Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 9-10.

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As I began reading this passage I noticed something I have never thought about before (If you have been regularly reading this Bible study you know that is something which happens often).  In his introduction to his prayer and the prophecy which followed, Daniel says that he “perceived in the books.”  The NIV translates that as “understood from Scriptures,” but the NASB agrees with the ESV by saying, “observed in the books.”  I want to note that this indicates the Daniel had the Book of Jeremiah and other books in addition to the Torah, which he considered worth studying in order to learn God’s will.  I will emphasize the point that Daniel considered the Book of Jeremiah to be worthy of regular study even though it had been completed in his lifetime (Jeremiah continued to prophecy in Jerusalem for another 12 or so years after Daniel was taken to Babylon).

Then having read Jeremiah’s prophecy and concluding that the seventy years of desolation for Jerusalem which Jeremiah had predicted were up, he did not “claim” God’s promise.  Instead, Daniel prayed and confessed the sins of his people, acknowledging that they deserved God’s punishment, that they deserved for their homeland to be desolate.  Further, Daniel prayed that God would listen to his pleas for mercy, and for His sake (not for Daniel’s sake, or for the sake of the people of Israel) restore the temple in Jerusalem.  Daniel asked God to hear his prayer, to forgive him and the people of Israel, and to act.  But Daniel did not ask God to act for the sake of himself, or to act for the sake of his people.  He asked God to act for His sake, because the people were called by His name and if God acted to restore them He would be glorified.

Daniel’s prayer, and the answer he received in the rest of this passage, allows us to understand what Jesus meant in John 14 when He said, “Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”  Asking for something in Jesus’ name means asking for something which will glorify God.  Anything which we ask in order to bring glory to God’s name, God will do.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Daniel 7-8.

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The first thing I thought about when I read this was that I did not realize Susa (mentioned as where Daniel was in verse two of chapter eight) was associated with the Babylonian Empire.  I have always associated Susa with the Persian Empire.  So, I looked it up and it turns out that Susa originated as the capital of Elam.  Which means that Susa was indeed an important city under the Babylonian Empire.  While I am writing about historical facts in the Book of Daniel, I want to touch on Belshazzar.  In the nineteenth century historians thought that the references to Belshazzar as king of Babylon indicated that the Book of Daniel could not have been written by someone who knew anything about Babylon, since the records we had said that Nabonidus was the last king of Babylon, and that there was no historical record of a Belshazzar in Babylon.  However, in the middle of the nineteenth century records were found that indicated that Nabonidus had a son named Belshazzar, and since then we have found records that indicate that Belshazzar served as co-ruler with his father.  Further, archeologists now believe that Nabonidus became king after a coup, but that he never wanted to be king.  The evidence suggests that he was made a figurehead by the coup plotters, chief of whom was his son, Belshazzar.  Which means that a government bureaucrat, such as the Book of Daniel portrays Daniel as being , would have viewed Belshazzar as the real king.  When I began reading the Book of Daniel this year I was inclined to think of it as an apocalyptic metaphor and not about actual historical persons.  As I wrote the above I came to realize that those scholars who deny the historicity of this book generally start from the assumption that there cannot be predictive prophecy.  They use as evidence persons and events in the book for which archeologists have been unable to find evidence and use that to conclude they never existed and that therefore the writer of Daniel must have made them up.  I currently am inclined to believe that these events happened, with varying degrees of hyperbole added by the writer to increase the drama of the story (for example, the image which Nebuchadnezzar erected in chapter three may not have been that tall, and may not have been made primarily of gold).

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 5-6.

I have a Youtube video of me reading the Scripture passage and my comments. Please check it out and let me know your thoughts.

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The account in chapter five is where we get the saying, “read the writing on the wall.”  However, based on this passage, we use that phrase poorly, because in this story, once there was writing on the wall to read it was too late to do anything about the coming disaster.  There wasn’t even time to run away.  Now let’s look at what the story says about why their time was up.  It tells us that when Belshazzar was having a feast with his top officials, he decided to use the vessels taken from the temple in Jerusalem in order to drink wine as part of a festival honoring their gods.  By doing so, they were declaring that their gods had given them victory over God and that He served their gods now.  Then when the writing appeared on the wall, they remembered that there was a man among them who spoke for God.  Except they only remembered that in part.  They thought that Daniel had the spirit of their gods in him which allowed him to interpret things others did not understand.  Despite the truth being revealed during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, that Daniel worshiped and served the only true God, the Most High, they dismissed that on the basis of their partial knowledge.

