GOD’S WORD FOR YOU
DANIEL 1:21
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21 And Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.
Here we have three or four details to understand, but the true point of the verse is what gives each of those questions and their answers clarity in the light of the rest of Scripture.
First, there is the matter of the word “remained.” This is the simple verb “to be,” which in English has 23 variations (is, be, am, shall, was, could, etc.), and which, thanks to my 6th Grade English teacher, I can still repeat in about 4 seconds with or without a warning. The Hebrew lexicon gives even more ways to understand this, and here, meaning “to exist” with a reference of time in the same clause, brings us to “remained (until)” as our definition.
Second, how shall we understand “until”? The preposition does not necessarily include a termination; which is to say, it does not mean that Daniel died in that first year of King Cyrus (which we know is not the case based on Daniel 10:1), but that there must be some important event associated with that first year of King Cyrus which makes Daniel’s continued presence important.
Therefore (and thirdly), what was that first year of King Cyrus, and (fourthly) who was this Cyrus? This was Cyrus the Great, more properly Cyrus II (Cyrus I was his grandfather). He was King of Anshan, and he became King of Persia, conquering the Babylonians in October of 539 BC. It was Cyrus who, according to Ezra, gave this order: “Any of the LORD’s people among you may go up to Jerusalem, and may his God be with him. He may go up to Jerusalem in Judah, and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel” (Ezra 1:3). “It was the policy of Cyrus to let people who had been exiled by the Babylonians to be permitted to return home if they wished. This solidified loyalty to his new Persian kingdom.”
This brings us to the point. Israel had sinned, sinned terribly, against God. They had committed idolatry and they had turned away from God; not only failing to keep his commands, but his gospel promises of forgiveness and every blessing. Jonah had warned: “Those who cling to worthless idols forsake the mercy that is theirs” (Jonah 2:8). But now God was once again chasing after his people with the same gospel of forgiveness, promising release from captivity and even blessings while the Israelites were still in Babylon. So this final verse of Daniel’s first chapter presents at least three such blessings:
First, Daniel himself lived to the first year of King Cyrus and even beyond, which means that this man, who was among the very first captives, lived to see their release. “The Lord is faithful regarding all his promises and loving toward all he has made” (Psalm 145:13).
Second, Daniel himself was a blessing to God’s people. Although Cyrus made it his habit to release captives, it was by no means a guaranteed act, an automatic judgment. But the Lord constantly and consistently made the royalty of the Babylonians and Cyrus, too, well-disposed toward this man of faith. By being faithful throughout his whole life in the courts of foreign kings, this prophet helped to make a good name for his people, even though there were some who hated the Jews and who plotted against them (Esther 3:6).
Third, Daniel acted as a preacher of the Gospel to his people while he was in exile. He did not confine himself to foretelling events or explaining dreams for the king. It was Daniel who preached for all the exiles that Jeremiah’s words were being fulfilled: “I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years” (Daniel 9:1; Jeremiah 25:11-12; 29:10).
The release from Babylon was a foreshadowing of the release we all have from sin through Christ. For without the promise of heaven, what do any earthly blessings or benefits really mean? What good are they? But for all who put their trust in Christ, even the troubles of life and the crosses we bear are beneficial, since they teach us to turn to God in all matters, and to trust in him always. For it is God’s holy and eternal will that whoever believes that Christ is their Savior form sin, no matter how terrible the sin or the life of sin that burdens their conscience, truly has forgiveness through faith and the assurance of eternal life in heaven. Paul says, “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith” (Ephesians 2:8), and “It is through our Lord Jesus Christ that we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand” (Romans 5:1).
We must live as Daniel did, not fully knowing what a tremendous impact we make on the lives of the people we love, but being faithful even while not knowing. We put our trust in Christ, and however the Holy Spirit sees fit to use us in God’s plan, we humbly leave that to him.
What is the world to me
My Jesus is my treasure,
My life, my health, my wealth,
My friend, my love, my pleasure,
My joy, my crown, my all,
My bliss eternally.
Once more then I declare:
What is the world to me?
(Georg M. Pfeffercorn, 1645-1732)
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
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Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, New Ulm, Minnesota
God’s Word for You – Daniel 1:21 The blessings of Daniel