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The Watchtower

Brooklyn, N.Y.

known as "that old serpent", "the devil." 'the father of lies,' and his offspring are designated the 'seed of the Serpent', and which seed of the Serpent was represented by Belshazzar and his lords and wise men and others of his official organization. After the rebellion of Satan Jehovah gave nothing to Satan nor to his seed; hence verse eighteen, above quoted, applies specifically prior to the rebellion in Eden. On a previous occasion Daniel had said to Nebuchadnezzar: 'It is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong [like a great tree in the midst of the earth]: for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto heaven, and thy dominion to the end of the earth.'? (Dan. 4:22) Daniel had also stated to Nebuchadnezzar: "Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory. And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field, and the fowls of the heaven, hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold." (Dan, 2:37, 38) Thus Daniel had spoken of Lucifer as he had appeared at the beginning and before the rebellion. Lucifer, now Satan, turned his organization into wickedness, and at the point of the prophecy concerning the feast of Belshazzar the king Belshazzar there represented the 'seed of the Serpent'.

¹¹ Lueifer had been entrusted with the power of death, which power, of course, was to be used in harmony with the will of God and against those willfully disobeying God. (Heb. 2:14) Lucifer did not use his power as authorized; likewise his representative Nebuchadnezzar improperly used his authority: "And, for the majesty that he gave him, all people, nations, and languages, trembled and feared before him: whom he would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive, and whom he would he set up, and whom he would he put down." (Dan. 5:19) Satan was never authorized to use his power tyrannically; nor has any man been authorized to be a tyrant. Now there are many who tremble before the debased Lucifer, who is Satan, and which people are, because of fear, Devil worshipers. Jehovah's servants do not tremble before the Devil, but they fear and worship Jehovah God. God does not permit the Devil to do as he would against men who are faithful to Jehovah; and this is shown by the experiences of Job. (Job 1:12; 2:4-6; John 19:10,11) Satan has used his power autocratically and despotically in his attempt to be like the Most High and to turn people away from Jehovah. It is true that Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem; but he did so only by permission of Jehovah and as an instrument employed by Jehovah to accomplish His purpose in executing His righteous judgement against a rebellious people. (Jer. 25:8,9) Pride with prosperity always leads to disaster. That was true in Nebuchadnezzar's case. Hence said Daniel concerning him: "But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride [and his spirit was hardened that he dealt proudly, R.V.], he was deposed from his

kingly throne, and they took his glory from him." (Dan. 5:20) Nebuchadnezzar continued in his selfish and proud schemes for such a long time that he concluded that he was master of his own destiny and that his actions were not subject to Jehovah's permission or disapproval. That was exactly the spirit of Lucifer, and which led to his downfall. Another example of pride and prosperity was that of Uzziah, one of the kings of Israel, who also met disaster. (2 Chron. 26:11-23) Nebuchadnezzar brought his beastly insanity upon himself by his wrongful course. God was in no wise responsible for that madness, any more than God is responsible for the beastly madness of the modern rulers of "Christendom", (Dan. 4: 29-37; Luke 21:24) Jehovah did not say, as his message delivered by Daniel shows, "I will create in him a beast's heart," but he did say, "Let a beast's heart be given unto him [by another]." (Dan. 4:16) Doubtless God permitted a wicked spirit, a part of Satan's organization, to take control of Nebuchadnezzar, just as he permitted wicked spirits to get control of the herd of swine. (2 Chron. 18: 18-22; Matt. 8: 28-32) God has permitted the same crowd of wicked spirits associated with Satan to imprison the "sons of God" who sinned in Noah's day. By reason of his own fall Nebuchadnezzar found himself in a shameful and insane condition, and when his heart was lifted up and he was hardened in pride God took away his throne from him.

¹² Nebuchadnezzar was like a wild beast, and Daniel called this to the attention of Belshazzar: "And he was driven from the sons of men; and his heart was make like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild asses; they fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; till he knew that the most high God ruled in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will." (Dan. 5:21) At the end of the seven years described Nebuchadnezzar came to know that Jehovah, "the most high God," is the ruler; but Belshazzar his son had failed to learn that great truth, and Daniel was reminding him of that fact. The "seven times" of the Gentiles ended in 1914, and, like Belshazzar, the visible rulers of the world failed to then learn the vital truth that Jehovah is God, although they had been told of it time and time again. Had they learned this great and all-important truth they would not have held a modern feast, such as Belshazzar held, and which present-day world carousal was foreshadowed by his feast. The modern rulers failed to give heed to the fact that Jehovah sets up whomsoever he wills, and in due time debases those who go contrary to his will. God did not "set up" the selfish rulers of the earth, nor did he set up the proud and self-exalted pope, the clergy, and other like austere men, God sets up what the world considers the "basest" or lowest, that is to say, Christ, who abased himself, and whom Jehovah God has exalted even as he had caused to be foretold by his prophets. (Ezek. 21:26, 27; Dan.