Most Christians know the story of Daniel 1, in which he stood for the health principles that he had learned as a child. Daniel was a model of faithfulness (Dan. 1:8). When presented with royal delicacies, he insisted on eating a plant-based diet and drinking only water instead of partaking of the diet offered him from the king’s table (Dan. 1:12–16). This was a small test in contrast to what would come later, such as in Daniel 6, when his faithfulness could have easily meant death for him.
Read Daniel 2:46–48; Daniel 4:18; Daniel 5:13, 14; and Daniel 6:25–27. What do these verses tell us about the kind of witness Daniel was to the pagans around him?
Look at the testimony from these pagans to the power of Daniel’s God. However unique these stories, they all reveal a crucial principle: by our lives, by our faithfulness, and by the power of God working in and through us, others can and should learn about the God of heaven, and know that He is “a God of gods, and a Lord of kings.”
Also, because the recurring theme of Daniel’s prophecies is judgment, culminating in Christ’s second coming (God’s ultimate victory), the meaning of Daniel’s name, “God is my judge,” is quite appropriate. His writings deserve careful study and attention as they are relevant today. Daniel’s prophecies serve as a reminder always to remain vigilant and keep God’s commandments, even in the “little” things of life.
Also, as a prophet, Daniel foretold the rise and fall of nations and the consequences of their disobedience to God. Through his prophetic visions, Daniel revealed God’s plan and the ultimate victory of God’s kingdom (Dan. 7:13, 14).
Think, for example, about Daniel 2, written half a millennium before Christ. Daniel so accurately depicted the rise and fall of these four great world empires, even coming up to our time (that of the feet and the toes of the statue), clearly referring to nations of modern Europe, which, as the prophecy so clearly teaches, “shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay” (Dan. 2:43). What an amazing prediction about Europe, even to this day, in which, despite intermarriage and all attempts at unity, the continent would remain as separate nations with separate laws, customs, and traditions. When even a few years before the fall of the Soviet Union, no intelligence agency saw that fall coming, Daniel’s prediction gives us powerful reasons to trust God’s prophets.
All the kingdoms in Daniel 2 came and went as predicted. What should this tell us about trusting the prophecy, which talks about God’s eternal kingdom coming next (Dan. 2:44)?
Supplemental EGW Notes
The Word of God not only sets forth the great principles of truth and duty which should govern our lives, but it presents also, for our encouragement, the history of many who have exemplified these principles. . . . Except the one perfect Pattern, there is not described in the Sacred Pages a single character more worthy of emulation than that of the prophet Daniel. Exposed in youth to all the allurements of a royal court, he became a man of unbending integrity and fervent devotion to God. He was subjected to the fierce temptations of Satan, yet his character was not vacillating, nor his course changeable. He was firm where many would be yielding; he was true where they would be false; he was strong where they would be weak. Daniel was a lofty cedar of Lebanon. . . . Would that the faith, integrity, and devotion of the prophet Daniel might live in the hearts of God’s people of today. Never were these noble qualities more needed in the world than now. . . .
In the records of those who have done and suffered for the name of Jesus, there is no name that shines with a brighter or purer luster than the name of Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles. The love of Jesus, glowing in his heart, made him self-forgetful, self-denying. He had seen the risen Christ, and the Saviour’s image was impressed upon his soul, and shone forth in his life. With faith, courage, and fortitude, that would not be daunted by danger or stayed by obstacles, he pressed his way from land to land to spread the knowledge of the cross. . . .
Are the professed followers of Christ thus exemplifying the principles of their faith? Where are the deep, living, holy experiences which men of God were wont to recount? Has the standard of Christianity been lowered? . . . No; that standard remains just where God placed it. Holy men of ages past were required to give up all for Christ, to cherish His spirit, and to imitate His example. Nothing less than this will He accept now. . . . When called to give up all for Christ, who will stand the test?—Our High Calling, p. 249.
The beloved of God pass weary days, bound in chains, shut in by prison bars, sentenced to be slain, some apparently left to die of starvation in dark and loathsome dungeons. . . . No human hand is ready to lend them help.
Will the Lord forget His people in this trying hour? Did He forget faithful Noah when judgments were visited upon the antediluvian world? Did He forget Lot when the fire came down from heaven to consume the cities of the plain? . . . Did He forget Elijah when the oath of Jezebel threatened him with the fate of the prophets of Baal? Did He forget Jeremiah in the dark and dismal pit of his prison house? Did He forget the three worthies in the fiery furnace? or Daniel in the den of lions? . . .
Though enemies may thrust them into prison, yet dungeon walls cannot cut off the communication between their souls and Christ. One who sees their every weakness, who is acquainted with every trial, is above all earthly powers; and angels will come to them in lonely cells, bringing light and peace from heaven.—Conflict and Courage, p. 369.
The above quotations are taken from Ellen G. White Notes for the Sabbath School Lessons, published by Pacific Press Publishing Association. Used by permission.