. And he said, Lift up now thine eyes, and
see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are
ringstraked, speckled, and grisled: for I have seen all that
Laban doeth unto thee." Genesis 31:3-12, KJV
After Jacob and his family had escaped from Laban's powerful
grip, Laban had every intention of trying to get back what
he selfishly believed was rightfully his; however, the Lord
again intervened by way of a dream, and warned Laban not to
bring harm to Jacob or his family, as we see here:
"And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in that
he told him not that he fled. So he fled with all that he
had; and he rose up, and passed over the river, and set his
face toward the mount Gilead. And it was told Laban on the
third day that Jacob was fled. And he took his brethren with
him, and pursued after him seven days' journey; and they
overtook him in the mount Gilead. And God came to Laban the
Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed
that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad. Then Laban
overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mount:
and Laban with his brethren pitched in the mount of Gilead.
And Laban said to Jacob, What hast thou done, that thou hast
stolen away unawares to me, and carried away my daughters,
as captives taken with the sword? Wherefore didst thou flee
away secretly, and steal away from me; and didst not tell
me, that I might have sent thee away with mirth, and with
songs, with tabret, and with harp? And hast not suffered me
to kiss my sons and my daughters? thou hast now done
foolishly in so doing. It is in the power of my hand to do
you hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me
yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to
Jacob either good or bad." Genesis 31:20-29, KJV
If we go back in time a number of years, we discover that
God also revealed to Jacob's grandfather, that is, Abraham,
by way of a dream, how He would bless his descendants, after
they had gone through a dark period in Egypt. Consider the
following verses which describe Abram's terrible nightmare:
"And he said, Lord GOD, whereby shall I know that I shall
inherit it?...And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep
fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell
upon him. And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy
seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and
shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred
years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I
judge: and afterward shall they come out with great
substance. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou
shalt be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth
generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of
the Amorites is not yet full. And it came to pass, that,
when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking
furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those
pieces. In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram,
saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river
of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: The
Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, And the
Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, And the
Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the
Jebusites." Genesis 15:8, 12-21, KJV
As some of you will already know, Jacob's son, Joseph, was
also a very prolific dreamer, as well as a wise interpreter
of dreams. Sometimes, however, young Joseph's Special Gift
got him into serious trouble with his jealous brethren. In
two of his dreams, the Lord showed Joseph glimpses of the
future, in which his family would some day bow down to him.
Naturally, this did not sit well with his brothers who were
already envious of him, due to the fact that their father
Jacob loved him the most being as Joseph was born in Jacob's
old age. To show his love for Joseph, Jacob had made him the
coat of many colors. Following are the verses which describe
Joseph's two dreams:
"Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because
he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of
many colours. And when his brethren saw that their father
loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and
could not speak peaceably unto him. And Joseph dreamed a
dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet
the more. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this
dream which I have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding
sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also
stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about,
and made obeisance to my sheaf. And his brethren said to
him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed
have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for
his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another
dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have
dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and
the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his
father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and
said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed?
Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow
down ourselves to thee to the earth? And his brethren envied
him; but his father observed the saying."
Genesis 37:3-11, KJV
As you may recall, initially, Joseph's brothers wanted to
kill him; however, due to the oldest brother Reuben saving
his life, Joseph was instead sold to a group of Ishmeelite
merchants who were on their way to Egypt where they would
sell their spices and other wares. Joseph eventually ended
up in the house of Potiphar, one of Pharaoh's officers and
captain of the guard.
Through a series of events, including a false accusation of
sexual harassment by Potiphar's wife, Joseph found himself
unjustly thrown into prison; but this was a part of God's
Plan, and Joseph was eventually elevated to be the second
most powerful man in all of Pharaoh's court. His miraculous
promotion from prisoner to prince came about as a result of
his ability to interpret the dreams of the chief butler and
the chief baker, which ultimately came to the attention of
Pharaoh himself, who likewise experienced some disturbing
dreams involving seven fat cows and seven lean cows, and
seven full ears of corn, and seven lean ears of corn. Due to
the Lord giving Joseph the ability to properly interpret
Pharaoh's strange dreams, the Egyptians had time to prepare
themselves for the extended seven-year famine which would
soon plague the Middle East. Being as the story is long, I
won't be sharing all of the verses here; however, I would
like to share the ones which plainly show that God allowed
these dreams, in order to reveal His intentions with the
land of Egypt, which would ultimately affect Jacob's
descendants who would dwell there:
"And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one:
God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven
good kine are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven
years: the dream is one. And the seven thin and ill favoured
kine that came up after them are seven years; and the seven
empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years
of famine. This is the thing which I have spoken unto
Pharaoh: What God is about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh.
Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout
all the land of Egypt: And there shall arise after them
seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten
in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land;
And the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of
that famine following; for it shall be very grievous. And
for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is
because the thing is established by God, and God will
shortly bring it to pass." Genesis 41:25-32, KJV
So in the end, the very same Gift which had caused problems
between Joseph and his brethren, saved both Joseph and all
of his family, as well as the Egyptians. If you would like
to read this wonderful story in its entirety, you will find
it in Genesis chapters thirty-seven through fifty. Please
note that there is what we might refer to as a "Scriptural
Intermission", where the story of Judah and Tamar has been
inserted into the middle of the story of Joseph and his
brethren.
While many people are familiar with the fact that God made
the Israelites a great nation of people during the time that
they were under Egyptian bondage, what is less known is that
Joseph's time in Egypt, and the sojourn of Jacob and his
family to Egypt, was not the first time that the ancestors
of the nation of Israel went to that country. As I point out
in "The Children Of God And Politics", Abraham made several
journeys to the southern end of Israel, even passing into
Egypt, as a result of the severe droughts which plagued the
area. Abraham was a very shrewd man, and his wife Sarah was
apparently beautiful to look upon. Therefore, fearing for
his own safety, Abraham decided to play a deceptive game in
which his wife would pretend to be his sister. What seemed
like a good idea at the time, resulted in some negative and
embarrassing consequences for these ancient patriarchs. We
read of the first incident in the following verses:
"And Abram journeyed, going on still toward the south. And
there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into
Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the
land. And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter
into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I
know that thou art a fair woman to look upon: Therefore it
shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that
they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but
they will save thee alive. Say, I pray thee, thou art my
sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my
soul shall live because of thee. And it came to pass, that,
when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the
woman that she was very fair. The princes also of Pharaoh
saw her, and commended her before Pharaoh: and the woman was
taken into Pharaoh's house. And he entreated Abram well for
her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and
menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels.
And the LORD plagued Pharaoh and his house with great
plagues because of Sarai Abram's wife. And Pharaoh called
Abram, and said, What is this that thou hast done unto me?
why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife? Why saidst
thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to
wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy
way. And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him: and they
sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had. And Abram
went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had,
and Lot with him, into the south." Genesis 12:9-13:1, KJV
One would think that Abraham would have learned a valuable
lesson from his ordeal with the Egyptians, but that was not
the case; because eight chapters later, we find him again
relying upon the very same trickery in order to try to save
himself from unwanted hardship. This time, his deception was
exposed when God gave a dream to another man who had become
captivated by Sarah's beauty, as we see by the following set
of verses:
"And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country,
and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.
And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and
Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah. But God came
to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold,
thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast
taken; for she is a man's wife. But Abimelech had not come
near her: and he said, Lord, wilt thou slay also a righteous
nation? Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even
she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my
heart and innocency of my hands have I done this. And God
said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this
in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from
sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch
her. Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a
prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live:
and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt
surely die, thou, and all that are thine. Therefore
Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his
servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the
men were sore afraid. Then Abimelech called Abraham, and
said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I
offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my
kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought
not to be done. And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest
thou, that thou hast done this thing? And Abraham said,
Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this
place; and they will slay me for my wife's sake. And yet
indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father,
but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.
And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my
father's house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness
which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we
shall come, say of me, He is my brother. And Abimelech took
sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and
gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife. And
Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where
it pleaseth thee. And unto Sarah he said, Behold, I have
given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver: behold, he is
to thee a covering of the eyes, unto all that are with thee,
and with all other: thus she was reproved. So Abraham prayed
unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his
maidservants; and they bare children. For the LORD had fast
closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because
of Sarah Abraham's wife." Genesis 20:1-18, KJV
Moving up hundreds of years in Israelite history, we come to
another Biblical story which is popular with Christians and
Jews alike: the story of Gideon. While the story of Gideon's
test before the Lord, often referred to as "Gideon's Fleece",
is well-known, what may not be common knowledge, is the fact
that in addition to a visit by an Angel of the Lord, as well
as the miracle of the fleece, the final sign that God gave
to Gideon, in order to convince him that the Israelites would
be saved by his hand, was a dream. Not only was it a dream,
but it was a dream which the Lord gave to a certain member
of the army of the enemy; that is, of the Midianites. Here
is a portion of the story:
"And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto
him, Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I have
delivered it into thine hand. But if thou fear to go down,
go thou with Phurah thy servant down to the host: And thou
shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thine hands be
strengthened to go down unto the host. Then went he down
with Phurah his servant unto the outside of the armed men
that were in the host. And the Midianites and the Amalekites
and all the children of the east lay along in the valley
like grasshoppers for multitude; and their camels were
without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude.
