Nebuchadnezzar’s, the king of Babylon, has just conquered Jerusalem. He not only defeated the king of Judah, Jehoiakim, but also took sacred items out of the Temple of God as war spoils. Nebuchadnezzar also took Jerusalem’s elite as captives and selected four young men to be trained in the ways and culture of Babylon in order to serve in his kingdom. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah (the latter three later becoming known as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego) were hand selected by the king for royal service. In addition to the name changes, they were to learn the Babylonian language, culture and customs.
These four young men obviously had no choice, but there was pushback on their end. They were to be given a portion of the king’s food and drink. Being that these young men were Hebrew, the food more than likely went against their dietary requirements and was probably offered to idols. So they requested a vegetarian diet that fit more with their Hebrew custom. Scripture records that as a result of avoiding the food that Nebuchadnezzar offered, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were healthier and better suited for service than those consuming the king’s diet.
In this chapter, we see a theme of identity. The young men were captured from their homeland and given new names. Names in the Bible are significant because they not only represented a person’s family identity, but their purpose. The Babylonian king intended to erase their Hebrew heritage. But these men refused to forget where they came from. This is evidenced in their refusal to partake in the king’s food and wine. Just as Daniel and his companions were foreigners in an unfamiliar land, Scripture tells us that as Christians, we are in this world but not of it. And our identity is in Christ. Because of this, no matter where we find ourselves, we must seek to obey Christ and not compromise our convictions with worldly culture. We are foreigners living in this world, but our true citizenship is God’s Kingdom.
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