Chapter 18: Daniel in Exile
Key Question
What godly character traits did Daniel and his friends have that you would like to imitate?
Chapter 18
Wisdom: Pages 249–250
Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon overcame Judah and carried away treasures and captives. One of his officials selected from the captives young men of royal and noble birth who were handsome and intelligent, and who could one day serve in the palace. These were placed in a three-year training program for government positions. Among those chosen were Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
But there was a problem. The king had assigned them rich food and wine from the royal table—the best in the land—but the young men didn’t want to be defiled by it. So Daniel asked the chief official to allow them not to eat it. The chief official feared they’d look unhealthy, and that would put him in danger of losing his head (literally!). Daniel next turned to his guard.
1. What did Daniel ask the guard to do (Daniel 1:12–13)?
Daniel could have stomped his feet, crossed his arms, and insisted he wouldn’t eat royal food. Instead, how did he show tact and respect? On the one hand, Daniel couldn’t risk the chief official’s life. On the other, eating just vegetables and water might have caused him to lose weight. How did his request give room for God to act? What were the test’s results (1:15–16)? Think of a time you were asked to do something against your conscience. Were you able to find a tactful and satisfactory solution?
2. What did God give Daniel and his friends (Daniel 1:17)? God gives us talents to use in serving Him and people. When the king noticed the young men’s gifts, what happened (1:19)? Think of a time God put you in a place where you could use the talents He gave you to serve Him.
God put four gifted young men of faith in the service of the king who had just made Judah part of his empire. He was ready to show that even though He’d let Nebuchadnezzar overcome Judah, it wasn’t because He lacked strength to stop it.
Revelation: Pages 250–254
Nebuchadnezzar had such a bizarre, disturbing dream that he knew it had special meaning. He couldn’t chance being told the wrong interpretation, so he demanded something astonishing: his wise men had to tell him what his dream was before they interpreted it, or he would execute them.
3. Compare the astrologers’ response in Daniel 2:11 to Daniel’s response in Daniel 2:16. How did their religious beliefs differ? What did Daniel urge his friends to do (2:18)? What can we learn from this response to a seemingly impossible situation that we can apply to our lives? Think of a time you joined with others to pray through a difficult situation. How did having group prayer support help?
God revealed both the dream and its interpretation to Daniel in the middle of the night.
4. Daniel didn’t claim to have the ability to tell people what their dreams were. Instead, what did he tell the king in Daniel 2:27–28? Why was this important for the king to know? Consider what the king needed to know both about God and about Daniel. What did Daniel call God in 2:29? Why was that an appropriate title?
5. Why did God reveal the dream to Daniel (2:30)? Think of a time God revealed something to you that helped another person, or revealed to another person something that helped you. How can you apply Daniel’s attitude to situations like these?
6. What was the king’s reaction to Daniel’s knowing and interpreting his dream (Daniel 2:46)? If Nebuchadnezzar ever thought he had conquered Judah because his gods were more powerful than Judah’s God, what did he know now (2:47)? What happened to Daniel and his friends (2:48–49)? How might that fit into God’s plans? Think of a difficult time that showed you God is God.
Courage: Pages 254–256
Worshiping other gods was not an option for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Nebuchadnezzar was furious when they disobeyed his order to worship the enormous gold image he set up. He gave them another chance to obey, or he’d have them thrown into a fiery furnace.
7. What did Nebuchadnezzar say about gods in Daniel 3:15? What did the three Jews say about themselves in 3:16? What did they say about God in 3:17? What would they do if God didn’t do what He was capable of doing (3:18)?
They believed God was able to rescue them, but might choose not to.
8. Why would they serve a God who might not rescue them even though He was able? What can we learn about facing hardship from this?
Thrown into the blazing hot furnace, they were joined by someone the king described as looking like the son of gods. They were no longer bound, and they walked among the flames unharmed. Nebuchadnezzar had been wrong: the God of heaven was perfectly capable of rescuing His servants from the king.
