05 March 2024
Pageau returns to Nebuchadnezzar to discuss his second dream and his time of madness. There are two main points here. First is that Nebs was in trouble for his arrogance. Remember: he was a Gentile. He was not accountable to the Law of Moses, but to that of Noah. Further, by his own religion, Nebs knew his arrogance was a sin. Daniel's advice points to a sort of penance, but gives us a hint about some of the consequences of the emperor's particular arrogance: He wasn't investing in the relief of the poor and unfortunate members of his empire. This has been a feature of God's Laws; the constant refrain of taking care of widows and orphans should make that clear.
Pageau notes that in God's eyes, our modern programs to help the homeless don't help. They don't address the underlying moral issue. Modern programs aim at pushing time and chaos away artificially, instead of honoring its presence as God intended. The only way to give relief to the poor is personally, face to face, not depersonalizing them and herding them around as if they were all one kind of creature. The issue is not that there are poor people; they will always be there. The issue is dealing with them as God intended, recognizing that they are under the influence of time and chaos until they choose something else, individually and personally.
Second, the emperor's sin violated the delicate balance of space and time. He was turned over to the time side of things for a cycle of seven years. It was like going to sleep; he would not be consciously aware of himself. His body would operate without a direction connection to a soul. When time had done its work, he would come back to the balance point.
This same principle of balance applies to human sexuality. In the next chapter, Pageau discusses the prohibition against sex between close kin. We've already discussed the symbolism of adultery, rather like giving time and chaos too much power, morally wandering in a foreign land where your productivity is consumed with no benefit to self or family. Further, the resulting children would have an uncertain identity, burdening them against any hope of a normal life.
But if adultery or prostitution is too much wandering off, incest is the imbalance of too much familiarity. Either way, it is a regression into futility. To assault the integrity of stable space is a serious threat to the community God requires in His Word.
The balance remains a fundamental image of righteousness in this life. Remember the fall of Jericho under Joshua's leadership? Pageau only hints at the historical details. The folks occupying the very ancient mound of Jericho at the time of the Conquest were truly nasty folks who built almost nothing. They typically pitched tents in old ruins, rarely rebuilding much. Jericho is a rare example of halfway trying to build with the easiest materials they could get. The city was surrounded by a pitiful wall of stacked sandstone, ready to crumble at any time. They preyed upon everyone who passed by, turning the city into a tourist stop with wine, beer, food and prostitutes, all in worship of some truly disgusting pagan idols. They were dedicated agents of chaos.
It was "time" to bring the consequences of their evil down on their own heads. They would reap the rewards of sowing to the axle of time.
Three symbols in the story resonate with this: spying, prostitution, and red rope. Each reflects the axle of time, chaos, recreation, decoration, etc., but this time coming back on the heads of the occupants. It was the music from the horns of Jubilee that triggered a tremor and made the walls collapse.
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