Daniel 2:2b-6 When the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers came in and stood before the king, 3 he said to them, “I have had a dream that troubles me and I want to know what it means.” 4 Then the astrologers answered the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it.” 5 The king replied to the astrologers, “This is what I have firmly decided: If you do not tell me what my dream was and interpret it, I will have you cut into pieces and your houses turned into piles of rubble. 6 But if you tell me the dream and explain it, you will receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. So tell me the dream and interpret it for me.”
 
THE king is the authority. Nothing opposes him. Or is there?
    One way the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers can oppose the king is to collectively deceive him. By proclaiming, “Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it.”  these men made a false promise. They could tell the king anything their collective minds contrived.
    Lying is sin’s subtle way to reject authority. Not knowing and faithfully believing God’s Holy Word opens our minds to deceit. Our nature is to interpret God in the way that pleases us. “Go ahead,” Temptation says, “it isn’t a sin to ________. You deserve what you desire. You’ll be happy.” Believe the lie. Temptation will quickly minimize and then destroy your relationship with God.
    Rejoice in the wonder of our LORD God. God comes in love and mercy to reveal himself to us. God keeps no secrets. He comes in the law, the prophets, the Son and the Spirit, so you can completely, quickly and easily see his authority over your life. He teaches you the Truth, so you will know the Way unto heaven’s home prepared for you who believe.
    Unlike the king, God’s authority is truly absolute. You cannot lie to him or manipulate him to your own ways. He knows your heart. His only test on your soul is, “Do you believe?” No magicians, enchanters, sorcerers or astrologers are needed to know God.
 
Matthew 24:24-26 “For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect — if that were possible. 25 See, I have told you ahead of time. 26 So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.”
 

 

Daniel 1:17-21 To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds. 18 At the end of the time set by the king to bring them in, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and he found no one equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king's service. 20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom. 21 And Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.
 
LET’S look back to Exodus and the tabernacle’s construction. In the tabernacle was the lampstand for ongoing light at night: Exodus 27:20 “Command the Israelites to bring you clear oil of pressed olives for the light so that the lamps may be kept burning.” This is more than a light for the tabernacle; it illustrates God’s constant presence with his people. Israel would be encouraged when they have a visual reminder, “God is here.” The tabernacle light, too, points to the glorious Light of the World, God’s Savior and King. We are never alone when we trust the Light is with us.
     In a like manner, Daniel and the others are gifted to be a light of God’s presence in Babylon. With the oil of wisdom, knowledge and visions, the LORD anointed these men to help the Jews see, “God is with us.” through 70 years of dark exile. With knowledge, they pleased and would even influence pagan kings.
     God put his light where all could see. Their understanding would enable the men to discern wise responses to the kings they would serve. And Daniel’s extraordinary and singular gift to discern dreams and visions would be a special glow of God’s sovereign authority.
     What is your light? Many times the Bible speaks of your spiritual gifts. The purpose to know your gifts is to glorify God. Your gifts are to be a light to the church and to the “Gentiles” – those who do not believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Are you alight with God’s love and purpose? Where will you shine it?
 
Matthew 5:14 “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”  
      
    
 
 
 

Daniel 1:8-16 But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. 9 Now God had caused the official to show favor and sympathy to Daniel, 10 but the official told Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned your food and drink. Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men your age? The king would then have my head because of you.” 11 Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, 12 “Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.” 14 So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days. 15 At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. 16 So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.
 
HOW would the royal diet defile Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah? “Defile” means to be unclean in the Lord’s sight. The young Hebrews were concerned the king’s food would be unclean – not because of meat and wine - but because of the use and types of meat.
     Concern for how the meat had been used relates to God’s worship command in Exodus 20:3 “You shall have no other gods before me.” To join with others at the king’s table could include meat that had been sacrificed to idols. In Leviticus 17, God also particularly commands the Jews against idol-sacrificed meat. To consume such food would be to say to their pagan hosts, “We accept your ways – and your gods.” The “Faithful Four” would stand their ground.
     The type of meat could also defile the Jews. The LORD was very specific in the law to not eat pork and other non-split hooved animals, certain birds and sea animals. No meat could have blood remaining in it. The meat had to prepared in a particular way. Sitting at the king’s table, the men would be susceptible to disobeying this particular dietary command.
     Under God’s New Testament of grace we aren’t to be concerned with the types of meat we eat. (See God’s instructions to Peter in Acts 10.) But we must be concerned with the ways of health and vitality. We are to be thoughtful to consume, as far as possible, the foods that offer good nutrition and health to our bodies. Keep in mind your body is the Lord’s temple as Paul writes in 2 Corinthians. We must honor God to seek good health in our ability to do so.
     Yes, we are faced with uncontrollable illnesses. But let’s strive to eat what strengthens our minds and bodies. Be wise for God’s glory, so you, as Daniel, Azariah, Mishael and Hananiah, will stand for God with your personal dietary choices.  
 