As I was writing this I realized how much this is like so many today.  They know just a little bit about what Christians believe, but what little they know is terribly distorted.  So, they dismiss Christianity as foolishness and as being based on superstition.  They see no reason to look closer, because “anyone with just a little knowledge knows it can’t be true.”  And that is where they make their mistake.  Anyone with a little knowledge “knows” Christianity can’t be true, but those with a lot of knowledge realize there’s no other good explanation for the facts upon which Christianity is based.  Don’t be one of those people who dismiss Christ until the writing is on the wall and it is too late.  And those of us who have seen and understood the truth, who worship and serve the One True God, must strive to live our lives as Daniel did. So that people who do not know Him will think of us that light and understanding and wisdom are found in us.  So that when things happen which make their life fall apart, they will turn to us for meaning.  Let us pray that some of them will listen to us before the writing is on the wall.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 3-4.

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In today’s passage we have two accounts which illustrate Nebuchadnezzar’s arrogance and pride.  It also demonstrates that the power of God to humble even the most powerful of men.  In order to demonstrate his power, Nebuchadnezzar ordered an image 90 feet tall be created.  He then summoned all of the administrators of his empire to the capital for its dedication.  Finally, he ordered them to bow down to it in worship when the signal was sent forth.  And when the signal went forth, everyone obeyed Nebuchadnezzar’s command and bowed down in worship.  Except for the Jews.  We can easily miss that.  The way the passage reads our natural tendency is to think that only Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow down, but that’s not what it says.  Rather, those three were chosen to be made an example for the rest of the Jews.  I probably should have touched on this yesterday but I want to note that the people who came forth to accuse the Jews were members of a group of mystics who advised Nebuchadnezzar, I would guess that they were priests of the gods of Babylon.  The passage tells us that “certain Chaldeans” accused the Jews.  So, the priests of the Babylonian religion chose Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be made examples to the other Jews for their failure to join in the worship of the Babylonian gods.

I know I started this out by saying that this story illustrates Nebuchadnezzar’s arrogance and pride, and God’s power to humble such men.  I still think it does.  However, the story shows how a group of powerful people used Nebuchadnezzar’s pride to their own ends.  The fact that the Chaldeans chose to make an example of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego makes their standing up for God that much more important.  They had set an example for others when they joined Daniel in sticking to God’s commands regarding what they ate during their training to join the administration of the Babylonian Empire.  Once again they stand up for their faith.  I want to further point out their response when Nebuchadnezzar claimed that no god would deliver them out of his hands.  Their answer was threefold.  First, they did not answer to Nebuchadnezzar regarding whom they worshiped, implicitly saying that they answered only to God.  Second, they stated that God was able to deliver them out of his hand and that He would do so.  Third, they stated that even if God chose not to deliver them, they would not serve the gods of Babylon.  When we face opposition to our faith, we should remember and declare that God is able to protect us from whatever others may wish to do to us.  Further, we should take the stand these three men took.  Even if we know that God is not going to rescue us from the consequences which this world seeks to inflict on us for not worshiping its gods, we will still refuse to do so.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 1-2.

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When I have read the Book of Daniel in the past I have imagined Daniel and his three friends being put into a kind of boarding school for the children of the elite from all over the Babylonian Empire.  I have gradually come to the realization that while there is a little bit of truth to that idea (it probably did slightly resemble a boarding school for the children of the elites), all of those at this “school” were the children of the elites brought as hostages for the good behavior of their parents from Jerusalem.  That is that the young men to whom Daniel and his friends were compared were other young Jewish men brought from Jerusalem.  So, out of this group of young Jewish men the only ones concerned about keeping God’s commands were these four young men.  Further, Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego only appear to have followed Daniel’s lead.  I don’t want to diminish their faith, considering what we see about them in tomorrow’s passage, but if Daniel had not taken the lead they probably would have followed the other young men who ate the king’s food and drank his wine.  This indicates the importance of standing up for your faith and speaking out.  When you do so, others will follow your lead.

However, Daniel also needed the support of the other three.  When he found out about Nebuchadnezzar’s decree to kill the “wise men” for failing to discern what his dream was, after scheduling a time to meet with the king, Daniel went to his three companions and asked them to pray.  Daniel did not just turn to God in prayer, he asked his friends to pray as well.  We should not attempt to face the troubles in this world alone with just God at our side.  We should seek out those who will build us up and strengthen us in our faith, as Daniel did.  When he chose to obey God’s commands regarding his diet, Daniel did not try to stand alone, he recruited three others to join him in his stand.  When he chose to seek God’s guidance to meet Nebuchadnezzar’s challenge, Daniel did not try to stand alone, he asked his friends to join him in prayer.  Let us seek out those who will stand beside us as we serve the Lord.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 11-12.