9. After Nebuchadnezzar called Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego out of the furnace, what did he say about them (Daniel 3:28)? What did Nebuchadnezzar then decree (3:29)? How did God use this event to let the nations know He is God, even though at the moment things weren’t going well for the little nation that was supposed to represent Him?
10. What can we learn about standing firm in our faith from Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego?
Righteousness: Pages 256–260
The Neo-Babylonian Empire fell to Persia. The Persian King Darius was impressed with Daniel, who was an old man now, but still filled with wisdom. Darius planned to put Daniel over the kingdom, but jealous colleagues sought a way to stop him. They knew Daniel prayed three times a day, which gave them an idea for setting a trap. They and a group of other leaders went to Darius and claimed that all his leaders had agreed he should decree that no one could pray to any god or human for a month, except to Darius, on penalty of being thrown into a lion’s den. It wasn’t true, of course: Daniel hadn’t agreed to it. Fooled, Darius followed their advice and issued the decree.
11. What did Daniel do when he heard about the decree (Daniel 6:10)? Describe Daniel’s prayers (6:10–11). What can we learn about prayer from Daniel?
An angel closed the lions’ mouths, and Daniel remained safe. Darius’s men lifted Daniel from the den and threw his accusers in instead. Darius then sent a letter throughout the Persian Empire. What did it say?
12. What had Darius learned about God from Daniel (Daniel 6:26–27)? What are some of the reactions the exiles and other peoples may have had when they heard this news? Think of a time when God rescued you from danger.
The Israelites were supposed to be a nation that made God known to all other nations. When they abandoned God, they couldn’t serve that purpose as a nation. Yet God used even their disobedience as a means to reach people!
Hope: Pages 260–261
When Daniel had been in Babylon 67 years, he recalled a letter the prophet Jeremiah sent to the exiles. It said the nations that had scattered Israel and Judah would be destroyed. That had happened: both the Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian empires had fallen. Hope must have arisen in Daniel’s heart.
13. According to Jeremiah’s letter, how long would the Lord wait to bring His people back to Jerusalem (Jeremiah 29:10)? What was God’s plan behind exiling His people (29:11)? What did He want the people to do when the time was nearing its end (29:12–13)? When they did, what would God do (29:14)? What can we learn from this about our own times of “exile”?
Daniel, the righteous man of prayer, acted on God’s promise. He fasted, put on sackcloth and ashes, and prayed earnestly for God’s mercy. He confessed his own sins and the sins of the Israelites. He expressed dismay over those who still refused to seek God. He called on God’s love, mercy, and willingness to forgive.
Give ear, O God, and hear; open Your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears Your Name. We do not make requests of You because we are righteous, but because of Your great mercy. O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For Your sake, O my God, do not delay, because Your city and Your people bear Your Name. Daniel 9:18–19
While he was still praying the Angel Gabriel appeared. The decree to rebuild the city was coming!
14. What lesson from Daniel and his friends do you most want to apply to your life this week? What steps can you take towards achieving that?
Timeline: Daniel in Exile (620–530 BC)
AS YOU READ CHAPTER 18
Journal your answers to these questions as you read through the chapter this week. You may wish to read one day and journal the next, or spread the questions over the whole week.1. Jerusalem and God’s Temple were in ruins, and most of the Jews were living in exile during the time of Daniel. 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?
2. What did Daniel’s prayer life entail? What does your prayer life look like right now? Are there things you could learn from Daniel’s witness? What might you commit to trying in the week ahead to increase your habit of prayer?
3. Look back at God’s covenant with Abraham (p. 13 or Genesis 12:1-3.) How was it fulfilled through Daniel and his three friends? Which other promises of God’s can you recall at this point in The Story? If you can’t recall, flip back through the chapters and see if you can find some. Have God’s promises changed at all over time? How have they held up under the test of time?
4. Compare the story of Daniel with the story of Joseph (Ch. 3). Do you view difficulties the way they did? Why or why not? When have your grown stronger in faith during a time of trial?
