Daniel or Beltesshazzar is one of the several prophets in the Old Testament. His life and prophecies are included in the Bible in the book that bears his name. The meaning of his name is “God is my judge” or “God has judged,” or even “God will judge.” There are two other men named Daniel in the Bible, one being a son of King David and the other a priest. We’ll talk about the complete story of the prophet Daniel, who Daniel was, and what we can learn about his personal life. We’ll cover various events of his life, so in today’s video, we’ll talk about the story of the prophet Daniel.
Welcome to “Witnessing Jesus Christ and Sin Overflowing, and There, and There.” Beloved, I ask for the help of all of you to subscribe to the channel and activate the notification bell. If you like the video, leave a like; it really helps me produce more videos. Without further ado, let’s get into the video and where Daniel lived and when his book was written. The biblical account of Daniel the prophet begins when he and other young men from Judah were captured by King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon around 604 BC. This captivity of the citizens of Judah in Babylon lasted for 70 years, as God had predicted through the prophet Jeremiah. During this period, Daniel served in prominent positions in the governments of various Babylonian and Medo-Persian rulers, including Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius, and Cyrus. In the first year of Darius’ reign around 539 BC, Daniel came to understand and simply proved once again the prophecy of Jeremiah, which predicted a 70-year captivity of his people. The end of the 70 years was approaching at that time.
Daniel was probably 80 or 90 years old by then. He lived a long life, but the Bible does not tell us how old he was when he died. Daniel wrote his book in the 4th century BC. Since the book of Daniel contains so many detailed prophecies of things that happened centuries later, some skeptics suggest that it is a fraud written much later in history. However, revealing the future is what God does. See an example through Isaiah: God declares, “Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose.'” Daniel was a eunuch. Eunuchs were men who were often castrated and frequently served in the administrations of kings. During Daniel’s time, some wonder if Daniel was a eunuch because the book of Daniel mentions that the young princes of Judah were under the supervision of Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs. This reference does not necessarily mean that the four young Jews were eunuchs. Ashpenaz was a member of the court whom the king knew he could trust to perform important functions like instructing the princes in the ways of their host nation.
At the beginning of Judah’s kingdom story, we find Hezekiah, king of Judah imprudently showing the treasures of his house to the envoys of the king of Babylon. God inspired Isaiah to pronounce a prophecy about his descendants. So Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the LORD. And some of your own sons, who will come from you, whom you will father, shall be taken away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.” Although Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah are not specifically mentioned as descendants of Hezekiah, the prophecy was made during the time when Merodach-baladan was king of Babylon. This was approximately a hundred years before they departed for Babylon under King Nebuchadnezzar. Although there were restrictions in Israel regarding eunuchs, Jesus Christ shows that even if it were eunuchs, the attitude demonstrated by such people as Daniel and his three friends is the same attitude that will allow us to be part of the kingdom of God. For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let the one who is able to receive this receive it.
Throughout the centuries, God has drawn people to be part of His kingdom who faced severe adversities. Daniel was one of those people considered righteous, being removed from his homeland and taken to a foreign country, probably in his adolescence. It must have been traumatic. Daniel’s life, however, was to become an example for all of us. Daniel’s three friends, the three Jewish friends of Daniel who were taken captive with him, were Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. The names of these three friends were changed by the Babylonians to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Daniel was given the name Beltesshazzar. These names incorporated the names of Babylonian gods, but Daniel and his three friends decided to remain faithful to God. This would be demonstrated several times in the events recounted in the Book of Daniel. Hello, Daniel, a faithful man of God. The Book of Daniel shows that he is a faithful man of God. Instead of defiling themselves with the food provided by King Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel and his three friends chose to eat vegetables and drink only water. God blessed their efforts, and after a ten-day test, their appearances were considered healthy by the steward who had been assigned under their care. In another episode, King Nebuchadnezzar threatened to destroy all the wise men if they did not tell him the meaning of his dream. Daniel and his friends asked for time so that he and his three friends could plead with God in prayer to reveal this information. When God answered their prayer, Daniel remembered to praise and thank God for giving them what they had asked for. Daniel in the lions’ den. Once the officials of King Darius conspired against Daniel, they tried to find some kind of wrongdoing in his life but were unsuccessful because Daniel was an upright man. So they realized that the only possible thing to find against Daniel was regarding his obedience to the law of the Lord. They persuaded King Darius to issue a decree that for a period of thirty days, no one could pray to any god except to the king. This decree was punishable by death. Daniel learned about the decree but continued his daily routine of prayers, opening the windows facing Jerusalem as usual, kneeling, and giving thanks to the Lord three times a day. Daniel was caught in the intimate moment with the Lord in prayer in his room. The 120 governors and the two presidents immediately went to speak to King Darius. Then and there, he realized the true meaning of that decree was not just to please the king, but a conspiracy to destroy Daniel.
