Speaking of King Nebuchadnezzar, the book of Daniel records, "The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?" His proclamation is followed by a voice from heaven, telling him, "The kingdom is departed from thee." The Bible continues, "And he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws." Dan. 4:30, 31, 33
It is a dramatic event. A mighty king boasts of his personal glory, becomes deranged, and is driven from human company. Some scholars believe the description of the hairs like eagles' feathers and nails like birds' claws refers to mythological stories of men who developed birdlike traits. Others believe it indicates that Nebuchadnezzar in his madness neglected care of himself. But one implication is clear. The narrative carries the theme that pride is associated with madness, whereas in humble obedience to God lies sanity. See The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VI (New York: Abingdon Press, 1956), pp. 416-418 What does Nebuchadnezzar's experience mean to us today? Of course, it points to the fact that outright vainglory leads to downfall. But isn't there a deeper message? To me, Nebuchadnezzar's derangement can be seen as a vivid illustration of the disorientation associated with the delusion of a carnal ego, the entire belief that life and intelligence are in matter. An ancient ruler in a distant land isn't the only individual who has been afflicted by this fundamental misconception of reality. We all face its challenges.
The Science of Christ makes clear that the real man is the image of God, who is Mind. God's man expresses His benevolent, orderly intelligence. So a supposed carnal ego—an intelligence separate from the one divine Ego—is in essence enmity against God, against divine Mind. It is inherently disordered. To the degree that we're governed by the belief that we have a mortal ego, we're not wholly aligned with divine intelligence. There may be times when this underlying misalignment becomes outwardly apparent in extreme ways, as it did when Nebuchadnezzar's sense of things became distorted. But we can progressively lay off this false ego for the Christly selfhood that is truly ours, the spiritual manhood and womanhood Christ Jesus brought to light.
