Daniel and His Friends Praying TogetherBible World
2:17Daniel 2:17
Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions:
Daniel went home to tell his three Hebrew fellow exiles about the death decree hanging over them because no wise man could recall the king's forgotten dream. They joined together in worship, fasting and earnest prayer to the God of heaven for mercy, wisdom and deliverance. God answered by revealing both the dream and its meaning to Daniel in a night vision through His Spirit and ministering angels. That revelation saved their lives and the lives of Babylon's wise men and disclosed coming events of prophetic history with exactness that confirms Scripture. Their experience shows that diligent minds joined to living connection with God and united prayer receive heavenly wisdom in impossible straits, while human wisdom alone fails.
Crisis and United Prayer
Soon after Daniel and his companions entered the king's service, Nebuchadnezzar was troubled by a dream whose details and meaning had departed from him. Seated on his throne in his grand Babylonian palace before his gathered robed advisers, he declared the troubling dream and demanded that his wise men both recall it and interpret it. He was perplexed and pressed them to reveal the dream together with its interpretation.
The wise men could neither recall nor interpret the forgotten dream, and their failure showed their claimed wisdom gave no light on the mystery. A decree therefore went out to destroy all the wise men of Babylon, putting Daniel and the others in danger of death. Daniel answered the captain of the guard with counsel and wisdom rather than retaliation, asked why the decree was so hasty, and in faith asked the king for time to show the interpretation.
Daniel then went to his house and made the danger and the secret known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his Hebrew companions and fellow exiles. He told them of the king's decree and the secret he had to explain, and of the need created by the failure of the wise men to help the king with his forgotten dream and its interpretation. His purpose was that the four would together desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning the secret, that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
The four worshipped the true God together, considered the matter, and submitted their case to God as Judge of all the earth. They sought Him with trust for guidance and protection, and for the wisdom, power, and deliverance they needed from death. They knelt in prayer, and joined prayer with fasting and with a contrite mind.
Their united seeking was answered when the Spirit of the Lord rested on Daniel and his fellows. Holy angels were sent on a mission of mercy to minister to him as one of God's people in the court of a heathen king. The secret, both the forgotten dream and its interpretation, was revealed to Daniel in a night vision, after which Daniel blessed the God of heaven. They had asked God to take charge because they could not solve the problem by their own power, and God heard their cries and helped His faithful captives in their perplexity. Heavenly wisdom was thus given to exiles who depended on God and remained conscious He had placed them in the court amid temptation and danger for His work, not to those captivated by Babylon's splendor.
Enabled by the revelation, Daniel could bring the dream fresh to the king's mind with its interpretation disclosing remarkable events to transpire in prophetic history. That interpretation made clear the meaning of the great image. By that mercy their own lives and the lives of the astrologers, soothsayers, and other advisers were saved from an ignominious death. The king and his counselors later forgot that deliverance and the meaning God had revealed. Yet many years later at Belshazzar's feast the queen-mother remembered how Daniel had made known the forgotten dream and its interpretation.
Lessons Prophecy and Application
Diligent human effort and training to gain knowledge, faithful use of one's powers, joined with a living connection with the God of all wisdom and united prayer for heavenly wisdom, brings understanding that serves in strait places, while God will not supply deficiencies caused by mental and spiritual indolence. After answering the captain of the guard with counsel and wisdom instead of retaliation, asking why the decree was hasty, and in faith obtaining time from the king to show the interpretation through faith in the God he served, Daniel went to his house and made the danger and the secret known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, so that together they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning the secret and not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Their united prayer was answered when the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision, after which Daniel blessed the God of heaven and the interpretation was made known, an example for those upon whom the ends of the world are come.
Heavenly wisdom was given to faithful captives who depended on God as exiles and were conscious He had placed them in the court amid temptation and danger for His work, not to those captivated by Babylon's splendor. Their experience proves human wisdom and power are limited and God's wisdom is superior. When Daniel brought the crisis to his companions and sought God with them, asking God to take charge, God answered, showing that God can help His people when they face danger and cannot solve a problem by their own power.
Daniel's example of turning to his companions and looking to God rather than making human judgment the controlling authority teaches people in trouble to pray earnestly with willing hearts. He made the matter known to his companions and sought wisdom with a contrite mind, and God gives an understanding heart to those who seek wisdom from above. His looking to God for wisdom teaches not to surrender judgment to an institution or council of men.
Their learning and abilities were not a reason for pride, for Daniel and his three companions who shared with him a special work for God gave God the glory, gained knowledge through faithful use of their powers, and received skill and understanding from Him. Close connection with God through prayer so equips a person to meet demanding duties, and the four Hebrew youths used their time with willing hearts rather than in selfishness or amusement. Those who thus honor God when life is at stake will be elevated however humble they are if they trust in Him, for God will unite His divine power with their human effort; this requires being pure, divested of self, steadfast, unmovable, and always abounding in the work of the Lord so that God is honored among His people, for the God who ruled in Babylon and worked for Daniel is the same God who rules now.
The verse belongs to the prophecy of Daniel 2 whose fulfillment has been seen in the record of history with wonderful exactness. That exact fulfillment gives testimony to the inspiration of the Scriptures that anchors faith amid rationalism and skepticism and leads to positive faith, giving evidence that helped lead from skepticism to faith. Continued study of that prophecy leads to belief that the coming of the Lord is at hand, a solemn and important truth to be brought before the people even though popular belief says the prophecies of Daniel are mysteries that cannot be understood.
