An Introduction to Daniel

Introduction

How Did we Get Here?

A couple of weeks ago when we ended our series on the promises of God, Lizzie asked, “what’s our next series?” There were a few things that I was contemplating, but try as I may, nothing seemed to click in my Spirit. Then she suggested the book of Revelation. And to be honest, that’s not a speculative rabbit hole that I think is beneficial for the church in this day and age. There are too many “theories and interpretations of Revelation,” an to be honest may of those speculative interpretations take us on some pretty unfruitful distractions from the word. I will do a series on Revelations some day, but when I do it will be bathed in much prayer, so that we don’t get off on some wild snipe hunt. I told her I wasn’t ready to go there with our fellowship, and so she said, “What about Daniel?”

I thought, oh I’ve talked Daniel to death, surely we’re tired of hearing about him, in fact I think we even covered him in our Heroes of the Faith series. Then I remembered that I intentionally left out Daniel because there is simply so much there, I knew that adding that one Bible personality would add about three months to our series! In fact as I sat down last night to map out this series, it seems like if I edit well, I could get it down to about 14 weeks, which means we will be taking a ride aboard the Daniel express right up until the week before Christmas, just in time to switch to a Christmas message on the 19th of December. So, fasten your seat-belts, because here we go!

Background

One of the more fascinating books of the Bible is the book of Daniel. The first six chapters contain accounts of faith that inspire both young and old The last six chapters are filled with apocalyptic visions that challenge even the most advanced Bible students and scholars.

It is a book that has often been attacked and abused. Attacked by liberals who deny its inspiration. Abused by many who have taken its visions out of context to support all kinds of wild theories concerning the second coming of Christ

But when properly read and understood, the book of Daniel can inspire us to greater faithfulness in our service to God and strengthen our faith in the inspiration of the Bible.

Today is not going to be one of those days where we get a gripping story or account of Daniel’s life, rather it’s going to be one of those messages where we simply set the scene, we gain some background information and prepare ourselves to really understand what we’re about to study. Is it dry? Perhaps, but it is so important in understanding the next 13 weeks.

Daniel and His Times

So what do we really know about Daniel and the world in which he lived? A lot actually, and we are going to frame everything we know about Daniel and our reading of Daniel around the cultural context in which it was written. First let us start out with talking about the man.

The Man

The name “Daniel” means “God is my judge" and we see in scripture that he was a person of deep and abiding faith. As a youth, he purposed not to defile himself.

Daniel 1:8 NKJV

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.

And when was old, he didn’t stop. He persisted in serving God despite threats against his life.

Daniel 6:10 NKJV

Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went home. And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days.

And God blessed Daniel because of his faith. He rose to great heights in the kingdoms of Babylon and Persia.

Daniel 2:48 NKJV

Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts; and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon.

Daniel 6:1–3 NKJV

It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom one hundred and twenty satraps, to be over the whole kingdom; and over these, three governors, of whom Daniel was one, that the satraps might give account to them, so that the king would suffer no loss. Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm.

He served as a statesman, a counselor to kings, and a prophet of God

Daniel was contemporary with Jeremiah and Ezekiel.

Jeremiah prophesied in Jerusalem before and during the Babylonian exile (626-528 B.C.). Ezekiel prophesied in Babylon among the exiles (592-570 B.C.). Daniel prophesied in the capital of Babylon (605-586 B.C.)

Nothing is known of his personal life outside of the book. He descended from one of Judah's prominent families, if not from royal blood.

Daniel 1:3 NKJV

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,

At an early age (somewhere between 12-18) he was taken from his family to be trained in the courts of Babylon.

Daniel 1:3–4 NKJV

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, 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.

We actually don’t know his marital status based on scripture. And that in a nutshell is what we know about the man. So let’s look at the times he lived in.

The Time in Which He Lived

Some key dates to remember

Here’s some of the other things happening at the time the events in the book of Daniel take place.

612 B.C. - Fall of Nineveh, capital of Assyria

Assyria had ruled the world since the days of Tiglath- Pileser (845 B.C.)

Nabopolassar came to the throne in Babylon and rebelled against the Assyrians in 625 B.C.

Nebuchadnezzar, son of Nabopolassar, was the general who led the Babylonian army against Nineveh, defeating it in 612 B.C.

605 B.C. - Battle of Carchemish, establishing Babylonian domination

Pharaoh-Necho of Egypt came to fight the Babylonians at Carchemish

Nebuchadnezzar defeated the Egyptians, chasing them south through Judah

At Jerusalem, Nebuchadnezzar heard of his father's death; he returned to assume the throne in Babylon

The first group of Jewish captives were taken, along with Daniel and his friends -Let’s just take a a look at what all happened during Daniel’s life time, so that we can now what kind of environment Daniel was living in. Dan 1:1-4

597 B.C. - A second remnant taken to Babylon

Jehoiachin (Jeconiah, Coniah) followed the reign of his father, Jehoiakim

He lasted just three months, when Nebuchadnezzar took him and 10,000 Jews to Babylon.

