Psalm 150 (continued, part 26)
but it seems that King Nebuchadnezzar and his advisers ("Chaldeans") were not together as they watched the event and that the king didn't require them to join with the crowd in their worship. They may have affirmed their loyalty privately and it would be an insult for them to join with "the rabble" in their worship. Since the three Hebrew men held offices in the province (Dan. 2:49), they had to be there; but we don't know where they were standing.3 Apparently Nebuchadnezzar couldn't see them but the Chaldeans could; in fact, these evil men were no doubt watching and waiting for the opportunity to accuse these foreigners who had been promoted over the heads of the Babylonians. We don't know that this was the same group of advisers who was embarrassed when Daniel interpreted the king's dream, but if so, they quickly forgot that these "foreigners" had saved their lives.
Times of adversity are usually times of opportunity, especially when God's people are being persecuted for their faith. "You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them" (Mark 13:9 nkjv). The three courageous Jews weren't concerned about themselves, nor were they afraid of the fury of the king. Their only concern was obeying the Lord and giving a faithful witness to all who were watching and listening. Their attitude was respectful and their words were few and carefully chosen.
True faith isn't frightened by threats, impressed by crowds, or swayed by superstitious ceremonies. True faith obeys the Lord and trusts Him to work out the consequences. These three Jewish men knew the law of God—"You shall have no other gods before Me.… You shall not bow down to them nor serve them" (Ex. 20:3, 5 nkjv). Once the Lord has spoken on a matter, the matter is settled and there's no room for discussion or need for compromise. To bow before the image even once, no matter what excuse they might give, would have destroyed their witness and broken their fellowship with God. The tense of the Greek verb in Matthew 4:9 indicates that Satan asked Jesus to worship him only one time, and the Savior refused. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego would not bow down to the golden image even once because it would lead to serving Nebuchadnezzar's false gods for the rest of their lives.
"We are not careful to answer" (Dan. 3:16) means, "We don't need to defend ourselves or our God, for our God will defend both Himself and us." They weren't the least bit worried! It's a bit arrogant for God's people to think they have to defend God, for God is perfectly capable of defending Himself and taking care of His people. Our task is to obey God and trust Him, and He will do the rest. "Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation" (Isa. 12:2).
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were men of faith but not men of presumption. Had they affirmed that God would deliver them, that would have been presumption, because they didn't know what God had willed for their situation. Instead, they stated that their God was able to deliver them, but even if He didn't, they still wouldn't fall down before the king's golden image. There is such a thing as "commercial faith" that says, "We will obey God if He rewards us for doing it." Again, it's the devil's philosophy of worship: "All these things will I give You if You will fall down and worship me" (Matt. 4:9 nkjv; Job 1:9–12). In my pastoral ministry, I've heard people make promises to God so they can "persuade" Him to heal them or change their circumstances. But this isn't believing in God—it's bargaining with God. True faith confesses the Lord and obeys Him regardless of the consequences. From the very beginning of their time in Babylon, Daniel and his three friends determined that they would be different, and the Lord enabled them to maintain that determination.
True Faith Confesses the Lord (3:13–18) Once again we see the king in a fit of anger (v. 13; see v. 19; 2:12). He had conquered many cities and nations, but he could not conquer himself. "Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city" (Prov. 16:32 niv). Yet the three Hebrew officers were calm and respectful. "Always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear" (1 Peter 3:15 nkjv).
The king must have had special respect for these men and the work they did in the empire because he gave them another opportunity to comply with his orders. He may have forgotten that he had called their God "the God of gods, the Lord of kings" (Dan. 2:47 nkjv), because he arrogantly asked, "And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?" (3:15; and see Ex. 5:2). He was actually claiming to be a god himself! In a short time he would be humbled and have to confess that the God of the Hebrews is "the Most High God" and that nobody should blaspheme His name.
Hebrews 11 lists the names and deeds of great men and women of faith, including these three Jewish men (Heb. 11:34), but at verse 36, the writer says "And others" and then lists people who seem to be failures in spite of their faith (vv. 36–40). The Greek word means "others of a different kind," that is, others who had faith but didn't see God do the miracles He did for
The three men could have compromised with the
Daniel 3
unsinged, but their clothing didn't even smell like fire. The other officials at the dedication service witnessed this marvel (Dan. 3:27) and no doubt reported it when they arrived back home. What a story! The officers wouldn't dare speak up at that time, lest they offend their king. But King Nebuchadnezzar spoke out (v. 28)! He affirmed (1) the power of the God of Israel, (2) the effectiveness of faith in Him, and (3) the remarkable dedication of the three Jewish men who gave their bodies to the true God and not to the king's false god (Rom. 12:1–2). By one act of faith, the three Jewish men became witnesses of the true and living God to the entire Babylonian Empire!
those listed in the first thirty-five verses. God always rewards faith, but He doesn't always step in and perform special miracles. Not everybody who prays is healed, but God always gives strength to bear with pain and grace to face death without fear. The three Hebrew men believed that God could deliver them, but they would trust Him even if He didn't. That is how faith is supposed to operate in our lives. (See Hab. 3:17–19.)
True Faith Confounds the Enemy (3:19–25) The king's temper once more got the best of him— proud men don't like to be disobeyed—and he ordered the three Jewish believers to be thrown into the fiery furnace. They had turned down his generous offer, so they had to suffer the consequences. Whereas before, the king had been friendly with them and concerned to save them, now he was determined to destroy them. At last the court advisers would get their revenge on these Jewish exiles who had encroached on their territory and been promoted to the offices that belonged to the Chaldeans.
True Faith Confirms the Promises (3:26–30) Why did the Lord include this story in the Old Testament Scriptures? For the same reason He included stories about the "faith experiences" of Abraham, Moses, Joshua, David, and the prophets: to encourage God's people in their battle against the world, the flesh, and the devil. "For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope" (Rom. 15:4 nkjv).
The furnace was used for smelting ore. It had a large opening at the top through which fuel and vessels full of ore could be placed into the fire, and there was a door at the bottom through which the metal was taken out. An opening in a wall enabled the smelters to check on the progress of their work, and through holes in the wall they could use bellows to make the fire blaze even more. The unit was large enough for at least four persons to walk around in it. It was into this furnace that Nebuchadnezzar cast the three faithful Jews, fully clothed and bound. It seemed like certain death for the men who refused to obey the king.
Encouragement in Daniel's day. Things couldn't have been worse for the Jewish people than they were during the period of the seventy years' captivity in Babylon. Their land was devastated, the temple and the city of Jerusalem were in ruins, and the people were either scattered among the Gentiles or in bondage in Babylon. The situation looked hopeless. The prophets foresaw the day when the Jews would return to their land and rebuild the city and the temple, but first they had to endure the shame and suffering of captivity.