5. List the various ways God revealed His supernatural power in this chapter. What message did God’s actions send to the exiles? When have you been overwhelmingly convinced that God is alive and at work in your life or in the lives of others?
6. Jeremiah’s message (p. 260-261) was sent in a letter from Jerusalem to the exiles in Babylon. What was God’s promise to the exiled community? What hope does this give you for times when difficulty and trials seem to prevail?
Our Lesson on Sunday:
Chapter 18: Faithful Living in a Foreign Land
Every once in a while, sometimes every few generations, there is a contemporary story that echoes a Biblical story to such an extent that you just sit back and marvel at both saints. As we come to Chapter 18 in The Story, and the example of how Daniel lived for God in a hostile culture, we also look to a 20th century Daniel, a Lutheran pastor named Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wasn’t only a church pastor but a seminary professor as well. He studied the Scriptures diligently, meditated and prayed daily, discipled young men in seminary, and spoke around the world. As a young man in his twenties and thirties, he sought reformations in the German national church. He defiantly preached against the influence of the Nazis. In the early 1930’s, he studied at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. In 1939, he accepted an offer from them to teach, but he knew that his place was in Germany. So a month later, he returned to Germany to actively resist the cruel power of the Nazi regime, to boldly lead the underground Confessing Church movement. He was arrested in April of 1943. A year later, on April 9, 1944, the 39-year-old Bonhoeffer was hanged in a concentration camp in Flossenburg, Germany. Three days later the camp was liberated by Allied forces.
The Cost of Discipleship is Bonhoeffer’s seminal work on what it means to be a follower of Christ. This is one of a handful of books that changed my life. In it, he wrote this quote on your outline:
“Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ…Costly grace is the kingly rule of Christ…it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows Him…Above all, grace is costly because it cost God the life of His Son.” –Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship
Parallels abound between Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Daniel. Both understood the Cost of Discipleship, even when it meant living out your faith in a hostile culture, even if it meant resisting the worst kinds of evil at the risk of your own life, even if it meant an underground faith that refused compromise. And just as Bonhoeffer faced death by resisting the Third Reich, Daniel and his three friends faced death for their resistance of the Babylonian Reich, where much of Judah had been taken captive. And for the 21st century man who has taken up the mission of Christ in his life, who has dethroned himself and taken up the gauntlet to live faithfully in an unfaithful world, there are perhaps no greater role models than Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, and Daniel.
You might not know these four men were probably teenagers when they arrived in Babylon; but despite their young age, they were faithful to God, even down to the Jewish dietary laws.
You remember Nebuchadnezzar’s dream—Daniel’s ability to recite it and interpret it really put him on the king’s radar—he was promoted, and the king himself worshiped Daniel’s God. But when the king’s other advisors played to his pride, he had a gold statue made in his own honor, and everyone was commanded to worship it. When Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego refused, they were thrown into a fiery furnace. But an astonished king watched a fourth man join them as they walked unharmed through the fire.
When Belshazzar became king, he threw a great party, but had the chutzpah to use the holy goblets stolen from Jerusalem’s temple. The Lord wrote on the wall: “Mene mene tekel parsin,” which loosely translated means, “This party is SO over.” Sure enough, that night, the king died.
The new Persian king liked Daniel too, but was tricked into signing a decree forbidding prayer to anyone except the king, punishable by a night in the lions’ den. Daniel, of course, returned to his house and prayed to God. King Darius was forced to throw his trusted servant to the lions, but God saved him, and the King once again worshiped Daniel’s God.
We can learn so much from Daniel and his friends and their willingness, like Bonhoeffer, to take a stand in a hostile environment under potentially fatal conditions. In many ways, we can identify with Daniel much more than with Joshua, David, or other OT characters, because Daniel lived where we live: in an antagonistic culture that refuses to value what we do. But amazingly, without the slightest hint of ethical or religious compromise, Daniel serves as a role model for all of us: as a case study as an ALIEN—a journeyman in a foreign land.
