Daniel 2:28 - 35 Review

Daniel’s Prayer and the Opening Review of the Lesson

So why don't you with me let's pray and ask God's blessing on the lesson this morning. And then we'll look at the book of Daniel chapter 2. Father we are grateful for every bit of scripture that you gave us because it is our our connection to you through the Word of God that we know the Son we know the Father and we know the Spirit and Because we know you because you have taught us.

We know that we need you we need salvation and you have turned our hearts to that. So this morning as we listen to you and as we read through your word, would you instruct us so that we aren't Left adrift and left unknowing.

We don't hear we hear from you through your word and we look forward to that. We thank you for the book of Daniel for the great truths that it teaches across the great sweep of time. Help us to understand them and to apply them into our lives today.

Daily, and we'll thank you for what you're going to do in Jesus name. Amen. So the book of Daniel. Remember that book I was. Remember our introduction where there are plenty of people who don't like to place it Five six hundred BC because he was too accurate and that is their excuse.

Nobody could predict this many things and have them actually come true. Therefore. It must have been written later as a history. Well, why do you say that? Because no one could do that. Why do you say that because we said so.

That's their argument. So as we study the book of Daniel, we will be studying it understanding that it was written in the in the 6th century BC and It predicts Times it predicts things it predicts happenings.

It prophesies and sometimes it jumps over great sweeps of time. But all of the pertinent necessary prophecies that are what we would require if you will to understand the end times are there and it connects with the book of Revelation and.

The Grammatical-Historical Method and God’s Revelation

So we will be working our way through the book of Daniel continuing to work our way through using the grammatical historical method understanding that God spoke to us in a reasonable way and That we can understand his word and it and you will find as we go through it and as we get to the prophetic parts I won't necessarily have any great new Revelations, although God did speak to me in a whisper last night.

I laid out a fleece and He told me would you pick that thing up? It's making a mess on the floor. For those of you who missed I think Jim handed out his book God doesn't whisper like two or three weeks ago.

Go ahead and read that and you correct me. We will read the book of Daniel chapter 2 the entire chapter this time and then we'll have a little bit of a review. So chapter 2 of the book of Daniel about page 1139.

Now in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar had dreams and his spirit was troubled and his sleep left him. Then the king gave orders to call in the magicians the conjurers the sorcerers and the Chaldeans to tell the king his dreams.

So they came in and stood before the king and the king said to them I had a dream and my spirit is anxious to understand the dream. Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic Oh King live forever.

Tell the dream to your servants and we will declare the interpretation. The king answered and said to the Chaldeans The command from me is firm if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation.

You will be torn limb from limb and your houses will be made a rubbish heap. But if you declare the dream and its interpretation you will receive from me gifts and a reward and great honor. Therefore declare to me the dream and its interpretation.

They answered a second time and said let the king tell the dream to his servants and we will declare the interpretation. The king answered and said I know for certain that you are bargaining for time and as much as you have seen that the Command from me is firm that if you do not make the dream known to me.

There is only one decree for you for you have agreed together to speak lying and corrupt words before me until the situation has changed. Therefore tell me the dream that I may know that you can declare for me its interpretation.

The Chaldeans answered the king and said there is not a man on earth Who could declare the matter for the king and as much as no great king or ruler has ever asked anything Like this of any magician conjurer or Chaldean.

Moreover the thing which the king demands is difficult and there is no one else who could declare to the king except gods Whose dwelling place is not with mortal flesh. Because of this the king became indignant and very furious and gave orders to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.

So the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain and they looked for Daniel and his friends to kill them. Then Daniel replied with discretion and discernment to Arioch the captain of the king's bodyguard Who had gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon.

And he answered and said to Arioch the king's commander For what reason is the decree from the king so urgent. Then Arioch informed Daniel about the matter. So Daniel went in and requested of the king that he would give him time in order that he might declare the interpretation to the king.

Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends Hananiah Mishael and Azariah about the matter in order that they might request compassion from the God of heaven. Concerning this mystery so that Daniel and his friends might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a night vision and Daniel blessed the God of heaven. Daniel answered and said let the name of God be blessed forever and ever for wisdom and power. Belong to him and it is he who changes the times in the epics.