The king's anger must have affected his mind, for the best way to punish the men wasn't to increase the temperature but to decrease it. A hotter fire would kill them instantly and then burn them up, but a lower temperature would cause them to suffer intense pain before they died. However, it made no difference because the men weren't affected by the fire at all! When the king looked into the furnace, he saw that they were alive and not dead, loose and not bound, and that there was a fourth person with them! The king thought it was an angel who looked like "a son of the gods" (vv. 25, 28 niv), but the fourth person in the furnace was Jesus Christ in one of His preincarnate appearances in the Old Testament (Isa. 43:2; Ps. 91:9–12). They were walking about as though they were in a palace and not in a furnace! The ropes with which the three men had been bound were the only things that had been affected by the fire. The God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego was indeed able to deliver them!
The experience of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego must have greatly encouraged the faithful Jews and brought conviction to the Jews who were compromising with the enemy. These three men sent a strong message to their people: Jehovah God is still on the throne, He hasn't forsaken us, and He will one day fulfill His promises to His people. He promised to be with them in their furnace of affliction if they would trust Him and obey His will. Later, when the remnant returned to the land, the account of the fiery furnace must have helped to sustain them in those years of difficulty and delay.
Encouragement in our day. Life may be fairly safe and comfortable where you and I live, but in many parts of the world, God's people are paying a high price to maintain their testimony and their separation from the world. Day after day, they hear the herald shouting, "Fall down before the golden image! Everybody is doing it!" In his first epistle, Peter warned the church that the "fiery trial" was about to begin, and surely they remembered what happened to the three Hebrew men in the days of Nebuchadnezzar. We are told that there were more martyrs for Christ during the twentieth century than during all the preceding centuries. Not every
The three men had refused to obey the king's order to fall down before the image, but when the king ordered them to come out of the furnace, they immediately obeyed. They were living miracles, and they wanted everybody to know what their great God could do. Not only was each man's body whole and the hair
Daniel 3—4
trumpet and the pipes, and the string instruments were the five-string lyre (harp), the four-string harp (sackbut), the standard harp (psaltery), and the lute (dulcimer). 3 This raises the question, "Where was Daniel?" He was in charge of the province in which the ceremony was taking place, and we would expect the king to insist on his presence. Some suggest that Daniel was ill and couldn't attend, so the king excused him. Others believe he had been sent on a special mission by the king and was away from home. A third suggestion is that Daniel, being the ruler of the province, was "behind the scenes," making sure that everything was in order. But surely Daniel wouldn't want to participate in directing such an idolatrous activity. Since the Chaldeans were able to see the three Jewish men refusing to fall down to worship, they must have been on their feet and looking around. This may mean that the king didn't require his advisers to bow down, because he assumed they were loyal to the throne. Hence, if Daniel was absent, he wasn't committing a crime or rebelling against his king. 4 The "number" of this world ruler, the Beast, is 666 (Rev. 13:18), and Nebuchadnezzar's image was sixty cubits high and six cubits wide. Six different musical instruments are also named (Dan. 3:5, 7, 10).
believer has been spared death in the furnace, but they have been spared compromising their witness for Christ and taking the easy way out. "Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life" (Rev. 2:10 nkjv).
As we move toward the end of the age, the furnace of opposition will be heated seven times hotter, and the pressure to conform will become stronger and stronger. It will take a great deal of grace, prayer, courage, and faith for God's people to stand tall for Christ while others are bowing the knee to the gods of this world. The book of Daniel is a great source of encouragement, because it reminds us that God cares for His people and honors them when they are true to Him. "Them that honor me I will honor" (1 Sam. 2:30).
Encouragement for the future. The events in Daniel 3 remind us of prophecies found in the book of the Revelation, especially chapters 13 and 14. There will one day arise a world leader like Nebuchadnezzar ("the Beast") who will have an image of himself constructed4 and will force all the people of the world to worship him. The people who obey will be given a special mark on their forehead or their hand, and this mark will be the passport for staying alive and doing business. Those who refuse to obey will be persecuted and many of them slain (Rev. 13:4, 7, 12, 15). But the Lord will seal to Himself 144,000 Jews whom the Beast will not be able to touch, and they will come through the tribulation time to reign in Messiah's kingdom.
CHAPTER FOUR Daniel 4 LEARNING THE HARD WAY T
As our studies progress, we shall see that Daniel's book has a special bearing on "the time of the end" (Dan. 12:4) and that his prophecies will enlighten and encourage believers living in those difficult last days (Matt. 24:15). No matter how despotic the world's rulers become or how hot they stoke the furnace, God will be with His people in the furnace and will ultimately defeat their enemies and establish His kingdom.
his is a unique chapter in the Bible because it's an official autobiographical document, prepared by the king of Babylon and distributed throughout his vast kingdom.1 That Nebuchadnezzar should openly admit his pride, his temporary insanity, and his beastly behavior, and then give glory to the God of Israel for his recovery, is indeed a remarkable thing. He learned an important lesson the hard way just as people are learning it the hard way today: "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall" (Prov. 16:18 nkjv).
C.Interpreting the tree dream—4
When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie, My grace all sufficient shall be thy supply; The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine.
There are five "acts" in this extraordinary drama.
Agitation: The King's Dream (4:4–18)2 Some students believe that twenty or thirty years may have elapsed between the episode of the fiery furnace described in chapter 3 and the events described in this chapter. Nebuchadnezzar was now enjoying a time of peace and security. After defeating all his enemies and completing several impressive building projects, he was able at last to rest at home and delight in what had been accomplished. Nebuchadnezzar thought that he was the builder of "Babylon the great" and the architect of its peace and prosperity, but he was soon to learn that all these things had been permitted by the will of the Most High God.
AUTHOR UNKNOWN
1 The furnace is a metaphor for Israel's suffering in Egypt (Deut. 4:20; 1 Kings 8:51; Jer. 11:4); eternal judgment in hell (Matt. 13:42, 50; Rev. 9:2); the holy judgment of the Lord (Gen. 19:28; Ps. 21:9; Isa. 31:9; Mal. 4:1; Rev. 1:15); and times of testing for God's people (Job 23:10; Ps. 66:10; Prov. 17:3; Isa. 48:10; Jer. 6:27–30; 9:7; Mal. 3:3). 2 Six different instruments are named, two of them wind and the rest string, but the phrase "all kinds of music" (vv. 5, 7) indicates that many more musical instruments were used, and possibly vocal music as well. The wind instruments were the
Once again God in His grace used a dream to communicate an important message to Nebuchadnezzar. In his first dream (Dan. 2), the king saw a great metallic
Daniel 4
together in the affairs of Babylon, he had sought to introduce him to the true and living God.
image of which he was the head of gold, but in this dream he saw a huge flourishing3 tree that fed and sheltered a host of animals and birds. He heard an angel command that the tree be chopped down, its branches and leaves cut off, its fruit scattered, and its stump banded with iron and bronze. Then a command from the angel announced that someone would live like a beast for "seven times" and then be restored. After the first dream—that of the great image—King Nebuchadnezzar was troubled (2:3), but after this second dream, he was terrified (4:5 niv). He summoned his wise men and asked them for the interpretation of the dream, but they were baffled; so he called for Daniel. After the experience of the first dream, when the wise men failed so miserably, you would think Nebuchadnezzar would have bypassed his advisers and called Daniel immediately. But it seems that in the record of both of these dreams, Daniel is kept apart from the wise men, even though he was "master of the magicians" (v. 9). The Lord wants to remind us that the wisdom of this world is futile and that only He can give a true understanding of the future.
