Daniel is now an old man, and is called upon to interpret the mysterious ‘writing on the wall’ that appears during Belshazzar’s feast: ‘MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN’. The story of the ruler becoming like an ox is thought to derive from Assyrian worship of bulls as representatives of good-luck deities. In ancient writings, this strange story is first attached to the ruler Nabodinus (as the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in the 1940s revealed), suggesting that the author of Daniel substituted Nebuchadnezzar for Nabodinus in the events described. Sure enough, before the year is out he is ‘driven from men’ and retreats outside to eat grass with the oxen. The next event also concerns Nebuchadnezzar, who has a dream that he will lose his mind and end up eating grass like an ox, unless he repents his sins. We have analysed this story in more detail here. God intervenes and the men are spared from the flames, emerging unscathed. The next key event in Daniel is the famous incident of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego – Daniel’s fellow Jews in exile in Babylon – being thrown into the ‘burning fiery furnace’ for refusing to pay homage to an idol of Nebuchadnezzar. (This detail proves that the Book of Daniel was written later on.)
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The dream Daniel interprets represents the different empires and kingdoms of the day, while prophesying that Alexander the Great’s Macedonian empire would rise up and swallow the rest. Unfortunately, Nebuchadnezzar can’t remember the dream, so Daniel has to remember it for him and then divine its significance, otherwise he and his fellow ‘magicians’ or wise men will be put to death. We are told that the Babylonian ruler Nebuchadnezzar (probably really Nabodinus, who was a later ruler) has a dream and calls upon the wise men of his court (who included Daniel) to interpret its meaning for him. Such is God’s grace.The Jews are living in exile in Babylon, some time in the sixth century BC. He is given a kingdom that shall never be destroyed and, amazingly, the saints of the Most High will enjoy a share in his kingdom. In chapter 7 we glimpse the glory of the Ancient of Days as he sits on his throne in judgement and we are introduced to the otherworldly Son of Man.
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Daniel’s desire is for us to remain faithful to the LORD God and to endure even when the kings of this world are wearing out the saints of the Most High. Only God’s kingdom will last eternally because only it shall never be destroyed. He wants us to be inspired, humbled and obedient in light of the unchallenged and everlasting reign of God. Daniel wants his readers to grasp this truth and to live in line with it. The purpose of Daniel is to reveal to all that only God’s Kingdom is forever. The book of Daniel carefully and powerfully reveals the relationship between God’s Kingdom and earthly kingdoms from the human perspective (chapters 1-6) as well as from the divine perspective (chapters 7-12). The concept of kingdom is the foundational theme of Daniel and the kingdom motif ties the book together. In light of this it becomes clear that the book of Daniel was compiled in order to teach the Jews living in Daniel’s day, as well as us today, what it means to live life knowing that only God’s Kingdom will ultimately prevail. There is no realm that exists outside of God’s domain. Yet even he is called God’s servant (Jeremiah 27:6). Nebuchadnezzar himself is later referred to as the golden head in comparison to other kingdoms of lesser glory (which shows his kingdom is the most impressive of the four kingdoms mentioned). In Daniel 1:2 we read it was the Lord who gave Jehoiakim into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. In the book of Daniel we see that it is God alone who brings up kingdoms and who tears them down. The book of Daniel was written to illuminate this reality and to record stunning examples of apparently irresistible empires crumbling while God’s Kingdom endures.
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However, every kingdom except the Kingdom of God shall be toppled, and every king will cast his crown before the throne of God (Rev 4:10). Likewise, other kingdoms have since popped up that are forces to be reckoned with.
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Other kingdoms have arisen that seemed unstoppable in their power and might but inevitably they have fallen. The purpose of Daniel is to show that only the Kingdom of God is eternal.