Bible

Today in the Bible room, we continue reading the summary of the book of Daniel with Session 2, chapters 4 through 6.

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Daniel – Session 2 of 4

Chapter 4. Grass

Daniel tells the king he will one day eat grass with the beasts in the field:

• Nebuchadnezzar gives praises to the Most High God;
• He goes on to talk about another dream he has had;
• He asks his wise men to interpret his dream, but they cannot;
• Then he calls for Daniel; he knows Daniel can tell him;
• The king dreamed of a great tree reaching up to the heavens;
• It was a very useful and beneficial tree;
• Then he saw a holy one coming down from heaven;
• This holy one called for the tree to be cut down;
• But the stump and roots were to remain in the earth;
• And bind the stump with a band of iron and bronze;
• And change his heart from that of a man to an animal;
• For seven years let him graze the grass of the earth;
• This decision comes from the Most High who rules men;
• The king then asks Daniel to interpret his dream for him;
• Daniel says that great tree in the dream is the king himself;
• And men will come and drive the king away from people;
• For seven years he will live outdoors, eat grass like the oxen;
• The king must learn: Heaven rules men and kingdoms;
• Daniel appeals to the king to change his ways;
• The king must repent of his sins, show mercy to the poor;
• Then perhaps his kingdom will be preserved into the future;
• A year later the king is walking around in the royal palace;
• He is talking to himself about how great he has become;
• Within the hour Daniel’s words to the king come true;
• The king is driven out to eat grass like the oxen;
• His hair grows long like bird feathers, his nails like bird claws;
• Finally, King Nebuchadnezzar learns the error of his ways;
• He offers praise to the Most High, his reason returns to him;
• His kingdom is restored, he sees the danger in pride.

Chapter 5. Writing

Belshazzar, the king of Babylon, is hosting a great feast for his leaders:

• He brings out the sacred gold and silver vessels for drinking;
• His father, Nebuchadnezzar, had brought them from Jerusalem;
• The men, their wives, their concubines drink from the vessels;
• Soon, the fingers of a man’s hand appear writing on a wall;
• The king sees these fingers and he becomes greatly troubled;
• He calls for his wise men to come read the writing on the wall;
• But they cannot read, or interpret, the words on the wall;
• Hearing of the incident, the queen comes to the banquet hall;
• She tells Belshazzar about Daniel who has a history in Babylon;
• He had told things to the king’s father, Nebuchadnezzar;
• The king says he has heard of Daniel, a captive from Judah
• And how the Spirit of God is with him to make him wise;
• He promises Daniel gifts if he can read and interpret the words;
• Daniel tells the king he can keep his gifts, but he will help;
• He starts by reminding the king about the story of his father;
• About his father’s pride, and his fall by the hand of God;
• Belshazzar knows all about his father and the story of his fall;
• Daniel tells the king he has not learned from the past;
• He has defiled the sacred vessels from the temple in Judah;
• And he has worshipped the gods of gold and silver;
• Daniel reads to him the words written by the fingers on the wall:
• MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN
• (In summary), the words are: God has ended your kingdom,
• He has given it to the Medes and Persians;
• Daniel is rewarded with a purple robe and gold chain;
• That night, King Belshazzar of the Chaldeans is murdered;
• Darius, the Mede, becomes king of Babylon.

Chapter 6. Lions

Daniel has found great favor with the new king of Babylon, Darius:

• Daniel is one of three rulers over the provinces of Babylon;
• He does so well at his job the king decides to promote him;
• He is about to make Daniel the head ruler of the kingdom;
• The other governors plot to get Daniel removed;
• They write an ordinance for the king to sign and make it law;
• It says: no one is allowed to worship any god for thirty days;
• The penalty for violating this law will be death by lions;
• Daniel prays to his God three times every day;
• The conspirators report this to the king, who must act;
• He tells Daniel the Lord will save him from the lions;
• Distraught, the king cannot sleep, worrying about Daniel;
• The next morning the king goes to check on Daniel;
• Daniel reports he is unharmed; an angel had visited the den;
• In the night, the angel had come and shut the lions’ mouths;
• Daniel was saved by his belief in God;
• King Darius orders Daniel’s accusers to be punished;
• Along with their wives, children, they are fed to the lions;
• The king issues a decree that Daniel’s God is to be feared;
• Daniel lives well under Darius and then Cyrus, the Persian.

End of Session 2 of 4 of the book of Daniel.