Years before, Daniel had announced to Nebuchadnezzar, "You are this head of gold" (Dan. 2:38 nkjv); and now he announced, "It [the tree] is you, O king" (4:22 nkjv). Trees are often used in Scripture as symbols of political authority, such as kings, nations, and empires (Ezek. 17; 31; Hos. 14; Zech. 11:1–2; Luke 23:31). With the help of the Most High and by His decree, Nebuchadnezzar had built a vast empire that sheltered many nations and peoples. He ruled a great kingdom, a strong kingdom, and a kingdom whose dominion reached "to the end of the earth" (Dan. 4:22).
But the king was taking credit for these achievements and was in great danger because his heart was becoming proud. The king had learned from the first dream that the Most High God ruled in the kingdom of men and no earthly throne was secure. The Babylonian kingdom would end one day and God would raise up another kingdom to take its place. In the episode of the fiery furnace, Nebuchadnezzar had witnessed the miracle of the preservation of the three faithful Hebrew men, and he had decreed that nobody speak against their great God (3:29). But now Nebuchadnezzar was about to meet this Most High God and receive severe discipline from His hand.
Nebuchadnezzar had changed Daniel's name to Belteshazzar, which means "Bel protect his life" (vv. 8, 19; see 1:7). Bel (Marduk) was one of the king's favorite gods. The fact that Nebuchadnezzar used both the Hebrew name and the new name in this document suggests that he had grown fond of Daniel over the years and didn't treat him like the ordinary exile. The king recognized that "the spirit of the gods" was in Daniel and had given him remarkable wisdom and insight.4
The cutting down and trimming of the tree symbolized Nebuchadnezzar's disgrace and removal from the throne, but the leaving of the stump was a promise that he would one day reign again.6 The banding of the stump may suggest that he was marked by God and protected by Him until His purposes for him were fulfilled. For seven years ("seven times") the king would live like a beast, eating grass and feeling the forces of nature against his body. Years later, Daniel would tell Nebuchadnezzar's grandson Belshazzar that his grandfather had lived with the wild donkeys (5:21).7
The king described his dream to Daniel: the vastness of the tree (note the repetition of "all" in vv. 11–12), the terrifying words of the angel, the transformation of a man into a beast, and the affirmation of the angel that all of this was by the decree of the Most High God. The dream was sent to teach an important lesson: "the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of men" (v. 17 niv). God saw the pride in Nebuchadnezzar's heart and was prepared to deal with it. The king could issue his decrees (2:13, 15; 3:10, 29; 6:7–10, 12–13, 15, 26), but it was the decrees from the throne of heaven that ruled events on earth (4:17, 24; 9:24–27). "The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all" (Ps. 103:19 niv).
The grand lesson God wanted the king to learn— and that we must learn today—is that God alone is sovereign and will not permit mortals to usurp His throne or take credit for His works. We are but creatures, and God is the Creator; we are only subjects, but He is the King of Kings. When men and women refuse to submit themselves to God as creatures made in His image, they are in grave danger of descending to the level of animals. It's worth noting that God used animals when He wanted to describe the great empires of history (Dan. 7), and that the last great world dictator is called "the beast" (Rev. 11:7; 13:1ff.; 14:9, 11; etc.).
Interpretation: The King's Danger (4:19–26) After hearing the description of the dream, Daniel was stunned and troubled, and the king could see the perplexity on his face.5 Daniel's thoughts were troubled because he saw what lay ahead of the successful monarch. He tactfully prepared the king for bad news by saying that he wished the dream applied to the king's enemies and not to the king. (See 2 Sam. 18:32.) We get the impression that Daniel had a great personal concern for the monarch, and as they had worked
Men and women are made in the image of God, but when they leave God out of their lives and resist His will, they can descend to the level of animals. "Do not be like the horse or like the mule," warned King David, who was guilty of acting like both (Ps. 32:9 nkjv). Like the impulsive horse, he rushed into sin when he committed adultery with Bathsheba, and then like the stubborn mule, he delayed confessing his sins and repenting (2 Sam. 11—12). When the Lord
Daniel 4
judges the poor with fairness, his throne will always be secure" (Prov. 29:14 niv), but Nebuchadnezzar was about to lose his throne.
arrested Saul of Tarsus on the Damascus Road, He compared the pious rabbi to a stubborn ox when He said, "It is hard for you to kick against the goads" (Acts 9:5 nkjv).
Daniel was calling for repentance. He wanted the king to change his mind, acknowledge his sins, turn from them, and put his faith in the true and living God, the Most High God of the Hebrews. Nebuchadnezzar knew enough about Daniel's God to know that what Daniel spoke was the truth, but he did nothing about it.9 The king was passing up a gracious opportunity to make a new beginning and submit to the will of the Most High God. He made the wrong decision.
Exhortation: The King's Decision (4:27) Daniel concluded his explanation of prophecy with an exhortation to obedience and urged the king to turn from his sins and humble himself before the Lord (v. 27). Unlike some preachers, Daniel didn't divorce truth from responsibility. There was a "therefore" in his message. I have participated in numerous prophetic conferences and heard a great deal of interpretation and some speculation, but I haven't always heard personal and practical application. Some of the speakers talked a great deal about what God would do in the future, but they said very little about what He expected of His people in the present. An understanding of God's plan imposes on the hearer the responsibility to do God's will. To hear and understand the Word but not obey it is to deceive ourselves into thinking we have grown spiritually when we have actually moved backward (James 1:22–27).
Humiliation: The King's Discipline (4:28–33) "All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar" (v. 28), because God's Word never fails to fulfill its purposes.10 God graciously gave the king an entire year in which to heed His warning and repent of his sins, but the king refused to yield. Pride had so gripped his heart that he would not submit to the Most High God. "Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil" (Eccl. 8:11 nkjv). God waited patiently in the days of Noah and gave the inhabitants of the world 120 years to turn from their sins, but they refused (1 Peter 3:20; Gen. 6:3). He gave the city of Jerusalem almost forty years of grace after the religious leaders crucified their Messiah, and then the Romans came and destroyed the city and the temple. Just think of how longsuffering He has been with this present evil world (2 Peter 3:9)!
"We can speak so glibly about the coming of our Lord and about the judgment seat of Christ," said William Culbertson, late president of Moody Bible Institute. "You do not truly hold the truth of the doctrine of the return of the Lord Jesus Christ until that doctrine holds you and influences your manner of living as the Bible says it should."8 Peter's admonition in 2 Peter 3:11–18 explains how Christians behave when they really believe the Lord will return.