Daniel went home to tell his three Hebrew fellow exiles about the death decree hanging over them because no wise man could recall the king's forgotten dream. They joined together in worship, fasting and earnest prayer to the God of heaven for mercy, wisdom and deliverance. God answered by revealing both the dream and its meaning to Daniel in a night vision through His Spirit and ministering angels. That revelation saved their lives and the lives of Babylon's wise men and disclosed coming events of prophetic history with exactness that confirms Scripture. Their experience shows that diligent minds joined to living connection with God and united prayer receive heavenly wisdom in impossible straits, while human wisdom alone fails.
Crisis and United Prayer
Soon after Daniel and his companions entered the king's service, Nebuchadnezzar was troubled by a dream whose details and meaning had departed from him. Seated on his throne in his grand Babylonian palace before his gathered robed advisers, he declared the troubling dream and demanded that his wise men both recall it and interpret it. He was perplexed and pressed them to reveal the dream together with its interpretation.
The wise men could neither recall nor interpret the forgotten dream, and their failure showed their claimed wisdom gave no light on the mystery. A decree therefore went out to destroy all the wise men of Babylon, putting Daniel and the others in danger of death. Daniel answered the captain of the guard with counsel and wisdom rather than retaliation, asked why the decree was so hasty, and in faith asked the king for time to show the interpretation.
Daniel then went to his house and made the danger and the secret known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his Hebrew companions and fellow exiles. He told them of the king's decree and the secret he had to explain, and of the need created by the failure of the wise men to help the king with his forgotten dream and its interpretation. His purpose was that the four would together desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning the secret, that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
The four worshipped the true God together, considered the matter, and submitted their case to God as Judge of all the earth. They sought Him with trust for guidance and protection, and for the wisdom, power, and deliverance they needed from death. They knelt in prayer, and joined prayer with fasting and with a contrite mind.
Their united seeking was answered when the Spirit of the Lord rested on Daniel and his fellows. Holy angels were sent on a mission of mercy to minister to him as one of God's people in the court of a heathen king. The secret, both the forgotten dream and its interpretation, was revealed to Daniel in a night vision, after which Daniel blessed the God of heaven. They had asked God to take charge because they could not solve the problem by their own power, and God heard their cries and helped His faithful captives in their perplexity. Heavenly wisdom was thus given to exiles who depended on God and remained conscious He had placed them in the court amid temptation and danger for His work, not to those captivated by Babylon's splendor.
Enabled by the revelation, Daniel could bring the dream fresh to the king's mind with its interpretation disclosing remarkable events to transpire in prophetic history. That interpretation made clear the meaning of the great image. By that mercy their own lives and the lives of the astrologers, soothsayers, and other advisers were saved from an ignominious death. The king and his counselors later forgot that deliverance and the meaning God had revealed. Yet many years later at Belshazzar's feast the queen-mother remembered how Daniel had made known the forgotten dream and its interpretation.
Lessons Prophecy and Application
Diligent human effort and training to gain knowledge, faithful use of one's powers, joined with a living connection with the God of all wisdom and united prayer for heavenly wisdom, brings understanding that serves in strait places, while God will not supply deficiencies caused by mental and spiritual indolence. After answering the captain of the guard with counsel and wisdom instead of retaliation, asking why the decree was hasty, and in faith obtaining time from the king to show the interpretation through faith in the God he served, Daniel went to his house and made the danger and the secret known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, so that together they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning the secret and not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Their united prayer was answered when the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision, after which Daniel blessed the God of heaven and the interpretation was made known, an example for those upon whom the ends of the world are come.
Heavenly wisdom was given to faithful captives who depended on God as exiles and were conscious He had placed them in the court amid temptation and danger for His work, not to those captivated by Babylon's splendor. Their experience proves human wisdom and power are limited and God's wisdom is superior. When Daniel brought the crisis to his companions and sought God with them, asking God to take charge, God answered, showing that God can help His people when they face danger and cannot solve a problem by their own power.
Daniel's example of turning to his companions and looking to God rather than making human judgment the controlling authority teaches people in trouble to pray earnestly with willing hearts. He made the matter known to his companions and sought wisdom with a contrite mind, and God gives an understanding heart to those who seek wisdom from above. His looking to God for wisdom teaches not to surrender judgment to an institution or council of men.
Their learning and abilities were not a reason for pride, for Daniel and his three companions who shared with him a special work for God gave God the glory, gained knowledge through faithful use of their powers, and received skill and understanding from Him. Close connection with God through prayer so equips a person to meet demanding duties, and the four Hebrew youths used their time with willing hearts rather than in selfishness or amusement. Those who thus honor God when life is at stake will be elevated however humble they are if they trust in Him, for God will unite His divine power with their human effort; this requires being pure, divested of self, steadfast, unmovable, and always abounding in the work of the Lord so that God is honored among His people, for the God who ruled in Babylon and worked for Daniel is the same God who rules now.
The verse belongs to the prophecy of Daniel 2 whose fulfillment has been seen in the record of history with wonderful exactness. That exact fulfillment gives testimony to the inspiration of the Scriptures that anchors faith amid rationalism and skepticism and leads to positive faith, giving evidence that helped lead from skepticism to faith. Continued study of that prophecy leads to belief that the coming of the Lord is at hand, a solemn and important truth to be brought before the people even though popular belief says the prophecies of Daniel are mysteries that cannot be understood.