1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came and laid siege to Jerusalem.2 The Lord handed over to him Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and some of the vessels of the temple of God, which he carried off to the land of Shinar, and placed in the temple treasury of his god.3 The king told Ashpenaz, his chief chamberlain, to bring in some of the Israelites of royal blood and of the nobility,4 young … When Nebuchadnezzar’s son sees a terrifying vision, his mother refers him to Daniel. Daniel was likely in his 80s or 90s by that time. Michael is a warrior angel who combats opposing forces from Persia and Greece (10:13, 21). God inspired Isaiah to pronounce a prophecy about his descendants: “Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, ‘Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: “Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,” says the LORD. The king doesn’t make it any easier on the magicians and diviners, either—he doesn’t even tell them what the dream was. May the Lord continue to bless you and your work! Thank you Jeffrey. These circumstances include what Daniel faced in the den of lions, and what his three friends faced when thrown into the fiery furnace. Among them wereDaniel, Chananya,Mishael and Azaryia (from the tribe of Judah1), all extraordinarily gifted young princes,2selected to serve as chamberlains in t… Daniel was one of these people who was counted as righteous (Ezekiel 14:14). Daniel was a young man of Jewish nobility taken into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar in the third year of Jehoiakim and renamed Belteshazzar. ), Daniel came to understand, or simply proved to himself again, the prophecy of Jeremiah that predicted a 70-year captivity of his people (Daniel 9:1-2). He’s not just a wise dream interpreter. This is a summary of the Biblical account of Daniel's refusal to bow to man and how God used Daniel to save a nation. In 605 B.C., the dynasty was in its twilight years. For hundreds of years, a descendant of David had been on the throne in Jerusalem—well, besides one imposter queen (2 Ki 11:1–3). After graduating with high honors, Daniel and his three friends were … Daniel’s life, however, was to become an example for all of us. “And they shall take away some of your sons who will descend from you, whom you will beget; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon”’” (verses 5-7). He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. And so guess what they start saying about Daniel? Daniel’s faithfulness to God landed him in a lion’s den, where his detractors were sure he would be devoured. He lived a long life, but the Bible does not tell us how old he was when he died. Thus the children of the royal and noble families of Judea were committed to the care of Aspenaz.”. Why did the “Apocrypha” (they are not hidden books to anyone except Protestants) get dropped from the Bible? Here are a few of the prominent prophecies given by God through Daniel: In the repetition of the prophecy about human world-ruling empires, Daniel further noted: “I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! The Hebrew Scriptures were probably originally canonized into a two-fold division: the Law and the Prophets12. But guess where we meet them first? Bible Verses about Daniel. But there’s a lot more to this character than the Sunday school lessons let on! Simplied; Precise; Inspirational. This reference does not necessarily mean that the four young Jewish boys were eunuchs themselves. Daniel in the Den of Lions - It pleased Darius to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom, with three administrators over them, one of whom was Daniel. If you’re a Bible geek like me, you might want to check it out. Beautifully done, thoroughly enjoyed reading through this and using some of this material. I am putting together a sermon for this Sabbath at the Seventh Day Adventist church and really enjoyed the context of this lesson and how you made the writings real to our contemporary times. Congrats! Hebrews 11:33-34 mentions some of the faithful who await the resurrection “who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword.”. But this brings up an interesting aspect of Daniel that often gets overlooked. Bill Swanson was a retired pastor of the Church of God, a Worldwide Association before his death in 2019. Or is a … Many thanks for this great article. This is bizarre, because the Babylonians have a temple—and a temple is specifically built so gods can live with humans. You have to be a looker and a thinker to make it in the palace. Daniel wrote the book of Daniel during the sixth century B.C. Throughout the centuries, God has drawn people to be part of His Kingdom who have faced severe adversity. The idea that Daniel was a mythical (or at least mythicized) character is an interesting one to me. Yep: the book of Daniel. You really ought to dig into Daniel with a Bible study and commentary to learn about this character for yourself, but for starters, here’s 12 biblical facts about Daniel that don’t get a lot of screen time in church. That’s a long time, and so it probably makes sense to point out that …. Get the latest blog posts from Life, Hope & Truth straight to your inbox. Nebuchadnezzar successfully besieges Jerusalem and carries off some of the treasure from the temple of God to Babylon. * But it’s also interesting that a Hebrew writer chooses Daniel as a reference point, rather than, say, Solomon. This is the same Cyrus who decrees that the Israelite exiles may return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple that Nebuchadnezzar destroyed (Ezra 1:1–4). 