Nebuchadnezzar was probably walking on the flat roof of his palace, looking out over the great city when he spoke those fateful words recorded in Daniel 4:30.11 One thing is sure: he was walking in pride (v. 37), and pride is one of the sins that God hates (Prov. 6:16ff.). "When pride comes, then comes shame; but with the humble is wisdom" (11:2 nkjv). "God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6 nkjv; Prov. 3:34; 1 Peter 5:5). It was pride that transformed the angel Lucifer into the devil (Isa. 14:12–15), and it was pride that brought about the downfall of King Uzziah (2 Chron. 26:16–21).
In ancient times, an Eastern monarch exercised supreme authority and was master of life and death. Daniel knew that the king had a violent temper (Dan. 2:12; 3:19) and that he was walking a dangerous path as he confronted him with his sins; and yet the faithful prophet must proclaim the Word and leave the consequences with the Lord. Moses learned that in the court of Pharaoh, and so did Nathan in the court of David when he told the king "You are the man!" (2 Sam. 12:7 nkjv). Elijah boldly confronted wicked King Ahab and Queen Jezebel (1 Kings 18:17ff.), Isaiah rebuked Hezekiah (Isa. 39), and John the Baptist told King Herod to break off his evil relationship with Herodias (Mark 6:14–29). Preachers who tailor their messages to please people will never enjoy the blessing of God.
A solemn voice from heaven interrupted the king's egotistical meditations and announced that the time of probation had ended and judgment was about to fall. We never know when God's voice will speak or His hand touch our lives. Whether it's the call of Moses in Midian (Ex. 3), the drafting of Gideon to lead the army (Judg. 6), the opportunity of David to kill a giant (1 Sam. 17), the summons to the four fishermen to leave all and follow Christ (Matt. 4:18–22), or the warning that life has come to an end (Luke 12:16–21), God has every right to break into our lives and speak to us. What the king had learned from Daniel's interpretation of the dream, he now heard from heaven! "No man knows when his hour will come" (Eccl. 9:12 niv).
Unlike the Jewish rulers, who were supposed to be accessible to their people and serve them as shepherds, Eastern kings lived in splendid isolation and heard only the good news. Being a high official in the land, Daniel knew that Nebuchadnezzar had not been concerned about the poor or shown mercy to those in need. Daniel also knew how many times in the law of Moses the Lord spoke of Himself as the protector and defender of the poor, the aliens, and the oppressed. Perhaps Nebuchadnezzar had exploited the people in pursuing his extensive building operations, and wealth that should have helped the poor had been used to gratify the selfish appetites of the proud king. "If a king
God is longsuffering with sinners, but when the time comes for Him to act, there is no delay. The words
Daniel 4
earth are regarded as nothing" (Dan. 4:35a niv)—and that would include the king! Perhaps Daniel had quoted the prophet Isaiah to the king: "Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket, and are counted as the small dust on the scales. … It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers" (Isa. 40:15, 22 nkjv).
were still on Nebuchadnezzar's lips when everything began to change. His heart became like that of an animal (Dan. 4:16), and he was driven from the royal palace to live in the fields with the beasts. Since the man was beastly at heart, God allowed his brutish nature to be revealed openly. It's likely that Daniel and the other officers managed the affairs of the kingdom during the king's seven years of discipline, so that when the king returned to the throne, he found everything in good order. That in itself was a strong witness to Nebuchadnezzar of God's grace and Daniel's faithfulness. How much the common people knew about this judgment isn't revealed in the record. It's been suggested that the court officials kept the king in the palace gardens and not in the public eye, but Daniel 5:21 states that he was driven from people and lived with wild donkeys. His mind and heart, and even his body, became beastly for seven years.12
The king acknowledged the sovereignty of God (v. 35b), which was the main lesson God wanted him to learn through this difficult experience (vv. 17, 25, 32). It's too bad that this wonderful Bible doctrine has been so maligned and misinterpreted by amateur Bible students, because an understanding of God's sovereignty brings the believer assurance, strength, comfort, and the kind of surrender that produces faith and freedom. The Bible teaches both divine sovereignty and human responsibility, and when you accept both, there is no contradiction or conflict. No person is more free than the believer who surrenders to the sovereign will of God. To ignore God's sovereignty is to exalt human responsibility and make man his own savior, but to deny responsibility is to make man a robot without accountability. The Bible preserves a beautiful balance that exalts God and enables His people to live joyously and victoriously no matter what the circumstances might be (Acts 4:23–31; Rom. 8:31–39).
God could have destroyed both the king and his kingdom, but He still had purposes to fulfill for His people and His prophet Daniel. Furthermore, God wanted the king to tell the whole empire what He had done for him so that His name would be glorified among the nations. It was the privilege and responsibility of Israel to be a light to the Gentiles (Isa. 42:6; 49:6), but they failed miserably and started practicing the darkness of the pagan nations. So, God used a pagan king to give glory to His name!
Because God is sovereign, He can do as His pleases and nobody can hinder Him or call Him to account (Rom. 9:14–23). The heart of sinful man rebels at the very idea of a sovereign God, for the human heart wants to be "free" of all outside control (Ps. 2:1–6). Sinners think they are "free" and don't realize how much they are in bondage to their fallen nature and to the forces of Satan and the world. Charles Spurgeon was very balanced in his theology, and he said:
Restoration: The King's Deliverance (4:34–37, 1–3) The first-person narrative picks up again in verse 34, for at the end of the seven years, as God had promised, Nebuchadnezzar was delivered from his affliction and restored to sanity and normal human life. It began with the king lifting his eyes to God, which suggests both faith and submission. "I lift up my eyes to you, to you whose throne is in heaven" (Ps. 123:1 niv). "Look to Me, and be saved, all you ends of the earth!" (Isa. 45:22 nkjv). Some students believe that Nebuchadnezzar experienced spiritual conversion, and his testimony in these verses would seem to back that up. We have no idea what the king had learned about the God of Israel as he had listened to Daniel over those many years, but now the seed was producing fruit.
Most men quarrel with this [the sovereignty of God]. But mark, the thing that you complain of in God is the very thing that you love in yourselves.
Every man likes to feel that he has a right to do with his own as he pleases. We all like to be little sovereigns. Oh, for a spirit that bows always before the sovereignty of God.13
The first thing the king did was to praise the Lord (vv. 34–35). What a concise compendium of biblical theology this is, and what an exciting expression of worship! Theology and doxology belong together (Rom. 11:33–36), for spiritual experience that isn't based on truth is only superstition. The God of the Hebrews is the Most High God. Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom was limited, but God's kingdom includes everything in heaven and earth. Babylon would one day fall and give way to another empire, but God's kingdom will remain forever. Nothing can destroy His kingdom or defeat His purposes.
The Most High God is so wise and powerful that He can ordain that His creatures have the freedom to make decisions and even disobey His revealed will, and yet He can accomplish His divine purposes on this earth. "Man's will is free because God is sovereign," said A. W. Tozer, who was not a confessed Calvinist. "A God less than sovereign could not bestow moral freedom upon His creatures. He would be afraid to do so."14 Submitting to God's sovereign will didn't make Nebuchadnezzar any less of a man; in fact, this commitment transformed him from living like a beast to living like a man!
