Daniel Chapter 1
Commentary by Ron Beckham
Years ago, when in Bible college, I was astonished at
the attacks of the "critics" in relation to the DATING of many books of
the Bible. The "higher Biblical critics" especially seemed to attack the
book of Daniel from that perspective, often giving the book an
authorship during the time of the Maccabees (a Jewish group that
recaptured the Holy Land) – and a date they often use for the writing is
170 BC. Daniel, of course, lived much earlier than 170 BC.
A HERETIC named Porphyry in the 3rd Century AD said "Daniel" was
written in 170 BC (which is where the critics got the idea – from him),
during the time of Antiochus Epiphanes. The Septuagint, the Greek
version of the Old Testament, was translated BEFORE the time of the
Maccabees, BEFORE the time of Antiochus Epiphanes, and contains our Book
of Daniel, in its present form. The late date of writing just does not
work. Porphyry was wrong and so are the critics who copied him.
Early on, I noticed that the critics had little evidence for such
decisions, and seemed to operate just from unbelief – They simply didn’t
believe the Book of Daniel was from God and ASSUMED the latest possible
date, just because it suited them. The prophesies of Daniel ARE amazing.
As J. Vernon McGee points out about this in his book "Daniel" – "Since
foreknowledge is supernatural, there can, therefore, be no foretelling,
no prophesying…" – unless, of course, as he went on, you open your mind
to the possibility that Daniel wrote these words from a Supernatural
origin (from God).
Daniel was taken captive and sent to Babylon in 605 BC, when he was
about 17-years old. If Daniel WAS the author, and I have become
convinced that he was, he lived to be quite old (until early in the
reign of
King Cyrus – 536 BC) – well into his 80’s or more, and the book was, I
have become persuaded, written during his lifetime.
Years ago, I read an excellent book entitled "Daniel in the Critics
Den" – When I was privileged to meet the author (Josh McDowell) in
Tempe, AZ, some years ago, I made a special point of thanking him for
the book. I recommend you obtain and read "Daniel in the Critics Den" by
Josh McDowell.
Verse 1. "In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to
Jerusalem and besieged it."
Sometimes nothing goes right. You have a job and it is lost; good
health is suddenly gone. We have a fine "city" and then someone comes to
destroy it. The people of Israel at that time lost everything, like we
can’t imagine. Here’s a quote from F. B. Meyer, about troubles in our
lives: "God will make obstacles serve His purpose. We all have mountains
in our lives. There are people and things that threaten to bar our
progress in the Divine life. Those heavy claims, that uncongenial
occupation, that thorn in the flesh, that daily cross – we think that
that if only these were removed we might live purer, more tender, holier
lives; and often we pray for their removal." (This is from "Christ in
Isaiah" by Meyer.) He goes on by calling us "fools and slow of heart"
because we are to "submit" ourselves to the trials that come our way.
Meyer calls them "His mountains" and says that "when we come to the foot
of the mountains, we shall find the way." Because He (God) will lead us
through.
In other words, like Christ on the cross Who bore our sins, God is
there with us in our trials, and if only we "look" and "see" Him, we
shall be gently and tenderly led through them, as was Daniel. The trials
will also change us and make us better people who are useful to God.
Phillips Brooks said "Do not pray for easy lives! Pray to be stronger
men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal
to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you
shall be a miracle." I want to be one of those miracles, and I want YOU
to be one of those miracles of God, also. When trouble comes, as it did
for Judah, and for Daniel, remember that God is there with you,
patiently bringing you through.
Verse 2. "And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of
Judah into his hand, with some of the articles of the house of God,
which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he
brought the articles into the treasure house of his god."
You may lose everything you have. It may be that you have worked very
hard to balance the budget for your family, and there is a bad mistake
in your checkbook! Or someone steals your wallet, which for some reason
was full of cash! Your health might go. Jobs are lost. Your spouse may
suddenly be gone. You could go to prison. Just like it happened to them,
it can happen to us. But don’t be afraid – God is with you and He loves
you. Even if you are taken to some kind of "Babylon" in your life, God
is with you and He loves you, as we shall see that He loved and cared
for Daniel.