The Ultimate Meal
Matthew 26:26-28 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” 27 Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”
 

Daniel 1:6-7 Among these were some from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. 7 The chief official gave them new names: to Daniel, the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.
 
DOES it matter what names these men are called? Yes, it matters very much, especially to God. Here’s why.
     Note the “el” at the end of
“Daniel” and “Mishael”. Then see the “ah” at the end of “Hananiah” and “Azariah”. In these Hebrew names, “el”  means “God,” and “yah” or “ah” is a form of God’s name “Yahweh”. The three-fold names and meaning of Yahweh is given in Psalms 50:1 The Mighty One, God, the Lord, speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets. The four men’s names represented “Mighty One”, “God” and “Lord”. He is the all-powerful, sovereign authority over all.
     Each man’s full name described other traits of God: “Daniel” means “my judge is God”; “Hananiah” means “Yahweh is gracious”; “Mishael” is “Who is what God is?” (This is in reference to no one or no god is as the Lord God) And “Azariah” means “Yahweh has helped.” Each time their names were spoken, these men would be reminded of God’s power, righteousness, judgment, help and salvation.
     Babylon is a pagan culture. Such cultures always strive to erase God from our minds. The new names would direct the men’s minds not only away from God but toward evil. “Belteshazzar” means “May Bel protect his life”. Bel is another name for Marduk, the chief Babylonian god. Worship of this evil idol included child sacrifice – a common thread of unbelief throughout the centuries. “Shadrach” meant “the command of Aku”. Aku was a Sumerian moon god. In turn, “Meshach” meant “Who is what Aku is?” as if Aku is the most powerful of all – the direct attack on the Lord God. And “Abednego” meant “servant of Nebo”, another god of Babylon. 
     Words and names do matter. They matter very much. What we say affects our mind to influence our beliefs. Especially, you see a name’s power here, don’t you? How one sees himself or herself is often defined by their name. In many circumstances, I hear people live under nicknames. And I wonder, “What’s wrong with their given name?” There is very little that honors your family and friends more than to speak their names.
     Also, how do you name God? Is he the “Big guy in the sky?” or is he “Lord God Almighty”? Is he “someone’s watching over me”? Or is he “the Holy Spirit, Protector, Guide”? Is Jesus a “good teacher”? Or do you say the “Lord Jesus Christ, Savior of my life”.
     When you speak of God, be as the faithful Hebrews. Use the Bible’s names that point to his glory, power, dominion, justice and salvation. Honor the LORD God with each word you speak – both to him and to his people.
 
John 12:49-50 “For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. 50 I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”
 
 

Daniel 1:3-6 Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility, 4 young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians. 5 The king assigned them a daily amount of food and wine from the king’s table. They were to be trained for three years, and after that they were to enter the king’s service.
 
WHAT do you do with the gifts the Lord has given to you? The king, Nebuchadnezzar, ordered only the best and the brightest young men brought from Judah to serve in his palace. These chosen men would receive far better treatment than the other Jews in exile. The Lord had granted to these men attractive physical appearance and good minds to learn. As a result, the king granted them the opportunity for a privileged life in Babylon.
     The men’s minds would be the focus on their transformation. To be trained in the ways of Babylon’s king would include some very good education. The Babylonians were great architects, mathematicians, astronomers and farmers. They had much knowledge to teach their new “citizens”.
     But what else would these men learn? Surely, the king worshiped idols. Would they be taught about these lifeless gods? Would their minds be filled to pursue personal power instead of the Lord’s humility? Would their eyes become focused on worldly wealth, forgetting God’s rich spiritual blessings? Would Satan’s deadly lies replace the Lord’s living commands? Might they consume food against the Lord’s dietary laws? Would they neglect the Sabbath? Most certainly life in a pagan land would be a life separate from the Kingdom of God.
     This choice confronts you each day, doesn’t it? The culture confronts your mind to conform. What do you learn? Whom do you follow? What do you believe? How and whom do you worship? Are you filling your minds with God or with worthless gods – self, sports, hobbies, work? Do you consume comfort, discarding Jesus’ call to serve?
     The mind is precious to protect. Disobedience and obedience begins with what we learn. We will see that God had gifted four particular men with minds set on God against Babylon’s temptations. Their lives would glorify God’s name, so even the pagans would know Yahweh – the LORD God Almighty. We will see how these men decided to remain faithful to God, to be an example to the Israelites then in exile and even for our faith today.
     Are you a Christian? God has given you a faith to believe. How will you use your mind to glorify God’s name? What choices are you making? What will friends and family remember of your choices when they tell your story? 

