Introduction
If you were to choose the top three righteous people who ever lived, who would you select? When God informed the world of His top three picks, He chose Noah, Job, and Daniel (Ezekiel 14:14 & 20). The interesting point is that God named Daniel as most righteous even while Daniel was still living. It is easy to concede that someone is a good person when they are gone, but Daniel had a reputation with his people as being a true follower of Yahweh even while he was governing from their idol worshipping enemy’s palace. In another place, Daniel is told that he is greatly loved by God (Daniel 9:23). What did Daniel do that made him stand out above other great names like David, Joseph, and Abraham? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you and I could make that top three list with God? We may never have that honor, but we can know that we are greatly loved just as Daniel was. That is enough.
Background
Judah had been warned repeatedly to repent or face exile, but they clung to their idols and sinful living, so God finally withdrew His protection from the kingdom. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon swooped in and annexed Judah into his empire. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God had told Judah to cooperate and submit so that they would be spared from the horrors of a siege, but again, Judah refused to listen to their God. The result was that Nebuchadnezzar attacked Jerusalem three different times after successive kings tried to double cross him. Each time, he carried off groups of Jews and resettled them in other locations in his empire. The final time, Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the city and temple so that nothing was left. Nebuchadnezzar had carried off the treasures of the temple and the city, but the greatest treasures that he stole were the few righteous people left in the kingdom of Judah. Daniel and his three friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, were among the first group of captives taken to Babylon. Most people know the three friends by their Babylonian names: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (Daniel 1:7).
Author
There is widespread agreement that Daniel is the author of the book of Daniel, except for one section (Daniel 4:34-37), which was written by King Nebuchadnezzar himself. Daniel was a young man when he was forced to leave his home and resettle in the capital city of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar made a practice of seizing handsome intelligent young men of the nobility from the kingdoms that he conquered so that they could be trained to be intermediaries between him and their people. In other words, they would become mid-level government officials who were loyal to Babylon. They could advise on governmental matters and translate official decrees. Because of the need to indoctrinate these captives, Daniel was probably in his lower teens when he was taken to study with the wisemen of Babylon. It is likely that he and his three friends were made into eunuchs at this time based on a prophecy that Isaiah gave to King Hezekiah of Judah about his descendants (Isaiah 39:7). From the beginning, Daniel and his friends determined that they would remain loyal to God no matter what incentives their Babylonian captors provided. The four men remained true to this decision all their lives. The three friends faced a fiery death rather than be disloyal to the God of Israel. Daniel would be thrown into a lion’s den in his old age when he refused to stop praying to Yahweh. The four men were also distinguished for their intelligence. When they were tested at the end of their schooling, they were found to be head and shoulders above all the other students. In fact, they were ten times better than the more experienced wisemen of the kingdom. Daniel eventually rose to be second-in-command to King Nebuchadnezzar himself (Daniel 2:48-49). Sometime after Nebuchadnezzar’s death, Daniel retired from governmental affairs, but shortly before Babylon fell to Medo Persia, Daniel was made the third ruler in the Babylonian empire, which put him in the perfect position to become one of the three highest overseers in the conquerors’ government also (Daniel 5:29 and 6:1-2). Daniel would ultimately serve as a top official in both the Babylonian and Medo Persian Empires (Daniel 1:21).
Languages
The book of Daniel has the distinction of being written in two languages: Hebrew and Aramaic. Daniel 1:1-2:4 is written in Hebrew. When describing the events in Babylon, Daniel 2:4-7:28 switches to Aramaic. However, the visions of chapters eight to twelve are written in Hebrew. This ability to write fluently in two languages is another demonstration of Daniel’s academic brilliance.
Organization
The book of Daniel is divided into two sections: historical (chapters 1-6) and prophetic (chapters 7-12). However, there are prophecies in the historical section and history in the prophetic section.
Chapter 1: Daniel and his three friends are trained in the literature and language of the Chaldeans. They refuse to eat food from the king’s table.
Chapter 2: Daniel interprets King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.
Chapter 3: King Nebuchadnezzar forces worship of a golden idol. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are thrown into the fire when they refuse to bow down. A fourth figure walks with them in the fire, and they exit the blaze safely.
