Lesson 1: Daniel 1. The book of Daniel is one of the most exciting books in the Bible. It s filled with history, prophecy, and intrigue.

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1 Lesson 1: Daniel 1 The book of Daniel is one of the most exciting books in the Bible. It s filled with history, prophecy, and intrigue. Most conservative scholars identify Daniel as the author. As usual, there are those who oppose this thought, but we are operating from the perspective that Daniel is the author of this book. The book of Daniel is bilingual. It is one of the few books in the OT that was originally written in two different languages. One was Aramaic, the common language of the ancient Near East, and the other language was Hebrew. Here is how it is laid out: Daniel 1:1-2:4a are Hebrew Daniel 2:4b-7:28 are Aramaic Daniel 8:1-12:13 are Hebrew Daniel was a contemporary of both Jeremiah and Ezekiel. -Jeremiah prophesied in Jerusalem before and during the Babylonian exile ( BC) -Ezekiel prophesied in Babylon among the exiles ( BC) The book of Daniel divides itself equally with the first half history and the last half prophecy. We are going to see that Daniel is a government official under four different kings: Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 2:48) Belshazzar (Daniel 5:29) Darius the Mede (Daniel 6:1-3) Cyrus the Persian (Daniel 1:21, 6:28) Nothing is known of Daniel s personal life other than that he came from a prominent family (Daniel 1:3), and that he was most likely between years of age when he was taken into captivity in Babylon. One of the core messages of this book is in spite of present appearances, God is in control. Throughout this book, we are going to see how Daniel reveals God to us. We are going to see how the book of Daniel masterfully demonstrates God s sovereignty over his people s past, present and future. 1

2 We are also going to find as we study this book that three words characterize Daniel s life: Purpose, Prayer and Prophecy. Verses 1-2 We are told in verse one exactly when this is taking place. When is this happening?. Some people have an issue with what they believe to be a contradiction between what is written here in this verse when it says in the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and what is written in Jeremiah 46:2 where it s talking about the same event and says in the fourth year Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah. Two methods of reckoning the year of a reign were in use in the Ancient Near East: 1. Most usual in the history books of the Old Testament counts the months between the king s accession and the new year as a complete year. 2. Method most used in Babylon called those months left in a year the accession year and began to count the years of the king s reign from the first new year. The date in Daniel appears to have come from a source compiled in Babylon, while the date in Jerimiah came from a Palestinian source. History of the Kings of Israel and Judah: King Solomon died in 931BC and he was succeeded by his son Rehoboam who provoked the leaders of the northern part of the nation, and they split off from the south. The northern tribe (10 of them) were called Israel. They existed until 722BC when they were destroyed by the Assyrians. The southern two tribes were called Judah. God spared Judah until 586BC when the Babylonian armies crushed the nation. Prior to their final destruction, Nebuchadnezzar came to Judah and Jerusalem two other times to put down Jewish rebellion against the authority of the empire. The first time, in 605BC, is what takes place at the beginning of Daniel. During this time, the Jews had been treated fairly well. A few people, including Daniel were taken, but overall the nation was left fairly undisturbed. 2

3 In 597BC the treatment was harsher. More people were deported to Babylon including the King at that time, Jehoiachin and also the prophet Ezekiel. Then finally, in 586BC the final destruction came. The temple of God was burned, the walls of Jerusalem were broken down and the people were either killed or deported to Babylon. The telling of these stories can be found in II Kings and II Chronicles 36. God judged Judah for 70 years (605BC to 536BC). This period was called the Babylonian captivity. Daniel s ministry extended through the entire 70 years of Babylonian captivity. With the opening and closing of the first chapter of Daniel we see the length of Daniel s career. It starts in the third year of King Jehoiakim s reign and ends the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia s reign. The capture of Jerusalem and the first deportation of the Jews from Jerusalem to Babylon including Daniel and his companions were the fulfillment of many warnings from the prophets of Israel s coming disaster because of the nation s sins against God. Israel had forsaken the law and ignored God s covenant (Isaiah 24:1-6). They ignored the Sabbath day and the sabatic year (Jeremiah 34:12-22). The seventy years of captivity were God claiming the Sabbath which Israel had violated, in order to give the land rest. Israel had also gone into idolatry (I Kings 11:5; 12:28; 16:31; 18:19; II Kings 21:3-5; II Chronicles 28:2-3). They had been warned of God s coming judgment upon them because of their idolatry (Jer. 7:24-8:3; 44:20-23). Because of their sin, they were carried off to captivity in Babylon, a center of idolatry and one of the most wicked cities in the ancient world. It is significant to note that after the Babylonian captivity, idolatry never again became a major temptation to Israel. In verse 2 it reads, and the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, What do we see from these words? The word Lord in this verse is adonai which emphasizes God s ownership and control. 3

