Studies in the Book of Daniel: Chapter 1: Whats on the Menu

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Studies in the Book of DanielChapter 1 Whats
on the Menu?

• Forest Hills Bible Chapel
• 8 January 2006

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Amos
610 600 590 580 570
560 550 540 530
Return from Exile
Babylonian Captivity
Kings of Judah
Jerusalem Temple Destroyed
Joel?
Zephaniah

• The Prophet of Social Justice

Daniel
Jeremiah
Habakkuk
Obadiah?
Ezekiel
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Daniel 11-2

• In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king
  of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to
  Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord gave
  Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with
  some of the vessels of the house of God and he
  brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house
  of his god, and he brought the vessels into the
  treasury of his god.

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Amos
610 600 590 580 570
560 550 540 530
Return from Exile
Babylonian Captivity
Kings of Judah
Jerusalem Temple Destroyed
Joel?
Zephaniah

• The Prophet of Social Justice

Daniel
Jeremiah
Habakkuk
Obadiah?
Ezekiel
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? Carchemish
Babylon
Nebuchadnezzar
Jerusalem
Pharaoh Neco
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Because of its brevity and literary nature, the
book of Daniel can be described as A Handbook
for Life in Captivity. Daniel 1-6 Court
Tales Daniel 7-12 Daniels Visions
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Some Principles from Daniel 1

• The Babylonian Exile of the people of Judah was
  inevitable, and it was necessary for Daniel and
  his three friends to accept that Daniel 11-2
  cf. also Jeremiah 251-14 291-9.
• Daniel and his friends could participate in
  Babylonian culture provided they did not
  violate the law of God Daniel 13-8.

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Some Principles from Daniel 1

• God was not averse to providing protection
  within the culture for Daniel and his three
  friends Daniel 19-14.
• God was faithful to Daniel and his three friends
  for their obedience Daniel 115-21.

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Applications

• This period from the history of Judah (Daniel
  Ezra-Nehemiah Esther) best mirrors the situation
  of the church today.
• Our loyalties are first and foremost to the
  kingdom of God second, our loyalties are to the
  nation in which God has placed us.
• Simply put, we are Americans (or Romanians, or
  Mexicans, etc.) second we are first and foremost
  citizens of Gods kingdom.
• We must never uncritically equate any political
  or cultural entity with the kingdom of God.