He removes kings and establishes kings. He gives wisdom to wise men and knowledge to men of understanding. It is he who reveals profound and hidden things. He knows what is in the darkness and the light dwells with him to thee O God of my fathers I give thanks and praise for thou hast given me wisdom and power.

Even now thou hast made known to me what we requested of thee for thou hast made known to us the king's matter. Therefore Daniel went into Arioch whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon.

He went and spoke to him as follows. Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon. Take me into the king's presence and I will declare the interpretation to the king. Can I stop there for just a second? Do you know how crazy it was for a 20 year old man to contradict the king of Babylon's decree?

Do you know how crazy it was for the king's? Executioner to follow that instruction. I Wonder if God was involved and I lost my place. Thank you verse 25. Then Arioch, okay. Then Arioch hurriedly brought Daniel into the king's present and spoke to him as follows.

I Have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can make the Interpretation known to the king and the king answered and said to Daniel whose name was Belteshazzar. Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen and its interpretation?

Daniel answered before the king and said as for the mystery about which the king has inquired neither wise men Conjurers magicians nor diviners are able to declare it to the king. However There is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the latter days.

This was your dream and the visions in your mind while on your bed. As for you King while on your bed your thoughts turn to what would take place in the future and he who reveals mysteries has made known to You what will take place?

But as for me, this mystery has not been revealed to me for any wisdom residing in me more than in any other living man. But for the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind.

You will King we're looking and behold. There was a single great statue that statue which was large and of extraordinary splendor. Was standing in front of you and its appearance was awesome. The head of that statue was made of fine gold its breast and arms of silver its belly and its thighs of bronze.

Its legs of iron its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. You continued looking until a stone was cut out without hands and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and crushed. Then the iron the clay and the bronze and the silver and the gold were crushed all at the same time and became like chaff.

From the summer threshing floors and the wind carried them away. So they're not a trace of them was found but the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. This was the dream.

Now We shall tell its interpretation before the king. You Oh King are the king of kings to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom the power the strength and the glory. And wherever the sons of men dwell or the beasts of the field or the birds of the sky He has given them into your hand and has caused you to rule over all them over them all you are the head of gold and After you there will go rise another kingdom inferior to you and then another third kingdom of a bronze Which will rule over all the earth.

Then there will be a fourth kingdom as strong as iron and as much as iron crushes and shatters all things. So like iron that breaks in pieces. It will crush and break all these in pieces and in that you saw the feet and the toes.

Partly of potter's clay and partly of iron it will be a divided kingdom but it will have in at the toughness of iron in as much as you saw the iron mixed with common clay and as the toes of the feet were partly of iron partly of pottery and some of the king will be so some of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will be brittle and In that you saw the iron mixed with common clay.

They will combine with one another in the seat of men. But they will not adhere to one another even as the iron does not combine with pottery. And in the days of those Kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom Which will never be destroyed and that kingdom will not be left for another people.

It will crush all and put an end to all these kingdoms and it will it itself. But it will itself endure forever in as much as you saw that a stone was cut out of the mountain without hands and that it crushed the Iron the bronze the clay the silver and the gold the great God has made known to the king.

What will take place in the future? So the dream is true and Its interpretation is trustworthy. Then King. King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and did homage to Daniel and gave orders to present to him an Offering and fragrant incense.

Then the king answered Daniel and said surely your God is a God of gods and a Lord of kings and a Revealer of mysteries since you have been able to reveal this mystery. Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts and he made him rule over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon, but they loved that and Daniel made a request of the king and he appointed Shadrach Meshach and Abednego over the administration of the province of Babylon.

While Daniel was at the king's court, what a tremendous chapter.

God’s Sovereignty in Daniel’s Humble Honor

Both.

Incredible and terrifying and it would have been so this King. Especially as Daniel would have interpreted it to him in that in that hour during his right after his dream. So I'm going to go back away so we can kind of reconnect with the informational portion of chapter 2.

Before we get to the dream itself. We may or may not get to it today, but we'll try. In every step throughout this entire process God was setting it up so that Daniel would have the preeminence. Because Daniel did what with that preeminence he deferred to God every time.

