Saturday, June 27, 2009

Old Testament survey (27): Daniel

And the king communed with them; and among them all was found none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: therefore stood they before the king. And in all matters of wisdome and understanding, that the king enquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm. (Daniel 1:19-20)

If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. (Daniel 3:17-18)

And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. (Daniel 4:44)

And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou? (Daniel 4:34-35)

Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. (Daniel 9:25-27)

Overview

[1] Daniel, from Thru The Bible Radio with Dr. J. Vernon McGee ©, with free downloads Notes & Outlines (PDF), Complete 5-Year Study (MP3), Armageddon: What? Where? When? (PDF), Daniel: Choosing to Stand Alone (PDF), World Dominion: Whose Will it Be? (PDF)

There are three words which characterize Daniel’s life: purpose, prayer, and prophecy.

1. Daniel was a man of purpose (Dan. 1:8; 6:10). When the king made a decree that everyone had to eat the same thing, Daniel and his friends decided they would abide by the law of Moses—and they did. Daniel was a man of purpose, and we can see this all the way through his book. Here was a man who stood on his own two feet and had the intestinal fortitude to speak God’s Word.

God have pity today on men who claim to be His messengers to the world but haven’t got the courage to declare the Word of God. I also thank God that there are many who are declaring the whole Word of God, including prophecy, in our day. You see, the proper study of prophecy will not lead us to sensationalism and fanaticism, but it will lead us to a life of holiness and fear of God. John said in 1 John 3:3, “And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.” The study of prophecy will purify our lives, my friend.

2. Daniel was a man of prayer (Dan. 2:17–23; 6:10; 9:3–19; 10). There are several incidents recorded in this book about Daniel’s prayer life. By the way, prayer got Daniel into the lion’s den. How about that for answered prayer? Well, God also miraculously saved him from the lions. Daniel was a man of prayer.

3. Daniel was a man of prophecy. The Book of Daniel divides itself equally: the first half is history, and the last half is prophecy. Daniel gives us the skeleton of prophecy on which all prophecy is placed. The image in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (Dan. 2) and the beasts (Dan. 7) are the backbone of prophecy; the Seventy Weeks (Dan. 9) are the ribs which fit into their proper place (Read the complete article)
[2] Book of Daniel, from gotquestions.org (this website is also available in Afrikaans, Arabic, Bengali, Burmese-Myanmar, Cebuano, Chinese - Simplified, Chinese – Traditional, Hausa, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Malaysian, Persian-Farsi, Portuguese, Quechua, Sesotho, Spanish, Swahili, Tagalog, Tamil, Thai, Urdu, Vietnamese, Zulu, and 70 other languages)
Daniel can be divided into three sections. Chapter 1 describes the conquest of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. Along with many others, Daniel and his three friends were deported to Babylon and because of their courage and the obvious blessings of God upon them, they were “promoted” in the king’s service (Daniel 1:17-20).

Chapters 2-7 record Nebuchadnezzar having a dream that only Daniel could correctly interpret. Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of a great statue represented the kingdoms that would arise in the future. Nebuchadnezzar made a great statue of himself and forced everyone to worship it. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused and were miraculously spared by God despite being thrown into a fiery furnace. Nebuchadnezzar is judged by God for his pride, but later restored once he recognized and admitted God’s sovereignty.

Daniel chapter 5 records Nebuchadnezzar’s son Belshazzar misusing the items taken from the Temple in Jerusalem and receiving a message from God, written into the wall, in response. Only Daniel could interpret the writing, a message of coming judgment from God. Daniel is thrown into the lions’ den for refusing to pray to the emperor, but was miraculously spared. God gave Daniel a vision of four beasts. The four beasts represented the kingdoms of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome.

Chapters 8-12 contain a vision involving a ram, a goat, and several horns – also referring to future kingdoms and their rulers. Daniel chapter 9 records Daniel’s “seventy weeks” prophesy. God gave Daniel the precise timeline of when the Messiah would come and be cut off. The prophesy also mentions a future ruler who will make a seven-year covenant with Israel and break it after three and a half years, followed shortly thereafter by the great judgment and consummation of all things. Daniel is visited and strengthened by an angel after this great vision, and the angel explains the vision to Daniel in great detail. (Read the complete article)
[3] Daniel, from Scofield Reference Notes (1917 Edition)
Daniel, like Ezekiel was a Jewish captive in Babylon. He was of royal or princely descent (Daniel 1:3). For his rank and comeliness he was trained for palace service. In the polluted atmosphere of an oriental court he lived a life of singular piety and usefulness. His long life extended from Nebuchadnezzar to Cyrus. He was a contemporary of Jeremiah, Ezekiel (Daniel 14:20), Joshua, the high priest of the restoration, Ezra, and Zerubbabel.

