Daniel by Conrad Hilario (2017)

The prophet Daniel writes his book to the nation of Israel for the purpose of demonstrating the mighty power of prayer, restoring God's splendor, and providing hope through predictive prophecy. In chapter one, we see Daniel enter King Nebuchadnezzar's service. Instead of giving in to pressure to completely conform to Babylonian culture, Daniel maintains his devotion to the Lord while also faithfully serving the king. We can look to Daniel as an example of obedience to God in the heart of a culture hostile toward Him.

King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon constructs an enormous golden statue and commands his entire empire to worship it under the penalty of death. Daniel's companions, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, faithfully refuse to worship the statue and are thrown into a fiery furnace. Miraculously, God rescues them and the astonished King Nebuchadnezzar commands his empire to worship God alone. In the face of persecution, Christians today must count the cost of following God and consider whether or not we value Him above all else, even our very lives.

King Nebuchadnezzar arrogantly refuses to give God the glory for his accomplishments. God drives him mad for a period of time until he humbles himself and his sanity and kingdom are restored to him. His story teaches us about the emptiness of power and wealth, how pride dehumanizes us, and the joy humility offers. In chapter five, King Belshazzar, Nebuchadnezzar's successor, defies God by drinking from holy cups taken from the temple in Jerusalem. Because of his lack of humility, God allows him to be overthrown by Darius the Mede. His story warns us against rejecting abundant evidence, to consider our own mortality, and to repent before it's too late.\r\n

King Nebuchadnezzar has a disturbing prophetic dream which his diviners are unable to interpret. In his anger, he orders that all of the wise men in the kingdom be executed. Daniel, one of the wise men, after praying to God for help, receives the interpretation of the king's dream in a vision. The vision pertains to five world empires that would rise and fall throughout history: Babylon, Media-Persia, Greece, Rome, and an unknown fifth kingdom. God ultimately will overthrow all corrupt human kingdoms and set up his own kingdom of peace and justice on earth.\r\n

God reveals to Daniel the future course of history, accurately predicting the Greek and Roman empires, as well as foretelling the events of the end of human history yet to come. When we trust in Jesus, we can have hope and security, even in the midst of such turbulent times.

God gives Daniel detailed predictions of future events, some of which have already come to pass, and others that are yet to be fulfilled in the end times. We see how God uses prophecy to show he is real, bolster our faith, and give us confidence in His written word.

God gives Daniel a prophecy which accurately predicts the date of Jesus' crucifixion to the very year, hundreds of years before it occurred. Such unique, objective evidence for the reliability of the Bible as God's written word bolsters our faith and gives us the confidence to entrust ourselves to Jesus as our savior.

God gives Daniel a vision of events to come at the end of human history, culminating in the battle of Armageddon. Though frightening, this prophecy gives us hope that God is ultimately in control of world events, and reminds us that there is still time to place our trust in Jesus as we eagerly await his return.