And when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man that told
a dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold, I dreamed a
dream, and, lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the host
of Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it that it fell,
and overturned it, that the tent lay along. And his fellow
answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of
Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: for into his hand
hath God delivered Midian, and all the host. And it was so,
when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the
interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned
into the host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the LORD hath
delivered into your hand the host of Midian."
Judges 7:9-15, KJV
Several hundreds of years later, following the period of the
Judges, we find another famous dreamer of the Old Testament:
King Solomon. After Solomon had ascended to the throne of his
father, King David, he felt quite incapable of leading the
Children of Israel. One night, the Lord appeared to Solomon
in a dream, and this is what occurred during the course of
that famous dream:
"In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night:
and God said, Ask what I shall give thee. And Solomon said,
Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great
mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in
righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and
thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast
given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. And
now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead
of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not
how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of
thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that
cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore
thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that
I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge
this thy so great a people? And the speech pleased the Lord,
that Solomon had asked this thing. And God said unto him,
Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for
thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself,
nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for
thyself understanding to discern judgment; Behold, I have
done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise
and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee
before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto
thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not
asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be
any among the kings like unto thee all thy days. And if thou
wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my
commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will
lengthen thy days. And Solomon awoke; and, behold, it was a
dream. And he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of
the covenant of the LORD, and offered up burnt offerings,
and offered peace offerings, and made a feast to all his
servants." 1 Kings 3:5-15, KJV
In such articles as "The Kings Of The North And The South",
I also discuss the prophetic dreams and visions of King
Nebuchadnezzar, and the young Prophet Daniel. You may recall
that Daniel was numbered among the Jewish children who were
carried off to Babylon when King Nebuchadnezzar besieged
Jerusalem in the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim
of Judah. This occurred about twenty years before the final
fall of Jerusalem in approximately the year 587 B.C.:
"In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah
came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and
besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into
his hand, with part of the vessels of the house of God:
which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his
god; and he brought the vessels into the treasure house of
his god. And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his
eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of
Israel, and of the king's seed, and of the princes; Children
in whom was no blemish, but well favoured, and skilful in
all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding
science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the
king's palace, and whom they might teach the learning and
the tongue of the Chaldeans. And the king appointed them a
daily provision of the king's meat, and of the wine which he
drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end
thereof they might stand before the king. Now among these
were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael,
and Azariah: Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names:
for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to
Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to
Azariah, of Abednego." Daniel 1:1-7, KJV
Soon after being appointed to the court of the Babylonian
king, the young child Daniel proved himself to be a gifted
interpreter of dreams and visions. In the second year of his
reign, King Nebuchadnezzar was troubled by a dream which he
was unable to remember, as we see here:
"And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar
Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was
troubled, and his sleep brake from him. Then the king
commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and
the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his
dreams. So they came and stood before the king. And the king
said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was
troubled to know the dream. Then spake the Chaldeans to the
king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants
the dream, and we will shew the interpretation. The king
answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing is gone from
me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream, with the
interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your
houses shall be made a dunghill. But if ye shew the dream,
and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts
and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream,
and the interpretation thereof." Daniel 2:1-6, KJV
What a challenge indeed! Not only did King Nebuchadnezzar
desire the interpretation of his dream, but he couldn't even
remember what the dream was! While this most certainly was
an impossible request for the king to make to his own wise
men, God is not limited by such human folly. When all seemed
lost, the Lord provided Daniel with not only the forgotten
dream, but also with the interpretation of the same. Thus,
Daniel is given a great opportunity to glorify God before
Nebuchadnezzar, for the wonderful Gift which he had been
given, as we see here:
"Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The
secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the
astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the
king; But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets,
and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in
the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon
thy bed, are these;" Daniel 2:27-28, KJV
After making sure that Nebuchadnezzar understands that this
miracle of interpretation is a Gift of God and not something
which he himself has produced, young Daniel then proceeds to
interpret the night vision for the king. Being as I discuss
this dream, as well as all of the other amazing dreams and
visions which are found in the Book of Daniel, in "The Kings
Of The North And The South" article, I will not go into
great detail here. Suffice it to say that, apart from the
Book of Revelation, or the Apocalypse if you prefer, the
Book of Daniel contains some of the most amazing prophetic
dreams found in the entire Bible; dreams which are still
being fulfilled in our current day! Not only do they tell of
coming world empires, but they very specifically prophesy of
the coming of the Messiah, as well as describe the time when
God will crush all worldly governments, and set up His own
Eternal Kingdom upon this Earth.
As we continue this series in part two, we will turn our
attention to a few examples of significant dreams which are
found in the New Testament. In addition, I'll also share an
experience from my own life, as well as expose the lie of
"Apostolic Succession", and explain the significance of the
Lord's true Spiritual Temple. I trust that you will join me.
⇒ Go To The Next Part . . .