p. 10 | The Book of Daniel by Editor

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Tacoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jun 4, 1908

The Book of Daniel

By Editor

Selected to Stand Before the King of Babylon

THE EDITOR

And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring in certain of the children of Israel, even of the seed royal and of the nobles; youths in whom was no blemish, but well-favored, and skilful in all wisdom, and endued with knowledge, and understanding science, and such as had ability to stand in the king’s palace; and that he should teach them the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans. And the king appointed for them a daily portion of the king’s dainties, and of the wine which he drank, and that they should be nourished three years; that at the end thereof they should stand before the king. Now among these were, of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. And the prince of the eunuchs gave names unto them: unto Daniel he gave the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abednego. Dan. 1: 3-7.

The vessels from the house of God at Jerusalem had been brought to Babylon, and placed in the palace of the leading Babylonian deity, as a testimony to the superior might of the gods of Nebuchadnezzar; and now, as further evidence of the complete subjugation of the conquered people, some of the captives of royal blood were selected by the king’s command to be trained for service in his royal palace. “That young persons of royal descent and of noble families should be chosen for such a service, is altogether in accordance with the pride and haughtiness of the Babylonian king, and the customs of the East.” That such a humiliation would be experienced by members of the royal family at Jerusalem was declared to Hezekiah by the prophet Isaiah in these words: “And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, whom thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.” Those who were to be selected are spoken of as “of the children of Israel,” as being descendants of Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel; but Daniel is expressly declared to be “a man of the children of the captivity of Judah,” and his three companions were doubtless of the same tribe. As the education of youths, according to the customs of the times, began when they were about fourteen years of age, it may be inferred that Daniel and his companions were of this tender age when they were recommended to the king as candidates for service at the royal court. The tests which these youths were required to pass before being accepted, were quite rigid; they must be above the average both in physical appearance and in mental capacity. The haughty king would not suffer to come into his presence one who exhibited any bodily imperfection. Neither would he bestow upon those who were deficient in mental ability the effort and expense necessary to give to foreigners the required education in order that they might render intelligent service to a Babylonian king.

Preparing for Service

We have already called attention to the divine purpose that the gospel should be proclaimed to the world, and the providence of God was overruling the national disaster which had overtaken his people so that messengers of his grace might carry the good tidings of salvation to a people who were sitting in darkness. But as in modern times missionaries to strange peoples must first learn the language of those to whom they are to minister the gospel, so it was in the olden time; therefore the custom common to victorious monarchs of educating royal captives for court service became the apparently natural means for supplying the required education to these young missionaries from Jerusalem.

“As for the tongue of the Chaldeans, the necessity for learning it was obvious. In Babylon, amid the babel of languages spoken at the very seat of the confusion of tongues by persons assembled there from all parts of that vast empire, old Chaldee was perhaps the most ancient,—the very speech of Asshur, the sacred language, the peculiar dialect of religion and science, spoken by the Chaldeans, men of the race of Asshur, the reputed wise men of the world. Learning the tongue of the Chaldeans, moreover, suggests, even more than this, and perhaps the full scope of Daniel’s peculiar study will not be apprehended until the writing and language of the Chaldees are fully deciphered, translated from the bricks and cylinders, and a lexicon and grammar published for our instruction. Still, we know that the hieratic writing was in a distinct dialect, if not in a distinct character also, sacred to religious subjects, and known only to the wise men, who were designated as Chaldees, from their proficiency in this venerated science.”

It was the set purpose of the king of Babylon to transform these noble youth from Jerusalem both by education and association into wise men of Babylon, causing them to forget as far as possible their national religion, and to become assimilated to the priestly class. “The priests in Babylonia were a caste, devoted to the service of the native deities and to the pursuits of philosophy, and held in high honor by the people. It was their business to guard the temples and serve at the altars of the gods, to explain dreams and prodigies, to understand omens, to read the warnings of the stars, and to instruct men how to escape the evils threatened in these various ways, by purifications, incantations, and sacrifices. They possessed a traditional knowledge which had come down from father to son, and which none thought of questioning. The laity looked up to them as the sole possessors of a recondite wisdom of the last importance to humanity.”

