Psalm 150 (continued, part 25)
Worship. The temple was a place of worship, but the heart of the worshipper was far more important that his or her gifts. The Jews in the southern kingdom of Judah had defiled the holy temple of God and dared to worship Jehovah along with the idols of the nations around them! God's people don't decide how they are going to worship the Lord; they simple obey what He has told them in His Word.
Fulfillment. One of the purposes of the millennial kingdom is that God might fulfill His promises to His people, promises He couldn't fulfill because of their
The portion for the city (Ezek. 48:30–35). This will be a "kingdom Jerusalem," a new city for the new
Ezekiel
rebellion and unbelief. In His grace and mercy, God gave Israel a wonderful land, a perfect law, and a glorious Lord. They defiled the land by their terrible crimes; they disobeyed the law by adopting pagan practices; and they defied their Lord and tempted Him by resisting His calls to repentance. But during the kingdom, Israel will trust the Lord, obey His Word, worship in His temple as they should, and bring delight to the Lord who will rule from David's throne.
will not convert each measurement into feet and inches, unless the number is important to the meaning of the text. 4 In Herod's temple, the inscription on this wall of separation reads: "No foreigner may enter within the barricade which surrounds the sanctuary and enclosure. Anyone who is caught so doing will have himself to blame for his ensuing death." This explains why the Jews wanted to kill Paul when they saw him in the temple, because they thought he had brought unclean Gentiles into the sacred courts (Acts 21:26ff.). 5 The prohibition against approaching the altar by steps (Ex. 20:24–26) applied to altars of stones or earth erected elsewhere than the tabernacle or temple. 6 See Leviticus 1—7. For an exposition of these chapters, see the section of this book, "Leviticus." 7 When, at the Transfiguration, Peter offered to build some booths for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, his motive was right but his timing was wrong (Matt. 16:27—17:8). When Jesus comes in glory, the people will celebrate Tabernacles and live in booths. 8 We wonder if disciplining the descendants because of their ancestors' sins isn't a reversal of what Ezekiel taught in chapters 18 and 33:12–20, that the children are not punished for the sins of the fathers. But Ezekiel is speaking of the corporate apostasy of the Levites and not their individual sins. 9 The population of the millennial kingdom will include some people who will already have glorified bodies: the Old Testament saints who were resurrected (Dan. 12:2, 13), New Testament Christians (1 Thess. 4:13–18; 1 John 3:1–3), and tribulation martyrs (Rev. 20:4). But believers who have survived the tribulation, both Jews and Gentiles, will be in mortal bodies and subject to death. People will live long lives, but deaths will occur (Isa. 65:20). Children will be born and will be sinners needing salvation. One would think that the miraculously ideal conditions in the kingdom would motivate everyone to trust in the Lord, but at the end of the millennium, Satan will be able to raise a large army to oppose the Lord (Rev. 20:7–10). During the thousand years, many people will feign obedience to the Lord and yet not trust Him. But can we be sure even today that everyone who belongs to a church is necessarily born again (Matt. 7:21:29)? 10 The KJV of 45:1 and 47:22 reads "divide by lot," but a better translation would be "to assign, to allot." It's clear from the text that the Lord partitioned the land and assigned it according to His own will. The places are already identified that mark the borders, although we aren't sure where some of these cities are located. 11 This eastern gate must not be equated with the one in presentday Jerusalem. The eastern gate in the millennial temple will be closed to the public because the glory of God entered through it (43:1–5). 12 In the promises to the "overcomers" in our Lord's letters to the seven churches (Rev. 2—3), you see a similar progression through the Old Testament periods, beginning with the Tree of Life in the garden (Rev. 2:7) and concluding with reigning with Christ on His throne (3:21).
But there's a further fulfillment, for the Kingdom Age will "wrap up" all the previous ages in God's revelation of Himself and His purposes. The land will be like the Garden of Eden (36:35), complete with a river of life and trees of life. The promises made to Abraham will be fulfilled and his descendants will possess and enjoy their land. The law of Moses will be obeyed from the heart, and the Lord will be worshipped and glorified. The Messiah that Israel rejected at His first coming will be received and honored and will reign over them (43:6–7). God will fulfill every kingdom promise found in the pages of the prophets!12
God's glory and God's name. If the book of Ezekiel teaches us anything, it teaches us that we must honor God's name and magnify His glory. The glory of God departed from Israel because they defiled the temple. The glory of God returned to the new temple because it was holy and a place where God could dwell. "They shall know that I am the Lord" is a statement found at least sixty times in Ezekiel's book. While God's glory doesn't dwell in our church buildings, God can be glorified or disgraced by what we do in those buildings we have dedicated to Him. As His people, we must be reverent and honor His name.
The sovereign rule of God. The first vision God gave Ezekiel was that of His glorious throne, moving quickly here and there so that His angelic creatures could accomplish His purposes in the world. Today, the church of Jesus Christ is left in this world not just to pray "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven," but to help accomplish that will in the power of the Holy Spirit. God is still on the throne and Jesus Christ has "all authority in heaven and on earth" (Matt. 28:18). Need we ask for more?
1 For an excellent presentation of this view, see Patrick Fairbairn's Commentary on Ezekiel (Kregel, 1989), 439–58. 2 Of course, the Gentiles will be welcomed to the temple worship (Isa. 2:1–5). 3 The long cubit was twenty-one inches long. If the rod was six cubits long, that equals ten feet six inches. Some make the long cubit twenty-four inches, making the rod twelve feet long. As I follow Ezekiel and his guide touring the temple precincts, I
D A N I E L
G e n e s i s E x o d u s L e v i t i c u s N u m b e r s D e u t e r o n o m y J o s h u a J u d g e s R u t h
J o n a h M i c a h N a h u m H a b a k k u k Z e p h a n i a h H a g g a i Z e c h a r i a h M a l a c h i
1 S a m u e l 2 S a m u e l 1 K i n g s 2 K i n g s 1 C h r o n i c l e s 2 C h r o n i c l e s E z r a N e h e m i a h
E s t h e r J o b P s a l m s P r o v e r b s E c c l e s i a s t e s S o n g o f
J e r e m i a h L a m e n t a t i o n s E z e k i e l D a n i e l H o s e a J o e l A m o s O b a d i a h
S o l o m o n I s a i a h
OUTLINE Key theme: God is sovereign in history. Key verses: Daniel 4:34–35
Daniel 1 1344 God Rules and Overrules
I. DANIEL THE PRISONER (1:1–21)
Daniel 2 1348 The God of Dreams and Destinies
II. DANIEL THE INTERPRETER (2:1—6:28)
Daniel 3 1352 Faith and the Fiery Trial
A. Interpreting the image dream—2 B. The golden image (Daniel absent)—3 C. Interpreting the tree dream—4 D. Interpreting the handwriting on the
Daniel 4 1356 Learning the Hard Way
wall—5 E. Daniel in the lions' den—6
Daniel 5 1360 Numbered, Weighed, and Rejected
Daniel 6 1364 Liars, Laws, and Lions
III. DANIEL THE SEER (7:1—12:13)
A. The vision of the four beasts—7 B. The vision of the ram and he-goat—8 C. The seventy weeks appointed to Israel—9 D. The vision of Israel's future and the end—
Daniel 7 1368 "Thy Kingdom Come"
Daniel 8 1372 Beasts, Angels, and the End Times
10–12
Daniel 9 1375 The Prophetic Calendar
Six different kingdoms are presented in this book: Babylon—the head of gold (2:36–38) and the winged lion (7:4); Media-Persia—the arms and chest of silver (2:32, 39) and the bear (7:5); Greece—the thighs of brass (2:32, 39) and the leopard (7:6); Rome—the legs of iron (2:33, 40) and the "dreadful beast" (7:7); the kingdom of Antichrist— the ten toes (2:41–43) and the little horn (7:8); and the kingdom of Christ—the smiting stone that fills the earth (2:34–35, 44–45) and the Ancient of Days (7:9–14).
