47. The Messianic Kingdom Endures Forever

Scripture:  Daniel 2: 44

“In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.

46. The Stone Cut Without Hands

Keep in mind the fact that the image is not smitten by the stone until after the stone is cut out of the mountain, without hands.

The wind blows the gold, silver, bronze and iron away,leaving nothing behind.

Then the stone grows and fills the earth, thus in turn becoming a mountain of itself.

The prophet Isaiah says:

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” Isa. 2:2, 3.

“Cut out without hands,” without human aid, obviously points

45. The Stone

Time: 604 BC

Place:  King's Palace

Scripture:  Daniel 2:34-35; 44-45

What Smites the Image?  The Stone

  

The Image & The Stone

Daniel 2:34-35

• While you were watching, a stone was cut out, but not by human hands. 
• It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 
• Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were all broken to pieces and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer.
• The wind swept them away without leaving a trace.

But the Stone that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.

The Interpretation of The Image & The Stone

Daniel 2:44-45

·        In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people.

·        It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. 

·        This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.

In our previous article, we have seen the four successive worldly empires ruling the earth.  These dominant world powers have come and gone just as God said they would.  

Daniel 2:44 "And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed."  This Kingdom that shall never be destroyed is the Messianic Kingdom, established by Yahweh God  at the second coming of Jesus.  

We are living in extraordinary times to this great climax for the final act of the Rock, cut not by human hands, destroying all the worldly empires.

Tomorrow, we will look at more spiritual principles so that we can see how all these apply to our lives.

:)

44. The Image - Four Successive Empires

Scripture:  Daniel 2:31-43

Nebuchadnezzar had seen an enormous statue:

The Image (Daniel 2:31-33):

1.  A Head of Gold

2.  Chest and arms of Silver

3.  Belly and thighs of Bronze

4.  Legs of Iron with Feet of Iron and Clay

Interpretation of the Image  (Daniel 2:36- 43):

1.  Head of Gold 

     Nebuchadnezzar - you are the head of gold (Dan 2:38)

2.  Chest and arms of Silver 

     Another kingdom will arise but inferior (Dan 2:39)

3.  Belly and thighs of Bronze 

     A third kingdom will rule over the whole earth (Dan 2:39)

4.  Legs of Iron with Feet of Iron and Clay 

     A fourth kingdom and will be a divided kingdom (Dan 2:40-43)

Daniel 2:45 “The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and its interpretation is trustworthy.”

This is a prophetic dream revealing to Daniel through Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the future. 2600 years have passed since the time of Nebuchadnezzar.  We have the advantage of hindsight to know what had happened in history in the last 2600 years.

From History, we have seen the above 4 successive Empires:

1.  Head - The Kingdom of Gold - Babylon  605-539 BC 

Nebuchadnezzar's Kingdom was the first world power, which is modern day Iraq.  The Babylonians worshipped Bel Marduk made out out of solid gold.  The prophecy says that it would not last forever.  Another world kingdom will arise.

2.  Chest & Arms - The Kingdom of Silver - Persia  538 - 331 BC

 Nebuchadnezzar's Kingdom crumbled into ruins when Cryus, the Persian General overthrew the Babylonian Empire in 539 BC.  We see this in Daniel 5:28 that it was the Medo-Persia that succeeded Babylon, just as God said it would.

3.  Belly & Thigh - Kingdom of Bronze - Greece 331 - 168 BC

The Kingdom of Greece defeated the Persians at the battle of Arbela in 331 BC.  Alexander the Great conquered the Medes and Persians, turning Greece into the world's 3rd great empire.  Dan 8:21 says Greece succeeded Medo-Persia, just as God said it would.

4.  Legs & Feet - Kingdom of Iron & Clay - Rome

After the death of Alexander the Graet, the Greece empire weakened and split into rival factions.  At the Battle of Pydna in 168 BC, the 'iron empire' of Rome crushed Greece.  Rome continued to rule the world through the time of Jesus.

 Eventually Roman fractured into numerous kingdoms symbolized by the feet and toes, partly iron, partly clay.

Here is a picture that summarizes the above:

Tomorrow we will look at the 'Rock cut out of a mountain but not by human hands'.  :)

43. The Great Image & Its Interpretation

Date:  604 BC
Place: King's Palace
Scripture: Daniel 2:36-45


Read Daniel 2:36-45

36 “This was the dream. Now we will tell the king its interpretation.

37 You, O king, the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, and the might, and the glory,

38 and into whose hand he has given, wherever they dwell, the children of man, the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heavens, making you rule over them all—you are the head of gold.

39 Another kingdom inferior to you shall arise after you, and yet a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.