It appears, however, that in the time of Daniel, the so-called wise men did not constitute a caste, “for Jews are enrolled among their number, and Daniel himself is made chief of the entire body. But they form a very distinct order, and constitute a considerable power in the state; they have direct communication with the monarch, and they are believed to possess, not merely human learning, but a supernatural power of predicting future events. . . . They were feared and respected by the people; the offerings of the faithful made them wealthy; their position as interpreters of the divine will secured them influence. Being regarded as capable of civil employment, they naturally enough obtained frequently important offices, which added to their wealth and consideration.”

A Change of Names

To be associated with such persons as constituted this wealthy and influential class, and to render such services as they rendered as the ministers of the false religion, Daniel and his companions were to be educated at public expense. Food and drink such as were found upon the king’s table were provided for them at the royal command, and they were to spend three years in acquiring both the language and the learning necessary for them to serve acceptably in their appointed places. “The Babylonians, notwithstanding their pride, their cruelty, their covetousness, and their love of luxury, must be pronounced to have been, according to their light, a religious people. . . . The monarchs were devout worshipers of the various deities, and gave much of their attention to the building and repair of temples, the erection of images, and the like. They bestowed on their children names indicative of religious feeling, and implying real faith in the power of the gods to protect their votaries. The people generally affected similar names—names containing, in almost every case, a god’s name as one of their elements.” As further means of disconnecting the royal youths from their past history and religion, their names, which suggested the true God and his service, were exchanged for names which would connect them with the deities and religion of Babylon. “The names given to them were formed partly from the names of Babylonish idols, in order that thereby they might become wholly naturalized, and become estranged at once from the religion and the country of their fathers. Daniel, i. e., ‘God will judge,’ received the name of Belteshazzar, formed from Bel, the name of the chief god of the Babylonians. Its meaning has not yet been determined. Hananiah, i. e., ‘The Lord is gracious,’ received the name of Shadrach, the origin of which is wholly unknown; Mishael, i. e., ‘Who is what the Lord is,’ was called Meshach, the name yet undeciphered. Azariah, i. e., ‘The Lord helps,’ had his name changed into Abednego, i. e., slave, servant of Nego or Nebo, the name of the second god of the Babylonians.” There was no way in which these youths from Jerusalem could prevent the king from bestowing upon them such names as might suit his royal pleasure; but it appears that in their association with each other they clung to the familiar names of their childhood, and that at least, in the case of Daniel the knowledge of his original name was preserved, as we find that in the days of Belshazzar the queen recommended him to the king as “the same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar.”

A Question of Loyalty

We have noted that the cause of the downfall of Jerusalem was the failure of the people to retain the spiritual character of their worship and their proneness to adopt the principle of the heathen religions by allowing forms and ceremonies to take the place of spiritual fellowship with God. Although the temple and its services were designed to keep ever before them the gospel lesson of the provision made in order that the image of God, marred by sin, might be restored in the human soul, yet they were constantly losing sight of the real significance of these services. Furthermore, they had become absorbed in a life of ease and luxury, and had refused to carry out the purpose of God by being his messengers to the nations. Now, Daniel and his companions, members of leading families at Jerusalem, are captives in Babylon, deprived of the benefits of religious worship, surrounded with the outward evidences of idolatry, and placed under instruction for the service of the false religion. Under these untoward circumstances will they yield to Babylonish influences and accept the place of profit and power held out to them, or will they remain true to the religion of their fathers, and proclaim in Babylon that gospel which is the power of God unto salvation? With the strong current of worldly influence prevailing to-day, and the temptation to a life of ease and luxury working against the endurance of the hardships incident to the experience of the missionary, we can appreciate to some degree the strength of character required to resist the combined influences which were exercised upon Daniel and his companions in ancient Babylon. The story of their steadfastness to principle is one of the most inspiring in all history.