605 BC: Daniel Refuses the King's Portion: Daniel 1: 604 BC: Daniel Interprets Nebuchadnezzar Dream: Daniel 2: 585 BC: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: Daniel 3 That was really interesting. At times, God sent an angel to deliver prophetic messages to Daniel, who then copied them down. The book of Daniel shows him to be a faithful man of God. Daniel had prayed with great fervor for the nation of the Lord. It’s cool in and of itself that Daniel is being quoted by a contemporary. Daniel’s role in the Bible. 24:15. Publisher We would like to thank The General Council of the Assemblies of God for providing this plan. When King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that troubled him in the second year of his reign, God revealed the meaning of the dream to Daniel in a night vision (Daniel 2:19). Daniel, the biblical Old Testament prophet, served four kings in the royal court of ancient Babylon. because true protestants didnt remain ignorant & immature to the truth that aprocryphal are not inspired books. (Da 5:11). This is how she describes him: [Daniel] was found to have insight and intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods. 1-12; Ezekiel 14:14, 28:3; Matt. I don’t know about what or who inspired them but they were still very interesting. The end of the 70 years was approaching at that time. When that happens, Daniel goes for option #2 of those listed above: he asks one of the people in his dream to interpret what is happening for him (Da 7:15–16). Well done for this good work. If this is the case, then we may need to update some of our Sunday school artwork! I would like to name my future son Daniel =), I wonder why you are following this website…. This summary of the book of Daniel provides information about the title, author(s), date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the Book of Daniel. Joseph is yet another. As such, some have wondered if he was a eunuch. Another prophet, Ezekiel, references Daniel when he’s preaching against a clever, but arrogant ruler of another nation. In 605 B.C., the dynasty was in its twilight years. In the 14th chapter of Ezekiel, God uses Daniel, Noah, and Job as examples of extremely righteous men. Daniel Removed to Babylon (Genesis 11:1-9) 1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. But revealing the future is what God does. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed” (Daniel 7:13-14). During this time, Daniel served in prominent positions in the governments of several Babylonian and Medo-Persian rulers, including Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius and Cyrus. Similar to the instruction he had received to “seal up” a vision he had been given earlier (Daniel 8:26), Daniel was again told, “But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase” (Daniel 12:4). Moses struck the rock and was banned from Canaan. You know what the magicians’ response is? Frank Gaebelein). Why does this happen? Daniel was taken to Babylon as a young man—likely before he had finished puberty. Hi Jeffrey. This has caused Bible scholars to posit that Darius was appointed viceroy over Babylon by his nephew, King Cyrus. Daniel is the last of the major prophets (the others are Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel), and he was a captive of Judah. His life and prophecies are recorded in the Book of Daniel. The satraps were made accountable to them so that the king might not suffer loss. For further study, see our article “What Is the Kingdom of God?”. The book of Ezra mentions another king named Darius, also known as Darius I or Darius the Great. Daniel is placed in a position to oversee the people who relied on other gods to enlighten them. Who appeared with Daniel in the fiery furnace? Daniel is made an officer in Babylon by four kings: The name “Daniel” means “[the Jewish] God has judged.” But the Babylonians give him a new name: “Belteshazzar.” This new name means “Bel protect him,” with Bel being the name of a Babylonian god (4:8). While Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah are not specifically mentioned as descendants of Hezekiah, the prophecy was made during the time that Baladan was king of Babylon. The Chaldean king Nebuchadnezzar conquered the Land of Judea in 3319(442 BCE) and destroyedthe Holy Temple in Jerusalem. Known by multiple names—the antichrist, the man of sin and the false prophet—this religious power will play a prominent role in the deception of mankind prior to Christ’s return. All rights reserved. Moses: The Old Testament’s Greatest Prophet, Who Was King Solomon? These two angels show up in both the Old and New Testaments doing cool stuff like announcing the coming birth of Christ or fighting Satan. Daniel’s life serves as an example of godly integrity. The murals are now on display in the Istanbul Archaeology Museums (photo by David Treybig). Noah got drunk and naked (Gen 9:21). Download the free booklet. In a way, God uses Daniel’s wisdom to show up the gods of Babylon on their own turf—even though his (God’s) own temple has been destroyed by the Babylonians. Daniel 6:28 refers to “the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian,” showing