Seven years before, the king considered himself a great man and his kingdom a great kingdom, but now he had a different viewpoint. "All the peoples of the
Finally, Nebuchadnezzar gave joyful witness to
Daniel 4—5
all peoples of the marvelous grace of God (vv. 1–3). In this preamble to the official account of his experience, the king extolled God's mighty wonders and His eternal kingdom, and he boldly announced that God had done great signs and wonders on his behalf. How different from Pharaoh's response to what the Lord did in Egypt! Instead of obeying the word given by Moses, Pharaoh saw God's power demonstrated in the plagues and continued to resist the Lord. He arrogantly declared, "Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go" (Ex. 5:2). As a result of his rebellion, his country was ruined, thousands of people died, and Israel was still delivered from his power! When God isn't permitted to rule, He overrules and accomplishes His divine purposes for His glory.
and may be translated "God." But it's not likely that Nebuchadnezzar had the true God of Israel in mind. 5 The KJV translates it "astonished for one hour," but the text can be translated "for a moment, for a brief time." It's difficult to believe that the king would wait that long for one of his officers to reply or that the conversation recorded in verse 19 consumed that much time. The NASB reads "appalled for a while." 6 In Isaiah 10:33—11:5, a similar image is used with reference to Messiah. God permitted the "tree" of Israel to be cut down by their enemies, but out from the stump the Messiah would eventually come. 7 In Daniel 5, Belshazzar is called the son of Nebuchadnezzar (vv. 18–22), but it's likely that he was his grandson through his mother who was a daughter of Nebuchadnezzar. In Scripture, the words son and father are sometimes used in a general sense to mean "relative, descendant." 8 William Culbertson, The Faith Once Delivered (Chicago: Moody Press, 1972), 54–55. 9 Did God know that the king would not repent that day? Of course He did, because He knows all things. Did that make His offer less than sincere? No, because neither Daniel nor the king knew what might happen when Daniel urged Nebuchadnezzar to repent. Had the king repented, the Lord would have relented and called off the judgment. The situation was similar to that of Jonah and Nineveh. 10 It's obvious that someone else wrote verses 28–33 since the first person "I" is replaced by the third person "the king." It was likely Daniel who added this to the official report. 11 The phrase "great Babylon" reappears in Revelation 17 and 18, but the city wasn't very great after God finished with it! See also Jeremiah 50—51. 12 While much that's written about werewolves is based on mythology, medical science has recorded the strange mental disease lycanthropy in which the victims think they are animals and they start to look and act like animals. What happened to Nebuchadnezzar was a direct judgment from the Lord that began immediately and ended when Daniel said it would end. This would not be true of a natural affliction. 13 Charles H. Spurgeon, The New Park Street Pulpit (Puritan Publications, 1981), vol. 4, 82. 14 A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy (New York: Harper, 1961), 118.
What was the result of this "conversion" experience? God not only restored the king's reason and removed the beastly heart and mind, but He also graciously restored the king's honor and splendor and gave him back his throne! He testified that he "became even greater than before" (Dan. 4:36). Where sin had abounded, grace abounded even more (Rom. 5:20). Instead of boasting about his own accomplishments, Nebuchadnezzar said, "Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of heaven" (Dan. 4:37).
He closed his official statement with a word of warning based on the lessons the Lord had taught him: "Those that walk in pride, he [God] is able to abase" (v. 37). The world today doesn't think that pride is a wicked and dangerous sin, but instead practices flattery and exaggeration and exalts the words and the works of the "successful people" of the day. Some of them lack moral character, but as long as they are achievers, they get worldwide attention in the media. One day, the Lord will come in judgment, and His promise is this: "I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless" (Isa. 13:11 niv).
Our Lord has the last word: "For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted" (Matt. 23:12 niv).
D.Interpreting the handwriting on the wall—5
CHAPTER FIVE Daniel 5 NUMBERED, WEIGHED, AND REJECTED M
1 Verses 28–33 were written by another hand, but Nebuchadnezzar picks up the narrative in verse 34. Daniel himself may have written verses 28–33 and inserted them in the official royal document. Luke followed a similar approach in Acts 23:25–30. Neither the Babylonian king nor the Roman officer was inspired by the Spirit when they wrote, but Daniel and Luke were led by the Spirit to include their writings in what we know as Holy Scripture. 2 Since verses 1–3 were written after the king's recovery, we'll consider them when we study verses 34–37. 3 The Hebrew word translated "flourishing" (v. 4) and "prosperous" (NIV) means "growing green like a tree" (see Job 15:32; Ps. 92:14; Hos. 14:5). It describes luxurious growth. 4 The word gods in verses 9 and 18 is "Elohim" in the original
any people who know little or nothing about the Babylonians, Belshazzar's feast, or Daniel's prophecies use the phrase "the handwriting on the wall." The phrase comes from this chapter (v. 5) and announces impending judgment. Belshazzar, his wives and concubines, and a thousand notable guests were feasting and drinking while the army of the
Daniel 5
gold (Babylon) would be replaced by the breast and arms of silver (the Medo-Persian Empire). Daniel had seen this truth further verified in his vision recorded in Daniel 7, when he saw the Babylonian lion defeated by the Medo-Persian bear (vv. 1–5). This was in the first year of Belshazzar (v. 1). In his arrogant false confidence, Belshazzar was defying the will of God. "He says to himself, 'Nothing will shake me; I'll always be happy and never have trouble'" (Ps. 10:6 niv).
Medes and Persians waited at the city gates, ready to invade. The city of Babylon boasted that it was impregnable and that there was enough food stored away to feed the population for twenty years! But the Lord said that Babylon's time had come. "The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations" (Ps. 33:10–11 nkjv). The will of God shall be done, no matter what.
Irreverence (vv. 2–4). Was the king drunk when he ordered the servants to bring in the consecrated vessels that had been taken from the temple in Jerusalem? (See 1:2; 2 Chron. 36:9–10.) His grandfather2 Nebuchadnezzar had decreed that all peoples were to give respect to the God of the Jews (Dan. 3:29), and he himself had praised the Lord for His sovereignty and greatness (4:34–37). But as the years passed, the great king's words were forgotten, and his grandson Belshazzar treated the God of Israel with arrogant disrespect. Both the men and the women at the feast impudently used these valuable consecrated vessels like common drinking cups, and while they were drinking, they praised the false gods of Babylon! After all, the gods of Babylon had defeated the God of the Hebrews, so what was there to fear? Belshazzar and his guests could not have behaved more blasphemously. But people can defy the will of God and blaspheme His name only so long, and then the hand of the Lord begins to move.
We shall look at the persons involved in this drama and see how they related to the plan of God.
