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Daniel 2: (NKJV)
Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream
1 Now in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; and his spirit was so troubled that his sleep left him.
2 Then the king gave the command to call the magicians, the astrologers, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans to tell the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king.
3 And the king said to them, “I have had a dream, and my spirit is anxious to know the dream.”
4 Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.”
5 The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “My decision is firm: if you do not make known the dream to me, and its interpretation, you shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made an ash heap.
6 However, if you tell the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts, rewards, and great honor. Therefore tell me the dream and its interpretation.”
7 They answered again and said, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will give its interpretation.”
8 The king answered and said, “I know for certain that you would gain time, because you see that my decision is firm:
9 if you do not make known the dream to me, there is only one decree for you! For you have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the time has changed. Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can give me its interpretation.”
10 The Chaldeans answered the king, and said, “There is not a man on earth who can tell the king’s matter; therefore no king, lord, or ruler has ever asked such things of any magician, astrologer, or Chaldean.
11 It is a difficult thing that the king requests, and there is no other who can tell it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”
12 For this reason the king was angry and very furious, and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.
13 So the decree went out, and they began killing the wise men; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them.
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Now I know that from this record folks go all kinds of places, liking to make snide comments about Nebuchadnezzar, the sooth-sayers, or go in any number of other directions with this.
I would like to focus on what I consider an amazing insight on Nebuchadnezzar's part.
Sheesh, the king had grown up in a culture where doubtlessly many fortune tellers, magicians, and prophets had been held in high esteem, and it seems to me that how he really felt about all of them became obvious here.
He doubtlessly knew that if he told them the dream that he would get any number of competing interpretations. He doubtlessly knew how well they could take his words and come up with something convincing, whether true or not. He was IMO fed up, and desperately wanted a true answer, even being willing to purge his entire kingdom of all the lying prophets and fortune teller types.
I really, really like his wisdom. And for the record, I have my secrets. Do you want to give me God's answer for my secrets, then tell me the secrets too. Depending on who you are when you fail will determine how I act though, but I'm not making any promises.
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I love this record too.....
2 Kings 5:
Naaman’s Leprosy Healed
1 Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper.
2 And the Syrians had gone out on raids, and had brought back captive a young girl from the land of Israel. She waited on Naaman’s wife.
3 Then she said to her mistress, “If only my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria! For he would heal him of his leprosy.”
4 And Naaman went in and told his master, saying, “Thus and thus said the girl who is from the land of Israel.”
5 Then the king of Syria said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.”
9 Then Naaman went with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of Elisha’s house.
10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.”
11 But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, “Indeed, I said to myself, ‘He will surely come out to me, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.’
12 Are not the Abanah[a] and the Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage.
13 And his servants came near and spoke to him, and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?”
14 So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
15 And he returned to the man of God, he and all his aides, and came and stood before him; and he said, “Indeed, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel; now therefore, please take a gift from your servant.”
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I love to consider Naaman. Here was this bigshot that had a huge problem. He was used to being treated as an important man. He was used to having his King's priests treat him with respect. He was used to a big show.
Elisha did not act like all the azzkissing sycophants he was used to, and he didn't actually treat him with disrespect either. Just told him to go wash in the river.
And for the record I am not afraid to apply that analogy to us today in a figurative sense either.I love it that God Himself proved the truth to Naaman.
FYI, it just so happens that sociopaths play people too, but in Naamnan's case there could be no doubt, HE WAS HEALED!
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Now,In this day and age shouldn't we heed these things......
2Tim 3:
13 But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.
Mark 13:
22For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect—if that were possible.
23So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time.
1John 2:
18Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come.
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IMO, it is soooo bad out and about that thinking or being taught we can not be fooled is probably evidence of being fooled already.
Shouldn't we become really, really good or at least try real hard to get it right this time?
This post has been edited by JeffSjo: 21 May 2010 - 11:46 AM
Till tomorrow then. 