Daniel 10 1380 A Remarkable Experience
Daniel 11:1–35 1383 A Remarkable Prophecy—Part 1
Daniel 11:36—12:13 1386 A Remarkable Prophecy—Part II
A Review of Daniel 1390 A Resolute Man God Greatly Loved
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viewed the fall of Jerusalem, it looked like a victory for the idols; but it was actually a victory for the Lord! He kept His covenant with Israel and He fulfilled His promises. In fact, the same God who raised up the Babylonians to defeat Judah later raised up the Medes and Persians to conquer Babylon. The Lord also ordained that a pagan ruler decree that the Jews could return to their land and rebuild their temple. As missionary leader A. T. Pierson used to say, "History is His story."
CHAPTER ONE Daniel 1 GOD RULES AND OVERRULES F
rom May to September 1787, the American Constitutional Convention met in Philadelphia to develop a system of government for the new nation. By June 28, progress had been so slow that Benjamin Franklin stood and addressed George Washington, president of the convention. Among other things, he said: "I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth—that God governs in the affairs of men."1 He then moved that they invite some of the local clergy to come to the assembly to lead them in prayer for divine guidance. The motion would have passed except that the convention had no budget for paying visiting chaplains.
God had made a covenant with the people of Israel, promising that He would care for them and bless them if they obeyed His statutes, but if they disobeyed, He would chasten them and scatter them among the Gentiles (Lev. 26; Deut. 27–30). He wanted Israel to be "a light to the Gentiles" (Isa. 42:6 nkjv) and reveal the glories of the true and living God; but instead, the Jews became like the Gentiles and worshipped their false gods. The nation's ungodly kings and civic leaders, the false prophets and the faithless priests were the cause of the moral decay and the ultimate destruction of the nation (Lam. 4:13; Jer. 23:9–16; 2 Chron. 6:14–21). How strange that God's own people didn't obey Him, but Nebuchadnezzar and the pagan Babylonian army did obey Him!
Though not a professed evangelical believer, Franklin was a man who believed in a God who is the Architect and Governor of the universe, a conviction that agrees with the testimony of Scripture. Abraham called God "the Judge of all the earth" (Gen. 18:25), and King Hezekiah prayed, "Thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth" (2 Kings 19:15). In Daniel's day, King Nebuchadnezzar learned the hard way that "the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men" (Dan. 4:32 niv).
I. Daniel the prisoner (1:1–21)
So wise and powerful is our God that He can permit men and women to make personal choices and still accomplish His purposes in this world. When He isn't permitted to rule, He will overrule, but His will shall ultimately be done and His name glorified. We worship and serve a sovereign God who is never caught by surprise. No matter what our circumstances may be, we can always say with confidence, "Alleluia! … The Lord God Omnipotent reigns!" (Rev. 19:6 nkjv).
The first chapter of Daniel's book2 gives ample evidence of the sovereign hand of God in the affairs of both nations and individuals.
God Gave Nebuchadnezzar Victory (1:1–2)3 For decades, the prophets had warned the rulers of Judah that their idolatry, immorality, and injustice toward the poor and needy would lead to the nation's ruin. The prophets saw the day coming when God would bring the Babylonian army to destroy Jerusalem and the temple and take the people captive to Babylon. A century before the fall of Jerusalem, the prophet Isaiah had proclaimed this message (Isa. 13; 21; and 39), and Micah his contemporary shared the burden (Mic. 4:10). The prophet Habakkuk couldn't understand how Jehovah could use the godless Babylonians to chasten His own people (Hab. 1), and Jeremiah lived to see these prophecies, plus his own prophecies, all come true (Jer. 20; 25; 27). God would rather have His people living in shameful captivity in a pagan land than living like pagans in the Holy Land and disgracing His name.
God Gave Favor to Daniel and His Friends (1:3–16) The king's policy was to train the best people of the conquered nations to serve in his government. He could benefit from their knowledge of their own people and could also use their skills to strengthen his own administration. There were several deportations of Jews to Babylon both before and after the fall of Jerusalem, and it appears that Daniel and his three friends were taken in 605 when they were probably fifteen or sixteen years old. The prophet Ezekiel was sent to Babylon in 597, and in 586, the temple was destroyed.
A dedicated remnant (vv. 3–4a). Even a cursory reading of the Old Testament reveals that the majority of God's people have not always followed the Lord and kept His commandments. It has always been the "faithful remnant" within the Jewish nation that has come through the trials and judgments to maintain the divine covenant and make a new beginning. The prophet Isaiah named one of his sons "Shear-jashub," which means "a remnant shall return" (Isa. 7:3). The same principle applies to the church today, for not everybody who professes faith in Jesus Christ is truly a child of God (Matt. 7:21–23). In His messages to the seven churches of Asia Minor, our Lord always had a
The fall of Jerusalem looked like the triumph of the pagan gods over the true God of Israel. Nebuchadnezzar burned the temple of God and even took the sacred furnishings and put them into the temple of his own god in Babylon. Later, Belshazzar would use some of those holy vessels to praise his own gods at a pagan feast, and God would judge him (Dan. 5). No matter how you
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required them to disobey the holy law, they had to draw the line.
special word for "the overcomers," the faithful remnant in each congregation who sought to obey the Lord (Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 24–28; 3:4–5, 12, 21). Daniel and his three friends were a part of the faithful Jewish remnant in Babylon, placed there by the Lord to accomplish His purposes.
Surely the king's food was the best in the land, so why should these four Hebrew students refuse it? Because it would defile them and make them ceremonially unclean before their God (v. 8). It was important to the Jews that they eat only animals approved by God and prepared in such a way that the blood was drained from the flesh, for eating blood was strictly prohibited (Lev. 11; 17:10–16). But even more, the king's food would first be offered to idols, and no faithful Jew would eat such defiled food. The early church faced this same problem.