When God answered his prayer for wisdom to interpret the dream He didn't go out into the streets and shout. I figured it out. He praised God. He actually prayed a prayer a psalm if you will of praise to God.

And then he when he went into the king He made certain that the king knew that he didn't interpret this. God gave him the interpretation that no wisdom of men could ever have come to these conclusions and today I Know it's still true.

No wisdom of men can come to these conclusions without the work of God in their lives and Prophecy in the Old Testament was a work of Jehovah. It was a work of God. It was not a work of men. We call these men prophets and so we should Daniel Ezekiel Jeremiah.

But their prophetic utterances pale in the light of the fact that it was the God of heaven. That revealed chose to reveal through them things that were to come he didn't have to do that. It's a wonderful thing that God did that in those days in the three the three epics that we see when prophecy went forward and Again, it will come in the latter days, but we aren't there yet.

Although it looks like it doesn't Tell you what we live in strange times. So I just want to emphasize the fact that Daniel was a man of humble honor. He was a man who ascribed all the glory to God. He could have really further His career here and he probably was smart enough to do it in such a way that the king would have never known.

That's what he was doing. Daniel never chose to do that. He always chose to elevate God to bring God to the forward. So the decree goes forward to kill everybody because Nebuchadnezzar placed in front of his sorcerers and diviners and Chaldeans the impossible task of telling him what his dream was and Then interpreting it.

Tell me what I was thinking last night at 1030 anybody here. No, I go to sleep late so nice try. This is exactly what this is essentially what was going on with the added fear factor that if you don't tell me I can kill.

You and.

Everybody will agree that it was a good thing that I killed you I should have killed you because you couldn't tell me what my that's work. So that's what Daniel is being asked. That's what all the soothsayers are being asked and rightly.

So they said we can't do that. How do you expect us to tell you what you were thinking? They didn't say it in that words, but they said it in so many words and so the word gets back to Daniel that everybody's all the soothsayers all the wise men of Babylon are going to be killed because they've been proven unable.

To tell the king his dream and then tell him the interpretation of the dream. So Daniel carefully he questions area. What why is this? So we're urgent and so the area explains it to him and then Daniel.

He he tells the king the king's executioner. I was trying to come up with an analogy, but I couldn't come up with a good one. I just. I mean, this is team six now. Hold off on your orders. Don't be killing people.

Take me to the king and seal team six is okay. After they've been given instructions to kill everything that moved so Daniel is taken to the king and. But first he calls out to his friends Hananiah Azariah and Mishael to pray and they pray and between Daniel's prayer and their prayer.

Daniel gets a vision in the night and it's not just a dream. It's actually a different word. Remember we talked about that. It's a word that means a night vision. Separate from a dream and he he is given the interpretation both the dream and the interpretation now frankly.

And I look at this from my perspective at my age, I don't know if I'd have remembered it all I Mean if I could have gone into the king's chambers right then and if I had my trusty little notebook so I could hang on Lord, okay.

Let me write this down. But but but God God made Daniel remember think about this but for our blessing, too So that we can know that as well precisely communicated later on so The dream is revealed in a night vision book the dream and immediately goes to pray and he calls his his friends to praise and Acknowledging is the revealer of secrets and God is the provider of what men need Verse 23 to you.

Oh God of my father's. I give thanks and praise for you have given me wisdom and power even now Daniel goes into.

To.

Ariok seal team six and he says take me to the king and I will declare the interpretation. So Ariok takes him to the king and he makes sure the king knows. I Found you. I found a guy. I know a guy. I Know a guy who can do this for you so he can be Promoted as well.

So he says I know I found a man among the exiles from Judah who can make the interpretation know to the king so and He hurriedly brought Daniel remember that that word implies alarm. And I don't know what all was entailed in that alarm.

Alarm that he was actually doing this against the king's orders. Alarm that that there may have been the potential that some others were out Executing the king's orders in the literal sense and he wanted to get this stopped if Daniel could do this.

So then the king says to Daniel Do you know what my dream was and can you interpret it for me. And Daniel says he doesn't say yes. I know because God told me no, he doesn't even word it that way. He says he says as for the mystery.