Belshazzar—Judgment Defied (5:1–4) The great King Nebuchadnezzar died in 562 BC and was succeeded by his son Evil-Merodach, who reigned for only two years. His brother-in-law Neriglissar murdered him in 560, usurped the throne, and ruled for four years. Then a weak puppet ruler (LabashiMarduk) held the throne for two months, and finally Nabonidus became king and reigned from 556 to 539. Historians believe Nabonidus was married to a daughter of Nebuchadnezzar and was the father of Belshazzar. Nabonidus ruled the Babylonian Empire, but Belshazzar, his son, was coregent and ruled the city of Babylon.1
Indulgence (v. 1). Oriental despots took great pleasure in hosting great banquets and displaying their wealth and splendor (see Est. 1). Archeologists tell us that there were halls in the city of Babylon adequate for gatherings this large and larger. This feast was a microcosm of the world system and focused on "the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life" (1 John 2:16). "What shall we eat?" and "What shall we drink?" are the questions most people want answered as they go through life (Matt. 6:25–34), and they're willing to follow anybody who will entertain them and gratify their appetites. Why worry about the enemy when you have security and plenty to eat?
The Lord—Judgment Declared (5:5–9) "Do you not know this of old, since man was placed on earth, that the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite is but for a moment? Though his haughtiness mounts up to the heavens, and his head reaches to the clouds, yet he will perish forever like his own refuse" (Job 20:4–7 nkjv). Zophar's words didn't apply to Job, but they certainly applied to Belshazzar, and they apply today to anybody who defies the will of God.
Indifference (v. 1). Belshazzar knew that the army of the Medes and Persians was encamped outside the city, but he was indifferent to the danger that they posed. After all, the city was surrounded by a complex series of walls, some of them over three hundred feet high, and there were numerous defense towers on the walls. Could any army break through the fortified bronze gates? Wasn't there sufficient water for the people from the Euphrates River that flowed through the city from north to south, and wasn't there adequate food stored in the city? If ever a man was proud of his achievements and basked in self-confidence, it was Belshazzar. But it was a false confidence, not unlike what will happen to the people of this world before God declares war. "For when they say, 'Peace and safety!' then sudden destruction comes upon them" (1 Thess. 5:3 nkjv).
Look at the wall (v. 5). Without warning, the fingers of a human hand appeared in an area of the plastered wall that was illuminated by a lampstand, and it must have been an awesome sight. The revelry gradually ceased, and the banquet hall became deathly quiet as the king and his guests stared in amazement at words being written on the wall. Both Hebrew and Aramaic are read from right to left, and the vowels must be supplied by the reader; but we aren't told whether the four words were written in a line
N S R H P L K T N M N M
or in a square to be read from the top down
P T M M R K N N S L ' ' 3
Belshazzar had been indifferent to the information God had given his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar in his famous dream (Dan. 2). It was decreed that the head of
Whether the message followed either pattern or a
Daniel 5
defined an optimist as "a person who believes that what's going to happen will be postponed."
different one, the writing was a miracle from the God of Israel that the idols of Babylon could never accomplish. "They have hands, but they handle not" (Ps. 115:7). It was the finger of God that defeated the Egyptians when Pharaoh refused to let the people go (Ex. 8:19), and the finger of God that wrote the holy law for Israel on the tablets of stone (31:18). Jesus said that He cast out demons "by the finger of God" (Luke 11:20), referring to the power of the Spirit (Matt. 12:28). Now the finger of God was writing a warning to the Babylonian leaders that the hand of God would very soon execute judgment.
Her attitude didn't match the gravity of the situation, but her suggestion was a good one: summon Daniel, the king's greatest adviser. Her words reveal another characteristic of King Belshazzar—ignorance. It seems incredible that he didn't know Daniel, one of the highest officers in Babylon, and certainly the wisest counselor in the empire. Belshazzar had been told about his grandfather's dreams and Daniel's interpretations (v. 22), but too often younger leaders are so concerned about themselves and the present that they forget to catch up on the past. Had young King Rehoboam listened to the counsel of the elders of Israel, he would have avoided a great deal of trouble (1 Kings 12).
Look at the king (vv. 6–7). Neither his exalted position nor his arrogant self-confidence could keep Belshazzar's face from turning pale, his heart from being overcome by terror, and his knees from knocking together. It must have been humiliating for the great ruler to be so out of control before so many important people. God had turned the banquet hall into a courtroom and the king was about to be declared guilty. If the king couldn't control the moving fingers, at least he could try to understand the message, so he called for his wise men and commanded them to explain the meaning of the message on the wall, offering royal honors and gifts to the one who explained the message. He would wear a royal robe and a golden chain, both of which denoted authority, and he would become third ruler under Nabonidus and Belshazzar.
The queen mother's description of Daniel certainly shows what God can do in and through dedicated people. Daniel brought "light and understanding and wisdom" into every situation and was able to explain mysteries, solve riddles, and unravel hard problems. His interpretations always proved correct and his prophecies were always fulfilled. During my many years of ministry, I have known a few men and women who were especially gifted in "understanding the times" and determining what the Lord wanted us to do. And yet every believer can claim the promise of James 1:5 and seek the mind of the Lord about any perplexing problem.
Look at the wise men (vv. 8–9). History repeats itself (2:10–13; 4:4–7) as the counselors confessed their inability to interpret the message on the wall. Even if they could have read the words, they didn't have the key to deciphering the meaning of the message. Mene could mean "mina," which was a measure of money, or the word numbered. Tekel could mean "shekel" (another unit of money) or the word weighed; and peres (the plural is parsin) could mean "halfshekel," "half mina," or the word divided. It could also refer to Persia!
Daniel—Judgment Described (5:13–29) If he was sixteen when he was taken to Babylon in 605 BC, and Babylon fell to the Medes and Persians in 539, then Daniel was eighty-two years old when Belshazzar summoned him to the banquet hall, and perhaps he had been retired from royal service for many years. However, true servants of God never abandon their ministries even in retirement but are always available to respond to God's call "in season, out of season" (2 Tim. 4:2). The king's offer (vv. 13–17). To the king's shame, he knew Daniel only by name and reputation but did not know him personally. Yet Daniel had "done the king's business" in the third year of his reign (8:1, 27), which would have been 554 BC. What a tragedy that the ruler of the mighty city of Babylon should ignore one of the greatest men in history and turn to him only in the last hours of his life when it was too late. Had the queen mother told her son about this remarkable Jewish exile and yet he paid no attention? What kept the king so busy that he had no time to sit at the feet of God's prophet and learn from him the things that really mattered in life? "The older I grow, the more I distrust the familiar doctrine that age brings wisdom," wrote newspaper editor H. L. Mencken. But Daniel possessed much more than the human wisdom that comes from experience; he had the kind of supernatural knowledge and wisdom that can come only from God. How much Belshazzar could have learned from him!
The ignorance of the wise men made the king even more terrified, and his lords were perplexed and confused and could offer him no help. The time had come when political authority, wealth, power, and human wisdom could do nothing to solve the problem. Once again, the Lord had exposed the ignorance of the world and the futility of human power to discover and explain the mind and will of God.