These young men were superior in every way, "the brightest and the best," prepared by God for a strategic ministry far from home. They were handsome, healthy, intelligent, and talented.4 They belonged to the tribe of Judah (Dan. 1:6) and were of royal birth (v. 3).5 In every sense, they were the very best the Jews had to offer. Because Ashpenaz is called "master of the eunuchs," some have concluded that the four Jewish boys were made eunuchs; but that is probably an erroneous conclusion. Originally, the term "eunuch" (Heb. saris) referred to a servant who had been castrated so he could serve the royal harem; but the title gradually came to be applied to any important court official. The word is applied to Potiphar and he was married (Gen. 37:36). The Jewish law forbade castration (Deut. 23:1), so it's difficult to believe that these four faithful Hebrew men who resisted Babylonian customs in every other way would have submitted to it.
A discerning test (vv. 8–16). How can God's people resist the pressures that can "squeeze" them into conformity with the world? According to Romans 12:1–2, "conformers" are people whose lives are controlled by pressure from without, but "transformers" are people whose lives are controlled by power from within. Daniel and his three friends were transformers: instead of being changed, they did the changing! God used them to transform the minds of powerful rulers and to bring great glory to His name in a pagan land.
The first step in solving their problem and being transformers was giving themselves wholly to the Lord. Daniel's heart—the totality of his being—belonged to the Lord, as did the hearts of his friends (Dan. 1:8; Rom. 12:1–2). "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life" (Prov. 4:23 nkjv). A heart that loves the Lord, trusts the Lord, and therefore obeys the Lord has no difficulty making the right choices and trusting God to take care of the consequences. It has well been said that faith is not believing in spite of evidence—that's superstition—but obeying in spite of consequences. When they had to choose between God's Word and the king's food, they chose the Word of God (Ps. 119:103; Deut. 8:3).
A difficult trial (vv. 4b–7). It was an honor to be trained as officers in the king's palace, but it was also a trial; for these dedicated Jewish boys would have to adapt themselves to the ways and the thinking of the Babylonians. The purpose of the "course" was to transform Jews into Babylonians, and this meant not only a new land, but also new names, new customs, new ideas, and a new language. For three years, their Babylonian teachers would attempt to "brainwash" the four Jewish young men and teach them how to think and live like Babylonians.
The name Daniel means "God is my judge," but it was changed to Belteshazzar or "Bel protect his life." Hananiah means "the Lord shows grace," but his new name, Shadrach, means "command of Aku" (the moon-god). Mishael means "Who is like God?" and the new name, Meshach, means "Who is as Aku is?" Azariah means "The Lord is my help," but "Abednego" means "Servant of Nebo (Nego)." The name of the true and living God was replaced by the names of the false gods of Babylon; but would we expect unbelievers to do anything else?
The second step was to be gracious toward those in authority. The four men noticed that Ashpenaz was especially friendly and kind to them and recognized that this was the working of the Lord. (Joseph had a similar experience when he was in prison. See Gen. 39—40.) "When a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him" (Prov. 16:7 nkjv). Instead of expecting a pagan Gentile officer to obey the law of Moses and get himself in trouble with the king, Daniel and his friends took a wise approach and asked for a ten-day experiment.
Learning a new language and even receiving new names didn't create much of a problem, but practicing customs contrary to the law of Moses was a great problem. The Babylonians were great builders, calculators, and military strategists, but their religion was steeped in superstition and myth. Just as Christian students in secular schools today often have to study material that contradicts what they believe, so Daniel and his friends had to master Babylonian history and science. In fact, in the final examination, they excelled all the other students (v. 20), and later, God gave them opportunities to show that their Jewish faith was superior to the faith of their captors. But when their course of training
Throughout Scripture you will find courageous people who had to defy authority in order to obey God, and in every case, they took the wise and gentle approach. "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone" (Rom. 12:18 niv).
Along with Daniel and his friends, you have the examples of the Hebrew midwives (Ex. 1), the apostles (Acts 4), and even Jesus Himself (1 Peter 2:13–25). All of them had to resist the law in order to obey the Lord, and God gave them success. They were courteous and didn't try to get others into trouble. They had a meek
Daniel 1
this world" when they have the inspired and infallible Word of God to instruct them? Some sincere believers think that all "worldly education" is sinful, while others, just as sincere, believe that God's people should understand the mind-set of the world but not be controlled by it. The great church father Tertullian (160–220) is an example of the first group, for he asked, "What indeed has Athens to do with Jerusalem? What concord is there between the Academy and the church?"7 He also wrote, "So, then, where is there any likeness between the Christian and the philosopher? Between the disciple of Greece and of heaven? Between the man whose object is fame, and whose object is life?"8
and quiet spirit. They saw the challenge as an opportunity to prove God and glorify His name.
The four Jewish students didn't threaten anybody, stage a protest, or try to burn down a building. They simply excelled in their studies, acted like gentlemen, and asked Melzar to test them for ten days by feeding them only water and vegetables.6 Christians have no right to ask others—especially the unsaved—to take risks that they won't take themselves. Unconsciously directed by the Lord, Melzar was willing to accept their suggestion, and God did the rest. In the end, the four Jewish boys were healthier in body and better looking than all the other students. This is a vivid illustration of the promise in Matthew 6:33 and the principle laid down in Colossians 4:5; 1 Thessalonians 4:12; and 1 Peter 3:15.
On the other hand, Moses was "learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians" (Acts 7:22), and the apostle Paul read the classics and even quoted from them in his letters. In 1 Corinthians 15:33 he quoted the Greek poet Menander; in Acts 17:27 and 28, he quoted Epimenides, Aratus, and Cleanthes; and in Titus 1:12, he quoted Epimenides. In 2 Timothy 4:13, he asked Timothy to bring him his books and parchments, which were probably copies of some of the Old Testament Scriptures and possibly some of the classical writers. The point is that Paul knew the classics and sought to use what he knew to reach people with the truth of God's Word. "Beware of the atmosphere of the classics," Robert Murray M'Cheyne wrote in a letter to a friend. "True, we ought to know them; but only as chemists handle poison—to discover their qualities, not to infect their blood with them."9
When it comes to solving the problems of life, we must ask God for the courage to face the problem humbly and honestly, the wisdom to understand it, the strength to do what He tells us to do, and the faith to trust Him to do the rest. Our motive must be the glory of God and not finding a way of escape. The important question isn't "How can I get out of this?" but "What can I get out of this?" The Lord used this private test to prepare Daniel and his friends for the public tests they would face in years to come. The best thing about this experience wasn't that they were delivered from compromise, as wonderful as that was, but that they were developed in character. No wonder God called Daniel "greatly beloved" (Dan. 9:23; 10:11, 19), for he was very much like His Beloved Son.
By understanding the mind-set of the Babylonian people, especially the king's "magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers" (Dan. 2:2 niv), Daniel and his three friends were better able to show them the superiority of God's wisdom. The Lord gave Daniel a special gift of understanding visions and dreams. In the first half of his book, Daniel interpreted the visions and dreams of others, but in the last half, he received visions of his own from the Lord.
God Gave Ability and Success to Daniel and His Friends (1:17–20) If you want to make a living, you get training; and if you want to make a life, you add education. But if you want to have a ministry for God, you must have divine gifts and divine help. Training and education are very important, but they are not substitutes for the ability and wisdom that only God can give.