Which about what the king is inquired neither wise men conjurers magicians nor diviners are able to declare it to the king. However, there is a God in heaven. He draws Danny draws an epic and there's his attention immediately away from men to God.

There's a God in heaven who reveals mystery and he has made known to me. No the King Nebuchadnezzar. He doesn't even place himself in the center as the person who brings the message. He leaves it the path directly to God and that is that's a good indication for all of us.

It is God who changes man's hearts. Nebuchadnezzar to tell you what would take place in the last days. This was your dream and the vision in your mind while you're on your bed. So like I I talked about this was July 17 July the week after July 24th.

If Daniel had Apple aspirations toward higher office He just squished them all because he didn't he didn't take to himself any glory any ability any power he ascribed it all to God and God takes care of that.

So Daniel's proclamation serves at least two objects at least two probably many more. For those of you who are studious you probably have found them. But at least two he was elevating Jehovah above anything Nebuchadnezzar had ever imagined and he was also by default Defending the other wise men for claiming to Nebuchadnezzar that they could not have been expected to know this.

He agreed with those wise men. No one could have known this. Only the God of heaven could declare it. The God of heaven not Marduk not the moon God not this this the Sun God not all of your gods only the true God.

So in effect Daniel declares God's sovereignty. Which by the way the theme of the book of Daniel if there is a theme it is the sovereignty of God. What a marvelous book that just comes back again and again and again the fact that Jehovah God Rules and reigns over everything that happens.

Nothing escapes his view. There are plenty today even in the Christian Church who think that God could have missed that God doesn't miss anything. God is in charge of everything so. So then He he declares God's sovereignty and at the same time he protects pagan seers from their own duplicity.

They were liars. They were just and I think we might have talked about this to there were actually books written at this time of how to interpret dreams. And if the king if the king says this then you interpret it this way and if he says this well then you interpret it this way.

There were thousands upon thousands of pages or Whatever the type of book Jim talked about. Parchments and probably at that time both parchments and some tablets as well. Compiled to explain how to translate dreams because people would have been.

I mean You're a He hasn't changed a day. We still we still read books to interpret dreams. Oh my word. We don't. Yeah, the we was kind of a nice inclusive. We that I shouldn't have done. Okay, I'm at.

So in this he was even taking a chance because he was clearly elevating Jehovah above all the Babylonian gods. He was fearless in promoting Jehovah. He was elevating Jehovah God above all the Babylonian gods.

Normally that would get you a death sentence and They would pull you apart and send different parts of your body to different family members, and it was really awful. And I won't get too more graphic any more graphic than that.

All of the Babylonian gods remained impotent to translate to interpret to even know what the dream was. Commentators have fixed upon the phrase latter days. Some say that it is a statement after the fact.

By a spurious Daniel of the 2nd century BC and that the statement has no messianic context. He is made known to Nebuchadnezzar King Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the latter days. Verse 28. This would regard the latter days at stopping short of the coming of the Messiah as depicted in the New Testament.

The implication is that each of the writers who use this term Which is used 14 times in the Old Testament are using it only from their own personal perspective and it depicts the latter days of their own visions of their own particular vision and we we dispensed with that using a number of biblical scriptures.

Might take me a minute to find my place here. Give me bear with me. Oh, I hope you want to point it to screen.

And.

Maybe I should. Okay, so do you have to turn this? Yeah, it's on. Okay. I'm gonna try all the buttons and see what happens. I'm gonna hold one leg up and try it. Okay, that didn't work. I'm just just the next.

I just want to find out we need to be on about 49. So here are some of the verses.

That.

Can you go back to 47? I'm sorry 47 Peter. Thank you. Okay. Yeah, you've got a different numbering than mine so in the interest of confusion. What's that.

Yeah, I'm getting kind of.

There we go. Then God then God Summoned his Jacob summoned his sons and said assemble yourselves that I may tell you what will befall you in the days to come and. Then the Messianic import is implied.

Other uses are found in Hebrew. Hosea 3 5 Isaiah 2 2. Micah 4 1 Jeremiah 48 47 Jeremiah 49 39, but it will come about in the last days. I will refer that restore the fortunes of Elam Jeremiah 30 24 in many cases.