40 And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters all things. And like iron that crushes, it shall break and crush all these.

41 And as you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom, but some of the firmness of iron shall be in it, just as you saw iron mixed with the soft clay.

42 And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle.

43 As you saw the iron mixed with soft clay, so they will mix with one another in marriage, but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay.

44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever,

45 just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A great God has made known to the king what shall be after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure.”

You can watch the video here:

:)

42. The Dream - The Great Frightening Image

Time: 604 BC
Place:  King's Palace
Scripture: Daniel 2:31-35


Read Daniel 2:31-35

31 “You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. This image, mighty and of exceeding brightness, stood before you, and its appearance was frightening. 

32 The head of this image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, 

33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 

34 As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. 

35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

Take note of the following 3 features!  

1.  The Great Frightening Image

• head is of fine gold
• chest and arms of silver
• middle and thighs of bronze
• legs of iron
• feet partly of iron and partly of clay

2.  A stone - not cut out by human hand

• struck the image on its feet 
• the iron, clay, bronze, silver and gold - all broken in pieces
• became like chaff and the wind carried them away
• not a trace of them could be found

3.  The stone - became a great mountain and filled the earth

Now, Daniel has this unshakable confidence in God.  He is ready to interpret the dream to the King.
Stay tuned!

Tomorrow, we will watch a video and look at the interpretation.

:)

41. Daniels' utter humility - Not Because...But In Order

Time:  604 BC
Place: King Nebuchadnezzar Palace
Scripture:  Daniel 2:24-30


Read Daniel 2:24-30

24 Therefore Daniel went in to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He went and said thus to him: “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; bring me in before the king, and I will show the king the interpretation.”

25 Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste and said thus to him: “I have found among the exiles from Judah a man who will make known to the king the interpretation.”

26 The king declared to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream that I have seen and its interpretation?” 

27 Daniel answered the king and said, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, 

28 but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream and the visions of your head as you lay in bed are these: 

29 To you, O king, as you lay in bed came thoughts of what would be after this, and he who reveals mysteries made known to you what is to be. 

30 But as for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because of any wisdom that I have more than all the living, but in order that the interpretation may be made known to the king, and that you may know the thoughts of your mind.

Let's learn from Daniel's humility:

• Remember Daniel stood out from the crowd and in Daniel 1:19-20, there were none equal to him and his friends and that they were 10 times better than all the others.

• Daniel had every reason to be proud of the great gifts God had given him.

• I see how men of God are put on human pedestal because of their brilliance, gifts and charisma.  With all the human praise and appreciation lavishing on them, many men of God fell.  Proverbs 16:18, "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."

• Daniel was tempted in all fronts along this line. You can see throughout the book of Daniel how Daniel faces each crisis of temptation with utter humility.

What is the key to humility?  3 Points:

1.  Always acknowledge God - There is a God who reveals knowledge and mystery. Turn people's attention to this one God who acts. This is how we give glory to God.

2.  "Not because" of any wisdom we have more than others.... how many can truly say these words.  "I am not better than anyone else."  "I can't take any credit."  "I am not anyone special."  But today, I hear men of God always raving at 'look at how much wisdom and gifts God have given me .... more than others... I get to be in the elite class"  Do you feel this way as you compare yourself to others?  You have fallen into Satan's trap. This is why God cannot use you anymore.  You carry a name of being God's servant but a pitiful servant without inner power.

3. "But in order" - all that we do and say are to fulfill God's purpose.  God wants the king to know the dream and its interpretation.  So when we do God's will, we have nothing to brag about. We are just executing God's order for us and we must humbly do our task, not because of what we have but of 'in order' for God's will to be fulfilled.

Daniel would not take any credit for knowing Nebuchadnezzar's dream and its interpretation.  God is the revealer of mystery. Daniel is the instrument God uses to make the mystery known to the king.


Let us also: "Not Because" .... "But in order"!

:)

40. Daniel Blessed the Name of God

Time:  604 BC
Place: King Nebuchadnezzar Palace
Scripture: Daniel 2:20-23

Daniel answered and said:

“Blessed be the Name of God forever and ever,
    to whom belong wisdom and might.
21 He changes times and seasons;
    he removes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
    and knowledge to those who have understanding;
22 he reveals deep and hidden things;
    he knows what is in the darkness,
    and the light dwells with him.
23 To you, O God of my fathers,
    I give thanks and praise,
for you have given me wisdom and might,
    and have now made known to me what we asked of you,
    for you have made known to us the king's matter.”

Obviously Daniel knows God's Name and he never forgot God's Name, Yahweh.  