Go through this acrostic one letter at a time…First, Daniel had good…
Associations
Daniel developed a close community of like-minded faithful friends. It would be hard to overstate the importance of their relationship with each other.
- Together they resisted the lure of unlawful luxuries.
- Together they refused a non-Kosher diet.
- Together they refused to bow down to the golden idol.
- Together they faced the fiery furnace.
When Daniel was promoted, he asked that his friends also be promoted to positions of influence. Their friendship served to strengthen their faith and their resolve in the face of temptation and persecution.
How should you choose your Associations today?
We were never meant to go it alone. Two years ago, over and over in our study of Proverbs, we saw that God’s men were created to live in community—iron sharpens iron. The fact that I have your back and you have mine demonstrates to the world that we are different—that we have been naturalized into a new commonwealth not made with hands. But which community you choose makes all the difference. Our lesson spoke of a friend that moved into a sales job last year, and all the company salesmen routinely take their clientele to strip joints and gentleman’s clubs. Now the friend won’t return calls and his wife is scared for him, because they don’t go to their Life Group but he does find time to go other places “for business purposes.” We must choose our associations carefully so that they will help us stand firm.
Live Peaceably
Daniel and his friends chose to live peaceably in Babylon. When given food from the king’s table, they respectfully asked for an alternative diet and test. Daniel used wisdom and tact when dealing with the king; his insight saved the entire court. Even when the decree was issued that forbade Daniel to pray to His God, he quietly went to his room to pray as usual. He lived peaceably under at least three different administrations.
How should we go about Living Peaceably today?
Christians are called to be subject to our government and to be peaceable and considerate. Max recently recruited almost a quarter of a million people to pray for President Obama, because Timothy told us to pray for those in authority so we can live quiet and peaceable lives. If we do not represent Christ to the unbelieving world, who will?
Paul said, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men” (Romans 12:18). This also applies to our homes: how much does it depend on you to live at peace with your wife? As the spiritual leader of the home, the ball’s in your court. How much does it depend on us to live peaceably with our children? Daniel shows us it’s possible to take a stand and resist compromise, but do it not out of intimidation, but because we love more and love better than the world does. “By this all men will know you are my disciples, if you Love One Another.”
Third, Daniel never forgot his…
Identity
Immediately after Daniel and his friends were chosen for the king’s Academy of the Chaldean Culture, the commander assigned them new names. These new names were associated with Babylonian gods. By changing their names, they were now labeled under Babylonian culture. This practice would have encouraged most young men to assimilate themselves and leave their Jewish identities behind—but not these four. The Babylonians could impose outward changes, but they could not change the inward identity of these young men. They held fast to God and their true heritage.
What does your Identity mean today?
Like Daniel, our identity is in Christ Jesus. We reside in a “foreign land,” but our identity should remain tethered to Christ.
Engaged his Culture
While Daniel and the others could have refused to participate in the social and political life in Babylon, they did not. Instead, they fully engaged in life where they were exiled. Though aliens, they did not keep to themselves in small Israelite enclaves—they didn’t withdraw out of principle. They became fully functioning members of society and more—they became respected leaders in a foreign land! They used their knowledge, wisdom, skills and favor of the LORD.
How should we Engage the culture today?
Engage wherever you are! Engage in the social, political, and daily life of the community in which God places you. Randy is deliberately moving us to an awareness, a compassion, and an impact on our neighborhoods—being Jesus where God has placed you. Some Christians have withdrawn from the world to protect themselves from its defilement—this could be a monastic monk or a parent who completely isolates their child out of fear of “contamination.” But Jesus did not live that way. His participation in the world did not stain Him, and it need not stain us, if we are in Christ. Adapting to the world is not the same as conforming to it. What better way to change a business, a school, a neighborhood, or a nation than to be an engaged “foreigner” whose character is trustworthy and uncorrupted like Daniel’s.