that Darius and Cyrus ruled concurrently. Daniel is a Hebrew name meaning “God is my judge” (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, “Daniel”). Daniel is made the chief prefect of the wise men in Babylon after interpreting Nebuchadnezzar’s first dream (Da 2:48; 4:9, 5:11). Daniel was an honest politician. On another occasion the record shows Daniel praying and fasting for his people’s sins and asking for God’s mercy on himself, his fellow captives and the inhabitants of Jerusalem (Daniel 9). When Daniel is still new to Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar has a troubling dream that (at first) nobody can interpret. (“If you’re really psychic, you should be able to tell me what I dreamed, right?”). The Beginner’s Guide, Nebuchadnezzar, after Daniel interprets his dream (2:48), Belshazzar, after Daniel reads the original “handwriting on the wall” (5:29), Darius the Mede, because Daniel had an “extraordinary spirit” (, Cyrus the Persian, for reasons unknown … but the guy had a great résumé by then (. It gives "an account of the activities and visions of Daniel, a noble Jew exiled at Babylon ", and its message is that just as the God of Israel saves Daniel from his enemies, so he would save all Israel in their present oppression. The reason Daniel and his friends’ names were changed was likely to encourage them to forget their past and to adopt Babylonian customs. The Book of Daniel makes so much more sense if you read the full version, left out of the Protestant Bible for some reason which I cannot comprehend. Well done. We create research-based articles and handy infographics to help people understand the Bible. Who would the Antichrist find worth honoring? by Jeffrey Kranz | Oct 29, 2016 | Bible characters, Bible facts | 18 comments. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among humans. Everyone knows Daniel was thrown into a lions’ den and went on some kind of fast. Daniel, whose name means “God is my judge,” and his three countrymen from Judea were chosen and given new names. It was included until about 1929. I heard that ancient Babylonion records actually mention Daniel (by his Babylonion name Belteshezzar). Daniel is one of them (1:6). John Calvin’s commentary on Daniel mentions, “‘The chief of the eunuchs’ seems the correct definition of his office … and the office is similar to that … exercised at the courts of Turkey and Persia as the kislar agha, ‘high-chamberlain of the palace.’ So much confidence was necessarily reposed in these domestic officers, that many affairs of the utmost importance and delicacy were [entrusted] to their care. Are they the Jewish nation, 16 million? Thanks for bothering to share the results of your study and work – it’s really helpful. Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia; … These three friends’ names were changed by the Babylonians to Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego, respectively. Rather than defile themselves with food provided by King Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel and his three friends chose to eat vegetables and water instead. At that time, the church was started purely for political reasons. For the early church, Daniel symbolized the wisdom and virtue of the persecuted believer in the midst of a polytheistic society (one that worships many gods). Daniel chooses not to defile himself with the King’s food upon his arrival in Babylon—the food would have rendered him ceremonially unclean according to the Torah (Da 1:8). To be removed from his homeland and taken to a foreign country probably in his teens must have been traumatic. I used my favorite Bible study tool, Logos Bible software, to do research that made this post possible. 1 Nebuchadnezzar the king, unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace … You have summarized the life of Daniel in plain and understandable contemporary language which I appreciate as a Bible Study teacher of men. Through Isaiah, God declares: “Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure’” (Isaiah 46:9-10). ■Daniel’s life was characterized by: • Faith • Prayer • Courage • Consistency • Lack of compromise Daniel is told that at the time of the end, Michael will arise on behalf of Israel again (12:1). In the first year of the reign of Darius (around 539 B.C. Few Bible characters have the kind of status that Daniel does. The book of Daniel plays several roles in the Bible. Find out how the book of Revelation is relevant to our lives today. These lion murals once lined the streets of ancient Babylon, the city where Daniel the prophet spent much of his life. Additional accounts of an angel coming to Daniel are found in Daniel 9:20-23 and Daniel 10:5-14. His visions paint a prophetic landscape for Daniel… Daniel became “Belteshazzar,” while Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah became “Shadrach," "Meshach," and "Abednego.” When King Nebuchadnezzar threatened to destroy all the wise men if one of them didn’t tell him his dream and interpret it, Daniel and his friends asked for time so he and his three friends could beseech God in prayer to reveal this information (Daniel 2:18). This probably takes place before Daniel has finished adolescence. He’s characterized by his unwavering faithfulness to the Law of Moses. I prefer to read as much as I can to learn for myself. 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