King Darius was terrified at the magnitude and efficiency of his colleagues’ malfeasance. Bound by the protocols existing in the court, the king had no choice but to enforce the law and ordered Daniel to be thrown into the lions’ den. However, Daniel’s testimony was remarkable before all. The king spoke to Daniel, saying that the God whom he continually served might deliver him from the lions. The king sealed the den with his ring, making it clear that the sentence was irreversible. He went to his quarters but could not sleep, knowing that Daniel was innocent. At dawn, the king arose and hurried to the lions’ den. As he approached the den, he called out to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?” Daniel replied, “My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty.” The king commanded, and those men who had accused Daniel were brought and thrown into the lions’ den—they, their children, and their wives. And before they reached the bottom of the den, the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones. Daniel and King Belshazzar. One day, Belshazzar gathered many nobles and threw a great feast in the city of Babylon. When he was very drunk, he remembered that Nebuchadnezzar had taken several golden vessels from the temple of Jerusalem when he destroyed it. Belshazzar ordered these vessels to be brought to him. The nobles, their wives, and concubines drank from them, and the party degenerated, with everyone worshiping their false gods. This affront to God did not go unnoticed. During the feast, a human hand appeared out of nowhere and wrote some words on the wall. When King Belshazzar saw this, he was so frightened that his knees knocked together. Belshazzar immediately called all the wise men and promised to make the one who could read the inscription the third in command in the kingdom. However, no one could read what was written, which left the king even more frightened. Then the queen came and told Belshazzar about the prophet Daniel, who had interpreted some dreams for Nebuchadnezzar and had great wisdom. He called Daniel and asked him to read and interpret his inscription. Daniel did not want any reward, but he gave the interpretation. Daniel explained that the words written on the wall were “Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin.” “Mene” means “numbered”—Belshazzar’s days of reign were numbered. “Tekel” means “weighed”—Belshazzar had been weighed on the scales and found wanting. “Parsin” means “divided”—Belshazzar’s kingdom would be divided among other nations, the Medes and the Persians. Daniel also rebuked Belshazzar for his arrogance and disrespect toward God.
The story of the prophet Daniel is a testament to the power of faith, resilience, and obedience to God. His life journey, marked by extraordinary events and divine interventions, continues to captivate and inspire people of faith around the world. Daniel’s unwavering commitment to God serves as a timeless example of righteousness and courage in the face of adversity, leaving behind a lasting legacy of faithfulness and devotion.
Belshazzar knew the history of his predecessor, Nebuchadnezzar, whom God had humbled for his arrogance in the episode where he ate grass like an ox for seven years. Despite this, Belshazzar continued to do evil and abominable things before God. Now Belshazzar would suffer the consequences. When Belshazzar heard the interpretation, he did as he had promised and placed Daniel third in the kingdom. But that very night, Babylon fell to the Medes and the Persians. The Babylonian Empire came to an end, and Belshazzar was killed. With Daniel, there are no records of the date and circumstances of his death, but he possibly died in Susa at around 85 years old, where there is a probable tomb where his body would be. This place is known as Susa. And that was the video, beloved. If you liked this video, leave your like and subscribe to the channel, and don’t forget to activate the notification bell. God bless you all until the next video.