And when God answers our prayers, we must bless the Name of God just like what Daniel has done.  Blessing the Name of God is a theme that runs throughout the Bible.  

David blesses the Name of God.  

Job blesses the Name of God.  

Paul blesses the Name of God.  

Zechariah blesses the Name of God.

Ethan blesses the Name of God.

The Levites bless the Name of God.

Ezra blesses the Name of God.

The Name of God is so important.
Does the Name of God matter to you at all?

It is God's Name that is going to be glorified and magnified in this answered prayer.


God's Name, Yahweh, appears in Daniel 6X, all appearing in Daniel 9.  

Daniel 9 is Daniel's earnest prayer interceding for Israel - Daniel knows Yahweh itimately.

• Daniel 9:2 In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.

• Daniel 9:4 And I prayed unto Yahweh my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments.

• Daniel 9:10 Neither have we obeyed the voice of Yahweh our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.

• Daniel 9:13 As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil is come upon us: yet made we not our prayer before Yahweh our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand thy truth.

• Daniel 9:14 Therefore hath Yahweh watched upon the evil, and brought it upon us: for the LORD our God is righteous in all his works which he does: for we obeyed not his voice.

• Daniel 9:20 And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before Yahweh my God for the holy mountain of my God.

When Daniel prayed this prayer in Chapter 9, he was already an old man, around 80 years old.

We can see that Daniel in all these years of Babylonian captivity, he called on God's Name Yahweh and prayed to Yahweh God.  The Name of God was very dear to Daniel's heart.

In all that we do and pray, let our concern be that God's precious Name be blessed forever and ever.  You can visit this website on The Name of God - Yahweh.



:)

39. Daniel & his 3 friends seek mercy from God

Time:  604 BC
Place: King Nebuchadnezzar Palace
Scripture: Daniel 2:15-23

Read Daniel 2:17-23.  I highlighted in RED the important words:

15 He declared to Arioch, the king's captain, “Why is the decree of the king so urgent?” Then Arioch made the matter known to Daniel.

16 And Daniel went in and requested the king to appoint him a time, that he might show the interpretation to the king.

17 Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, 

18 and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 

19 Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven. 

20 Daniel answered and said:

“Blessed be the Name of God forever and ever,
    to whom belong wisdom and might.
21 He changes times and seasons;
    he removes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
    and knowledge to those who have understanding;
22 he reveals deep and hidden things;
    he knows what is in the darkness,
    and the light dwells with him.
23 To you, O God of my fathers,
    I give thanks and praise,
for you have given me wisdom and might,
    and have now made known to me what we asked of you,
    for you have made known to us the king's matter.”

This was a time of crisis for the King.

Look at how Daniel handled one crisis to another.
He did not hide with fear and ran away.
Daniel dared to speak up in faith.

Often our ministry is also met with one crisis after another.
We must have the boldness from above to solve one crisis to another.

Daniel was fearless and suggested to the raging king to give him time so that he could show the king the dream.  Why did Daniel make that request?  Obviously Daniel needed to join in prayer with his 3 friends to pray together to seek God's mercy to answer this request.

Daniel knew God could reveal the mystery to them if they waited on God.

Back in Daniel 1:17, "As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.

Daniel knew the spiritual power of oneness to get through to God so he went back to pray with his 3 companions.  Here is the precious lesson we can learn together. Though God had given Daniel this gift, but he knew the first priority was to commune with God, not alone, but together in one heart with his 3 friends.  They got on their knees to plead for God's mercy.

When we are in a situation of crisis, let us remember to go on our knees to get God's help and not to  human aid.  Let us remember not to take our troubles and dump them onto people, but together to pray for God to solve the crisis at hand.  Let us learn to go to God always in prayer.

Are you facing a crisis on hand?

Pray to God and plead His mercy.
Find his servants to pray together in one heart to seek mercy from God.

God will surely answer as He had answered Daniel's and their friends' prayers.



:)

38. Nebuchadnezzar's Troubled Dream

Time: 604 BC
Place:  King's Bedroom
Event:  Nebuchadnezzar's Troubled Dream
Scripture: Daniel 2:1-16

Read Daniel 2:1-16 - I highlighted some wordings in "red" so that you can visually see the significant points as you read the passage:

"In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his spirit was troubled, and his sleep left him. 

2 Then the king commanded that the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans be summoned to tell the king his dreams. So they came in and stood before the king. 

3 And the king said to them, “I had a dream, and my spirit is troubled to know the dream.” 

4 Then the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live for ever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.” 

5 The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “The word from me is firm: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall betorn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins. 

6 But if you show the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts and rewards and great honour. Therefore show me the dream and its interpretation.” 