The king's examination (vv. 18–20). We don't know how many students went through the entire course of study, but it's interesting that Nebuchadnezzar himself took the time to examine them. Since the new graduates were to become his personal advisers, the king wanted to be sure he was getting the best. By adding exceptionally intelligent new men to the staff, the king would be assured of getting the best counsel available. He was familiar with the older advisers and possibly not too happy with all of them (see 2:5–13). Was he suspicious of a palace intrigue? As we shall see later, the addition and the promotion of these four Jewish boys created jealousy and resentment among the advisers and they tried to get rid of Daniel (chap. 6). As older men, they resented their youth; as Babylonians, they resented their race; and as experienced servants, they envied their great ability and knowledge.
God's special blessing (v. 17). These four Hebrew youths had to study and apply themselves, but God gave them skill to learn the material, discernment to understand it, and wisdom to know how to apply it and relate it to God's truth. As students, all of us need to ask God for wisdom (James 1:5) and then work hard to do our very best. "Faith without works is dead" (2:26), and fervent prayer can never replace faithful study. Both are necessary.
What studies did these young men pursue? Surely they were taught the religion of Babylon as well as the system of astrology that formed the basis for both their religion and their science. The king's official counselors had to be able to interpret dreams and various omens, because understanding the times and knowing the future were both important to the king's success. The young men were given what we would call a "secular education" steeped in the superstition of that day.
"Magicians" were men who dealt in the occult,
But should the people of God learn "the wisdom of
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Lord providentially works to put some of His servants into places of special honor and responsibility. When He wanted to protect Jacob's family and the future of the nation of Israel, the Lord sent Joseph to Egypt and made him second ruler of the land. God had Esther and Mordecai in Persia, where they exposed a plot against the Jews and saved the people of Israel from being annihilated. Nehemiah was the king's cupbearer in Susa and was able to get royal assistance for restoring the walls of Jerusalem. I wonder if the men in high political office who assisted Paul were true believers in Jesus Christ (Acts 19:30–31; Rom. 16:23)? Even if they weren't, God placed them where they were and enabled them to accomplish His will.
while "enchanters" used incantations to accomplish their purposes. "Sorcerers" specialized in casting spells, "astrologers" studied the movements of the stars and their influence on events, and "diviners" sought to see the future by using various methods. Of course, all of these were forbidden by the law of Moses (Deut. 18:9–13). Daniel and his friends had to work alongside these men, yet they remained pure and gave a powerful testimony for the Lord.
The word inquired in Daniel 1:20 means "to examine and compare." The king not only questioned the graduates, but he also compared one with another, and in this way ended up with the very best. There's no reason why Christian students on secular campuses today shouldn't be among the finest students who win some of the highest awards to the glory of God. Tertullian didn't think that "Jerusalem" should have anything to do with "Athens," but if believers from "Jerusalem" don't witness to unbelievers in "Athens," how will these lost sinners ever hear about Jesus Christ? Going into "all the world" includes going to our pagan campuses and letting our lights shine.
The events recorded in this chapter should be a great encouragement to us when we experience trials and testings and become discouraged; for when God is not allowed to rule, He overrules. God is still on the throne and will never leave us nor forsake us.
Has the enemy destroyed the Holy City and the holy temple and taken God's people captive? Fear not, for there is still a godly remnant that worships the true God and serves Him. Does the enemy attempt to defile that godly remnant? Fear not, for the Lord will work on their behalf and keep them separated to Himself. Are godly believers needed in places of authority? Fear not, for the Lord will see to it that they are prepared and appointed. Does the Lord desire to communicate His prophetic truth to His people? Fear not, for He will keep His servants alive and alert until their work is done. Are you in a place of responsibility and wondering how long you can hold out? Fear not, for the same God who called you and equipped you is able to make you "continue" until you complete the tasks that He has assigned you. "He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it" (1 Thess. 5:24 nkjv).
God Gave Daniel a Long Life and Ministry (1:21) The first year of King Cyrus's reign was 539 BC, but Daniel was still alive in 537 BC, the third year of Cyrus (10:1). If Daniel was fifteen years old in the year 605 when he was taken to Babylon, then he was born in 620, and he would have been eighty-three years old when he received the revelations recorded in chapters 10—12. While reading the prophecy of Jeremiah (25:11; 29:10), Daniel understood God's plan for the Jews to return to their land and rebuild the temple and the city (Dan. 9:1–2); and he lived long enough to see this prophecy fulfilled! How long he lived after that nobody knows, nor is it important that we know. During Daniel's long life, he had opportunity to witness to Nebuchadnezzar, Darius, Belshazzar, and Cyrus, as well as to the many court officers who came and went. He was a faithful servant, and he could say with the Lord Jesus, "I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do" (John 17:4 nkjv).
Each believer is either a conformer or a transformer. We're either being squeezed into the world's mold or we're transforming things in the world into which God has put us. Transformers don't always have an easy life, but it's an exciting one, and it gives you great delight to know that God is using you to influence others.
However, not every faithful servant of God is given the blessing of a long life. Stephen was probably a young man when he was martyred (Acts 7), and Paul was in his sixties when he was killed in Rome. The godly Scottish preacher Robert Murray M'Cheyne was two months short of being thirty years old when he died, yet his ministry still enriches us. William Whiting Borden ("Borden of Yale") was only twenty-five when he died in Egypt, and David Brainerd, missionary to the Native Americans, was only twenty-nine when God called him. "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom" (Ps. 90:12). We number our years, not our days, but everybody still has to live a day at a time, and we don't know when that final day will dawn.
1 Catherine Drinker Bowen, Miracle at Philadelphia (Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1966), 125–127. 2 That Daniel wrote the book that bears his name is assumed from 8:1; 9:2, 20; 10:2. That he was an actual historical person is stated not only by his book but also by Ezekiel 14:14, 20; and 28:3, as well as by our Lord in Matthew 24:15 and Mark 13:14. 3 The Babylonians considered the first year of their king's reign "the year of accession" and the next full year his first year, while the Jews began to reckon from the time the king began to reign. That's why Jeremiah 25:1 calls this important year "the fourth year of Jehoiakim," for Jeremiah used Jewish reckoning. 4 This fact shouldn't discourage the rest of us who may not have such special gifts. God prepares and uses all kinds of people, but in the case of the four Hebrew men, excellence was a
In order to accomplish His plans for His people, the
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2:12), and they were Gentiles. When God wanted to give a message to the Gentiles, He usually sent them a Jewish prophet (Amos 3:7)—Jonah to Nineveh, for example, or Amos to the neighboring nations (Amos 1—2). But here the Lord communicated directly to an unbelieving Gentile monarch. The Lord in His wisdom planned to use His faithful servant Daniel to describe and interpret the dream, and in this way, God's name would be glorified and Daniel and his friends would be honored and rewarded.
requirement they had to meet. Use the gifts God has given you and don't compare yourself with others. Each of us is unique. 5 Isaiah had promised that "the king's descendants" would become eunuchs in Babylon (Isa. 39:7). 6 The fact that God used a vegetarian diet to make these four young men succeed doesn't mean that we will succeed if we follow this example. The Bible makes it clear that all foods are permissible to believers (Col. 2:16; Rom. 14:17; Mark 7:1–23; 1 Tim. 4:1–5). The story encourages us to follow their faith, not their diet. 7 Tertullian, "On Prescription Against Heretics" in Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, The Ante-Nicene Fathers (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1976), vol. 3, 246. 8 Op. cit., 51. 9 Andrew Bonar, Memoir and Remains of Robert Murray M'Cheyne (London: Banner of Truth Trust, 1966), 29.