When I was 16, I was "called" to the ministry, and my Pastor was
aiming me toward a Seminary in Springfield, MO. My parents didn’t like
that, pulled me out of the Baptist Church and plunked me into a
Methodist group. Interestingly, that Pastor also started aiming me
toward a Seminary; this one on Point Loma, in San Diego! The Lord would
bring it to pass, no matter what the setting I was in.
But I was afraid (nobody but me knew I ditched classes and was
flunking out of high school) and I ran-off to join the Air Force.
15-years later, when I turned back to the Lord and WANTED to enter the
ministry, I found "some of the articles of the house" which God had been
building into my life, were no longer there! Yes, God loved me, forgave
me, filled my life with grace, and even encouraged me to complete a
four-year Bible curriculum, but the door to ministry was emphatically
gone. I glumly returned to the business world.
So it was with Israel. Their sin, like mine, caused the precious
things of the Lord to be taken away from them, and ultimately resulted
in their being uprooted, as well. You may lose a LOT by running away
from the Lord, and I can personally testify to that, but You will not
lose HIM – He WILL bring you back, and you will be glad He did.
Verse 3. "Then the king instructed Ashpenaz,
the master of his eunuchs, to bring some of the children of Israel and
some of the king’s descendants and some of the nobles."
These kids, that were taken forcibly from their parents, from their
country, from their very lives – indeed their very manhood was taken
away. If you have ever read accounts of the methodology involved in
turning young men into eunuchs (I have) – it’s horrible. The men who did
the "surgery" used no anaesthetic, and gave no "tender-loving-care" to
the victims – these terrified boys were treated like animals. This
Scripture incredibly fulfilled Isaiah 39:5-7 (150 years before Daniel),
which warned Israel that if they didn’t shape up, their children would
end up "eunuchs in the palace of the palace of the king of Babylon."
This was no vague "fortune telling." It was the Word of the Lord; very
specific and very true.
And note they were "of the king’s descendants," they were "of his
nobles." These were the best of the best of the young men of Israel. But
if you get into trouble, never, never give up – You may lose EVERYTHING
in this world, but you will never lose God. As we will see with Daniel,
though he had just lost everything that anyone would count dear, God was
very much with him, and Daniel’s life was not over at all – God had a
great plan for him; greater than marriage and children (though they are
wonderful), greater than being allowed to remain in your country, your
family (and those are good). God had something much better for him – And
God has something wonderful for you.
Verse 4. "young men in whom there was no
blemish, but good-looking, gifted in all wisdom, possessing knowledge
and quick to understand, who had ability to serve in the king’s palace,
and whom they might teach the language and literature of the Chaldeans."
These were good-looking men. These were guys that the girls would
have noticed and said "isn’t he cute!" They were ahead of other guys in
wisdom – they just KNEW things the other kids didn’t! They had knowledge
the other boys didn’t and were quick to understand things. The girls
wouldn’t notice them, however, because they were dressed in the costumes
that were allotted to eunuchs. Their very clothing was like a sign that
said "I am ruined!" And now, it would seem, they would lose something
more.
The "knowledge" of this people was surprisingly profound. The
Egyptians knew the earth was round, a circle (as did the Bible – see
Isaiah 40:22); they knew our distance from the sun, and Moses was
learned in all the wisdom of Egypt. It was only much later that Greek
"scientists" decided the earth was flat (The "church" later stupidly
followed the Greeks instead of the Bible). These guys were brilliant
young men who knew a lot.
They would be forced to learn another language (Aramaic) and not
speak their own. They would be required to read literature that was not
of their people but was of another culture. In other words, they would
be stripped completely of everything that we call "identity" – that
which identifies us to ourselves as "acceptable people". They would lose
it all.
Verse 5. "And the king appointed for them a
daily provision of the king’s delicacies and of the wine which he drank,
and three years of training for them, so that at the end of that time
they might serve before the king."
