Inanis_Vault/43-Talks/Public/20 - Is It Time for God to Rule the World/20 - Is It Time for God to Rule the World.md

[!question] MANKIND NEEDS BETTER RULERSHIP Notes Here

[!question] Why do human governments fail to meet the needs of their subjects? (Pr 29:2) Notes Here

[!question] Man has neither the right nor the ability to govern himself successfully (Jer 10:23) Notes Here

• His efforts to do so have led to much injustice and suffering (Ec 8:9, 11)

[!question] The Bible foretells that God’s Kingdom will soon replace human rule (Da 2:44; 7:13, 14) Notes Here

• When did God’s Kingdom begin ruling, and when will it take full control?

[!question] DANIEL CHAPTER 4​**—A PROPHETIC DREAM ABOUT RULERSHIP** (5 min.) Notes Here

[!question] Jehovah caused King Nebuchadnezzar to have a dream about rulership (Da 4:10-17) Notes Here

[!question] God inspired Daniel to interpret the dream [Read key portions of Daniel 4:20-27] Notes Here

• The dream was initially fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar himself (Da 4:28-37; dp 82-94)
• The dream emphasizes that Jehovah God has the right to determine who will rule mankind

[!question] THE DREAM FORETELLS THE RULE OF GOD’S KINGDOM (16 min.) Notes Here

[!question] The prophecy has a larger fulfillment in connection with the establishment of God’s Kingdom (it-1 132-135)

[!question] What reason is there to suggest that the dream is more than just an interesting story about the humiliation of Nebuchadnezzar?

1. The dream was given at the time when God had just allowed his earthly kingdom to be overthrown
2. The person to whom the dream was given was the very one used by God to cut off rulership in Jerusalem
3. The theme of the dream is God’s right to rule over the entire “kingdom of mankind” (Da 4:17, 25, 32)
4. The dream’s context, the book of Daniel, repeatedly points forward to the rule of God’s Kingdom
5. Daniel’s prophecies would not be fully understood until “the time of the end” (Da 12:4, 8, 9)

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In the larger fulfillment, the tree represents Jehovah’s rulership

[!help] For a period of time, Jehovah’s rulership had been represented by the Israelite kings who ruled in Jerusalem (1Ch 29:23)

• Jehovah promised David that one of his descendants would rule forever (2Sa 7:16)
• Ezekiel foretold that the earthly representation of God’s rulership would be cut off and that God would later appoint a new Ruler [Read Ezekiel 21:26, 27]

• In 607 B.C.E., Jehovah used Nebuchadnezzar to destroy Jerusalem; this marked the beginning of the “seven times” during which God’s rulership would be interrupted (Da 4:16)
• How Long would this period last?

[!help] [Read Luke 21:24] Jesus said that Jerusalem, representing God’s rulership, would “be trampled on . . . until the appointed times of the nations” were fulfilled (w06 7/15 6 ¶1-4)

• “The appointed times of the nations” are the same period as the “seven times” of Daniel chapter 4