Does God still use dreams to communicate His will? Certainly He can do so if He pleases, but this isn't His usual approach. God guides His children today by His Holy Spirit as they pray, seek His face, meditate on His Word, and consult with their spiritual leaders. The danger is that our dreams may not come from the Lord. The human subconscious is capable of producing dreams, and Jeremiah 23:25–32 indicates that demonic forces can cause dreams that are Satan's lies and not God's truth. It's dangerous to accept dreams as messengers from the Lord.
II. Daniel the interpreter (2:1—6:28) A.Interpreting the image dream—2
CHAPTER TWO Daniel 2 THE GOD OF DREAMS AND DESTINIES A
God Disgraces the "Wise Men" (2:2–13)1 The king did what any ancient ruler would do: he summoned his special advisers to help him understand the significance of this dream that had interrupted his sleep and robbed him of peace. But this was no routine meeting, for the king not only commanded them to interpret the dream but also to reveal the dream to him! If they didn't do both, he would kill them without mercy and turn their houses into public latrines and garbage dumps. This, of course, was a new challenge for them and they knew they couldn't meet it.
s you turn from chapter 1 to chapter 2, the atmosphere in the king's palace changes radically. Chapter 1 closes with recognition and security, but chapter 2 introduces rejection and danger. Because they possessed almost unlimited power and authority, Oriental despots were notoriously temperamental and unpredictable, and here Nebuchadnezzar reveals this side of his character. (See also 3:19.) However, the hero and major actor in chapter 2 is not King Nebuchadnezzar but the Lord God "who reveals the deep and secret things" (v. 22 nkjv). As you read this chapter, you witness the God of Israel in complete control of every situation and accomplishing His purposes even through superstitious Gentile unbelievers. Note the divine activities that protected His servants and brought glory to His name.
Here we are confronted with a question that sincere Bible students don't answer the same way: Did King Nebuchadnezzar forget his dream, or was he using this approach to test his counselors to see if they were authentic? I hold to the second position, but let's consider both sides of the matter.
He forgot the dream. I find it difficult to believe that such a vivid dream would pass out of the mind of a great leader like Nebuchadnezzar, particularly if the dream occurred more than once. Of course, we do forget most of our dreams, but in this case, the Lord was seeking to communicate His truth to the king. Surely the same God who gave the dream could see to it that the king would remember it. After all, the dream was so agitating that the king lay awake wondering what it meant. Furthermore, if indeed the king had forgotten the dream, how would he be able to verify it even if the advisers could come up with the right answer?
God Distresses a King (2:1) Nebuchadnezzar was in the second year of his reign and discovering the burdens of the kingdom as well as the far-reaching consequences of his decisions. Some of his concerns were causing him restless nights (Eccl. 5:12), and his mind was unsettled as he worried about the future of his kingdom (Dan. 2:29). How long would "Babylon the great" last? How long would he be the ruler? Shakespeare was right: "Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown."
The Lord gave Nebuchadnezzar a vivid dream that he couldn't understand, and it distressed him. That the Lord God Almighty would communicate truth to a pagan Gentile king is evidence of the grace of God. The phrase "dreamed dreams" may suggest that this one dream kept recurring. The Lord had given two dreams to Pharaoh (Gen. 41), another Gentile ruler, and Joseph had interpreted them; and He also gave a dream to the magi who came to worship Jesus (Matt.
The KJV and the Amplified Bible translate verses 5 and 8 "the thing is gone from me," which can be interpreted "the dream has left me." This is probably the strongest argument for the king having a bad memory. But the NASB translates that same phrase "the command from me is firm," and the NIV translates it "this is what I have firmly decided." The reference isn't to the dream but to the king's edict of judgment. If the
Daniel 2
prophecy! Out of their own mouths they condemned their own practices!
counselors couldn't tell him the dream and interpret it, they would be publicly humiliated and mercilessly slain.
God Discloses the Secret (2:14–23) The king's edict had to be obeyed, so Arioch, the captain of the king's guard and the chief executioner, set out to round up all the king's "wise men" and slay them. Satan had lost one battle, but now he would try to pull victory out of defeat by having Daniel and his three friends killed. The Evil One is willing to sacrifice all his false prophets in the city of Babylon if he can destroy four of God's faithful servants. Satan's servants are expendable, but the Lord cares for His people. See how the Lord intervened and accomplished His purposes and blessed His people.
The king was testing his counselors. I believe that Nebuchadnezzar remembered the dream, pondered it, and realized that it contained a significant message concerning him and his kingdom. It must have brought fear and wonder to his heart when he beheld this massive metallic image smashed to atoms by a mysterious stone that then grew into a mountain. The interpretation of this dream was too important for the king to treat it as a routine matter. He wanted to be sure that his "wise men" would give him the correct meaning, for his future was involved in that dream. He didn't want to hear "misleading and wicked things" (v. 9 niv) that they made up just to please the king. He wanted the truth.
Remarkable Postponement (vv. 14–16). When Arioch came to get Daniel and his friends, they were shocked to hear about the king's edict. As new "graduates" among the royal counselors, they hadn't been invited to the special session about the dream. Daniel spoke to Arioch "with wisdom and tact" (NIV), just as he had spoken to Ashpenaz and Melzar (1:9–14; see Col. 4:5–6), and the chief executioner explained how serious the matter was. By doing this and delaying his obedience, Arioch was risking his own life, but the officers in the palace had learned that the four Jewish men were trustworthy. Their gracious actions and words during their three years of training were now helping to save their lives.
Perhaps he recalled the difference between the counselors he inherited from his father and the four Jewish young men who had graduated at the top of the class (1:19–20). He had seen that these four boys were ten times better than his counselors and possessed a wisdom far beyond anything the "wise men" had ever shown. Perhaps he had concluded that his "wise men" had conspired to deceive him and that their interpretations and explanations weren't valid at all. If indeed they had the ability to interpret the dream, then surely they also had the ability to tell him the dream! It was a test of their ability and their veracity.
Regardless of which approach is correct, this much is true: the counselors were greatly humiliated because they couldn't tell Nebuchadnezzar the dream. This was a great opportunity for them to receive wealth, prestige, and promotion, and the fact that they stalled for time indicated that they were unable to meet the challenge. This in itself set the stage for Daniel to exalt the true and living God of Israel who alone can predict the future (Isa. 41:21–23). By issuing this impossible challenge, the king was unconsciously following the plan of God and opening the way for Daniel to do what the counselors could not do. As they pleaded their case, the "wise men" tried flattery and logic, but all their speeches only made Nebuchadnezzar more and more angry, until finally he issued an edict that all the "wise men" in the city of Babylon be slain.