Oops – here’s something else. They would lose their right even to EAT
that which was familiar to them. This would be the "last straw" for
young American men. This would be Saddam Hussein’s assistant saying to
young captives (if he got the chance), "OK, you guys, no more kosher
stuff; from now on, it’s…BABYLONIAN BURGERS!
Keep in mind that while the ultimate, good purpose here is the
corrective JUDGMENT of God was upon the people Israel, the enemy, Satan,
was also operating, not only in THEIR circumstances, but he messes
around in yours as well. And the evidence is the TEMPTATION for these
boys. They were under Mosaic law. In Leviticus 11:44-47, they were
continually reminded to not eat specific foods, including certain meats,
and meats offered to heathen idols were especially repulsive to them.
They were being stripped of everything "good" (which we define from our
cultural, familiar perspectives), and now comes the enemy to try and
take them one step further. Many of us would probably throw up our
hands, shout "What’s the use" and eat the food.
We are not under law, for we are set free in Christ to live Godly
lives, but we do receive temptations – And when you are tempted,
remember these boys who were tempted in more than most of us will ever
know. And recall Christ, "who was in all tempted as we are, yet without
sin" (Hebrews 4:15). He KNOWS what you are going through, and He is WITH
you in all your trouble.
Verses 6-7. "Now from among those of the sons
of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. To them the chief
of the eunuchs gave names: he gave Daniel the name Belteshazzar; to
Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abed-Nego."
And now, even their NAMES were changed, as another effort to stamp
out what they were, and turn them into something else. There are some
differences of opinion among scholars as to the meanings of the names
here, but very small differences. The following is likely VERY accurate:
HEBREW NAME (TRANSLATION) ---BABYLONIAN NAME (TRANSLATION)
Daniel (God is my judge) --- --- --- Belteshazzar (Bel’s
prince)
Hananiah (Beloved of the Lord)- Shadrach (Illumined by the
sun god)
Mishael (Who is as God) --- ---- ----Meshach (Who is like
Venus)
Azariah (The Lord is my help) --- -- Abed-nego (The servant of Nego)
The intention of King Nebuchadnezzar was to strip these talented
young men of everything and turn them to accomplish his own design.
Satan also wanted to use them for his own ends. God, on the other hand,
loved them and had a wonderful plan for their lives. Just as he also
loves you. With God, "trouble" is OPPORTUNITY for you.
Verse 8. "But Daniel purposed in his heart that
he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s delicacies,
nor with the wine which he drank; therefore he requested of the chief of
the eunuchs that he might not defile himself."
There comes a time when you know God is speaking to your heart. From
Romans 14 and many places, it is clear the leading will be highly
PERSONAL – Perfectly formed for each one.
The food on the king’s table, at least the meat anyway, would have
been dedicated to some idol or another. His decision was both moral and
spiritual, and marked him as a young man of principle and courage. Here
was where Daniel, the young man of God, took his stand. We are all
tempted, and the temptations are usually subtle. The greatest problems
are often unseen; a struggle that no one knows about but God and the
person. As stated, God touches our hearts INDIVIDUALLY with His Spirit,
His leading, and to the one something may be sin but not to someone else
(Romans 14). Those are the great struggles, when we are tempted to
deviate from the tailor-made path that He, in His wisdom, has laid out
for each one.
Verse 9. "Now God had brought Daniel into the
favor and good will of the chief of the eunuchs."
"My boss likes me." How wonderful the words and how seldom they seem
to be true. But let’s assume for a minute that the one in charge of you
(if you don’t have a boss, it may be your wife), DOES like you. What do
you do? Do you kind of pat yourself on the back and say "good job." Or
do you recognize that if you have the "favor and good will of man" it is
because of the love of God for you.
How about "my boss DOESN’T like me?" Then your boss becomes a tool
that will change YOUR heart and grant you new faith in God; for it is
when things go wrong that we are most inclined to reach out to Him.
Here’s the Scripture verse: "The king’s (bosses’) heart is in the hand
of the Lord. Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes."