4 Besides giving Jehoiakim into Nebuchadnezzar s hand, what else did the king take according to verse 2? In Exodus the word articles is a general term used to designate smaller objects used to support the worship in the tabernacle. In Ezra 1:9-11 we see an inventory of the articles that were taken when Cyrus allows them to return to Judah. We don t know during which siege these items were taken, but we do know that some came during this first siege. Some of these articles will come into the picture in chapter 5 at King Belshazzar s banquet. Where were they taken? Shinar is the term used in the Hebrew Bible (same as O.T.) for the general region of Mesopotamia. Nebuchadnezzar s god would have been Marduk. Marduk in the Mesoptamian religion was the chief god of the city of Babylon and the national god of Babylonia. He was eventually simply called Bel, or Lord. Verses 3-5 Look at how this young men are described in verse 4 List them: Aramaic was the native language of the Chaldean tribe that was in power in Babylon at the time. The native language of the Babylonians was Akkadian, a Semitic language like Hebrew, but with a very complex writing system. 4

5 What did the king assign them according to verse 5? How long were they to be trained?. What was to happen after that?. Verses 6-7 We are specifically told about four young men. Who are they? We are told that the chief official gave them new names Daniel (God is my judge) -- Belteshazzar (Bel protects his life) Bel signifying "lord" or "master", is a title rather than a genuine name, applied to various gods in the Mesopotamian religion of Akkad, Assyria and Babylonia. The feminine form is Belit 'Lady, Mistress'. Hananiah (Beloved by the Lord) -- Shadrach ( Command of Aku ) Aku was the Babylonian god of the moon. Mishael ( Who is what God is ) -- Meshach ( who is what Aku is ) Azariah ( The Lord is my help ) -- Abednego ( servant of Nabu ) Nabu was a major god in the Babylonian pantheon. He was patron of the art of writing and a god of vegetation. Verses 8-14 We are told in verse 8 that Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself. In another translation it reads he resolved not to defile himself, The ancient Hebrew word defile carries the thought of polluting or staining. What are we told that he won t defile himself with? 5

6 So why, in the area of his diet does Daniel decide to draw the line that he refuses to cross? Some thoughts: He wants to stay firm in his commitment to the dietary laws of the OT (Leviticus 11; Deut. 12:23-26). This food would not have been kosher. But, why not drink the wine? The OT laws do not restrict drinking wine. Kosher foods are those that conform to the regulations of kashrut. Kashrut is a set of Jewish religious dietary laws. Religious overtones of the food from the king s table Food would be offered to the gods, and after their time of enjoying this wonderful food, whatever was left over would be brought to the king s table. Maybe Daniel was troubled by eating food that was first offered to idols. But, Daniel doesn t avoid all the food of the palace. He does eat the vegetables, which most likely were offered to the gods as well. By eastern standards, to share a meal was to commit oneself to friendship. It was of covenant significance. By refusing the food, Daniel is refusing the relationship. But again, Daniel didn t reject all the food. He accepted the vegetables. Daniel and his friends are being prepared for service. If they prosper, then to whom should they attribute their development and success? The Babylonians. But by refusing to eat the food of the king, they know that the result of looking healthier and better nourished, could only have come from God. What are we told that Daniel did at the end of verse 8?. What do we see from verse 9?. Verses What was the result after this ten day test? 6

7 What are we told was given to them? We get an extra note about Daniel. What is it? Who gave them all these things?. Verses At the end of the allotted time, they are presented to the king for inspection. What are we told about Daniel and his friends? Verse What are we told the king found concerning every matter of wisdom and understanding? How long are we told that Daniel continued in service? So we see that Daniel is the prophet of the exile. He spans the entire period. 7

8 Take Aways: What did you learn about God from this first chapter? What are some things that stuck out to you either from our study today or what you did on your own? Daniel s struggle was not to make this culture Christian. His struggle was how to live as a Christian in a hostile culture. Read Philippians 3:20-21 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; 21 who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself. What do we need to remember?. 8