Daniel is the last of the major prophets, but he's probably the most familiar. After all, he's got good stories. From the time we are kids in Sunday school, we hear about the lions' den, the fiery furnace, the handwriting on the wall and even the one about how Daniel chose vegetables. Those are great stories for sure. (The handwriting on the wall is one of my favorites … As a matter of fact, I need to work that into a book sometime.)However, if we reduce the book of Daniel to nothing more than a collection of stories better suited to a children's Bible, we miss not only an unparalleled character profile of a man singularly devoted to God, but we also miss one of the two most significant apocalyptic visions God gives.
Daniel is taken into captivity as a young teenager, probably 12-15 years old. His parents were likely executed by the Babylonians. He spends the next seventy plus years in Babylon, most of them as a high-ranking government official. During his later adult years, God begins to give him intense visions of the future which he faithfully records. In fact some scholars question Daniel's authorship because his predictions are so spot on, they assert they must have been written after the fact.
So how should you approach Daniel?
If prophecy is intimidating, stick with the first six chapters. They are a chronological narrative, and are easy to follow.
People – Look at the people, especially Daniel and his friends. What do you notice about their faith in spite of their adverse circumstances? How does Daniel deal with opposition? What other traits are worth emulating?
Kings – What do you learn about the three kings mentioned (Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar and Darius)? How do they respond to God?
Prayers – Look at Daniel's prayers. (You may need to slide into the last few chapters to get them all.) How does he approach God? Notice how he intercedes.
Miracles – What miracles does God perform? What message is He sending by performing them?
Now, a word or two about prophecy…
It's hard to interpret.
We don't have all pieces.
Nobody has all the answers.
That said, if you dive into those last six chapters of Daniel (plus chapter 2 with Nebuchadnezzar's vision) you'll get a framework for end-time events. Taken with John's Revelation in the New Testament, they mesh together, offering two perspectives of the same time period.
Read carefully and notice time markers like "after this."
Focus on the "big picture" message rather than obsessing about what details like "seven heads and ten horns" means.
Then the big question, based on your understanding of the end-times, do you need to make changes in your life now?
Do you have a favorite story in Daniel?
Next week – Back to the New Testament – James
At church we did a study of Revelation and so we did look at those chapters in Daniel that went into detail of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and things like that. I’m not sure, between the three events in chapter six, which one I can call my favorite. I do love the handwriting on the wall, but I also really like the fiery furnace. The story of the lions’ den is also good too. I think out of them all, I like the fiery furnace event the best.
Great post!