We'll see in the Old Testament. The latter days is referring to days to come. So again from the first in this particular case Daniel is alluding to the establishment of the divine kingdom in the final years of the fourth kingdom and kingdom.

Which is principally denoted by it in verses 34 35 44 and 45, which we will look at later in this chapter. But in the closing years of the fourth kingdom It may all may also the closing years of the fourth kingdom may also well be included in it.

Again from the first use of this phrase in Genesis 49 Messianic import is established in each in each case context determines the extent of that import with regard to this section of Scripture Context clearly shows Messianic connection.

One Old Testament scholar said it this way. He said in this context the expression must involve the eschatological future the Prophets the prophesied future the future times future. That's what the eschatological would imply for it concerns the final phase of the fourth empire and the coming kingdom of God.

To tie this up Walvoord says it this way in his commentary on Daniel. This is quite extensive. Maybe it's the next one. Let's see what happens.

Yeah.

Working now.

Just had to have a start. You just had to start it. The expression is found as early as Genesis 49 Where Jacob predicted the future of his sons. The term is employed by Balaam in numbers 24 14 and by Moses in Deuteronomy 4 30 and in 31 29 in connection with the future of Israel.

An examination of these prophecies Indicates that the latter days include much that is now history, but with reference to the consummation in Messianic times. It was let me stop there. It was not uncommon for prophets to use statements that included a sweep of history that included some things that have for our from Our perspective have already occurred as well as some that are still to occur, which is what we see in Daniel prophecy that he gives in Daniel.

Much of it. We're going to see has already been consummated and it's remarkable. This is why so it was so hard it is so hard for False scholars to accept as prophecy. It's too accurate. So much of the prophecy has been completed much of it is still to come that's not uncommon with Old Testament prophecy.

Brian.

You could call it a dual prophecy or.

I.

Was trying to think of a I've heard that term another word would just be a prophecy that is not complete and incomplete because of historical happenings and I don't mean incomplete in any Negative or pejorative sense just that there's more to come it's like the second phase the second installment of the movie if you will so.

An examination of these prophecies indicates that the latter days include much that is now history. But with reference to the consummation in messianic times Jeremiah used the number used the expression a number of times to refer to the climax of the age relating to the second coming of Jesus Christ in Jeremiah 23 20.

For those of you that might be taking these down Jeremiah 23 20 3024 48 47 and 49 39 Ezekiel identified the times of the invasion of Gog and Magog as in the latter days in Ezekiel 38 16. The expression is also found in Hosea 3 5 and Micah 4 1 in reference to the messianic age on the basis of scriptural usage.

It is clear that the latter days is an extended period of time. Regarded as the consummation of the prophetic purview involved in each instance. So in each instance in each prophets time what he was talking about.

It included some history that we now know has been completed and still includes history to come history to come exciting times. Accordingly Culver I Commended him to you and we were last together as an insightful Old Testament scholar.

Who. Robert Culver who was a professor of systematic theology and he wrote the commentary Daniel in the latter days. Any of you who weren't here then if you would like that I saved it on my hard drive.

It's it's um. It's not copyrighted. What do they call that? Public domain. Thank you. Well, I'm having a brain lock today. So I can send it to you if you want it. Just let this send me an email or a text or or trip me in the hallway and tell me.

On.

The base of scriptural uses it is clear that the latter days in his extended period of time regarding as regarded as the consummation of the prophetic purview involved in each instant each prophets instance.

Accordingly Culver Robert Culver's definition is accurate that the expression refers to the future of God God's dealings with mankind as to be consummated and concluded historically in the times of. He goes on to point out that expression always has in view the ultimate establishment of the Messianic Kingdom on earth.

Even though the latter days include events now history. Such as the division of Israel in the promised land. Basis of the usage of the basis of usage in the Old Testament. It can be concluded that the expression is larger than that of Messianic times specifically.

But that it always includes this element in its consummation. So they include information that is larger than just Messianic context. But it always includes Messianic context in its expression. That makes sense.

