Around 605B.C., King Nebuchadnezzar robbed the Jerusalem Temple (Solomon's Temple)
and carried its treasures back to Babylon. Some young members of the Judean nobility, including Daniel and his
three companions, are inducted into the king's service. Daniel and his
companions are given Babylonian names, but refuse to be 'defiled' by the
royal provisions of meat and wine. Their overseer fears for his life in
case the health of his charges deteriorates, but Daniel suggests a
ten-day trial on a simple diet of pulses
and water. When they miraculously emerge healthier than their
counterparts, Daniel and his friends are allowed to continue with their
diet. At the end of the induction period, the king finds them 'ten times
better' than all the wise men in his service, and it is noted that
Daniel has a particular gift for dream interpretation.Nebuchadnezzar has a disturbing dream and asks his wise men to interpret
it, but refuses to divulge its content. When they protest he sentences
all of them, including Daniel and his friends, to death. Daniel asks
permission to petition his God for a solution. He receives an
explanatory vision in the night: Nebuchadnezzar has dreamed of an
enormous statue with a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly
and thighs of copper, legs of iron, and feet of mixed iron and clay. The
statue is destroyed by a rock that turns into a huge mountain, filling
the whole earth. The statue symbolises four successive kingdoms,
starting with Nebuchadnezzar, all of which will be crushed by God's
kingdom, which will endure forever. Nebuchadnezzar raises Daniel to be
chief over all his wise men, and appoints him and his companions to rule
over all the chief cities of Babylon.Daniel's companions Ananias (Hananiah/Shadrach), Azariah (Abednego), and
Mishael (Meshach) refuse to bow to the emperor's golden statue and are
thrown into a furnace. Nebuchadnezzar sees a fourth figure appear in the
furnace with the three and God is credited for preserving them from the
flames. Daniel does not appear in this story.Nebuchadnezzar recounts a dream of a huge tree that is suddenly cut down
at the command of a heavenly messenger. Daniel is summoned and
interprets the dream. The tree is Nebuchadnezzar himself, who for seven
years will lose his mind and live like a wild beast. All of this comes
to pass until, at the end of the specified time, Nebuchadnezzar
acknowledges that "heaven rules" and his kingdom and sanity are
restored.Belshazzar
and his nobles blasphemously drink from sacred Jewish temple vessels,
offering praise to inanimate gods, until a hand mysteriously appears and
writes upon the wall
of the palace. The horrified king eventually summons Daniel who is able
to read the writing and offer the following interpretation: Mene, Mene – God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. Tekel – You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. Upharsin – Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians. "That very night" Belshazzar was slain and "Darius the Mede" took over the kingdom.Daniel is elevated to a pre-eminent position under Darius which elicits
the jealousy of other officials. Knowing of Daniel's devotion to his
God, these officials trick the king into issuing an edict forbidding
worship of any other god or man for a 30-day period. Because Daniel
continues to pray three times a day to God towards Jerusalem, he is
accused and King Darius, forced by his own decree, throws Daniel into
the lions' den. God shuts up the mouths of the lions and the next
morning king Darius finds Daniel unharmed, then he casts Daniel's
accusers and their families into the lions' pit where they are instantly
devoured.