Daniel was a Hebrew from a noble background and was among those deported to Babylon in 605 BC when the Lord handed Judah over to enemies because of her sin (2 Chronicles 34:23-28). He was a teenager when deported and lived the remainder of his lengthy life in Babylon (1:1; 1:21).

 

 

• six events in Daniel’s and his colleagues’ lives showing how they remained faithful to God in a hostile culture (chapters 1-6)

• four visions God gave Daniel about the course of world history (chapters 7-12). 

Why Study the Book of Daniel?

 

1. It teaches us about the Sovereignty of God. In spite of how it looks God is in absolute control over all people and events.

 

• The Past. God raised up the Babylonian Empire to punish Judah (Habakkuk 1:1-11).

• The Present. God was controlling all events in the lives of Babylonian Kings (1:2; 4:34-35).

• The Future. God graciously revealed to Daniel the future. 

 

The Sovereignty of God should be a great encouragement to us. The World is not spiralling out of control. The Christian’s life is not drifting aimlessly (Romans 8:28). This should strengthen the Christian for life and living. Our God reigns!

 

2. It teaches us about the Grace of God. The Lord graciously preserved Daniel and his colleagues in a pagan land. The Lord answered prayer. The Lord gave the interpretation of dreams. The Lord revealed the future. Daniel, and others, did what they did by God’s grace. So today believers can do what God requires by His grace.  

 

3. It teaches us about the spirituality of Daniel. Daniel was a disciplined, resilient man of God. We observe him obeying and honouring God from youth to old age, at Babylon University and at work in the Civil Service, even when pressurised to conform to pagan ways. We see him exercising spiritual disciplines of prayer, reading the Scriptures, and fasting. We see a man close to God and one to whom God spoke. He is an example for us to follow.

 

4. It teaches us about Babylonian Society/Culture. The religious climate of Babylon was not unlike ours which is increasingly pluralistic and syncretistic. The spirit of our age says there is no absolute truth, and truth is what each person makes it. Many are open to the possibility of knowing God but on their own terms. In addition, our moral climate is as anti-Yahweh as ancient Babylon. This is the arena in which Christians today are called to glorify God as Daniel did in his day.

 

 

Those taken to Babylon lamented (Psalm 137:1-4). In a strange land Daniel sang the Lord’s song loud and clear! He obeyed God’s Word in Jeremiah 29:4-8. Christians are strangers on earth (1 Peter 1:1-2; Philippians 3:20). Yet, by God’s grace, we can do in our day what Daniel did in his. The book of Daniel encourages us in this God-honouring pathway.