Today’s passage: Daniel 4:1-18

Helpful thoughts:

• The events of chapter 4 would have been toward the end of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign.  Daniel would have been closer to fifty years old by then.
• This chapter is very uncommon in that it is written from the perspective of Nebuchadnezzar himself (Save the portion where he goes crazy).
  • The king desired to show the “signs and wonders that the Most High God” had done for him.
  • In these verses, the king of Babylon is declaring to the world that God is the everlasting King and sovereign over the world.  That’s a big deal, but later we will see that his level of respect for God (Though he never got rid of his own god…) at the end of his life did not carry down to the next generation.
    • Nebuchadnezzar believed the God of Israel was the most powerful God, but the true God was never his God.
    • The king now refers to Daniel by his Hebrew name, giving honor to Daniel’s loyalty to the God whom his name points.
• The “watchers” and the “holy ones” are angels.

Questions to consider:

1. What are some evidences in this passage that Nebuchadnezzar had not truly repented and submitted himself to God alone?
2. Are kings and leaders always the greatest of people?  How do they come to power?  Who is ultimately in control at all times?
3. What is the difference between believing that God is great and calling Him your Lord?  What is the difference between believing that Jesus died on the cross and receiving the gift of salvation by faith?  What is the role of repentance in being born again?

Today’s passage: Daniel 3:19-30

Helpful thoughts:

• Nebuchadnezzar’s fury made him irrational.
  • “Seven times” was an expression that would have equated to, “as hot as the furnace can get,” which is believed to be 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit (Hot enough to melt several metals).
  • The mighty soldiers were unnecessary given the three men’s response.  The king lost his own mighty men that day because he lost his temper.
• Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego knew that God was able to save them from the fire.  Now everyone knew He was both able and willing on that day.  This miracle put His power on display in a way the king had not yet seen or considered.  Nebuchadnezzar now refers to God as the “Most High God” (Meaning, more powerful than the rest of the gods) and commends these Jews for refusing to obey the his command.
• Nebuchadnezzar identified the fourth man in the fire as an angel.  Many biblical scholars believe this could have been the angel of the Lord, the preincarnate Christ.
• Now, instead of being despised, the men were praised for refusing to worship any other god.
  • It was then written into law (With alarming consequences!) that no one in all of Babylon was allowed to speak poorly of God.

Questions to consider:

1. What was God accomplishing through this miracle?  Generally speaking, pagan cultures believed the greater strength of their gods over the gods of other people provided their victories in battle.  What was God teaching Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian people?
2. What would have been the best response from Nebuchadnezzar and all those who heard about this event?  Was the “moral of the story” to stay true to yourself and what you believe? Or was it, there is only one God worthy of obedience and praise?
3. God is not going to temporarily save every believer physically through martyrdom the way He did Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.  If that were the case, there would be no martyrs.  But, how has He saved each and every one of them?  How has God provide for your salvation and snatched us out of the fire?

Today’s passage: Daniel 3:8-18

Helpful thoughts:

• In this context, the Chaldeans were wise men who served Nebuchadnezzar and had been saved but also humiliated by Daniel’s and these three men’s service to the king.
• King Nebuchadnezzar may have been particularly frustrated after having been willing to “worship” their God and have them not return the favor.  His understanding of deity was polytheistic (Many gods).  From his perspective, they were being both rude and directly disobedient.
• By asking, “Who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?” Nebuchadnezzar reveals his low view of the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.  Perhaps he only viewed God as the revealer of dreams.
  • The gods of polytheistic cultures all have certain responsibilities that coincide with specific powers.  The king was about to learn much more about the true God!
• Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were willing to obey God, whether He preserved their lives or not.

Questions to consider:

1. Why was Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego’s choice the right one?  What would have made it hard and scary?  What truths from Scripture would have made it easy and safe (Even in their potential death)?
2. How did Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego speak to the king, even in their explanation of why they would not bow down?  Were they arrogant and smug or were they respectful?
3. How does this passage encourage us toward missions?  Should we think that it is right and good for different cultures to worship other gods or to not worship at all?  Is it culturally appropriate for us to go to other nations and participate in their worship in order to “learn their culture”?  What do the people of the world need?

Today’s passage: Daniel 3:1-7

Helpful thoughts:

• This statue was about 90 feet tall.
• The statue/image was set up in the plain of Dura, outside the city.  The last chapter ended by telling us that Daniel did not leave the palace, therefore he would not have been present when this false worship was commanded.
• Further proof that Nebuchadnezzar did not convert to worship of the Lord alone…He commanded all of these officials to worship this new image or die.  In a way, this was a means for him to assert his authority and culture over all of his subordinate governing authorities.
• Babylon had set up native leaders for each province.  This means that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were not the only Jewish people at this event.

Questions to consider:

1. Why was this command such a big deal? (See Deuteronomy 6:12-14)
2. Why did it probably seem like such an easy decision for all the people who did bow down and worship?  How would what they already believed and committed to have guided them in this instant of decision?
3. How does what we really believe show itself when we have to make choices in the moments of everyday life?
4. What kind of faith can a person have if the reason they bow down is just to make sure they don’t get killed?