Arioch allowed Daniel time to speak to Nebuchadnezzar, and the king must have been surprised to see him. Apparently his rage had subsided and he was willing to make some concessions. After all, Daniel hadn't been at the original meeting, so he deserved an opportunity to obey the king's orders. No doubt Nebuchadnezzar recalled that the four Hebrews had been exceptional students and were superior to the men whose lives were now in danger. Why kill your four best counselors just because of the incompetence of the others? By faith, Daniel promised to show the king his dream and the interpretation, for he knew that the Lord would answer prayer.
Believing prayer (vv. 17–19). Throughout this book, Daniel and his friends are presented as men of faith and prayer (Dan. 6; 9). They were far from home, but by faith they could "look toward" Jerusalem and the temple and claim the promise of 1 Kings 8:44–45. The God of heaven2 would hear their prayers and answer them for His own glory. The word "secret" (raz) is used eight times in this chapter and is the equivalent of the Greek word mysterion ("mystery"), which is used twenty-eight times in the New Testament. It means "a hidden truth that is revealed only to the initiated." God had hidden prophetic truth in the dream and He enabled His servant to know both the dream and its interpretation and to understand God's future plans. "The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much" (James 5:16 nkjv).
Throughout Bible history, you find occasions when God exposed the foolishness of the world and the deceptiveness of Satan. Moses and Aaron defeated the magicians of Pharaoh and the gods of Egypt (Ex. 7–12), and Elijah on Mount Carmel exposed the deception of Baal worship (1 Kings 18). Jeremiah confronted the false prophet Hananiah and revealed his wickedness (Jer. 28), and Paul exposed the deception of Bar Jesus the sorcerer (Acts 13:1–12). But it was Jesus who by His life, teaching, and sacrificial death declared the wisdom of this world "foolishness" with God, and that includes all its myths and false religions (1 Cor. 1:18ff.). The statement of the advisers in Daniel 2:10 wipes out astrology and other forms of human
Joyful praise (vv. 20–23). Daniel's first response
Daniel 2
The phrase "latter days" ("last days," "last times") is found frequently in Scripture, beginning with Genesis 49:1 and ending with 2 Peter 3:3. Our Lord ushered in the "last days" with His death, resurrection, and ascension to heaven (Heb. 1:2; 1 Peter 1:20), so we are living now in that period of time when God is "wrapping things up." God has plans for the "latter days" of Israel (Gen. 49:1; Deut. 31:29; Dan. 2:28), which will climax with Messiah returning to earth and being received by His people (Hos. 3:5; Mic. 4:1; Joel 2:28–29). The "last days" for the church include perilous times (2 Tim. 3:1), the apostasy of many, and the rise of scoffers and deniers of the truth (2 Peter 3:1ff.); and this period will end when Christ takes His church to heaven (1 Thess. 4:13–18).
was to bless the Lord for hearing and answering their petitions. They asked for wisdom, and God gave it (James 1:5), and His mighty hand stopped the execution process and gave the four men time to pray. Little did the pagan "wise men" realize that the presence of the Hebrews in Babylon was making their deliverance possible.3 The God of heaven is also the God of history, for He can set and change the times allotted to rulers and to nations, which was the very thing Nebuchadnezzar was worrying about. The dream was "darkness" to the king but light to Daniel, not unlike the glory cloud that stood between Israel and the Egyptian army (Ex. 14:19–20). Daniel included his three friends in his song of praise (Dan. 2:23) because they had shared the burden of prayer with him. Later he would share the honors with them and they would serve with him in the highest appointed office in the city of Babylon.
The image Nebuchadnezzar beheld in his dream depicted what Jesus called "the times of the Gentiles" (Luke 21:24), a period of time that began in 605 BC when Jerusalem was taken by Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian army. This period will end when Christ returns to establish His kingdom (Luke 21:25–28).5 During the "times of the Gentiles," there will be four successive kingdoms, climaxed by a fifth kingdom that will destroy the other four and fill the earth. The fifth kingdom is the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
When God's people today face a crisis, they need to follow the example of Daniel and his friends and take the matter to the Lord in prayer. Faith is living without scheming, and faith brings glory to God. Daniel and his friends couldn't take credit for what happened because it came from the hand of God. "Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me" (Ps. 50:15 nkjv). "Whatever God can do faith can do," said A.W. Tozer, "and whatever faith can do prayer can do when it is offered in faith. An invitation to prayer is, therefore, an invitation to omnipotence, for prayer engages the Omnipotent God and brings Him into our human affairs."4
The dream (vv. 31–35). First Daniel told the king what he had seen in his dream, and then he explained its meaning. He saw a large statue of a man, "an enormous dazzling statue, awesome in appearance" (v. 31 niv), composed of five different materials: gold, silver, bronze, iron, and clay. Suddenly a stone appeared and smashed the feet of the statue so that the image was completely shattered and became like chaff that was blown away. Then the stone became a huge mountain that filled the earth. On hearing this accurate description, the king knew that Daniel was telling the truth and that what he said could be trusted. Only the God of heaven who sent the dream could have helped His servant know and interpret the dream.
God Displays His Wisdom and Power (2:24–45) Once again we see the wisdom and tact of Daniel as he went immediately to Arioch and told him not to destroy the "wise men" because God had revealed to him both the dream and its interpretation. Daniel never heard the Sermon on the Mount, but he knew how to treat his enemies and was willing to rescue the pagan advisers. Since Arioch was in charge of executions, he could stop the process and save the lives of all the king's counselors in the city of Babylon. Daniel gave Arioch the privilege of taking him into the presence of the king and sharing some of the credit. The statement, "I have found a man" (v. 25) isn't exactly the truth, because it was Daniel who found Arioch; but Daniel wasn't the kind of person who worried about who got the credit so long as God got the glory.
The meaning of the dream (vv. 36–45).6 The large image represented four Gentile kingdoms:
• The head of gold—Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian kingdom (vv. 37–38). It lasted from 636 BC to 539 BC. Jeremiah called Babylon "a gold cup in the Lord's hand" (Jer. 51:7).
In reply to the king's question, Daniel immediately gave all the glory to the God of heaven, and in this he reminds us of Joseph when he interpreted Pharaoh's dreams (Gen. 41:16). Nebuchadnezzar must have been shocked when Daniel even told him that he knew the king had been worrying about the future of his kingdom before he had this dream. The dream was God's answer to his concerns, for God revealed the future sequence of the Gentiles' kingdoms and how Gentile history would climax with the appearance of an eternal kingdom.
• The breast and arms of silver—The Medo-Persian kingdom (539–330 BC). Darius the Mede conquered Babylon (Dan. 5:30–31).
• The belly and thighs of bronze—The Grecian kingdom (330–63 BC). Alexander the Great established what was probably the largest empire in ancient times. He died in 323 BC.
