Exhortation Station

When reading in the book of Daniel a while back, I was struck by the character displayed by Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego. These were men who feared Yahweh. Two character traits, in particular, stood out to me. In this post, I’d like to survey a few passages from Daniel and offer some thoughts.

Chapter 1 opens up in the land of Babylon, to which the tribe of Judah had been exiled. Daniel, Hananiah (Shadrach), Mishael (Meshach), and Azariah (Abed-nego) were among the young men selected for service to king Nebuchadnezzar. Though offered to eat the king’s choice food, Daniel and his friends chose instead to eat only vegetables.

Daniel 1:8 — “But Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself with the king’s choice food or with the wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself.”

I wonder what was going through Daniel’s head just before making his request. It would have been easy for Daniel to have relaxed his convictions in that moment for fear of appearing “awkward” or “out of place.” He may have been tempted to second-guess himself. Instead, he stood firm.

In the very next verse, we read, “Now God granted Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the commander of the officials…” (v. 9). Daniel and his friends were allowed a 10-day testing period in which they would eat only vegetables while the rest of the youths ate the king’s food. Sure enough, Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were found to be healthier than all the other youths after the 10 days and were permitted to continue eating as Daniel had requested.

There’s a good nugget here. The Father’s way is not “awkward.” His way is upright — right-side-up. If you feel out of place when standing for truth, consider that you are not the one who is upside-down. Pray that Yahweh will, in His mercy, open the eyes of those who do not understand what they are saying.

In Daniel chapter 2, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that troubled him. The Babylonian magicians and conjurers were unable to declare and interpret the king’s dream. Because of this, Nebuchadnezzar became furious and decreed that all the wise men in Babylon, including Daniel and his friends, be killed. However, Daniel spoke to Arioch, the king’s commander, and asked that time might be given him to make known the dream to the king. Daniel immediately sought Yahweh for help (v. 17,18), and Yahweh revealed the dream and its interpretation to Daniel. Listen to what Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar:

Daniel 2:27-30 – “Daniel answered before the king and said, ‘As for the secret about which the king has inquired, neither wise men, sorcerers, soothsayer priests, nor diviners are able to declare it to the king. ²⁸ However, there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the latter days. This was your dream and the visions in your mind while on your bed. ²⁹ As for you, O king, while on your bed your thoughts turned to what would take place in the future; and He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will take place. ³⁰ But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me for any wisdom residing in me more than in any other living person, but for the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king, and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind.'”

Notice how Daniel spoke to the king. Rather than saying, “however, I can declare the king’s dream,” he immediately directs attention to God, saying that “there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets.” Daniel was careful to identify himself as an ordinary man, attributing all wisdom and revelation to Yahweh.

In chapter 3, we read about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego’s refusal to worship a statue which Nebuchadnezzar had made. Nebuchadnezzar had threatened to throw anyone who did not bow down to the statue into a blazing furnace.

Daniel 3:16-18 – “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego replied to the king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we are not in need of an answer to give you concerning this matter. ¹⁷ If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will rescue us from your hand, O king. ¹⁸ But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods nor worship the golden statue that you have set up.”

Wow. Daniel’s friends made up their mind that they would serve only the God of Israel, whether or not God chose to save them from the fire. God did save them, so that not even a hair on their head was singed (v. 27). Amazed at what he had just witnessed, Nebuchadnezzar praised God.

Daniel 3:28 – “Nebuchadnezzar responded and said, ‘Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, who has sent His angel and rescued His servants who put their trust in Him, violating the king’s command, and surrendered their bodies rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.'”

As I stated at the beginning of this post, there are two character traits that stand out to me as I reflect on these passages. The two traits are boldness and humility. In chapter 1, we saw the boldness of Daniel and his friends as they stood firm in their conviction not to defile themselves with the king’s food. In chapter 2, we saw Daniel’s humility in promptly diverting all praise to God when revealing the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. In chapter 3, we saw Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego’s boldness in refusing to worship the statue. We see their humility in surrendering their bodies into Yah’s hands regardless of the outcome. It’s cool to see how boldness and humility work together in the lives of these men.

Boldness is not a loud, self-confident trust in the strength of man. Boldness is a calm, surrendering trust in the strength of God. Boldness and humility must grow side-by-side.

Let’s look at one more passage.

In Daniel 6, we read the well-known story of Daniel in the lion’s den. Darius the Mede is now king. Jealous of Daniel, some of the king’s officials convince Darius to sign a decree commanding that anyone who prays to anyone besides Darius shall be thrown into the lion’s den. Listen to what Daniel does in verse 10.

Daniel 6:10 – “Now when Daniel learned that the document was signed, he entered his house (and in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and offering praise before his God, just as he had been doing previously.”

What an example of boldness and humility! A few verses later, Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den, yet God shut the mouths of the lions, and Daniel was unharmed.

To conclude, if you desire boldness, a good place to start is to humble yourself utterly before the Creator, acknowledging that you do not have the strength, of yourself, to stand firm. If we do not have a deep-seated recognition of how truly needy we are, we will be more likely to shrink back when our earthly reputation is at stake. The more we humble ourselves, the less we will be concerned with self-image. The less concerned we are with self-image, the more readily we will stand on the side of truth even if it means we will be ridiculed.

As Nebuchadnezzar praised God after seeing the outcome of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego’s boldness, may those who see our bold surrender to Yahweh likewise come to praise their Creator. Yahweh sent His only Son to die for unworthy sinners like you and me. Let us bear this profound message with boldness and humility.

(Bible passages NASB; emphasis added)