Daniel is the indispensable introduction to New Testament prophecy, the themes of which are, the apostasy of the Church, the manifestation of the man of sin, the great tribulation, the return of the Lord, the resurrections and the judgments. These, except the first, are Daniel's themes also.

But Daniel is distinctively the prophet of the "times of the Gentiles" (Luke 21:24), (See Scofield "Luke 21:24") . His vision sweeps the whole course of Gentile world-rule to its end in catastrophe, and to the setting up of the Messianic kingdom.

Daniel is in four broad divisions:

1. Introduction. The personal history of Daniel from the conquest of Jerusalem to the second year of Nebuchadnezzar, 1:1-21.
2. The visions of Nebuchadnezzar and their results, 2:1-4:37.
3. The personal history of Daniel under Belshazzar and Darius, 5:1-6:28.
4. The visions of Daniel, 7:1-12:13.

The events recorded in Daniel cover a period of 73 years (Ussher).
Further study (Be like the Bereans! Acts 17:11)

[1] Outline of Daniel, by Daniel B. Wallace, Th.M., Ph.D.

[2] Materials by David Malick
[3] Daniel: Relating Prophecy to Piety (14 article in series), by Bob Deffinbaugh, Th.M.

[4] The Supreme God Reigns Over All, Lessons in Daniel (Chapters 1-3), by Paul G. Apple

[5] Chapter 5 The Seventieth Week of Daniel, by John F. Walvoord

[6] Materials by Sid Litke, Th.M.
[7] The Major Prophets, by J. Hampton Keathley, III, Th.M. (also available in Chinese)

Sermons on Daniel (Be like the Bereans! Acts 17:11)

[1] An Introduction to the Book of Daniel, from Sermons from Ulster (Grove Baptist Church)

[2] Sermons on Daniel, from Pastor McNabb’s Sermons, Dudley Baptist Church, UK

Daniel 3:17-18

[1] Living Courageously for Christ, by Chad Prigge, Fairmont Baptist Church

[2] Character and Society, by Luke Harris

[3] Fashioned in the Fire, by Wynton Williams

[4] Consolation for Non-Conformists, by Greg Stuckey

[5] Stand Up for What You Believe In, by Brent Harris

[6] Daniel Determined to Be Pure, Part 2, by David Paul Asfour

[7] A Picture of Things to Come, by Daniel P. Johnson

[8] Finding God in the Furnace, by Scott Hergert

[9] Trial by Fire, by Robert D. Fannon

[10] Daniel 3:1-30 - Standing Firm In Worship, by Ronnie Mitchell

[11] God and Government, by Chris Anderson

[12] The Fire Place, by Kevin Siscoe

[13] Faith at what cost? by Ian Millican

[14] Fourth Man in the Furnace, by B James Noel, Sr.

[15] It's Never Too Late to Do the Right Thing, by David DeVel

Daniel 4

[1] How God Humbles the Proud, by David Harp

[2] War Of Words IV - God's Sovereignty Over Our Words (Romans [11]33-36), by Brian Thiessen

[3] Pride comes before the Fall, by Tony Lim

For other available sermons, please surf to Sermon / Preaching resources. Sermons are also available from South McGehee Baptist Church, McGehee, Arizona; Central Baptist Church, Lowesville; First Baptist Church, Mountain View, Missouri; Swift Creek Baptist Church; Word of Life Baptist Church, Pottsville, Philadelphia; Palm Springs Baptist Church, California; South Woods Baptist Church; Grove Baptist Church, Ulster; Dudley Baptist Church, United Kingdom; Independent Fundamental Baptist Sermons, Fundamental Christian Radio Broadcasts, Off-Site Audio Page and The Christian Radio Tuner

Notes: (1) This ministry does not necessarily endorse or share all the views and opinions expressed in the materials, resources or links mentioned in these posts. Please always refer to the Articles of Faith and Biblical distinctives of Baptists when you study these materials. (2) This lesson is part of the projected 300 plus lessons. From time to time, the lessons will be updated, revised, combined, formatted, and edited to comply with the VOA Simplified English word list. Later on, these lessons will be categorized, numbered sequentially, and made available as PDF downloads.

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