Feet of Clay Trivia Quiz

Answer: Jeremiah

"This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: I will put an iron yoke on the necks of all these nations to make them serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and they will serve him." [Jeremiah 28:14]

At a time when the people of Judah had become wicked, the Lord sent his prophet Jeremiah to prophesy against them, suggesting that they might listen and turn from their evil ways. The people of Judah threatened to put Jeremiah to death, but only ended up imprisoning him. Because they did not listen, the Lord decreed that all the kingdoms of the area would be subjected to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar eventually came and conquered all the kingdoms of the area, even making the Egyptians fear him.

Answer: installing people to rule in his place

"During Jehoiakim's reign, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon invaded the land, and Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years." [2 Kings 24:1]

In invading Judah, Nebuchadnezzar became heavily involved in its politics. He made Jehoiakim his vassal. When Jehoiakim eventually rebelled, he died and his son Jehoiachin took over. Jehoiachin eventually rebelled too, causing Nebuchadnezzar to take him captive and appoint Zedekiah. Zedekiah rebelled on top of that, and Nebuchadnezzar responded by destroying Jerusalem and taking many captives. He then appointed Gedaliah to govern the people of Judah; that lasted until Gedaliah was assassinated.

Answer: Solomon's Temple

"He set fire to the temple of the Lord, the royal palace and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every important building he burned down." [2 Kings 25:9]

When Nebuchadnezzar quelled Jehoiachin's rebellion and took him captive, he also raided the temple that Solomon built and carried its treasures back to Babylon. When Zedekiah rebelled against him, Nebuchadnezzar responded even more forcefully. He sent his imperial guard to Jerusalem. They destroyed Solomon's temple, and took everything of value back to Babylon. Many years later, Cyrus the Great returned the temple's articles so they could be housed in the second temple, but that temple was never finished. The fate of the articles was not recorded.

Answer: the poorest people

"He carried all Jerusalem into exile: all the officers and fighting men, and all the skilled workers and artisans - a total of ten thousand. Only the poorest people of the land were left." [2 Kings 24:14]

People are just as much spoils of war as gold and silver are, and Nebuchadnezzar took many prisoners when he besieged Jerusalem. He took Jehoiachin and his family into Babylon, and is said to have taken 'all Jerusalem' into exile as well. This included soldiers and artisans, and essentially all the skilled people of the land. He left only the poorest and weakest people behind, and they were kept in line by those that Nebuchadnezzar appointed to govern them.

Answer: food and wine

"But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way." [Daniel 1:8]

When Nebuchadnezzar brought back captives to Babylon, he looked among them for those that were young, handsome, and unblemished, that he would train to to serve in his palace. Among those that he chose were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Unlike the rest of the Jewish captives, they refused the king's food and wine, asking for vegetables and water instead. Because of this, they were said to be ten times better than anybody else, and thus entered the king's service and were renamed Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

Answer: he did not describe the dream to anybody

"This is what I have firmly decided: If you do not tell me what my dream was and interpret it, I will have you cut into pieces and your houses turned into piles of rubble." [Daniel 2:5]

The first of Nebuchadnezzar's dreams that the Bible describes is the statue made of many materials. Nebuchadnezzar wanted it interpreted, but was suspicious of his wise men, and thus demanded they figure out what his dream was and then interpret it. Unsurprisingly, the wise men responded that this task was too difficult. This angered Nebuchadnezzar to no end, and he ordered the execution of all the wise men in his kingdom, and that included Daniel.

Answer: made him a ruler of Babylon

"Then the king placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on him. He made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men." [Daniel 2:48]

When word reached Daniel that he and the wise men were to be executed, he was not deterred, and asked to be brought before Nebuchadnezzar. After praying for guidance, Daniel revealed and interpreted the dream: the head of gold was Nebuchadnezzar, and the subsequent parts represented ever-weaking kingdoms that were to come after him. When Nebuchadnezzar heard this, he praised Daniel and his God, calling him a revealer of mysteries, and made Daniel the ruler (or governor) of Babylon.

Answer: burning

"You must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace." [Daniel 3:5-6]

Ever the proud one, Nebuchadnezzar commissioned a gold image 60 cubits (about 90 ft or 27 m) in height, and demanded that all his aristocrats worship it. The punishment for refusal was to be thrown into a furnace. When Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to bow to it, they were thrown into a furnace hot enough to kill their guards, but they remained unharmed because an angel protected them. Nebuchadnezzar praised their God and promoted them as a result.

Answer: a tree being cut down

"Cut down the tree and trim off its branches; strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the animals flee from under it and the birds from its branches." [Daniel 4:14]

After many years of service to Babylon, Daniel was once again asked to interpret a dream, one that had frightened Nebuchadnezzar. The dream was of a mighty tree that was cut down. Daniel interpreted the tree as being Nebuchadnezzar, who would lose his sanity for several years. A year after the dream, Nebuchadnezzar went insane, and lived like an animal for seven years. Afterwards, his sanity was restored, and he praised the King of heaven for his ability to humble a person as strong as Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel 4 is unique in that it is written as if by Nebuchadnezzar himself.

Answer: dead

"In the time of your father he was found to have insight and intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods. Your father, King Nebuchadnezzar, appointed him chief of the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners." [Daniel 5:11]

The book of Daniel has many famous stories, but what is less apparent is that they happened over the reigns of many Babylonian kings. Nebuchadnezzar's sanity being restored is the last event that happened during his lifetime that the Bible describes. The transitions between subsequent kings are not detailed, and Nebuchadnezzar is simply called the father of Belshazzar. Historical records suggest that Nebuchadnezzar reigned for about 43 years, and was succeeded by Amel-Marduk, Nergal-sharezer, Labashi-Marduk, and Nabonidus, with Belshazzar often ruling in Nabonidus' place. Afterwards, Cyrus the Great took over the empire.