Chapter 4: Years later, Nebuchadnezzar has a second dream of a tree that is chopped down. Daniel explains that the dream is a warning from God. If Nebuchadnezzar does not show mercy and practice righteousness, he will be sentenced to seven years of insanity. Nebuchadnezzar remains prideful and is punished, but afterwards, he acknowledges God and is restored to his sanity and position as king.
Chapter 5: Many years have passed and Nebuchadnezzar’s grandson, Belshazzar is ruling Babylon. The Medes and the Persians have surrounded the city, but Belshazzar throws a big party to show his contempt for the attackers. In addition, he shakes his fist at the God of Israel by taking cups from the temple and toasting idols. Mysterious handwriting appears on the wall, which only Daniel can interpret.
Chapter 6: The Medes and Persians take over Babylon. A conspiracy against Daniel causes him to be thrown into a den of hungry lions.
Chapter 7: During the first year of King Belshazzar’s reign, Daniel has a vision where the theme of the vision of chapter two is enlarged and shown from a different perspective. The previously identified four empires appear as wild predatory beasts, but this time the period of the fourth beast is expanded and a little horn gains great power. After the four empires, Daniel is shown a scene of heavenly judgment.
Chapter 8: Two years after the vision of chapter seven, Daniel receives another vision. The four kingdoms of the previous two visions are represented by sacrificial animals rather than predators. However, they still act in a predatory manner. More details are provided, as well as a time prophecy of 2300 days.
Chapter 9: The Babylonians have been conquered. It is the first year of King Darius the Mede. Daniel knows that Jeremiah’s prophecy of 70 years in captivity is at its end, so he prays to God for the restoration of his people and God’s temple. The angel Gabriel comes and gives a prophecy about seventy weeks that are cut off from the 2300 days of chapter eight. A starting point for the prophecy is given.
Chapter 10: Several years pass. In the third year of King Cyrus of Persia, Daniel has been mourning for three weeks because it seems as though his people will not be returned to their homeland. A supernatural being appears, and Daniel is given insight into how God is working behind the scenes in Persia.
Chapter 11: This is a continuation of chapter 10. The angel explains in detail what will happen to the three empires of the visions. (Babylon is already out of the picture now.)
Chapter12: This is a continuation of the explanation of chapter 11 that describes the time of the end. Daniel asks for more information about the last days, but he is told that those details are sealed until the time of the end, long after Daniel is gone. Two more time prophecies are given, and Daniel is reassured that he has a place with God.
Interpreting the Prophecies of Daniel
The prophecies of Daniel can be comprehended if you follow the organization of the book. There is a pattern of repeat and enlarge. The vision of Daniel 2 gives the general overview of world history and judgment. Each of the following visions goes over the same events from different perspectives. More details are given with each vision.
Skeptics
When all the details of the prophecies are put together, a detailed panorama of human history is opened and interpreted. However, the visions were given before these empires conquered and ruled the nations. For this reason, skeptical scholars doubted the authorship of Daniel for many years and tried to place its origin much later in time. They could not believe that God could reveal such detailed knowledge of the distant future. However, the many historically accurate accounts in the book of Daniel give strong evidence of the author living in the time of Nebuchadnezzar and King Cyrus. One example of this accurate information is found in Daniel 5:29. For years, critics claimed that Daniel was wrong. Belshazzar was not the final king of Babylon. Greek historians definitively identified Belshazzar’s father Nabonidus as the last king. No one could demonstrate the reason for this seeming contradiction until archaeology confirmed that Nabonidus had appointed his son as ruler while he spent his time on his own pursuits away from the government. Remarkably, Daniel had demonstrated that he knew what was happening in Babylon even when modern historians did not. The reason that Daniel was appointed the third ruler in the kingdom was because Belshazzar was the second ruler. His father was the first ruler.
Conclusion
The book of Daniel has transformed many unbelievers into followers of Jesus. The prophecies that could not possibly be true unless there really is a God of heaven interacting in human affairs have forced atheists and doubters to confront their skepticism and acknowledge that only God could have inspired the words of Daniel. In addition, Daniel and his friends’ stand for the right under the most difficult of circumstances has inspired the faithful to continue to follow Jesus in the face of trials and persecution. They have said with the three young men facing execution, “If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up” (Daniel 3:17-18). The book of Daniel demonstrates that we are in the hands of an all-knowing God who can deliver us from impossible situations, but that we must be willing to follow Him even in the face of destruction. In the end, God wins, and He has a place for us in His eternal kingdom.