17 to 19 we see the exercise of prayer. Daniel proceeded at once to call on his companions to get on their knees in intercession as they brought the matter before the Lord. The men of Babylon had been marked by spiritual poverty and panic. The men of God were known by prudence and prayer. These men saw no worth in themselves. They cast themselves upon the God of mercy. In prayer meetings such as this history has been made. We need to be reminded that prayer is essen tial to understanding spiritual truth (Jer. 33:3). Daniel requested of God the unknown secret of the king’s dream along with its interpretation (v. 19 to 23). God granted the re quest. Daniel’s praise commenced with the desire that the Lord’s name should be eternally blessed. Again and again Daniel acknowledged di vine omniscience. This ded icated young man expressed thanks be cause his petition was heard and an swered. He didn’t ask for himself; he was a selfless individual. One of the lessons we all might learn from this section is that though God stands ready to reveal the deep things to His children, He refuses to reveal Himself just to any casual passerby. We must have a spiritual attitude toward God because “the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God.” Verses 24 to 30 show Daniel’s spirit; how humble he was! He was prepared to appear before Nebu chadnezzar. The royal executioner was looking for credit for himself. Daniel on the other hand displayed dignity and humility. He purposely disavowed any ability of his own, pointing Nebuchadnezzar to the one true God who revealed the unknown. Daniel was like Joseph in a similar situation (Gen. 41:16). Both admit ted to human weakness and pointed to God as the Revealer of prophetic secrets. Too frequently we miss op portunities to glorify God. We dis
the dream was, and then to interpret what it meant. It was a double re sponsibility. This tyrannical and un reasonable demand seems almost de liberate. It seems as though he want ed to expose and to dispose of any who were not authentic in their duties and privileges. The king’s de mand is irrevocable. His mind is made up. His Chaldean leaders ap pealed for leniency. They felt the king was demanding the impossible (v. 10). They confessed their own limitations. Because of this, the king was angry. Verses 12 and 13 show his determination to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. The men had been trained to interpret mysteries, and they now turn out to be noth ing but frauds. Similarly, those of us who name Christ’s name should be sure that we declare, with au thority, the whole counsel of God, as revealed in His Word, the Bible. If you fail to do this, don’t be sur prised if the people hold you in con tempt. This decree of godless Nebuchad nezzar could well have been Satan’s plot to destroy Daniel (v. 13). There was to be a mass execution. The real goal seemed to be the extermination of Daniel and his friends. Daniel was not yet summoned before the king to have a chance to interpret the dream. Nevertheless, a t th is point, he was sentenced to die. In our subsequent message we can see what transpired. C hapter S ix I n D aniel 2:14 we find the young prophet Daniel faced with an im portant decision. There was not a minute to be lost. His determination showed the marks of a man of God. Condemned to death, he approached the chief executioner asking for a means to plead his case before the king who was still desirous of hav ing his dream interpreted. A stay of execution was granted. In verses 10
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