7 They answered a second time and said, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will show its interpretation.” 

8 The king answered and said, “I know with certainty that you are trying to gain time, because you see that the word from me is firm— 

9 if you do not make the dream known to me, there is but one sentence for you. You have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the times change. Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can show me its interpretation.” 

10 The Chaldeans answered the king and said, “There is not a man on earth who can meet the king's demand, for no great and powerful king has asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or Chaldean.

11 The thing that the king asks is difficult, and no one can show it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.” 

12 Because of this the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed.

13 So the decree went out, and the wise men were about to be killed; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them. 

We will note a few points here and you can watch the video:

• Nebuchadnezzar had several 'dreams'.
• These dreams were so alarming and disturbing that he was unable to sleep for nights.
• He was devastated and called in the magicians and enchanters to tell him his dreams.
• He could not even 'verbalize' his dreams.  
• In his anxiety, he isolated to one dream that he wanted the interpretation.
• He was strickened with panic as he could not remember much of the details.
• He wanted his dream to be made known.
• No one could tell him what his dream was and its interpretation
• In his fury, Nebuchadnezzar commanded all the wise men to be killed.

This was how 'desperate' and 'deeply troubled' Nebuchadnezzar was with his dream:

Tomorrow we will look into the content of his dream.

Daniel 2:14-16

14 Then Daniel replied with prudence and discretion to Arioch, the captain of the king's guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon. 

15 He declared to Arioch, the king's captain, “Why is the decree of the king so urgent?” Then Arioch made the matter known to Daniel. 

16 And Daniel went in and requested the king to appoint him a time, that he might show the interpretation to the king."

:)

37. 604 BC - Daniel 2 Times of the Gentiles

Time:  604 BC
Place:  Nebuchadnezzar's palace
Event:  Nebuchadnezzar's First Dream

The Book of Daniel records Nebuchadnezzar's two big dreams.

Daniel Chapter 2 talks about his first dream.

Daniel 2:1 "In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams.  His spirit was troubled and his sleep left him."

Homework:

Take out your Timeline Graph and let's fill in Chapter 2.

Let's note down a few insights here:

• This event happened while Daniel was still in his 3 years of training program

• As you can see God's judgement came upon the Israelites because they had spiritually degenerated into gross idolatry.   The Israelites had already begun in captivity in Babylon (605 BC)  with the second group coming in 7 years time (597 BC)  and then the impending destruction of Jerusalem only 18 years away (586 BC).

• Now God chooses a new path to reveal his revelation. This is the beginning of the "Times of Gentiles", a term that our Lord Jesus uses in the Gospel.

• This prophetic revelation is given through this Gentile king, Nebuchadnezzar.

• The prophecy is not just for the Gentiles but for everyone including the Israelites, and God chooses Daniel to be the instrument to interpret these dreams.

Tomorrow we will talk about his first dream.

:)

36. King Nebuchadnezzar

Daniel Chapter 2 begins with these words:  "In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams.  His spirit was troubled and his sleep left him."

The entire chapter talks about his troubled dream and how Daniel finally told him his dream and interpreted it for him with God's wisdom.  At that time Daniel was still in the middle of his training. In our next few articles, we will expound on Nebuchadnezzar's  troubled dream.


Today, we will talk about the man Nebuchadnezzar.


Nebuchadnezzar was a tremendous soldier, a statesman, a politician and an amazing architect.

Nebuchadnezzar had a great military mind.  He was the one who took his army and overthrew the Assyrian Empire at the Battle of Carchemish.  Assyria was finished. He even chased the Egyptians all the way back to Egypt and engulfed Israel taking the first group of captives with him in 605 BC.

He designed many gigantic buildings and all the wonders of Babylon that we know today.  Even the great hanging garden was air conditioned, something that is unbelievable in a primitive society.  As you can see, Nebuchadnezzar built  an incredibly modern city of  Babylon as he developed his great Empire.

Nebuchadnezzar worshiped the god of  Marduk in Babylon. 

He was the patron deity of the city of Babylon.  

Nebuchadnezzar built a Marduk Temple for people to worship his god.

Nebuchadnezzar ruled for 43 years.

Book of Daniel teaches us that ultimately God is the one who rules in human history.


:)

35. Daniel living in 'extraordinary times'

Daniel's days were marked with 'extraordinary' times witnessing many 'great historical events'.  

• He experienced the great spiritual revival years when the Book of the Law was discovered in the Temple in Josiah's reign in 622 BC.

• He was nurtured under the preaching of Jeremiah.

• As a lad, he saw the collapse of Nineveh, the mighty and capital city of the Assyrian Empire in 612 BC.  