Today’s passage: Daniel 2:46-49

Helpful thoughts:

• Nebuchadnezzar shows some of his confusion in his response.  Who was he supposed to thank and praise?  He decided to praise Daniel AND God.  This might have looked as though Nebuchadnezzar was worshiping Daniel, but he was treating Daniel as a representative.  The Babylonians had statues and images/icons to burn incense before…the God of Israel has no shrine or golden replica, this was a foreign concept to the king.
• Nebuchadnezzar did not convert to Judaism here.  At best he acknowledged that Daniel’s God was the best of all the gods.  That’s a major statement for the Babylonian king to make.  It would have been offensive to think of him calling the Babylonian gods inferior to the God of Judah.  But he was not converting, just adding another God to the list.
• Daniel was made the head of all the wise men in Babylon and the head of the government of the province of Babylon.  This combination of responsibilities made him incredibly powerful.
  • Daniel first exercised his power by bringing Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego into the government as well.  They would have reported to him.

Questions to consider:

1. What were some amazing things we learned about God in this chapter?
2. Who was in control of this situation?  Who humbled Nebuchadnezzar and elevated the role Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would play in Babylon during the exile?  Who is sovereign?
3. Why would it have looked like Daniel was in control…or that he had a handle on the whole situation?  Where was Daniel’s hope and trust?  How did that impact his bravery and actions?

Today’s passage: Daniel 2:31-45

Helpful thoughts:

• In today’s passage, Daniel shares the contents and the meaning of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.
• Here are the probable kingdoms/empires represented in the statue:
  • The head of gold=Babylon
  • The chest and arms of silver=Medo-Persia
  • The belly to thighs of bronze=Greece
  • The legs of iron=Rome
  • The feet and toes of iron and clay=The future gathering of nations led by the Anti-Christ
  • The stone=The kingdom of God led by Jesus Christ
• The “Stone” kingdom will be set up by God and will never be destroyed!

Questions to consider:

1. Who made Nebuchadnezzar the greatest king on the earth at that time?  Who will make the kingdom that will never be destroyed?
2. Who gave this dream, revealed it and made it’s meaning to be known? (Have all of these things happened so far?  Has God been right or wrong?)
3. Why can Daniel confidently say, “The interpretation is sure.”?  Why can we be so confident that these things yet to come are going to happen?  Where, or with Whom does our confidence lie?
4. What matters in your life have you entrusted to our all-powerful and faithful God? (One of them is your salvation!)  Are there any matters you have you withheld from Him?

Today’s passage: Daniel 2:25-30

Helpful thoughts:

• Arioch declares his victory before the king, “I have found…”
• In a moment when Daniel could also seek to receive glory, he points Nebuchadnezzar to the real hero, the Lord.
  • In pointing to the need for God’s intervention, Daniel agrees with what the previous wise men declared from verses 10-11.
  • What the wise men and false gods of the Babylonians were proven powerless to do, God was able.
• Daniel assumes the role of a servant, not a superstar.

Questions to consider:

1. Before Daniel even begins to relay the dream and its meaning, what all has he taught King Nebuchadnezzar?
2. Who should the king have been most impressed by after hearing what is to come?
3. Why would it be ironic to read a passage like this and go no further than to simply be enamored with Daniel?  To whom was Daniel trying to point the king?

Today’s passage: Daniel 2:17-24

Helpful thoughts:

• In this moment of great need and desperation, Daniel and his faithful friends prayed.  Only God could have provided what they needed, and they went to Him.
• God heard their prayer, understood their prayer, and answered their prayer.  Our omniscient God is relational.
  • He is almighty and transcendent.
  • He is caring and near.
• We know things about God because He has revealed Himself (And knowledge and wisdom) to us.
• David rightly gave the credit and the praise to God, not to himself.

Questions to consider:

1. Why was praying the right thing to do in this situation?  Why is it also a good thing to remember that Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah had been praying and living for the Lord prior to this moment of crisis?
2. What do you think all the other “wise men” were doing during this time?  Who were they seeking for help?  What ideas were they trying to come up with?
3. In what ways are the characteristics (or attributes) and actions of God on display in this passage consistent with the message of the Gospel?

Today’s passage: Daniel 2:1-16

Helpful thoughts:

• There appears to be a problem in the text…If Daniel completed a three year training program, how are the events of Daniel 2 happening during Nebuchadnezzar’s second year as king?
  • In ancient cultures, doing something for a part of the year would often be counted as a year.  So, it’s possible the “Three year” training program could have been completed in as little as fourteen months depending on when during the year it began.
  • The year a king would take the throne was called the “Accession year.” Then the next year would be called the “first year.”
    • Put these two practices of time keeping together and it’s possible for the training to be completed and for these events to occur during the “second year” of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign.
• In a way, King Nebuchadnezzar was not wrong for being dissatisfied with his wise men.  They were responsible for being in touch with the gods and if they were really going to serve as they had advertised…  This request was not as ridiculous as it sounds.
  • The wise men were not wrong to admit their inability without some sort of divine revelation.  It wasn’t the wise men who were to blame as much as it was the belief system of the Babylonian people!
• Daniel again makes a wise appeal and schedules a time with the king.

Questions to consider:

1. In what way did the king’s request make sense?  In what way was his request absurd?  What would he be sure of after someone was able to accurately relay the details of his dream?
2. Why was Daniel’s appeal appropriate and make good sense?  What was going to happen to all of the wise men if no one even made an attempt to answer the king’s request?  Would it have been wise for Daniel to offer these kinds of services to the king prior to this dire situation?
3. If you found yourself in this position what would you do next? (We will find out what Daniel did tomorrow!)