The Queen Mother—Judgment Disregarded (5:10–12) The rest of the palace heard about the crisis in the banquet hall, and when the news came to the queen mother, she immediately went to her son to offer counsel and encouragement. He first words were, "Don't be alarmed! Don't look so pale!" (v. 10 niv). Things aren't as bad as they appear to be! She was optimistic about the whole situation and certain that, once the handwriting was accurately interpreted, everything would be fine. The American humorist Kin Hubbard once
Daniel 5
ing and apply God's revelation to the people in the banquet hall, especially the king. Daniel didn't interpret the words to signify units of money (mina, shekel, half-mina, or half-shekel) but to convey warning to the king. The word mina meant "numbered," and the repetition of the word indicated that God had determined and established the end of the kingdom and it would happen shortly (Gen. 41:32). Babylon's days were numbered! More than that, tekel indicated that the king himself had been weighed by God and found wanting; so the king's days were numbered. Who would bring an end to the kingdom and the king of Babylon? The answer was in the third word, peres, which carried a double meaning: "divided" and "Persia." Babylon would be divided between the Medes and the Persians, whose armies were at the gates of the city that very night.
The scenario wasn't a new one for Daniel: a revelation from God, a fearful and frustrated ruler, incompetent counselors, and God's servant to the rescue. He paid little attention to the king's flattering speech, and he had no use for the king's generous offer. Even if he had been younger, Daniel would have had no interest in either personal wealth or political power. "Not greedy for money" is one of the qualifications of a servant of God (1 Tim. 3:3 nkjv; see 1 Peter 5:2). Along with Daniel, servants like Moses (Num. 16:15), Samuel (1 Sam. 12:3), and Paul (Acts 20:33) exemplify this unselfish attitude. They simply were not for sale.
The prophet's rebuke (vv. 18–24). Daniel was respectful to the king but he was not afraid to tell him the truth. Even if we don't respect the officer and the way he or she lives, we must respect the office, for "the powers that be are ordained of God" (Rom. 13:1). From the very beginning of their lives in Babylon (Dan. 1), Daniel and his friends had always exercised humility and tact when dealing with the authorities, and because of this, God blessed them. "Sound speech, that cannot be condemned" (Titus 2:8) is standard equipment for the obedient servant of God.
There are times when God gives warnings in order to bring sinners to repentance, such as when he sent Jonah to Nineveh (Jonah 3); but there are also times when His warnings are final and divine judgment is determined. When God warned Nebuchadnezzar about his pride and unconcern for the poor, He gave the king a year in which to repent and seek God's forgiveness (Dan. 4:28–33). The king refused to humble himself and judgment fell. But when Daniel confronted Belshazzar, he offered him no way of escape.
The king didn't know Daniel personally, but Daniel certainly knew the personal life of the king! He knew of his pride and his knowledge of the history of his grandfather, but Daniel reviewed that history just the same. "Those who do not remember the past are condemned to relive it," wrote philosopher George Santayana, and Belshazzar qualified. The lesson that Nebuchadnezzar learned and that his grandson Belshazzar heard about but ignored was that "the Most High God ruled in the kingdom of men" (Dan. 5:21). The God of Israel alone is the true and living God and rules sovereignly in all the affairs of this world, including the affairs of the great empire of Babylon!
Even though Daniel didn't want the rewards, the king kept his promise and clothed him in royal purple, hung the golden chain around his neck, and declared that he was third ruler in the kingdom. Daniel didn't protest; he knew that the city would fall that very night and that the conquerors wouldn't care who was in office. They were now in command.
Darius—Judgment Delivered (5:30–31) The phrase "that very night" (v. 30 niv) has an ominous ring to it. "He who is often reproved, and hardens his neck, will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy" (Prov. 29:1 nkjv). Belshazzar was slain that very night and the head of gold was replaced by the arms and chest of silver. According to historians, the date was October 12, 539 BC.
Nebuchadnezzar showed his pride by boasting about his achievements and taking credit for what God had helped him accomplish (4:29–30), but his grandson displayed his pride by desecrating the holy vessels from the temple of the Most High God and treating the Lord with contempt. By using the vessels of the true God to praise the idols of Babylon, the king was guilty of both blasphemy and idolatry; by ignoring what he knew of Babylonian royal history, he displayed his ignorance. Belshazzar acted as though he was in command and his life would go on for many more years, yet the very breath in his mouth was controlled by the hand of God (5:23). "For in him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:28). "This night your soul will be required of you" (Luke 12:20 nkjv).
The conquest of Babylon was engineered by Cyrus, king of Persia (1:21; 6:28; 10:1; and see 2 Chron. 36:22–23; Ezra 3—5, passim), who was God's chosen servant for the task (Isa. 44:28; 45:1–4). Who then was "Darius the Mede," mentioned in Daniel (Dan. 5:31; 6:1, 9, 25, 28; 9:1)? Many students believe that Darius was Gubaru, an important officer in the army whom Cyrus made ruler of the province of Babylon. Darius the Mede must not be confused with Darius I, who ruled from 522 to 486 and encouraged the Jewish remnant in the restoration of the temple (Ezra 1; 5—6).4
Like King Belshazzar and his guests, many people in our world today are unmindful of the lessons of the past, unintelligent when it comes to interpreting the present, and totally unprepared for the consequences that lie in the future.
Because of the high walls, the guard towers, and the strong bronze gates, the people in the city of Babylon thought they were safe from the enemy; but the MedoPersian army found a way to get into the city. The Euphrates River flowed through Babylon from north
The Lord's warning (vv. 25–29). Anyone who knew Aramaic could have read the words written on the wall, but Daniel was able to interpret their mean-
Daniel 5—6
to south, and by diverting the stream, the army was able to go under the city gates and into the city. The conquest of Babylon and its ultimate destruction had been predicted by Isaiah (Isa. 13—14; 21; 47) and Jeremiah (Jer. 50—51). Babylon had been God's chosen instrument to chasten His people Israel, but the Babylonian army had carried things too far and mistreated the Jews (50:33–34). The conquest of Babylon was also God's punishment for what they had done to His temple (50:28; 51:11).
the first and third years of Belshazzar's reign (7:1; 8:1). From the king's dream in chapter 2 and the vision in chapter 7, Daniel knew the succession of empires and that the Medes and Persians would conquer the city. 2 The word father in vv. 1, 11, 13, 18, and 22 simply means "relative," in this case, his grandfather. 3 The apostrophes represent the letter aleph, which is the "soundless" first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The U in UPHARSIN represents the character for "and." 4 Some scholars think that "Darius" was the title of the Persian ruler just as "Pharaoh" was the title of the Egyptian ruler. This would mean that "Darius the Mede" could have been Cyrus himself.
The prophecies were fulfilled and ancient Babylon is no more, but "mystery Babylon" is still with us (Rev. 17:5, 7; 18:2, 10). Throughout Scripture, Babylon (the rebel city) is contrasted to Jerusalem (the Holy City). Babylon was founded by Nimrod, a rebel against the Lord (Gen. 10:8–10). It is seen in Scripture as the great city of this world, while Jerusalem symbolizes the eternal city of God. Revelation 17 and 18 describe the rise and fall of "mystery Babylon" in the end times, the satanic system that will seduce the world's peoples and entice them to reject the message of God and live for the sinful pleasures of this life. If you compare Jeremiah 50—51 with Revelation 18, you will see many similarities between the Babylon of ancient history and the Babylon of future prophecy. The future Babylonian world system will help Antichrist, the man of sin, rise to power in this world, but his kingdom will be destroyed by Jesus Christ when He returns to reign (19:11–21).