Non-negotiables
Daniel chose his friends wisely. He lived peaceably in a foreign land. He maintained his identity as a man of God all the while recognizing and respecting the governmental authorities placed over him. But he also knew what was non-negotiable. He and his friends refused the idolatry of bowing down to a graven image. They faced death in the fiery furnace and the lion’s den for their faith, without a guarantee that God would save them. But they stood firm anyway, because of their concrete convictions.
How do you pick your Non-negotiables?
We have to know what our bottom line is and stand firm in our faith for it. For which things are you willing to draw a line in the sand? For which things are you willing to be persecuted? Or maybe just made fun of? Again, conformity cannot be in our vocabulary. I don’t know who said it, but it’s so true: “If you stand for nothing, you’ll fall for anything.”
The application for us today is inescapable. Do we have as much courage? Just as Daniel and his friends were foreigners in enemy territory, so you and I today are “foreigners” and “sojourners” in this world. When you accepted Christ, your citizenship was changed by God Himself. Your spiritual passport was altered to reflect a new homeland, one that none of us has seen but that we have accepted by faith—the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Which component of A-L-I-E-N challenges you the most?
To live as ALIENS in a foreign land:
In Hebrews 11, the great “Hall of Faith” chapter, the author recounted the faith of Abraham and Sarah who lived as aliens in the land of promise but were looking for the city whose architect and builder is God. Then he wrote:
Later Paul would write:
But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for Him to return as our Savior. Philippians 3:20
Peter echoed the same sentiment; we are called to something higher than ourselves:
Dear friends, you are like foreigners and strangers in this world. I beg you to avoid the evil things your bodies want to do that fight against your soul. People who do not believe are living all around you and might say that you are doing wrong. Live such good lives that they will see the good things you do and will give glory to God on the day when Christ comes again. 1 Peter 2:11-12
Today’s Equipping Point
Decide
who defines you.
So many men today define themselves by what others think of them. The man in Dallas doesn’t want to be considered a prude by his co-workers—their approval matters more than God’s approval.
Takeaways
1. Your
life really is just a Layover — treat it that way.
We are here for only a moment, visitors and
strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are
like a shadow, gone so soon without a trace. 1 Chronicles 29:15
If we accept the world’s classification of who we are, if we invest ourselves in building bigger barns, in a corporate scramble, then we’re treating this place as the be-all/end-all. Don’t fall for that. Your final destination is elsewhere.
If we accept the world’s classification of who we are, if we invest ourselves in building bigger barns, in a corporate scramble, then we’re treating this place as the be-all/end-all. Don’t fall for that. Your final destination is elsewhere.
2. Even
in difficult circumstances, God never Abandons us.
The exiles must have been terribly discouraged. Despite all of the prophets’ warnings, they were now experiencing the discipline of God for their failures. But even in exile—all alone and in way over your head, God will not abandon you either. He protected Daniel from the mouth of the lion and He protected the three friends from the fiery furnace—remember the fourth person in the furnace? Who could it have been but an angel or God Himself in the furnace with them? What a great picture…even if you find yourself in a fiery furnace, God walks with you.
And third,
3. For
all the Decisions that are taken away from you, there are still
some you get to make.
I’ve been very convicted by this recently. There are a couple of circumstances in my life right now that absolutely drive me crazy. As much as I’d like to change them, they will not be changed. They are, for now, immovable objects. Those decisions have been taken away from me—I can have no impact right now on those conditions.
But like Daniel, for every circumstance he was not able to choose, there was another choice he could make. And so can I. I can choose to build good associations; I can choose to live peaceably. I can choose to draw my self-worth from God not man; I can choose to engage in my giftedness where I’m permitted. And I can choose the hill upon which I’m willing to die.
May we have the courage to live as ALIENS who belong to a better world?
PRAYER
Lord, sometimes in a sea of pressure to follow the ways of the world, it seems like I’m the only one who wants to do the right thing. I wonder if it’s even possible to do the right thing, or if it’s just easier to go along with everyone else. Help me know clearly the difference between Your way and the way of the world. Give me faith to trust Your guidance and provision, no matter the cost. Amen.See you on Sunday!
In His Love,
David & Susan