We're talking about things that have happened are continuing to happen and will happen but they refer to Messianic context. They have Messianic context. The Lord Jesus Christ is is seen clearly or unclearly by some of these prophets in the future.

The New Testament has many references to the latter days, I'm not going to go through them all. I think we went through most of them last time. Acts chapter 2 verses 17 through 21. Joel. Which is a reference to Joel chapter 2 comes to mind.

And then if anybody would like a list I've got there's just lists of time of New Testament verses that refer to the latter days.

For.

Purposes of understanding this from the perspective of a Christian. Recognize that we acknowledge that we are in the last days since when since Pentecost. So Paul thought he was in the last days. Because Paul was in the last days.

Remember that the sweep of time That is so extensive and long to us is not even a blink in God's eyesight. God's perspective on time because he is eternal. We must keep that in mind. Paul thought that Christ would come very soon.

Augustine assumed that Christ would be back by 650 AD. I don't remember I searched and searched but I couldn't find that he ever predicted a specific date. Just that he thought he was going to be back by thus and such.

One of the characteristics of an expectant Obedient doctrine driven believer is the idea that Christ could return at any time. Could he not?

He is God.

He could reach it. He could work it so he could return. And you're all thinking to it now so we don't have to listen to this. So this would have been the same view of an Old Testament believer. They would have looked forward to the coming of the Messiah at any time.

Premillennialism and the Definition of the Millennium

As we get to this next section of Daniel will be profitable for us to review some definitions. And I want to review those definitions again. And then we will review them one more time next week or the next time I'm with you as we look into what an Amillennialist a pre-millennialist and a post-millennialist all think about this and We have to understand that there are good people in every camp.

They're just wrong. Well, okay, then he said. So in in in earlier in the introduction to chapter 2 I ever gave a synoptic descriptions of each of the three major beliefs about the end times. So for our purposes going forward a thorough understanding as much as possible of the definition of pre-millennialism is important.

So this is the definition that occurs that comes from Robert D Culver's commentary Daniel in the latter days the Millennium. See if I can find that. Yeah, the Millennium is specifically the period of time between the resurrection of the just and of the unjust and the period of Satan's imprisonment.

Number two, the Millennium is further qualified as an initial stage of the everlasting kingdom of Christ. The everlasting. Isn't that a nice word? kingdom of Christ. And a period begun by the visible return of Christ in glory to judge and rule the nations a period closed by the final eradication of all evil from God's universe at the final judgment of the wicked.

And number four a Period during which the saints of the first resurrection will be associated with Christ in his reign. Number three in Connection with the inauguration or the ushering in of the Millennium.

It is revealed that one the closing days of the present age shall witness the restoration of Israel to the land and the conversion of the nation to be followed in the Millennium by the fulfillment of the Old Testament covenant promises distinctive to that nation.

Not given to the church Israel the promises made to Israel will be received by.

Israel.

Finalized. Yes the final personal Antichrist shall appear into the clothes of this present age who will become master of the world and Will be destroyed by Christ at his coming and a period of great tribulation for Israel's to transpire under Antichrist suppression.

From which deliverance will be provided by Christ at his coming. These are real events that will happen in real time and They are prophesied carefully. With that understanding we continued on into Daniel chapter 2 and we looked at Daniel as he began to interpret the Kings dream and I do want to review this as well so that we don't go into verse 45 without at least some underpinnings.

Daniel’s Interpretation of the Dream and the Stone Cut Without Hands

So let's look at verse 29 as for you Oh King while on your bed your thoughts turned to what would take place in the future and he Who reveals mysteries has made known to you? What will take place? So Daniel lets the king know that he's going to give him the information he desires.

But he first reminds him that this information did not come from me. It did not come from Daniel. It came from God who Daniel has now given a new name. His name is He who reveals mysteries. I love the way they just the the the prophets just gave God new names.

And they're really appropriate names he who reveals mysteries. No one else can reveal mysteries. Unless you know you read the last page of the egg of the Kriski, then you're the revealer, but that's not what I'm talking about.

He who reveals mysteries Daniel knew by God's revelation that the king had been wondering about the future. Daniel didn't know that. So the first thing the king would have thought We had God. How did he even know that but I was wondering about the future.