As you likely know, that is Proverbs 21:1, and tells us that our
circumstances are in the control of God. If you don’t like the attitude
of your boss toward you, it may be that God intends to change YOU for
the better. Just thank Him and praise Him, whatever the circumstances.
Another Scripture on this subject is 1st Peter 2:18-21 (which is a
Scripture that has been misused, but when used correctly is a great
verse) – We are to respect the boss, even when they treat us badly. Your
circumstances are for your good and for God’s glory, even though PEOPLE
tend to mess things up.
Verse 10. "And the chief of the eunuchs said to
Daniel, ‘I fear my lord the king, who has appointed your food and drink.
For why should he see your faces looking worse than the young men who
are your age? Then you would endanger my head before the king.’"
What Daniel’s boss was afraid of was that that the boys would end up
looking scrawny (malnourished) before the king – (it was his job to make
them look good). He (the steward) could literally have his head cut off.
The definition of capital punishment was pretty broad in those days –
losing a job was much tougher than it is now. And his fear was
reasonable for that WAS the penalty for failure in office.
But God had given Daniel INCREDIBLE favor and good will with this man
– we shall see that the man would even risk his life because God had
changed his heart toward Daniel. This is a miracle, isn’t it? You know,
there are miracles in our lives all the time. And by far, the most of
the time, we don’t even recognize them. We say "Phew, I’m glad that’s
over" or "Boy, I was lucky THAT time." The real truth is that God
continually saves us from the troubles we tend to fall into.
Verse 11. "So Daniel said to the steward whom
the chief of the Eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and
Azariah,"
If you’ve read about the eunuch leaders of the time, they were
powerful (politically) and not likely to take anything that would be
considered "back talk" from kids like Daniel. These guys were POWERFUL.
A good example of eunuchs and the authority they held, was the
"Ethiopian Eunuch" of Acts 8:26-39, who was "a eunuch of great authority
under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her
treasury." It was the theory of that era that by literally cutting off
certain interests of a man, he king. It was felt they could be trusted,
more than other men. None of them wanted to seem to betray that trust.
Note, by the way, that we are now dealing with the "steward" rather
than the Chief Eunuch himself. Still an important person but not the
same guy. The problem of Daniel had been delegated.
Eunuchs tended to be powerful because they often "had the ear" (and
favor) of the sovereign in the country in which they lived. For Daniel
to continue this conversation, after the man had just implied he could
not grant the request because of fear of his life, is another indicator
of faith and courage on the part of Daniel.
There are times to be quiet and times to talk. Times to NOT send the
memo, as well as times in which it should be sent. I pray, for you and
for me, that we will learn to turn to God (as Daniel did, his whole
life) and seek HIM before we speak. Slow to act, slow to speak, and
quick to trust in Him.
Verse 12. "Please test your servants for ten
days, and let them give us vegetables to eat and water to drink."
This is an example of the gift of WISDOM, as also given to Solomon,
and described as one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the New
Testament. For Solomon, the key reference is 1 Kings 3:16-28. A New
Testament example is the response of James, found in Acts 15,
particularly in verses 13-21. In the Old Testament, a "gift" of the Holy
Spirit might be given to one or two people in a generation. At
Pentecost, that which had been restricted to a few was now liberally
poured out upon the many.
The gift of "wisdom" does not necessarily make the recipient wise,
but it does enable the bearer to speak words that can solve otherwise
impossible situations. Here, the chief of the eunuchs, through personal
(and reasonable) fear for his life, was building to a "NO" in relation
to Daniel’s request. Two things were happening here: 1) the Holy Spirit
was giving words for Daniel to speak, and 2) the Holy Spirit was
readying the steward’s heart to receive Daniel’s words. The combination
of "1)" and "2)" IS the gift of wisdom.
Verse 13. "Then let our countenances be
examined before you, and the countenances of the young men who eat the
portion of the king’s delicacies; and as you see fit, so deal with your
servants."
Daniel was speaking those wonderful words, given by God, which
essentially were: "Honorable Steward (this was an oriental culture),
let’s try this for just a little while. Check us out in ten days. If we
look really beat-up and kind of a funny gray color, we won’t do it
anymore. But if we look good, we’ll continue with the veggies!"