 

Isaiah 39:3-7 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah and asked, “What did those men say, and where did they come from?” “From a distant land,” Hezekiah replied. “They came to me from Babylon.” 4 The prophet asked, “What did they see in your palace?” “They saw everything in my palace,” Hezekiah said. “There is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them.” 5 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord Almighty: 6 The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your fathers have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the Lord. 7 And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”
 
Daniel 1:1-2 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim, king of Judah, into his hand, along with some of the articles from the temple of God. These he carried off to the temple of his god in Babylonia and put in the treasure house of his god.
 
WE begin a study of Daniel with words from Isaiah to point out the Bible’s 66 books form one unified understanding of God. Hezekiah was one of Judah’s kings who lived more closely to God than many. But as most of us, he errored at times. Once, as the Scripture says, he showed the entire storehouse of Judah’s wealth to representatives from Babylon. Perhaps the king was prideful to exclaim, “Look what we have accomplished.” Maybe he was comparing Judah’s wealth with Babylon’s – one of the richest nations of that era. Th Lord God used Hezekiah’s prideful display to be a sign of future judgment.
     God’s words to Hezekiah become reality. Several accounts, including passages in Jeremiah, 2 Kings, 2 Chronicles and here in Daniel 1:1-2 record Babylon’s crushing defeat of Judah and Jerusalem during Jehoiakim’s reign. Jehoiakim was evil. Among other things, he persecuted and nearly killed Jeremiah. Eventually, as Daniel and others were taken into exile, Jehoiakim was brutally killed and his body thrown over Jerusalem’s wall to satisfy the city’s enemies.  
     Some say, “I don’t like to know of the Bible’s history.” But what we must realize is that it is essential to look back into time to know the full power God displays over the world. We love the historical event of Jesus prophesied to come and then coming. But we often reject the accounts of judgment prophecies and their fulfillment. There is no need for a Savior if there is no judgment.
     Daniel is essentially an account of God’s judgment on Israel. Think of Daniel’s famous stories: the four men in the fire and Daniel in the lions’ den. These stories stir us to faith, but they occur as the LORD God judges the Jews through Babylon’s persecution. God causes the exile into Babylon because his people have rejected him. It is a sobering reminder of our destiny if we reject God’s salvation.
     We rejoice, too, that we will see in Daniel how the Lord protects his faithful followers. He will empower Daniel with specific gifts to glorify God’s name among the pagans. He will protect and elevate Daniel and his close friends to become leaders among even the Jews who reject God. Yes, Daniel is a story of God’s mercy to forgive our sins and point ahead to his ultimate victory of the church today.
     Yes, be alert. God keeps his judgment promises. Rejoice! Thank God he keeps his salvation promises.
 
 
      
 

Exodus 39:43 Moses inspected the work and saw that they had done it just as the LORD had commanded. So Moses blessed them.
 
MOSES inspected the completed tabernacle and Ark of the Covenant. God had gifted people to craft, carve, sew, measure, and shape Jehovah Lord’s dwelling on earth had completed the work as instructed. The tabernacle and its intricate design was to be God’s dwelling among his people and help display God’s presence among his people. We can imagine that Bezalel, the gifted craftsman, and the others were overjoyed to hear their gifted work had pleased Jehovah.
     This is a good lesson for us, isn’t it? The LORD God is a living, life-changing force in all who faithfully confess Jesus, “Lord and Savior.” The LORD has gifted you not only to be born again in his grace, you are also his tabernacle on earth. 1 Corinthians 3:16 Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? Through the various spiritual gifts, you have the opportunity daily to display his presence among his people.
     On some days, for example, God calls you to respond with the gift of love or forgiveness or helps to show God’s tender mercy. On other days, he invites you to walk into a new place such as a home for the aged or even next door to your home to encourage lonely people. He may have gifted you to teach his commands. Maybe you are the one to repair a leaky roof at your church. Perhaps you will be called to display God’s presence as you teach a Sunday school class. Possibly, it’s time to pray for someone you don’t really know. Maybe God has gifted and appointed you to lead a small group Bible study. Perhaps your gift today is to ask your spouse for forgiveness. Could it be the day you invite a family to your home for a meal? Hospitality is a generous way to display God is with us.
     In each place you use God’s gifts, you demonstrate the Holy Spirit is dwelling in you. You are “tabernacle”, a place where God’s Spirit dwells to bless the world. God has come into your life with power and authority, so you will be his dwelling place on earth. Celebrate God’s presence in your life. Be a living testimony of God’s love to bless the world.  
 
LIFE Link: Use God’s gifts, and you will glorify God.