Please read The Story Chapter 18, and Daniel 1-3, 6, Jeremiah 29-31
Timeless Truth: The faithful prosper while the faithless fall.
Judah’s best and
brightest were deported to Babylon when Jerusalem was conquered by Nebuchadnezzar’s
armies. Daniel and his trio of friends were among their ranks. King
Nebuchadnezzar introduced them to their new homeland by enrolling the four
young men in his exclusive three-year “How to Live Like a Babylonian” Training
Academy. Students were lavished with
food and wine from the king’s table and invited to enjoy the cosmopolitan
pleasures of the world’s most sophisticated city. Daniel and his companions
graciously resisted. They asked for vegetarian meals so they could stay
faithful to Jewish dietary laws. The king’s official worried that their meager
diet might leave them pallid and weakened, but God blessed their choice with
academic success and physical stamina. They flourished and the ruler of the
world’s greatest empire took notice.
The king awoke one
morning having been greatly troubled by a dream. He demanded an explanation of its meaning
from his wise men and also expected them to tell the dream itself as a
guarantee of accuracy. Failure was no
big deal except for the accompanying death sentence. The request was impossible, of course, except
that God revealed both the events of the dream and their meaning to his
servant, Daniel. Nebuchadnezzar had dreamed
of a four-layered statue. Its head of
gold represented Babylon’s might. The
remaining layers of silver, bronze and iron symbolized world empires that had
not yet risen to power. Daniel’s
interpretation satisfied the king and saved his life and the lives of all the
magicians and wise men in the kingdom.
King Nebuchadnezzar promoted Daniel to ruler over Babylon, made
high-level officials of his three friends, and worshipped Daniel’s God.
This devotion,
however, was only temporary, as the king’s advisors played to his pride. He built a gold statue in his own honor, and
all were commanded to bow down and worship at its feet. Daniel’s three friends,
Meshach, Shadrach and Abednego, were faced with a grim choice: idolatry or
death. They refused to bow. The king was enraged and ordered them to be thrown
into a fiery furnace. They defied the king’s last chance order and chose to
remain faithful even in the face of death. The fire was stoked, the young men
were bound and thrown into the inferno. An astonished king watched a fourth man
join them as they walked unbound and unharmed through the fire. And once again
the king praised their God.
Nebuchadnezzar was
succeeded by Belshazzar. King Belshazzar threw a grand party using the holy
goblets they had stolen in the raid of Jerusalem’s temple. The LORD sent him a mysteriously written
message that appeared on the wall of the banquet hall. The king was terrified…for good reason. Daniel explained that the message said the
king would soon meet his Maker. That
same night the Persian army invaded Babylon.
Belshazzar was killed, and Persia became the silver layer in the statue
King Nebuchadnezzar had dreamed of years before.
The new king,
Darius of Persia, gave Daniel a promotion. Daniel’s rivals were jealous and
plotted his death. They deceived Darius into signing an irrevocable decree
forbidding prayer to anyone except the king. The penalty was a single night
stay in a cave of hungry lions. Daniel responded by doing as he had always
done; he knelt and prayed. Of course,
the king’s officials felt “duty bound” to bring such dangerous activity to the
king’s attention, and Darius was forced to throw his trusted servant to the
lions. So the king spent a restless night and rose in the morning to find that
Daniel was safe and sound in the lions’ den.
And the great King of Persia worshipped Daniel’s God.
While Daniel, his
friends and the other exiles were kept in Babylon during the seventy years of
captivity, the prophet Jeremiah carried out his duties in the ravaged city of
Jerusalem. Jeremiah sent a letter of hope to the captives reminding them that
God would one day bring them back to Jerusalem and encouraging them to prosper
even as exiles in a foreign land. Daniel had done just that. He watched the
rise and fall of kings and kingdoms and remained faithful. In the great Upper
Story of God, Babylon had been a detour rather than a destination.
Questions
What’s one of the strangest dreams you can recall?
- Daniel stands out among the prophets. How is he like other Old Testament prophets, and how is he different?
- Jerusalem and God’s Temple were in ruins, and most of the Jews were living in exile. It is easy to see how one could lose faith. What helped them hold on to faith? What helps you hold on to faith when you experience difficulties?
- Look back at God’s covenant with Abraham (p. 11 or Gen. 12:1-3.) How was it fulfilled through Daniel and his three friends?
- Compare the story of Daniel with the story of Joseph. Do you view difficulties the way they did? Why or why not?
- List the various ways that God revealed His supernatural power in this chapter. What message did God’s actions send to the exiles? What impression did He make on the gentile leaders?
- When Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to bow down to the golden idol, they did not know whether God would save them or not. How do you stand up for God, when you know the results could be disastrous?
- How did Daniel regard the various governmental authorities? Look up Rom. 13:1-7, 1 Tim. 2:1-2 and Titus 3:1. How should Christians regard governments?
- How did God show Himself to be sovereign over human kingdoms and rulers? How does this help you view our world today?
- Jeremiah’s message (p. 214-215) was sent in a letter from Jerusalem to the exiles in Babylon. What was God’s Lower Story and Upper Story promises to them?
