King Nebuchadnezzar’s repentance compared to the Ninevites’ Repentance

Abstract

King Nebuchadnezzar reached the terminus of his exile in the wild with animals and birds. The monarch gained human conscience and gazed up to heaven, acknowledging God as the ruler of human kingdom. The term, “end,” in Daniel 4:34 is used in connection with time, marking the end of seven years of the king’s deportation. Nineveh, a great wicked city, was the capital city of the Assyrian empire; and the Lord sent the prophet Jonah to prophesy against it for its wickedness. When the Ninevites heard of a looming destruction within a time limit of forty days, they repented and God spared them. There is a parallel between the repentance of King Nebuchadnezzar recorded in Daniel 4:34-37 and the Ninevites in Jonah 3:3-10. This article submits that the repentances of both King Nebuchadnezzar and the Ninevites, including their king bear a close resemblance. The method used in this research is inductive. An exegetical study of Daniel 4:34-37 (Heb 4:31-34) and Jonah 3:3-10 will be carried out to explore the nature of repentance in both passages. A conclusion will be drawn based on the exegesis and theology of the passages.