CHAPTER SIX Daniel 6 LIARS, LAWS, AND LIONS D
arius the Mede must not be confused with Darius I, who ruled Persia from 522 to 486 and during whose reign the temple was restored by the Jewish remnant at Jerusalem. Darius the Mede was probably the name (or title) of the man King Cyrus appointed ruler of the city of Babylon (9:1) until he himself took charge; or it may have been the title Cyrus himself took when he came to reign.1 King Cyrus ruled the Persian empire from 539 to 530 and was succeeded by Cambyses (530–522).
E.Daniel in the lions' den—6
Years ago, Dr. Harry Rimmer published a book on prophecy called Straight Ahead Lies Yesterday, a title that could well be given to the book of Daniel. The world has always had its great cities, its mighty empires, and its powerful dictators, but the Most High God still reigns in heaven and on the earth and accomplishes His purposes. No nation, leader, or individual citizen can long resist Almighty God and win the battle.
As is often the case after a conquest, the new ruler wants to reorganize the government of the conquered kingdom so as to establish his authority and make things conform to his own leadership goals. But when Darius began to reorganize Babylon, he brought to light a conflict between his officers and Daniel, a veteran administrator who was now in his eighties. Today, wherever you find dedicated believers living and working with unbelievers, you will often see the same forces at work that are described in this chapter, whether in families, churches, corporations, or governments.
On the occasion of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897, poet and novelist Rudyard Kipling wrote a poem titled "Recessional." It wasn't received with great applause and approval because he warned the celebrating nation (and empire) that God was in charge and that pride eventually leads to defeat. One stanza reads:
Honesty Versus Corruption (6:1–4) Darius must have suspected that the officers he had inherited were not doing their work faithfully but were robbing him of wealth, and his suspicions were correct. It was impossible for Darius to keep his hands on everything in the empire, because that would have involved supervising every worker, auditing every account, and checking on every assignment. The king had to depend on his officers to see that the work was done well, and this meant he had to appoint officers he could trust. Darius was a man experienced in the ways of the world, and he knew that there was plenty of opportunity for graft in the Babylonian government (see Eccl. 5:8–9).
The tumult and the shouting dies; The captains and the kings depart— Still stands Thine ancient Sacrifice, An humble and a contrite heart. Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, Lest we forget—lest we forget!
Belshazzar forgot the Word of God and the lessons of history and lost his kingdom and his life.
May we not make the same mistakes today!
A wise leader first gathers information, and Darius soon learned about Daniel and the reputation he had for honesty and wisdom, what the KJV calls "an excellent
1 At least twenty-three years elapsed between Daniel 4 and Daniel 5, and Daniel 7 and 8 occurred during those years, in
Daniel 6
had been careful not to include him. However, they deceptively included him in their speech, for they claimed that all the royal administrators had agreed on the plan presented to Darius. In fact, they included all the officers in the empire—"administrators, prefects, satraps, advisers and governors" (v. 7 niv)—to give the king the impression that his leaders were united behind him and desirous of magnifying him and his office. The men who hatched the plot probably had not consulted with the lesser officers throughout the empire, but these officers weren't likely to disagree with the plan. Anything that pleased the king would only strengthen their positions.
spirit" (Dan. 6:3). It's likely that Daniel was in semiretirement at this time, but the king appointed him to be one of three key administrators over the kingdom. These three men were to manage the affairs of the 120 leaders who ruled over the provinces2 and to report directly to the king. Daniel proved to be such a superior worker that Darius planned to make him his number-one administrator over the entire kingdom.
When the other leaders heard about this plan, it irritated them and they tried to find something wrong in his work, but nothing could be found. They opposed Daniel for several reasons, including just plain envy; but their main concern was financial. They knew that with Daniel in charge, they wouldn't be able to use their offices for personal profit and would lose their share of the graft that could go into their pockets. It's also likely that these younger men resented an older man—and a Jewish exile at that—telling them what to do and checking on their work. It was another case of anti-Semitism, a grievous sin that is found in Scripture from the days of Pharaoh to the end times (Rev. 12). Apparently these officers didn't know God's covenant with Abraham that promised to bless those who blessed the Jews and curse those who cursed them (Gen. 12:1–3). When these men started to attack Daniel, they were asking for God's judgment.
The administrators were very clever in the plot they conceived and the way they presented it. They knew that Darius wanted to unify the kingdom and as quickly as possible transform the defeated Babylonians into loyal Persians. What better way than to focus on the great king himself and make him not just the supreme leader but the only god for an entire month! To emphasize the importance of this law, the officers requested the ultimate sentence: anyone who didn't obey it would be thrown into a den of lions. Of course, their flattery fed the king's pride, and he quickly agreed with them, had the law written out, and signed it. Once it was signed, the law could not be changed or nullified (vv. 8, 12, 15; Est. 1:19).
It isn't always the case that the honest employee gets the promotion while his enemies are judged. Joseph and Daniel were both promoted by pagan rulers, but I have a friend who was fired because he worked too hard! Apparently his Christian integrity and his diligent work showed up the laziness of the other workers, so the foreman found reason to dismiss him. However, it's better to maintain your integrity and testimony than to sacrifice them just to keep your job. If we put the Lord first, He'll care for us, even if we don't get the promotion (Matt. 6:33). Many a faithful Christian has been bypassed for promotion or a salary increase just because somebody higher up didn't like him, but the workers' rewards will one day come from the hand of the Lord.
There's every evidence that Darius loved and appreciated Daniel, but in his haste, the king had put his friend in peril. It has well been said that flattery is manipulation, not communication, and in his pride, Darius succumbed to the flattery of evil men. "For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulcher; they flatter with their tongue" (Ps. 5:9).
Daniel's response (vv. 10–11). The scheming officers lost no time in proclaiming the king's decree. Daniel probably prayed "evening and morning and at noon" (Ps. 55:17 nkjv),3 and his enemies wanted to use the earliest opportunity to arrest him. The sooner Daniel was out of the way, the sooner they could start running the country for their own profit. When Daniel prayed toward the Holy City and the temple, he was claiming the prayer promise that Solomon stated when he dedicated the temple (1 King 8:28–30, 38–39, 46–51). Jonah claimed this same promise when he was in the belly of the great fish (Jonah 2:4). The exiled Jews no longer had a temple or priesthood, but God was still on the throne and would hear their cries for help.
Believing Versus Scheming (6:5–11) It's certainly a commendable thing when people possess character so impeccable that they can't be accused of doing wrong except in matters relating to their faith. The conniving officers could never tempt Daniel to do anything illegal, but they could attempt to make his faithful religious practices illegal. Daniel didn't hide the fact that he prayed in his home three times each day with his windows opened toward Jerusalem (v. 10), and his enemies knew this. If the king made prayer to other gods illegal, then Daniel was as good as in the lions' den!