The
first
chapter of
Daniel
is an integral part of the book. There is no disconnection (as some
imagine) between the historical introduction to Daniel, and the
prophecies that follow. What we get in chapter one is essential,
because it is a description of the moral
condition
suited to enlightenment in the ways and counsels of God.
We find
there four young men faithfully
maintaining a state of separation to God from all the defilement
that was characteristic of the kingdom of Babylon. To such God could
communicate His mind. I believe it is important to dwell upon this,
because in our own day there has been a tendency to let head
knowledge of God’s Word run ahead of personal communion and walk
with the Lord. Daniel and his friends were instructed in the mind of
the Lord because they sought His honour and were separate from the
iniquity that surrounded them. In a similar way, we shall only make
progress in divine things if we walk apart from all that is defiling
and incompatible with the holy God with whom we have to do.
The
name of each of the four friends contains some form of the name of God in
Hebrew and indicates their pious ancestry. But this did not suit the
prince of the eunuchs into whose charge they were given. Instead, he
gave them new names that contained the titles of heathen deities.
But though labelled as servants to false gods, Daniel and his
companions remained faithful to the true God and refused to
dishonour Him by compliance with a demand that would have rendered
them unclean in His sight. Daniel thus "purposed in his heart that
he would not pollute himself with the king’s delicate food, nor with
the wine which he drank" (Dan. 1: 8). Now as the king had given the
command, it might appear as though the four friends had no choice in
the matter. Indeed, many would have said just that, and, in any
case, Nebuchadnezzar's authority was derived from God and God had
put them in his power. But Daniel and his companions did not reason
this way. Instead, they looked upon the king’s command as a trial of
their faith—would they stand firm and keep themselves from
defilement in the very home of idolatry?
They stood the
test in a most marked way. Daniel besought the prince of the eunuchs
that he would give them pulse to eat. Fearing the result upon their
physical constitutions, the prince objected, dreading to incur the
king’s wrath. But these devoted young men pleaded that an
opportunity be given to prove whether they could not thrive as well
upon pulse as the rest of the company did upon the king’s meat. To
this the steward consented, and at the end of ten days Daniel and
his friends were fatter and fairer than any who were fed the
regulation diet. Permission was accordingly given to continue the
same fare, and thus the four friends were able to maintain a
position of separation even in Babylon.
Now to many Jews this might have seemed
to be a trivial matter,
a silly quibble on the part of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and
Azariah. But it brings out a principle that should appeal to the
heart and conscience of every believer, namely, that the only way to
go on with God is by being faithful in little things. He who honours
the Lord by conscientious adherence to His Word in what some would
call minor details is likely to be properly exercised about greater
things as well. I have heard Christians refer to certain precepts in
the Scriptures as nonessentials, but we may rest assured there are
no nonessentials in our Bibles. How could it be when "The words of
Jehovah are pure words, silver tried in the furnace of earth,
purified seven times" (Ps. 12: 6). It is well to remember that in
everything the believer is sanctified to the obedience of Christ
(see Rom. 6: 22; 2 Cor. 5: 15). We are not at liberty to pick and
choose what parts of the Bible we obey and what parts we ignore. We
are to be devoted to God and His Word.
Anything that defiles the conscience breaks the link of communion
with God at once and hinders our advance in spiritual things.
"Maintaining faith and a good conscience; which [last] some, having
put away, have made shipwreck as to
faith" (1 Tim. 1: 19) is a solemn word worthy of being
carefully pondered. It was because of their carefulness in
maintaining a good conscience that Daniel and his three friends were
given spiritual enlightenment above all the men of their times. God
does not usually impart His secrets to careless men, but to those
who are devoted to His interests: it remains true in all
dispensations that "the things of the Spirit … are spiritually
discerned" (1 Cor. 2: 14). Yes He may, in His sovereignty, use a
Balaam or a Caiaphas to utter divine truth, but such cases are
extraordinary. The rule is that the "secret of Jehovah is with them
fear him" (Ps. 25: 14).
It is of grave
importance that we bear this principle in mind in these Laodicean
times when everything that once was deemed important is looked upon
as a matter of indifference. "Every man did what was right in his
own eyes" (Judges 21: 25) is the prevailing order, and few ask,
with intention to obey, 'What saith the Scripture?' Is it any wonder
that a host of false teachings are coming in like a flood and that
thousands are being swept away from their moorings?
If you do not
maintain a good conscience, you will not advance in the truth. Allow
one thing in your life that you know to be contrary to the Word of
God, and you will soon find your spiritual eyes becoming darkened.
But where there is faithfulness in separation from that which is
opposed to the mind of God and where His Word is allowed to sit in
judgment on words and ways, then you will find that "the path of the
righteous is as the shining light, going on and brightening until
the day be fully come" (Prov. 4: 18).
It is written of
the four young men that "God gave them knowledge and skill in all
learning and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and
dreams" (Dan. 1: 17). In this he reminds us of Joseph, who also
purposed to keep himself pure—as proved by his resistance to
Potiphar’s wife (see Gen. 39: 8). And just as it was with Daniel,
who was brought into "favour and mercy before the prince of the
eunuchs" (Dan. 1: 9), so Joseph, exhibiting the godliness of his
life and the transparency of his nature, came into favour with
Pharaoh’s prison keeper (see Gen. 39: 21). To crown it all, we find
God opening his understanding as with Daniel and giving him wisdom
in the interpretation of dreams and visions. What a lesson for
us—that purity of heart and faithfulness to God come before
enlightenment in divine mysteries! If you attempt to reverse these
things—if you try to put a grasp of Scripture truth before
conscientious living in the presence of God—you are almost certain
to come to grief.
Thus this first
chapter of Daniel, coming as it does on the threshold of a book of
prophecy, is a serious reminder to the reader of the necessity of
holiness in the things of God. But this principle applies to the
reading of all Scripture. It reminds us that if we
want to make real progress in our souls then we need first to stop
and ask ourselves, 'Am I seeking to live so as to honour God in
everything?' There is no other way. May we who are redeemed by His
precious blood ever remember the word "I beseech you therefore,
brethren, by the compassions of God, to present your bodies a living
sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, [which is] your intelligent
service" (Rom. 12: 1).
