God gives Political Power

God gave the Kingdom of Judah into Nebuchadnezzar’s hands, but He also equipped Daniel for service in the Court of Babylon.

The Book of Daniel presents insights into the future including the Rise and Fall of kings and empires. This includes times of “tribulation” when the people of God endure persecution by despotic pagan rulers. Before doing so, the Book declares that the downfall of the Jewish kingdom was according to God’s will. It was the God of Israel who “gave” the Babylonian king dominion over Judah.

This theme occurs several times. God “gives the nations to whomsoever He pleases” despite outward appearances or human expectations. He uses good and bad kings to accomplish His will for His people and humanity. This is part of an age-old controversy between Yahweh and His cosmic enemies.

[Photo by Angela Thomas on Unsplash]

Babylon is called the “land of Shinar” in the opening paragraph, providing a verbal link to the “Tower of Babel” incident. The Neo-Babylonian Empire of Nebuchadnezzar had an ancient pedigree. Like his Sumerian forbears, he was determined to unite humanity under one language and ruler so all men would acknowledge his sovereignty.

The Babylonian ruler was working to reverse God’s judgment on “Shinar” by gathering all nations under his rule. Representatives from conquered peoples were taken to Babylon to be educated in the Chaldean “language” and wisdom, including Daniel and his three companions.

Despite the king’s efforts, events moved according to God’s plan. He ruled over the kingdoms of men, and He “gave” Nebuchadnezzar the Babylonian throne and dominion over the Kingdom of Judah.

• (Daniel 1:1-2) – “In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, came Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon to Jerusalem and laid siege against it; and the Lord gave into his hand Jehoiakim king of Judah and a part of the vessels of the house of God, and he brought them into the land of Shinar into the house of his gods, and the vessels he brought into the treasure-house of his gods.”

The first verse sets the stage: In the “third year of the reign of Jehoiakim” Babylonian forces took control of Jerusalem in approximately 605 B.C. Daniel’s career would continue until the “first year of King Cyrus” when the “Kingdom of the Medes and Persians” overthrew Babylon. That history-changing event also was according to Yahweh’s decree.

Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem In 605 B.C. after defeating Egypt at the Battle of Carchemish. He removed the “vessels” from the Temple and selected men from the royal house of Judah to be educated in Babylon for service in his government. Thus, the political independence of Judah ceased. The city and Temple were ransacked, and the upper echelons of Judean society were sent to Mesopotamia.

God decreed this outcome, according to the Book of Daniel. The Hebrew verb translated as “GAVE” or nathan in the passage is applied several times in Chapter 1 where God arranged events and persons. This theme occurs several times in Daniel - God gives political power to whom He pleases - (e.g., Daniel 2:20-21, 4:17).

Nebuchadnezzar removed the vessels of the Temple to the Land of “Shinar.” Like the “Tower of Babel” incident, he attempted to unite all people under one language and government.

IN THE IMPERIAL COURT

Nebuchadnezzar planned to educate the Jewish exiles in the wisdom, literature, and language of the “Chaldeans” so they would be equipped to serve in his administration. The “king appointed the exiles a daily provision of his food and the wine that he drank to nourish them three years.” This was a great honor, one not to be rejected without paying serious consequences.

Daniel was concerned that eating the royal provisions would put his ritual purity at risk. The immediate issue was eating food offered to idols. In Babylonian rituals, food consumed in the royal court was provided to the Mesopotamian gods in their sanctuaries before being served at the royal table.

However, Daniel was “given” favor before the “prince of the eunuchs” by God, so the eunuch granted his request to abstain from the royal provisions for ten days. God had “given” Daniel “kindness and compassion in the sight of the prince of the eunuchs.” He also “gave” the exiles “knowledge and prudence in all learning and wisdom,” and He furthermore granted Daniel “understanding in all visions and dreams” - (Daniel 1:9-16).

Nebuchadnezzar examined the youths and found they excelled in “every matter of wisdom and understanding… And Daniel continued even unto the first year of King Cyrus.” That is, until 538 B.C.  This establishes the length of his prophetic career - from the third year of King Jehoiakim to the first year of Cyrus the Great – 605 to 538 B.C.

In the Book of Revelation, the story of Daniel’s “test” is alluded to in the letters to Pergamos, Thyatira, and Smyrna. In the cities of Asia, believers were being encouraged by false teachers to “eat meat offered to idols.”

Doing so would compromise their testimony, but refusing to participate in the idolatrous practices of the surrounding society would expose them to ridicule and persecution - (“The Devil is about to cast some of you into prison, that you may be tried; and you shall have tribulation ten days”).

In the passage, the Greek verb translated as “try” is the same one used in the Septuagint version of Daniel when the Jewish exiles asked the Eunuch to “try” them for “ten days.” The verbal link is deliberate. Daniel’s example is the model of perseverance for the “Seven Assemblies of Asia” - (Daniel 1:12-14, Revelation 2:8-10).

Like Daniel, John was exiled, only in his case on the Isle of Patmos for the “Testimony of Jesus.” He was a “fellow participant in the tribulation and the kingdom and the perseverance in Jesus” with the beleaguered congregations of Asia.

Like the Prophet Daniel, God used John to “prophesy to nations and kings,” pronouncing their rise and fall, and especially the great victory of the Kingdom of God and the absolute sovereignty of Jesus Christ, the “Slain Lamb,” over all things - (Revelation 1:9, 10:11).

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RELATED POSTS:

• Babel Rises Again - (In the Bible, Babylon is both a historical kingdom and symbol of the recurring rise of the World Empire)

• Overview of Daniel - (An introduction to the book of Daniel with a brief overview of how the book of Revelation applies passages from it)

• The Single Beast - (The “Beast” is a single history-spanning entity that has existed since the dawn of human civilization)