The Prophetic Word - Day 174: All to whom power has been granted, will give an account to God.

“‘This decision is by the decree of the watchers, And the sentence by the word of the holy ones, In order that the living may know That the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, Gives it to whomever He will, And sets over it the lowest of men.’ All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of the twelve months he was walking about the royal palace of Babylon. The king spoke, saying, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?” While the word was still in the king’s mouth, a voice fell from heaven: “King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you! And they shall drive you from men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. They shall make you eat grass like oxen; and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.” That very hour the word was fulfilled concerning Nebuchadnezzar; he was driven from men and ate grass like oxen; his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair had grown like eagles’ feathers and his nails like birds’ claws. And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever: For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom is from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He does according to His will in the army of heaven And among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand Or say to Him, “What have You done?””

‭‭Daniel‬ ‭4‬:‭17‬, ‭28‬-‭35‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Most of us are familiar with the story of how God, through a series of enigmatic events, brought Joseph to being second in power to the ruler of Egypt.

Indeed, Joseph was given dominion over the affairs of Egypt to save the children of Israel from perishing in a terrible time of drought and famine.

“Then his brothers also went and fell down before his face, and they said, “Behold, we are your servants.” Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭50‬:‭18‬-‭20‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

When Joseph had the opportunity to pay his brothers back for what they had done to him (selling him into slavery), he did the right thing. You see, Joseph knew why God had allowed him to be in his position of power; and it wasn’t to settle the score with his brothers.

Now, the Lord had told Abraham what would happen to the children of Israel after the time of Joseph. As well, the Lord informed Abraham of what He would do to the Egyptians when they turned to abuse the children of Israel.

“Then He said to Abram: “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions.”

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭15‬:‭13‬-‭14‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Sure enough, with the passage of time, a new pharaoh ruled over Egypt who was punished because of his abuse of power.

“Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities, Pithom and Raamses.”

‭‭Exodus‬ ‭1‬:‭8‬, ‭11‬ ‭NKJV‬

We know that Moses was saved from a purge of Hebrew infant males and was raised in the house of Pharaoh.

But, we also know that Moses rejected the lap of luxury, to begin an 80 year adventure, leading his people to the Promised Land.

“By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible.”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭11‬:‭24‬-‭27‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

We often reflect back on the story of Esther who, having been chosen to be the new wife of the Persian king, was suddenly living a life of power and luxury. But Esther, realizing why she had been given this position, did the right thing and accomplished what God had sent her to do.

“For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai: “Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!””

‭‭Esther‬ ‭4‬:‭14‬-‭16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

And, by Esther using her power for God’s intended purpose, the Jews were saved from certain destruction.

In our opening scripture we see the story of Nebuchadnezzar, a gentile king who rose to a position of great power. The Lord warned him through a dream, that if he failed to give glory to God for all he had, he would pay the price.

He did not take the warning, but rather, ended up saying the words that would cause him to spend years living as an animal: “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?”

Child of God, the story of the children of Israel is fraught with accounts of nations—having been given power over them (because of the children of Israel’s disobedience)—were later destroyed because of their evil motives and abusive rule.

Remember, all nations, past, present, and future, all rulers, past, present, and future, will give an account to God for how they have used the power they were allowed to wield.

Now, for some nations and rulers, their punishment may not be seen in this life. But make no mistake, they will not escape; they will come to a terrible reckoning!

Peace to you.

Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!

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