The ruins of the ancient city of Babylon are located inside the borders of the modern nation of Iraq. They are an enduring testament to God's ultimate mastery of world events, and of the inexorable unfolding of His plan for mankind. And it was in Babylon that God revealed Himself to the ancient world as the Most High God.

More than 500 years before the birth of Christ, God sent the armies of Babylon to punish the nation of Judah. Daniel and his three friends were taken as captives to serve in the royal court of Babylon. God was at work in all of this. He orchestrated events to reveal Himself and show how He works in history.

An impressive dream

God gave King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon an impressive dream, and imbued him with a deep suspicion of his advisors; such that the king demanded that his advisors tell him both what he had dreamed and what it meant. King Nebuchadnezzar knew that anyone could spin a pretty story out of a dream—but only someone in touch with genuine supernatural power could reveal what he had dreamed and its true meaning.

God used this challenge to expose the astrologers and soothsayers of Babylon as frauds, and to reveal Himself and to show who His true servants were. God gave Daniel the knowledge both of the dream and what it meant. Daniel told the king that it was the God of heaven who had given the king rulership over the great realm of Babylon, and that God was revealing an outline of history through the dream. God predicted a series of world-ruling kingdoms of progressively baser character, which would all in the end be swept away and replaced by a divinely established kingdom that would rule the world forever (Daniel 2:28-45).

King Nebuchadnezzar quickly forgot this object lesson, and continued on his path of turning into an egotistical tyrant (Daniel 5:18-21). God gave him another vision to urge him to repentance (Daniel 4:27) and to drive home the point that it is the Most High God who rules over the kingdoms of men (Daniel 4:17). Nebuchadnezzar's successor held the God of Abraham in contempt, and so God handed down judgment and overthrew the kingdom of Babylon (Daniel 5:22-31). God gave Daniel a vision (Daniel 7) in which Daniel was shown the same sequence of world-ruling kingdoms, and was shown that in the end God will once again sit in judgment of these great governments. God will sweep them away and turn over rulership of the world to His servants (Daniel 7:13-14, 18, 27). We can see that not only is God in charge of world events, He is working to a specific plan.

In this present evil age (Galatians 1:4), "the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one" (1 John 5:19). Satan sways almost everyone in this age by virtue of having deceived the whole world into following him. Thankfully, God is in charge and limits what Satan can do (Job chapters 1 and 2).

Peace will fill the world

We live in a world of satanically deceived nations. It simply isn't in our power to establish lasting peace and justice. God promises that He will take care of it—and only He can do it.

The day is coming when God will send an angel to drag Satan off to prison and turn rulership of the world over to Christ and the saints (Revelation 20:1-6). That is when the kingdoms of this world will come under the rule of the Kingdom of God (Revelation 11:15), and justice and peace will fill the world. For now, it is our part to prepare to be part of God's government, and to comfort the victims of the injustice in this world. And we ought to be praying, "Thy kingdom come!"