This is where the "wisdom" came in – ten days was a relatively brief
period, and it minimized the risk to the chief of the eunuchs. It placed
the matter within his comfort zone of risk (as stretched by the Holy
Spirit). (Now let’s see what he’s going to do…)
Verse 14. "So he consented with them in this
matter, and tested them ten days."
"Not a bad idea" replied the chief of the eunuchs, mostly because the
Lord had, as we discussed, touched his heart to receive Daniel’s words.
In any spiritual gift involving the speaking of words, there are two
parts: God the Holy Spirit enters the person and the words being
uttered, and also touches the heart(s) of those who listen. A good
example of this is the gift of "evangelism". When the speaker truly has
that gift, those in the audience will feel drawn to go forward and
receive Christ. The speaker and the hearer will both experience the
presence of God.
Here their boss said "yes" and gave them the ten days requested by
the Holy Spirit through Daniel.
Verse 15. "And at the end of ten days their
countenance appeared better and fatter in flesh than all the young men
who ate the portion of the king’s delicacies."
Here’s another thing God can do for you: He can make things perfect,
even when there’s no reason we can logically understand. At the end of
10 days, they looked BETTER than the other guys (or "eunuchs" if you
prefer). Every few years "they" come out with some new way of eating
that will "revolutionize" our lives. For instance, "don’t drink coffee"
and then a few years later, "drink coffee." Years ago, they said "don’t
take aspirin anymore; take other stuff instead." Now, it’s "take aspirin
and watch out for the other stuff." I think that yes, we should listen
to our doctors, but additionally, we should PRAY about what we put into
(or don’t put into) our bodies, just as Daniel did.
For a long time in college, I was a history major (before I switched
to Bible). In an American History class, I was surprised to note that
"pioneers" crossing the American continent often STARVED TO DEATH even
though they had enough to eat. That was because their diets contained
too LITTLE fat. They were able to kill and eat a lot of little
(lean) critters that filled them up, but, as the author and
instructor put it, "they needed to have a fat old bear every once in
awhile, or they would starve to death." Pray about what you eat.
Verse 16. "Thus the steward took away their
portion of delicacies and the wine that they were to drink, and gave
them vegetables."
By the way, do you notice here that this is ANSWERED prayer? Daniel
knew in his heart what he should say and do (that’s because he
responsive to God – and we shall see as we read on, that Daniel was very
much a man of prayer)
I’ve always liked John’s qualification of Jesus’ statements (1st John
5:14-15), "…if we ask anything ACCORDING TO HIS WILL, He hearts us, and
if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we HAVE the
petitions that we have asked of Him."
Daniel was acting prayerfully in the Will of God, and because of
that, "the steward took away their portion of delicacies and the wine
that they were to drink, and gave them" - veggies. This is the way it
works – as you submit yourself to God in Christ, you become gradually
sensitive to His will. You also acquire a desire to pray for His will;
and then you begin to find the joy of answered prayer.
Verse 17. "As for these four young men, God
gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel
had understanding in all visions and dreams."
What we’ve been discovering is that when God takes something away (or
allows it to be taken), He gives much MORE in return. There were at
least dozens of these boys; perhaps hundreds that were taken from Israel
to Babylon. Isn’t it interesting that only four of them were mentioned.
Most of the others were likely so angry about what they
Lost that they rejected the Hand (of God) that offered the "more" to
them.
When we lose our youth, our health, our job, child, marriage, our
mind, or whatever, people tend to become very angry. Several of us teach
studies in a Convalescent Home. Some of the elderly patients gently
delight in the love of the Lord. The others are mostly very angry.
"Suddenly" they’re old and incapacitated, and want to pop someone in the
nose about it!
Look at what God gives: Knowledge, skill in literature, wisdom,
understanding of visions and dreams. And we know from Daniel’s life,
that He gave him also the gift of administration, wonderful courage, and
an extraordinary ability to pray. Daniel was rather clearly shown events
that would not occur for hundreds of years. What would you give to have
such abilities?
