Daniel was a young man of noble or royal descent
taken from Judah to Babylon
in the first deportation under Nebuchadnezzar.
His name means “God is my judge.”
He lived and served through the entire Babylonian exile
and into the early years of the Persian empire.
Daniel is remembered for
his unwavering integrity,
his gift of interpreting dreams and visions,
and his life of faithful prayer.
Daniel stands as a model of steadfast faith in a pagan culture. Taken from his homeland as a teenager, he resolved not to defile himself and remained faithful to God for more than sixty years in the courts of foreign kings. Through him God demonstrated that His sovereignty extends over all nations and that His people can thrive even in exile. Daniel’s life and visions also look far beyond his own day, revealing the rise and fall of empires and the coming of God’s everlasting kingdom. He shows that loyalty to God is possible — and powerful — in the midst of a hostile world.
- Daniel and his three friends refused to compromise their convictions even when it risked their positions and their lives.
- God repeatedly gave Daniel favor with pagan rulers while also granting him supernatural insight into dreams and mysteries.
- His practice of praying three times a day with windows open toward Jerusalem became the occasion for his being thrown into the lions’ den.
- The book that bears his name moves from historical narrative to far-reaching apocalyptic visions that outline the course of world history.
- Daniel’s visions introduce key themes later developed in the New Testament: the Son of Man, the resurrection, and the final triumph of God’s kingdom.
- Even in extreme old age he continued to seek God with fasting and prayer for the fulfillment of the prophetic word.
- His life demonstrates that God is able to preserve and use His servants in the highest places of worldly power.
- Deportation to Babylon (Daniel 1) – Taken as a youth in 605 BC; trained for service in the king’s court; refuses the king’s food and wine.
- Interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream (Daniel 2) – Reveals and interprets the dream of the great statue; is promoted to high office.
- The Fiery Furnace (Daniel 3) – His three friends are thrown into the furnace for refusing to worship the golden image; God delivers them.
- Nebuchadnezzar’s Humbling (Daniel 4) – Interprets the dream of the great tree; the king is driven from men until he acknowledges heaven’s rule.
- The Writing on the Wall (Daniel 5) – Interprets the mysterious writing at Belshazzar’s feast; Babylon falls that very night.
- The Lions’ Den (Daniel 6) – Continues his daily prayer under the Medo-Persian ban; is thrown to the lions and delivered.
- Visions of Future Kingdoms (Daniel 7–12) – Receives visions of four beasts, the ram and goat, the seventy weeks, and the final conflict and resurrection.
- Prayer for Restoration (Daniel 9) – Studies Jeremiah’s prophecy of seventy years and pours out a prayer of confession and intercession.
- Daniel 1:8 – “Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food.”
- Daniel 2:20-22 – “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever… he changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings.”
- Daniel 3:17-18 – “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us… But if not… we will not serve your gods.”
- Daniel 6:10 – Daniel continues to pray three times a day with his windows open toward Jerusalem.
- Daniel 6:22 – “My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths.”
- Daniel 7:13-14 – The vision of “one like a son of man” who receives everlasting dominion.
- Daniel 9:24-27 – The prophecy of the seventy weeks.
- Daniel 12:2-3 – The promise of resurrection and the shining of the wise.
- Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (his three friends, also called Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego)
- Nebuchadnezzar (Babylonian king)
- Belshazzar (last Babylonian ruler)
- Darius the Mede
- Cyrus the Persian
- Gabriel (the angel who interpreted visions to him)
- Jesus (the Son of Man of Daniel 7 who receives the everlasting kingdom)
Daniel’s life is a shining example of long-term faithfulness in a foreign land. From his youth to extreme old age he refused to compromise, continued in prayer, and bore clear witness to the living God before the most powerful rulers on earth. Through him God showed that the kingdoms of this world rise and fall under His sovereign hand, and that an everlasting kingdom is coming. In Daniel we see both the possibility of holy living in a pagan culture and the certain hope that the Son of Man will reign forever.
Entry compiled for the JESUSaves.com Bible Glossary. Optimized for wiki.js Visual Editor.