God’s Plan Always Works

“And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed, and of the princes; Children in whom was no blemish, but well favoured, and skillful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the king’s palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans”.  Daniel 1:3-4

Around B.C. 587, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and his army destroyed Jerusalem, killed many of God’s people, and captured many, taking them to Babylon.  God had allowed this because of the flagrant sin of His people.  The first captivity began a few years earlier.  Over 100 years prior to this time, the king of Judah, Hezekiah, had received visitors from Babylon and showed them all of the treasures of Judah.  Because of this bad judgment call and the evil reign of Manasseh, Hezekiah’s son who ruled after him, the prophet Isaiah came to Hezekiah and told him that eventually Babylon would come and take all of the treasures and also the human treasures, the young Jewish men who would be taken to Babylon and made eunuchs in the king’s palace including Hezekiah’s descendants (II Kings 20:12-19).  Nebuchadnezzar was only able to capture these young men because God allowed him to in order to fulfill God’s purpose.  There would be a time later in Nebuchadnezzar’s life that he would recognize God as the sovereign Ruler over all the earth (Daniel 4:34-37).

Ashpenaz, the official who presided over the eunuchs in the palace, was responsible to select the best for service to the king.  A eunuch was a man who had been castrated, surgically disabling him to produce sperm, eliminating his sex drive, and thus making him impotent.  This way they could be used to work among the harems and the princesses as servants and butlers to keep their mind on their work and not on the women.  To the Jews, this was a repugnant practice, and they would not allow it on those who served them.  For those who were castrated, it was a mark of shame and defilement.  Scripture doesn’t state that Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were castrated, but most likely they were since it had been prophesied by Isaiah, and it was a common practice among heathen nations.

There were certain qualities that Ashpenaz was to look for in those Jewish men that he would select for service to the king.  They had to be handsome which seems ironic since they had their manhood taken from them.  Looks are everything to the world.  Society uses physical appearance as a measure of worth, “But the LORD looketh on the heart” (I Samuel 16:7).  The young men chosen were to be wise with an intelligent scientific mind.  The Babylonians religion was based on science and nature.  Their god was Bel, called Merodach, a sun god, and his festival was in the spring when nature reawakened.  It was evident that the Babylonians intended to influence the young men of Judah to leave the God of Israel behind and join them in idol worship.  The young men were also to be teachable to learn the language and ways of their captors.  It was obvious that Nebuchadnezzar had many plans for these young men but did not take into account the devotion and loyalty they had for Jehovah God.

The Babylonians believed that rich food, wine, and delicacies were necessary for proper growth and health.  All the young men chosen were to be fed this rich food for three years while they were schooled in the arts and literature, and then were to be brought before the king for his inspection and approval.  To assimilate these men into Babylonian life, Nebuchadnezzar had changed their Hebrew names to Babylonian names.  Daniel (“God is my judge”) became Belteshazzar (“may Bel protect his life”).  Hananiah (“Jehovah was favored”) was changed to Shadrach (“circuit of the sun”).  Mishael (“who is like God”) was called Meshach (“ram”), and Azariah (“helped by Jehovah”) was named Abednego (“servant of the mercury god”).  (Lots of folks pronounce Abednego as Abendego, but the “d” comes before the “n”).  Names were significant in ancient times.  A name often foretold the future personality and /or how a person’s life would manifest itself.

Daniel had made a definite decision to not defile himself with the food that the king required for him and his three fellow captives.  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were also faithful followers of the LORD God of Israel, and neither would they defile themselves before God.  I would imagine that when they were together, they called each other by their Hebrew names.  It may have disgusted them to be called by names which were designated to promote the false gods of Babylon, but they knew that they must not confront their captors in any way.  When Jeremiah was warning the people of Judah prior to captivity, he told them that God commanded that they do not fight against the Babylonians, but rather go peacefully, settle down, and be cooperative because they would be there for 70 years (Jeremiah 29:4-7).  Protest or confrontation would likely bring execution.

Believers are to follow the laws of those who are in authority over us unless their laws conflict with what God has commanded us.  In our day, this principle seems to be coming more into play than ever before.  These four young Jewish men desired to live and not rock the boat, but their greater desire was to obey and honor the God of Israel.  What were they going to do?

Next time:  Obedience Matters