This second group of captives included Ezekiel .

586 B.C. - Fall of Jerusalem and the temple destroyed

Zedekiah was installed as king in Jerusalem, but was weak and vacillating

Eleven years later, Jerusalem was totally devastated by Babylonian forces.

A third group was taken into Babylonian captivity, but Jeremiah was among those who stayed behind.

536 B.C. - The first remnant returns to Jerusalem

Babylon falls in 539 B.C.

Cyrus, king of Persia, sends the first remnant back under the leadership of Zerubbabel

The foundation of the temple was soon started, but the temple was not completed until 516 B.C.

457 B.C. - A second remnant returns to Jerusalem

Ezra the priest returns with this group

He leads a much-needed revival

444 B.C. - A third remnant returns to Jerusalem

This group is led by Nehemiah

Under his leadership, the walls of Jerusalem are rebuilt.

Together with Ezra, they restore much of the religion.

Daniel lived through much of these times (605-534 B.C.). He was among the first group of captives taken to Babylon and that was where he lived over the entire 70 years of captivity.

Why should I Care about That?

Well, the reason I took the time to tell you about all that was happening during Daniel’s lifetime, is so that you can see that things were not easy for Daniel. In fact, they weren’t easy for the entirety of the nation of Israel. The were not only a defeated people, but they had been taken captive. Morale could not have been any lower, and neither could faith, but that makes the rise of Daniel in the midst of all of that pain and suffering that much more remarkable. And Daniel was a remarkable man. His greatness was often compared to that of Ezekiel, the other major prophet of his day.

The Book of Daniel

The Theme

If we were to pick an overarching theme for the book of Daniel it would be, “God Rules In The Kingdoms Of Men”

Daniel 2:21 NKJV

And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding.

Daniel 4:17 NKJV

‘This decision is by the decree of the watchers, And the sentence by the word of the holy ones, In order that the living may know That the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, Gives it to whomever He will, And sets over it the lowest of men.’

Daniel 4:25 NKJV

They shall drive you from men, your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make you eat grass like oxen. They shall wet you with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.

Daniel 5:21 NKJV

Then he was driven from the sons of men, his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till he knew that the Most High God rules in the kingdom of men, and appoints over it whomever He chooses.

In this book, we see the rule of God is manifested in the days of Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius, and Cyrus, kings of the Babylonians, Medes, and Persians.

Foretold to occur in the days of the Persians, Greeks, and the Romans.

In this book, we learn the rule of God would be especially manifested with the establishment of God's kingdom

Daniel 2:44 NKJV

And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.

With the vindication of the cause of His saints.

Daniel 7:27 NKJV

Then the kingdom and dominion, And the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, Shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, And all dominions shall serve and obey Him.’

Are we seeing a pattern yet saints? Are you excited? So wrap this up by briefly outlining the book.

A Brief Outline

The book of Daniel is broken down into two parts, and those parts are neatly delineated - for the most part- by chapters.

God's Providence In History is the theme of the first six chapters of Daniel

Daniel and his determination to be pure is found in Chapter 1

Nebuchadnezzar's dream and Daniel's promotion are in chapter 2.

Faith in the face of fire by Daniel's friends is what we’ll be seeing in Chapter 3

Nebuchadnezzar's second dream and temporary insanity will be the subject of chapter 4

The writing on the wall and fall of Belshazzar -is Chapter 5

Darius and his den of lions will be Chapter 6

God's Purpose In History is the theme for the second half of Daniel

Daniel's dream of the four beasts is Chapter 7

Daniel's dream of the ram and the goat will be Chapter 8

Daniel's prayer, and the vision of the seventy weeks will be Chapter 9

Daniel's vision of the time of the end will be Chapter 10, and we will be spending the most time dissecting that Chapter (I have 3 weeks planned out for that)

Putting it all Together

As with all of Scripture, the book of Daniel is profitable for our study -

2 Timothy 3:16–17 NKJV

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

From Daniel and his three friends, we will learn the power of faith and commitment and hopefully by studying this book, we can better understand our Lord's references to it - cf. Mk 1:14-15; Mt 24:15-16

Despite some of its more difficult and challenging passages, we can benefit from them as well, as long as we interpret them In the context of the book itself, consistent with all else the Bible may say on the subject.

It is a tricky undertaking but I believe we have attained a maturity together as believers, and so as Timothy says, “ with the humility and openness that is incumbent upon all who would study and teach God' s word, we will start our study next week when we say, “It smells like teen Spirit”.