Daniel 2
hold together at the end of the age. The feet of the image were composed of a mixture of iron and clay. Iron is strong and durable but clay is weak and prone to crumble. The iron in the image gives the appearance of strength and endurance, but the clay announces just the opposite. In fact, the clay robs the iron of its ability to hold things together, for wherever the iron touches the clay, at those points there is weakness. Society today is held together by treaties that can be broken, promises that can be ignored, traditions that can be forgotten, organizations that can be disbanded, and money-making enterprises that can fail—all of it iron mixed with clay!
• The legs of iron and feet of iron and clay—The Roman Empire (63 BC–ca. AD 475). Iron represents strength but clay represents weakness. Rome was strong in law, organization, and military might; but the empire included so many different peoples that this created weakness. "The people will be a mixture and will not remain united" (Dan. 2:43 niv).
• The destruction of the image—The coming of Jesus Christ, the Stone, to judge His enemies and establish His universal kingdom.
Man at his best is clay, for God made him out of the dust of the earth. Though man and woman are both made in the image of God, sin has robbed us of the dominion He gave us (Gen. 1:26). We are both creators and destroyers, and we seem bent on destroying one another and the world God has graciously given us. The heart of every problem is the problem in the human heart—rebellion against God.
As simple as this explanation appears, it carries with it some important and profound messages. First, it reveals that God is in control of history. He knows the future because He plans the future. This doesn't mean that God is to blame for the evil things that leaders and nations do, but that He can overrule even their wickedness to accomplish His divine purposes. The God of heaven gave Nebuchadnezzar his throne and enabled him to defeat his enemies and expand his empire (vv. 37–38; Jer. 27). But the God who gave him his authority could also take it away, and He did (Jer. 51—52). The king didn't know how long his empire would last, but he knew it would end someday. In fact, Babylon was conquered by what Daniel called an "inferior kingdom" (Dan. 2:39).
The image gives us a fourth truth: Jesus Christ will return, destroy His enemies, and establish His kingdom. The stone is a frequent image of God in Scripture and especially of Messiah, Jesus Christ the Son of God (Ps. 118:22; Isa. 8:14; 28:16; Matt. 21:44; Acts 4:11; 1 Cor. 10:4; 1 Peter 2:4–8). The phrase "without hands" is used in Scripture to mean "not by human power" and refers to something only God can do (Col. 2:11; Heb. 9:11, 24). It appears that the Roman Empire will in some ways continue until the end of the age and culminate in the rule of ten kings (Dan. 2:44; 7:24–27; Rev. 17:3, 12–18). The world will be delivered from evil, not by a process, but by a crisis, the promised return of Jesus Christ. Whatever remains of the four Gentile kingdoms, passed from one kingdom to the next, will be destroyed and turned into chaff. Then Christ will establish His kingdom, which will fill all the earth.
Second, the dream reveals that human enterprises decline as time goes on. The massive and awesome image not only changed in value from head to foot— from gold to clay—but it also changed in strength, finally ending in feet made of iron mixed with clay. Actually, the statue was top-heavy, for the atomic weight of gold is ten times that of clay, and silver is five times heavier than clay. From age to age, nations and kingdoms appear strong and durable, but they're always in danger of falling over and crashing. The image Nebuchadnezzar saw dazzled him with the brilliance of the gold, iron, and bronze, but it was standing on feet composed of iron and clay.
When we consider these truths, our response ought to be one of joyful confidence, knowing that the Lord has everything under control and will one day reign on this earth. While God's people should do everything they can to alleviate suffering and make this a safer and happier world, our hope is not in laws, political alliances, or moral crusades. Our hope is in the Lord. People's hearts need to be changed by the grace of God, and that means God's people must be witnesses to the ends of the earth. The only kingdom that will stand forever is Christ's kingdom (Dan. 2:44), and the only people who will be citizens of that kingdom are those who have trusted Him and been born again by the Spirit of God (John 3:1–18).
As we survey history, on one level we see progress and improvement; but when we go deeper, we see decay and decline. Thoreau said that America had "improved means to unimproved ends," and that can be said of any developing nation. We can speak easily to people in almost any part of the world, but do we have anything important to say? We can travel rapidly from one place to another, but we make little progress in solving the problems of war, violence, famine, and liberty. While we're grateful for the things that make modern life comfortable and enjoyable—good houses, cars and planes, powerful medicines, electronic devices—we have to admit that each of these brings with it new problems that have to be solved. It's easier to make a living but harder to make a life.
What would all of this have meant to King Nebuchadnezzar as he sat on his throne listening to a young Jewish lad explain God's mysteries? For one thing, the message of the image should have humbled him. It was not Nebuchadnezzar who conquered nations and kingdoms; it was God who enabled him to
A third truth is that it will be difficult for things to
Daniel 2—3
do it and who gave him his empire. "You, O king, are a king of kings," said Daniel. "For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory" (Dan. 2:37 nkjv). Alas, the great king forgot this lesson and one day said, "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?" (4:30 nkjv). God had to humble the king and make him live like an animal until he learned that God does according to His will (v. 35) and alone deserves glory. In giving the dream and enabling Daniel to know the dream and explain it, God displayed His wisdom and power. God has the wisdom to plan the ages and the power to execute His plan. King Nebuchadnezzar ruled from 605 BC to 562 BC, but Jesus Christ will reign forever and ever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end.
Ezra and Nehemiah. It appears to be the name of God used by His people during the years of their exile and dispersion. The God of heaven isn't limited to the land of Israel; He can work even in mighty Babylon! 3 Because Lot was in their city, the people of Zoar escaped the judgment that destroyed the cities of the plain (Gen. 19:18–25), and because Paul was on the ship, God saved all the passengers from drowning (Acts 27:21–26, 30–32, 42–44). The world opposes God's people, little realizing the blessings that come because of them. 4 A. W. Tozer, The Set of the Sail (Camp Hill, PA: Christian Publications, 1986), 33. 5 The "times of the Gentiles" must not be confused with the "fullness of the Gentiles" (Rom. 11:25), when God has gathered into His church all who shall be saved during this present age. This period began at Pentecost and will climax at the rapture of the church. During this time, God is calling out from the Gentiles a people for His name (Acts 15:14). The church is composed of believing Jews and Gentiles, but it is predominantly a Gentile church. 6 Note the use of the pronoun "we" in verse 36. Daniel includes his three friends in the interpreting of the dream.
God Distinguishes His Servants (2:46–49) Being a pagan unbeliever, Nebuchadnezzar was so overwhelmed by what Daniel did that he treated him as though he were a god! Cornelius the Roman centurion treated Peter that way (Acts 10:25–26), and Paul and Barnabas were accepted as gods by the people of Lystra (14:8–18). Being a devout Jew, Daniel must have abhorred all this adulation, but he knew it was useless to protest the commands of the king. But in paying homage to Daniel, the king was actually acknowledging that the God of the Hebrews was greater than all other gods. Nebuchadnezzar hadn't yet come to the place where he believed in one true and living God, but this was the first step.