Mostly, Daniel and his three friends LOVED the Lord. And that is far
better than any gift, any ability. TRUST in the Lord. Trust LASTS and it
is a gift that just keeps getting better as our lives go on.
Verse 18. "Now at the end of the days, when the
king had said that they should be brought in, the chief of the eunuchs
brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar."
There comes a time when it’s "the day" for you. You might graduate
from college, pass the bar exam, marry that special person, finally have
the child, get that job you always wanted, or whatever. When it happens,
there are always mixed feelings. "Well, now I’ve got it" is always
tempered by "oh-oh, what now?"
For Daniel, I think there was little of the "oh-oh" in his thinking.
He demonstrated the way WE ought to be, for he trusted in God. Here he
was, showing "his" (God's) stuff before the Emperor of the Babylonian
Empire; the man, who by a word, could have him killed in an instant, or
ship him to some kind of horrible existence, but I think when Daniel
looked at Nebuchadnezzar (in his office as king), he saw God.
In the New Testament, we find we are to pay taxes (Matthew 22:18-21),
pray for those in government (1 Timothy 1:1-3), respond to those in
power (Romans 13:1-7), but obey God first before men (Acts 5:29). Daniel
wonderfully acted-out all these godly principles by the very fabric of
his whole life.
Verse 19. "Then the king interviewed them, and
among them all none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and
Azariah; therefore they served before the king."
These four got the "brass ring." There may have been others who also
were elevated, but these were the principals of the Book of Daniel and
they are specifically mentioned. It is also mentioned here that they
were the best.
I remember when several dozen of us civil servants took written tests
for jobs as supervisors. Some of us passed. Then came the appointments
for the oral tests. I’m sure my eyes were very large as I attempted to
answer the questions. Finally, the "list" came out – I passed! And I was
on the list! What a great feeling. And then I got the job! Wow!
But this (that which happened to them) was better. It was not only
that they were "set for life" (or for the life of this king), but I am
sure that through Daniel’s counsel, they all understood that it was GOD
who was doing this for them. They served before the king on earth, but
they also knew they really served before the King of all that is.
Verse 20.
"And in all matters of wisdom and
understanding about which the king examined them, he found them ten
times better than all the magicians and astrologers who were in all his
realm."
We have "magicians" and "astrologers" among us today. When I was a
teenager, I went to classes put on by the owner of a magic shop in Long
Beach, whose name was Rod Pilger. I gradually bought magic equipment and
was taught in its use by Rod, who showed me not only its use but showed
me how to make the "hand quicker than the eye" for people. I can still
do basic card fans and sleight-of-hand tricks. And of course, there are
the "astrologers" who, for some reason, get paid money for making-up
ideas about what the "stars" might be influencing you to do, as if the
stars had any "brains" to do the influencing.
But Daniel had something infinitely better. He didn’t need to trick
anybody, and he did not need to pretend that the stars could control
anyone – He had God Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. Nebuchadnezzar
found these guys "ten times better" than the fakes, which actually is
understatement, because the God who was with Daniel INFINITELY has more
wisdom and understanding than anyone on earth.
Verse 21. "Thus Daniel continued until the
first year of King Cyrus."
According to J. Vernon McGee, Daniel was about seventeen at this
time, and lived to be about 90 or more. He apparently never returned to
Israel but seems to have died in Babylon. During that time, he became a
man of great personal power, which often exceeded the power of those
considered "whole" men by those around him.
Daniel was a man of God, and accordingly he was a man blessed BY God.
Whether our station is high or low (it takes all kinds to make a
Church), let us look at the example of Daniel, and in the New Testament,
the example of Paul – Not merely their OUTWARD lives, for that is
fleeting and less important, but at their TRUST in the God who made
them.
If we trust in Him, our outward circumstances may or may not be
"successful" as counted by the eyes of the world, but we will find
CONTENTMENT in Him, which is better than all the world could ever offer.
Ron Beckham, Pastor
Friday Study Ministries
www.fridaystudy.org
ron@fridaystudy.org