The bulk of chapter 11 seems to be a prophecy of Alexander the Great’s conquest of the Persian Empire and then of the wars between the successor states which arose after his death.  Some claim that it was written after the events of those wars.  Those latter persons say that it does not accurately reflect the events, but looks like what the people living in the area around Judea would have perceived to have happened and thus reflects that it was written by someone living around the time of the Maccabees.  I have not studied what we know to have historically happened between the Ptolemaic successors to Alexander in Egypt and the Seleucid successors based near what is now Syria enough to compare this prophecy to those events.  As I read it, it does not seem to intend to be a detailed account of the events of the war.  Rather, it seems to be intended to relate the chaos of such dynastic battles, and their pointlessness.  Then at the end of chapter 11 it talks about the last, or one of the last, of the Seleucid kings, who tried to completely wipe out the worship of Yahweh (or, perhaps, “just” merge it into the official “cult” of his empire).  It tells us that he will use flattery to turn to his side those who had already violated God’s covenant, but those who know God will resist him.  Indeed those who are wise will instruct others in the knowledge of God, despite being persecuted for their faith.  It seems to me that this part of the prophecy is the centerpiece of the prophecy, with what comes before serving the explain how so many became distracted from God’s truth.  The passage even tells us that some of the wise, who should have known better, will stumble, but that God will refine them and bring them back to Himself.  In many ways, I think this prophecy is meant to be a warning for us today just as much as it was for the people who first heard it.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

I have created a Patreon page for those who would like to support me in writing these blog posts every day: https://patreon.com/AttilaSoldus

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 9-10.

Central to my thinking about today’s passage is verse twelve in chapter ten.  There the messenger who came to Daniel in the second of his two visions in today’s passage (I am unsure as to whether this is Gabriel, who had spoken to him in his earlier visions) said to Daniel, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. ” The first part of this is that Daniel, in both his prayer in chapter nine, and again in chapter ten, sought to do two things.  He sought to gain understanding, and he humbled himself.  The first is only possible if we do the second.  When we go before God with prayers and supplications, we must humble ourselves.  That means acknowledging out sins, and turning from them.  It means acknowledging that God will not answer our prayers because we deserve it, but solely because He is merciful.  We do not deserve the good things God gives to us.  There is another thing for us in that quote above.  God will set His answer in motion from the moment we begin to humble ourselves and to seek His face.  That answer may be delayed for many reasons, but God sets His answer in motion immediately.  We need to patiently remain in a state of supplication until we receive His answer.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

I have created a Patreon page for those who would like to support me in writing these blog posts every day: https://patreon.com/AttilaSoldus

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 7-8.

Almost always when I read this passage I get caught up in the imagery and meaning of the beasts in the visions.  However, today my attention was caught by the finale of the first vision and the explanation of that finale.  The first part of that finale is the “Ancient of Days” taking His seat on His throne.  Daniel is explaining what he asked of the angel who offered to interpret the vision said that the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgement.  Clearly, the Ancient of Days is God the Creator of the Universe.  Now, back to the vision.  At the end of the vision Daniel said that “one like a son of man” came with the clouds of heaven and was lead into the presence of the Ancient of Days.  Then He was given authority and sovereign power, all peoples and nations worshiped Him.  Further it says that His is everlasting and will not pass away.  So, this one who was brought into the presence of the Ancient of Days is also God.  This is perhaps the strongest Old Testament passage supporting the concept of the Trinity.  The “one like a son of man” in this passage was God.  I believe that He was, and is, Jesus Christ.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

I have created a Patreon page for those who would like to support me in writing these blog posts every day: https://patreon.com/AttilaSoldus

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 5-6.

I usually write something about the account of the writing on the wall because there are so many lessons for us there.  However, today I want to focus more on the account of Daniel being thrown into the lion’s den.  What I am going to write is not new or novel.  When Darius decided to make Daniel chief administrator over his kingdom, the existing bureaucrats tried to find something which would give them leverage over him.  When they could not find anything, they came up with a new law making his prayers to God illegal.  This wasn’t just because they knew he would not stop praying to God.  It was also because they knew that praying to God was part of the basis for why he did nothing which they could hold over him.  In fact, the reason they felt threatened by Daniel was because he refused to do anything which they could hold against him.  The important lesson is that Daniel did not behave in a manner that gave them nothing to hold against him because he was following the laws of the land.  He did nothing they could hold against him because he was following God’s laws.  We should follow Daniel’s example and live so that the only thing people can hold against us is our obedience to, and worship of, God.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Daniel 3-4.

I want to take note of what Daniel says at the end of interpreting Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in today’s passage.  He tells Nebuchadnezzar that he hopes Nebuchadnezzar will renounce his sins and wickedness by being kind to the oppressed so that his prosperity might continue.  So, Nebuchadnezzar’s dream was a prophetic dream, it was a message from God about what God was going to do.  God was going to bring judgement against Nebuchadnezzar.  Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar that if he repents, God will choose not to execute the judgement He predicted with this dream.  This reinforces what other prophets have said when they said that if the wicked turn from their sins when they hear a prophecy that God will bring judgement against them, God will withhold that judgement.  This should also remind us that if the righteous turn to wickedness after God has prophesied good things for them, God will withhold those good things and bring judgement.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.