CHAPTER THREE Daniel 3 FAITH AND THE FIERY TRIAL T
he devil tempts us to destroy our faith, but God tests us to develop our faith, because a faith that can't be tested can't be trusted. False faith withers in times of trial, but true faith takes deeper root, grows, and brings glory to God. This explains why God permitted the three Hebrew men to be tested and then thrown into the fiery furnace. The apostle Peter must have been well acquainted with the book of Daniel because he used the metaphor of the "fiery trial" when he warned his readers of the persecutions about to come to the church (1 Peter 1:7; 4:12).1
What the king did and said also announced to everyone in the court that Daniel was superior to the Babylonian advisers who could not describe the dream, let alone explain it. And yet what Daniel and his friends did saved the lives of those men!
B.The golden image (Daniel absent)—3
The king kept his word and promoted Daniel with great honors, just as Pharaoh honored and promoted Joseph in Egypt (Gen. 41:39–43). He made Daniel ruler over the province of Babylon and, at Daniel's request, made his three friends helpers with him in that office. They were put in different offices in the province, while Daniel remained at the court of the king and sat in the king's gate, a place of great authority (Dan. 2:49 niv). What started out as possible tragedy—the slaughter of four godly men—was turned into great triumph; and the God of Daniel received great glory.
The experience of these three men helps us examine our own faith and determine whether we have the kind of authentic faith that can be tested and bring glory to God.
True Faith Confronts the Challenge (3:1–12) We don't know how much time elapsed between the night Nebuchadnezzar dreamed about the metallic image (Dan. 2) and the day he commanded the people to fall down before the golden image that he had made. Some students believe that the event described in Daniel 3 might have occurred twenty years after the promotion of Daniel and his friends, about the time Jerusalem was finally destroyed (586 BC).
1 From 2:4 to 7:28, the book is written in Aramaic, the language of Babylon, rather than in Hebrew. These prophecies deal primarily with the future of Gentile kingdoms, so Aramaic is more suitable. No doubt Daniel's writings were circulated among the Gentiles as well as the Jews. 2 This name for God is used six times in the book of Daniel— 2:18–19, 28, 37, 44; 5:23. It is first heard in Scripture from the lips of Abraham (Gen. 24:3, 7) and is found frequently in
The heart of the king (vv. 1–3). When Daniel explained the meaning of the successive metals in the massive image, he identified Nebuchadnezzar as the head of gold (2:38), and perhaps this is what helped motivate the king to make an image of gold.
Daniel 3
The hearts of the people (vv. 4–7). The herald didn't ask for a vote. He simply told the people that what was about to happen was a matter of life or death. At the sound of the music, they would either fall down before the image or they would die. But the superstitious crowd was accustomed to worshipping many gods and goddesses, so the command was an easy one to obey, especially in light of the consequences. The difference between the true believer and the unbeliever isn't the presence of faith, because everybody lives by faith in something. The difference is in the object of that faith. The crowd believed the herald and the king, and therefore they obeyed. The three Hebrew men believed the commandment of God, so they disobeyed. The crowd had credulous faith, but the Jews had confident faith.
Not content to be merely a head of gold, he and his kingdom would be symbolized by an entire image of gold! There was definitely an element of pride in this whole enterprise. Daniel had made it clear that no empire would last, including that of the great Nebuchadnezzar. The king's heart was filled with pride because of all his conquests, but along with that pride were fear and concern for himself and his vast kingdom. He wanted to make sure that his people were loyal to him and that there would be no rebellions.
There wasn't enough gold in his entire kingdom to make a solid image ninety feet high and nine feet wide, so the image was probably made of wood overlaid with gold (Isa. 40:19; 41:7; Jer. 10:3–9). But it must have been an awesome sight to see this golden image standing on the plain at Dura, a location perhaps six miles from the city of Babylon. ("Dura" simply means "a walled-in place," and there were several sites with that name in ancient Babylon.) Also in the area was a furnace into which people would be thrown if they refused to fall down before the image and acknowledge the sovereignty of King Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar planned to unify his kingdom by means of religion and fear. The alternatives were to fall down before the image and worship or be thrown into the furnace and be burned to death.
"Faith is one of the forces by which men live," said philosopher and psychologist William James, and he was right. People act by faith when they step into an elevator, order food in a restaurant, drive on the highway, or say their marriage vows. The Christian believer lives by faith in the living God and what He has revealed in His Word. The great multitude of Babylonians, exiles, and representatives from the provinces simply conformed to the edict of the king and did what everybody else was doing. "After all," they argued, "we all have to live!" There were thousands of Jewish exiles in Babylon, and they were represented by Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. If they bowed to the idol, all the Jews were involved!
The king sent official messengers to all the provinces of his empire, commanding the officials to gather for the dedication of the great golden image. Eight different officers are especially named (Dan. 3:2–3) and they would represent the people left back home. Princes (satraps?) were the chief administrative officers in the provinces, while governors were probably their assistants (or perhaps military commanders). Captains ruled over the smaller districts in the provinces, and judges were their advisers. Treasurers served as do treasurers today, and counselors were experts in the law. Sheriffs were local judges and magistrates, and rulers were the miscellaneous officials in the province. Every level of authority was represented and all were expected to be present.
This assembly of "worshippers" helps us better understand the plight of people in today's world who don't know our Lord Jesus Christ. They blindly follow the crowd and build their lives on the false and the futile. Concerned only with survival, they'll do almost anything to escape danger and death, even to the point of selling themselves into slavery to men and the empty myths that they promote. It's the philosophy of the devil: "Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life" (Job 2:4 nkjv). It's quite the opposite of the outlook of the Christian believer who believes John 12:24–26. The hearts of the three Jewish men (vv. 8–12). But there were three men in that great crowd who stood tall when everybody else bowed low. Their faith was in the true and living God and in the word that He had spoken to their people. Knowing the history of the Jewish people, they were confident that the Lord was in control and they had nothing to fear. The prophet Isaiah had written, "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you" (Isa. 43:1–2 nkjv). Faith means obeying God regardless of the feelings within us, the circumstances around us, or the consequences before us.
But this was more than a political assembly; it was a religious service, complete with music, and it called for total commitment on the part of the worshippers.2 Note that the word worship is used at least eleven times in the chapter. Nebuchadnezzar was wise to use instrumental music because it could stir the people's emotions and make it easy for him to manipulate them and win their submission and obedience. Throughout history, music and song have played an important role in strengthening nationalism, motivating conquest, and inspiring people to act. Music has the power so to grip human thoughts and emotions that people are transformed from being free agents into becoming mere puppets. The English poet William Congreve wrote that "music has charms to soothe a savage breast," but music also has power to release the savage in the breast. Music can be used as a wonderful tool and treasure from the Lord or as a destructive weapon from Satan.
It's difficult to reconstruct the logistics of the event,
Daniel 3
king and defended their disobedience by arguing, "Everybody else is doing it," or "Our office demands that we obey," or "We'll bow our knees but we won't bow our hearts." They might have said, "We can do our people more good by being officers in the king's service than by being ashes in the king's furnace." But true faith doesn't look for loopholes; it simply obeys God and knows that He will do what is best. Faith rests on commands and promises, not on arguments and explanations.