• Daniel's life encompassed the entire era of the Babylonian kingdom.  He was born possibly around 620 BC - 625 BC, the time when the Babylonian nation was born.  He lived all the way to the reign of Cyrus, who destroyed the  Babylonian kingdom forever and brought in the Kingdom of the Medes and the Persians. 

• Daniel served Nebuchadnezzar during the golden kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar that lasted for 43 years.

• Daniel being a foreigner served in the highest official capacity in the governments of two successive world empires - from Babylon to Media-Persia.

God raises up his man in times of crisis.

Today we are also living in a time of crisis.  Sometimes we give excuse to ourselves that we live in difficult turbulent times, therefore it is difficult for us to stand up and live out our faith.  Look at Daniel.  He was a man of tremendous courage.  He was a man with fearless spiritual commitment to Yahweh God.  He could never be bought with money and power as Belshazzar attempted on him.  He was a man that was not corrupted by power and authority.  He was a man of prayer who knew how to pray and get through to God. He was a man who loved God and beloved by God.  He was a man of crisis and lived through the difficult times in history, and his life 'shone forth' like the stars in the sky.

Daniel 12:3 "But those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above."

Let us not make excuses for ourselves anymore.

Will you also become wise in this generation?
Will you make that choice for God today?

God help us to have many Daniels in these last days.

:)

34. Dan 1:21 Daniel remained until 1st year of King Cyrus

Daniel Chapter 1 ends with these words:  And Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.

2 Chronicle 36:22-23 ends the book of history with these words:  In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, Yahweh moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:

“This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: “‘Yahweh, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may Yahweh their God be with them.’”

Daniel was there throughout the 70 years of captivity and was present even in the court of Cyrus when Cyrus liberated the people to return home to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple. What a glorious moment that is!


It is obvious that Daniel plays a vital role during Cyrus' reign. 

• Daniel had read what Jeremiah had prophesied about the "70 years of captivity". 

• Daniel Chapter 1 begins with 605 BC when Daniel  was carried off as a slave by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon.

• By the time of Cyrus reign, Daniel realized that the 70 years of captivity was coming to an end.

• Daniel would have laid before Cyrus about the prophecy of Jeremiah that at the end of 70 years, the people would return to Jerusalem.

Jeremiah 29:10, "For thus says Yahweh: When 70 years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place.

• Daniel would have laid before Cyrus about the prophecies spoken through Isaiah that the people would return to Jerusalem.  

Isaiah 44:28, "who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, “Let it be rebuilt,”  and of the temple, “Let its foundations be laid.”’

Can you  picture Daniel at an old age in his late 80's talking to Cyrus about these prophecies?

• Imagine - Isaiah was ministering in the 8th Century BC (740 BC - 701 BC).  157 years before Cyrus was born, Isaiah had  a prophecy containing this monarch's name.

• Surely, 157 years later, this heather ruler named Cyrus  came on the throne.

• Cyrus decree was issued in 536 BC to let the exiles return to Jerusalem.

Cyrus is mentioned 23X in the Old Testament.

Isaiah refers to Cyrus as Yahweh's “shepherd” (Isa 44:28) and Yahweh's “anointed,” (Isa 45:1) who was providentially appointed to facilitate the divine plan.

Read Isaiah 45.  God would lead this monarch to “subdue nations” and “open doors”.  He would make “rough places smooth" to help the Hebrews to return to their homeland.  

The fulfillment of these plain and specific predictions is set forth in 2 Chronicles 36:22, 23 and Ezra 1:1-4, 7, 8; 3:7; 4:3.

:)

33. Dan 1:18-20 "None were equal" & "10 Times Better" Part 3

Time:  605 BC
Place:  King's Court
Scripture:  Daniel 1:18-20

Daniel 1:18-20

At the end of the time set by the king to bring them into his service, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar.  The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service.  In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom.

I cannot help but think of Daniel & his 3 friends as 'faithful remnants' all the way from Josiah's revival. 

While Josiah's spiritual revival of the recovery of the Book of the law made absolutely no impact on his sons and grandson  (Jehohaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin,  Zedekiah - the last 4 kings of Judah and they were bad kings), it made a 'lasting spiritual impact' on Daniel and his 3 friends.  

Think about this!  In every generation, God raises up a faithful remnant to carry on His mission.


How true this is! Many people go to church. Many Christians are religious. Many give up their faith along the way.  Many end up going back to he world.   Who is willing to remain true to the end?

Today, may God find in our church a Daniel,  a Hananiah,  a Mishael, and an Azariah.  

Ah my beloved, let us look up and pray for God to raise up this kind of faithful remnant in these last days for His glory and purpose.

:)